Effects of Two vs. Four Weekly Campus Board Training Sessions on Bouldering Performance and Climbing-Specific Tests in Advanced and Elite Climbers

Stien, Nicolay; Pedersen, H. Winding; Vereide, Vegard Albert; Sæterbakken, Atle Hole; Hermans, Espen; Kalland, Jarle; Schöenfeld, Brad J.; Andersen, Vidar

doi:10.52082/jssm.2021.438

Cited by 13 publications

(61 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…In addition to finger-specific tasks, number of pull-ups using different holds (Vigouroux et al, 2018), and trunk muscle tests (Saeterbakken et al, 2018;Draper et al, 2021) have been used to examine climbing-related endurance. Recently, testing procedures mimicking climbing have been examined, including motorized climbing ergometers (treadwalls), bouldering, campus board, and lead climbing (Medernach et al, 2015b;Hermans et al, 2017;Baláš et al, 2021;Stien et al, 2021b). Additionally, oxygen-uptake and -saturation have recently been measured as local aerobic capacity of the finger flexors (Baláš et al, 2021).…”

Section: Climbing-specific Endurance Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More recently, climbing to failure using a treadwall was introduced and proved suitable for assessing climbing-specific endurance (Baláš et al, 2021). In addition, Stien et al (2021b) used moves to failure on an overhanging campus board (13 cm separating the 20 mm deep rungs). Importantly, the campus board test only targets the fingers and pulling apparatus, and not the whole body (Stien et al, 2021b).…”

Section: Climbing and Other Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, Stien et al (2021b) used moves to failure on an overhanging campus board (13 cm separating the 20 mm deep rungs). Importantly, the campus board test only targets the fingers and pulling apparatus, and not the whole body (Stien et al, 2021b). Finally, number of pull-ups has been used as a measure of upper-body endurance and/or strength capacity using 10-80 mm deep holds.…”

Section: Climbing and Other Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Finally, dynamic tests focusing more on the upper-body strength than the fingers have been applied (Draper et al, 2011;Laffaye et al, 2014;Ozimek et al, 2016;Levernier et al, 2020;Stien et al, 2021b). For example, Levernier et al (2020) measured force and velocity during dynamic pull-ups on a gym bar with external loads (0-70% of body mass) and concluded that the test was reliable (CV = 1.0-6.6%) and could differentiate between disciplines in higher-elite athletes.…”

Section: Dynamic Strength and Power Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Tests and Procedures for Measuring Endurance, Strength, and Power in Climbing—A Mini-Review

Stien

Sæterbakken

Andersen

2022

Front. Sports Act. Living

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The interest in climbing is rapidly growing among professional and recreational athletes and will for the first time be included in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. The sport has also gained increased scientific attention in the past decades. Still, recommendations for testing procedures to predict climbing performance and measure training effects are limited. Therefore, the aim of this mini-review is to provide an overview of the climbing-specific tests, procedures and outcomes used to examine climbing performance. The available literature presents a variety of tests and procedures. While the reliability of some tests has been examined, measures of validity are scarce, especially for climbing-specific endurance tests. Moreover, considering the possible combinations of climbing performance levels, disciplines, and tests, substantial gaps in the literature exist. Vague descriptions of the participants in many studies (e.g., not specifying preferred discipline, performance level, experience, and regular climbing and training volume) further limit the current knowledge and challenge comparisons across studies. Regarding contraction types, dynamic strength- and power-tests are underrepresented in the literature compared to isometric tests. Studies exploring and reporting the validity and reliability of climbing-specific tests are warranted, and researchers should strive to provide a detailed description of the study populations in future research.

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Section: Climbing-specific Endurance Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Climbing and Other Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Climbing and Other Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Dynamic Strength and Power Testsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Tests and Procedures for Measuring Endurance, Strength, and Power in Climbing—A Mini-Review

Stien

Sæterbakken

Andersen

2022

Front. Sports Act. Living

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“…As such, performance requires the interaction of multiple technical, tactical, neuromuscular, and metabolic factors ( Orth et al, 2016 ; Saul et al, 2019 ). However, during training, climbers still seek to stimulate these factors in an isolated manner using intensity-controlled devices such as hangboards, campus boards, and climbing walls of different angles ( Medernach et al, 2015 ; Levernier and Laffaye, 2019 ; Stien et al, 2021 ). Diagnostic and training methods for climbing-specific strength have been well described in the literature ( López-Rivera and González-Badillo, 2012 ; Medernach et al, 2015 ; Michailov et al, 2018 ; Levernier and Laffaye, 2019 ; Lopez-Rivera and Gonzalez-Badillo, 2019 ; Philippe et al, 2019 ; Stien et al, 2021 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Estimation of Critical Angle in Climbing as a Measure of Maximal Metabolic Steady State

Baláš

Gajdošík

Giles³

et al. 2022

Front. Physiol.

