Last week I did my first pistol squats. A few years ago I trained a squat progression specifically to get to pistol squats, but I wasn’t consistent enough and never actually managed them. I haven’t really done workouts since, but I’ve been going bouldering more frequently – maybe 5 hours a week on average now.
It’s not just my squat that has gotten stronger – my grip strength and pulling strength has too. However, I’m noticing some elbow pain that might be due to muscle imbalances. And I think my bouldering will plateau soon if I don’t work on my core strength and shoulder strength and mobility.
I’m thinking of doing about 4 short workouts a week, on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday morning before work. I would like to split them into two routines that I alternate.
Routine 1 (Monday & Thursday)
Circuit:
- Shoulder pass through – straight (for shoulder mobility)
- Push ups (antagonist training to counter all the pulling from climbing)
- Wrist roller (antagonist training specifically to combat elbow pain, also good for grip strength)
- Elevated pistol squats (to make the training more fun)
- Scapular pull ups (for shoulder mobility & strength)
Routine 2 (Tuesday & Friday)
Circuit:
- Shoulder pass through – straight (for shoulder mobility)
- Plank shoulder taps (core)
- Shoulder pass through – alternating left/right (for shoulder mobility)
- Banded Paloff press (core)
- Face pulls (shoulder strength & mobility)
- Reverse hyperextension (core)
~10-15 min for 3x circuit