SRPI Training Tip: Strength vs. Power

6 days ago

2 min read

Being strong and being powerful aren’t the same thing. This month, we’re training the difference.

A climber on a short climbing wall jumps to the final climbing hold at the end of the climb and tries to hold on tight to prevent their body from swinging out.

Many climbers think that getting stronger is the key to making powerful moves. And while strength certainly matters, being strong and being powerful aren’t the same thing. Strength is your ability to produce force. Power is how quickly you can produce that force.

In climbing, that difference matters. You can have the strength to hold a position but still struggle to reach a distant hold, coordinate a dynamic movement, or generate enough momentum to make a move feel effortless. Moving efficiently helps, but developing power also requires training your body to produce force quickly.

This Month’s Drill: Power With Purpose

You’ll turn easy boulder problems into power training by skipping holds to create one or two big, dynamic moves.

Rules

Only skip holds where a fall lands you on the mat, away from walls and other climbers
Check that the fall zone is clear before each attempt
Pick moves you can control, and skip any change that would force an awkward fall
Rest fully between attempts
Stop when your attempts start getting sloppy

Step 1: Pick Your Problems

Choose 2–3 pink or white tag boulder problems.

Step 2: Create the Big Move

Skip one or two holds so the climb requires a dynamic reach, and keep the rest of the sequence manageable.

Step 3: Commit Every Attempt

Climb each version with full intent, and rest fully between tries.

Why This Works

Power develops through both physiological and neurological adaptations. Physiologically, your muscles adapt to produce force more rapidly. Neurologically, your nervous system becomes better at recruiting muscles and coordinating their activity to generate force at the right time.

This drill trains two things at once: the movement skills that let you apply power, and your body’s ability to produce force quickly. Each big move builds coordination and timing while also training your muscles to fire faster. The key is to perform these movements with high intent and enough recovery to maintain quality. Simply accumulating tired, sloppy attempts won’t provide the same stimulus.

As you get more comfortable generating and controlling power, you’ll start to recognize when a move calls for precision, when it calls for momentum, and when it needs a combination of both.

The goal isn’t to climb every move dynamically. It’s to develop the capacity to produce power and the skill to apply it when it matters.