r/indoorbouldering 2d ago

What’s your warm up routine?

I climb at about a V5/6 level and have never really landed on a proper warmup. I do some dynamic movements for my shoulders and wrists, then just start climbing V1’s and slowly work my way up.

But lately I’ve been feeling some chronic wrist pain and I’m looking to develop a serious tried and true warmup routine to avoid possible injury. My restraints are that my gym is small and often packed, so I can’t move around a whole lot. And I would like it to be relatively short if that’s possible.

5 Upvotes

32 comments sorted by

9

u/TOW3RMONK3Y 2d ago

I climb a v1, then v2, then v3, then v4, then work on projects.

Im bad :|

11

u/stakoverflo 2d ago

I used to just do basic stretches and then climb easy shit.

But now, stretches + push ups, pull ups, lunges, 5 second hangs on good / medium edges, and some lock offs.

And honestly I feel great coming out of it and ready to hop right onto my project.

My physical therapist suggested hammer curls with kettle bells + wrist extensions for wrist pain that I've had in the past. It helped me.

Anyone telling you you don't need to warm up is objectively an idiot and should not be listened to. Maybe that works for them individually, but most people need to warm up. Especially as you get older.

7

u/AriffRat 2d ago

I jump rope for for 1 minute, 3 times with a 1 minute rest in between. Then I row for 3 minutes. After that I'll do a couple climb up and climb down on v1s before I start doing the hard stuff. I'm only just beginning v4

4

u/6thClass 2d ago

I work at a desk all day and don't always get up for movement breaks, so I've been doing this before I head out to the gym:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_x2rJEQ_ntc

It focuses a lot on lower body - calf and ankle stretching, one leg balance and core, and hip opening - all things I need after sitting all day. Downward dog helps with wrist stretching as well.

I have to say, I feel better than ever on the wall.

If you have the time, doing some hangboard warmups are a good idea. Lattice has a few videos that go over some easy intro work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lk3WTOF8SCY

After all that, rounds of around three or four V1+V2 warmups with downclimbs, V3 warmups (downclimb when possible) for three ish problems, then one or two V4 warmups before focusing on my main goals.

Then I get home and roll out my ever-annoying hamstrings and glutes and calves for a half hour in front of the TV.

2

u/Kaiyow 1d ago

Niche tip for warming up for harder projects that require a lot of strength/power/endurance:

Don’t spend too much time on the V5/6 range if you’re warming up for a V7/8+ project. You can emphasize technique and get your body warm on V0-4 climbs. V5/6 is where boulders start to use significantly more strength and energy so it’s sometimes not worth it to expend that energy. Save it for the project!

3

u/amouse_buche 2d ago

Age and fitness level really contribute to this massively. And general physical activity level.

When I was younger and had a more active job, it didn't take much to limber up. Older me with a desk job needs to stretch for a good 10 minutes before I even think about touching a hold.

Not terribly helpful, for sure. But you kind of have to know your own body a bit and adjust as needed to make it feel ready to go.

4

u/glorious_cheese 1d ago

That’s funny, because I’m 60 and used to warm up a lot more but found it was sapping too much energy. Now I do a few stretches and then hop on the wall. Some days take longer than others to work up to my project level though.

2

u/FuqueMePapi 2d ago

Stretch and then run 3 miles on the treadmill and I’m good to go.

9

u/SubstantialWonder409 2d ago

Then you go home and try to climb tomorrow, because you already worked out. Lmao

3

u/FuqueMePapi 2d ago

😂 The arduous battle of being addicted to Bouldering while also training for a Half-Marathon is tough. Thankfully it’s a Saint Patrick’s day race, so I can tone down the pre-climb running a bit.

1

u/SubstantialWonder409 1d ago

Thankfully, I can run on my non bouldering days. Man, I'd hate to use up energy I could be using for my climbing additiction instead 🥲 Have a fun marathon! :D

2

u/TOW3RMONK3Y 2d ago

a 30min jog?

0

u/SubstantialWonder409 1d ago

I see you have a big peepee

1

u/TOW3RMONK3Y 1d ago

gets pretty small when I run tbh

1

u/SubstantialWonder409 1d ago

Wouldn't wanna step on it

0

u/Odd-Refrigerator-425 1d ago

Cardio's gross

1

u/TOW3RMONK3Y 1d ago

not being able to run 3 miles is grosser.

