Finger pulley soreness

[Tony_Bentley]

Is there a good way to reinforce finger pulleys while climbing at the gym? There aren't any injuries yet but I am getting some soreness on all of the pulleys.

[Giles]

use a bit of tape. more than anything it reminds you to be gentle. most importantly remember that the gym can easily wreck your body. Don't over train. Consider spending an entire gym session just traversing on big friendly holds to work up endurance and fitness. good luck! stay healthy

[skykilo]

Naomi is an unabashed gym tweaker and she swears by taping hers somewhat tightly. She uses skinny tape and makes an X pattern around the knuckle. It doesn't necessarily remove the stress from the pulley, but it makes her more conscious of when she's using it more intensely and makes her tend to use an open grip more.

 

Alternatively, come to New Mexico and I'll throw you on juggy stuff, cracks and slabs and you can simultaneously cure your SAD.

 

Edited November 9, 2011 by skykilo

[Dannible]

Soreness on all of the pulleys sounds bad. Maybe take it back a notch for a while. If you feel any kind of pop or just slightly more serious tweek, stop and ice it for a couple of days. I screwed myself a couple of years ago by ignoring a little pain and not letting it rest at all, and now it still hurts sometimes. I try to avoid really crimpy stuff, and always use tape on the bad joint.

[Rad]

I asked a hand surgeon if tape would help. He said it wouldn't hurt but likely wouldn't take any significant load off the tendon or pulley. Rest/recovery/healing are critical and tape doesn't change that.

 

Lots of websites with suggestions on how to apply tape if you want it.

[Tony_Bentley]

I did some internet research this morning and apparently there have been studies that target the effectiveness of taping to reduce stress. The results pretty much say it doesn't do much. I have taped in the past but I don't remember it doing much. Is there a way to speed up recovery maybe? Perhaps someone has had success with a sort of cycle of training/recovery they can share?

 

Sky, as much as I'd love to pump on NM clip-ups it's more likely that we'll be bombing powder up here somewhere until next spring.

[Pete_H]

I tweeked a pulley tendon once. Unfortunately the only thing that fixed it was laying off it. At least its not climbing season.

[obwan]

Hello Tony - Good to hear you are still into it, we should get out sometime. I've been on the mend a couple of years, and now getting back into shape.

As you know I have not been much of a gym rat - I can count on both hands how many times I've been to a gym in over 30 years, so I still have a few pulleys left. Give them a few days rest and some ice, along with Ibuprofin or Aleve, and of course a few beers.

I've also used the Grip Master for strengthening the hand and individual fingers - just never very consistent. Leaving it in the car helped, waiting for traffic/lights. Tight taping on the bad ones helps a bit.

Take Care.

[JoeR]

#1 cause of finger pulley injuries seems to be crimping according to the research I did on them a few years ago. This is caused by a number of factors, though 2 stand out at the top.

 

#1 Most people are naturally stronger in a crimp position out of the gate, and tend to use it in exclusion of other techniques. Repetitive strain should not be underestimated!

 

#2 Tendons take much longer to strengthen and develop than muscles. Combined with the unique stress that crimping puts on relatively small tendons this is a recipe for problems.

 

So what can you do to keep a pulley injury from sidelining you and losing all those gains you made by training so hard?

 

A few ideas which have worked for me, please keep in mind that I'm no orthopedist.

 

Actively working to use an open hand or other grip positions whenever possible, doing a full set of finger stretches every time before after and during a climb.

But by far the most effective training injury prevention method is including rest and recovery into your training plan. There are all sorts of solid training reasons to rest and recover properly, if you don't rest you WILL plateau and then soon after suffer an injury.

 

Everybody is different in how they respond to training stress, so training schedules tend to be highly personalized. The best idea is usually to start with a very conservative schedule, then dial it in to your needs. A few days lost in training is nothing compared to a week/month/life-long preventable injury. Example schedules are available all over the internet, it is totally worth the research time to find one that suits your goals. Perhaps a good rest day activity yeah?

 

Also doesn't hurt to mention the old rehabilitation standby acronym RICE. Remember it can also work as a prophylaxis.

 

Rest

Ice

Compression

Elevation

 

 

Also check out this link on taping and finger injuries specifically.

Finger Taping and Injury

Edited November 12, 2011 by JoeR

[Rad]

#1 cause of finger pulley injuries seems to be crimping according to the research I did on them a few years ago. This is caused by a number of factors, though 2 stand out at the top.

 

#1 Most people are naturally stronger in a crimp position out of the gate, and tend to use it in exclusion of other techniques. Repetitive strain should not be underestimated!

 

#2 Tendons take much longer to strengthen and develop than muscles. Combined with the unique stress that crimping puts on relatively small tendons this is a recipe for problems.

