From weight shifting on a slabby route, to long approaches or summer hikes, to everything in between, the legs are the powerhouse of climbing. We talked to Francy at our Englewood gym in Colorado. She is one of the personal trainers there and teaches a weekly Ski Fit class, so we figured that if anyone could recommend a thorough workout to strengthen their bottom half, it would be her 😆. Enjoy!

In an internet world full of climbing tips and training articles about how to build strength to climb harder, it may seem odd to focus on something silly like improving your lead clipping skills. Trust us when we say it isn't!

Campus board workouts are a great way to build upper body strength and improve climbing power. Incorporating these kinds of workouts into your routine can improve finger strength and make powerful or dynamic moves easier. Here's a great workout one of our staff members created that you can incorporate into your climbing routine.

One of the training questions we get all the time is when should I start using training boards, like a campus board, and how do I start. Campus board workouts are a great way to improve climbing power and strength. When to start very much depends on the climber, but in general, we recommend waiting until you've been climbing consistently for at least one year (meaning, you're consistently climbing twice a week for 1-2 hours). As far as how to start, one of our staff members has provided a beginner campus board workout that would be a great one to incorporate in your climbing routine. Keep in mind that while it may be considered a "beginner" workout, it is not easy! Please make sure that any training board workout sessions are done after warming up thoroughly, but before any climbing or other heavy physical workout.

Hangboards are great for building hand and finger strength. A good hangboard workout will give you the opportunity to practice on a variety of holds, which will improve your lock off strength, and engage shoulder stabilizer muscles that probably don't get much action during your regular climbing sessions. Ideally, these two exercises we provide below are something you do once or twice a week to supplement your climbing session. Keep in mind that while it may be considered a "beginner" workout, it is not easy! We do not recommend using this equipment unless you have at least one year of climbing under your belt (meaning, you're consistently climbing twice a week for 1-2 hours). Please make sure that any training board workout sessions are done after warming up thoroughly, but before any climbing or other heavy physical workout.

MoonBoard vs Kilter Board vs hang board vs campus board - what's the difference!? If you’ve ever wondered to yourself what these training boards are, how to use them, and how they help you train - you’re in luck. We asked one of our instructors to give you a quick introduction to what all these training boards and what climbing goal each board is designed to help you with. *Please note that we do not recommend using this equipment unless you have at least one year of climbing under your belt (meaning, you're consistently climbing twice a week for 1-2 hours). Please make sure that any training board workout sessions are done after warming up thoroughly, but before any climbing or other heavy physical workout.

If you’re like me, you’re willing to try just about anything to climb better (as long as it doesn’t involve any actual hard work or exercise 😊) There are tons of workouts out there to help build strength for climbing and plenty more drills you can do to learn better technique. But I have found that one often overlooked key to improving your climbing is right in front of you – your best climbing partner!

Your shoulders are a key component climbing, but most of us rarely spend much time stabilizing or strengthening them. We’ve got five shoulder exercises that will help you stabilize the muscles surrounding your shoulder and strengthen your shoulders to help you make powerful movements.

You may think that it's an odd thing for a climbing gym to urge people to rest, but we stand by it! Although we should clarify that when we say 'rest day' activities, we don't mean binging netflix for hours on end (although a little indulgence never hurt anyone 😊). As humans, we are made to move and move a lot in the context of walking. It is primarily what we were made to do and has profound effects on our well being. Movement is medicine, literally.

Fun fact: some of the largest muscles in your entire body surround the hip, which means your hips can produce quite a bit of power and force! You use your hips a lot to go up and down steps, to walk, to run, and to jump. In climbing, hip strength and stability help you step up onto really high footholds. Your hips also allow you to generate power for a jump motion, say for a dynamic move. They’re also incredibly important for helping to keep your trunk or pelvis closer to the wall when you're climbing on steep terrain on overhanging routes.