Training for Climbing, 2nd: The Definitive Guide to Improving Your Performance (How To Climb Series)

your shoulder and upper back. Hold the stretch for ten seconds. Release the stretch for a few seconds before repeating for twenty seconds more. You can stretch the shoulder muscles more completely by slowly working your bent elbow up and down a few inches from the horizontal position. Repeat this stretch with the other arm.

     
    Shoulder, chest, and biceps stretch.
     

     
    Rhomboids and trapezius stretch.
     

TRICEPS, SHOULDERS, AND LATISSIMUS STRETCH
     
    Stand erect with arms overhead and bent at the elbows. Grab one elbow and gently pull it toward the back of your head until you feel a stretch in the back of your upper arm. Hold the stretch for ten seconds. Release the stretch for a few seconds, and then perform a secondary stretch for about twenty seconds. You can extend this stretch down through the shoulder and the side of your back by leaning sideways slightly in the direction the elbow is being pulled. Repeat this stretch with your other arm.
SHOULDERS AND UPPER-TORSO STRETCH
     
    This is a great climbers’ stretch because it works many of the shoulder and upper-back muscles that are so used and abused in climbing. Stand erect and extend your arms overhead. Cross your wrists, place your palms together, and interlace your fingers. Now reach your fingertips toward the sky and feel the stretch through your shoulders and upper back. Hold this extended position for ten seconds and then lower your hands to release the tension. Repeat the stretch a second time, but this time reach for the sky and then move your hands backward a few inches to enhance the stretch.

     
    Triceps, shoulders, and latissimus stretch.
     

     
    Shoulders and upper-torso stretch.
     

Lower-Torso and Leg Stretches
     
    The legs, hips, and lower back are areas where many climbers benefit from improved flexibility. Greater hip turnout, stemming, and high-stepping ability in particular will markedly improve your center-of-gravity placement on vertical routes and quality of movement on all routes. While your ultimate degree of flexibility is largely a function of genetics, dedicated daily stretching will produce some gains in functional flexibility. You will need to decide if targeted flexibility training of your lower body is a good use of training-for-climbing time. Is lack of flexibility holding you back on the rock? Quite often it’s hard to tell, since inadequate lower-back, hip, and leg flexibility will sabotage efficient movement and climbing technique in very subtle ways. It would thus be wise for all climbers to engage in a modest amount of lower-body stretching, both as part of a pre-performance warm-up and as a rest-day flexibility-training activity. Here are eight stretches to put to use beginning today.
BUTTOCKS AND LOWER-BACK STRETCH
     
    This stretch will improve hip flexion and help facilitate high-stepping. Lie flat on your back with both legs straight. Bend one leg and grasp it behind the thigh or over the top of the knee, and pull it toward your chest. Hold the stretch for ten seconds, then release for a few seconds. Pull the bent leg toward your chest again for a secondary stretch of about twenty seconds. Repeat with the other leg.

     
    Buttocks and lower-back stretch.
     

     
    Hamstrings stretch.
     

     
    Adductor stretch.
     

HAMSTRINGS STRETCH
     
    The muscles along the back of the thigh are chronically tight in many climbers, thus restricting stem and high-step movements. Lie flat on your back with one leg straight and the other bent, with the sole of that foot flat on the floor next to your opposite knee. Lift the straight leg upward, grab it behind the thigh or calf, and pull gently forward until you feel the stretch down the back of the leg. Hold this stretch for ten seconds, and then release it slightly for a few seconds. Pull the leg once again for another twenty- to thirty-second stretch. Be sure to maintain a straight leg all the while. Repeat with your other leg. You can also work this stretch by looping a fitness band over your foot and regulating the stretch by pulling on the band, or by having a partner apply pressure on your leg using the PNF stretching technique described below under “Tips for Safe and Effective Flexibility Training.”
ADDUCTOR STRETCH
     
    This wall stretch is one of the very best lower-body stretches for climbers. Lying on the floor eliminates strain on the lower back and allows you to relax and let gravity do the work. Wearing socks will reduce friction between your heels and