Are We Doing the Right Things When Warming Up for Climbing?

In this episode, Kris and Paul discuss the difference between systematic and critical reviews, while examining what science says about warming up for sport in three reviews:

Current Approaches on Warming up for Sports Performance: A Critical Review

Authored by Maria Helena Gil MD, Henrique P. Neiva PhD, António C. Sousa MD, Mário C. Marques PhD, and Daniel A. Marinho PhD; published in the Strength and Conditioning Journal in August, 2019.

&

A systematic review of the effects of upper body warm-up on performance and injury

Authored by J. Matt McCrary, Bronwen J. Ackermann, and Mark Halaki; published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine in July, 2015.

&

Upper-Body Post-activation Performance Enhancement for Athletic Performance: A Systematic Review with Meta-analysis and Recommendations for Future Research

Authored by Mitchell James Finlay, Craig Alan Bridge, Matt Greig, and Richard Michael Page; published in the Sports Medicine in November, 2021.

They’ll discuss the benefits of various warm-up activities like static or dynamic stretching, isometric movement, passive heating or cooling, and movement-specific activity. They’ll consider variables like duration, load, and volume — and the impact that warming up has been shown to have on performance.

*Additional studies/resources mentioned in this episode:

Biomechanical properties of the crimp grip position in rock climbers Authored by Andreas Schweizer; published in the Journal of Biomechanics in February, 2001.

Effects of warming-up on physical performance: a systematic review with meta-analysis Authored by Andrea J. Fradkin, Tsharni R. Zazryn, and James M. Smoliga; published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research in January, 2010.

New episodes of Breaking Beta drop on Wednesdays. Make sure you’re subscribed, leave us a review, and share!

And please, tell all of your friends who warm up their fingers on a flash board and think they are ready to try their hardest, that you have the perfect podcast for them.

Breaking Beta is brought to you by Power Company Climbing and Crux Conditioning, and is a proud member of the Plug Tone Audio Collective. Find full episode transcripts, citations, and more at our website.

Season 2 of Breaking Beta is proudly supported by Gnarly Sports Nutrition. For a limited time, Breaking Beta listeners can take 15% off their purchase using the code BETA15 at checkout! Or simply click the link above to shop and have the discount automatically applied.

Follow Kris and Breaking Beta on Instagram

Follow Paul and Crux Conditioning on Instagram

If you have questions, comments, or want to suggest a paper we should cover, find us at our Community + Knowledge Hub.

Our music is from legendary South Dakota band Rifflord.