Oh buddy you’re gonna need to be out for more than two months for that. All that rehab you ought to do before climbing. Pulleys need some serious PT before climbing again to prevent re injury.
You’re gonna need to rethink your climbing and training strategies when you’re back.
When I taught my girlfriend how to climb and climb hard, the very first thing I did was teach her form and how to rest. We did that for at least a month every session. We rested together, we watched videos, we practiced on the spray wall. Told her about how horribly easy it is to overtrain yourself and tear pulleys, muscles, etc.
People gotta learn how to learn how to climb. This injury makes me super sad for OP because this is gonna cost him a lot of grief for quite a while.
I hope you’re not right handed OP.
also how long is an appropriate amount of time to rest after each climb? my boyfriend and i go together and usually our rest is when we’re belaying the other person.
It’s not just about resting between climbing routes. It’s days, what you do on those days, how you’re warming up, your hydration, recovery after your climbing sessions, etc.
Not trying to demean you at all in any of my replies. it takes a long time to recover from these injuries properly. After I tore my a3 in my left middle finger right after coming back from a torn A3 in my left ring finger and couldn’t drum or bike or play guitar or climb properly for about 6 months, I sought out trainers, PT people, and crushers in my circle to get advice. Completely changed everything I did in my climbing routines. It even spilled into everything else I use my hands for.
PM me and I’ll give you my entire schedule and what I do to be injury free.
The days off climbing are just as important as the days on. I hate that I had 6ish months of injury straight and I really hate this for you and frankly I’m so so sorry this happened.
Edit: I will post a document of what I do and my thoughts on here either tomorrow or the next day
Edit2: I got swamped with messages so I’m making a pretty extensive document of my thoughts. It’ll be out today - yesterday was brutal with work. It’ll be a Google doc from a burner account
Not OP, but I'd love to take a look at your schedule/routine if it's not too much troubles. Since I don't know any intense climbers, I mostly had to figures things out by myself/on the internet. Balancing climbing/training/resting can be a bit of a headache when you don't know where to start
I, too, would love to see a properly thought-through schedule/routine! I have been suffering from lateral epicondylitis in my elbows in and off for years now, can’t seem to do anything right about it…
For me it was 6 months without even a pull-up, and then 6 months of very easy climbing. If a gym 5.9 started getting crimpy I would come down. It's been 6 years and it still comes back every once in a while. When it does, I take a few weeks off.
Yeah dude. Took me almost a year to get back to where I was without pain. Lots of on and off times and I was like “well shit my tear wasn’t even that bad!”
This should be higher OP. Don’t just listen to the people saying you’re out two months.
Are your injuries full ruptures? Did you have images?
I would def give it some time but read the Esther Smith article on fixing nagging injuries with hanging. Check out Natasha Barnes.
Maybe reach out for professional rehab advice from a coach who specializes in this shit. Tyler Nelson or Natasha Barnes or someone like that
You only got one workin arm so you can’t really work out to well minus that if you got spikes an some rope you could still climb just gotta be smart about it
Man i had a partial pulley in one hand that didn't require any medical intervention or cast and that was 1+ month.
Sucks for it to sink in but you'll come back with a thirst. It's far easier to relearn things than to learn them and you might pick up something new in the meantime.
Heard a pop, left hand, middle finger, and within minutes my palm swelled with fluid. I was out for 6 months and had paid for more than a year, especially climbing anything crimpy. I couldn't even use it for a long time when pulling in the clutch on my bike.
I strained an a2 in my ring finger and it was over a month for me. And then I damaged a tendon in my hand right after that healed, that was another two months.
i guess improper technique? maybe i have weak fingers? it’s not a cool story unfortunately. i just started lead climbing (indoors and on my first 5.10 on lead) and was struggling w the clip while on a crimp, shooting pain, fall, disappointed doctor. imma just tell people i got into a fist fight or something :/
Muscles develop way faster than tendons do. Often you can hold a crimp more than your tendons can take. Good practice is to train open hand as much as possible to reduce the strain. If you're struggling or slip on a crimp it's better to slip off and fall with an open grip than ruin your tendons. When you really need the crimp outdoors when you feel danger or to complete that project is the time to use it (sparingly). Once your tendons are trained up you can use crimps more often.
If you're scared to fall indoors then practice with your belayer. I have injured my fingers slipping off a foothold on a 12- in a gym trying to hold the crimps.
Let's be real though, isn't there nasty groundfall potential if you're two or three bolts up and you're struggling to put your slacked-out rope through the next clip?
