finger injuries

The Best Selling Climbing Gear With HCRBeta Readers

October 7, 2015 by Jason Clements

I did some analysis of the Best Selling Climbing Gear with HCRBeta readers for this last year.

It is interesting that four of the top six sellers are not classical climbing gear items! They are, in fact, items associated with pain relief.

Not surprisingly, the number one seller is the Aylio Exercise Bands. With the Voodoo Flossing articles garnering the most traffic in the last few months, it appears that most climbers are looking for a solution for finger injuries.

So, I’ll repeat right here:

Special Note: If you are really injured, heard something pop, or your finger looks weird; go see your doctor.

The Best Selling Climbing Gear With HCRBeta Readers

1. Aylio Exercsie Bands

CONFIRMED: Voodoo Flossing Helps Climbing Injuries

September 7, 2015 by Jason Clements

It is confirmed: Voodoo flossing helps climbing injuries.

My article “Why All Climbers Should Experiment With Voodoo Flossing” is being discussed in the UK Bouldering Forum. It was quickly obvious that many, if not all of the climbers were experiencing positive results with Voodoo Flossing. Most stated that finger injuries were improving. Others stated that elbow and shoulder injuries were also helped.

“…good feeling results.”

“…went from limited range of motion to full range of motion with no pain.”

“…the niggling feeling near my A2 is pretty much gone.”

“…results are remarkable.”

And this one is my favorite comments because the writer first states on August 13th:

“I did it on the hour all day yesterday and my tweaky finger just feels more agitated.”

Climbing Injuries Solved: Book Review

August 8, 2015 by Jason Clements

Is the book Climbing Injuries Solved by Dr. Lisa Erikson the book that is going to help you finally become healthy, finally get over that injury, finally help you feel strong? Well, let’s just see what we see.

The first thing I really like about the book is that Dr. Erikson uses my phrase:

Don’t Be An Idiot

She uses that phrase inside the context of, “If what you have been doing to heal yourself has not been working well enough to achieve the above needs, it’s time to reinvent your strategy and find the areas in which your self-care has failed.”

The “needs” she refers to as being the “gold standard that we are all working toward” are:

Muscles should be smooth with no knots or sore spots
No pain when pressing on any tendon
No pain on or between joints
Full flexibility of fingers, wrists, elbows, and shoulders without fear of injury

The Super Quick Summary

There is a tear-off bookmark attached to the back cover. It has a 5 point summary. Is recovery from an injury as simple as taking action on these 5 points? [Read more…] about Climbing Injuries Solved: Book Review

Why All Climbers Should Experiment With Voodoo Flossing

July 27, 2015 by Jason Clements

Quickly heal an injured finger — Could I quickly heal this injured finger?

**Updated Notes With Real Results from Climbers Experimenting with Voodoo Flossing. Confirmed: Voodoo Flossing Helps Climbing Injuries

My first experience with Voodoo Flossing made me shake my head and say to myself, “Naw, that can’t be real.”

What appeared to be a very bad finger injury was 100% better in less than 48 hours. I Voodoo Flossed my finger about 2 dozen times and the pain was gone, the swelling was gone. My finger was nearly 100% recovered. [That is NOT hyperbole.]

I was unloading my climbing gear. As I lifted the bouldering pad off of the cargo holder, the middle finger of my right hand caught on a bungee cord. My finger bent sideways. Youch! That sucked; and I knew it was bad.

My middle finger was already a little bit tweaked before this trip; but I still climbed my hardest. And, during the trip, I only experienced a little bit of discomfort if I gave my finger a bit of lateral movement. If I warmed it up, I was good. So when my finger caught on the bungee, I knew it was going to be 10 times worse. There was some tenderness. There was some swelling…not another finger injury! I thought I had ended my finger injuries!

But, luckily for me (and luckily for you), I had been reading Dr. Kelly Starrett’s book, Becoming A Supple Leopard. Becoming A Supple Leopard is all about YOU getting your body healthy. Dr. Kelly Starrett says that all human beings should be able to perform basic maintenance on themselves. On pages 217-220, you will find the details of Voodoo Flossing.

Special Note: If you are really injured, heard something pop, or your finger looks weird; go see your doctor.

What is Voodoo Flossing?

Voodoo Flossing is the Compression part of the (now antiquated?) R-I-C-E (rest, ice, compression, elevation). But what makes this compression different is that you are wrapping the joint or injury SUPER TIGHT for a short period of time.

The MOST IMPORTANT PART of Voodoo Flossing is that you SKIP THE ICE and SKIP THE NSAID’s (ibuprophen, acetamenaphine, etc.)

The physiology of Voodoo Flossing is discussed in detail in this 26-minute YouTube video with Dr. Kelly Starrett and Gary Reinl. I encourage you to watch this video and then do your own reading and research about voodoo flossing and skipping NSAIDs and ice.

Who Are These Guys? [Read more…] about Why All Climbers Should Experiment With Voodoo Flossing

End Finger Injuries: The Four Best Hand Exercisers For Rock Climbers

October 11, 2013 by Jason Clements

http://arvalis.deviantart.com/art/Muscles-of-the-Hand-89698613 — Muscles of the Hand by arvalis via deviantart.com

The usual disclaimer: This is just my experience and my opinion. This is what works for me. If you have a different experience, feel free to share in the comments. I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on the interwebs. However, I embrace the concept of self-experimentation and the value of N=1 data for personal improvement.

FINGER INJURIES

Finger injuries are one of the worst things in the world for rock climbers. I hope you haven’t experienced nor will ever have to experience a finger injury that required surgery. Surgical repair is outside of the scope of this article. But, if you are a new climber, you may want to listen up. You CAN reduce the incidence of finger injuries by following one simple rule. Warm up. Yup. It is that simple. Warm up your fingers and you can reduce your finger strains, tweeks, and injuries. Obviously, there are other factors that can contribute to your finger health such as diet, sleep, water, previous injury, and the like; but here, we are going to focus on warming up with hand exercisers. My hope is that you can learn something from my experience to help you end finger injuries.

If you are going to spend money on a device to help you climb harder and healthier, make the GripMaster Pro Hand your first purchase. Since I started using the Pro Hand, I’ve stopped having finger injuries (*more at the end of the review). Continue Reading