A2 Pulley Injuries: Everything Climbers Need to Know (STRAINS, TEARS, & SURGERY)

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// Timestamps //
Video Overview (00:00)
Part 1: Finger Anatomy (00:24)
Part 2: Why the A2? (01:40)
Part 3: Causes of Injury (02:18)
Part 4: A Note About "Popping" (03:44)
Part 5: Testing (04:36)
Test Results Reference Chart (10:17)
Part 6: Treatments (10:21)
Interview with Jordan Mathew (19:03)
Final Stage of Treatment - Retraining (25:35)
Part 7: Prognosis (29:02)
Part 8: Prevention (31:16)
Summary and Closing (37:51)
// Links to videos mentioned //
Tissue loading: • Why We Fix Climbing In...
Farmer Crimps: • Best Rehab Tool for Fi...
IASTM: • Massage Techniques for...
The A2 is one of the most important pulleys in our hands. It’s what allows us to hold onto those tiny edges without the other parts of our finger essentially just coming apart. But how? It’s just a piece of tissue holding another tissue in place. And why is tearing your A2 the most ubiquitous injury in climbing?
In this mega video/manual we’re going to go in-depth into the A2 pulley. We will talk about anatomy, the causes of a tear and how to test yourself for it, the things you can do to treat it as well as ways of preventing it from happening in the first place and in the future, and the thing everyone wants to know: how soon can you get back to climbing.
To fully understand this injury and how we can heal from it we need to get our bearings, anatomically speaking. So to start off we’re going to take a look at our fingers and how they actually work, which in turn will make the testing and treatments sections make a lot more sense.
Let’s dive in. But first, since this is a very long video, let's check out our timestamps.
Also, make sure to check out the website for show notes and additional graphs to help you further understand your injury.
Anatomy
The flexor digitorum profundus (FDP) runs from the proximal ¾’s of the medial and anterior surfaces of the ulna and interosseous membrane to the base of distal phalanges of the 2nd through 5th digits.
When the FDP muscle contracts, the tendon retracts, which causes the finger to flex, just like if there was a string attached to the tip of the finger.
Now, what keeps the string, or tendon in this case, from bowstringing out away from the bones? That’s where your pulleys come into play. The A2 is one of five pulleys in each finger that holds the flexor tendon tight up against the bones. So when you flex your finger, the tendon slides back and forth under the pulley while the pulleys keep it in position.
So what happens when we actually hold something with our fingers, or in other words, apply force to them? I mean I don’t know about you guys but usually when I flex my fingers I’m not just doing it in the air for no reason.
For the rest of the blog post (it doesn't fit here): go to www.hoopersbeta.com/library/a...
Disclaimer: As always, exercises are to be performed assuming your own risk and should not be done if you feel you are at risk for injury. See a medical professional if you have concerns before starting new exercises.

[@HoopersBeta]

For more info (like sets and reps for treatment), see the full write-up here: www.hoopersbeta.com/library/a2-pulley-manual-for-climbers

[@gmanojyadav89]

Keep up the good work guys

[@reigneduardo6732]

instablaster

[@willmurrin9344]

This channel is full of the best climbing videos on the internet. Thank you for all the hard work you clearly put into these. I'll buy a shirt to support you all!

[@HoopersBeta]

@@willmurrin9344 thank you for the support!

[@UrsantaHoHoHo]

hi there, how's it going? Could you explain why I popped my A3 pulley today during a 3finger open drag side pull? it wasn't a crimp at all!! i specifically did a drag to minimize the risk, but it happened anyways. Please provide insights to this question for me, thank you so much.

[@jamesfeindt5882]

This is one of, if not the most helpful videos I’ve ever watched on KZbin. THANK YOU!!!

[@m.droberts5206]

Ditto that

[@dflyindutchman1]

For sure! Well done!

[@theDomCorporation]

I know people constantly say it but you deserve so much more recognition.. Such regular high quality content should have way more views!

