The effects of hangboard exercise on climbing performance and grip strength in college age female indoor rock climers

Abstract

A 7-week hangboard training program was conducted on the indoor climbing wall at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (UW-L). Two Differential-TexTM hangboards were utilized for this study. A sample of 2 1 female Ss (18-26 yr) participated in this study (9 experimental and 12 control Ss). All Ss were students enrolled in an indoor rock climbing class at UW-L. Ss in the experimental group trained on the hangboard twice a week for 7 weeks during class time. Training sessions took approximately 10 minutes. Ss spent the remainder of each class period participating in normal class activities. The hangboard training sessions consisted of 3 cycles of 6 hang repetitions, each one lasting 5 s and progressing to 7 and 10 s over the duration of the study. Each hang utilized a different pair of holds which got progressively smaller. Control Ss participated in normal class activities. Climbing performance and grip strength were measured prior to and upon completion of the training program. The results showed a significant (p < .05) interaction between the groups for performance from pre- to post-testing, indicating that the experimental group increased their performance score significantly more than the control group from pre- to post-testing. There was no significant (p > .05) interaction found between the groups for grip strength from pre- to post-testing, indicating that the groups responded similarly in grip strength over the duration of the study.