Neil Gresham's Guide to Weight Training

Article by Neil Gresham

Tuesday 13th July 2004

Most climbers are loathe to accept any other forms of training than climbing itself. This is as much to do with lack of time or motivation as the fear of the supplementary training doing more harm to their climbing than good. But what if your performance has started to plateau and you’re in need of some fresh training stimulation? What if your fingers are injured but you’re still anxious to keep your arms in shape. What if you’re as thin as a pencil and need something more intense than bouldering to give you some extra fire-power in those guns? If you’ve never thought about pumping iron then perhaps it’s time to think again.

As a climber, the main argument you’ll hear for staying off the steel is the concern that gains in strength will be negated by increases in body mass. If the penalty for new found arm strength is a significantly increased strain on the fingers then it’s more than likely that your overall climbing standard will suffer. However, if you understand the basic principles of structuring a weights session then it’s perfectly possible to lay down those vital foundations of strength for climbing without gaining excessive weight and bulk in with ride.

How and when to train

If you are considering having a go then please don’t expect massive gains overnight; you’ll need to work steadily away over a 2-6 month period before results become apparent. If you plan to stop climbing altogether during a weight training phase then 3 sessions of 1 to 2 hours a week will be more than adequate. Alternatively, 1 or 2 sessions will suffice if you intend to combine weights with climbing activity. Remember that you can train weights immediately after climbing, provided that it wasn’t too steep and was more taxing on the fingers than the arms.

With regards to structure, you have two simple choices when compiling a weights session. The first is to train all the upper body parts together and the second is to do a split routine where you separate the pushing (anatagonist) muscles (ie: chest shoulders and triceps) from the pulling (protagonist) muscle groups (namely: back & biceps). If you are training 3 times a week then 2 protagonist sessions to 1 antagonist session is an ideal combination for developing climbing-specific strength. Alternatively, do 2 sessions where you train the entire upperbody and 1 where you just train protagonists. Legs tend to be left out of the equation for obvious reasons. For the vast majority of climbers, it’s the upperbody that lets the side down. But don’t forget to include those abdominals to maintain that stable base.

Strength vs bulk - background theory

Stronger muscles don’t necessarily have to be significantly bigger muscles. Power lifters are far stronger than body builders, relative to their size and weight because their muscle is more 'efficient', pound-for-pound. The two most important factors which contribute purely to muscle size are fiber hypertrophy (or thickening) and increased local muscular blood supply. The degree to which both these conditioned are induced from a weight training exercise depends largely on the number of repetitions (reps) performed in a set and hence its overall intensity. In short, sets of between 1 and 6 reps tend to produce strength without excessive bulk. High rep sets of 15 repetitions and above tend to build endurance, again without excessive bulk, although they are less worthwhile for climbing purposes. However it is the critical mid repetition range (i.e: between 8 and 12 reps) where both excessive fiber hypertrophy and blood supply are promoted, the result being big muscles. The answer is to train below the mid repetition range in order to develop strength with minimum bulk.

Set & rep structure

The basic pyramid provides the most effective and convenient repetition and set structure for weight training. After a good warm-up which should include some lighter ‘dummy’ sets, start with the highest weight and lowest rep sets and then work your way down, remembering to go no higher than 8 reps. The number of sets you perform for each exercise will always be subject to your own ability and training requirements. Do no more than 3 to 4 sets if you are a beginner, 5 to 6 sets if you are fairly familiar with weights and 10 sets if you are a total gym junky. Rests between sets should be long enough to avoid the build-up of excessive fatigue but not so long as to allow you to cool down: 3 to 5 minutes is ideal.

Sample Pyramid rep/set structure

			Reps	Weight					Sets
								Beginner	Intermediate	Expert
			1-2	Max				-	-	-
		3-4			90%			x 1	x 2	x 3
	5-6					80%		x 2	x 3	x 4
6-8							70%	x 1	x 2	x 3

Good form and progression

If you are new to weights, as with climbing you must first develop correct form and control before you go on to attempt heavier sessions. You can do this by performing a variety of exercises for 3 sets of 15-20 reps with very light weights. Even the more experienced should start any weight training phase with a gradual and progressive build-up. For the first few sessions you should aim to complete all the sets comfortably and without maxing out. Then increase the overload (level of training resistance) over several weeks until your training phase reaches a peak and all work can be performed to the point of failure.