[@bboyHarrypotter]

dude you make really high quality videos. this is awesome

[@iaml4388]

Hey Dr Hoops, I think I just experienced my first A2 pulley injury and I just wanted to thank you for providing this outstanding level of climber specific information. You guys are doing an amazing job and really helping out everyone in the community. Hugs your way

[@HoopersBeta]

Thank you for the comment! Sorry to hear about your injury but I hope this information helps you in your recovery!

[@ThundersLeague]

Please say/overlay the measurements in kgs also.

[@HoopersBeta]

You're absolutely right! Will start doing that in future videos. Thanks for catching us there.

[@shanedubbs4830]

I have heard pops a couple times and was always worried about injury, always heard it was indicative of a pully tear. glad to hear it can be like cracking your knuckles.

[@seeingshapesfilms2706]

Thank you! This was incredibly useful and well made 👊🏼🤙🏼

[@JTurfie]

Wow, this is amazing content! Keep up the good work!

[@toastmartin]

Wow this is the best Video ever! Love the depth and the way of your explanations. Thank you so much.

[@gabrielcamacho2862]

This was great information. Keep the good work.

[@vanillavonchivalry6657]

Keep these videos coming and this channel is going to take off big time.

[@alastor0325]

the best video about a2 pulley I've ever watched, thank you so much!

[@GeremiaGerosa]

Amazing content. I was so scared and disoriented at first when this happened to me. I'm so glad I found this!!!

[@DorangeArnaud]

I clearly needed that video 9months ago, complete and clear informations !

[@ethanmahc]

Awesome. Will be recommending this video to my friends.

[@tylerheitmann1758]

best summary i've seen, answered all of my questions

[@dave_vanvliet]

Great video! So many questions I've had were just answered.

[@FancyWafflesFTW]

Thanks Jason and Emile for such an in-depth video!

[@adrianodesouza4129]

Popped a pulley yesterday, this video is a lifesaver, not just with the gold mine of information but also the reassurance that I can overcome this injury! Makes me proud to support the channel with my membership! ♥️

[@avnerduchovni6675]

Thank you SO much. I really like your videos. You are great. Informative, focused, high quality, awkward, but not too awkward. Just how I like it. In this video you helped me with promoting my health. I was able to diagnose myself, and make an appointment to a professional to make sure I was right. Thanks!

[@jibson2]

best content on youtube for pulley injuries

[@melvinchua5683]

hey man, just wanna say thank you for producing such a video for us climbers. Its really informative and answered so many burning questions I've been trying to ask but got vague to no answers from. Hope to recover soon and get back climbing :)

[@HoopersBeta]

Absolutely! Thanks for your kind words. Hope you can get back to climber quickly!

[@Life4Jump]

Dr.Hooper , I wish i found this video a few months ago when i suffered my first climbing injury . After watching the whole thing and some other videos of you I feel so much wiser and I got so much more understanding of the whole thing . I want to thank you so much for putting tons of work and effort to create high-quality content and generally sharing your knowledge with us !!

[@DavidMartinBouldering]

The self-assessment part was super helpful. Seems like I have a A2 or A3 strain/partial tear. Thank you so much for this amazing information 🙏

[@killyourself2times]

Im shocked about the content of this video! This is freaking amazing man! THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THIS EFFORT :D

[@HoopersBeta]

Our pleasure! Thanks for the support.

[@JoseReyes-xy2uf]

This video should have more views ! Very informational ! Thank you ! Subscribed !

[@HoopersBeta]

Thank you! We appreciate the support

[@jasonalbino5645]

Just a fantastic video - thank you so much for the thoughtful breakdown!

[@HoopersBeta]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for sharing the kind words.

[@kamilcebula6670]

This video is so informative. Thank you for this!

[@fabianodedo]

Amazing content! Thank you!

[@REstrACIA]

Extremely helpful information. I saw an Orthopedic Hand Surgeon who is also a Professor of Orthopedic Surgery. They were genuinely impressed with how accurately I understood the injury and the healing process.

[@gsav811]

Incredibly helpful! Thanks a lot!!!!

[@chihuahuels]

Man this content is amazing! Thanks a lot

[@allezvenga7617]

Thanks for your detailed information and sharing

[@natehall8837]

PT here who is just getting into climbing, coming from the jiujitsu world. Can already tell that I'm gonna love your videos!

