Get ready to take note - the world’s best climbers have shared their top tips for a fast and effective recovery.
Sport climbing is seldom a long affair. In finals, professional lead climbers have just six minutes to scramble up a challenging route while boulderers have only five. However, while rounds aren't always long, they can certainly be tiring, requiring intense focus and taking a sizeable physical toll.
Speaking to Olympics.com, the world’s best climbers gave a fascinating insight into the processes and techniques that help them get back on the wall.
For some, it's all about sleep.
“Rest is very important,” said Team USA’s Colin Duffy.
“After training you have to get a lot of sleep. I like to relax a lot. Naps are important for me.”
Coming fourth in the men’s boulder and lead competition at the Paris 2024 Olympics, 21-year-old Duffy has a bright future ahead of him. At only 17, he became the youngest person to qualify to compete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
After an intense climbing session, sore muscles are guaranteed. Serbia’s Stasa Gejo chooses to combat muscle fatigue by taking a cold shower or hopping in a chilly bath.
“Unfortunately, I do not have an ice bath, but I would love to have one. I do rolling with the foam roller, I use this massage gun or I just get a physiotherapy session.”
Cold water has a soothing effect on the body, reducing soreness and inflammation by constricting blood vessels, decreasing metabolic activity, and activating your immune system.
Alongside physical recovery, several athletes touted the importance of mental stability.
“The physical part is usually not so hard to get over,” said Canada’s Sean McColl.
“Mental is a completely different story. If you do well, it’s all roses and butterflies. It’s easy. If you do in the middle of the pack or you do worse, a lot of it is trusting that process of your training.”
Olympic champion Toby Roberts, echoed McColl, explaining how the high-octane competition environment can take its toll.
“If you have a really good result, say you win or you get on a podium, you have this huge amount of feel-good emotions. You're suddenly really happy, and then the day after there can almost be a bit of a crash where suddenly you're out of that competition environment and the psych is almost gone,” said the 19-year-old.
“I think for me, the most important thing is taking it easy after comps and then just getting back into training like normal."
Roberts made history in the summer, winning Team GB's first-ever Olympic climbing medal with gold in Paris. With four gold medals in the 2024 ISFC World Cup, he finished first overall in the lead and combined climbing rankings.
For more climbing tips, check out our expert guide.
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