Why do intermittent dead hangs?

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Versión en español

As promised, here you have the first entry in this new intermittent dead hangs series. It will serve as an introduction before delving into my research. Even though my last work was presented at the 3rd Rock Climbing Research Congress in 2016 (Telluride, USA), all the experimental work this and other research (a total of 6 different studies) is based on was performed in 2004 and 2010, and compiled into my 2014 thesis. A long time has passed since, so an in-depth discussion of the topic was long due. My apologies for not having done this earlier. We’ll start with some clarifications:

a) why this name instead of “repeaters”, the most used name in the English-speaking world, and

b) why put forward this method and compare its effects on strength and endurance with those obtained through maximum strength dead-hangs, both weighted and unweighted.

By answering these you will not only learn why the research works and the training programs are designed the way they are, but perhaps you’ll also enjoy the process of understanding and even performing them. There’s nothing better than choosing a program and tailoring or discarding it based on your knowledge of how it works, which in turn allows you to predict what effects will it have on you or your trainees according to your respective goals.

"What, why, when, how, where and who are questions that are continually asked in medicine. Knowing the answers to them is not always easy or even possible. Understanding them can be even more difficult. Attempting to know and understand the answers, however, is the goal of allied health professionals. Knowing and understanding these whats, whys, whens, hows, wheres, and whos of allied health define the differences between technicians and professionals." (Houglum, Peggy A., 2005. Therapeutic Exercise for MusculoSkeletal Injuries, 2nd Edition. Human Kinetics)

Mie Kastet trying hard in Misje, Hordaland (Norway). Photo: Jon Solberg Høyland (Thanks Mie and Jon for the pic!)

Why call them Intermittent Dead Hangs instead of ‘Repeaters’?

In truth, when I started the experimental design of my studies I did not know this really descriptive English term: ‘Repeaters’. A bit of research shows that, as far as I have been able to go back in time, the first author to put this term on paper was none other than the great pioneer Eric Hörst in his 1997 “How to climb 5.12”.

Initially I wasn’t aware of that terminology and of other proposals regarding different work/rest ratios and number of sets; then I started learning more about the most popular ones (that from Eric Hörst and, mainly, from the Anderson Brothers) but decided against changing the term. The reason is that the scientific literature has been referring to this as “Isometric intermittent contractions” (Bigland-Ritchie et al., 1981; Bellemare & Grassino, 1982; Sjøgaard et al., 1988), for some time now, as well as using the expression “Intermittent training” (Green, 1979; Simoneau et al., 1985).

Scientists tend to adopt the terminology that is already established in their new research; which is a good thing, because it allows professionals in similar lines of research to readily understand concepts, and to adapt them to their sport of interest, enriching the field for everyone. This is what I’ve tried to do; this way scientists around the world, no matter if they climb or not, can identify the physiological base and its effects, its relevance for each sport and, most importantly, start conversations knowing they are on the same page

Why train Intermittent Dead Hangs? Why compare their effects with Maximum Strength Dead Hangs?

These are questions that you will be able to answer based on solid criteria when you finish reading this series, but let’s advance some concepts.

1. Intermittent Dead Hangs and Finger Endurance Development

Climbing is not just about the high finger power levels that allow us to grab tiny holds, to climb on very small footholds or to go footless; having an enhanced ability for recovery is also key (Philippe et al., 2012; McLeod et al., 2007). Our fingers’ flexor muscles need to sustain the repetitive effort of high-intensity intermittent isometric contractions: the gripping and releasing of handholds. This is more relevant in the hardest sections of a route, those that determine its grade and also our performance.

Climbing requires the ability to apply high levels of force on small holds, as Mina Leslie-Wujastyk shows (thanks for the picture to Mina & David!). Source: Mina’s Facebook page. Picture by: David Mason

Depending on what percentage of our maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) we apply on a hold there will be, among other effects, a varying level of blood flow occlusion, and fatigue will appear at different rates. We can infer that, by increasing our maximum strength, we will be able to grab for 15-20 seconds a hold we previously would not have been able to hold for 8 seconds. Hence we could say, and it has been experimentally shown (López-Rivera & González-Badillo, 2012), that training maximum strength develops in parallel the ability to sustain high-intensity efforts, like gripping one tiny hold after another.

This said, wouldn’t it also make sense to specifically work our ability for recovering between contractions through intermittent dead-hangs? In fact, this ability is, along with finger strength, another key performance factor (Ferguson & Brown, 1997, Fryer et al., 2014, MacLeod et al., 2007; Philippe et al. 2012). In particular, the investigation group C-HIPPER led by Vanesa España-Romero have recently (and very timely for me) shown that the forearm oxidative capacity index is a predictor of climbing performance (Fryer et al., 2016). This ability would be developed mostly when releasing the hold, especially for more than 3 seconds. Regarding sport climbing, I have observed in the field that there’s opportunity for this while clipping (3-5 seconds) and when shaking at a rest (3 to 10 seconds depending on the climber’s characteristics and how good the rest point is).

The method I proposed was 3-5 x 4-5 x dead-hang x10” :5”/1’, that reads like this:

3 to 5 sets of 4 to 5 ten-second dead-hang repetitions; the rest is 5 seconds between repetitions and 1 minute between sets. In my works I chose the open crimp as grip type, and the edge as the type of hold. The size of the edge was such that, as I advanced in the previous entry, allowed to complete all the volume reaching failure in the last repetition of the last set. To accomplish that the participants had to continually choose the right edge size for each set or even repetition so they would build up fatigue but not too soon. The eight-week program looked like this:

week 1: 3 sets, 4 reps each; week 2: 4 sets, 4 reps each; week 3: 5 sets; week 4: 5 sets; week 5: 3 sets, 5 reps each; week 6: 4 sets, 5 reps each, week 7: 5 sets; week 8 : 5 sets.

IMPORTANT NOTES

It is essential to be aware that these workouts were performed twice a week with 48 h rest between them, and they did not replace the actual climbing contents. The participants in the study were sport climbers (sentence added on 11 August). The dead hangs were done at the start of the session and there was a 15’ rest before proceeding to the next workout (climbing on the wall or others). The rest of the training contents, including the climbing part of the session, meaning, the complete training plan itself (these last five words were added on 11 August) was controlled and standardized for all participants.

