Should You Stretch Before Climbing? + A Sample Climbing Warm-Up Routine
You may have heard of the old adage ‘stretching kills your gains’. Taken out of context, it may be misinterpreted to mean that all types of stretching impair sports performance.
In reality, there are many stretching techniques, all of which serve their own purpose. In this article, we will explore five different stretching techniques and which ones should regularly be implemented into our training for climbing! This is a compilation of my research and reading of various papers, as well as what I have learned from my NASM-CPT course. Hope you enjoy and learn something new! Near the end, I provide a full-body warm-up for beginner to intermediate climbers (or even the advanced climbers who do not currently have a good warm-up in place).
1. Static Passive Stretching
Static Passive Stretching (SPS) involves getting into a position that lengthens a muscle and holding that position for a certain length of time, typically 30 seconds. SPS works by lengthening the muscles, which activates the muscle spindles and causes the muscles to contract as a way to protect them from overstretching. When the stretch has been held for long enough, the Golgi Tendon Organ (a proprioceptor found in our tendons) activates causing the muscle to relax and decreasing the muscle spindle’s firing frequency.
Although this type of stretching is very effective for improving flexibility, some studies have shown that SPS before exercise, when done alone (with no warm-up), leads to decreases in strength, power, and explosive performance (Di Cagno, 2010). However, in many of these studies, the stretches were held for 60+ seconds and resistance exercise was performed right after, so it is no wonder performance was negatively influenced (Pinto, 2014). Other studies have found that some static stretching before a training session does not have a negative effect on performance(Yapicioglu, 2013).
Either way, SPS is not ideal for warming up for climbing as it isn’t specific enough to the type of movement we do in climbing, so it won’t psychologically nor physiologically prepare our muscles for climbing or intense activity. SPS is best to fit in on rest days and/or after a climbing session.
2. Static Active Stretching
Static Active Stretching (SAS) involves contracting our muscles to get into an end range of motion (ROM) and holding that position for 2-10 seconds before relaxing and repeating this protocol for 5-10 reps. An example of a static active stretch would be raising our leg up and out in front of us as high as we can, which requires the active contraction of the quadricep and relaxation of its functional antagonist, the hamstrings (this is called reciprocal inhibition).
SAS is still a form of static stretching, therefore it may not be optimal for our warm-up as they are counterproductive. The goal of our warm-up should be to increase our awareness, coordination, the elasticity and contractibility of the muscles, and the efficiency of respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Active stretches and isometric stretches do not fulfill these requirements since a stretched muscle may be too tired to properly execute a resistance-style or explosive exercise.
3. Dynamic Stretching
Dynamic Stretching (DS) is one of the best ways to warm up for climbing. We are using momentum to move smoothly through our maximum ROM. DS loosens up muscles and joints, and when we have good flexibility and our joints are capable of moving through their full ROM, our body is better able to distribute loads and forces when performing complex and dynamic movements (as we often do in climbing).
To integrate dynamic stretching into our warm-up, we should perform 1-3 sets of 5-10 reps, with a total of 6-10 exercises. As we do not want to fatigue ourselves during our warm-up, the intensity should remain relatively low.
4. Ballistic Stretching
Ballistic stretching involves rapid, alternating movements – or ‘bouncing’ at the end ROM – that push muscles past their typical stopping point. An example is touching your toes and using momentum to push beyond your maximum ROM. This stretching technique is generally not recommended because it hyper-extends the target muscle in an uncontrolled manner which may lead to injuries.
5. Self-Myofascial Release
Self-Myofascial Release (SMR) is a self-massage stretching technique that uses an implement such as a foam roller, medicine ball, or handheld roller (all of which vary in density, surface structure, and even temperature), it focuses on the neural (AKA nervous system) and fascial (sheath of connective tissue that surrounds our body and supports our muscles, tendons, ligaments, tissues, organs, nerves, joints, and bones) systems in the body. SMR provides an inhibitory effect to neural receptors in our muscle tissue which contract when they feel a change in length or tension and prevent us from overstretching. However, we are able to ‘override’ their effect when the neural impulses that sense tension are greater than the impulses that cause muscles to contract.
