Technique training is, perhaps, the most weighty content in the initial stages of a climber and for this reason there are those who criticize or complain when newbies in this beautiful sport ask about strength training or physical preparation . But in life few things are black or white, and everything has its pros, cons and its place.
For a person without contraindications, well-planned, structured strength training with correct technical execution will rarely be counterproductive in order to improve as a climber. In fact, the better you are, the more you will perform.
This routine is aimed at climbers without experience in sports training and with a climbing level below 6th.
With this we do not mean that locking yourself in a weight room is the best means to chain a 9a (very high level), of course it is necessary to train in rock or resin, but if you have time, facilities, means and above all, you win , is very useful content in order to improve performance and prevent injuries . In addition, the sooner we start training with bodybuilding exercises, the sooner we will learn to use a correct technique for them. In the long term, this is very important to train safely since the intensity in high-level athletes has to increase in order to stimulate the corresponding adaptations.
So some benefits of working out strength despite being novice climbers will be:
- Technical learning of the exercises
- Increase in overall strength
- Gradual adaptation of the connective tissue (pay attention to the tendons!)
- Decrease in fat percentage
- Injury prevention
We will propose a single routine (and not divided as in bodybuilding) that should be repeated 2 times a week. With this we will achieve a complete recovery of the muscle groups and joints involved.
The progression of the exercises will be vertical. This means that we will do the series of the first exercise, we will rest, then the first of the second, we will rest, etc. Until completing a series of all the exercises in the routine. Then we will go on to perform the second series of each exercise… Instead, bodybuilders use a horizontal progression, in which the first series of the first exercise is done, then the second, then the third and then we move on to the next exercise.
The reason for this is that in this way we will minimize the effects of sarcoplasmic hypertrophy, less useful and typical of bodybuilding, creating stronger muscles but not as large.
To complete the routine we will do 3 series of 15 repetitions for each exercise, except for the isometric plank that will be controlled by time.
- Dominated
- Horizontal pulley row
- Finger curl
- Bench press
- Triceps dips in parallel
- Vertical deltoid row
- Russian belt squats
- External arm rotations
- Hanging knee raises
- Isometric plate (60 ”)
References :
- TOUS, J: New trends in strength training . Ergo, 1999.
- HÖRST, E: How to train and climb better . Slope, 1996.
