A bouldering training plan for climbers who also lift weights
Short answer
Lift on days you don't climb, twice a week at most, short and heavy: four or five exercises, a few sets of 3 to 8 reps, stopping with a rep or two in reserve. Put your hardest climbing day straight after a rest day, never the day after heavy lifting. A heavy lift needs 4 to 6 hours away from climbing, so if you have to lift on a climbing day, lift first thing and climb in the evening, or keep the work after climbing to pull-ups, push-ups and core. Give it three months before you judge it.
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Take the quiz"Is lifting helping my climbing or eating my recovery?"
Both are possible, and it comes down to how much and when. A review of strength training for climbers points to brief, heavy, low-volume work about twice a week, with better evidence for climbers at lower and middle grades than for very strong ones. That's not a long session. Four or five exercises, a few hard sets each, and you're done in under an hour.
Where it goes wrong is the week around it. Heavy lifting the day before a limit session means you try your hardest moves tired. Long sets to failure leave you sore for days. And lifting after a pumpy session, when your forearms are gone, is when form slips.
How the sample week fits together
The order matters more than the exercises.
- Monday is the hardest climbing, after Sunday's rest, so you start fresh.
- Tuesday is the heavy day, off the wall: deadlift, weighted pull-ups, overhead press and pistol squats. It follows the limit day, so Monday starts fresh.
- Thursday is the second climbing day, with moderate finger hangs first, then harder problems. Two days after the heavy lifting.
- Saturday is lighter lifting: single-leg squats, a row and push-ups for the shoulder blades. Nothing that leaves you sore for Monday.
That's four training days and three rest days. If it feels like a lot, drop Saturday before you drop a climbing day.
Keep the sets short
The heavy lifts here are a few reps a set with long rests, and every set stops with a rep or two left in you. Climbers who come from the weights room tend to add sets and go to failure. That's what makes lifting feel like it's stealing from climbing.
Learn the deadlift with a light weight first, ideally with a coach. If Monday's session left your arms wrecked, skip the weighted pull-ups on Tuesday: you pulled plenty on the wall.
Giving it time
People in threads often call lifting a waste after a month or two. Three months is a fairer test. Track something you can measure, like your weighted pull-up or a 10-second hang on a 20 mm edge, alongside your climbing, so you know whether the gym time is moving anything.
Who this isn't for
If you climb around 6B (V4) or below, more time on the wall will do more for you than a heavy day: one short strength session a week is plenty. And if something hurts when you lift, stop and get a physio to look at it.
The exercises
Deadlift
2 warm-up sets, then 4 sets of 3-5 reps, 3 min rest. Flat back, controlled.
Weighted pull-ups
2 warm-up sets, then 5 sets of 3 pull-ups at about 85% of your 2-rep max, 3 min rest.
Overhead press
4 sets of 5-8 presses overhead, 2 min rest.
Pistol squats
4 sets of 3-6 reps per leg, 90 s rest. Use assistance until you can do full reps.
A sample week
Monday85 min
The limit day, after a rest day: a proper ramp, then one or two hard problems.
- Boulder and hang ramp15 min
- Hard projecting60 min
- Cooldown reset10 min
Tuesday65 min
Heavy day, off the wall: a hinge, a pull, a press and legs. Short sets, long rests.
- Deadlift20 min
- Weighted pull-ups20 min
- Overhead press15 min
- Pistol squats10 min
WednesdayRest
Thursday94 min
Moderate finger hangs first, then harder problems with a cap on tries.
- Wall ramp15 min
- Finger maintenance9 min
- Progressive ten60 min
- Forearm flush10 min
FridayRest
Saturday27 min
Lighter lifting: single-leg work, a row and the shoulder blades. You should walk out fresh.
- Bulgarian split squat12 min
- Dumbbell row10 min
- Push-up plus5 min
SundayRest
Questions
Should I lift before or after climbing?
Heavy lifts go on a separate day, or at least 4 to 6 hours from climbing. Straight after climbing, keep it to general strength like pull-ups, push-ups and core, because tired forearms and a heavy deadlift don't mix.
Will lifting make me heavier and climb worse?
Short, heavy sets with a few reps build strength with much less size than high-rep work, especially at two sessions a week. Long sets taken to failure build more. If the scales matter to you, keep the sets short and watch your weight for a month.
I climb three days a week. Where does the lifting go?
Keep one heavy day off the wall and drop the lighter one, or move it to the end of your easiest climbing day as a short block of pull-ups, push-ups and core. Never lift heavy the day before your limit session.
Do I need leg day?
Strong legs help on high steps and heel hooks, and they balance a week that's otherwise all pulling. One or two leg exercises per lifting day is plenty. A squat or deadlift is the place to start.
What about a trip or a comp?
Cut the lifting to one short session a week for the last two or three weeks, and keep the weights the same. The aim then is to keep the strength you've built.
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