Ankle/jamming strengthening
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Could someone recommend some exercises specific for strengthening my ankles and the parts that stabilize my ankle when jamming into a handsize (or larger) crack? |
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Stand flat footed with your feet together. From this position, rise to your toes, then back to flat footed. It also works your calves a bit. On an unrelated note, place your gear at your waist to chest area. It's much faster and more efficient. You will not spend as much time on one foot placing gear if you do this |
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I do that exercise already; however, I am talking about the muscles that stabilize the ankle when rolling it on its side (left to right versus up/down) |
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Stever, I know just what you mean. I haven't done it yet, but I'm thinking of making a plywood boxlike thing that would sit on the floor to do the job. I'd strengthen the muscles that twist the foot, and also practice supporting weight, while your ankle is cranked to the side. |
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I found that the board-thing with a half-sphere on the bottom worked really well for my ankles. I would stand on it with one foot untill I could balance for 5 minutes each. Added body-weight squats for challenge. |
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The surest way to strengthen those muscles is to go crack climbing a lot. I'm pretty sure that will do it. |
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Yeah, climb the terrain. I guess if you think your ankles are particularly bad or unstable you could figure out some exercises. |
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Artem B wrote:I found that the board-thing with a half-sphere on the bottom worked really well for my ankles. I would stand on it with one foot untill I could balance for 5 minutes each. Added body-weight squats for challenge.Interesting, I will look into finding one of those. adam brink wrote:The surest way to strengthen those muscles is to go crack climbing a lot. I'm pretty sure that will do it.I would like to do this, but it's rainy here and I won't have a car until spring Hence why I am finding exercises to get ready for when I can go outside |
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Walking around on icy talus with crampons on? That's what I do. |
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Stop wearing shoes. You will walk more on the balls of your feet and will strengthen the muscles that stabilize your foot from side to side. |
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kili wrote:Stop wearing shoes. You will walk more on the balls of your feet and will strengthen the muscles that stabilize your foot from side to side.I have been wondering if that would benefit climbing as well. I just finished "Born to Run" and have been itching to try working out barefoot in the field |
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Find a set of stairs, on one foot place the ball of the foot in the stair, now press up and flex down. Don't over press the down ward motion, until you are stronger it is possible to injure yourself. This will help stretch/strengthen the Achilles tendon. Switch feet. |
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Recommendations to train your gastroc/soleus complex (aka your calves a la rising up and down on the foot) is not likely to do much of anything for your problem. |
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Aerili wrote:Recommendations to train your gastroc/soleus complex (aka your calves a la rising up and down on the foot) is not likely to do much of anything for your problem. Your issue is more one of eversion of the ankle. The way foot jamming works is that you invert your ankle, stick your foot in the crack, then evert at the ankle to "lock in" the jam and put weight on it. You can train eversion with a theraband, no problem. It isn't hard to find videos of how to do this. That said, I really doubt it will have much impact on your crack climbing abilities. It's pretty unlikely you have true weakness in eversion.... but you can try it. I think this is mostly a case of needing to HTFU. Learning to endure the pain is part of crack climbing imo. In which case taking some ibuprofen could make all the difference.I have no problem enduring the pain. It just worries me when my ankle area swells up after one pitch of ankle jamming. I will look into eversion of my ankle thanks |
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You never stated you were swelling up. You also don't say specifically where, but I've never seen this type of side effect from foot jamming (regardless of conditioning). Sounds like you might need professional medical advice to rule out some problem other than just muscle weakness. Swelling typically indicates injury and inflammation. |
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Aerili wrote:You never stated you were swelling up. You also don't say specifically where, but I've never seen this type of side effect from foot jamming (regardless of conditioning). Sounds like you might need professional medical advice to rule out some problem other than just muscle weakness. Swelling typically indicates injury and inflammation.Sorry I never saw this... I sprained/rolled both my ankles in the past so I think they swell due to the previous injury? I climbed lots this summer but had to avoid hand cracks because they continue to bother my ankles... the ankle feels weak and unstable when I twist and torque it in the crack. I have tried the physio mats (half sphere as well as inflatable pad) and besides working my muscles and improving my balance, the ankle is still effected I'm planning on climbing in the desert this winter and I am worried it may be a waste of a trip if my ankle can't handle a weekend of jamming... |
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If you've sprained you ankles, they're going to come out of it way weaker than before, and you're set up to injure them again, just this time, more easily. |
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I'm not sure if this will help with jamming specifically, but check out these videos from Dr. Lisa Erikson (The Climbing Doc) |
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Those videos are generally really good IMHO and a lot less drastic in what I'm doing. Some points I'd like to hit home from the first video is the ankle is encapsulated by many layers of tissue, and this is the tissue that makes an ankle tight - it's not usually because you didn't stretch your calf muscle. |
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Stever, |
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John Byrnes wrote:Stever, From the way you describe the pain, "twisting", I don't think it's a muscle issue at all. You're talking about dropping your knee to the side, put your foot higher in the crack, big-toe up, bringing your knee back to vertical and standing on it, right?Yeah I can't usually get my foot too high in the crack otherwise it's too much strain as I put my weight on it and try to get vertical by standing on it I will check out the videos as well Thanks! |