Another aspect I’d like to stress is that the fact that I selected this configuration: type of grip (these last three words were added on 11 August) and a particular work/rest ratio and number of sets and repetitions for research purposes, and that I observed certain effects using them, does not mean that I propose to take those numbers and repeat them time and again regardless of a person’s level. Ideally you would make changes periodically, and switch back and forth to other methods during your long-term plan. But we are getting ahead of ourselves.

1.1. What’s the rationale behind those 10” reps and 5”/1’ rests?

Mimicking the activity-to-rest ratio of a sport has been suggested (Meckel et col., 2009) as a way of improving specific endurance. At the time of the experimental design I thought that for sport climbing we could then do a high-intensity intermittent dead-hangs method with 8-10” repetitions (White & Olsen, 2010), managing fatigue by changing the hold depth. This is similar to cluster training with “inter-repetition” rests put forward by authors like Iglesias et col. (2010), Haff et col. (2008), Hansen (2012) or more recently, Nicholson et al. (2016).

This specific finger training could promote faster phosphocreatine resynthesis (Tomlin & Wenger, 2001; McMahon & Jenkins, 2002) and would presumably enhance oxygenation during short rest periods. Both adaptations would lead to higher performance by allowing to sustain high levels of isometric force.

If Fryer et al. (2016) are right when they suggest that this capacity for oxygenation between contractions is a performance predictor, the next question would be if developing this capacity -with the method I propose or others- would result in elevated sport level. It is reasonable to think that this would be the case…

Alyse Dietel in “Return to Sender”, 5.12a, Rifle, Colorado. Picture by Christopher Beauchamp. (Thanks Alyse for the picture!)

In this respect, McGee et col. (1992) and Robinson et col. (1995) have shown that the most effective method to make high-intensity endurance go up is to use high loads and do as many sets as possible while maintaining said load. And this sustained load is why my method does not entail lots of sets and repetitions as other, more extensive ones, like the Beastmaker fingerboard training plan by Ned Feehally or the Anderson Brothers’ RPTC repeater Training Protocol. Another difference is that this method never aims to replace a real climbing session at the gym or the crag, that will obviously be much longer and work other important qualities like power-endurance, bouldering (these last two words were added on 10 August) or ARC. Therefore, the intermittent dead-hangs are only a part of the session. The above programs, that are higher in total volume and use a variety of hold types, may be beneficial to those who can’t go to a climbing gym or a climbing spot, and perhaps they are designed with this kind of user in mind, which makes perfect sense from my point of view.

Regarding the rest-interval between repetitions, it was 5-second long to account for these factors:

• during a hard section the hand takes 1 to 5 seconds in average to go from one hold to the next; clipping takes around 3 seconds and shaking the forearms 2-5 seconds.
• five seconds is the duration of the oxygenation mechanism between isometric intermittent contractions according to Demura et col. (2008), or three seconds as Fryer et al. (2014) suggest for higher sport levels (this could be the next step after having trained with 5-second pauses).
• this is the time that a person needs to chalk up and accommodate the fingers to the smaller holds in higher level athletes.

Lastly, the 1 minute rest between sets was in line with the conclusions in Watts et col. (2008): it does not allow to fully recover maximum strength and is thus adequate for working strength-endurance.

2. Intermittent Dead Hangs and Increased Maximum Strength

As has already been said, finger maximum strength is a key performance factor in climbing (Balas et al., 2012; MacLeod et al., 2007; Philippe et al., 2012), so it is reasonable to keep it in sight for our training sessions. We know that the improvement in maximum strength is caused by two kinds of mechanisms:

a) Neural adaptations: recruitment, firing rate, intermuscular coordination, motor unit synchronization, and

b) Structural changes: hypertrophy, muscle fiber type switch, capillarization, metabolic gains.

Before explaining each of these aspects and their relationship with the kinds of loads we can use and how long to use them, we should be aware that in the human body almost no phenomenon happens in a vacuum; more likely they overlap, one of them taking priority regardless of the combination of volume, pause intervals, training experience, level, etc. This is why we should take what follows as general information and not as rules set in stone.

2.1. Strength gains due to Neural Factors

We know that this first group of changes is associated to the early improvement after any strength program, but they are more noticeable in methods that:

• Use high loads: those over 80% MVC in trained subjects (Hakkinen et al., 2001), and over 70% in untrained ones (Peterson, Rhea & Alvar, 2004); this implies low repetitions (1 to 8 RM) or shorter (up to 15”) isometric contractions.
• Use long rest intervals between sets (3-5 minutes) to allow for a complete recovery.

Maja Vidmar. Photo: Javipec

2.2. Strength Gains due to Structural Changes

As for the second group of changes, hypertrophy is a relevant one. This does not necessarily mean that you will be able to notice a significant increase in the volume or perimeter of your forearms. The changes can be so subtle that they need to be measured with DXA (Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), CT (Computerized Tomography) or MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) (Colyer et al., 2016). This may be why some studies have not detected this effect (Sveen et al., 2016). The changes are statistically significant in most subjects after around 6 weeks, and are more noticeable if i) the training volume is moderately high: 8 to 15 RM/set or equivalent time for isometric methods, ii) the intensity is also moderately high: 75% of 1RM (65% for untrained persons), and most importantly iii) the recovery between sets is short, about 1 minute (Goto et al., 2005; Miranda et al., 2009; Nicholson et al., 2016; Schoenfeld, 2010; Willardson, 2006). The authors agree that the key is to promote a mechanical loading for long enough, thanks to the combination of a high absolute load, the number of repetitions and the incomplete pause.

Now, could the intermittent dead-hangs tick all the boxes? Would it be reasonable to say that they can promote strength via a hypertrophy effect? We’ll see…

Well, after this “short introduction” and hoping it has been useful to begin understanding -and liking- this particular method, in the next entry I will present an extended version of the paper that I took to last summer’s US congress, titled: "Comparison of the Effects of Three Hangboard Training Programs on Maximal Finger Strength in Rock Climbers". We will begin by checking if this intermittent method is useful for improving not only endurance, but also finger strength, and in that case how should it be applied.

See you soon!

RELATED LINKS :

-Intermittent Dead Hangs Programs for Your Smartphone
-Complex Timer: A Training app for Climbing

-Dead Hang Training (6 of 6): The Intermittent Dead Hangs Method

-Maximal hangs, Intermittent Hangs (Repeaters) or a Combination. Which 8-week program is more effective for developing grip strength in sport climbers?

