If you’ve ever felt weakness in your hand and numbness in your thumb, index, and middle finger after a long climbing session, listen up! It’s possible you may be suffering from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
You’ve probably heard of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome as it’s something that can be common in people who spend a lot of time on their computers with their wrists compressed. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is becoming more common in climbers because of the repetitive use of the wrist flexors (the muscles in front of our wrists) to grip holds. The median nerve, which runs under the wrist flexors, can become compressed if the wrist is in a flexed position repetitively (think projecting on slopers). This can cause the numbness you may be feeling.
Dr. Jared Vagy (theclimbingdoctor.com and author of The Ultimate Climber) wrote a very helpful article addressing the issue of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in climbers.
He talks about what to look for when you’re climbing to notice the potential signs of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. He then describes the best prevention exercise you can do and how to construct the piece of exercise equipment you need to do it. Then, very importantly, he explains how to apply this skill while climbing.
As with any potential injury, taking a little time to do the work to prevent it is always worth it….
CLICK HERE:Â Emerging Concepts in Injury Prevention: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
(photo courtesy of theclimbingdoctor.com)
To learn more about The Ultimate Climber, an awesome guide about preventing climbing injuries by Dr. Jared Vagy, click here.
Heads up, right now the link is dead as it’s directed to http// instead of http://
Add the colon and the URL works
Thanks for catching that Nolan, we’ve fixed the problem :).