Hooper’s Beta Ep. 57

Viewer Question Ep. 7

Intro

Fun Fact: Cats only have 4 toes on their back paws, whaaaa? They still have 5 on the front, just 4 on the back. Now everyone who has a cat, hit that pause button and go check, then come back for some more fun questions. 

Viewer Questions

Viewer: “league plays” & “Aus”

Question: OK so we had two viewers ask a similar question so we definitely want to address this one. The question is: On the points about mental health, is climbing not already exercise? So shouldn’t those benefits already be gained by climbing often?

Video in Reference: SHOULD CLIMBERS RUN? Here's what you need to know about Cardio and Climbing

Answer: Climbing definitely is exercise and definitely already has multiple studies showing the positive effect it can have on our mental health at all ages. So, yes! Climbing can be a boost in our mental health, that doesn't mean it is the "only" boost. That's like saying I get happiness from drinking coffee, and it has caffeine that I desire, so I don't even need to drink Tea, even though it also has caffeine and also makes me happy. Can't you have both?! (maybe on separate days ;)) The point being that doing activities in general that make you happy are good for your mental health, and doing different activities can be beneficial! As mentioned in the video, there are even negative effects noted for only doing 1 activity/sport. It can become frustrating. It can be consuming. Also, you may get less pleasure out of the successes you typically experienced because you are only focused on 1 thing. Now, just to be clear, that doesn't mean you have to do other activities. If climbing is your jam, then yes, you’re getting the mental benefits from it because it is exercise. Remember this is just the reasons for and against, you get to make the decision on if it's best for you.  Good question!

Viewer: Andrey Ivannikov

Question: I have a push-up question. I've been told that it's best for climbers to keep elbows close to the body when doing push-ups. When I do these, I hear a dull cracking/popping/cartilage sound in my right shoulder, closest to my neck. I don't have any shoulder injuries and there is no pain. Should I be concerned? Am I doing something wrong?

Video in Reference: Free Weights vs. Resistance Bands: Does it matter? (YES!)

Answer: First, doing push ups with the elbows close to the body isn’t the only form you can do. It simply works the triceps more which may help more with climbing than the pecs. Wider push ups will help more with pecs, narrow more with tricep, etc. 

In relation to the cracking/popping sound, you may need to change the depth of the push up, or do some warm ups beforehand. It is likely movement of your AC (acromioclavicular joint) but it could be a numerous factors. The shoulder is so mobile that it has an extensive amount of structures to support it. For example, if one of those support structures is too tight, it can get pulled over bony prominence, and cause clicking. It is often benign, especially if there is no pain. But if it causes you pain, you need to modify it to reduce the pain/clicking. Modifications can include changing hand position, changing speed of your movement, and changing the depth of your movement.

Viewer: kiosken1

Question: Nice one! I run around 3 times a week on my lunchbreak, but not on climbing days. I climb in the afternoon/evening, around 1h climb + 1h resistance. Is it better for me to run at lunchtime on climb days than the day after? And do even more resistance or climbing the day after on my lunchbreak instead?

Video in Reference: SHOULD CLIMBERS RUN? Here's what you need to know about Cardio and Climbing

Answer: With the research about running and strength training I would say yes, it is better to combine them, but it is even slightly more beneficial to do the strength training first if it is possible in your daily schedule. Also, be sure you are accounting for rest days as well as part of your training. It sounds like you are climbing, training, and being very active on most days of the week. Make sure you have 1 or 2 rest days in there. Rest days can be stretch days, foam rolling days, etc. Also, if you're goal is getting better at climbing, you should be climbing more and doing less resistance training. You mentioned you do 1 hour of climbing and 1 hour of resistance training. Your training should be scheduled more in line with  75-80% climbing, 20-25% training. Which would look more like 1.5 hours of climbing and 30 minutes of training. 

Viewer: Pranav Gayal

Question: Sir I dont have a hangboard (side note, you’re basically guaranteed to get your question answered calling me Sir. Or Hoops, or DJ Dr Hoops, or ***trail out***), Can you suggest some exercises for finger training as all the gyms are closed here due to pandemic.

Video in Reference: Free Weights vs. Resistance Bands: Does it matter? (YES!)

Answer: Find any small ledge that you have and work on recruitment pulls with 1 arm. Two arms is fine as well, I just suggest 1 in case the ledge isn't strong enough to hold up your entire body weight, i.e. two arms. Don’t go breaking those door frame edges because you’re using your entire body weight. To be honest, there's no direct replacement for climbing, and having a hangboard or some type of tool like that is helpful if you can afford it, but if you can pull hard maximally on small ledges, you can at least maintain and maybe even build some strength. For more information about recruitment pulls check out any of the hangboard routines we have!

Viewer: Michael Lim

Question: When should we chase a pump in climbing training/bouldering?

Video in Reference: How to TRAIN ON THE HANGBOARD AND CLIMB on the SAME DAY (for max gains)

Answer: Chasing the pump really depends on your training goals. If you are trying to improve pure strength, then you don't want to chase the pump. You need good, maximal effort with fewer repetitions. If you are trying to improve endurance, then that is more appropriate and you want to feel the burn and work towards failure. If you are training for hypertrophy, that is another time when you should feel fatigue/burn and you should be working in the 8-12 repetition range for training.  Even with true power training you need to be careful not to chase the pump because power requires a ton of rest in between movements. In fact, resources will point to a 1:5 or a 1:10 ratio of work to rest for true power training. As in, 10 seconds of work needs 50 to 100 seconds of rest. So, you may not feel super wrecked or burnt out after because that shouldn't be the goal, and isn't the way to build more power or strength. Power endurance is of course another story, but I think the ultimate takeaway is “what are your goals?”. My goals are to improve strength and technique, so I am performing max effort moves which typically cause me to fail quickly, before I feel any type of significant fatigue or burn. 

Thanks for tuning in! Until next time: Train. Climb. Send. Repeat.

Disclaimer:

As always, exercises are to be performed assuming your own risk and should not be done if you feel you are at risk for injury. See a medical professional if you have concerns before starting new exercises.

Written and Presented by Jason Hooper, PT, DPT, OCS, SCS, CAFS

IG: @hoopersbetaofficial

Filming and Editing by Emile Modesitt

www.emilemodesitt.com

IG: @emile166