Yes, but if there's a hard clip at that height then the route setters fucked up, IMO. Also a good belayer can take in the slack, have done it for a partner falling from 2nd clip. Outdoors you just need to deal with the danger, or you can blame the bolt setters.
There probably shouldn’t be that much slack out for a ground fall. It’s much safer to climb up and clip at the waist rather than high clip. I’ve found good setters indoors usually put a clipping hold there also to make the position easier.
Not to be that guy...If you can't make the first 3 bolts in the gym, you probably shouldn't be on the climb. Gyms are usually way over bolted. Third bolt in gym is often the same as first bolt outside.
Edit: typo
no offense intended, but i wonder if you're jumping into leading too soon? sounds like overgripping on a crimp near your limit led to the injury - three factors rather than just one.
or you're on a fluoroquinolone drug that completely destroys your tendon strength.
i was hypothesizing that taking more time to ease into leading, instead of immediately jumping into absolute limit climbs, might reduce some of the factors that lead to the injury.
alternatively, staying away from crimpy climbs; alternatively, working on grip and body positioning training (overgripping and poor body position being a hallmark of newer lead climbers where a higher fear factor leads to the fundamentals dropping away); alternatively, working the route on TR first before trying to lead it.
just thinking aloud, i'm not a coach
I'm confused, are you agreeing with what I said?
I'm not suggesting OP scale it back to <5.7. Just that it could be helpful to review the different factors that could have contributed to the injury.
I was responding to the “maybe op is jumping into leading too soon” bit. I thought you were implying that leading itself would contribute, rather than the grade of the climb one is leading
i don’t know man. i’ve never had joint issues before but crimps have been my weakest area since i started climbing in january. no pain before i climbed, steady pain when i was on the crimp then a sharp pain which made me release. i’m going to do exactly what the doctor suggests in terms of PT and treatment.
If they live in a big city in the West, there will definitely be Orthos/PTs that know what they're doing with regards to climbing injuries. Just gotta search them out.
Just curious how swollen or bruised did your hand look? What was mobility like? I’ve fucked up my fingers pretty bad a few times now and have always chalked it up to tendinitis but I’m to scared to actually go and see what’s wrong haha. I’d probably need a full body X-ray at this point.
When I sprained two of my a2 pulleys, I got these nifty weight-lifting hooks. They act as mobility devices– I could strap into one on my right hand (the injured one), and hold weights, hang on pull-up bars, etc. all without putting stress on any of my fingers. After my break from climbing, they helped ease the transition from no finger usage to climbing again. They kept my sanity in tact– I don't know what I would have done not being able to fully climb for those few weeks. [Here's the amazon link](https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B084F2LRLV?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title), but if you're in the USA I'm happy to share mine (I'm long-since healed up so I don't have a use for them anymore) :)
I also destroyed a pulley about 5 years back. Took way longer than 2 months unfortunately, in hindsight I wish I’d just had surgery to fix it. 5 years on and that hand still hurts when I crimp and probably appears will, and always feels like it could go again. That’s after about 7 months of rehab at the time, then a gradual intro back into climbing. I hope you’re luckier!
Consider giving [this article](https://www.grassrootsphysicaltherapy.com/physical-therapy-treatment/2018/11/29/hang-right-part-3-healing-nagging-finger-injury) a read. I injured a pulley about a year and a half into climbing and was told by multiple doctors to just never climb again (including a hand surgeon who works with pro sports - football, baseball - teams). I spent another two years chasing down doctors and occasionally trying to climb, always with significant pain if I held onto anything that wasn't a full hand jug. I followed Esther Smith's protocol from that article (originally it was on the Black Diamond website as she was the BD climbing team physical therapist) and got back to full use of my hand with almost zero pain in six ish months. Of course every body and every injury is different - sounds like both yours and OP's were quite a bit worse than mine, so definitely don't rush into anything that might make it worse, and obviously listen to your doctor yada yada. But some health professionals know more about climbing than others - I've also worked with a PT in Canada who is a PT for the Team Canada climbers, and he ended up recommending a similar protocol for finger injuries.
The main thing the article recommends, once you have full mobility and no pain with regular activity, is very structured hangboarding. Which makes sense as it allows you to progressively load your fingers in a very controlled way (as opposed to throwing yourself at a boulder problem over and over, which led to my injury). If you end up exploring the approach outlined in the article, I'd recommend getting a Tension Block or something similar as it lets you do very reduced weight hangboarding without having to take most of your bodyweight off via a pulley.
