[36chambers]

Does anyone else find that fingertip pain is their limiting factor when it comes to bouldering on lime?

More often than not, I have to cut my bouldering sessions short because my fingertips start to hurt too much, even though I feel completely fresh otherwise. It usually feels like I have sub-level blisters of some sort that never materialise on the surface.

Is fingertip pulp pain a thing? Am I talking nonsense? Does anyone have any good tips (pun not intended) on how to handle it?








 

[bigironhorse]

How thoroughly do you warm up? I occasionally get painful skin if I don't warm up enough before pulling on small holds, or even if I try to use small holds after a long rest (30 mins plus).

[Bradders]

My sense is that this is the sort of thing you build up over time (years) of climbing on small sharp holds. Doubt there are any shortcuts, but intrigued if there are any.

I have similar difficulty with what I can only describe as nerve pain; where limestone holds seem to dig into my finger joints and sometimes cause excruciating pain or numbness. Others always seem much more capable of handling it, and it does get better the more I climb on lime.

[tomtom]

I find this esp at the wall. It’s skin/finger pain that limits the length of my session..

[teestub]

Does anyone else find that fingertip pain is their limiting factor when it comes to bouldering on lime?

Almost always this time of year, I’m not sure if it’s because I don’t climb on the lime enough and you eventually get deadened tips, or it’s because I’m too fat (which you don’t have as an excuse).

I noticed this winter/spring training on the micros that as the weather warmed up they went from ok to really painful in a v short amount of time.

[36chambers]

How thoroughly do you warm up? I occasionally get painful skin if I don't warm up enough before pulling on small holds, or even if I try to use small holds after a long rest (30 mins plus).

It takes me ages to warm up in general, but I've never thought about it in terms of warming up my fingertips. I'll see if it has any effect. Cheers.

[36chambers]

I find this esp at the wall. It’s skin/finger pain that limits the length of my session..

Interesting, I don't seem to have any issues with this indoors despite how hard I'm trying or how small the holds are. It could be because I tired myself in other ways first though

Almost always this time of year, I’m not sure if it’s because I don’t climb on the lime enough and you eventually get deadened tips, or it’s because I’m too fat (which you don’t have as an excuse).

Summer is off season, I'm a heavy boy at the moment.

I noticed this winter/spring training on the micros that as the weather warmed up they went from ok to really painful in a v short amount of time.

I was wondering if cooler tips are more rigid and whether that has any effect on anything. Obviously, sweating probably doesn't help either.

[tomtom]

Cold stiffer skin is partly why you can hold smaller holds in winter.

[moose]

There's a training beta podcast with the Anderson brothers where they recommend having spells of fingerboarding on tiny holds to build finger pulp and small hold resiliance, rather than the more usual recommendation to use big holds and lots of weight to make the exercise less frinction / skin dependent. Excerpt copied below from training beta website:

Mark Anderson: Yeah that’s a common question, what’s the best way to progress on a hangboard? I learned something when we were at the research conference this summer. Apparently people have done pretty extensive research on what adaptations occur when you train on really tiny edges. I know there’s back and forth on this topic and some people out of the gate say “Just use a big edge, it’s easier on your skin and you can add shit tons of weight no big deal” and other people are like “Well if I hang more than 50 pounds off my harness my shoulders start getting wrecked” and whatever. I think the bottom line for me, both methods have been used successfully. What compels me is that this research shows that when you hang on really tiny holds many adaptations occur in the tips of your fingers, such as the bone density increases, fat tissue develops underneath your skin which makes it more comfortable. Apparently there’s some other research that shows the most important factor in how small a hold you can grip is not your finger strength but how much pulp is in the tip of your finger or something. And all these things are proved by hanging on really tiny edges.

So for me it seems like it’s more practical- there’s more upsides to actually training on a small hold with less weight because it will stimulate these adaptations. I think part of the reason Mike and I are climbing our best at this age is that we’ve been training on tiny ass holds for ten years, and we’re just now starting to see some of the benefits that we earned, or we invested in, ten years ago.

Neely Quinn: Right, you guys have fatty fingertips is what you’re saying.

Mark Anderson: Yeah, that’s right.

Neely Quinn: And now you’re just getting strong enough to use them.

Mark Anderson: I think it’s that we didn’t always have fatty fingertips and it takes a long time for those adaptations to occur, and the training we did ten years ago is just now paying off.

[tomtom]

Which is why all those Pex climbers have finger strength...