Clic to enlarge

REFERENCES

• Anderson, Michael, L.; Anderson, Mark L. (2014). The Rock Climber's Training Manual: A guide to continuous improvement. Fixed Pin Public

• Baláš, J., Pecha, O., Martin, A.J.; Cochrane, D. (2012). Hand–arm strength and endurance as predictors of climbing performance. European Journal of Sport Science , 12 (1), 16-25.

• Bellemare, F., Grassino, A. (1982). Effect of pressure and timing of contraction on human diaphragm fatigue. Journal of Applied Physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985), 53(5), 1190–1195.

• Bigland-Ritchie, B, Bellemare, F.; Woods, JJ. (1981). Central and peripheral fatigue in intermittent submaximal contractions. in: Porter R, Whelan J (Eds.) Human muscle fatigue: physiological mechanisms. Ciba Foundation Symposium No. 82. Pitman Medical, London.

• Bigland-Ritchie, B. (1984). Change in muscle contractile properties and neural control during human muscular fatigue. Muscle & Nerve, 7, 691–699.

• Colyer, S. L., Roberts, S. P., Robinson, J. B., Thompson, D., Stokes, K. A., Bilzon, J. L.,; Salo, A. I. (2016). Detecting meaningful body composition changes in athletes using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Physiological measurement, 37(4), 596.

• Demura, S., Nakada, M., Yamaji, S., Nagasawa, Y. (2008). Relationships between ForceTime Parameters and Muscle Oxygenation Kinetics during Maximal Sustained Isometric Grip and Maximal Repeated Rhythmic Grip with Different Contraction Frequencies. Journal of Physiological Anthropology, 27(3):161-168

• Ferguson, R. A., Brown, M. D. (1997). Arterial blood pressure and forearm vascular conductance responses to sustained and rhythmic isometric exercise and arterial occlusion in trained rock climbers and untrained sedentary subjects. European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology, 76(2), 174–180.

• Fryer, S., Stoner, L., Lucero, A., Witter, T., Scarrott, C., Dickson, T., … Draper, N. (2014). Haemodynamic Kinetics and Intermittent Finger Flexor Performance in Rock Climbers. International Journal of Sports Medicine, 36(2), 137–142.

• Fryer, S., Stoner, L., Stone, K., Giles, D., Sveen, J., Garrido, I.,; España-Romero, V. (2016). Forearm muscle oxidative capacity index predicts sport rock-climbing performance. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 116(8), 1479–1484.

• Goto K, Ishii T, Kizuka N, Takamatsu K (2005). The impact of meta- bolic stress on hormonal responses and muscular adaptations. Med Sci Sport Exer 37:955–963.

• Green, H. J. (1979). Metabolic aspects of intermittent work with specific regard to ice hockey. Canadian journal of applied sport sciences. Journal canadien des sciences appliquees au sport, 4(1), 29-34. 

• Haff, G.G., Hobbs, R.T., Haff, E.E., Sands, W.A., Pierce, K.C. y Stone, M.H. (2008). Cluster training: a novel method for introducing training program variation. Strength & Conditioning Journal, 30(1), 67-76.

• Hakkinen, K., Pakarinen, A., Kraemer, W.J., Hakkinen, A., Valkeinen, H. y Alen, M. (2001). Selective muscle hypertrophy, changes in EMG and force, and serum hormones during strength training in older women. Journal of Applied Physiology 91(2):569-80

• Hansen, K. T., Cronin, J. B., Pickering, S. L.;  Newton, M. J. (2011). Does cluster loading enhance lower body power development in preseason preparation of elite rugby union players?. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 25(8), 2118-2126

• Hörst, E. (1997). How to Climb 5.12!. FalconGuides.

• Iglesias E., Boullosa D.A., Dopico X., Carballeira E. (2010) Analysis of factors that influence the maximum number of repetitions in two upper-body resistance exercises: curl biceps and bench press. J Strength Cond Res. 24(6):1566-72

• MacLeod, D., Sutherland, D. L., Buntin, L., Whitaker, A., Aitchison, T. C., Watt, I., … Grant, S. (2007). Physiological determinants of climbing-specific finger endurance and sport rock climbing performance. Journal of Sports Sciences, 25(12), 1433–1443. 

• McGee, D., Jessee, T. C., Stone, M. H.;  Blessing, D. (1992). Leg and hip endurance adaptations to three weight-training programs. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 6(2), 92-95

• McMahon, S. y Jenkins, D. (2002). Factors affecting the rate of phosphocreatine resynthesis following intense exercise. Sports Medicine, 32(12), 761-784.

• Meckel, Y., Machnai, O.;  Eliakim, A. (2009). Relationship among repeated sprint tests, aerobic fitness, and anaerobic fitness in elite adolescent soccer players. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 23(1), 163-169.

• Miranda, H., Simão, R., Moreira, L. M., Souza, R., Souza, J. A. A. A., Salles, B. F.,; Willardson, J. (2009). Effect of rest interval length on the volume completed during upper body resistance exercise. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine, 8, 388-392 

• Nicholson, G., Ispoglou, T.,; Bissas, A. (2016). The impact of repetition mechanics on the adaptations resulting from strength-, hypertrophy- and cluster-type resistance training. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 116(10), 1875–1888. 

• Ogborn, D.,  Schoenfeld, B. J. (2014). The Role of Fiber Types in Muscle Hypertrophy: Implications for Loading Strategies. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 36(2), 20–25. 

• Peterson, M.D., Rhea, M.R.; Alvar, B.A. (2004). Maximizing strength development in athletes: a meta-analysis to determine the dose-response relationship. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 18(2), 377-382

• Philippe, M., Wegst, D., Müller, T., Raschner, C.,; Burtscher, M. (2012). Climbing-specific finger flexor performance and forearm muscle oxygenation in elite male and female sport climbers. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 112(8), 2839–2847. 

• Robinson, J.M., Stone, M.H., Johnson, R.L., Penland, C.M., Warren, B.J.; Lewis, R.D. (1995). Effect of different weight training exercise/rest intervals on strength, power, and high intensity exercise endurance. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 9:216-221.

• Simoneau, J. A., Lortie, G., Boulay, M. R., Marcotte, M., Thibault, M. C.,; Bouchard, C. (1985). Human skeletal muscle fiber type alteration with high-intensity intermittent training. European journal of applied physiology and occupational physiology, 54(3), 250-253.

