Here is Roddy's reply: Foot jams don't have to be painful, most of the time. Here are a couple of things to try: 1. More comfortable climbing shoes. I wear my climbing shoes the same size as my street shoes. I also choose flat-soled shoes, ideally with some padding, and some of my shoes are loose enough that I can wear socks. If you are wearing shoes that are too thin, tight, and/or aggressive that might be part of the problem. Sport climbing shoes don't work very well for crack climbing, because they tend to be down-turned and very flexible for toeing in on overhangs, whereas for crack climbing a stiff sole is helpful. The stiff sole helps your foot bridge the crack without feeling like your foot is being crushed. 2. Don't over-rotate your foot. It's very secure to turn your foot sideways and jam it in the crack, but I find this very painful for the tops of my toes. It's worth practicing less-secure but more-comfortable jams that are more like smearing your foot over the opening of the crack than actually jamming it inside the crack. 90% of my foot jams involve keeping my foot in a neutral position and placing the front of my shoe on the crack, rather than twisting my foot into the crack.
Check different shoes. I used soft shoes designed for multipitch climbing and it was ridiculosly painful to lock feet with 'em. I checked stiff sole shoes designed for sport and FACE climbing and suprisingly jamming feet turned effortles and painless.
Imma say get used to it, i started crack climbing like 3 months ago and today was the first time footing dint hurt. Its incredible how your perspective of cracks change ❤️
Easily the best crack climbing instruction on UA-cam. The outside rand jam is another useful foot technique viewers might want to learn.
Very clear explanation. Thanks!
Any tips for painful foot jams? Is it just a pain tolerance thing?
Here is Roddy's reply:
Foot jams don't have to be painful, most of the time. Here are a couple of things to try:
1. More comfortable climbing shoes. I wear my climbing shoes the same size as my street shoes. I also choose flat-soled shoes, ideally with some padding, and some of my shoes are loose enough that I can wear socks. If you are wearing shoes that are too thin, tight, and/or aggressive that might be part of the problem. Sport climbing shoes don't work very well for crack climbing, because they tend to be down-turned and very flexible for toeing in on overhangs, whereas for crack climbing a stiff sole is helpful. The stiff sole helps your foot bridge the crack without feeling like your foot is being crushed.
2. Don't over-rotate your foot. It's very secure to turn your foot sideways and jam it in the crack, but I find this very painful for the tops of my toes. It's worth practicing less-secure but more-comfortable jams that are more like smearing your foot over the opening of the crack than actually jamming it inside the crack. 90% of my foot jams involve keeping my foot in a neutral position and placing the front of my shoe on the crack, rather than twisting my foot into the crack.
Check different shoes. I used soft shoes designed for multipitch climbing and it was ridiculosly painful to lock feet with 'em. I checked stiff sole shoes designed for sport and FACE climbing and suprisingly jamming feet turned effortles and painless.
wear socks or 2 pairs of socks
Imma say get used to it, i started crack climbing like 3 months ago and today was the first time footing dint hurt. Its incredible how your perspective of cracks change ❤️
@@jaqb666I crack climb in approach shoes lol
Top 🔝