Many climbers write off the Figure 4 as an advanced ice climbing move reserved for the most advanced mixed climbers. Take the the Figure 4 into the gym, however, and it becomes a great core exercise that addresses the entire upper body—hip flexors, abdominals, lats, shoulder girdle, and grip—in a very ice-climbing-specific way. It is also advantageous to learn this movement in the safety of the gym, so if and when you do need to try a Figure 4 outdoors, you know how. The Three Figure 4 Positions First a few tips on the move. Many people do not realize…

To climb vertical and near-vertical ice you have to be able to hold a lock-off position with each arm. The lock-off position is the one where you’ve pulled up and stepped up to where the tops of the tools are near your face. You loosen one of the tools (I try to make it the tool that is the most suspect/least solid), hold yourself with the opposite locked-off arm, and reach and swing the leading tool. This movement is also critical in mixed climbing and drytooling, where you have to hold a lock-off position, often for quite a while, while…

The dreaded pump. Every climber has been there: You. Can’t. Hold. On. Any. Longer! Rock climbers’ best training weapon for training grip strength is the hangboard. And for ice climbers, it is weighted hangs. Here is a tried-and-true way to increase your ice-climbing-specific grip strength. You will need a place to hang from both ice tools. Training Grip Strength for Ice Climbing: Warm-up and Workout Grip Strength Warm-up Start by hanging with only your body weight for 10–12 seconds out of every 60 seconds for 5 minutes. If you have a bouldering wall, do 5 minutes of easy bouldering, followed…

In this video, alpinist and Uphill Athlete coach Steve House shares his packing methodology for a one-night overnight alpine climbing objective. Beginning with nutrition and hydration, he runs through energy food (waffles, gels, and chews); water and tips for keeping it from freezing; recovery snacks and drinks; and suggestions for dinner and breakfast. Gear-wise he covers his preferred stove; essentials like sun protection, headlamp, and navigation; and his reasoning behind opting for a down sleeping bag and his strategy for packing it. When it comes to clothing, he brings three to four pairs of gloves and mittens; a hardshell; a…

Mixing power and endurance training in the same workout can be a mistake if it not done correctly. Why? A workout  which places the strength and/or power training after what is already an exhaustive endurance session, is not going to give the best gains in strength or power. If all you want to do is get tired, then sure mixing training modalities will drive you deep into neurologic and metabolic fatigue. At certain times in your training cycle, and for certain climbers, this can be appropriate. But doing this on a regular basis is probably unwise for 90 percent of…

Increase your performance in dangerous situations, the smart way. Recently I shared how my early climbing experiences in Slovenia helped shape my ability to stay focused while climbing, and all that means in complex alpine environments. I call it Fuzzy Awareness*. But, as I’ve said before, this ability to think—and act—clearly and smartly in demanding and dangerous situations is critically important to us as mountain athletes. And it is virtually impossible to train in the way we know how to train our physical capacities. Or is that really the case? If you want to improve your capacity to climb or…

Mental strength, the ability to think—and act—clearly and smartly in demanding and dangerous situations, is the single most difficult capacity to improve as a mountain athlete. The building blocks of mental strength may contain concrete knowledge of weather, snowpack, and navigation. But most of what makes a mentally strong climber, skier, or runner is not readily understandable. As concentration, calmness, confidence, and clarity of judgment are the hallmarks of the greats, it’s worth a closer study. My Time in Slovenia It was a fortunate accident that I studied in Slovenia, then a state of Yugoslavia, in 1988 and 1989. There…

Recently I attended the annual Guide’s Festival in Courmayeur, Italy, which is home to the second-oldest guide office in the world (founded in 1850!). As part of the celebrations I was invited by the Guide’s Office to participate in a discussion about the future of alpinism with my Italian friend and alpinist Herve Barmasse. Renowned Italian sports journalist Luca Castaldini, of Sportweek, did an excellent job moderating. The conversation made me think, and so I’d like to share some of my thoughts with our readers here. What follows are a selection of Luca’s questions and edited (by me) versions of…

We recommend you visit the Uphill Athlete strength training landing page—Strength Training for the Mountain Athlete—for a full rundown of how to develop both general and specific strength for your chosen mountain sport. The Uphill Athlete KIS Strength Series -by Steve House, Uphill Athlete co-founder and Master Coach Endurance athletes and climbers do not tend to come from strength and conditioning backgrounds. They don’t hang out in globo-gyms and few know an Olympic bar from an Airdyne. However, as soon as you start reading a word about strength training, the terms and protocols come rapid-fire: reps, sets, 1RM, OHS, and…

Core strength plays a supportive, albeit critical, role in locomotive sports like skimo racing. That role is to provide a stable platform from which the arms and legs can perform their locomotive functions. While core exercises are basic and not necessarily sport specific, they can provide a needed base of support for sport-specific training.  To develop core strength is often challenging because you first need to learn how to engage some very deep muscles that are primarily used to stabilize the spine, hips, and shoulders and not for locomotion. This makes them hard to access and notice. These guys aren’t…