A Word of Caution
Twist-locks are a valuable, and in some cases essential, skill for improving your flexibility and efficiency on the wall. They open up the use of higher feet, create leverage for longer moves, and reduce the effort (in certain circumstances) of getting your hips into the wall.
That being said, they are not the best choice as a “default” movement, and climbers should aim to develop an eye for determining when they will genuinely be more efficient than a front step.
Easy to Learn
Many gym climbers, for instance, pick up back-stepping and basic drop-knees very quickly, often without any formal instruction.
One reason for this is that the footholds on indoor walls all “stick out” and are therefore well-suited for the twisting motion of the move.
In addition, basic twist-locks are also, initially, seem a bit less strenuous than front-stepping (i.e. using the inside edge). Therefore, they are somewhat easier for newer climbers who may not have yet developed the hand and shoulder strength to fluidly climb square, as we say.
Drawback #1
But, that ease conceals a danger. If a climber becomes overly reliant on twist-locks, they will suffer from two drawbacks.
First, twist-locks increase a climber’s leverage, allowing them often to stand on higher footholds, and pull down further on holds, giving them the “feeling” that they can reach further. But, in reality, turning your shoulder into the wall (a requirement of a good twist-lock) cuts down on the range of motion of your reaching arm, effectively reducing your reach over a good, square deadpoint.
Drawback #2
Climbers who focus on twist-locks as their default movement also run the risk of not developing strong shoulders and grip strength to do longer moves that require a front-step position.
This can lead to specialization on certain kinds of moves, and possible performance plateaus.
Many climbers who gravitate to twist-locks tend to avoid dynamic movement. This is a necessary skill, as we will shortly discover, in bouldering and many routes.
When to Use the Twist-Lock?
So, when is it appropriate to use a twist-lock? Well, unfortunately the answer, as with many skills in climbing, is that it depends.
Reach, leg length, experience, grip strength, shoulder width, and a host of other highly personal factors all play a role in determining the difficulty of a move, and therefore the most efficient approach.
For certain very high feet, for instance, a back-step may seem easy for a shorter climber but prove nearly impossible for a long-legged one. Conversely, a lower pair of footholds may make for an easy drop-knee for a tall climber, but be the perfect set-up for a dynamic move for smaller climber with strong shoulders.
Each climber needs to learn, through experience, which approach will work best for them on a particular move. But that is one of the most interesting aspects of this sport!
Catch Up on All the Twist-Locks
We hope you enjoyed this series! To read all our articles, find them here: basic back-stepping, advanced back-stepping, spinouts, basic drop-knees, advanced drop-knees, reverse flags, straight-arming, and our guidelines.
All material is reprinted with the permission of the author. Copyright 2022 David H. Rowland. All rights reserved.
