Most Effective 20-Minute Upper Body Workout for Climbers

Hello again, friends! 

Ahh... here it is. My go-to quick, effective, and very doable upper body workout for climbers! It took me a moment to really choose the best combination of exercises because there are a lot of different factors that come into play. 

For example, if you're climbing a lot during the week, you might want a cross training day where you fully work your antagonist muscles (chest, triceps, anterior and mid deltoids) to make sure you're balanced out. But, it's also super important to keep your agonist muscles (biceps, traps, lats, and posterior deltoid) strong and maintained so that it can translate once you're on the wall.

This 20-minute workout has 6 exercises. They all tap into BOTH agonist and antagonist muscles. Depending on what your current climbing schedule is, this is my recommendation: You need to choose your weights dependent on what your body needs and how it feels.

If you've been climbing a ton, you may not want to go crazy-all-out-PR heavy on the agonist lifts. Choosing a weight that is doable and helps with maintenance strength is key here. 

If you're getting into climbing, getting back into it, or training casually, then choose a weight for all the exercises that feel just right. By the 8th-ish rep, you should feel worked but the last 4 reps can still be done with great form. 

Speaking of, there are 2 ways to do this workout:

1. Repetition-based: Take these 6 moves and perform 12 reps each, 3 sets total.

2. Format-based: Follow along with me in the video and we'll go 45 seconds on, 15 seconds off. Plus, you get me as a cheerleader doing it right along with you!

Both formats work great, just depends on how you're feeling!

The first 10 minutes of the video discuss more of how this workout works and a movement breakdown. It's a little lengthy (I love talking about form!) but if you need it, it's there. If you don't, just scroll on ahead! 

Watch the video below to get all the exercises. I hope you enjoy the workout - let me know how it goes!

P.S. Need a good stretch after this workout? Try my 15-minute upper body yoga flow for climbers!