[rjtrials]

There is plenty of information available about periodizing ones climbing training for maximum benefit.  I have been wondering if anybody has done the same with their fingerboarding ?  Either on its own or in conjunction with the movement and energy system trainging?

Strength phase would be the Maisch or Lopez method.
10s max weight 3-5 min rest

Strength Endurance
5s on 10s off

Endurance
7s on 3s off
or
Hangboard Ladders - http://www.climbstrong.com/articles/20130716

[the_dom]

I remember trying something like this ages ago and not finishing it.

The protocol was:
- Strength - 3 weeks of building up to 15 to 25 second hangs on a set of holds that you can only hang for 10-odd seconds (in some cases, this would require adding weight), followed by a rest week
- Power - 3 weeks of adding weight to max out the hangs at 6 to 8 seconds on the same holds, followed by a rest week
- Power endurance - 3 weeks of repeaters on the same holds, followed by crushing

I didn't get to the crushing bit because I got bored.

[TheTwig]

My understanding was that was most of the gains from finger boarding are neurological, and that's why it's cycled into a program for 4 weeks, as gains trail off once you have mined the pot of gold. What with how slowly tendons develop and get stronger I'm not sure what hang boarding for 9 weeks would really achieve? Maybe I'm completely wrong and someone will chime in with a better response, but that's the justification I've seen in most training programmes that include a hangboard phase

[shark]

The neurological gains are the nice quick gains but maybe for long lasting improvement the other hyper trophy sort is more desirable. Plenty of people fingerboard for most of the year though fresh stimulus through varying routines is worth experimenting with. For a periodised programme get hold of a copy of the Eva Lopez chart that comes with her fingerboard.

[krymson]

Still mind-boggled how people pull these training regimens off while still trying hard on the wall or rock and not injure themselves to pieces.

[jwi]

This is a fairly strange question. Are you competing in fingerboarding? Most climbers would perhaps apply perodisation to training for climbing and then figure where fingerboarding sit in the programme

[mctrials23]

Most of the plans I have seen sacrifice climbing for fingerboarding. Perhaps 2 fingerboard sessions a week and one climbing. Thats obviously dependant on what sort of climbing you are doing as you can climb as much as you like really as long as its low enough intensity.

Once my A2 is fully better I am going to start a fingerboard plan and knock my climbing down to once session a week of max bouldering.

[Pako]

I have found the best way to fingerboard is after a good bouldering session. I find that this warms me up far more effectively than the fingerboard, and I get a good hour or more of hard bouldering. Really it seems to me that sacrificing bouldering on a steep board for fingerboarding is silly. Case in point, for the past couple weeks I haven't fingerboarded at all, and only bouldered on my board a lot. I just did a fb session after 90 minutes of bouldering, and I smashed my old PBs out of the water. FB is helpful for seeing how strong you are, and for just perfecting raw one arm hanging ability, but its useless without bouldering. I also don't see why so many advocate long fingerboard sessions - if you're training for bouldering it seems to me that 3 max one arm hangs on each arm with a pulley, and a couple hard max hangs on slopey pockets with front, middle and back 2 is all you need. If you do 45 minute or longer fb sessions the likelihood for injury is higher, and by that point you will be training endurance, not strength.

[jwi]

Most of the plans I have seen sacrifice climbing for fingerboarding. Perhaps 2 fingerboard sessions a week and one climbing.

Anyone who sacrifices two climbing sessions a week for finger boarding doesn't want to become better at climbing.
(Or is doing more than 5 sessions of climbing/week anyway)

[mctrials23]

Anyone who sacrifices two climbing sessions a week for finger boarding doesn't want to become better at climbing.
(Or is doing more than 5 sessions of climbing/week anyway)

What do you mean? I have seen plenty of top climbers say that they saw the biggest gains in finger strength when they completed a fingerboard focussed training plan. The ones that go into more detail quite often explain that they don't climb hard as much during that phase either due to the intensity of fingerboarding they are doing and the requirements of more rest.

They may have a light session more times a week but max hangs twice a week and 2 max bouldering sessions would kill me. I would simply be unable to perform well in all 4 activities.

[Three Nine]

Most of the plans I have seen sacrifice climbing for fingerboarding. Perhaps 2 fingerboard sessions a week and one climbing.

Anyone who sacrifices two climbing sessions a week for finger boarding doesn't want to become better at climbing.
(Or is doing more than 5 sessions of climbing/week anyway)

One of the stupider things i've read on here.

[Pako]

If you are a top climber that isn't getting much better at climbing, concentrating on one arming everything on the BM at the expense of bouldering would probably help, but I doubt many of us plebs are finding themselves in a strength bottleneck that limits their climbing.

