Uploaded October 2020 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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For the TL;DR notes, scroll down!!

In this special episode, Dr. James Lee and myself come up with our independent lists of the top 3 reasons why climbers keep getting hand injuries. We then have a full discussion about each of these topics. The purpose of this is to look at the top reasons why climbers get injured so that you can look at yourself and see if any of these mistakes are applicable to you and can help in your climbing career!

Before we get into the details, I also wanted to share that Dr. James Lee has an upcoming workshop!
His workshop is titled: Physical Therapy Injury Rehab for Climbers and the next class is November 7th.

In this class you'll learn how to navigate this growing sport and to be able to provide helpful treatment plans for climbers so they can keep doing what they love!
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This has been approved by the Illinois Physical Therapy Association for 8 CE credit hours. These credits are good for physical therapists and occupational therapists that practice in Illinois. For all other states you will have to contact your regulatory association to see if the credits carry over.

More info and sign up here leeptchicago.com/ceu

// Timestamps //
Preview of This Video (00:00)
Intro and Notes (00:29)
James and Jason's #1 Reason (01:40)
James' #2 Reason (09:49)
Jason's #2 Reason (18:23)
James' #3 Reason (22:48)
Jason's #3 Reason (30:13)
James' Workshop Info (38:09)
Outro and Bloopers (38:50)

The inspiration behind this idea? Emile and I were climbing with our friend Matt Kromer. He was talking about having just gotten over a pulley injury, and then a couple of days into the trip, he hurt himself again. The words were muttered “why do I keep getting injured?” I didn’t think much of it at the time, but Emile was smart enough and aware enough to come to me and say “hey, we should do a video about why some people seem to suffer more hand injuries than others”. And hence, the idea was born. (so, basically, if you hate this video it’s Emile’s fault. But if you love it…. tell Emile thanks ;) )

Keep in mind, the topics we discuss are things that you can control, not the uncontrolled injury such as your foot blowing off of a hold or a hold breaking

TL;DR

The Main Points

Jason’s List

Overuse: too much training

Not having enough rest days

Trying to do too much

Trying to do every type of climbing or training

Moonboarding Mondays, hangboarding Tuesdays, campus boarding Thursday, then outdoor climbing Saturday. Oh yeah, and you’re climbing on those days as well. It’s just too much

Repeating the same move or movement style

Repeating the hardest crimp move you’ve done 15 times because “you're so close to sending!”

A good rule of thumb is 7 attempts. More than that and you may be increasing your risk of injury.

Only climbing overhead

Places continuous strain on certain parts and if you’re not resting enough, you’re setting yourself up for failure

Not training for the moves you expect to be able to do

The classic example of this is never full crimping…. Then deciding you need to full crimp to send your project.

If your body isn’t ready for the stress you’re asking it to do, it won’t manage it. It will be new and foreign

Stop being afraid of one thing or another, unless you swear it off completely. If you think there’s a chance you’ll do it at some point, you need to practice it so you don’t get hurt.

Another example is pockets. A lot of people don’t train pockets, then decide to do a pocket climb that is at their max level. Well, just because you can climb V6 crimps or V6 cave, doesn’t mean you can climb V6 pockets. You should respect that and limit yourself, maybe just try a V4 pocket climb. OR, actually incorporate it into your training so your body is ready for it when you do it under more strain and stress of the “send”.

James’ List

Overuse

Thinking Rest is the Solution to All Injuries

People are discovering that just pure rest, especially during the pandemic, hasn’t been the solution to their problems

Just resting and trying to return to prior level of athletics is likely setting you up for a repeat injury

Retraining is a necessary part of rehab

You need to evaluate your issues and address what is going on so you can correct them. You can’t just rest and hope they will go away

Disclaimer:
As always, exercises are to be performed assuming your own risk and should not be done if you feel you are at risk for injury. See a medical professional if you have concerns before starting new exercises.

Written and Presented by Jason Hooper, PT, DPT, OCS, SCS, CAFS
IG: @hoopersbetaofficial

Filming and Editing by Emile Modesitt
emilemodesitt.com
IG: @emile166

Special Guest Appearance by Dr. James Lee, PT, DPT, FAAOMPT
IG: @leephysicaltherapy
leeptchicago.com