[@MrKittiemoo]

This video was a good wake up call for me to be patient with my strain. Fingers take a long time to build strength and that’s something I don’t like to believe 😂. It is good to have an in depth explanation/plan on what I can do to get back to full strength safely and effectively!

[@HoopersBeta]

Awesome! Yes, one of the most challenging components of training is exactly that: patience. The body takes much more time than the mind wants to allow it :) Stay strong, stay safe, and happy climbing!

[@GiorgosPlanar]

This is great. Thank you so much for the hard work and love put in this video. I am already a subscriber but what brought me to the specific video is a middle finger pulley injury I suffered exactly one month ago. A long covid quarantine prevented me from having it properly evaluated by a professional but I am 99% sure it is a A2 pulley because i had a similar injury in the past (same finger-other hand) plus i have characteristic tenderness in the base of the finger, and pain whiile crimping which has gradually improved from really bad to fairly ok. But the WEIRD thing with this injury is that swelling has not imporved in a month. Seriously the finger is still as swollen as on day 1 and every morning it feels that it is going to burst. I am religiously performing my gliders, pen rolles and use an accupuncture massage ring since week 2 but failed to see any improvement. I am finally having an ultrasound in two days but the thing is getting on my morale. Any insights would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again!

[@verbalwound5874]

Hi Dr.Hooper, I'm just leaving this comment to tell you how much I appreciate these videos. I'm just a student who's mad into climbing and I can't afford to go see a doctor every time I did something stupid on the wall and hurt my fingers, not to mention due to rock climbing being a "less popular" sport in my country, climbing-related injuries are rare and afaik there are no specialist doctors who seem to know how exactly to treat these very specific injuries! Your videos are a godsend in my climbing journey and I wouldn't have been able to enjoy this sport as much as I do without them. Just last week I had a pulley injury and I did a lot of reading online but was still half confused about my injury until I came across your video, you have done a marvelous job from explaining the bone structure to showing how to diagnose the severity of the injury, I am confident on my injury level and have a recovery plan in mind after finishing your video. Seriously, what you provide even money won't buy me where I am from. Once again, thank you for these videos. I hope to be able to show some support to you by purchasing your merch!

[@HoopersBeta]

Thanks so much for the kind words. Glad to be of service!

[@NestorMandela]

ok, this was suuuuper informative. Thanks a slot!

[@VDB420]

Great info. Thank you for the effort!

[@PaNoBiNo]

Great video! Thank you so much!!

[@maxidlab]

Excellent video. Systematic approach. From someone who's had (and has a new) A2 pulley injury + is a physician = this video is top tier.

[@HoopersBeta]

Thank you! Best of luck with the rehab

[@stretch8390]

Honestly so helpful.

[@HoopersBeta]

Awesome! Glad to hear that.

[@Betaghost1]

And two yers later after the last finger injury I'm back to this video again. Thank you guys for this priceless information ❤

[@harrydonaldson7295]

As a physiotherapy student this information was a brilliant resource to sum up pulley injuries, thanks.

[@nonojnet]

Amazing content! Thanks a lot.

[@HoopersBeta]

Our pleasure!

[@313rcamp]

Hot damn, this was such a helpful video. Thank you all for the work you put into this!!

[@stu1wyatt]

This is brilliant content , started climbing 4 months back and just had two horrible pops in my fingers when doing a tougher climb. I've gone from knowing literally nothing about fingers to knowing what an A2 pulley injury is and how to deal with. Thanks again

[@HoopersBeta]

Sorry to hear about the injuries! Glad you found this video useful, though!

[@kosnk]

Thank you for this video!

[@1nickschannel]

Thanks for saving my season

[@ethanzelenjak2889]

This content is amazing

[@robertdavis1783]

Did a less-than-controlled dynamic grab to a crimp and heard a quiet little “pop” on my left ring finger yesterday. Time for rehab! Luckily it seems on the mild strain side, but will be extra carefully following the schedule laid out here. One thing I’m surprised no one ever mentions: one arm climb training! I occasionally do this even when I feel normal, as it gives you an opportunity to laser in on precise footwork and balancey, slabby problems. Pretty much rockets me down to the easiest, lowest boulders in the gym, but it sure beats not going at all!

