Gone are the days when climbing involved trekking through the outdoors carrying tons of equipment that makes your arms ache before you’ve even started the activity.
While traditional rock climbing is incredibly fun and exhilarating, it can be difficult to find the correct areas and equipment to get you going with the sport. Bouldering allows you to practice all the skills you need for rock climbing without even getting your hands (too!) dirty.
For those of you who aren’t aware, bouldering is a new form of climbing that has become increasingly popular. Unlike traditional climbing, it doesn’t involve any complicated knots, equipment, and it won’t take you too far off the ground.
It can be done on natural rock, or an artificial wall, along with a crash matt. While the concept of no equipment can seem scary, this type of climbing will not take you too far off the ground, most of them have a maximum height of around 15 feet.
Is a Bouldering Gym a Good Workout?
A bouldering gym is a gym that contains an artificial wall where climbers can practice their skills while getting to know others who also share the love for the sport.
Not only is attending a bouldering gym super fun, it’s also a very good workout. It works out practically your entire body by building your muscular endurance, and flexibility.
Aside from this, it can also be great for your mental health as it works on your communication and problem-solving skills. Each route in bouldering is referred to as a ‘problem’ that each person climbing needs to ‘solve’ in order to complete the entire route!
The movements in bouldering involve quick movements that are powerful, calculated, and will definitely build strength over time.
How Do You Build Strength for Bouldering?
As mentioned earlier, bouldering is a fantastic full-body workout that uses muscles you may not even be aware that you had!
In order to improve your bouldering skills, you may be wondering if there are any strength-building exercises you can do during your time off the wall. The good news is there’s plenty you can do in your spare time to help you build strength for this kind of activity.
You’ll need a good amount of muscular strength, muscular endurance, balance, and cardiovascular fitness in order to excel in bouldering, so ensuring that your training targets all of these areas is crucial.
When it comes to your muscles, bouldering and other forms of climbing uses your pulling muscles. This refers to your biceps and wrist flexors as well as your back muscles. Therefore, engaging yourself in some resistance training that targets these muscles is crucial.
As well as your upper body, bouldering will have you using your core and lower body muscles in order for you to stabilize yourself on the wall (or rock), and to help you push your body up.
Some key muscles here are the glutes and calves, so training these muscles will really help you with this sport.
You’ll also need to work on your general fitness, so taking part in some cardio exercises such as swimming, running, rowing, or cycling is a good addition to your training regime.
Complete 8 Week Bouldering Training Program
As has been mentioned in this article, bouldering uses several muscles in the body, so preparing for this sport involves strength, endurance, and power training.
If you’re keen to find out what a bouldering training program looks like, below will outline a training guide with regards to improving on strength.
Week 1
Week one will involve two sessions of strength resistance training, two sessions on the strength hangboard, and one session of limit-level bouldering.
One cardiac output will be included, as well as a special strength training session.
Week 2
During the second week, an extra resistance training session will be added, bringing to the total to three resistance training sessions. Two strength hangboard sessions will be included, as well as one limit-level bouldering session, one cardiac output session, and one special strength training session.
Week 3
The third week will also have three strength resistance training sessions, two strength hangboard sessions, and one session of limit-level bouldering, special strength training, and a cardiac output.
Week 4
Week 4 will serve as a week of recovery, and will involve two strength resistance training sessions, one strength hangboard session, and one session of limit-level bouldering, special strength training, and a cardiac output.
Week 5
During this week, the intensity is brought up slightly. There will be two strength resistance training sessions and strength hangboard sessions, as well as two special strength training sessions.
There will also be one session of limit-level bouldering, and one cardiac output.
Week 6
During week 6, there will be one strength resistance training session, two sessions on the strength hangboard, two limit-level bouldering sessions, two special strength training sessions, and one cardiac output.
Week 7
The penultimate week will include one strength resistance training session, two sessions on the strength hangboard, two limit-level bouldering sessions, two special strength training sessions, and one cardiac output session.
Week 8
The final week will involve one strength resistance training session, one strength hangboard session, two limit-level bouldering sessions, and one session of special strength training and a cardiac output.
Tips to Avoid Injuries
While bouldering does not involve intense heights like traditional climbing does, injuries are not uncommon. Below are a few tips to take on board in order to avoid injury.
Don’t Forget To Warm Up!
Warming up is crucial when it comes to all kinds of activities, not just bouldering. Be sure to raise your heart rate and body temperature by completing some light exercise, and moving all your joints and muscles so they’re ready for the wall!
Familiarize Yourself With Protocol For Falling And Landing
Landing incorrectly is a common cause of injury, so before you begin warming up, be sure to familiarize yourself with the protocol for falling and landing correctly. You must always be mindful of where, and how you are going to land when you let go of the wall.
Final Thoughts
In summary, bouldering is a popular form of climbing that won’t take you to extreme heights, and can be performed both indoors and outdoors.
We hope this article has provided you with a good amount of information on how you can get involved in bouldering.
Leave a Reply