What is a Dyno? Understanding Climbing’s Most Explosive Movement
Updated: Jun 18
Introduction
Modern climbing is filled with dynamic movement. Take a look through any climber’s Instagram feed and you’ll likely be met with a barrage of dyno clips. Watch any climbing competition and you’ll see athletes tackling explosive, coordination heavy dynos. Step into almost any commercial climbing gym and you’ll find dynos ranging from beginner friendly jumps to complex competition style movement.
If it wasn’t already clear, dynos are here to stay.
Dynamic climbing has become one of the defining skills of modern bouldering and competition climbing. Whether you’re trying your first basic dyno or learning advanced coordination moves, understanding how dynos work can massively improve your climbing performance, confidence and movement efficiency.
In this guide, we’ll break down exactly what a dyno is, explore the different types of dynos climbers use, and explain some of the most common mistakes climbers make when learning dynamic movement. You’ll also learn practical tips to improve your dyno technique and become more confident with explosive movements in climbing.
What is a Dyno?
Defining exactly what a dyno is should be fairly simple. However, within climbing, the term has become somewhat controversial. Some climbers use “dyno” as shorthand for any form of dynamic climbing, while others believe a true dyno only occurs when all four points of contact leave the wall.
For the purposes of this article, we’ll use the definition suggested by Jason Myers in On the Edge Magazine (Issue 49). In the article, Myers categorised dynamic climbing movement based on how many points of contact remain on the wall during the move.
The Slap — Three points of contact
The Lunge — Two points of contact
The Jump — One point of contact
The Dyno — No points of contact
Although climbers may disagree on the exact terminology, these definitions provide a useful way to understand the spectrum of dynamic movement in climbing.
The Different Types of Dynos
Dynos come in many different forms and can vary massively in difficulty, coordination and style. Some dynos rely on pure explosive power, while others require precise timing, coordination and momentum generation.
Below are some of the most common types of dynos climbers will encounter both indoors and outdoors.
Basic Dyno
When most climbers think of a dyno, this is usually the movement they imagine, an explosive jump towards a target hold resulting in a one handed catch.
Basic dynos are often straightforward and primarily rely on lower body power, coordination and commitment. They are commonly found on both indoor & outdoor boulders and are usually the first type of dyno climbers learn.
Double Dyno
A double dyno involves catching the target hold(s) with both hands simultaneously. Compared to a basic dyno, this style of movement often feels far more committing as both hands must leave the wall at the same time.
Double dynos are common on both indoor and outdoor boulders and are often required when the target hold is too poor to control with a single hand. Because of this, double dynos rely heavily on coordination, timing and commitment rather than pure explosive power alone.
Paddle Dyno
The paddle dyno is a technique born from the modern style of dynamic climbing commonly seen in competitions and commercial route setting. This type of dyno requires climbers to move quickly between multiple holds, using intermediary holds to generate momentum and guide the movement towards the final target hold.
Paddle dynos demand high levels of coordination, hand speed, explosiveness and agility. Unlike more traditional dynos that rely on a single movement, paddle dynos require climbers to link multiple movements together with precise timing and rhythm.
Although paddle dynos are most commonly found indoors on plastic, examples of this style of movement can also be found outdoors.
Step Up Dyno
Step up dynos involve generating upward momentum before quickly bringing a foot onto a higher foothold mid-movement. This allows climbers to generate additional force through the legs and reach a higher apex than would otherwise be possible.
This technique requires a high level of coordination, timing and trust in your own movement. Because the movement happens so quickly, accurately placing the foot can be difficult and is often done without directly looking at the foothold. This contrasts with traditional climbing technique, where visually tracking foot placements is usually considered essential for accuracy and control.
Step up dynos can be found both indoors and outdoors and are becoming increasingly common in modern climbing. Perhaps the most famous example is Rainbow Rocket, a legendary outdoor dyno in Fontainebleau that features a powerful step up movement.
Lache
As mentioned in our blog post “Dynamic Climbing Explained”, modern climbing can sometimes look more like parkour than traditional rock climbing. The lache is a perfect example of this, with the movement originating from freerunning and ninja style obstacle courses.