[teestub]

Trying to train on small holds in the summer would make me weaker as the pain would stop me trying hard! Think it’s a good idea to mix it up when it’s cooler.

[Fiend]

Weight or the lack thereof seems critical in this. If you're heavier you can - theoretically - get stronger to compensate, but "training" skin and pulp to cope with the extra pressure seems a lot harder. Mixing in training like Mooose said could be useful. Maybe trying some anti-hydral to thicken / toughen the skin might have a beneficial side-effect of less movement and slipping on holds thus less pulp pureeing?

[Ballsofcottonwool]

After pulling hard on crimps I get what look like tiny pin prick blisters deep under the skin on my finger tips, I think they must be bruising because they start off pink or a reddy purple and go brownish after a couple of days.  I  don't tend to notice any pain while climbing but they are sometimes tender a couple of days after climbing, I think I must have crimped the pain nerves to death years ago.

[SA Chris]

After pulling hard on crimps I get what look like tiny pin prick blisters deep under the skin on my finger tips, I think they must be bruising because they start off pink or a reddy purple and go brownish after a couple of days.  I  don't tend to notice any pain while climbing but they are sometimes tender a couple of days after climbing, I think I must have crimped the pain nerves to death years ago.

I get this. Subcutaneous bleeding? or is that just another name for bruising.

[tim palmer]

I think just resting really well between goes on horrible holds is key, plus it makes your session seem longer.

[36chambers]

Thanks for the replies everyone, lots to consider.

I think just resting really well between goes on horrible holds is key, plus it makes your session seem longer.

But that's so boring

Maybe trying some anti-hydral to thicken / toughen the skin might have a beneficial side-effect of less movement and slipping on holds thus less pulp pureeing?

I've used that rhino skin with antihydral twice before and both times my skin just fell apart before I even got to climb.

I was wondering whether it was mainly down to sloppy/dynamic climbing on small holds which ends up pinching/nipping the pulp.

[Coops_13]

I had the same experience with that rhino skin stuff. Ended up giving it away...

[Fiend]

You didn't give it away to me you bastard.

I had good experiences this weekend with some careful anti-hydral usage, before some powerful-ish climbing on sharpish positive holds (rather than coarse slopers), and I definitely found the benefit of slightly drier and tougher skin, I didn't slip around as much on holds and this felt less grindy on the pulp.

Also whilst planning / working problems I was pretty careful to note optimum finger-tip positions and aim for those whilst climbing, to avoid moving my tips around too much.

[36chambers]

You didn't give it away to me you bastard.

You can have it after my GF has finished with it

I had good experiences this weekend with some careful anti-hydral usage, before some powerful-ish climbing on sharpish positive holds (rather than coarse slopers), and I definitely found the benefit of slightly drier and tougher skin, I didn't slip around as much on holds and this felt less grindy on the pulp.

My skin is currently soft and rubbish, as I've done relatively little climbing this past few months.

I had a 3 hour (trying my best to be careful with my tips) session at Blackwell yesterday and finished with 3 tips that had visible blisters on them (not the bubble out sort), and the rest of my fingertips hurt at varying degrees. The ones with no visible issues felt similar to the blistered ones when prodded, so maybe my "pulp issues" are just sub-surface blisters. I don't really know.

I tend to have very flakey skin on my tips which I assume is an aftereffect of said blisters (which is likely why rhino skin didn't work).

[tomtom]

Good name for a band...

[spidermonkey09]

I had a 3 hour (trying my best to be careful with my tips) session at Blackwell yesterday and finished with 3 tips that had visible blisters on them (not the bubble out sort), and the rest of my fingertips hurt at varying degrees. The ones with no visible issues felt similar to the blistered ones when prodded, so maybe my "pulp issues" are just sub-surface blisters. I don't really know.

I have had this a few times, although normally as a result of constant over climbing. I fix it by having a pretty heavy session on the grit to sand off the white skin below the surface. Make sure you stop once your fingers look normal again, go home and commence skin recovery; voila!

[Bradders]

Franco says you're just making excuses 36C

https://www.instagram.com/p/B2O3WGFjm1y/?igshid=yxacerqw1aq7

[36chambers]

Franco says you're just making excuses 36C

https://www.instagram.com/p/B2O3WGFjm1y/?igshid=yxacerqw1aq7

such wisdom

[mark20]

Sounds like he’s talking shit as usual about skin / calluses rather than pulp.