How to grip different types of holds and cracks.
Last week I gave you all a quick dive into the different types of holds. This week I want to go in deeper depth into how to properly grip the different types of holds.
Open VS Closed Grips
There are usually two different ways you can grip a hold either Open or Closed. Imagine holding a basketball with one hand. You have your palm around the ball with your thumb open from a fist. This is considered an open grip. These become most useful when dealing with slopers. A closed grip is when you engage your thumb over your fingers locking them down into place. Your hand will back a complete fist. These become very useful when dealing with very small crimps. However, is also important to know that if you are a beginner you should stick to using open grips. It is very common to put down too much pressure with a closed hand grip that can cause injury.
Crimp Grips
Imagine the top of a doorframe. Super thin and flat. Not much for you to grab on to, but enough for just the few pads on your fingers can crimp down and onto the hold. To take advantage of the crimp push the palm of your hand in towards the wall face. This will make your knuckles push up, and crimp down onto the lip. Take a look at the picture below for a better idea of how your hand should check out.
Pinch Grip
Is a mix between an open and closed grip. Imagine squeezing an edge. You would pinch it with your thumb and the rest of your finger. Remember, no matter how bad your pinky wants to slip off, keep that sucker in there.
Pocket Grips.
Just like they sound. A pocket is a little hole in the wall that usually can only fit a few fingers. Tend to try to use your middle and ring finger, as they are the strongest.
Meat Hooks
These are used more on slopey holds, or when you need to mantle up onto a ledge. You wrap your arms around the hold hugging the rock, and squeezing it in.
Crack Climbing Hand Jams
With crack climbing you aren’t really gripping the hold. You are taking advantage of counter pressure as you jam your body into the crack. To get a crack jam shove your hand into the crack, try to make a palm and twist your hand as you would try to squeeze the inside wall. Be aware that sometimes a crack might be much bigger than your hand. All you need to do is maybe substitute a fist, or maybe even your entire arm.
Next week swing back to read about what to do with your feet!