• Schoenfeld, B. J. (2010). The mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy and their application to resistance training. Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, The, 24(10), 2857–2872. 

• Sjøgaard, G., Savard, G., & Juel, C. (1988). Muscle blood flow during isometric activity and its relation to muscle fatigue. European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology, 57(3), 327–335.

• Sveen, J., Stone, K. J., ; Fryer, S. M. (2016). Strength and forearm volume differences in boulderers and sport climbers. 

• Tomlin, D.L. y Wenger, H.A. (2001). The relationship between aerobic fitness and recovery from high intensity intermittent exercise. Sports Medicine, 31(1), 1-11.

• Willardson, J.M. (2007). The application of training to failure in periodized multiple-set resistance exercise programs resistance exercise programs. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 21(2):628-631.

• Watts, P. (2004). Physiology of difficult rock climbing. European Journal of Applied Physiology (91), 361-372

• White, D.J., y Olsen, P.D. (2010). A time motion analysis of bouldering style competitive rock climbing. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 24(5), 1356-1360. 

Objectives and Bases for Designing an Endurance Training Program in Sport Climbing

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Versión en español

As it was hinted in the previous entry, to perform at certain routes or climbing spots we need to train one kind of endurance that French climbers call continuité (continuidad in Spanish), and in the English-speaking world is called endurance, stamina or local aerobic endurance; I will explain later on why I prefer the latter.

What are we talking about? A definition of Local Aerobic Endurance

Could this forearm belong to someone who is working their local aerobic endurance? Keep reading and find out...

Some define it as the ability to:

- Recover from one try to a route to the next, and also at resting points during a climb
- Climb long, easy-medium intensity sections without getting overly pumped
- Climb a long route, climb a lot of routes or try the same route several times during one day.

 The routes we tend to associate with this quality lack a very hard crux and are usually long. For example, they are 25-30+m long, have 60-80 moves or take more than 20 minutes to ascend even when we know the moves.

Local Aerobic Endurance and Energy Systems

Attending to its main metabolic source of energy, long duration and low intensity, some authors place it within aerobic endurance, that relies on the oxidative system. Others go a bit further and point the low volume of muscle that is involved (less than 1/6-1/7 of the total). So they use the -more accurate- term local aerobic endurance or local aerobic-anaerobic endurance.

We still have to acknowledge one fact: it is possible to deduce what the main energy source is for a given section of a climb, attending to several factors (hold depth, overhang angle, speed, duration, etc.). But sport climbing as an aggregate is an intermittent sport; there is movement and there are stops, there are easy and hard segments, there is holding and releasing... this makes for an assortment of metabolic and physiologic characteristics. Among them, anaerobic alactic and aerobic metabolism (Bertucci et col., 2007), are the most important.

Chart adapted from Guidi (1999)

A note on terminology
Why does the 'local' qualifier make the term more accurate? Because it reminds us that the criteria that are useful when dealing with other sports of similar duration to indoor competitive climbing (like running 1500 or 3000m) or onsighting a rock route (like running 10k or swimming 1500m) are not applicable to sport climbing.

The reason is that those sports involve a big (more than 1/6 of the total) volume of muscle, and the load they have to displace represents a low percent of the maximum strength of the implicated muscles. One consequence is the need for an increased blood flow. Therefore, cardiovascular endurance, also known as aerobic power (measured through maximal oxygen uptake -VO2max-) and aerobic capacity (performance at or close to lactate threshold) are more relevant than the local or muscular factors.

Physiological Demands of Sport Climbing
In fact, during progressive climbing sets (steepness) in a treadwall (Schöffl et col., 2006) no point was found after which lactate accumulated exponentially as it happens in other sports: the increase was merely linear. These authors concluded that blood lactate can show the evolution of a climber in a given route, but we can't talk about a 'lactate threshold' per se. It can be argued that these results may vary if reducing hold size was used as the way to increase difficulty instead of running the treadwall faster or steeper... anyway: given the small absolute amounts of lactate measured and the particular characteristics of our fatigue (that can't be explained by acidosis alone), it could be even more fitting to talk about 'local fatigue threshold' (term coined in honor to the interesting conversations with my colleague P. Bergua) than about 'lactate threshold'.

Luis Alfonso Félix on Palestina, 9a (Cuenca). Photo: Javipec

So, even if it has been shown that a 3 to 5 minute climb achieves a considerable fraction of the VO2max obtained in a treadmill (70-85%; Billat et col., 1995; Lehner, 2000; De Geus, 2006), and this has led many authors to suggest that climbing depends a lot on aerobic metabolism (Billat et col., 1995; Booth et col., 1999; Watts and Drobish, 1998), this in no way means that climbing is an 'Aerobic Power' sport, like the rhythmic, uniform and global ones mentioned above.

There is even data that shows that climbers who train their cardiovascular endurance through unspecific aerobic endurance exercises (running, cycling...) take less time to recover their heart rate between climbing sets (Schöffl et col., 2006); and we can go as far as suggesting a method for aerobic power development specific of climbing (later in the series we will see how and for whom this would make sense). Nonetheless this hasn't been enough to show that this is a key performance factor in climbing (Billat et col., 1995; Watts et col., 2004; España-Romero et col., 2009). Instead, what has been proposed as a key quality is the local or peripheral factor, specifically the strength-endurance to intermittent isometric contractions of the finger flexors (Billat et col., 1995; Watts, 2004; Schöffl et col., 2006).

Summing up: Climbing is an intermittent sport that involves a lot of isometric action of small muscles that have to bear most of the body's mass, and these realizations are capital for understanding fatigue and developing training methods accordingly.

Andrea Cartas training at Kletterhallewien (Vienna). Photo: Carlos Padilla

How do we work our flexors' local aerobic endurance?

We can't use blood lactate, heart rate or VO2max to evaluate or choose a training method, because these parameters have not been shown to be representative of intensity in climbing (Koestermeyer, 2000; Michailov 2002; Schöffl et col. 2006; Burnik and Jereb, 2007). Then, what factor do we use to train not only local aerobic endurance, but also other forms of endurance?

Intensity will be a function of what fraction of our maximum strength we need to grab a hold (given by its depth, shape, texture...) along with grip duration (a function of foot- and handhold distribution, clipping points...) in a given route (steepness, etc.) (López-Rivera, 2014).

 The logical conclusion is that we need to choose holds of a size that allows us to maintain the activity and sensations associated to local aerobic endurance for the required time on a climbing surface (with its own overhang, hold distribution, etc.).

