By comparison, a climber with weaker fingers but stronger arms might do a lot of jumping to holds, catching them in a locked-off position. This will allow you to put most of the weight on your hands and to use your hands as pivot points from which to generate. If your fingers are made of steel, but your arms are weak, you will find greater efficiency in maintaining straight arms and open hips when you climb. This is easily represented through finger strength. Instead, it means to take your strengths and weaknesses into account when approaching a climb. This does not mean that a powerful climber should only climb powerfully. The reason that the best technique for a climber cannot be the same between climbers is simple, different strengths and weaknesses. This does not necessarily mean that static beta is the best, and it does not mean that the best technique for any given climber is the same as another. Today, we are going to explore what perfect technique might mean to the climber, outline a few misconceptions, and come to a conclusion about how you can improve your climbing technique in the gym, on the home wall, or at the crag.Īs described above, technique is best defined as efficiency. Of course straight arms is but a single technique that makes up the larger family of efficiency, and, there will be times when a straight arm is in fact not the most efficient technique to use in a given situation.

In terms of efficiency, this is definitely the case. Technique is often described as “efficient.” When we first start route climbing, for example, climbers learn that straight arms is “better technique” than remaining in a perpetual lock-off. You have probably heard this definition before. Technique is, in fact definable, in the terms of rock climbing. There have always been those that describe the importance of climbing technique, but what does it actually mean in terms of climbing? Is it footwork? Is it slab? Can board climbing even offer technical progression? Ethan Salvo by Jacquie Des Rosiers Big moves, big pulls, big grips and small holds each profess ludicrous finger strength and biceps forged in the fires of a disciplined training regime. Bouldering brings an obsession with power.

Sniptag technique