Yoga and Climbing Training

Yoga and Climbing Training

By Jess Malloy

Getting back into Climbing after a long break can be a humbling experience. At the beginning of the pandemic, many people (myself included) had big plans to come back to the gym after a month or so with a fair amount of contact strength and core stability from at-home training. That plan didn’t really last very long, unfortunately, and now that gyms are opening up (with COVID related restrictions) I have found myself yet again humbled on the wall. 

Thankfully, this isn’t the first time I’ve had to learn how to come back after an extended break. Between extensive traveling and injuries, I’ve become very familiar with the strange sensation of muscle memory with weak muscles and have practiced checking my ego at the door. My yoga practice has proven to help me during these times and I feel it is worth sharing what I’ve learned.

Below are some helpful tips for returning to climbing and climbing training through the practice of yoga. 

Be content where you are: Santosha

This is one of the Niyamas from the eight limbs of yoga and it’s usually translated as contentment. Thankfully, it’s not the kind of contentment that implies you need to take on a passive or idle approach to your climbing practice. 

It’s more like the idea that is explored in Vertical Mind: Psychological Approaches for Optimal Rock Climbing, “It’s all about perspective...If you define success too narrowly and failure too broadly, you will by definition (pun intended) fail more often.”

So basically, redefine your definitions of success and failure before you walk up to the wall. Recognize that your body today is different than your body yesterday and your body tomorrow. Recognize that success is how you define it. 

Warm-up with intentional, slow movements

 If you weren’t diligent about warming up before the pandemic, now is your chance to set a new rhythm. Before you get on the wall focus on moving your hips, shoulders, and wrists through their full range of motion. If you don’t know where to begin with warming up, we’d suggest trying the simplest and most common flow sequence in yoga; Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutations) A & B. Give extra attention to broadening your chest and moving your shoulders and hips in each pose. Move slowly and breathe fully. 

Try: 

  • We also love the practice of CARS (Controlled Articular Rotations) and often find we can work them into a yoga flow.

  • Finish with climbing-specific movements on the wall

Take it easy

The benefit of muscle memory is that your body remembers how to do fluid movements and advanced techniques even if you’ve been out of the game for a few months. The challenge is that even though your brain might remember how to tell your muscles what to do, your body might not be prepared to do it. 

During the first few sessions back keep Santosha at the front of your mind. You can practice this by 

  • Making your goals for each session more focused on the enjoyment of climbing

  • Refining climbing techniques like flagging, heel hooking, etc.

  • Improving your breath work

  • Learning to read routes from the ground 

In all this, practice presence above everything. Coming back to the rock is a great time to refine your climbing and humble your practice on the wall. You’ll be back to climbing grades in no time, but in the meantime enjoy the journey.

Reflections on Ahimsa

By Laura Olinger

When Jess and I began to envision Approach to Asana, we worked through the lens of yoga instructors. We felt that we, as educators, could offer a yoga practice as a way to enhance climbing performance and make it a sustainable, life-long pursuit. Along the way, we began to build a community of yogi-climbers around us, and we realized that we had the opportunity, if not the responsibility, to also educate this community on stewardship of the outdoors, particularly those places in which we loved to recreate. 

We feel that the connection between the practice of yoga and outdoor stewardship lies in the yogic ethic of ahimsa, which is commonly defined as “non-violence” or “non-harming.” 

Ahimsa is a physical, mental and emotional practice. When yogis most often talk about ahimsa, we talk about it as an individual mindfulness practice. But we began to see ahimsa as something that is a practice for both individuals and communities, and we looked for ways to incorporate it into our educational practices. 

Ahimsa and LNT

Leave No Trace guidelines ensure that we are minimizing our impact in outdoor spaces. These include packing out what you pack in, properly disposing of waste, and avoiding damaging land and waterways. We encourage you to read more about LNT and become familiar with the 7 principles on Leave No Trace’s website. These principles are, in general, easy to teach and easy to put into practice. They should, in theory, help protect our natural resources in a way that preserves them for everyone to enjoy.

Ahimsa and BLM

The Black Lives Matter movement, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, has made me consider ahimsa from a new perspective. It is not enough to protect our outdoor spaces if we can’t ensure the health and safety of those seeking to enjoy it. As a part of my personal yoga practice, I have asked myself, “How can I support the non-harming of Black people (individuals and communities) in America?” As a yoga instructor and as an educator in the outdoor community, I have asked, “What is my role in ensuring that BIPOC individuals feel welcome and safe in these spaces?” 

Below are a few resources that I have found helpful in my efforts to support BLM through ahimsa:

Melanin Base Camp

Anti-Racism Daily

Embody Inclusivity

Intersectional Environmentalism

Recreate Responsibly 


I, we, ask ourselves these questions knowing that ahimsa is a daily practice. I, we, are committed to continuing to educate ourselves so that we can be better advocates and allies in our communities. As yoga teachers, we like to say that we are climbing the mountain without a top; there is always more to learn and we will always be students ourselves.