Planning for Local Aerobic Endurance: Bases

We usually hear about high volume and low intensity training, with many sets of easy, homogeneous climbing and short rests, or climbing many rock routes in a day, etc.

We are not going to discuss here some popular methods (like 4x4's) or other methods put forward by different authors. We won't learn how to train local aerobic endurance in general, because I believe it to be too simplistic.

What we are going to do is reviewing what I think are the 3 specific goals or the 3 aspects that determine the training of this quality.

Why?

Because in my opinion this will allow us to define it more accurately, allowing us to guide our work more effectively. Analyzing what effects we want to achieve in each case (what route we want to climb, our level, modality we practice, etc.) will make it easier to choose a method for each mesocycle and macrocycle.

Training your Local Aerobic Endurance: Goals

GOAL #1: Make our forearms capable of completing a climb without getting 'depleted'.

In other words, enhancing CAPACITY, also known among climbers as ARC (aerobic energy restoration and capillarity)

Chris Sharma on "Jumbo Love", 9b. Clark Mountain (USA).
Photo: Boone Speed. Source: www.petzl.com

GOAL #2: To be able to conserve our strength through long, low- to mid-intensity sections.

To put it another way: reducing fatigue and pumped forearms on easier parts, no matter their length.
We can refer to this goal as STEADY-STATE (negotiating moderate intensity-medium duration sections), or EFFICIENCY or economy of movement (okay, we are venturing into the realm of technique, but who says these things are unrelated?)

Emily Harrington - Red River Gorge - Photo: Keith Ladzinski - Source: http://flickr.com

This goals' importance (and the first one's, not only because it helps developing #2) is supported by the suggestion that climbing time to exhaustion (España-Romero et col., 2009) and economy (España-Romero et col., 2009 and 2011; Bertuzzi et col., 2007; Baláš et col., 2013) -defined as the least energy expenditure per move at a given intensity- are key performance factors.

GOAL #3: ABILITY TO RECOVER

This quality is a requirement of the heterogeneous and intermittent nature of rock climbing, and there are several reasons why this can determine performance:

- Reducing the time spent resting shortens effective climbing time, which influences energy economy, efficiency and capacity.

- It takes less time to recover from hard moves, not only at good rests, but also while moving, when we shake our free arm, or even while chalking up! Our chances will improve when facing the crux because of the fast phosphagen repletion (an energy substrate for high intensity efforts), optimal oxygenation and recycling-elimination of fatigue-related metabolites. We will also be able to give the same route more tries during one day.

Brent Perkins on Proper Soul, 5.14a - Picture:Taylor Strohmeyer. Source: http://brentperkins30.blogspot.com/

At the metabolic level it could be described as a combination of the aerobic and anaerobic pathways. According to the terminology that is popular among climbers, these goal fits somewhere between endurance and power-endurance.

General guidelines for goal-based periodization according to level and training phase

We need to take into account the characteristics of our project (distribution of hard moves, steepness, length), our climbing level, training experience and personal qualities; these will inform your choice of goals, which one to prioritize, or even why you must ignore all of them for the time being! Always keep in mind the training principles of individualization and specificity.

LOWER LEVELS: Earlier training stages and Beginners
At this stage we will focus on Goal #1, because when we start training or climbing we tend to lack enough capacity (Bertuzzi et col., 2007), probable due to poor technique and low finger strength. Some telling signs of insufficient capacity are getting exhausted before sorting all the moves of a route in one try, having limited 'energy' to climb several routes even if they are easy or familiar and getting pumped too soon.

Edu Marín on"A muerte", 8c+/9a. Siurana. Photo: Israel Macià. Source:www.desnivel.com

INTERMEDIATE LEVELS/medium training stages
Once the previous stage is taken care of, it is possible to begin training for Goal #2. Here we will develop our Efficiency, meaning the ability to climb at low-mid intensity without getting too pumped, or feeling pain or stiffness in our forearms.

HIGHER LEVELS
Advanced climbers, once they have addressed the previous goals both through their sport career and during the season, can proceed to methods aimed to achieving Goal #3, being able to recover their forearms in record time, while climbing and also from route to route.

Eva López on Géminis, 8b+. Rodellar. Photo: Dafnis Fernández

Regarding the way these methods are arranged in the training plan, the first two goals will build the foundation to develop the third more effectively. The latter (or the two first for lower-intermediate level climbers), combined with that other quality that we know as 'power-endurance' ('resistànce' in French), will translate into improved performance when it comes to endurance.

This said, I need to remind everyone that we can't ignore other qualities: boulder, finger strength, etc. We also have to choose our goals and associated methods for each of them.

The description of the different training methods that are indicated for the fulfillment of each Goal will be the topic of the next entries.


RELATED ENTRIES:
why we need to train our Local Aerobic Endurance: the numbers speak

Aerobic Endurance Training in Sport Climbing: Capacity (I). Physiological Adaptations

RECOMMENDED READINGS TO EXPAND AND IMPROVE YOUR KNOWLEDGE

• Bechtel, S. Unlearning Endurance Training, in website: "Climb Strong"[on-line], entry from January 21th,  2013. Available at: http://www.climbstrong.com/articles/20130121_12
  
• Goddard, D., y Neumann, U. (1993). Performance rock climbing. Stackpole Books.  (105-106)
• MacLeod, D. (2010). 9 out of 10 climbers make the same mistakes: navigation through the maze of advice for the self-coached climber. Rare Breed Productions. (pág 85-86)

