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How often can one hangboard?

Original Post
Devin Dunn · · Salt Lake City, Utah · Joined Oct 2013 · Points: 0

I know the standard is at least two days of rest between sessions but how often can you hangboard if you are not climbing or doing any other forearm activity at all?

Asking as a v6/7ish 5.12ish climber.

Sam D · · CA · Joined Apr 2017 · Points: 167

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Lena chita · · OH · Joined Mar 2011 · Points: 1,667

it would depend on how intensive your hangboard session is...

i mean, you COULD hang on it multiple times a day. But is it the most effective/efficient thing to do? Probably not.

I feel like Max weight hangs/Min edge hangs are easier mentally, and you also recover from them faster, so you could do them more often. The repeaters are mentally brutal, especially if you do multiple sets on multiple holds, a-la RTCM style, and take longer to recover from physically. You may feel like you are just fine, fully recovered, until you start hanging, and then you'll feel it. It's not like you absolutely have to have 2 days rest between sessions every single time. In the past, when it was the choice between doing couple workouts 48 hrs apart, or not having a workout 5 days in a row, I would do them closer than 72 hrs apart, and it would be fine. Maybe not the best session, but still something.

Now, suppose you did the same 6 holds, 2 sets of repeaters on each hold, but instead of doing all 12 sets of repeaters in one session, you break it down into 3 separate sessions, and do them every day... 2 sets on 2 holds each day... Is that equivalent? I don't know. I have never tested that. It seems that you lose the stress/load that comes from doing all sets of repeaters in one session, but you may not be able to ramp up the difficulty of the hangs to compensate for less time under tension.

Also, to me, the warmup for hangboard is the drudgery that takes time. If I do hangboard every day, and warmup for it properly every day... that's a lot more drudgery, IMO, with uncertain rewards. I may be stuck at home, but I'm still working, and 

JCM · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 115

Total training load is a function of session volume, intensity, and frequency. So the question isn't how often you can hangboard, but what is a reasonable total load. For a given total training load, this could mean a medium intensity, high-volume repeaters session (RCTM-type protocol) every third day, or low-intensity, low-volume hangs three times a day, or anything in between.

The other question is what combination of volume, intensity, and frequency yields the best results for what you are trying to accomplish. This can be debated endlessly.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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