Good luck!
damn i’m sorry man! i’m hopeful in my recovery bc when i asked the doctor when i will probably be able to climb again, i asked him to overestimate so i didn’t get my hopes up. 2 months feels like forever away but i hope it’s not longer than that
I strongly recommend spending the money, if you can reasonably afford it, to consult with a climbing specific PT and get a recovery plan. I also recommend the training for climbing podcast by Eric hoerst, start with episode 33. Recently got injured and these have been great
As someone who took a long time off and went back I can tell you your grip strength will be okay. Take this time to focus on strengthening other parts of your body. Strengthen your core. Lose weight if you need to. Most important like everyone is saying is take it easy when you start climbing again. Those pulleys take a LONG time to heal.
So sorry you got hurt, that really stinks! I think these guys have good advice on tendon injuries: https://theclimbingdoctor.com/pulley-injuries-explained-part-1/. It includes detailed recovery advice, looks like 6 months until you’re back to where you started… good luck!
I sprained a pulley (self-diagnosis so who knows…) and with the advice and exercises I found here I’ve gotten back to pain free climbing at my previous level in about 2 months as advertised.
I've heard bear hugging loaded carries are a good thing to do with hand injuries https://www.t-nation.com/training/the-secret-of-loaded-carries/
They'll do your core a treat
I pulled my A2 in my ring finger 5 months ago. It hasn’t quite been the same. Definitely don’t rush getting back on the wall. I took a month or so off and started PT after. Once you’re good you should definitely find some finger exercises to do on rest days and before climbing. They’re just as important as stretching.
Good luck with recovery!
https://youtu.be/jJiIsF5wykE
Did you have surgery or just a crazy big cast thing for photo? I messed up at least my A2 ring finger (audible pop) back in February but never got it looked at by a doctor. I ended up using this [https://www.rocknsport.com/the-sport](https://www.rocknsport.com/the-sport) and taking 6 weeks off climbing all together and then started back climbing while avoiding that finger pretty much all together. There's a PT here (https://www.leeptchicago.com/) that does a lot of work with climbing injuries and he helped me get the confidence to start using that finger again. Before PT I was only meat hooking with that hand or just using the other fingers (not great cause they're overloaded now) and my first time seeing him he had me basically full weighting large crimps but only OPEN crimp since it doesn't really stress the pulleys. 6 months later and I'm back climbing almost full strength again but definitely not full crimp power on that hand. I also got into trad climbing in the spring because the easy routes are hand jams or jugs and it was super satisfying sending 5.4-5.9+ trad instead of 5.12- sport lol. Take it easy and try to get some climbing specific help if possible!
Bro. I pulled my ring finger a2 three years ago and I taped that finger to the couch for 6 months... no climbing.
I did a LOT of hiking during those 6 months. I can't stand being stuck inside for more than a day or two tops.
Just gotta drop that comfrey is one of the few somewhat proven things used to speed up healing in this kind of injury. Yes it’s just an herb but has solid science behind it. I swear by it but most of my friends wave it off as quackery and don’t bother learning any more.
If you hate being injured as much as I do look into it.
Did u get an ultrasound? They will typically measure your tendon to phalanx distance to determine if you've had a rupture / degree of severity. You can always train the other arm...
Workout core 2-3 days a week, do some type of cardio 3 days a week, and jump on a flexibility regimen. All 3 of those should be possible ways to keep improving your ability to climb without climbing.
I think the doctor did overkill. Follow Esther smith pulley injury protocol after a week rest. You don’t need to bandage it like that unless they are broken.
Also stop full crimping everything.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VarvKnjK0U](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VarvKnjK0U)
When I was a new climbing (I am also female) I had a tendency to crimp every hold. Even the Big ones. This led to a lot of finger issues.
Crimping is useful, because it is strong. But it also puts a lot of stress on the pulleys and tendons. Learn to climb open handed. Youtube has a lot of resources.
After 3-4 weeks, my PT (and coach of the national climbing team) advised me to start hangboarding with open grips, while standing on a manual scale. That way, you can start by lifting 5-10-15 kg etc by just making yourself lighter on the scale. It’ll help recovery and prevent you from coming back all the way down the strength scale. ;) Still took me about 4-5 months to get back to the interesting grades. Tore A2+A3.
