Rock climbing, training, and injury

I love to climb. Over the last eight years, I’ve been lucky, and grateful, to climb in beautiful destinations in Canada and abroad. I’ve sport climbed in Thailand, crack climbed in Utah, and bouldered in California. When it really comes down to it though, Squamish is definitely my favourite place to climb.

I have quite a bit of experience climbing, including some personal injuries. Thankfully, due to my training as a physiotherapist, I’ve developed a better understanding of how to adapt my climbing and training  habits in ways that can reduce my risk of future injuries.

Injuries can occur unexpectedly from accidental occurrences like foot slips. But they can also occur from poor body mechanics or from poor training habits. Being tired is part of the sport but it can also affect risk. The holds we train, and the diversity of holds we train, matters a lot. (Climbers that overdo crimpy routes, I’m looking at you.) I have seen injuries from climbers that didn’t dedicate enough time to recovery. And I have seen injuries among climbers that do hang-boarding before or after their sessions throughout the week, rather than dedicating days solely to training.

Fatigue and tissue tolerance are two important factors that are predictive of future injuries. The good news is that both can be managed with adequate amounts of rest and variation in training loads.

If you have been dealing with injuries that seem to keep cropping up, or you’re interested in how to prevent climbing injuries, get in touch. I’m happy to help you.

Until then, stay safe, climb hard, and maybe, just maybe, take a rest day.

Happy climbing!