You're going to want to learn how to do this correctly!

[@Adelicows]

I LOVE that this video not only shows us what not to do, but also explains why it doesn't work. Most tutorials just say "you just go like this! See, it's easy!" It's hard to find someone who really explains everything.

[@roapcoaching917]

Ah, we appreciate it! Let's hope it stays up! More coming your way. We appreciate your support! Thanks

[@nickcranham2006]

Brilliant Robin, got to say how much I enjoy your videos, the clarity of the instruction is second to none. Keep up the fantastic work, its much appreciated.

[@roapcoaching917]

Thank you so much, it means a lot! We’ll keep producing videos. Any requests? Thanks for watching and your support! 👊

[@basti1597]

wild Alex Puccio appears

[@roapcoaching917]

Haha - she will be hosting the next two videos!

[@conserve_climber]

We’ll, Robin “is” her hubby so makes sense…and it’s their joint company 😁

[@call_meishmael]

❤

[@alsoar]

Amazing video! This is very advanced! I've watch a lot of climbing tutorial videos on KZbin but I never watched one this in-depth on Heel Hooks before. No one goes into the mechanics of Heel Hooking like you do! This is the best video i've seen on Heel Hooking and I can't wait to see your next video!

[@roapcoaching917]

Thank you so much! This is our aim and we will continue to strive to deliver this kind of content too.

[@REstrACIA]

I go to Baker and RiNo all the time. It's so cool to see content of this quality at the gyms I frequent most often!

[@roapcoaching917]

You’ll be seeing a lot more of us filming at these two gyms too

[@KINGJEREMY6666]

This is a great channel. 👍🏽

[@roapcoaching917]

Thank you!!!

[@MiguelClimbs]

The YT Home page did a good job and brought me to this video! The more climbing channels on KZbin the better! Keep it up guys! 🙌

[@roapcoaching917]

Welcome aboard and thank you!!

[@garywheaton7112]

The click bait Puccio thumbnail worked perfectly to rope me into a really informative series on footwork! Thank you!

[@roapcoaching917]

Ahh, great to hear! ;) You’ll be excited to learn Alex is running the next few videos too.

[@rrrrrrtt1]

Thanks for the great examples of how to use heel hooking.

[@roapcoaching917]

Of course, you’re more than welcome! Thanks for watching 🙏

[@DuncanAtkinson]

Never had advice on heel hooks before cheers rob!

[@roapcoaching917]

Excellent! Glad it helped Dunc!

[@zhengqu6340]

such an informative video, would recommend to anyone struggling with heel hooks.

[@roapcoaching917]

Thank you Zheng!!

[@Evyanaf]

Such a fantastic video, thanks a bunch 🙏

[@roapcoaching917]

Awww thank you ☺️, you’re more than welcome!! Thank YOU for watching and your support!

[@Captain-Jack-Climbing]

Heel hook!🎉 This is a wonderful demo for heel hook! I have exact the same issue described in this video. Also the bicep femoris muscle exercise is important.

[@roapcoaching917]

Yes, absolutely. We are going to be running a series on conditioning for climbing and the key muscle groups/exercises for specific movement, but this is absolutely right.

[@foobeats]

Great videos about footholds!!!! Thanx, well explained and really interesting ❤

[@roapcoaching917]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@poofypoof6508]

I'll make sure to keep this in mind for my next bouldering session. Completely new to me, thanks!

[@roapcoaching917]

Awesome, we hope it helps!

[@qotsa1234]

Last tip was really useful

[@roapcoaching917]

Awesome, glad it was helpful

[@KevinEassa]

great video!

[@roapcoaching917]

Thanks!

[@kft4764]

Thanks for the video. I definitely need the heel hooking advice. If I can make a suggestion on future videos, I'm pretty sure the background music is being mixed in in post. It makes for a very busy audio floor and is distracting from the presenter's words. It would be better used if faded completely out during speech, then faded in and back out in between topics as somewhat of a bookend to frame them neatly. Not sure if the mic audio is being boosted to be more audible over the background music, but the speech audio also sounds clipped and has an audible ambient hiss. Dropping the background music during talking should reduce the need to boost the mic volume as much and clean things up.