In a meta-analysis, “it was determined that the effects of foam rolling on performance and recovery are rather minor and partly negligible, but can be relevant in some cases” and it seems that utilizing SMR is more useful as a warm-up rather than as a recovery tool (Wiewelhove, 2019). I personally do not use the SMR technique on a regular basis, but if I am experiencing soreness before a session, foam rolling can relieve some of the pain/delayed onset muscle soreness. Using a foam roller, I’ll try to find the tender spot, then hold the implement against that spot for around 30 seconds.
Off-The-Wall Warm-Up + Conclusions
The following floor warm-up should take around 10 minutes. Rest for 0-30 seconds between exercises.
Jumping Jacks (45 seconds, 1 set): Increases heart rate and body temperature
Lunge with Thoracic Rotation (5 reps/side, 1 set): Great full-body warm-up, especially for our adductor complex, spine, and back musculature
Front Leg Swings (10 reps/side, 1 set): A dynamic warm-up that warms up our hip flexors in the sagittal plane.
Lateral Leg Swings (10 reps/side, 1 set): A dynamic warm-up that warms up our hip flexors in the frontal plane.
Calf Raises (10 reps, 1 set): Warms up calves and ankles which take a lot of impact when we are standing on small feet while climbing and falling/landing on unstable gym matting. You can do this exercise on an elevated or on a flat surface.
Scap Pull Ups (10 reps, 1 set): Warms up lats, trapezius, rhomboids, and serratus anterior.
Reverse Wrist Curls (10-15 reps/side, 1-2 sets): These warm up our wrist extensors which are often neglected when we climb and train. Doing this exercise on a regular basis may help prevent elbow tendinitis and maintain an overall muscle balance in our wrists and forearms, as well as wrist stabilization.
Tendon Glides (10 reps, 1 set): This exercise warms up our flexor digitorum profundus (FDP) and flexor digitorum superficialis (FDS) which we use a lot while climbing. It also warms up our extensor tendons and lumbricals. We’re moving our fingers through their full ROM which is important for preventing stiffness.
Recruitment Hangs (Optional): Start by performing a 10-second deadhang on a big edge (30-50mm), then rest for about a minute. Repeat this protocol with a progressively smaller edge 2-3 more times.
After you’ve gone through this series of exercises, get your climbing shoes on and move on to some light/really easy climbing to prepare your body to pull hard.
To sum up, today we learned about five different stretching techniques: Static Passive Stretching, Static Active Stretching, Dynamic Stretching, Ballistic Stretching, and Self-Myofascial Release.
Static Passive and Static Active Stretching should be left for rest days or after a climbing session to fully lengthen our muscles and make flexibility gains. While Dynamic Stretching is great for warming up since we are not holding our muscles in lengthened positions for prolonged periods of time yet we are still loosening up our joints and muscles, and moving them through their full ROM.
Warming up is an essential part of training that should not be skipped. We want to provide our bodies with a smooth transition into intense exercise. Not only is warming up great for our bodies but also our minds. A good warm-up can help temporarily take our mind away from our busy day and duties and into our training session, which is necessary to perform our best.
I hope this helps, good luck!
References
Di Cagno, Alessandra, et al. “Preexercise static stretching effect on leaping performance in elite rhythmic gymnasts.” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, vol. 24, no. 8, 2010, pp. 1995–2000, https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0b013e3181e34811.
Pinto, Matheus D., et al. “Differential effects of 30- vs. 60-second static muscle stretching on vertical jump performance.” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, vol. 28, no. 12, 2014, pp. 3440–3446, https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000000569.
Yapicioglu, Bulent, et al. “Effects of a dynamic warm-up, static stretching or static stretching with tendon vibration on vertical jump performance and EMG responses.” Journal of Human Kinetics, vol. 39, no. 1, 2013, pp. 49–57, https://doi.org/10.2478/hukin-2013-0067.
“How to Stretch.” STRETCHING AND FLEXIBILITY - How to Stretch, web.mit.edu/tkd/stretch/stretching_5.html. Accessed 24 Sept. 2023.
Wiewelhove, Thimo, et al. “A meta-analysis of the effects of foam rolling on performance and recovery.” Frontiers in Physiology, vol. 10, 2019, https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2019.00376.
Penney, Stacey. “Foam Rolling: Applying the Technique of Myofascial Release.” NASM, blog.nasm.org/foam-rolling-and-self-myofascial-release. Accessed 25 Sept. 2023.
