Climbing is all about good fitness, a lot of strength, or motor coordination. Also, important are our hands, which over time become more and more grippy and skillful. But does the size of climbers’ hands matter, and are big hands better for rock climbing? Many people wonder if the size of our hands or height is important when climbing.
Are big hands better for rock climbing? It turns out that hand size matters a lot when it comes to climbing. On the one hand, it’s easier to grip a particular rock and have a better grip, but sometimes small hands turn out to be more precise.
What do efficient hands give us in climbing?
When it comes to rock climbing, the climbing technique itself, as well as hand and finger training, plays a large role. The effectiveness of climbing increases with experience and time, but the hands should not be forgotten when improving our skills.
There are special workouts and exercises for hands and fingers that every climber should know. These include special training panels that can be installed on a door frame or a bar. It is also good to practice the grip itself as well as its strength with a kettlebell or dumbbell.
How to care for your hands after climbing?
Hard rock, heavy loads, including dynamic ones, uncontrolled falls, impacts, abrasions, prolonged exposure to weather conditions: cold, moisture, wind. In addition, liquid magnesia or talcum powder and plasters with a strong adhesive. The hands of boulders, climbers, and mountaineers are not easy as climbing tools. They are often injured, swollen, numb, and do not have a full range of movement.
Whether you are bouldering or rock climbing, remember these general rules:
- Perform a warm-up that not only prepares your body for a big workout but also warms up your muscles. They will then be less prone to injury, and in climbing this is, unfortunately, a fairly common occurrence.
- The proper training, after proper warm-up, when you feel that your body is ready for action, remember that good training is not only the one which is very hard but mainly well-thought-out with breaks for rest
- Stretching follows after finishing the workout, usually, this is the moment when we have no strength left in our hands, and they are very swollen and sore. If we want to finish our workout properly, we should start stretching, preferably after the workout, to relax our overworked muscles.
- Taking care of our hands, every climber should remember that. As they are the climber’s climbing tools, you should take proper care of them, first, you should wash your hands thoroughly with magnesia after every climbing training. It is equally important to moisturize dry hands to prevent them from cracking, which will prolong the regeneration time of our hands.
Coming back to the topic of stretching, which is an important part of every climbing training, in this article you can read about it. You will also learn the difference between a warm-up before and after training.
How to take care of your hands while climbing?
We already know that depending on the size of our hands, we can expect that sometimes bigger hands will make certain things easier for us. This is mainly the case with bigger rocks, which are hard to cover anyway, and bigger hands will be an advantage here. However, whether big hands are better for rock climbing depends on the type and size of the rock, and as we know the routes are often very different.
Here are some important rules about hand care when doing different types of climbing:
- Soap is an old and proven way to refresh our tired hands. Remember that magnesia is used mainly to minimize slipping during climbing, but it should be thoroughly washed off our hands after training. Unfortunately, magnesia left on your hands hinders and prolongs their recovery time.
- Moisturizing your hands, after washing them thoroughly the next important step is to moisturize them, unfortunately, this is not only a matter of aesthetics but mainly of taking care of their condition and regeneration. Various creams, oils, and regenerating serums are perfect for this.
- ClimbOn, these are products dedicated specifically for climbers, made of only natural ingredients. These cosmetics do not contain water, alcohol, or synthetic agents.
- Various types of files, rock climbing is quite specific and unfortunately requires additional care products for our hands. Washing hands and using creams alone is not enough for intensive climbing life. Inevitably, our hands will develop calluses and keratomes, which need to be regularly removed and new epidermis exposed.
As our hands are the climber’s tool of choice, they need to be well cared for; tired and dry hands can make climbing difficult or even impossible. When taking care of your hands, it doesn’t matter whether big hands are better for rock climbing, as well-groomed hands will make it easier for you to practice this interesting sport.
How to improve hands’ strength at home?
If you truly think about climbing as something that will stay with you for longer then you should definitely start your home training even today. You don’t have to go to the gym to train climbing, so even if still didn’t visit a climbing gym, then you can practice before that at your home!
Most advanced climbers use things like hangboards or other climbing devices for training at home, some even create their own climbing walls in their apartments, but there are small versions of hangboards that are easier to attach, and also they are way cheaper than the average hangboard used by professional climbers. Navaris rock climbing fingerboards are a nice start for less experienced climbers and they are also way cheaper than other climber training tools.
With this simple hangboard you will be able to train even before you visit your climbing gym, and also when you won’t be able to travel that far away from your home. Using a fingerboard is the perfect way to improve your hands’ strength!
In Summary – Are Big Hands Better For Rock Climbing?
Climbing, regardless of the type we cultivate, exposes our hands a lot. Due to the constant contact with a hard, often uneven, and sharp surface, there are often many abrasions or cuts.
Whether are big hands better for rock climbing also depends on what rocks you are climbing on. Of what sizes and types they are, sometimes smaller hands can make it easier for us to cover various specific routes, and sometimes it will be easier for people with larger hands.
However, regardless of this, the skin on your hands needs to be cared for, moisturized, and regenerated – after all, they are so-called climbing tools. Good care and training of your hands and fingers will make for long and effective climbing.
