RRC Archives

I went to hesters last night, and was reminded of something I used to think about a fair bit: When I go to the gym, I usually have to stop climbing due to pain in my fingers. Not joint pain, but my fingers just swell like little sausages. As if there is simply too much blood in my fingers. It becomes brutally painfull to hang onto anything but a ceramic hold. I have to stop climbing after two hours of bouldering.

I know that I'm supposed to just 'climb through it,' but it is really annoying. the rest of my body is ready to go, but I can't stand the pain in my fingers.

Does anyone else have this problem?

people that are pregnant usually have this problem.

my skin hurts and I can't put my rings back on for a while after I climb...but the swelling doesn't really hurt...or maybe I've just learned to climb through it...do you take breaks in between climbs?

Man, I diddn't realize I was pregnant. I better go double check on that one...

The Same thing use to happen to me, I found that if I tape my fingers between nuckles before i start climbing it helps. After about 45 min the tape is pretty worn and comes off and i can usually climb for hours afterwards with my fingers being fine.

I experienced a similar thing in my fingers when I first started at the gym. I"d take my hands and soak them in cold water at the drinking fountain or if I remembered to bring ice ice them for a bit... Then I could just keep on climbing and it usually wouldn't happen again... Stopped happening after a while though...

Have you given leaches a try?

mine swelled at first then don't very much anymore. i haven't worn rings in a few years because i can't get them off and on easily - and for safety. Mostly its my skin that hurts after bouldering. ibufrofen usually help me when i do swell up from climbiing.

Horst recommends immersing your fingers in ice water after intense power workouts. WHat is really bizarre with me is that it is actually easier for me to get my wedding ring on and off after climbing?

Word of advise, don't just climb through it. There are times when things hurt, and you should push on (like a stitch in your side when your running), and there are times when things hurt and pushing on leads to real injury that can be lifelong or chronic (like pain from a torn ligament). Fingers swelling to the proportion of sausages sounds more like the later. Dunking them in ice water for 5-10 minutes may be a good idea, but don't go much longer than that. Fingers cool off much faster than knees and shoulders and shouldn't be iced as long. If you ice in excess, the arteries in you fingers will loose the ability to vasoconstrict (i.e. they dilate) which will lead to a worsening of the swelling. If your fingers ever swell like sauseges at other times, you could have a rheumatological problem requiring medical management. If it happens only while climbing, it may not be so bad, but listen to what your body is telling you. Take it easy on them digits.