Training

An expert looks at the physiology and training of older climbers by age group, from 45 to 50, from 50 to 60 and beyond.

It's the world's most convenient workout. And the possibilities are endless.

It's easy to push your training too far, and get injured or see negative progress because you are doing too much. Knowing when to end a training session can be subtle. Here's a climbing coach's tips for guiding you through these murky waters.

The reality is that you likely need to eliminate some training protocols and narrow your focus to become a better climber.

Not many will argue that hitting the fingerboard will improve your climbing grade, but if simply going climbing is just as effective...

More climbers than ever are stirring collagen into their morning coffee, or snacking on gelatin, trying to keep their tendons healthy. But are these supplements actually helping?

Your shoulders are crucial to climbing—they are the axles around which all upper-body climbing movement rotates. We ask a lot of them and their fragile ligaments and tendons. Strengthening them is imperative to progressing.

How Jonathan Siegrist, possibly the most prolific sport climber in the United States, trained his anti-style and went from a vertical crimp specialist to a steep cave crusher.

Busy life and can't get to the climbing gym or rocks mid-week? Try this quick strength-building workout.

Pelvic problems are overwhelmingly prevalent—but they do not need to be accepted as part of life.

Improve faster and avoid injuries by climbing just below your limit—roughly 80 percent of your maximum ability—about 90 percent of the time.

Climbers do a lot of random exercises in hopes of getting more power. But the most effective thing they can do is adjust how they lift weights.

You can climb even harder when you get older, but you need to follow a specific training plan that balances endurance, strength, and power equally—emphasis on plan.

Improving your mental-game can be easy. Seriously.

Professional climber and coach Neil Gresham's advice for training yourself to grip holds just enough, and not so much you waste power.

If you can't use the hold, you can't do the move. If you can't do the move, you won't do the route. Nina Williams makes the case for why sport climbers must train power

This circuit is designed to strengthen injury-prone areas and weak spots in a quick 15 minutes.

Utilize the relaxing breath to improve on-route performance.

Here's your checklist to stay injury-free out on the blocks.

There’s a fatal flaw to many climbers’ training regimen: monotony. Get strong by having fun.

Achieve even strength on both sides of your upper body for harder sends

I’d like to propose the following DIY tools for staying fit. By embracing the current hipster ethos of artisanal, hand-built, small-batch wares, we can still stay fit easily and with very little cash outlay.

Don’t believe that this resting exercise will improve your climbing and change your life in only 5 minutes a day? Try it for one month and get back to me.

As we age, does climbing hard go out the door? According to hard data, the answer is yes—and no.

With such a wealth of training information out there, it’s hard to know where to start. For some of us, simpler is better, as with this easy gym workout you can do solo, once or twice a week, either to maintain fitness gains or even push to the next level.

Steep approaches, weighty loads, and full days make climbing in the alpine a serious affair. Likewise, climbers with big alpine goals should take their training seriously.

One great way to feel weak and damage your confidence or your tendons? Fail to warm up properly.

Training too hard and too much without allowing adequate rest and recovery can quickly get us into an overtraining cycle, which ultimately stunts progress.

Learn to use your legs, because finger strength is useless on its own.

What statistics can tell you about training to be a better climber.

Alongside a group of climbing-oriented phsyio students, "The Climbing Doctor" lays out how you can become your most powerful self.

Arousal regulation and mental toughness are crucial for success on climbs at your limit. Knowing when to activate your mind and how to control it takes practice, and here Justen Sjong shares his insight.

A slow, steady, and multi-phased warmup will prepare your body to work hard and make your training safer and more efficient. (From 2015)

Sendhaus™ is the premier facility for affluent millenials that heard rock climbing was a great workout.

The planning of sports training is 10 per cent science and 90 per cent art—but don’t turn your nose up at this 10 per cent!

We interviewed the 24-year-old Spanish phenom about his new 5.15c. Díaz-Rullo became the eighth climber (and first Spaniard) to climb the grade

Being able to hold and control crimps is one of the most useful skills you can have in your climbing arsenal. (From 2021)

Neil Gresham digs into simulation training—replicating specific moves and segments of routes and problems so you can do the impossible.

