One of the most dreaded sounds to hear while climbing is a “pop” of the finger.
I’m guessing you’re cringing at the thought.
Me too.
This is an article by Dr. Jared Vagy, aka The Climbing Doctor (theclimbingdoctor.com) about preventing a pulley strain.
“The ‘pop’ of a finger is most commonly associated with a fully ruptured pulley, but a silent strain or partial tear can be almost as debilitating, requiring weeks or months of rest and recovery. This is one of the most common climbing injuries, but, luckily, it can be prevented by changing your movement patterns and practicing some targeted physical therapy exercises.” -Dr. Jared Vagy
The Climbing Doctor talks about which grip positions put the most stress on our tendons and pulleys in the fingers. He shares an exercise to do to help in injury prevention. And then he explains how to do this exercise while mirroring a climbing stance (simulates the body position while climbing).
He also gives tips for applying some pulley strain injury prevention techniques while actually climbing.
No one wants a finger injury. Learn more about how to prevent one here….
CLICK HERE: Injury Prevention: Pulley Strain
(photo courtesy of theclimbingdoctor.com)
Dr. Jared Vagy is a PhD physical therapist who also happens to be a rock climber who’s had a lot of injuries. He works with athletes of all kinds and does phone/skype and in-person sessions with climbers all over the world.
He’s written a book just for us on how to prevent and treat common climber injuries, and he’s got a lot more info for us up his sleeve.
To hear more from Dr. Jared Vagy, check out our podcast interview with him here.
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