[@robbielevi8225]

Brilliant video

[@SirCharcoal]

This is the most enlightening thing I've seen on pulley injuries ever! Thank you so much for doing this. I've had a tender A2 pulley for about 8 months, and it's only gotten better during lockdown because my (board) climbing is much more controlled and volume much lower I've also started stretching my inflexible wrists. Which I imagine is stretching my FDP tendons now I look at your video, and helping massively with blood flow (fingers turn red afterwards) by counteracting my suspected shortened FDP.

[@HoopersBeta]

This is awesome! Glad you found it useful. Have you checked out our other video on forearm stretching to make sure you're getting everything covered?

[@SirCharcoal]

@@HoopersBeta I'll check it out!

[@omjingo]

Im a CHT and really love your approach to pulley injuries especially for climbers. Most climbers are a bit more eager to return to climbing after an injury and really need a good compromise between getting that climbing itch taken care of as well as good quality healing. Nice Job and thank you for this!

[@HoopersBeta]

CHT's are great! I'm fortunate to get to speak with a couple of them all week :) Appreciate your feedback.

[@mediapixelfangirl5165]

I’m mad this video didn’t exist 3 years ago when I initially injured my A2. Good thing it’s here now for the A2, A5, FDP injuries 🥴

[@SuperXicor]

Very good and informative video, Thank you

[@HoopersBeta]

Our pleasure!

[@aminahrahman3045]

Thank you for the awesome video :)

[@isaacg3175]

Thanks for the informative video. My left ring finger had it bad on a pocket hold going left on an overhang. I wasn't warmed up and "pop." I couldn't climb without some kind of pain, but not enough to stop me from going. I did some finger exercise, and has helped me recover.

[@pedrom.309]

thanks, what a important content!

[@HoopersBeta]

Our pleasure!

[@samuelalmeida995]

awesome content, thanks! Im facing a A2 injury

[@Xavier-xb7is]

This is so fucking valuable, what a charming man this guy

[@guilhermefialho5718]

Amazing video!! It would be cool if you make a video about FDP tendon injuries now. During the Testing I might have found something wrong there. Thank you for the content and channel.

[@HoopersBeta]

Great idea for a follow up! Thanks for subscribing and supporting our channel!

[@JackwilsonMr]

Epic Video!

[@Cullzor]

Really fantastic content, thank you! I recently noticed some persistent tenderness in my ring finger A3 pulley from overtraining. After watching this I think its safe to say I have a mild strain. All this insight will be super helpful in coming up with a recovery/retraining program. Subscribed!

[@alexpetrov13]

I had some A2 pulley injuries on 4 of my fingers so far and I remember watching you giving advice to the geek climber. Especially the farmer weighted crimps. Low intensity higher volume every day, just to keep that blood flow and stimulus. Also H-taping while climbing. And I had great success. I kept climbing, taping, doing the farmer weighted crimps every day when not climbing and my fingers healed without having to stop climbing. I know it's a totaly personal experience but man, now that's always my go to method of finger rehab. It's amazing how well it works for me. Thank you. Your advice is much appreciated.

[@HoopersBeta]

So glad to hear it worked for you! Thanks for the support :)

[@sam.hockley]

Awesome video, thank you! With farmer crimps, what is the ideal frequency to aim for when starting that phase of recovery? Should this be a daily set (or more), or would it be advisable to just do these 2-3 times a week interspersed with palm crimps/tendon glides?

[@ChristianWira]

Thank you so much!

[@spacescienceguy]

Thanks for this! I just had my first minor finger injury (looks like an A2 pulley strain on my ring finger) while working on my project which was really frustrating. It was two days ago and the pain (minor and only when I flex my hand) seems to have peaked. I'm going to continue to rest it and ease into climbing again next week using H-tape.