[@roapcoaching917]

Absolutely agree. On this occasion, the manager of the gym didn't want to turn the music down, so it made for hard editing for Galen on this occasion. Ultimately, we are going to be filming at different locations without the background distractions. We apologize for this, but there was only the one mic on me to try and cut lout as much of the background noise as possible, but it proved difficult to say the least - lesson learned.

[@hackedbydespicable512]

waiting next video😍😍😍

[@roapcoaching917]

Coming soon

[@frankiedonofrio5438]

Have Been enjoying your videos. Most Helpful. Thank You

[@roapcoaching917]

Glad to hear it!

[@freewillusionhuman299]

Thanks for this video, I learned a lot from it. It would be great if you could cover some of the safety aspects around heel hooking. e.g. You can take a really bad fall if the heel hook stays but hands slip off.

[@roapcoaching917]

Sure thing, a warning could be useful - thanks for pointing it out!

[@inayat817]

A fantastic video! I've struggled with heel hooks a lot and watching this has definitely made it much clearer on how to properly heel hook. A video like this but on toe hooks please! :)

[@roapcoaching917]

Awesome, glad it was helpful. Alex is bringing the toe hook video to the channel next week!!

[@alexpetrov13]

Awesome video! Would you guys be interested in doing a video showing how to train for heel hooking? Flexibility, mobility and hamstring strength needed for optimal heel hooks. That would be pretty cool.

[@roapcoaching917]

Yes, we really wanted to add it to this video, but the gym we were filming at didn't want to keep the volume down, so thought it best to add to a specific strength and conditioning for climbing video - scheduled in the next couple of months.

[@MaxLBogue]

Useful! thanks!

[@roapcoaching917]

Glad it was helpful!

[@ShaneDRymer]

Excellent thank you!

[@roapcoaching917]

You are welcome!

[@calsium18]

Great Video

[@roapcoaching917]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@altaris2000]

As a newer climber, one thing I always struggle with is when to use the heal hook and when to use the toes. I am very flexible in the legs and hips, and in every example here I could have just placed my toe on the hold to start with. Would that have been easier to do, so I wouldn't need to worry about a rock over or slipping, or would the heal hook save energy in the long run, or actually be more secure? The aretes I definitely understand the need for heals though.

[@roapcoaching917]

Thanks for the message. We will definitely be doing a video on why you would heel/toe hook as well as how the next video on how to toe hook

[@0RANGOTANG]

I could definitely use a video like this for toe hooks! Could never get that tension quite right when I am toe hooking unless it's on a mega jug or something like that

[@roapcoaching917]

Guessing you mean toe hooks? Coming next week!!!

[@0RANGOTANG]

@@roapcoaching917 whoops, was typing too fast in my excitement

[@ashpowell9451]

Great stuff, thanks

[@roapcoaching917]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@zacharylaschober]

Great video explaining a finer two points of heel hooks. Might recommend making the title more clear since I imagine I will be referring many climbers here and will simply be easier to locate as you build this library.

[@roapcoaching917]

Thanks Zachary! Yeah, I think it’s a KZbin thing to get more people to watch 😞. In the video before we tried being more descriptive, but it doesn’t reach the same number of people. We want to share the knowledge, but perhaps after launch week, we edit the name

[@zacharylaschober]

@@roapcoaching917 yup, not upset with you all playing the algorithm definitely, but great video as usual

[@fojosb]

Great examples using different types of holds and keying in on the geometry of the heel on each. One suggestion could be to spend more time on where you exert pressure when looking at the heel depending on the move and the hold. The 45 degree comment is super helpful, just reinforce it with more examples (take off a shoe and hold it up to the hold, etc).

