What Is The Best Body Type For Climbing
When it comes to the best body type, times are more confusing than ever. In previous generations, we had tremendously vascular climbers, such as Wolfgang Güllich, but now we have a lot thinner athletes such as Adam Ondra. So, the question stands: which is best for climbing?
What’s optimal depends on your climbing style, genetics, and climbing methods – all of which we explain below. However, there is a rule of thumb that stands across the spectrum.
The ideal body type for climbing is an ectomorphic mesomorph – thin, lean, long with little body fat (though height isn’t too significant). The lighter you are, the less effort is required to pull your body weight across a wall. However, a complete ectomorph has low muscle mass; which is why traits of a mesomorph are attractive. You still want to build fast-twitch muscle to increase explosiveness when leaping between rocks, and slow-twitch muscle for endurance.
In this sense, the best body type for climbing lies in between a mesomorph and an ectomorph. You want to have the strength of a mesomorph, but the mass of an ectomorph.
Embed from Getty ImagesIf you watch the Olympics, you’ll notice the huge variety of body types. This is because climbing isn’t a sport where one body type trumps all, you have to work with what you have. While ectomorph is desirable; it doesn’t guarantee a great climber.
Your body type is your general shape or figure, and is determined by your skeletal structures, and muscle/ fat distribution. But apart from this, there are other ways your build impacts your climbing, these are:
- Hand and Feet size
- Finger thickness
- APE index.
There are numerous advantages and disadvantages across the scale – it’s all about finding ways to work with the body you have.
Is An Ectomorph Good For Climbing
Developing from above, we look at how, where, and why an ectomorph body is good for climbing.
An ectomorph (thin, lean, long with little body fat) is a great body type to begin rock climbing. More specifically, ectomorphs thrive in elite climbing competitions, where an abundance of endurance is necessary. This is because their light, thin body composition helps reserve energy when pulling their body weight, or balancing on it.
In addition, ectomorphs are generally slow-twitch muscle fiber dominated, meaning they support long-distance activities. Therefore, they excel in ascending large mountains, where they must climb for prolonged periods without rest.
Ectomorphs are commonly tall, due to their skeletal structure. In rock climbing, being short or tall each has its own benefits. Many believe height is preferable because reaching out for rocks is easier; however, your leverage is also longer making it more tiresome. Rather than looking out for body types, it’s best to adapt your climbing style to your height.
Many of the world champions, such as Stefano Ghisolfi may appear thin and underdeveloped, but don’t be fooled. Their strength-to-weight ratio is huge and can do impressive stunts with their bodies that bodybuilders dream of doing!
Embed from Getty ImagesHowever, ectomorphs do have one limitation in climbing: muscle gain. Hence, an ectomorphic mesomorph is optimal (also concluded by a 2016 study by the University of Alicante).
Ectomorphs struggle to put on muscle mass, specifically fast twitch fibers. This can make it difficult for them to generate power and move explosively during bouldering.
To overcome this, ectomorphs should train their fast-twitch muscles through calisthenics (bodyweight exercises). This increases relative strength, but minimizes weight gain.
Many of the world champions do the same; hence, they have a thin frame yet toned muscles.
Is An Endomorph Good For Climbing
An endomorph body type is someone who has a softer, rounder physique with higher body fat levels. Let’s find how these traits stack against climbing.
There aren’t a lot of professional climbers that have an endomorph body type; however, this doesn’t mean they shouldn’t rock climb. While you may initially require extra strength and conditioning training, it only gets easier because you start losing fat and becoming lighter. Yes, it will be harder, but it will be proportionally as rewarding!
Rock climbing is an intense sport, which has high body demands. So, climbers that begin as an endomorph likely end up shedding fat and looking more like a mesomorph. In fact, a large proportion of climbers that go to bouldering gyms started with the intention of weight loss.
Because of this, it’s difficult to answer if endomorphs are good for climbing as the more you practice, the lower your fat levels become.
If you combine your climbing with the appropriate exercises, like calisthenics, endomorphs can get their body fat down to 15%-25%. This is a good level of muscle tone; similar to those of your average athlete! Then again, it’s reliant on you dieting well, staying consistent, and training intensely.
Endomorphs will face challenges when starting their rock climbing journey, here are a few to prepare for:
- A lack of relative strength makes it strenuous to lift your body weight using the strength of your hands, or harder, your fingers.
- An endomorph’s round physique can limit mobility and flexibility – making it a challenge to reach rocks further away.
- Endomorphs may rapidly feel exhausted due to their high fat levels weighing them down. As a result, they must slowly build their endurance to do longer climbing sessions.
Is A Mesomorph Good For Climbing
Put simply, a mesomorph build is similar to that of an athlete. This includes broad shoulders, a well-developed chest, a narrow waist, and low body fat. It’s a desirable body type for the majority of sports, but how about climbing? Let’s find out.
Mesomorphs naturally have high muscle mass. This works in their favor because it makes them more powerful and explosive than other climbers. It’s most noticeable during smaller climbs or climbs requiring little creativity because they can rely on using their brute strength to overcome awkward holds.
A pure mesomorph performs best during bouldering – the most intense aspect of climbing. For example, an indoor bouldering gym. In this environment, lots of power-based strength is needed, and less endurance is needed. This is the perfect recipe for a mesomorph’s body composition.
In addition, mesomorphs naturally have a larger strength-to-weight ratio (SWR) due to their ease of putting on muscle, but difficulty putting on fat. A high SWR is very desirable in climbing, as it determines how easily you can lift your body weight. Because of this, mesomorphs have exceptionally rapid beginner improvements.
Now onto the crooks…
- Mesomorphs don’t have great endurance. So, they can feel fatigued quicker than ideal. Their body type is suited to short bursts of intense exercise, rather than a prolonged climb.
- While a mesomorph’s ability to easily put on muscle is appealing to other sports, it has its limitations in bouldering. Too much muscle can weigh down a climber, making them feel bulky rather than light and sharp.
This goes back to what we said in the beginning: an ectomorph is perfect for climbing as you get the low weight and endurance of an ectomorph, but the explosiveness of a mesomorph!
What Does A Professional Climber Physique Look Like
So you can better visualize an ideal climbing body, we have analyzed a few of the best climbers in the industry
Jain Kim – South Korea’s Jain Kim is a great example of an ectomorphic mesomorph. Her thin frame is built with an ideal amount of muscle for climbing.
Arguably, her broad shoulders make her look more like a mesomorph in this image. But, this benefits Jain due to her climbing style.
Jain has superb muscle definition, as seen in this photo. No doubt this comes from her low body fat percentage.
Adam Ondra – Czech Republic’s Adam Ondra is one of the people’s champions!
Adam explains how being as skinny as possible was previously advantageous. But due to industry changes, putting on more muscular is more desirable in recent times.
Adam is a natural ectomorph, but from his climbing and training has put on a lot more size, muscle and weight.
Chon Jong-won – coming from South Korea, Chon has definitely made some noise in the world of climbing!
Despite his slim build, Chon has a superb strength-to-weight ratio. He may look thin, but his low weight helps his climbing endurance.
When individuals say they’d rather have strength then muscle; this is what they mean.
Oriane Bertone – French’s Oriane specializes in competition climbing, but also credited for her sport climbing and bouldering.
Oriane is another great example of an ectomorph, who has built an exemplary amount of muscle for climbing. This is clearly shown in her upper back in the photo to the right.
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