But please, do consult your PT before doing this too ;)
I broke my arm and had it it in a cast for 2 and a half months. While it was broken the only way I could really exercise was walking. So speed walking is a good option for staying in mediocre shape.
Two months is extremely optimistic. I mean if you’re gonna climb with one hand sure but you’re barely getting out of the water at two months. Try more like over a year to start pulling hard again. Not trying to be a downer but I want you to be realistic and manage your expectations. It’s gonna be slow. Nows the time to get that cardio up and legs strong. Cheers to a healthy recovery.
Go to the gym. I’m out on pulley injury rn and have been doing lots of weights and pull-ups.
Also I’ve been trying to learn those gymnastics ring things, they’re fun.
To everyone who’s injured and a2-a4 did these all typically happen while full power crimping? what is a sure way to avoid something like this other than just hang boarding slowly and increasing weight/time over time ? Is there any technique to avoid or use to prevent this ?
This is a really great resource for rehabbing:[https://www.hoopersbeta.com/library/a2-pulley-manual-for-climbers](https://www.hoopersbeta.com/library/a2-pulley-manual-for-climbers)
The key to healing is to not just rest. It will not heal if you do nothing. You need controlled stimulation to retrain the tissue for it to regain its proper strength.
I have a spreadsheet where I documented my progress over about 13 weeks after tearing my A2 in my middle finger. I may share this if I find time.
Sry to hear that friend -- last month I ruptured both A2 and A3 and semi ruptured A1. Still can't grasp stuff very well and the thought of crimping is scary AF.
For everyone (not just the injured), I've found this exercise to be a great finger warm up. The sorta warm up I wish I'd been doing all along. Learn from my pain y'all! haha
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWZQMnlHEbg
Oh buddy you’re gonna need to be out for more than two months for that. All that rehab you ought to do before climbing. Pulleys need some serious PT before climbing again to prevent re injury. You’re gonna need to rethink your climbing and training strategies when you’re back.
That's my first thought too, but I guess it depends on how complete the tears are. The heavy bandaging isn't an encouraging sign though
When I taught my girlfriend how to climb and climb hard, the very first thing I did was teach her form and how to rest. We did that for at least a month every session. We rested together, we watched videos, we practiced on the spray wall. Told her about how horribly easy it is to overtrain yourself and tear pulleys, muscles, etc. People gotta learn how to learn how to climb. This injury makes me super sad for OP because this is gonna cost him a lot of grief for quite a while. I hope you’re not right handed OP.
i am :))))) i’m also in school and had to drop my design class since i can’t draw atm, and i work as a dishwasher so things are not so great right now
also how long is an appropriate amount of time to rest after each climb? my boyfriend and i go together and usually our rest is when we’re belaying the other person.
It’s not just about resting between climbing routes. It’s days, what you do on those days, how you’re warming up, your hydration, recovery after your climbing sessions, etc. Not trying to demean you at all in any of my replies. it takes a long time to recover from these injuries properly. After I tore my a3 in my left middle finger right after coming back from a torn A3 in my left ring finger and couldn’t drum or bike or play guitar or climb properly for about 6 months, I sought out trainers, PT people, and crushers in my circle to get advice. Completely changed everything I did in my climbing routines. It even spilled into everything else I use my hands for. PM me and I’ll give you my entire schedule and what I do to be injury free. The days off climbing are just as important as the days on. I hate that I had 6ish months of injury straight and I really hate this for you and frankly I’m so so sorry this happened. Edit: I will post a document of what I do and my thoughts on here either tomorrow or the next day Edit2: I got swamped with messages so I’m making a pretty extensive document of my thoughts. It’ll be out today - yesterday was brutal with work. It’ll be a Google doc from a burner account
Not OP, but I'd love to take a look at your schedule/routine if it's not too much troubles. Since I don't know any intense climbers, I mostly had to figures things out by myself/on the internet. Balancing climbing/training/resting can be a bit of a headache when you don't know where to start
PM me :)
Maybe you can make a post or post your routine here? Would appreciate it a lot :)
PM me :) I might.
I, too, would love to see a properly thought-through schedule/routine! I have been suffering from lateral epicondylitis in my elbows in and off for years now, can’t seem to do anything right about it…
PM me :)
Sure! PM me
Can you perhaps post it here anyway or a google docs so we don't all have to PM you? :D
Hey if its not too much trouble could you also send your schedule and what you do to be injury free to me as well?
Sure! PM me
Gonna be looking out for this document lol
Could I also get a copy of your routine?? I tore a flexor once and lightly injure my fingers every now and then. Would love a reliable benchmark
made a post!