Spice it up

Remember to experiment by performing sets with reduced weight for speed and power as opposed to pure strength. You can also try performing negatives or partner assisted reps to take you through and beyond the failure barrier! Partial reps can also be used to isolate specific ranges within a particular movement.

Training with Weights - Some Exercises

Of the hundreds of exercises that are possible, there follows a list of ‘must-do’ exercises which are described with the presumption of an elementary knowledge of weight training. It simply isn’t possible to go into all the details of form and safety procedures in this article so be sure to consult a qualified instructor if you are at all uncertain. Note that where possible a free weights or a cable machine option is given. Both have their merits: the multigym being safer and more user friendly and the free weights helping to build better stability and muscular control. The use of dumbells is also an important way of preventing imbalances in strength from occuring between both arms.

Protagonist Exercises

These are the main 'pulling' exercises which should always be prioritised by climbers. They are listed in chronological training order starting first with the exercises which train the largest muscle groups.

1) Cable pull-down

The core weight training exercise for the main climbing muscles, especially the lats or side-back. It can be performed with one or 2 arms (photo left), depending on the desired training affect. For the single arm training, a 1-arm grip handle must be attached to the cable. For 2-arm work, a 'U-bar' provides the option of a wide and close-grip. Use an over-hand grip and pull-down to the front of the head.

2) Seated cable rows or bent-over barbell rows

These exercises train the middle upper back groups which are used commonly on roofs or very steep rock. An over-hand grip is slightly more specific to climbing. The barbell exercise also strengthens the lower back muscles, but take care to keep your torso flat and rigid and your legs slightly bent to avoid straining.

3) Bicep curl

This common exercise is especially useful for developing the type of strength which is demanded for under-cut moves. Variations include the use of an 'E-Z bar' or the reverse grip for isolating different areas of the biceps and forearm. Dumbbell work can also be used to prevent favouring your strongest arm.

ii) Antagonist Exercises

1) Barbell bench press or dips

The most effective overall training movements for chest, front shoulders and triceps. With the bench press (photo right), a wider the grip will place more emphasis on the chest and the less on the triceps. It may well be worth using either of these two as the single exercise for antagonist training in your overall program.

2) Military press or dumbbell side-laterals

The simple seated barbell press-behind-neck is the best exercise for overall shoulder strength (photo left). However, dumbbell side raises can be used to pin-point different parts of the shoulder - lean forwards to work the rear shoulder which is most commonly used in climbing and try leaning back or raising the dumbbells in front (instead of to the side) to place more emphasis on the front shoulder which is used commonly in press moves.

3) Lying barbell extensions or cable pushdowns

These basic movements isolate the triceps in a similar fashion to climbing situations, such as deep locks or presses. For the barbell extensions, lie as for the bench press but bring the bar down to your forehead and push back up keeping the upper arm vertical and stationary. For the pushdowns, stand at the cable machine (photo right), take the bar beneath your chin with a shoulder-width grip and push it down to waist keeping your elbows close to your sides.

4) Abdominal Crunches or hanging knee raises

For crunch sit-ups - lie on your back with your legs bent and your feet on a bench and curl your upper body so your head meets your knees. For knee raises, hang from a bar and simply raise your legs out in front of you, slightly bent, and then curl them up to your chest.

Summary

If you do intend to embark on a weight training program, remember above all else to keep things in context and not to lose sight of your objective. First and foremost we are climbers and weights may only be worthwhile for a short period of the year as a system shocking device to give you a breather from pure climbing. You can only justify devoting time to weights if you really feel that your arms are massively out of synch with your fingers. Yet if you train correctly and safely then you could well find yourself cranking off one-armers without becoming a candidate for Mr.Olympia in the process!