[@Randomize12345666]

Thank you so much for the video, very thorough and explains a lot . Thankfully I'm probably only at the pulley strain stage. and I definitely wrote down alot watching this

[@HoopersBeta]

Good! Glad it was helpful :)

[@Randomize12345666]

@@HoopersBeta omg are you kidding, I found out your channel just yesterday and I have no idea how I've been climbing for 6 years without knowing it before, so underrated, entertaining and knowledgeful. Thank you so much for the content

[@Rotempunkt]

Hey there! Great video. Perhaps most comprehensive one that exists to date! Great job. I wanted to ask a question though, i have partially teared my A2 Pulley two days ago. The area is still sore when applying pressure however the protocol recommends IASTM or STM from the first week. Applying pressure by massaging is ok but not sure if i should try it yet with a butter knife or not. And also would one directly go to town on the a2 area or focus on the hand and the forearm like on the IASTM Video you guys made? Also what do you think about collagen supplementing? Thanks a lot! Appreciate your channel!

[@martinr113]

Great video! I'm happy to have learned I have just a pulley strain and nothing more serious :) As an addition to prevention, from my recent personal experience, I should have paid attention to how much I crimp during climbing and adjusted other training accordingly. Normally, I'm doing fine with bouldering on Saturdays and hangboard training on Mondays, but two weeks ago I worked on two projects including fairly bad right hand crimps, so that the load from the Monday session was probably too much. The lesson I learned is that I should reduce crimp training (and go to slopers/open hand hangs instead) in training sessions that follow climbing days with highly above-average crimping, and also not work crimpy projects on consecutive days if they're close to my limit.

[@HoopersBeta]

This is a great adjustment! That's something we could all be aware of, yet it is a struggle. It's hard to adjust your routine when you want to stick with it, but like you mentioned, it's important to make those adjustments especially after a day that is heavy on that particular style. Great comment!

[@Brave_English]

Thanks for the great and very in-depth video! I love your channel. I have one question/ suggestion. Because you address the role of hormones in relation to healing, could you address how the female hormone cycle impact healing? I know that most of your audience is probably men, but there's still many female climbers, and it'd be nice to know which of the scientific studies you cite consider how female bodies work. Considering the way scientific/medical research typically overlooks that our bodies work differently in many ways (beyond just reproduction) I'd like to learn more about how this affects climbing-specific training and injury prevention. From what I've learned, I'm guessing that there are a few weeks when the hormones in female bodies support faster healing, but I'm not sure. Any thoughts? Thanks again for the phenomenal content you consistently put out! :)

[@b4ddie]

You are a godsent. Thank you.

[@HoopersBeta]

Our pleasure!

[@heloisechung]

This was so thorough and educational. Thank you! And another reminder for better sleep habits, lol

[@HoopersBeta]

Thanks for the kind comment! Glad you found it to be helpful.

[@fabiopalma4429]

This is exactly what I was needing! Can't remember the last time I took so many printscreens of a video 😅

[@HoopersBeta]

haha :) happy that you found it to be helpful!

[@samanjahed1718]

Thank you 🙏🏼♥️

[@jedi_mapperp4073]

Outstanding content. My middle finger is bad sprain or partial tear, based on your chart. But I have more swelling and moderate stiffening.

[@masonh5077]

I recently experienced a finger injury but could not place where or what hurt exactly. I realized this was because I had no real understanding of the structures of the hand, but now that I've watched this I think it was most likely a strain of the A3 and with that in mind have been able to single the pain down to that area. This video has helped a lot!

[@HoopersBeta]

Awesome! Glad it was helpful. Thanks for sharing.

[@jeffmiller8462]

This video has a lot of information, thank you! I had some questions about A1 pulley injuries on your thumb. I have one, and I think it might be a full rupture. I'm not sure (I think I can feel and move the tendon where the pulley should be). Would you recommend the same timelines and training routines as the A2 finger pulley rupture? Would you think I would be safe to continue to with large muscle group exercises? Is there any taping that could help reduce the stress on the A1 pulley in the thumb? In your video on trigger finger, you showed a brace for A1 finger pulleys. Would something like that work for this injury? I'm also wondering if it would be ill advised to climb with such a brace. Haha. Or, hangboard with a brace on the A1 thumb pulley. I don't know if it would put stress to the injured area. Thanks so much!