REFERENCES

• Baláš, J., Panáčková, M., Strejcová, B., Martin, A. J., Cochrane, D. J., Kaláb, M., ... and Draper, N. (2014). The Relationship between Climbing Ability and Physiological Responses to Rock Climbing. The Scientific World Journal
• Bertuzzi, R. C., Franchini, E., Kokubun, E., and Kiss, M. (2007). Energy system contributions in indoor rock climbing. European journal of applied physiology, 101(3), 293-300.
• Billat, V., Palleja, P., Charlaix, T., Rizzardo, P., and Janel, N. (1995). Energy specificity of rock climbing and aerobic capacity in competitive sport rock climbers. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 35(1), 20-24
• Booth, J., Marino, F., Hill, C., and Gwinn, T. (1999). Energy cost of sport rock climbing in elite performers. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 33(1), 14-18.  
• Burnik, S., and Jereb, B. (2009). Heart rate as an indicator of sport climbing intensity. Acta Universitatis Palackianae Olomucensis. Gymnica, 37(1), 63-66
• de Geus, B., O’Driscoll, S. V., and Meeusen, R. (2006). Influence of climbing style on physiological responses during indoor rock climbing on routes with the same difficulty. European journal of applied physiology, 98(5), 489-496. 
• España-Romero, V., Porcel, F. B. O., Artero, E. G., Jiménez-Pavón, D., Sainz, A. G., Garzón, M. J. C., and Ruiz, J. R. (2009). Climbing time to exhaustion is a determinant of climbing performance in high-level sport climbers. European journal of applied physiology, 107(5), 517-525.
• Guidi, O. (1999). Les filières énergétiques en escalade. Revue education physique et sport, 276:15-19.
• Köstermeyer, G. (2000). Strength endurance training for elite rock climbers. High Performance seminar por British Mountaineering Council, Plas y Brenin (Wales, UK)
• Lehner, C. (2000). Etude de l’intervention relative des differentes filiêres énergétiques en escalade sportive. Sport Belgique. 170:12-20.
• López-Rivera, E. (2014): Efectos de Diferentes Métodos de Entrenamiento de Fuerza y Resistencia de Agarre en Escaladores Deportivos de distintos Niveles (Doctoral Thesis, unpublished).  Programa de Doctorado en Rendimiento Deportivo, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Toledo, España.
• Michailov, M.L., (2002). Difficulties controlling the training load in sport climbing. In: Sports, Society, Education, Vol 8. Sofia: Tiptoppres: 253-258.
• Schöffl, V. R., Möckel, F., Köstermeyer, G., Roloff, I., and Küpper, T. (2006). Development of a performance diagnosis of the anaerobic strength endurance of the forearm flexor muscles in sport climbing. International journal of sports medicine, 27(03), 205-211. 
• Watts, P. B. (2004). Physiology of difficult rock climbing. European journal of applied physiology, 91(4), 361-372

Why we need to train Local Aerobic Endurance: Let the Numbers Talk

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Versión en español (original del 31 diciembre de 2010)

I'll try to answer this question with data gathered in a field study that I'm carrying out with the aim of finding in a scientific manner the basis for training in our sport. Researchers have suggested that one of the keys to an effective methodology is specificity. Part of this specificity is matching the work-rest pattern and physiological demands of that sport (Meckel et al., 2009; White & Olsen, 2010).


Video analysis and direct observation provide us with a great deal of useful information, and have been regularly used for a long time now when it comes to team sports. More recent is their application to individual sports similar to ours, those where the environment (outdoors) is not standardized and the effort is intermittent, like surfing (Mendez-Villanueva & Bishop, 2005).

Dani Andrada."Era Bella", 9a. Margalef.

Picture: Bernardo Giménez. Source:www.desnivel.com

FIELD STUDY: Time-Motion Analysis of Rock Climbing, in the case of attempting a route previously practiced.

Materials and Methods

Participants: 3 male and 1 female climbers. Level from 8c to 9a
Materials: Chronometer, pencil, notebook

PROCEDURES: PROTOCOL FOR COLLECTING DATA
Methodology: Direct observation of each participant while the actual climb took place, or later on recorded video
Observed action: Attempts at sending a route that the participant had worked previously; the quickdraws were in place already. There were considered worth measuring those tries where the climbers had already optimized their methods and automated the sequences through previous work of the whole route (in eight occasions the data gathering coincided with the climber linking the route)
Routes: 15 routes from 8b to 9a across different climbing sites
Crags: Cuenca, Margalef (Tarragona), Oliana (Lleida), Oñate (Álava), Otiñar (Jaén), Rodellar (Huesca) and Villanueva de Valdegovía (Álava)

Carlos Logroño at Algarve (Portugal). Picture by David Munilla

THE FOLLOWING VARIABLES were measured in this study:
- Climbing duration for each section of the route, a section being delimited by resting points or standing points
- Total climbing time: sum of all section durations. It is the total time spent progressing or ascending the route, and also clipping.
- Time at each resting point: this did not include resting on the harness after a fall. A resting point was defined as holding a "good" hold with the aim of lowering the fatigue caused by the previous section so that the climb can be prolonged.
- Total resting time: sum of all resting point times.
- Total stay on the route: total climbing time plus total resting time.
- Number of rest points
- Number of climbing sections

Petr Bláha resting on "Patate d'or" at La Turbie (Mónaco, France). Photo: Monika Knoppová. Source: Lezec.cz

Results

1- The shortest recorded stay duration was 5' 34'' on a strength-endurance route less than 25 m high; the longest was 35' 34'' on a route more than 30 m high, by a climber with more endurance than maximum strength.

Most of the climbs were between 8' and 25' (the average was 16' 18''±8' 33'')

2- During most of the climbs, 35% to 58% of the time was spent resting (average of total resting times = 46,6±12,2%)

3- The shortest total resting time was 1' 45'' (31,4% of the total stay time) on a strength-endurance route less than 25 m high; the maximum of 27' 50'' (78,3% of the total stay time) was recorded on a route longer than 30 m for a climber with more endurance than maximum strength

4- In most of the routes the number of resting points was 2-8 (the average was 5±3)

5- When comparing different climbers on the same route there is a great variability in the total resting time, according to each person's strength and endurance levels; this had a direct impact over the total stay time (pearson correlation = 0,95), and presumably over the final level of general fatigue

Dani Andrada on "La Esencia de la Resistencia", 8c+. Las Bruixas (Lleida). Picture: Pete O'Donovan.

Conclusions

We must keep from extrapolating these data to the general climbing population and to every type of route: the sample of routes is tiny, and all the climbers are of a high level. Nonetheless, we can glimpse some fundamental ideas that arise from them:

1- Rock climbing is a sport with a intermittent or non-continuous character, where there is an alternance of:

- Displacement and standing phases: when progressing along the route or stopping to rest (on the wall) between sections.
- Intensities: In the same route we usually find a mix of easy, moderate and hard sections.

2- The total stay time during a sending attempt in some routes, can be long (up to 35 minutes) and the time spent resting between hard sections can be a high percentage of the total time (min 31%, max up to 78%)

Not to mention climbing onsight, or when we still don't know the route well and unclimb to then climb again until we are exhausted, or when fear or doubt arise... In these cases we can stay on the route much longer than what I described above, sometimes more than one hour!