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Purpose: Sport climbing is a technical, self-paced sport, and the workload is highly variable and mainly localized to the forearm flexors. It has not proved effective to control intensity using measures typical of other sports, such as gas exchange thresholds, heart rate, or blood lactate. Therefore, the purposes of the study were to (1) determine the possibility of applying the mathematical model of critical power to the estimation of a critical angle (CA) as a measure of maximal metabolic steady state in climbing and (2) to compare this intensity with the muscle oxygenation breakpoint (MOB) determined during an exhaustive climbing task.Materials and Methods: Twenty-seven sport climbers undertook three to five exhaustive ascents on a motorized treadwall at differing angles to estimate CA, and one exhaustive climbing test with a progressive increase in angle to determine MOB, assessed using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS).Results: Model fit for estimated CA was very high (R2 = 0.99; SEE = 1.1°). The mean peak angle during incremental test was −17 ± 5°, and CA from exhaustive trials was found at −2.5 ± 3.8°. Nine climbers performing the ascent 2° under CA were able to sustain the task for 20 min with perceived exertion at 12.1 ± 1.9 (RPE). However, climbing 2° above CA led to task failure after 15.9 ± 3.0 min with RPE = 16.4 ± 1.9. When MOB was plotted against estimated CA, good agreement was stated (ICC = 0.80, SEM = 1.5°).Conclusion: Climbers, coaches, and researchers may use a predefined route with three to five different wall angles to estimate CA as an analog of critical power to determine a maximal metabolic steady state in climbing. Moreover, a climbing test with progressive increases in wall angle using MOB also appears to provide a valid estimate of CA.

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The Connection Between Resistance Training, Climbing Performance, and Injury Prevention

Saeterbakken,

Stien,

Pedersen

et al. 2024

Sports Med - Open

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Background Climbing is an intricate sport composed of various disciplines, holds, styles, distances between holds, and levels of difficulty. In highly skilled climbers the potential for further strength-specific adaptations to increase performance may be marginal in elite climbers. With an eye on the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics, more climbers are trying to maximize performance and improve training strategies. The relationships between muscular strength and climbing performance, as well as the role of strength in injury prevention, remain to be fully elucidated. This narrative review seeks to discuss the current literature regarding the effect of resistance training in improving maximal strength, muscle hypertrophy, muscular power, and local muscular endurance on climbing performance, and as a strategy to prevent injuries. Main Body Since sport climbing requires exerting forces against gravity to maintain grip and move the body along the route, it is generally accepted that a climber`s absolute and relative muscular strength are important for climbing performance. Performance characteristics of forearm flexor muscles (hang-time on ledge, force output, rate of force development, and oxidative capacity) discriminate between climbing performance level, climbing styles, and between climbers and non-climbers. Strength of the hand and wrist flexors, shoulders and upper limbs has gained much attention in the scientific literature, and it has been suggested that both general and specific strength training should be part of a climber`s training program. Furthermore, the ability to generate sub-maximal force in different work-rest ratios has proved useful, in examining finger flexor endurance capacity while trying to mimic real-world climbing demands. Importantly, fingers and shoulders are the most frequent injury locations in climbing. Due to the high mechanical stress and load on the finger flexors, fingerboard and campus board training should be limited in lower-graded climbers. Coaches should address, acknowledge, and screen for amenorrhea and disordered eating in climbers. Conclusion Structured low-volume high-resistance training, twice per week hanging from small ledges or a fingerboard, is a feasible approach for climbers. The current injury prevention training aims to increase the level of performance through building tolerance to performance-relevant load exposure and promoting this approach in the climbing field.

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Effects of Two vs. Four Weekly Campus Board Training Sessions on Bouldering Performance and Climbing-Specific Tests in Advanced and Elite Climbers

Cited by 13 publications

References 36 publications

Tests and Procedures for Measuring Endurance, Strength, and Power in Climbing—A Mini-Review

Tests and Procedures for Measuring Endurance, Strength, and Power in Climbing—A Mini-Review

The Estimation of Critical Angle in Climbing as a Measure of Maximal Metabolic Steady State

The Connection Between Resistance Training, Climbing Performance, and Injury Prevention

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