[slackline]

One of the stupider things i've read on here.

I'm guessing you don't read your own posts?

[Three Nine]

One of the stupider things i've read on here.

I'm guessing you don't read your own posts?

[mctrials23]

 

If you are a top climber that isn't getting much better at climbing, concentrating on one arming everything on the BM at the expense of bouldering would probably help, but I doubt many of us plebs are finding themselves in a strength bottleneck that limits their climbing.

Finger strength is something almos every climber is held back by. I have seen plenty of weak as kittens climbers that are crushing because their fingers are strong. You don't see it the other way round.

[abarro81]

On the other hand, I've seen plenty of really strong climbers that aren't crushing anything because they're shit at climbing rocks... (Not saying that fingerboarding is bad, just pointing out that strength isn't everything.)

[mctrials23]

On the other hand, I've seen plenty of really strong climbers that aren't crushing anything because they're shit at climbing rocks... (Not saying that fingerboarding is bad, just pointing out that strength isn't everything.)

Oh for sure but we are talking about fingerboard periodisation and discussing how you can manage it alongside climbing. If you want to see the greatest finger strength improvement you probably won't want to climb as regularly as if you weren't focussing on fingers.

It's obviously a completely personal thing and yes, some people would benefit more from simply climbing.

[TobyD]

On the other hand, I've seen plenty of really strong climbers that aren't crushing anything because they're shit at climbing rocks... (Not saying that fingerboarding is bad, just pointing out that strength isn't everything.)

Oh for sure but we are talking about fingerboard periodisation and discussing how you can manage it alongside climbing. If you want to see the greatest finger strength improvement you probably won't want to climb as regularly as if you weren't focussing on fingers.

It's obviously a completely personal thing and yes, some people would benefit more from simply climbing.

obviously, its worth binning climbing for a fingerboard if it effectively targets a weakness more effectively (and measureably) than climbing. If its because you love fingerboarding and aren't bothered about climbing rocks, great, do loads of it. If you do masses of it because you feel better on a fingerboard than actually climbing, but are bothered about rocks, then burn it and go climbing. Unless you are Shark, in which case all sources of ignition are probably best avoided

[Pako]

I also find that my finger strength (as in the duration of time I can one arm hang an edge on the beastmaker) increases far more when I boulder 4 times a week and sporadically fingerboard, rather than when I fingerboard more and climb less.

[blamo]

Pako, what type of bouldering do you focus on?  My gym sets lots of throws to jugs and so my finger strength tanks if I boulder too much at my gym.  On the other hand, my woody is a bunch of small crimps so I find my finger strength improves when time is spent on the woody.  Go figure...

[Pako]

I only boulder on my woody, which is a bunch of small wooden crimps and pinches - 2 jugs. The dream.

[mctrials23]

Thats not entirely surprising if you are bouldering on small crimps on a home board. That is probably the best way to get stronger fingers alongside fingerboarding. I don't have access to a wall that has a board with loads of small crimps on it unless I get on a 50deg board which is just too overhung to be that useful for pure finger strength.

[Pako]

I only boulder on a 50 degree board. I don't see why people say that less steep boards are better for developing better finger strength. On a less steep board you are putting more weight through your feet, so your fingers are bearing less weight, even though the holds are worse. You can put bad holds on a 50, you just need to be strong enough to use them. You get strong enough by climbing on a 50 with better holds. I mean if you use a slopey pinch on a 30, and an incut pinch on a 50, then theoretically you would be pinching with the same strength on both angles, taking into account the weight put through your feet. A little logical pseudo-science never hurt anyone I suppose. Old mate Johnny G trained on a 50 in his bouldering days, and I'd wager that his finger strength could be considered pretty good. So yeah just get a 50 mate.

[petejh]

I'd question the original idea. The way I understood things is it's all about strength for fingers and fitness for forearms but happy to be shown wrong. What the O.P. seems to be suggesting is that the finger structure suffers from an energy-system type failure mechanism during hard climbing.

The forearm muscles suffer from an energy-system failure, i.e. the mass of forearm muscle not being able to efficiently contract due to its inability to clear away waste product built up during anerobic muscle contractions (and depletion of limited store of ATP etc. etc.).

The finger's role in failure is the tendons not being strong enough to exert sufficient force (force produced by forearm muscle contractions) onto small holds.

Different reasons for failure = different training emphasis.

So I'd question the usefullness of training fingers like forearms i.e. endurance-strength-strength endurance.

[blamo]

I don't have any experience with periodizing my hangboarding beyond switching out grips or types of workout (repeater vs. maximum).  I tend to do this just to avoid plateauing.  So after doing ~5 workouts of a specific grip type and workout protocol I swap it out for a different grip or protocol.