Other climbers on other routes can experience the opposite, they do not have enough endurance and can't afford to stop between sections...like beginners.

Yuyi Hirayama on White Zombie, 8c. Baltzola (Guipuzcoa). Photo: desnivelpress.com

Summing up

All these characteristics of rock climbing should help us define our training.

So, if we stay for so long on a route, and much of that time we are trying to rest off a decent hold... and if we want to climb the easier sections without getting very pumped... then we need to develop the ability to do so.

We need to work on our local aerobic endurance*

*AKA Stamina, Aerobic Endurance,  easy endurance, ARC...or in French: Continuité, and in Spanish: continuidad

So, if you are among those who climb at sites where routes tend to be long, or you don't have strength to spare and need to spend a lot of time resting because the harder sections feel really exhausting, I ask you:

Do you train it enough? or, better yet:
Are you really developing it when you think you are?

Tomáš Mrázek. World Cup, Imst (Austria)

How many moves, how long are your endurance sets at the gym?

What's the total volume in minutes or movements that you perform during an typical endurance workout?

Do you know how long it takes to do the usual 20-30 movement set at the gym, neither clipping, nor slowing down at technical sections, and climbing sideways instead of upwards... what most of use to do?

... And then is the issue of how intense the set was, and how long the pause before the next one...

Perhaps it is due to a methodology or planning error (something we will look at in the future), or because we are simply not training it, that you spend weeks at the gym, thinking that your endurance must have improved, and then, when finally you can go to the crag... you realize that you don't only suffer from the lack of adaptation to the rock, where the holds are harder to see and smaller, but also that you get pumped very fast even though the individual moves feel really easy...

Eva López on Paraula de Stone, 7c+/8a. Montgrony. Picture by Dafnis Fernández

Has this ever happened to you?

Update your training, your sensations, and draw your own conclusions.

If one key factor for an effective training is matching the characteristics of the sport it is oriented to, shouldn't we study our own climbs and the routes we want to climb so that we get a higher confidence that our training is well oriented?

So you know: you just need a stopwatch, a pencil and a notebook!

Happy analyzing and, with a bit of luck... happy insights!

NEXT ENTRIES:
Training Objectives and Basis for Periodization for Local Aerobic Endurance
Local Aerobic Endurance Training Methodology (I): How to develop Capacity

REFERENCES 

• Meckel Y., Machnai O., & Eliakim A. (2009). Relationship among repeated sprint tests, aerobic fitness, and anaerobic fitness in elite adolescent soccer players. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 23(1), 163-169. 
• Mendez-Villanueva A., Bishop D., & Hamer P. (2006). Activity Profile of World-Class Professional Surfers During Competition: Acase Study. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 20(3), 477-482.
• White D. J., & Olsen P. D. (2010). A time motion analysis of bouldering style competitive rock climbing. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 24(5), 1356-1360.

Lock-off training in Sport Climbing (III) Do you really lock-off?

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Versión en español

We completed the literature revision in previous posts, and now it's time to apply this knowledge, as I had set out to do.

Watching videos, and with the help of kinovea, an open source tool, I have analyzed the gesture that is the subject of this entry through the following subset of real climbing:

- lead style

- high level climbers

- different angles of climbing

- difficulty 8b+ to 9a

- rock and competition

- both onsight and redpoint

From these I have inferred some trends that can be of interest, although I need to make clear that this is a piece of field work and not a proper scientific study. So, the conclusions here exposed are more of a personal take on the matter.

Analysis of the pulling/lock-off gesture in Climbing
If we study in slow motion our pulling movements (specifically, our upper body; added sentence on 09/10/2012; thank you,  Douglas Hunter) when we are not matching, resting, clipping, in compression moves (added sentence on 08/10/2012; thank you, Gianluca), or using tiny intermediate holds, we can divide the holds into three categories; H (the one we will Hold from), R (the one we are going to Release) and T (our Target hold). Then we can distinguish several phases.
We are going to look at each of those phases to collect some data.

AVERAGE LOCKING-OFF DURATION
Phase 1: Initial. Pulling and building Momentum with both arms
This is when we are pulling with both hands from H (the one we'll keep holding) and, R (the one we are going to release); usually more force is applied on H, especially towards the end, when we are about to release R and go for T; the legs, and really the rest of the body help to impulse in a coordinated way. 

Duration: most of the time, 0,30 to 0,50 seconds.

Phase 2: Pulling/locking with one arm while releasing the other
In this phase we have already released R, for the time needed to get to T. For a brief amount of time we are applying our force with one arm, the H one, 

Duration: most of the times, 0,4 to 0,5 seconds, but it can be as low as 0,2 seconds in certain movements, more often with very explosive climbers, or as high as nearly 1 second on very long reaches in not very steep routes, especially with more static climbers.

Shauna Coxsey - Bouldering World Cup,  2012. Photo Heiko Wilhem. Source UKclimbing.com

Chris Sharma. Demencia Senil, 9a+. Margalef (Tarragona). Photo: Pete O'Donovan

Luis Alfonso Félix. Eros Tensa el Arco, 8b+ .Cuenca. Photo: José Yáñez.

Now, if we look more closely to this phase, we will realize that the static part of it, during which we are locking-off, is most often practically imperceptible. That's why in my previous post I thought it very interesting to reconsider the whole concept of locking-off.

The best climbers devote very little to no time (0,15-0,30 seconds) to maintain the desired angle and actually lock-off. What they do is to take advantage of the previous impulse so that they can keep on flexing or extending their H arm before reaching the angle needed to grab the Target, in a way that leaves little to no room for an isometric phase. This is even more true when the holds are smaller and/or the route steeper.

Helena Alemán. Spanish Climbing Championship (Gijón 2012).
Photo: Darío Rodríguez. Source: top30 facebook

Shauna Coxsey

Phase 3: Stabilization and getting ready for the next move
Our hands are already on the H and T holds, and we are locking-off to a certain extent (although most certainly with different angle and lower intensity) with our H arm, while we steady ourselves, do the required footwork, and adjust our fingers to the T hold so it can eventually transition into our new H hold. Next we will 'undo' the lock with our former H -and soon-to-be R- hold, and move our feet in preparation for the following move.

Duration: most often 2 to 3 seconds, going up to 5 seconds or more in the most complicated movements. This phase comes out as the longest one.