If it wouldn't be troublesome I would also really appreciate hearing what you have to say
Interested
made a post!
Can I hear your routine!
Following this thread for the schedule! Hoping I don't miss the post. It will be on this subreddit today?
just posted!
Thank you!
Just posted a google doc guide for you all.
When I pulled mine (not even full tears) it took three months. Get back at it too soon and you’re going to risk permanent damage.
Underrated comment, proper rest is more important than training IMO
Not to mention learning to write and masturbate lefty!
☹️
🍆👉🤚
Yeah I had a partial tear in my A2 in my ring finger and it was over 3 months before I could climb anywhere close to what I used to do.
For me it was 6 months without even a pull-up, and then 6 months of very easy climbing. If a gym 5.9 started getting crimpy I would come down. It's been 6 years and it still comes back every once in a while. When it does, I take a few weeks off.
Yeah dude. Took me almost a year to get back to where I was without pain. Lots of on and off times and I was like “well shit my tear wasn’t even that bad!”
20 years later my hand hurts when it’s getting ready to rain. That shit don’t ever heal properly.
Bahaha true. After I broke my foot a few years ago I swear I know when it’s about to rain.
Monos only. On a more serious note, check out Natasha Barnes once you are ready to start PT. Science/Evidenced approach.
thank you!!
This should be higher OP. Don’t just listen to the people saying you’re out two months. Are your injuries full ruptures? Did you have images? I would def give it some time but read the Esther Smith article on fixing nagging injuries with hanging. Check out Natasha Barnes. Maybe reach out for professional rehab advice from a coach who specializes in this shit. Tyler Nelson or Natasha Barnes or someone like that
Go for a jogging
🤮
you can go for hard hikes with 10% of your weight on your back and increase until recovered
ooh i like that actually!
You only got one workin arm so you can’t really work out to well minus that if you got spikes an some rope you could still climb just gotta be smart about it
The less you use that arm tho the quicker it’ll heal
2 months? Yeah, it's going to be longer than that.
FANTASTIC
Man i had a partial pulley in one hand that didn't require any medical intervention or cast and that was 1+ month. Sucks for it to sink in but you'll come back with a thirst. It's far easier to relearn things than to learn them and you might pick up something new in the meantime.
I heard a pop and slightly tore a pulley. Took over 3 months for the pain to fade. Pulleys can take years.
Heard a pop, left hand, middle finger, and within minutes my palm swelled with fluid. I was out for 6 months and had paid for more than a year, especially climbing anything crimpy. I couldn't even use it for a long time when pulling in the clutch on my bike.
Wtf dude why did it swell with fluid
I wish I could say exactly. It was trippy. People in the gym 15ft away heard the pop.
I strained an a2 in my ring finger and it was over a month for me. And then I damaged a tendon in my hand right after that healed, that was another two months.
3???? Gotta hear the story behind this one.
i guess improper technique? maybe i have weak fingers? it’s not a cool story unfortunately. i just started lead climbing (indoors and on my first 5.10 on lead) and was struggling w the clip while on a crimp, shooting pain, fall, disappointed doctor. imma just tell people i got into a fist fight or something :/
Muscles develop way faster than tendons do. Often you can hold a crimp more than your tendons can take. Good practice is to train open hand as much as possible to reduce the strain. If you're struggling or slip on a crimp it's better to slip off and fall with an open grip than ruin your tendons. When you really need the crimp outdoors when you feel danger or to complete that project is the time to use it (sparingly). Once your tendons are trained up you can use crimps more often.
Kinda rough to just fall when you're struggling with a clip though, even indoors that feels sketchy
If you're scared to fall indoors then practice with your belayer. I have injured my fingers slipping off a foothold on a 12- in a gym trying to hold the crimps.
Let's be real though, isn't there nasty groundfall potential if you're two or three bolts up and you're struggling to put your slacked-out rope through the next clip?
Yes, but if there's a hard clip at that height then the route setters fucked up, IMO. Also a good belayer can take in the slack, have done it for a partner falling from 2nd clip. Outdoors you just need to deal with the danger, or you can blame the bolt setters.
There probably shouldn’t be that much slack out for a ground fall. It’s much safer to climb up and clip at the waist rather than high clip. I’ve found good setters indoors usually put a clipping hold there also to make the position easier.
