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Tibialis raises (toe-hook strength)

3 sets of 15 slow toe lifts per foot against a light backpack or band, 45 s rest.

Slot
Strength
Focus
General strength
Time
6 min
Intensity
Low
Injury risk
Low
Intervals
3 rounds, 45s rest
Equipment
Added weight, Resistance band, Bench

How to do it

A toe hook pulls with the top of your foot, using the muscle along your shin that climbing otherwise barely loads. Sit on a bench or chair with one leg out straight and hang a light backpack over the top of your foot, or loop a band anchored low over it. Pull your toes up toward your shin as far as they go, hold a moment, and lower slowly. Do 15 reps, then the other foot; 3 sets with 45 s rest. With no equipment, stand with your back against a wall, heels 30 cm out, and lift both forefeet the same way. At the crag, 15 lifts with your pack over your foot is a good warm-up before a problem with toe hooks.

Who it’s for

Anyone whose toe hooks slip as soon as they pull on them, and anyone climbing steep boulders where toe hooks keep coming up. The shin muscle that holds a toe hook gets almost no work from climbing itself, so a few minutes here goes a long way.

Common mistakes

  • Swinging the foot up. Lift under control and lower slowly. The lowering counts as much as the lift.
  • Too much weight. A light backpack is plenty. If you can’t reach the top of the movement, take something out.
  • Stopping short. Pull the toes all the way toward the shin. A toe hook needs strength at the end of the range, which is exactly where people cut it short.
  • Moving the whole leg. The knee stays straight and still. Only the ankle moves.

How to progress

Add weight to the pack in small steps and pause a little longer at the top. Then put it to use on the wall: pick problems with toe hooks and pull the toes up hard before you trust the foot.

When it fits

The training periods this exercise fits into in Blok Sessions.

  • Base Lots of easy climbing, good movement and aerobic fitness.
  • Strength Stronger fingers and pulling, with weight you control.
  • Power Explosive moves, momentum and coordination.
  • Power Endurance Keep your power through one hard move after another.
  • Endurance Climb longer before you pump out, by moving efficiently.
  • Performance Peak for a trip or a comp: focus, reading problems, trying hard.
  • Deload Train less, let your fingers recover, keep moving.

Start with a ready-made block

A six-week strength plan with a deload, as a file for the app, and seven short emails on how to run it.