Free tools · Finger strength
Hangboard calculator
Start from one test on a 20 mm edge. Get the weight for every hang, the rests, and a 4 to 8 week plan that builds up, backs off and ends with a retest. Or a path to a smaller edge.
Your max
–
Strength
–
of body weight
Typical of climbers at
–
Your plan
- Build
- Back off
- Smaller edge, body weight
- Retest
| Week | Focus | Edge | Load | Add | Each session | Rest |
|---|
Load = share of your max (body weight + added) with your grip. Added weight is rounded to 0.5 kg; a minus means take that much off with a pulley.
Needed on 20 mm
Smallest edge at body weight today, about
Time to the target
- Move down 2 mm when all 5 hangs are held with 2–3 s to spare, in both sessions of the week.
- Stay a second week when you held them with less than 2 s to spare.
- Stuck after 2 weeks? One weighted week on 20 mm at 90%, then back to this edge.
Each session
Warm up 15 minutes: easy climbing or pulls, then three 10 s hangs on the same edge, 1 minute apart: .
After the last hang, how much was left? 3 s or more: next week as planned. 1–2 s: repeat this load next week. Couldn't hold the time: 5% less next session.
How the plan is calculated
Your max is your body weight plus the weight you added in the test (minus what a pulley took off). Every load in the plan is a share of it: 80% of a 90 kg max is 72 kg on the edge, so a 70 kg climber adds 2 kg.
| Weeks | Load each week (% of max) |
|---|---|
| 4 | 80 · 85 · 90 · retest |
| 5 | 80 · 85 · 90 · 95 · retest |
| 6 | 80 · 85 · 90 · 75 · 92.5 · retest |
| 7 | 80 · 85 · 90 · 75 · 90 · 95 · retest |
| 8 | 80 · 85 · 90 · 75 · 85 · 90 · 95 · retest |
The load goes up 5% a week and never above 95%. After three harder weeks comes an easier one at 75%. As the load rises the hangs get fewer: 6 at 80%, 5 at 85–90%, 4 at 92.5–95%, each followed by 3 minutes of rest. Repeaters (7 s on, 3 s off, six times) use 75% of these loads, long holds (30 s) 60%.
Other grips are estimated from your half-crimp test: open hand 95%, 3-finger drag 90%, front 3 pocket 80%, middle 2 pocket 60%. Test the grip you train to make it exact. Full crimp is left out: it puts the most strain on the finger pulleys.
Your level comes from the same benchmark Train Climb's coaches use: a 10 s max hang on 20 mm, as a share of body weight. It describes climbers at that strength; it doesn't decide what you can climb.
The path to a smaller edge
Four weeks with added weight on 20 mm (80, 85, 90 and 95%, then a retest), then body weight on an edge 2 mm smaller every 1 to 2 weeks. Each millimetre less edge is assumed to cost about 2.5% of your 20 mm strength, so 10 mm at body weight needs roughly 133% of body weight on 20 mm. That figure is an estimate: add a test on a smaller edge and the calculator uses your own numbers instead.
Questions
How do I test my max hang?
Warm up well. On a 20 mm edge, half crimp, both hands, hang for 10 seconds (or 7) with as much added weight as you can hold for the full time. Rest 3 minutes between tries and add a little each time. If body weight is too much, take weight off with a pulley and enter it as a minus.
Why is everything a percentage of body weight plus added weight?
Because that is the load your fingers hold. 80% of a 90 kg max is 72 kg on the edge, which for a 70 kg climber is +2 kg. Taking 80% of the added weight alone (+16 kg) would be 86 kg, close to your max on the first day.
Why a lighter week and a retest?
Fingers adapt more slowly than muscles. Three harder weeks, then an easier one, lets them catch up. The plan ends with a retest so the next block starts from what you can really do, not from a guess.
How often should I hangboard?
Twice a week, at least 48 hours apart, with your climbing around it. Do the hangs early in a session, after a full warm-up, never when your fingers are already tired.
Is hangboarding safe for young climbers?
Heavy hangs are not recommended under 16: the growth plates in the fingers are easily hurt. Climbers under 16, and anyone climbing for less than 2 years, get long holds without added weight. Climbing itself is the best finger training at that stage.
How do I get to a smaller edge?
Get stronger on 20 mm first, with added weight, for 4 weeks. Then hang at body weight on an edge 2 mm smaller, and move down another 2 mm when you hold all your hangs with 2 to 3 seconds to spare.
General information, not medical advice. Stop if a finger hurts, and see a doctor or physiotherapist about pain that stays.