[@roapcoaching917]

Great suggestion!

[@bugra.148]

good💝 certainly this Keep it up!📷

[@roapcoaching917]

Thank you so much 😄

[@furkantansu-ey1tj]

Epic video💫😍

[@roapcoaching917]

Thank you

[@seantmcdowell]

Great explanation, thank you. Subscribed. I have two related comments though. My difficulty is in recognizing *when* to use a heel hook. There are some obvious cases, but I have a hard time knowing when it is most useful. Also, watching your examples (which I realize are just for demonstration purposes), it seems like an inside toe would be preferable. I would love to see a video that offers route-reading guidance around use of the heel.

[@roapcoaching917]

Yes, this was a bit of an oversight from us and explaining when a heel should be used. The key point here is that the heel is the direct pivot point of the leg. Toes are a foot away. So rocking over on a hold where you need to be a.) closer to the wall with your hips and b.) on a higher hold, will demand the use of the heel. In terms of hooking, it does come back to the fact that the heel is at the bottom of your leg bones, meaning you can generate far greater muscular forces when comparing to toes.

[@TervetuloaMaiu]

Here before this channel blew up!

[@roapcoaching917]

The early days! Stay with us ;)

[@jporfirio_]

Very nice informative video! Would be cool to get a video on techniques regarding sit starts.

[@roapcoaching917]

Great idea - we've not got this one on our list! Thank you

[@jporfirio_]

@@roapcoaching917 Amazing! Being 6'4 and doing sit starts, I appreciate all the help I can get 😂

[@evmarekaj]

Thanks for the tips, I think I already physically understand it, but il definitely waste less energy in the future with this, although my real problem as I haven't been climbing too long I'm not flexible enough to get my foot above my hand like that. I more often just throw myself up and catch the next hold in the rock over possible routes or whatever you called them

[@roapcoaching917]

Yes, flexing;ity is an important part of climbing and should factor in as part of your sessions. The more you practice (even at a lower height), the better you'll become.

[@AllegraClimbingPsychologist]

Nice video! It would be great if you could do techniques for more advanced climbers! Also, would be interested in knowing if you address mental training as well!

[@roapcoaching917]

Absolutely, this is all coming. Just wanted to lay some foundations down. Toe hooks next, then Alex is going to be running a movement session focusing on driving correctly - a lot of V11+ climbers are so guilty of pulling too. That said, also got a really cool video coming on mental training and psychology across different graded climbers too. Thanks for the like and comment!

[@urabagofcells2228]

Yesss for mental training!

[@stephenallen9532]

I've heard several stories of knee injuries from heel hooking, and I've even felt some tweaks myself with this move. How would you recommend positioning your knee relative to the heel to keep power without putting yourself in a compromising and injury-prone position? Are there strength training exercises that help with knee stability when heel hooking?

[@roapcoaching917]

Always with the good questions! We appreciate it. Yes, in the next vid, a warning of use AND strengthening exercises will be listed. For heel hooking and climbing in general, we will be releasing a specific S&C for climbing video soon.

[@ironman4life89]

Honestly I'm willing to bet most injuries in this context happen to someone heel hooking with imbalances to the relevant pushers and pullers surrounding the knee. If everything is balanced, equality strong and flexy, you shouldn't get any injuries at all unless something really goes wrong. There's accidents where maybe they didn't know how demanding the move would be until it's too late, but that's in the minority considering in most situations you'd fall before parts of your body damage themselves. So basically, hit the weights and ensure you hit all the relevant muscles. Missing steps there will ensure issues on hard heel hooks in the future

[@REstrACIA]

Interesting question, I think SKoz is on the right track. I played ice hockey before transitioning to climbing and haven't experienced any knee issues. However, I have felt muscle aches in my hamstrings if I'm doing a lot of heel hooks or transitions from a horizontal hang to a mantle from that position.

