CrossFit Rope Climb Substitution
If you are looking for a substitution for rope climbs, crossfit will point you HERE, and it will say the following:
- “Towel pullups is the consensus best substitute. For more realism, alternate one hand high, one hand low on the towel. Some folks do towel pulldowns, as well. Standard rope length is 15′, and standard substitution is 15 towel pulls.”
What it doesn’t take into account:
- The use of your legs
- The fact that you don’t actually climb all 15ft. of rope
Now I love crossfit and the fact that they give all this info for free but…Does anyone have a problem with this?? I know I do. I did the Hero Workout Tommy V today, which if you are unfamiliar it is, For Time:
- 115 pound Thruster, 21 reps
- 15 ft Rope Climb, 12 ascents
- 115 pound Thruster, 15 reps
- 15 ft Rope Climb, 9 ascents
- 115 pound Thruster, 9 reps
- 15 ft Rope Climb, 6 ascents
405 Towel Pull-Ups??
IF I have this right, to follow the crossfit rope climb substitution you will end up doing 405 strict towel pull-ups(27 total ascents x 15 towel pulls per ascent = 405). That could be a hero workout alone. Not to mention strict pull-ups are pretty rare in crossfit so I don’t know many who could actually accomplish this.
The thing about the rope climb is it involves a lot of legs. Yea it is freaking badass to see someone climb a rope without the use of their legs, but it just isn’t practical. I have and can ascend to the top of a 15ft. rope and I do not feel it is equivalent to 15 strict towel pull-ups. I actually think it is a lot easier to climb the rope.
Watch this video of rope climbs (just the first few seconds):
Does it look like they are doing 15 pull-ups on every ascent?? No it doesn’t.
My suggested CrossFit Rope Climb Substitution:
- 4 Alternating Strict Towel-Pull Ups
- 4 Squats
I know this seems a bit weaker than the sub, but I feel it is more accurate. It uses the arms about as much as you actually will and it takes into account the legs
What do you think? Have a different suggestion??