Coaches Justen Sjong and Juan Usubillaga offer tips on how to train on plastic to become better climbers both outside and in.

Climbers must build strength, encourage flexibility, and practice proper movement patterns—throughout the body—to prevent injury.

Some love a nice cold beer after a long day's crimping. Others worry it will limit their strength gains. Who's right?

Most of us train using unscientific and unproven methods. Here's what the experts say you should and shouldn't be doing.

Kathryn Perkinson, a 5.10 climber, set herself a goal: climb her first 5.12 in just seven months. And she achieved it. Here's how.

How moving sideways has pushed me up.

Let’s dive into the nitty-gritty of climbing physiology and then discuss training takeaways. This is Part I of a science-based series on how to train smarter to climb better.

Even if caves and steep routes aren't your thing, one can never have enough core strength.

Train anytime, anywhere with this no-equipment-necessary workout

Matt Samet describes his experience in using the MoonBoard to train for his multi-year project in Colorado.

Build long-term finger strength with structured hangboarding

Many climbers struggle to know what to do during downtime, especially on vacations when they’re away from their usual training facilities. Here's how to keep the ball rolling.

Studies point to stress itself as the culprit for accelerated fatigue; not how hard you grip.

A proper warmup will help you make the most of your climbing session and prevent long- and short-term injuries. Here's how to get started.

To climb longer and stronger, it’s important to understand our hand anatomy and how pulley injuries happen, as well as how to prevent and treat them, and to restrengthen an injured digit.

Moonboards are great and all, but training for hard, weird, outdoor moves sometimes requires something a little different.

Climbing training is hard and boring, and often requires expensive, specialized equipment. Here's how to get more swole for less work and even less money.

Want to keep your feet on, hold those swings, and move with control? Your core can help with that.

We’ve all seen videos of pros hanging one-handed from tiny holds. But when is this something the rest of us can train? And what does the progression look like? 

The climber having the most fun is the one still cranking at sunset. Here's how to keep your energy levels high.

Coaches are easy to find these days. Good coaches are harder to find.

The Brutemaker 5000 wasn't a fingerboard, it was a way of life.

Sport climbing trip coming up? Dreams of long trad routes? Here are 9 tips to help you achieve your rope-stretching, enduro-climbing goals.

Training takes time, effort and dedication—it might not be worth it.

You can train long or you can train hard, but not both—which is probably why so many of us train power so incorrectly.

“I think we’ve forgotten that in order to be good at climbing, you have to climb.”—Jonathan Siegrist, who is a nicer guy than you or me and climbs harder, too.

Hang onto precious muscle mass through training and diet as you age. Your climbing depends on it.

I asked the old man for advice, and he came through with five tried and true panaceas.

Hangboarding is one of the most sport-specific strength exercises that you can do for climbing, and the benefits translate immediately to the rock. Here's what you need to know to get stronger without getting injured.

Welcome to CLIMBING's 12-month training plan. This eight-phase series will present specific workouts based on the principles of periodization, a proven approach to training that results in peak performance. Each six-week segment will build upon the previous with the end result being a better, stronger climbing machine—you. Now, get started!

In recent years, there has been an uptick in indoor-bouldering injuries among newer climbers. Use these tips to help you boulder safely without getting injured.

Us 9-5ers want to climb 5.16, but we don’t have the time to get there because of our jobs. Well, let me let you in on a little secret: You can train for climbing all day every day with these simple exercises.

Gyms are great and all. But you can get just as strong by consciously training during your outdoor sessions.

Front levers are just plain hard. And mysterious, because they are complex movements that involve so much more than just having six-pack abs.

Not all climbing sessions are equal. Pick the wrong one and you'll waste time and not improve.

Prepare, Condition and remain consistent with these pull-up training tips from Tom Randall

Five ways to customize hangboard training to make it easier or harder.

Kettlebells are among the best supplemental workouts for targeting climbing fitness. They're also convenient and fast.

Tactics for that next-level super hard route.

Follow these five simple, experience-driven not-training tips and in just six weeks you will be no better of a climber than you are today—and possibly worse.

Sheffield's legendary training facility changed the history (and future) of our sport.

If you live far from the crags or a climbing gym—or find yourself marooned in a “climbing desert”—you need not lose sight of your climbing goals.