 

So what can you do to keep a pulley injury from sidelining you and losing all those gains you made by training so hard?

 

A few ideas which have worked for me, please keep in mind that I'm no orthopedist.

 

Actively working to use an open hand or other grip positions whenever possible, doing a full set of finger stretches every time before after and during a climb, and taking prophylactic anti-inflammatory drugs like Aleve(generics work just as well).

 

But by far the most effective training injury prevention method is including rest and recovery into your training plan. There are all sorts of solid training reasons to rest and recover properly, if you don't rest you WILL plateau and then soon after suffer an injury.

 

Everybody is different in how they respond to training stress, so training schedules tend to be highly personalized. The best idea is usually to start with a very conservative schedule, then dial it in to your needs. A few days lost in training is nothing compared to a week/month/life-long preventable injury. Example schedules are available all over the internet, it is totally worth the research time to find one that suits your goals. Perhaps a good rest day activity yeah?

 

Also doesn't hurt to mention the old rehabilitation standby acronym RICE. Remember it can also work as a prophylaxis.

 

Rest

Ice

Compression

Elevation

 

 

Also check out this link on taping and finger injuries specifically.

Finger Taping and Injury

 

Hey Joe, good post. I agree with everything you've said EXCEPT the prophylactic use of NSAIDS. There are three reasons:

 

1 - The mild inflammation (soreness) after a workout is necessary for the process where micro-torn tissues are re-modeled and strengthened. Inhibiting this natural process prevents the system from properly recovering and getting stronger.

 

2 - NSAIDS can mask pain. When you are in pain your body is sending a message to your brain: "Hey, something's going on out here that you need to know about". Taking NSAIDS to mask that pain is wearing your ipod while crossing a busy street. You might not hear the bus that's about to run the light and flatten you.

 

3 - I was recently told by a PT (haven't seen data myself) that NSAIDS (either in high acute doses during a strenuous activity, or taken at lower doses over a long time) actually loosen/weaken tendons, increasing the liklihood of failures.

 

There is a time and place for NSAIDS, but protecting tendons and pulley is probably not one of them. If someone else knows more I'm happy to be corrected.

 

.....

Again, all of your other points are spot on IMHO.

[JoeR]

Thanks Rad, looks like I should re-evaluate my drug use. Post edited to include your advice.

Edited November 12, 2011 by JoeR

[111]

PLUG FOR LAYTON'S BOOK!!! http://www.amazon.com/Climbing-Stronger-Faster-Healthier-Beyond/dp/1439231982

[Rafe1234]

If your fingers getting sore ease off a little bit, the last thing you wnt is a serious pulley injury.

 

As to reinforcing with tape, it absolutely does work. I've had 4 major pulley ruptures in 3 different fingers and have used solid x-taping techniques while recovering and continuing as a climber with much benefit.

 

If you want support make sure the x-tape partically covers your knuckle. Your mobility will be decreased but as the finger bends it's going drag the tape into the underside of your finger creating quite a bit of support.

 

Bandaiding a pre-injury soreness probably isn't a good idea though.

[rl23455]

There was an article in Rock & Ice, December 2011, pg 74 about the overuse of NSAIDs.

[Pete_H]

Great. I want to get all my medical advice from Rock and Ice magazine.

[Jim]

If you suspect you have sustained a pulley injury, stop climbing. If you are unsure of what you are doing, go and see somebody that has experience of treating these injuries. Rest the finger, apply ice for up to 10 minutes at a time to reduce swelling. NSAIDs have minimal evidence base, and have been shown to slow healing in other bony and tendon/ligament injuries. Personally, I avoid them but there’s no good SCIENCE to support me. There’s no good evidence that taping improves strength, but it’s cheap and easy so I personally would use it initially in the return-to-climbing phase. I’d try to reduce use and stop by 6 months. Return to climbing is the area with no evidence. I personally would suggest rest of 2-3 weeks, then reassess. During this initial period I’d do gentle movement exercises- finger flexion mostly, within limits of pain, plus gentle extension to (but not past) neutral. Once a full range of movement is painless, I would suggest beginning active rehabilitation whilst using taping. Now the lack of evidence kicks in and guessing starts. Open handing has been shown to reduce pulley stress, so a return to gentle climbing (openhanded style) would seem reasonbable. After another 3 weeks (studies have shown that collagen tissues need this time to adjust) you could move on (assuming there’s no pain) to the crimp grip. Full strength is regained at 12 months, although no studies have looked to see if this occurs earlier. In my experience, ligamentous/tendon recovery is complete by 6 months. Hence, I’d (tentatively) suggest a return to normal climbing by then (if painfree).

 

http://www.ukbouldering.com/wiki/index.php/Pulley_Injuries_:_The_Science#Taping