[@user-hq8pe7yf9c]

Do you happen to have any good warm-up exercises that one can do before using a lot of heel-hooks? I usually strain myself. Thanks.

[@roapcoaching917]

Yes we do. A series on specific exercises for climbing is coming, but for the toe hook video we added them into the video. For heel hooking, floor slides (lying on your back and sliding a foot toward you, hamstring curls on a tux and isometric holds against a wall are what we tend to do. Other than that, regular leg work including single leg hamstring curls are crucial for stability and strength.

[@bartuslongus]

Nice tips - thanks! Is your recording mic ok? Don't know if it's me but it seems to be oversensitive.

[@roapcoaching917]

Thank you! Yes, we used this mic for the first 4 videos, but have upgraded and as of the next videos they will feature the better mic. I think this was especially the case as the music was so loud in the gym. Thanks for the feedback though.

[@EvanBlodgett]

With a headset on, its hard to you over the background music of the gym. It seems like different flashes of audio.

[@roapcoaching917]

Agreed. Definitely spiking! This was the last video we filmed using the rode mics. New DJIs are much better

[@hacivattv4656]

wow liked⚡❤️

[@roapcoaching917]

Awesome, glad you did

[@yt-ck45]

Why does Alex wear a VSR on her right foot and a VS women on her left foot?

[@roapcoaching917]

Good question. You’ll have heard her mention her sprained ankle. So she is not only wearing a larger size, but also a different shoe

[@BoulderConnoisseur]

A wild alex pucchio appears wtf

[@roapcoaching917]

Haha - she'll be hosting the next few vids

[@rerewrw7743]

excellent😍💞

[@roapcoaching917]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@nurfuerdieplaylist]

casual Alex Puccio for demonstration wtf XD

[@roapcoaching917]

She'll be running the next few videos

[@jimmahgee]

Robin sounds like a BBC presenter haha

[@roapcoaching917]

Haha! Next career

[@Danocaster214]

Whoever did the audio editing for this video mucked it up a bit. The noise gate is so aggressive it's popping in my ears. I have the volume nearly all the way down and it's still hurting my ears.

[@roapcoaching917]

Yes, this was an early video for us, so we were still learning. Thanks for the feedback though.

[@biwatomono-duval2511]

Fix the audio but otherwise great information, thanks :)

[@roapcoaching917]

Working on it! Changed the mics after the first 4 vids. Completely agree

[@Hesh_Mast]

Woah movement rhino

[@roapcoaching917]

Good eye!!

[@greengraycolor]

Please take care of audio. Sounds like mic was hot.

[@roapcoaching917]

Our friend filmed this one and we have upgraded our mics since then. Thanks for the watch.

[@vergilliuss4421]

Good tip but it really doesn't require a 10-minute video for something you can explain in less than 2 minutes with visual examples.

[@roapcoaching917]

Noted!

[@grzegorz9228]

Nice tips but the sound quality is awful, the gym noises + gym music + music added in post production makes my head hurt sometimes. Still a great video though.

[@roapcoaching917]

Yes, thank you. We had someone film the first few with a mic we didn’t like. All changed now!

[@seanrobinson1824]

OMG turn on sub titles in English at 9 seconds in even though it is Roap coaching the subtitles say rape coaching.

[@roapcoaching917]

Thanks for letting us know - we will fix!

[@sethsporrer9941]

You’re teaching people to use heels when they should just be using toes sometimes. Kind of unclear

[@roapcoaching917]

Hi Seth, while we don’t agree that these examples should have been toes, you are right in that we didn’t differentiate why a heel should be used. For anyone reading, the beauty of the heel is that it’s directly at the bottom of your leg, so not only is the pivot point an easier one to rock over, but force generation is far higher. We will do a short on this and perhaps another video in the future on why? Thanks

[@mycologybytycology]

How about you just buy some pads and go bouldering and stop watching KZbin and get outside! It will come naturally.

[@roapcoaching917]

This is one option