[@sagiganz]

Where have you been three months ago?! Tnx! hopefully wont ever need this valuable information , except for the prevention part - that one is key for me.

[@HoopersBeta]

Haha we'll try to time it better next time. Agreed, proper prevention is so important!!

[@dundeedolphin]

Great. Thanks.👍👍👍

[@bartd8516]

Bouldering is becoming very popular especially here in The Netherlands. This video is super helpfull, thanks! From my unfortunate experience after full pulley A2 rupture: don’t (H) tape fingers that are not injured in order to prevent pulley injury! Ive been H taping my weak right middle finger, actually keeping it weak and had a pulley sprain on that taped finger. Have fun bouldering guys and be safe!

[@Rickshaw_Bohammer]

I loaded my R middle and ring finger too much. A deep cross over to the left landing those two R fingers in an open position gave me a sharp pain (perhaps a mild pop, music was playing loud) and a short one foot fall to the ground on a 45 board. Left me with pain/soreness in the palm below the affected fingers, mostly ring, down to the ulnar attachment to my wrist area. Thanks for the video, as I self diagnosed a mild strain of the FDP!

[@HoopersBeta]

Sorry to hear of your injury but happy that this vid was helpful! Hoping you recover well!

[@79istp]

Best info I've seen so far, big thanks! My predicament though, my symptoms seems mild except I did get a big pop. Does this sometimes happen with just a strain or partial tear, or only a full rupture (assuming it's not just cavitation)? Thanks!

[@savoyclimber2575]

Hi Dr Hooper, This video is very interesting, it helps a lot to understand many things. Thanks ! I have a personal question, after 3 weeks without climbing, I climbed 2 times with one day rest between that 2 sessions, lead climbing, with good warmup I think :). After the second session, the day after, I feel a little bit of pain on the A2 pulleyside (only on one side close to the palm) Then, I did bouldering, I climbed hard (crimps, slopers...) without pain, but when I press my finger I feel a little bit of pain. I did the tests you mentionned and the only pain I feel is when I press on it. What do you think about that ?

[@davisreynaud1287]

Really appreciate this video! I just got into climbing and my (ego)muscle is much more stubborn than my pulleys. Now my ring finger is sore as hell under load and I haven’t climbed for over a week. Rehab time

[@arthursantos9702]

Hey hooper's beta, I want to say that you made an awesome video, thank you so much for this. I want to know what you think about hangboarding and what protocol would you use for returning gradually? And I want to know also what is the puddy crimp, didn't understand how to do it.

[@arthursantos9702]

I don't know what puddy means. =S

[@Rex1994ify]

THANK YOU. Im a physiotherapist from spain who started to climbing couple months ago, and now i’ve realized i love this sport. So I decided to investigate by myself about what is the scientific evidence of climbing in internet (pubmed and all that stuff) and i found this video and this channel, i can only say WOW. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, this is an awesome content, i’ve learned a lot in only 40 minutes. So again, thank you so much,

[@HoopersBeta]

Thanks so much, we very much appreciate the support! Makes all the hard work worth it :) Hope our other videos provide similar value to you!

[@Rex1994ify]

¡Gracias!

[@GranZebru]

Great video as usual! I like how it's structured and both timestamps and the article are really useful. What about using the rice bucket to speed up the healing process?

[@HoopersBeta]

Yeah the timestamps are super helpful! Glad you found the video to be useful. Rice bucket in which sense? For active range of motion?

[@GranZebru]

@@HoopersBeta Yes exactly, range of motion and improved blood flow. I've seen a lot of videos in which this technique is advised also for strength training. Not sure if it's effective though.

[@HoopersBeta]

It can be used as an early intervention as it provides a light amount of resistance, such as moving through water, and it would increased blood flow. But so does just squeezing your hand and opening it :) I don't find it to be as efficient because it's not as portable and easy to use as well. I prefer using puddy or other items you can take with you / do in the car. Part of effective rehab is efficient rehab. If it is a task to do it, people are less likely to do so. In summary, yeah you can totally utilize it but it's not my preferred method. *edit* sorry for the late response, sometimes once I have responded to the initial question it doesn't give me a notification the same way for follow ups.

