Mark O'Neal

When I first started heavily hiking and backpacking I developed acute pain in my achilles that switched back and forth between the two feet. The podiatrist fitted me with a custom orthodic and the pain promptly went away at the same level of activity. Problem was that it took some time to get it fitted correctly and also over time it weakened my ankles and I think caused knee pain. My achilles pain was gone but it was replaced with other pain. In the last year I have ditched the orthodics and have been wearing Sole inserts in my hiking boots and in my sneakers at the gym. The achilles pain has not returned and the knee/ankle pain is much better. The theory goes that the orthodic was preventing my knee from pronating properly thus causing that pain. I suspect that I could have gotten rid of the orthodics a long time ago once my achilles adjusted to the new level of abuse. I over-pronate and do not have great flexibility in my achilles (i.e. I can't push my heels to the ground when doing Down Dog). I had Sport orthodics that were rigid at the arch but had a softer heel. They were full length but past the arch was essentially just padding. I think they were about $250 but my insurance covered them so I only paid $10!

Yea, I kinda figured that's what was going on. I have been trying to work on my footwork, but those routes at the gym seem to always have the parts where you need a death grip with your hands. The bouldering seems worse for this. I've been trying to strengthen my forearms with chins ups and dead hangs on the chin up bar, but I'll experiment with your suggestions. What would taping my fingers do and how should I do it? Is it a grip improvement or a finger support thing?

I originally posted in the Newbie forum but was redirected here. I'm new to climbing regularly. A couple of months ago I started climbing at a gym once a week for about 2 hours at a time climbing/belaying. Each time after climbing my fingers are slightly swollen and aching for a couple of days. Recently, my middle finger (on both hands) from the middle knuckle back to the top of the hand are particularly sensitive on the underside for several days. It doesn't hurt if I crimp a hold but it hurts like hell if I full on grab it. Is this normal or a technique problem? Or am I over doing it? I suspect I'm over doing it but figured I'd ask around. Are there any remedies/exercises for this type of issue or do I just need to take it easier? Thanks for any advise

Well I've only been climbing regularly since I started at the gym a couple of months ago. I usually go for about 2 hours once a week and climb/belay most of the time I'm there. What I'm ultimately trying to understand is it normal for my fingers to hurt, swell, and so on for a couple of days. Or am I over doing it? It sounds like I may be over doing it. I'll post in the Fitness Forum (didn't see it down there) too. Oh yea, the new gym is 10 minutes from my house and the rocks are hours. Easy call there.

A couple of months ago I started climbing at a gym once a week. Each time after climbing my fingers are slightly swollen and aching for a couple of days. Is there a good home remedy for this? Also in paticular, my middle finger (on both hands) from the middle knuckle back to the top of the hand are particularly sensitive on the underside for several days. It doesn't hurt if I crimp a hold but it hurts like hell if I full on grab it. Is this a technique problem on how I'm grabbing holds or do I just need to toughen up these middle fingers over time?

OK, well that makes sense. I figured letting go of the rope and yelling "Flying!" wasn't the right answer...

OK, so I actually am a newbie and will prove it with a serious question. What should I do when you yell "Falling!" on a sport route? I understand that the quickdraw is holding the fall, but aren't I the belayer still holding the other end of the rope?

Hi: My name's Mark and I live in the flat lands of Delaware. I've climbed several glaciated peaks in the Cascades by the normal route (Shasta, Hood, Rainier). I've also recently climbed on peaks in Ecuador(Cayambe, Cotopaxi, Chimborazo). Through all that I've missed out on learning how to perform a proper crevasse rescue. I want to become more self sufficient on the mountain so I'm looking for a partner(s)to take a private 2 day dedicated crevasse rescue class with the American Alpine Institute out at Mt. Baker. Right now my preference would be July 13-14 as I want to take an additional class (Alpinism 2) with AAI that starts immediately after this. Alternately if anyone wanted to volunteer to help me learn the proper skills that would be cool too! I'll drive you out there and buy you dinner, etc. Maybe we could add in a Mt. Baker ascent as well. Send me an email here or at the mark_oneal@yahoo.com if you're interested. Thanks!