Climbing Bible : Practical Exercises

Summary

I'll confess I do not have the authors original Climbing Bible book so was unsure what to expect from this but found it really useful. It is well written and structured, after the intro describing the motivation for writing the book follows a brief section on warming up and then three solid chapters on Technique, Strength & Power and Children & Youths. In summary it is an excellent reference for those looking to improve the structure of their climbing training. There are plenty of illustrative pictures as well as a decent smattering of inspiring pictures from climbing outdoors, all put together in the high standards one would expect from Vertebrate Publishing.

More thoughts...
Its refreshing to read a book on training for climbing that includes technique which is often neglected in favour of the easier to quantify aspect of finger strength. Having good proprioception/kinasthesia is fundamental to climbing but is so often neglected in favour of getting strong as fast as possible. The authors break down technique into distinct areas focusing on footwork, grip positions, balance, tension and direction of force, dynamics, tricks and combination
exercises. Each component is demonstrated graphically with multiple detailed pictures to illustrate what is meant by the text, which is important and works well because climbing is a visceral activity in which one has to engage in order to understand and learn. The other book on training where I have seen comparable illustrations are the hand-drawn pictures that accompany another brilliant book on climbing technique from Vertebrate, Pete Whittaker's [b:Crack Climbing - Mastering the skills & techniques|50791747|Crack Climbing - Mastering the skills & techniques|Pete Whittaker|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1580549168l/50791747.SX50.jpg|68734161] which I also highly recommend.

The Strength and Power section compliments the technique section well, following the same procedure of breaking down exercises in detail and explaining the purpose for doing so as well as giving advice on how to progress through the levels of each exercises. For example how to gradually build up finger boarding strength or progress through the stages of developing the core strength to perform front-levers (whether I'll ever achieve this is another matter!).


Each technique or power strength tip has detailed text but is often accompanied by a small caption box which summarises the point of the exercise and this works well to help reinforce and refresh the memory of why you are doing it if the book is used as the authors intend it to be, taken to the wall and thumbed through and used as you are actually climbing, something I have had limited opportunity to do so far because of the pandemic but which I hope to do in the future.

The final chapter of the book is perhaps the most unique feature since it focuses on training for children, an area that has seen little attention in the books I've read on this topic to date. As a parent whose child has been encouraged to try climbing and who, thankfully, enjoys it this section obviously appealed as it has the potential to be really useful. As is emphasised at the start of the book keeping things fun is key and having tried some of the activities out with my child I was pleased with how she took to them, although many would have been more fun and engaging if she had been climbing with others her age rather than just her dad, but such is the state of things with the pandemic. She's still a little young to be focusing on the strength training the authors advocate is beneficial at all ages, but then she also enjoys gymnastics which I feel compliments the climbing and other activities she takes.

Anyway, enough about me, this is an excellent book for anyone looking to guide themselves through the masses of messy information out there on training for climbing. Its well structured, clear and concise and the production quality is as
always second to none. I will be taking it with me to the wall as and when I can and using it to help nudge my own
abilities up.