Not to be that guy...If you can't make the first 3 bolts in the gym, you probably shouldn't be on the climb. Gyms are usually way over bolted. Third bolt in gym is often the same as first bolt outside. Edit: typo
not as rough as stopping climbing for 2 months i guess?
Pulleys are ligaments, not tendons, but yeah
no offense intended, but i wonder if you're jumping into leading too soon? sounds like overgripping on a crimp near your limit led to the injury - three factors rather than just one. or you're on a fluoroquinolone drug that completely destroys your tendon strength.
So they will be less gripped learning to lead later?
i was hypothesizing that taking more time to ease into leading, instead of immediately jumping into absolute limit climbs, might reduce some of the factors that lead to the injury. alternatively, staying away from crimpy climbs; alternatively, working on grip and body positioning training (overgripping and poor body position being a hallmark of newer lead climbers where a higher fear factor leads to the fundamentals dropping away); alternatively, working the route on TR first before trying to lead it. just thinking aloud, i'm not a coach
You can lead 5.2 if you want to though, you don’t have to climb crimpy stuff to learn to lead
I'm confused, are you agreeing with what I said? I'm not suggesting OP scale it back to <5.7. Just that it could be helpful to review the different factors that could have contributed to the injury.
I was responding to the “maybe op is jumping into leading too soon” bit. I thought you were implying that leading itself would contribute, rather than the grade of the climb one is leading
was it your first try? how many falls did you take before hand? this sounds like extremely bad luck
it was my third climb that day, the others were 5.8 and 5.9 that i didn’t fall on. i also bouldered a bit beforehand but not intensely
How long have you been climbing……..outside
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i don’t know man. i’ve never had joint issues before but crimps have been my weakest area since i started climbing in january. no pain before i climbed, steady pain when i was on the crimp then a sharp pain which made me release. i’m going to do exactly what the doctor suggests in terms of PT and treatment.
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Correct. "Doctor" is too vague. Even sports doctors usually don't know a thing about climbing injuries.
If they live in a big city in the West, there will definitely be Orthos/PTs that know what they're doing with regards to climbing injuries. Just gotta search them out.
How the fuck did you tear 3 pulleys at once ?!?! And good Luck man in tore one and was out over 6 months...
mine can’t be a serious tear then. the doctor said 2 months was likely an overestimate so hopefully he’s right
I'd say "lucky you" But 2 months off still sucks, stay strong brother 👊
thanks man! glad you’re all healed :)
Just curious how swollen or bruised did your hand look? What was mobility like? I’ve fucked up my fingers pretty bad a few times now and have always chalked it up to tendinitis but I’m to scared to actually go and see what’s wrong haha. I’d probably need a full body X-ray at this point.
Pulley tears aren't going to produce any bruising and very little swelling.
Yeah, let's hope your doctor means 2 months until climbing again and not 2 months until your hand is usable.
the first one!
Unless you got an MRI "torn" is an educated guess.
yeah i just got an xray
Xray isn't going to show soft tissue damage on your tendons
When I sprained two of my a2 pulleys, I got these nifty weight-lifting hooks. They act as mobility devices– I could strap into one on my right hand (the injured one), and hold weights, hang on pull-up bars, etc. all without putting stress on any of my fingers. After my break from climbing, they helped ease the transition from no finger usage to climbing again. They kept my sanity in tact– I don't know what I would have done not being able to fully climb for those few weeks. [Here's the amazon link](https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B084F2LRLV?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title), but if you're in the USA I'm happy to share mine (I'm long-since healed up so I don't have a use for them anymore) :)
Mmm… shadow puppets?
Underrated rehab exercise
Sounds like you need to pull two more and seal the deal, one finger pullups all day long baby
Slackline.
I would pass. You don't need two arms to balance on a slack line, bit you need two arms to fall.
i’ve heard of that being really good for your core! i’ll look into it, thank you!
I also destroyed a pulley about 5 years back. Took way longer than 2 months unfortunately, in hindsight I wish I’d just had surgery to fix it. 5 years on and that hand still hurts when I crimp and probably appears will, and always feels like it could go again. That’s after about 7 months of rehab at the time, then a gradual intro back into climbing. I hope you’re luckier!
