A vertical workout challenges your body and your mind. Rock climbing is an intense upper-body workout that leaves you feeling breathless and exhilarated. You reach the top of the rock, or wall, by the strength and power of your body. Although you are not Spider Man who climbs walls using mainly his arms, your upper body provides the majority of the strength for your climbing workout.
Climb On
Rock climbing is typically performed in a vertical motion. You secure yourself to a harness and to a rope that hangs from the ceiling or the top of the rock. The other end of the rope is secured into your partner's harness. Your partner will take up the slack in the rope as you climb, and if you fall will hold onto the tight rope to suspend you in the air. Begin top-rope climbing at the bottom of the rock or wall, and climb straight up until you reach the top. Another type of climbing called bouldering does not use a straight up and down pattern. Depending on the height of the climb, you will not need a harness or rope. Bouldering is climbing slightly upward, but mostly sideways across the face of the wall or rock.
Push/ Pull
Top-rope climbing and bouldering require your upper body to hold you to the wall and to move you up or across the rock. The motion you perform is pulling or tugging as you fight to keep your body close to the wall. Pulling uses the muscles in your back, shoulders, biceps and forearms, all upper-body muscles, to keep you ascending the rock.
Injuries
Evidence of just how much upper body is used during rock climbing is seen in the number of upper-body injuries from the sport. According to the September 2009 issue of the "American Journal of Preventive Medicine," an estimated nine million people participate in rock climbing each year in the United States. Researchers N.G. Nelson and L.B. McKenzie analyzed information collected from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System and found approximately 40,282 people were treated in emergency rooms for climbing-related injuries between 1990 and 2007. While falls were the most common reasons for injuries, overuse injuries to the upper body were more likely to occur than to the lower body.
Technique
To avoid overuse injuries, climb with proper technique. Speak to trained instructors at an indoor climbing gym to learn how to climb. Warm up your body before you place your hands on the wall. Walk around the base of the rock, swing your arms in circles or push your hands up and down over your head. Once on the wall, keep your body close to the rock to avoid hanging from your arms. When you pause to look for the next handhold, support your weight on your lower body. Place your hands on solid holds for balance, and when you see a patch of rock that requires mostly upper-body strength, move through it quickly.
References
- Climbing; Tech Tip Training -- Targeted Opposition; Stacy McCooey, MSPT
- ESPNHS; Roll Into Your Upcoming Season in Great Shape by Giving Rock Climbing a Shot; Dimity McDowell; August 2011
- Indoor Climbing: Rock Climbing Technique, Performance and Climbing Tips
- "American Journal of Preventive Medicine"; Rock Climbing Injuries Treated in Emergency Departments in the U.S., 1990- 2007; N.G. Nelson, et al.; September 2009
Member Comments