A Girl Who Climbs

I managed to pick up a minor injury at the weekend whilst climbing. I was trying the same move over and over, which was a deep lock off on a volume. This makes it sound way more fancy than it actually was. Basically I was trying to pull down with my left arm, into a lock off, to help me move upwards. I felt a funny ‘zing‘ in my elbow, but after a small rest everything seemed okay. It wasn’t until later on when I went to put my arm through my backpack strap that I felt the horrible nerve pain.

After A Boy Who Climbs (who is a Sports Therapist) poked and pressed my elbow for a bit, he came to the conclusion that I had given myself Golfer’s elbow, which is basically tendonitis. This is the second time I’ve managed to damage myself in this way on this same arm, the first time being from an extremely graceful fall at roller derby. Some ice and rest has helped, but I must admit I’m still a little nervous to climb on it, so when Ed of Betamonkeys suggested using FlexEx to exercise, I figured why not!?

These little stretchy bands are surprisingly good and come in 3 difficulties. Plus they’re so small you can take them anywhere, making them perfect for pre-climb warm ups. I’ve used hair bobbles and elastic bands to mimic this type of thing before, but these bands are much easier to use. A proper review will follow!

No-one likes being injured, much less not being able to exercise and climb. However it’s only minor, and the down time is an important stage for healing, so that’s where I’m at for the moment.