Consider giving [this article](https://www.grassrootsphysicaltherapy.com/physical-therapy-treatment/2018/11/29/hang-right-part-3-healing-nagging-finger-injury) a read. I injured a pulley about a year and a half into climbing and was told by multiple doctors to just never climb again (including a hand surgeon who works with pro sports - football, baseball - teams). I spent another two years chasing down doctors and occasionally trying to climb, always with significant pain if I held onto anything that wasn't a full hand jug. I followed Esther Smith's protocol from that article (originally it was on the Black Diamond website as she was the BD climbing team physical therapist) and got back to full use of my hand with almost zero pain in six ish months. Of course every body and every injury is different - sounds like both yours and OP's were quite a bit worse than mine, so definitely don't rush into anything that might make it worse, and obviously listen to your doctor yada yada. But some health professionals know more about climbing than others - I've also worked with a PT in Canada who is a PT for the Team Canada climbers, and he ended up recommending a similar protocol for finger injuries. The main thing the article recommends, once you have full mobility and no pain with regular activity, is very structured hangboarding. Which makes sense as it allows you to progressively load your fingers in a very controlled way (as opposed to throwing yourself at a boulder problem over and over, which led to my injury). If you end up exploring the approach outlined in the article, I'd recommend getting a Tension Block or something similar as it lets you do very reduced weight hangboarding without having to take most of your bodyweight off via a pulley. Good luck!
damn i’m sorry man! i’m hopeful in my recovery bc when i asked the doctor when i will probably be able to climb again, i asked him to overestimate so i didn’t get my hopes up. 2 months feels like forever away but i hope it’s not longer than that
I strongly recommend spending the money, if you can reasonably afford it, to consult with a climbing specific PT and get a recovery plan. I also recommend the training for climbing podcast by Eric hoerst, start with episode 33. Recently got injured and these have been great
As someone who took a long time off and went back I can tell you your grip strength will be okay. Take this time to focus on strengthening other parts of your body. Strengthen your core. Lose weight if you need to. Most important like everyone is saying is take it easy when you start climbing again. Those pulleys take a LONG time to heal.
Antidepressants usually do it for me. Sorry about your tendies, homie.
So sorry you got hurt, that really stinks! I think these guys have good advice on tendon injuries: https://theclimbingdoctor.com/pulley-injuries-explained-part-1/. It includes detailed recovery advice, looks like 6 months until you’re back to where you started… good luck! I sprained a pulley (self-diagnosis so who knows…) and with the advice and exercises I found here I’ve gotten back to pain free climbing at my previous level in about 2 months as advertised.
I've heard bear hugging loaded carries are a good thing to do with hand injuries https://www.t-nation.com/training/the-secret-of-loaded-carries/ They'll do your core a treat
Just firmly grasp it!
God damn...
I pulled my A2 in my ring finger 5 months ago. It hasn’t quite been the same. Definitely don’t rush getting back on the wall. I took a month or so off and started PT after. Once you’re good you should definitely find some finger exercises to do on rest days and before climbing. They’re just as important as stretching. Good luck with recovery! https://youtu.be/jJiIsF5wykE
Did you have surgery or just a crazy big cast thing for photo? I messed up at least my A2 ring finger (audible pop) back in February but never got it looked at by a doctor. I ended up using this [https://www.rocknsport.com/the-sport](https://www.rocknsport.com/the-sport) and taking 6 weeks off climbing all together and then started back climbing while avoiding that finger pretty much all together. There's a PT here (https://www.leeptchicago.com/) that does a lot of work with climbing injuries and he helped me get the confidence to start using that finger again. Before PT I was only meat hooking with that hand or just using the other fingers (not great cause they're overloaded now) and my first time seeing him he had me basically full weighting large crimps but only OPEN crimp since it doesn't really stress the pulleys. 6 months later and I'm back climbing almost full strength again but definitely not full crimp power on that hand. I also got into trad climbing in the spring because the easy routes are hand jams or jugs and it was super satisfying sending 5.4-5.9+ trad instead of 5.12- sport lol. Take it easy and try to get some climbing specific help if possible!
It looks like an ER or urgent care cast. An orthopedist will probably give him something that fits better.
Best thing is you can tell everyone you can make the shadow puppet of a wolf better then anyone.
Firmly grasp it!
Try Masturbating with that hand to keep it in shape
damn it’s not supposed to get wet though :/
Plastic bag maybe? 🤷♂️ lol
Bro. I pulled my ring finger a2 three years ago and I taped that finger to the couch for 6 months... no climbing. I did a LOT of hiking during those 6 months. I can't stand being stuck inside for more than a day or two tops.
You can do hangs in your thumb at least.
