EP 122: Jared Vagy — How to Prevent Knee, Shoulder, Elbow, and Finger Injuries as Climbers

Dr. Jared Vagy is a physical therapist who specializes in climbing injury rehab and prevention. We talked about freestyle rapping, the most common injuries in rock climbing, how to prevent knee, shoulder, elbow, and finger injuries as climbers, warming up your fingers at the crag, what to do to help your body recover on rest days, and much more.Check out Rhino Skin Solutions!rhinoskinsolutions.comUse code “NUGGET” at checkout for 20% off your next order!Check out Grasshopper Climbing!grasshopperclimbing.cominstagram.com/grasshopperclimbingTell them I sent you to save $500 off a fully kitted out 8'x10' Grasshopper board! We are supported by these amazing BIG GIVERS:Leo Franchi, Michael Roy, David Lahaie, Robert Freehill, Jeremiah Johnson, Scott Donahue, Eli Conlee, Skyler Maxwell, and Craig LeeBecome a Patron:patreon.com/thenuggetclimbingShow Notes:  thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/jared-vagyNuggets:0:05:00 – J-Rock the hip-hop artist0:09:58 – Running track in college and getting into climbing0:11:25 – Getting excited about physical therapy0:12:24 – Hip-hop parties with grandma, and applying physical therapy to his own climbing0:14:36 – Becoming “The Climbing Doctor” and writing for DPM0:17:22 – Overly engaging our shoulders0:20:56 – Shoulder position for hangboarding0:23:08 – How has climbing changed, and how climbing injuries have changed0:26:30 – My (Steven’s) balance of climbing and training0:28:12 – Balancing training and climbing, and seeing more injuries from training vs. climbing0:29:33 – Most common climbing injuries (shoulders, elbows, and fingers)0:31:42 – Exercises for preventing climbing-related knee injuries0:42:01 – Knee exercises for drop knees0:47:19 – How to program your knee injury prevention exercises0:49:04 – Patron question from Tyler: Compound lifts vs. accessory exercises for injury prevention?0:54:57 – Most common climbing-related shoulder injuries, and why shoulder injuries are difficult to diagnose0:59:26 – Who to go to if you get a shoulder injury, and what to look for in a physical therapist1:06:03 – Research on shoulder injuries1:07:55 – How to prevent climbing-related shoulder injuries1:11:58 – Resistance Band Rows, how difficult they should feel, and sets and reps1:16:20 – Pressing exercises for the shoulders, how to fix scapular winging, and flys for elbow pain1:24:20 – How to prevent finger injuries, hand positions on the hangboard, pockets, and finger lengths1:29:56 – Torsion on the hangboard, and gaps between fingers1:34:49 – The rubber band exercise for finger gaps1:39:26 – Hangboarding as brushing your teeth1:40:17 – Warming up your fingers for a climbing session1:45:20 – Grab your finger and shake your elbow1:48:04 – Warming up to raise the temperature in your hands and fingers1:50:23 – Warming up with a portable hangboard1:56:00 – Golfer’s Elbow, and diagnosing other sources of elbow pain2:04:32 – Patron question from Felix: How do we know when to listen to pain, vs. ignore pain? (Graded Motor Imagery)2:10:27 – How to diagnose PIP or DIP joint inflammation in the fingers, and recommendations for capsulitis2:14:45 – Advice for pulley aches2:16:21 – Patron question from Ana: Thoughts on the long-term effects of bouldering falls?2:20:55 – Motion is lotion2:23:07 – Patron question from Shawn: What exercises should we do on rest days to help with recovery? What should we avoid doing on rest days?2:26:31 – Training and educating other physical therapists, and doing more research on climbers2:30:32 – Jared’s climbing and rope soloing2:31:40 – Wrap up