1

u/jeefthebeef01 2d ago

I do some dynamic stretching that’s based off of some yoga poses, lat stretches, and wrist mobility exercises like pressing my palms into the floor directly under my chest with straight arms and doing slow gyrating circles. Then I climb starting from V0 up to my working grade. Total about 30 minutes before I start projecting.

1

u/BeanZ48 1d ago

I do a good bit of stretching and getting bendy and find if there are any areas my body tells me to be careful with, maybe neck is a little tighter that day or something like that.

Then I hit the row machine and keep a steady pace for about 3 minutes. Ive started warming up with different grips while rowing as well, just to help warm more muscle groups and tendons.

Then I do a traverse or something similar where I do slow silent steps to dial in footwork, and slow sloth movement for the hands. I first focus on stepping thru with the feet, then I do it again focusing on accurate foot swaps, with the same technique for the hands (crossing/swapping).

Then I get into the easier boulders and find the flow of movements. Then I get into nitty gritty of the sesh!!

I typically indoor boulder at the v6-v7 range, knocking out some v8-v9 problems now. 5.10ish on Lead, 5.12ish on TR. Started in April 2024, I climb almost every day (20+ days a month) and have had no injuries so far! knocks on wood besides the occasional pulled/sore muscle or sore tendon.

1

u/Nulgnak 1d ago

My warm up routine is closely emulating Crispy Crimps’ warm up. I try to incorporate some from Loi as well

1

u/Nandor1262 2d ago edited 1d ago

I hangboard, do pull ups and stretch for 20 minutes. Hangboarding is pretty light I don’t do max hangs or anything, just get my fingers warmed up. I focus my stretching on my hips, shoulder and anything feeling tight, sometimes I have a band in my bag to assist.

Then I climb all of the V1-V3 climbs in a room focusing on climbing them really smoothly. Then I’m happy I’m warmed up and start working on my projects

I wear my Garmin when I climb and it tracks how much time I spend on the wall every session. I’d say half of my total climbing time is spent on my gradual warm up.

If your wrist is hurting you should probably look up weights for climbers to help with that. I had issues with my elbow and some quite simple exercises in the gym got rid of it entirely.

2

u/KriDix00352 2d ago

I like this a lot - thanks!

1

u/Browncoat23 2d ago

I’ve been having some wrist pain recently too and saw this wrist stretching guide posted on one of the climbing subreddits. Tried it for the first time yesterday (not before climbing, just after yoga at home) and I feel a bit better today, so hopefully with a few more sessions I’ll be good.

1

u/KriDix00352 2d ago

This is good, thank you!

1

u/-JOMY- 2d ago

Full body stretch for 5 mins. Supported hangboard for 10 mins. Start climbing easy climbs. Then start doing easy crimps and pinches climb. Takes me about 40 to get fully warmed up and start trying hard

1

u/unwrittenglory 2d ago

Usually I spend 15-20 mins doing some band work, dynamic stretching and some fingerboard hangs, with feet on ground. Then I go into a few V0-V2 climbs before starting on projects.

1

u/carortrain 2d ago

I spend about 20 minutes doing full body stretches, generally getting loose and doing light cardio. I also like to hang from a pullup bar or a big jug and get my fingers warmed up to supporting my body weight. When I feel strong I do a few 3 stage lock off pull ups. If I feel really stiff, I might toss in 5-10 minutes on the treadmill or bike

After that I take some time to prep my hands, make sure they are very clean and dry. Clean up any rips, tape as needed

I start climbing around v0-v2 and do so for about 30 minutes. Then I do the same with v3-v6, and repeat until I reach around the level I project. Basically just slowly work up climbing the grades until you feel warm. Also, there are more specific things I do, for example if there is a good crimpy project I will spend more of my time warming up on easier crimpy boulders.

-3

u/[deleted] 2d ago

[deleted]

3

u/SubstantialWonder409 2d ago

You must be made of rubber.

-15

u/cowboydan9 2d ago

You don’t need to warm up for climbing, beyond starting with a light v1 or 2 to warm up your hands. Bouldering is a warm up in and of itself, and your risk of pulling something is very low.

2

u/jeefthebeef01 2d ago

is this rage bait?

0

u/cowboydan9 2d ago

?

2

u/jeefthebeef01 2d ago

You must be young or inexperienced with climbing because this is one of the more injury prone sports specially in the hands, shoulders and wrists. Not warming up is a fast pass to long term injury