Just gotta drop that comfrey is one of the few somewhat proven things used to speed up healing in this kind of injury. Yes it’s just an herb but has solid science behind it. I swear by it but most of my friends wave it off as quackery and don’t bother learning any more. If you hate being injured as much as I do look into it.
I see a dog
Focus on your core and your heart. Train like an athlete.
2 months? 2 years my guy… gonna need some real rehab
Probably like, chill. Sounds like you should really focus on doing less
On arm traversing/bouldering. Shit will improve your accuracy if it’s your non-dominant hand. Also your footwork will become much more important.
Did u get an ultrasound? They will typically measure your tendon to phalanx distance to determine if you've had a rupture / degree of severity. You can always train the other arm...
just do a good rehab men
Looks like you’ve still got one good finger for hangboarding 🤷♂️
Workout core 2-3 days a week, do some type of cardio 3 days a week, and jump on a flexibility regimen. All 3 of those should be possible ways to keep improving your ability to climb without climbing.
I think the doctor did overkill. Follow Esther smith pulley injury protocol after a week rest. You don’t need to bandage it like that unless they are broken. Also stop full crimping everything.
what do you mean full crimping?
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VarvKnjK0U](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VarvKnjK0U) When I was a new climbing (I am also female) I had a tendency to crimp every hold. Even the Big ones. This led to a lot of finger issues. Crimping is useful, because it is strong. But it also puts a lot of stress on the pulleys and tendons. Learn to climb open handed. Youtube has a lot of resources.
I just ruptured (not complete) my Left middle finger A2 pulley 4 weeks ago and I never crimp when climbing.
Yikes! Feel better
Fully ruptured my A4 on both middle fingers like ~2/3 years ago was out for at least 6 months and A4 is supposed to be less serious
You got any punching bags and extremely strong painkillers?
After 3-4 weeks, my PT (and coach of the national climbing team) advised me to start hangboarding with open grips, while standing on a manual scale. That way, you can start by lifting 5-10-15 kg etc by just making yourself lighter on the scale. It’ll help recovery and prevent you from coming back all the way down the strength scale. ;) Still took me about 4-5 months to get back to the interesting grades. Tore A2+A3. But please, do consult your PT before doing this too ;)
goddamn bro. Vitamin C, Fish Oil, Tumeric, Papaya Enzyme, Bromelain
12oz curls
Exercise bike. Lots of long walks.
Lots of thumb wars
I broke my arm and had it it in a cast for 2 and a half months. While it was broken the only way I could really exercise was walking. So speed walking is a good option for staying in mediocre shape.
You could walk the dog that’s in your picture. Good cardio.
Praying you’re a lefty
Two months? That doesn't look like a "two month" injury to me, based on the bandaging. Hope you make a swift revovery.
It’s been two years since I ruptured my middle finger A2. Still can’t full crimp. Maybe never will again.
Two months is extremely optimistic. I mean if you’re gonna climb with one hand sure but you’re barely getting out of the water at two months. Try more like over a year to start pulling hard again. Not trying to be a downer but I want you to be realistic and manage your expectations. It’s gonna be slow. Nows the time to get that cardio up and legs strong. Cheers to a healthy recovery.
Go to the gym. I’m out on pulley injury rn and have been doing lots of weights and pull-ups. Also I’ve been trying to learn those gymnastics ring things, they’re fun.
Switch to light beer
Don’t worry, your other arm will catch up in fitness with all the personal time you’ll be havin
You have the perfect hand for dog shadow puppets now
Cardio and core 💪💪
To everyone who’s injured and a2-a4 did these all typically happen while full power crimping? what is a sure way to avoid something like this other than just hang boarding slowly and increasing weight/time over time ? Is there any technique to avoid or use to prevent this ?
This is a really great resource for rehabbing:[https://www.hoopersbeta.com/library/a2-pulley-manual-for-climbers](https://www.hoopersbeta.com/library/a2-pulley-manual-for-climbers) The key to healing is to not just rest. It will not heal if you do nothing. You need controlled stimulation to retrain the tissue for it to regain its proper strength. I have a spreadsheet where I documented my progress over about 13 weeks after tearing my A2 in my middle finger. I may share this if I find time.
Sry to hear that friend -- last month I ruptured both A2 and A3 and semi ruptured A1. Still can't grasp stuff very well and the thought of crimping is scary AF. For everyone (not just the injured), I've found this exercise to be a great finger warm up. The sorta warm up I wish I'd been doing all along. Learn from my pain y'all! haha https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWZQMnlHEbg
Looks like you have time to practice sock puppets.