If you search for “gloves or no gloves when training”, you’re going to find a lot of information about weight lifting, and maybe in a few seasons after Google’s crawlers get into it, this post.. You’ll also find a ton of weightlifting folks with blogs supporting their argument either way. This is because each approach has it’s own pros and cons. Let’s explore.

When training at a climbing gym or on your home wall, you might ask, should I be using gloves while training for ice climbing and drytooling? The answer is, as with most things: it depends.

In training for ice / mixed / drytooling, the goal is get your muscles into repeated movement patterns that mimic the movement you’ll encounter on a climb. You can target that training for maximum results using training tools like DRY ICE Evolutions. By targeting your training, you’re building little bridges between nerves and muscles. You’re training your brain to remember how to do these movements when you’re 20’ above that last screw, when it counts. The less barriers in the way of targeting that training, the more effective the training.

Some folks think that using gloves targets training better than not using gloves and some folks think the opposite, paradoxically, for the same reasons.

The Argument for Training with Gloves

-Tactile. I mean, obviously. Training with the gloves you’ll be using outside will remove one more barrier to targeted training. If you’re wearing your gloves when training inside, the feel of the grip in your hand will be the same as the feel of the grip in your hand when you’re outside. This includes the pressure of the cuff on your wrist and the pressure of the fabric around your whole hand. The folds of fabric that will bunch up between your fingers will be the same folds you feel when you’re 40’ up that WI5. This is really the core of the pro-glove argument.

-Reduced dexterity. This is actually a good thing since, when you’re outside, you won’t have bare handed dexterity. Better to train in gloves now so your lead head and muscle memory are ready to fumble around while trying to clip the rope.

-Mental. Training using the above pro-glove points will do wonders to get your lead head in order. You’ll be ready for that runout, familiar with the feeling of the tools in your hands when the climb gets really steep. You’ll be able to calm down, breath, since you’ve been there before, training in the gym, with gloves on.

-Safety. Gloves can provide a margin of safety when training with tools indoors. If a tool pops, it’s possible you could bash your knuckles on the hold below. Gloves can reduce the likelihood and consequences of hurting your hand if a tool pops.

-Comfort. Some folks find gripping the tools more comfortable with gloves. Specifically, they report less ‘pinky pinching’ on the pommel. What ‘s really happening here is the glove is padding the pinky, increasing the surface area and spreading weight across a larger surface area.

The Argument for Training without Gloves

-Design. Most indoor training tools, like our DRY ICE Evolutions, are designed specifically to be used without gloves. The reasons for this are simple: climbers in the gym climb or boulder without gloves,. They mix up their routine with rock climbing and then a few routes of drytooling, alternating between the two disciplines. Most training tool handles are designed with increased volume to take up the space a glove would fill. What this means is that using gloves actually makes it harder to grip a tool that was designed to be used without them. In our market research we found more ice climbers train without gloves.

-Gloves are Hot. Unless your gym or home wall is blessed with arctic air conditioning, you’re gonna sweat since those gloves were probably designed to be used outside when it’s 15°F, unless of course you’re using golf gloves like most comp climbers and high end drytoolers use. Training with sweaty, swamp sponges on your hands is just not pleasant.

-Gloves are Slippery. Damp, sweaty gloves are just slippery. I’ve been to gyms that in fact prohibited using gloves while leading using indoor ice climbing training tools because of the increased likelihood of the climber falling.

-Comfort. I know right, the same argument as above, but in reverse, Some (really most) climbers prefer to use tools without gloves because they don’t have to grip as hard to compensate for slippery gloves.

-Fun. The increased dexterity of climbing indoors without gloves is more fun than fumbling clips with gloves. And more fun means more climbing. More climbing means more training. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about.

Whichever method you choose, gloves or no gloves, what’s important is that you’re out there training, doing it, preparing for your best ice season yet.

-bc.