Does Upper-Body Vibration Training Increase Climbing Performance?

Whole-body vibration training has recently received a lot of attention with some "reported" enhancements of strength and power qualities in athletes. This study investigated whether upper-body vibration would be able to augment muscular attributes for climbing performance.

Twelve healthy active climbers volunteered for the study. All participants underwent 3 treatments—arm cranking (AC), upper-body vibration (UBV), and non-UBV (NUBV)—in a balanced random order, conducted on separate days. Upper-body vibration was generated via a commercialized electric-powered dumbbell. The UBV treatment consisted of performing 5 upper-body exercises for a total duration of 5 minutes. For the NUBV treatment, the participants performed the exact exercises and time constraints as UBV. The third treatment consisted of AC, which was performed for 5 minutes. Pre- and post-muscular performance measures of medicine ball throw, hand grip strength, and a specific climbing maneuver were performed after each treatment. There were no significant treatment differences on medicine ball throw, hand grip strength, and the specific climbing maneuver. Acute UBV exposure did not demonstrate potential neuromuscular enhancements on the climbing performance tests selected for this study.

Coaches and trainers cannot expect acute vibration to enhance climbing performance on the basis of the protocol and parameters used in this study. Furthermore, before considering the purchase of a vibrating implement, one must investigate what is now a growing body of research disproving the claimed effectiveness of these devices.

Cochrane D, Hawke E. (2007). Effects of acute upper-body vibration on strength and power variables in climbers. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 21(2): 527-531.