Resistance Band Training for Climbers
Whether you do free climbing, mountain climbing, or indoor climbing, you need to work all your body muscles. You need to have strong core muscles to help you climb better and powerful leg and arm muscles for endurance. You also need excellent balance to make crossings or to move up rock faces.
Resistance bands are excellent for a full-body workout that goes easy on your joints and improves your flexibility and balance. When you train with resistance bands, you are strengthening not only large muscle groups but the connective tissues around your joints that can protect you from injury.
Here follows a complete resistance band training for climbers.
Note: Make sure to warm up before exercising with 5 to 10 minutes of easy cardio, such as jumping jacks. Complement this training with 2 to 3 weekly cardio sessions, such as swimming or rowing. Cardio sessions will help improve your climbing endurance.
#1 Banded calf raises
For this exercise, you will need a long resistance band, such as a pull-up assist band (like this one https://victoremgear.com/products/pull-up-assist-band).
Calf raises strengthen your calves and help you when you're slab climbing.
#2 Banded knee squats
This exercise will help build power in your thighs, preparing you for when you're on a climb, and you need a lot of strength to stand up.
#3 Banded chest flies
Chest flies work your chest and back muscles, which help you in steeper climbing with compression moves.
#4 Banded side planks with overhead press
This exercise works your triceps, deltoids, and upper trapezoid muscles. These muscles are what will help you pull yourself up during a climb.
Note: You can make this exercise more accessible by bending both knees or crossing your top leg over your lower leg.
Here's what this exercise looks like.
#5 Banded Russian twists
Russian twists work your obliques, your hip flexors, your core, and your spine.
Enjoy your resistance band training for climbers!
Following is a detailed outline of the health and safety practice actions we have taken to comply with Worksafe BC, BC Health Officer, and Best Practices gathered from a variety of Climbing & Fitness professional associations. We are all in this together!
Ventilation and Physical Barriers
Guest Hygiene
Facility Hygiene
Physical Distancing
Occupancy Limits - we limit the number of people in the gym and monitoring this with a new Density people-counting sensor. You can contact us anytime and find out how busy the gym is and how much room there is to train.Have you completed our new registration/waiver form since we re-opened on May 25th? If not, please go to:
To our valued community,
Our doors have been closed for a week but it feels like a decade. Some of you have left Whistler to be closer to family & friends, while others call Whistler home and remain.
Some of you have inquired about your current membership. All Core term memberships, and 10 & 20 visit memberships continue to be paused and Cancel Anytime Memberships remain suspended to ensure no automatic payments are processed during this temporary closure.
We miss you all and your amazing energy. Whistler Core is a place where you work hard, challenge yourself, hang with friends, and share your stories. Our routines have changed, life has changed but you haven’t. Join us in staying connected and share your stories of how you are staying strong and challenging yourself.
Creativity is a key to staying fit. There are oodles of online at-home workouts. Need help getting started? Here are a few we like and they are free on Youtube. Have your own favourites – share them with us too.
Climbers – power endurance: https://bit.ly/2UDi9WV
Yoga: https://bit.ly/2QJ92CW
Cycling: https://bit.ly/39hLqvs
General Fitness – right way to start the day: https://bit.ly/3dxMK0L
General Fitness – strength and flexibility: https://bit.ly/2y9OjBP
By creating a new routine in our changing lifestyle, that still includes daily exercise, you can help maintain your physical and mental fitness. Meanwhile, please play your part, keep informed, be calm and stay healthy.
Much love and appreciation to you, our community!
Sincerely,
Bob, Corinne and the whole Team at the Whistler Core
#whistler #fitnesswhistler #climbingwhistler #indoorclimbingwhistler#mountainfitness #climbingismypassion
If you are experiencing elbow pain from climbing, Dr. Julian Saunder's article is a worthwhile read to help you understand what is causing the pain and a program to help relieve the pain.
For more information: Dodgy-Elbows
Taping your hands for crack climbing is a skill that can make or break your crack climbing experience. Recommend planning ahead and taping your hands before you trash them.
For two great methods for taping your hands for crack climbing, check out Beth
Rodden's video on how to tape your hands for crack climbing.
Bob and Joe taking advantage of some unusually warm winter weather and getting out for a climb on Finestone Cowboy on the Showcase Spire at the top of the Blackcomb Mountain.