[chriss01]

Hi
Im new here and i have a question.
Today i was looking around the internet for the Eva Lopez training plan and found a couple of videos. In one of them she explains the technique that one should use:

So i always thought you should keep your ellbows slightly bent?
Then i realised that i bed my ellbows a lot more (probably between 90-120°). Is this bad?
Also when locking off at 90°, do you activly engage your shoulder? Or does this happen automatically anyway?

Sorry. I feel a bit dumb that i cant even do something as simple as hanging from an edge correct.

cheers
chriss

[jwi]

If you hang with arms bent you will be able to hang from smaller holds. How much smaller depends on your shoulder/core strength. Thus, to be able to better measure progress in actual finger strength some people suggest hanging with straight arms.

Other people say that hanging with straight arms leads to elbow injuries. I have seen no proof of this claim other than appeal to authority.

Do as you will.

[thekettle]

Your shoulders aren't guaranteed to engage properly when you dead hang or lock-off at 90deg. As a very general guide if your shoulders have rolled forward into your peripheral vision, or risen up to near your ears (squashing your trapezius) then shoulder instability is worth addressing.

[chriss01]

thanks for the help.
i am glad i can keep hanging with my arms bent, because i dont really know what to do with my feet when arms are straight. (i'm really tall and my doorway is not that high)

I terms of shoulder stability i think i'm doing fine, i was just wondering if you actually think about pulling your shoulders down when locking off. (in the same way you would when on a straight arm).

cheers
chriss

[LB1782]

Thought I'd resurrect this thread to ask about form when deadhanging:

I've just started a phase of fingerboarding and I am getting lower back pain. There must be something I'm getting wrong about the correct form.

As I understand it the thighs should be near vertical with the calves pointed back behind at an angle. Is this OK?

Do people consciously try to tilt the pelvis in one direction or another; what about when adding or subtracting weight?

[Nibile]

Lower back pain can be caused by pushing legs and feet behind you, this is done because it shifts the center of gravity forward, more under the holds that you're hanging, to make the hang easier or last for longer. This goes along with shoulder issues because tehy tend to lock behind your head and neck.
As for adding weight, attaching it on the front increases the anterior tilt of the pelvis, which can cause lower back pain due to the hyperflexion.
So, attach weights on the back or shift to one arm taking some weight off with a pulley.

[LB1782]

Thank you Nibile,

I am removing weight via the harness belay loop at the front and adding via the haul loop at the back.

Lower back pain can be caused by pushing legs and feet behind you, this is done because it shifts the center of gravity forward, more under the holds that you're hanging, to make the hang easier or last for longer.

Suggests I am being too ambitious with the resistance. I'll back off the weight, try to not let my legs go backward and see how that goes.

[Nibile]

No probs, I hope you solve your lower back issues!

[mctrials23]

Anything over 40kg added to the front of my harness was seriously hurting my back so I decided to move to one arm hangs instead. Taking weight off and using one arm is much better in my opinion.

[Sasquatch]

Different strokes

if you make sure your shoulders are engaged (think pulling your shoulder blades down your back) you'll be in a much better position.  Also, when I'm doing deadhang training I start with a few easy hangs to make sure the form is good, and when the form starts to go, I drop off as a failure.  i.e. if I'm doing a half crimp and my fingers start to open, I'm done with the hang.  If my shoulders start to pull up towards the ears, I'm done. if  I have to curl my pelvis to get that last few seconds, I'm done.  When your form starts to drop is when you get int tweaky positions.  Remember that you're "training", not performing...

[Nibile]

Remember that you're "training", not performing...

Ahah! For a second I almost thought that you were being serious.

[rich d]

FFS I know I need to work on my technique for actual climbing, but now I find out I've got shit technique in dead hanging too... Well at least there's dips.

[standard]

Anything over 40kg added to the front of my harness was seriously hurting my back so I decided to move to one arm hangs instead. Taking weight off and using one arm is much better in my opinion.

bloody hell. don't hang this amount of weight on a harness. as you've noticed, it hurts.
get a dipping belt. i can hang 50kg off mine and barely notice it.

[LB1782]

Also seems like I've been putting my stopwatch in a stoopid place. It was too high up and I was extending weirdly trying to look up at it.

[duncan]

Lower back pain can be caused by pushing legs and feet behind you, this is done because it shifts the center of gravity forward, more under the holds that you're hanging, to make the hang easier or last for longer. This goes along with shoulder issues because tehy tend to lock behind your head and neck.
As for adding weight, attaching it on the front increases the anterior tilt of the pelvis, which can cause lower back pain due to the extension.
So, attach weights on the back or shift to one arm taking some weight off with a pulley.

Agree with all of this for LB1782. Adding a weight to the front might be fine for others of course.

The stopwatch position is a good point that might not be immediately obvious.

[Nibile]

Yes, hyperextension, sorry.

[shark]

If you hang with arms bent you will be able to hang from smaller holds. How much smaller depends on your shoulder/core strength.

(If true) what is the basis for this ? Ive never noticed but maybe my core isn't strong enough to notice.

[jwi]

I can hang smaller holds if I bend my arms a bit, roll my shoulders forward and lean back a bit. Seems to be true for many

[Nibile]

It's not only bent arms, it's a full body squeeze, in desperate hangs.
I think it's due to major nervous and muscular recruitment.