Friday, December 12, 2014

Hangboard Cycle Winter #1



On December 11th I completed my sixth and final HB workout for my first cycle of strength training for winter of 2014/2015.   In fall I did 10 second max weight hangs, and felt that regime raised my overall strength well it also felt as though I was better prepared for brief cruxes than for sustained routes.  

I will start power training this weekend, and then rest over Christmas, and then start another strength and power series after that.   I was feeling especially strong on my 6th session, and if I did not have a compressed schedule I feel like 2-3 more sessions would have allowed me to continue to progress.  However, I want to take advantage of the holiday down time and will return to these same grips in late December.

Missing from the chart above is an 8th hold that I was using as a litmus test for power training, the medium campus rung.  My sixth session I held a 7.5 reps at body weight, and so will begin that grip adding some weight in my next cycle.  At the start of this cycle I had no trouble hanging that edge for the first couple reps, but could not complete the fifth repetition.

Power endurance, or strength endurance on good crimps while holding a high proportion of body weight will be my training focus for the coming cycles.  A goal route for spring is Tuna Town, and many of the holds on that route are solid, full pad crimps that activate the thumb in a semi pinch.