You Don’t Have to Hang to Build Finger Strength: A Different Approach to Finger Strength Training for Rock Climbers
Did you know you don’t have to hang on your fingers to increase their strength?
In this post, I’ll introduce a different method to test and train finger strength off the climbing wall using one of my favorite tools, the Tindeq Progressor.
Why Train Finger Strength Off the Wall?
First, let's address why it's worth training your fingers off the climbing wall. What are the benefits of supplemental strength exercises? In my opinion, there are two main goals for training finger strength off the wall.
Goal 1: Injury Prevention
Strength training has been shown to reduce injury risk. It’s all about exposure. Compared to climbing, strength training offers more intensity, better directional control, and lower volume. This kind of exposure influences the muscles, cartilage, and connective tissues in your hands and fingers, building resilience over time.
Goal 2: Improved Climbing Performance
Finger strength training doesn’t directly increase climbing performance. Instead, it helps build the capacity for more intense climbing practice. By strengthening your fingers off the wall, you can handle harder sessions on it.
The 5 Key Adaptations from Finger Strength Training
To understand how strength training transfers to climbing, let's break down the five key adaptations it offers.
Improved Coordination: Before gaining strength, you first need to become coordinated at the strength movement. When training off the wall, however, we aim for the minimum coordination needed.
Increased Voluntary Activation: This adaptation involves recruiting large, fast-twitch muscle fibers for movement.
Hypertrophy: This refers to building larger individual muscle fibers, allowing more force production. While a bigger muscle is stronger, it can contract slightly slower, so we want to avoid excessive hypertrophy.
Rate of Force Development: Despite the heavy nature of strength training, it should involve a high rate of force production.
Connective Tissue Stiffness: Strength training also stiffens structures like the annular pulleys, tendons, and joint capsules, enhancing power transfer during climbing.
Clarifying Misconceptions: Strength Exercises Aren’t "Specific"
One common misconception is that finger strength exercises need to look like climbing to be effective. But strength training exercises aren’t meant to mimic sport movements. The goal is to develop adaptations—like muscular recruitment, connective tissue stiffness, and hypertrophy—that transfer to your climbing performance.
Recap: Two Key Goals
To sum it up, finger strength training off the wall aims to:
Reduce injury risk.
Improve the quality and intensity of your climbing practice.
Testing with the Tindeq Progressor
Now that we’ve covered the physiology and debunked some myths, let's talk about using the Tindeq Progressor to test and train finger strength off the wall.
There are two methods I prefer for testing finger strength:
Pulling Method: This method involves using the arms or legs to generate force, with the fingers resisting. It reflects the strength of the larger muscles while putting more load on the connective tissues.
Curling Method: This isolates the finger flexors, reflecting pure finger strength by trying to overcome an immovable object.
Practical Considerations for Testing and Training
The testing method you choose depends on preference and equipment. For many, the pulling method might feel more familiar, but the curling method isolates the finger flexors more directly.
Once you’ve decided on the testing position, the next step is to track peak force production. You don't need to sustain maximum force for a predetermined time—just focus on the peak force achieved during each test.
For simplicity, stick with one or two grip positions that produce the most force, likely between an open hand and half-crimp position at the PIP joint.
Why Use a Strain Gauge Like the Tindeq Progressor?
There are several reasons why the Tindeq Progressor is more effective than traditional hangboards for finger strength training:
Real-time Feedback: The Progressor allows you to see how much force you’re producing during each session, helping track fatigue and progress.
Auto-Regulation: Use the Progressor before climbing to measure your readiness and adjust your session accordingly.
Identifying Plateaus: The Progressor helps you recognize when you’ve reached your strength limit, allowing for better deload and recovery strategies.
Portability: Lightweight and portable, you can easily take it to the gym or the crag for on-the-go strength tracking.
How to Train Your Fingers Using the Progressor
For finger strength training, less is more. The key is to integrate it into a larger climbing practice rather than make it the primary focus.
Start with concentric-like movements to warm up the fingers. I suggest a 3-second contraction followed by a 5-second rest for about four repetitions per hand. Gradually increase the intensity over three sets until you're at max effort.
For pulling exercises, aim for 3 seconds of tension and 5 seconds of rest between reps. The final set should be at max effort with just two reps.
Takeaways
For most climbers, this routine will be enough off-the-wall finger training. Your goal should be to expose your finger flexors to higher forces than you get from climbing, while tracking your progress to prevent fatigue and injury. Ultimately, you'll need to spend more time on the wall gaining coordination for smaller, harder holds.