Giannis Agathokleous

At this point it's important noting that if we reach a hold by dynoing, it will be fundamental to quickly and coordinately pull with both arms and the whole body (with emphasis in the lower back, waist and legs) to steady ourselves.

Sean MacColl - Bouldering World Cup - Vail, USA 2012. Photo: Heiko Wilhelm

MAXIMUM LOCKING-OFF DURATION
I have recorded 2-5 second locks when:

• trying to onsight a route, while figuring out how to grip a hold.
• in some sections that demand precision and body tension, like aiming for a pocket or climbing on roofs...
• when clipping the rope, more often in competition where clipping points are used to increase the route's difficulty.

Nevertheless, these figures are a function of level. The more experienced climbers will try to clip more efficiently, keeping their arm straight and taking less rope. They will also need less time to sort out a section or a grip position while onsighting.

Mina Markovic. Lead Climbing World Cup, Kranj 2011. Photo: Luka Fonda

ELBOW ANGLE
It varies with the steepness of the route and across different moves. The most used one, though, and the most specific is the 90º one. In second place come those close to 45º, typical of slight overhangs, transitions from roof to vertical and gastons.

Javipec at Bayuela

This said, all these numbers vary with several factors:
- The more overhanging and/or tinier the holds both hand and foot ones, the shorter the locking time for a given hold separation.
- Personal style: hesitant and static; onsight (in contrast with worked), routes (compared with boulders) will yield the longest locking-off times for the same difficulty.
- Girls in general show longer times in all phases due to our lower maximum and explosive strength. If we add that training frequently ignores gender particularities, and the tendency to choose routes that keep us from challenging our weaknesses instead of working on them, there is a tendency to develop a more static style. The outcome is an increased fatigue for a given route (due to a longer time grabbing each hold), lack of ability to solve certain moves like dynos or very steep overhangs, and a general slow down of progression. Even overuse injuries in the elbows.

LOCKING-OFF AVERAGE INTENSITY

If we measure the intensity by the percentage of body weight that the arm has to bear, and look at the 2 phases where lock-off takes place, we observe the following:
- Hand releasing phase: the intensity can be high or medium depending on the type of move and overhang angle, but as far a I have been able to observe, rarely does the H arm bear a high percentage of the body weight, and, as stated above, this isometric phase tends to be lower than half a second long.

Jorg Verhoeven - Lead  Climbing World Cup - Denver, 2011

- Stabilization: Here body mass is already supported by both arms, so that intensity is even lower than in the previous phase.

Nacho Sánchez. Tolmojón, 8B+ (Tamajón, Guadalajara).
Photo: Raúl Santano. Source: flickr

INTERVAL BETWEEN LOCK-OFFS/PULLS
It is around 10-15 seconds in average. Less frequently, it lasts 5-8 seconds, or more than 20, but it is conditioned by the holds distribution, the need to clip and, as ever, the climbers' style. We need to be aware that we need to clip approximately every 2 movements in competition, or every 4 to 6 in rock climbing.

¿Are any of these figures of relevance to medium and lower level climbers?
The numbers above are applicable to climbers with a high technical and physical level, but can vary wildly among medium and low level climbers. In fact, they do.
From my observations, the less experienced climbers display longer locking-off times, possibly due to:
- limited perceptive and motor repertory that leads to indecision when it comes to sorting out a sequence,
- reduced balance and poor management of the center of mass, that makes them try to put their body 'closer' to the holds, flexing their arms too often and locking-off constantly,
- insecurity due to their lack of experience or their undeveloped control of fear,
- insufficient memorization to climb fluidly through the key sections.

Source: www.mikeoffthemapfiles.wordpress.com

¿Does this mean that in these levels, or with these weaknesses, we need to work our lock-off more, or that it is better just to improve our physical, technical and tactical aspects?
My answer is clear. It would be sensible to focus on the latter strategy during the initial and intermediate stages (2-4 years), and then to progressively include specific physical contents (like lock-offs, finger maximum strength, etc) once we are in the right path of technical-tactical improvement.

And now that we know a bit more about how long a lock-off usually lasts, in high level climbers, we can ask ourselves the question:

All right, then... ¿is it useful to train 'long' lock-offs to improve an action that normally lasts less than half a second?

My answer is Not. And, to elaborate on it, in the next entry I will talk about the importance of training for each of the phases using exercises whit specific duration, speed and intensity. I can tell you in advance that we'll learn about some explosive isometric methods and exercises, that will try to develop our ability for reaching very quickly our force peak, within those tenths of a second when we 'stop' pulling and 'lock' to make contact with our Target hold. We will also take a look at other exercises with a duration and style oriented to the previous phase, when we are pulling from the holds, something that is tightly associated with the locking-off gesture.

In conclusion:
Locking-off, at least in modern routes and competitions, and for climbers with a high technical-tactical level, is ideally a very brief action, and of medium an low intensity in general. In a way, it probably wouldn't deserve to be called lock-off...
In addition, the the time that passes between the harder pulls and lock-offs should be enough to recover from them in most occasions.

However, it is the intensity factor along with the duration, especially during phase 2, what will determine if in some instance -for a particular route or style that we are training for- this locking-off ability could become the limiting factor to send a route. This leads, you saw it coming, to another question: 

What kind of movements or routes can benefit from training our locking ability? 

By closely looking at these pictures or thinking a bit by yourself, you may find the answer:

Mina Markovic. Lead World Cup (Kranj 2011). Photo: Luka Fonda 

Dani Andrada. Ali-Hulk, 9a+ (Rodellar, Huesca). Photo: Pete O'Donovan

Edu Marín. "Ciudad de Dios", 9a (Santa Linya, Lleida). Photo: Pete O'Donovan 

Nacho Sánchez. Insomnio, 8C (Crevillente, Alicante). Photo: Rebeca Morillo

You got it...
For some moves in roofs, or going from a roof to vertical, crossing hands when traversing an overhang, holding a barn door, a key clipping...
For these, or other cases that you consider this ability is important for... what would be the best method to train it?

Perhaps with the information that we have to this point you can answer this question by yourself, but, if it's not the case, the next entry will be devoted to reflecting about it. We will discuss the usefulness of methods like functional isometrics, Cometti's static-dynamic pull-ups and other, less known, ones...

NEXT ENTRY: Locking-off training methodology

RELATED LINKS: 
Lock-off strength training (I)
Lock-off strength training (II)