[@GranZebru]

@@HoopersBeta Thanks for the explanation!

[@Brave_English]

@@HoopersBeta Mixing and kneading bread dough could be another great method 😄 I'm an avid bread baker, and, now that I think of it, it's probably supported my overall hand and tendon health. I'll admit I'm at a point that I should be more active in training my tendon strength, but until now, I hadn't had any finger injuries over 9 years of recreational climbing!

[@dijaomi1]

Hi Jason, I had a knee injury about 3 years where I tore my ACL, grade 2 MCL sprain, microtrabecular fractures, fractures in my medial and femoral condyles, and complex displaced tears in both menisci. I had a lot of education on knee injuries over the time of my rehab, but I'd love to learn more. I still have severely limited range of motion, regular mild pain and obviously a lot of fear with falling and hard yarding on it. Would LOVE to hear your thoughts. Thanks!

[@Nick20089]

Thanks!

[@HoopersBeta]

Thanks so much!

[@m.droberts5206]

Thank you. A no bullshit explanation that I wish I'd received at hospital, ( a2 rupture lifting log burning stove with finger tips) Answered all the questions I didn't know needed asking. Thank you.

[@SzBeni]

Hi! Nice, comprehensive video! Do you have any I information about flexor tendon tears? I had an ultrasound recently and it looks like I have a tear (about 50%) on my ring fingers flexor tendon in the palm area. I am still waiting for my appointment with my hand surgeon to confirm the results, but in the meantime I am finding quite a few information about tendon tears.. most cases what I found is caused by an external objects (glass, knife cuts) or the tendon tears at the boney attachment points, but my case seems a bit odd. Could you point me somewhere where I could find more info? Thanks, Benjamin

[@keanuvanlierop1088]

Thank you for the video, very helpful. Which nutritiens do I need to take (extra) if I want faster recovery after a hard training?

[@lucafrascino3683]

MAAAN !! I was searching about this injury like 2 weeks ago !! I searched a lot about this .... I am feeling a minor pain exactly at the A2 pulley location after grabbing something with too much strenght ! It has NO swelling, and I think I am probably at the begining of a partial rupture process ... I'`m doing ice and I'm also using a tape to avoid the flexion of the finger . It is really frustrating having this injury because it seems it never recovers (but I think I will get better at some point).. And the last time I climbed was 3 months ago .... The problem is that these structures (pulleys, ligaments) dont have a good regeneration capacity, which is the BIG problem and also the main reason why you have to be so careful when treating this type of lesion . if you suspect that you have a pulley injury like this, REST ! Don't put force at the finger !! It's like I always say , ''it takes 1 second to have an injury, and 1 year to recover from it'. Thanks for the videos bro ! You're a great professional !

[@HoopersBeta]

Thanks for supporting the channel and I'm glad you enjoy the videos! Yes, connective tissue is waayyy slower to recover. Have patience is key! But key into the "retraining" section so you can see how safely loading the tissue can speed if your healing time! Cheers

[@nostodmada]

Super helpful! Thanks so much. I popped it yesterday hitting a shifting my weight(swinging) on a 2 finger pocket that my ring finger had no place being in. I think its on the mild side, do you feel pretty confident that weight training(i.e. Overhead Press, Deadlift, other grip oriented lifts are safe.) I assumed Id have to put these exercises on hold for a while.

[@oaxacenio]

dude upload some sends also. love your vids :)

[@HoopersBeta]

Haha thanks! Unfortunately, I don't often record myself climbing, unless it's to give myself feedback for what I am doing right/wrong on a particular route.

[@PeteD]

The foreword on the pop was very helpful. Currently trying to deal with an a2 injury after hearing a pop on the wall - no swelling or bowstringing that I can discern, and no meaningful limit to my range of motion. So I'm suspecting and hoping its a partial or strain, but that pop will haunt me even if it was a joint.

[@HoopersBeta]

It's one of the scariest sounds a climber can face for sure! Glad you were able to follow those tests and hopefully, as you said, it's just a strain or partial! Best of luck in your healthy recovery.