A lache involves generating momentum through a swinging movement. Climbers use their hips and legs to create enough force to launch their body towards the target hold, often leading with the feet while the upper body follows through the movement.
Laches are especially common in modern bouldering competitions and commercial route setting, where coordination and movement complexity are heavily emphasised. However, this style of movement is still relatively rare in rock climbing.
Sideways Dyno
Most dynos involve overcoming an obvious vertical gap between holds using momentum and explosive movement. Sideways dynos are the exception. Rather than moving upwards, these movements require climbers to generate momentum sideways across the wall. Although there are many different variations of sideways dynos, this article will group them together for simplicity.
Sideways dynos present a unique set of challenges. While the techniques used may differ from more traditional vertical dynos, the underlying skills remain largely the same. Coordination, timing and precision are all essential for successfully controlling sideways movement and sticking the target hold.
Sideways dynos have become increasingly popular in modern competitions and commercial route setting, where large volumes and complex sequences allow setters to create visually impressive and coordination heavy movement. In contrast, true sideways dynos are still relatively rare in outdoor climbing due to the limitations of natural rock features.
Common Dyno Mistakes
Dynos are complex movements, but there are several common mistakes that hold climbers back. Learning to identify and correct them can dramatically improve your dynamic climbing.
Launching Early
Dynos can be an intimidating movement for many climbers. Launching yourself explosively towards a hold while your face is only millimetres from the wall can feel uncomfortable and committing, especially for beginners learning dynamic climbing for the first time.
However, good dyno technique relies on staying close to the wall during the take off phase of the movement. Keeping your hips and centre of gravity over your feet allows you to push more effectively through the legs and generate maximum upward momentum. Many climbers make the mistake of jumping too early or leaning too far away from the wall, which causes the movement to travel backwards rather than upwards.
When this happens, a large amount of the power generated through the legs is wasted pushing the climber away from the wall instead of towards the target hold. Learning to stay close to the wall and fully commit to the movement is one of the most important skills for improving dyno technique and becoming more confident with dynamic climbing.
Not Coiling Enough
When you compress a spring, energy is stored and then rapidly released as the spring expands. Dyno technique works in a very similar way. One of the key principles of good dynamic climbing is learning how to “coil” your body before exploding upwards towards the target hold.
By compressing into the starting position (bending through the legs and loading tension through the body) climbers are able to store and generate far more force during the movement. When this stored energy is released, it helps propel the climber upwards with greater power and efficiency.
A common mistake when learning dynos is failing to coil enough before initiating the movement. Many climbers rush the jump or stay too extended, which limits the amount of force they can generate through the legs. This makes it significantly harder to create upward momentum and often results in weak or inefficient dynamic movement.
Learning to properly load and release tension is one of the most important aspects of improving dyno technique and generating more explosive climbing movement.
Pausing at the Bottom
Some climbers may have good coiling technique yet still struggle to generate power during dynos. In many cases, this comes down to spending too long in the bottom position before initiating the movement.
A useful way to think about this is to imagine drawing back a bow and arrow. The longer you hold the bow fully drawn, the more energy and tension you lose before releasing the arrow. Dyno technique works in a very similar way.
When climbers pause for too long at the bottom of the coil, they begin to “leak” the energy they have stored through the body. At the same time, the arms and legs become increasingly fatigued from holding a loaded position under tension. This often results in weaker, slower and less explosive dynamic movement.
Instead of pausing at the bottom, climbers should aim to rebound quickly out of the coiled position. A fast and reactive movement allows you to fully utilise the energy stored through the legs and body, helping you generate more upward momentum and more powerful dyno movement.
Developing this fast “bounce” out of the bottom position is a key part of improving explosive climbing and efficient dyno technique.
Too Many Prep Pulls
In climbing, hesitation is the enemy of efficiency, and the same principle applies to dynos. A climber may have excellent dyno technique and avoid all of the common technical mistakes, but hesitation before committing to the movement can still drastically reduce performance.
One of the clearest signs of hesitation is performing too many “prep pulls” before launching into the dyno. Prep pulls are the small loading movements climbers use to build momentum and prepare for the jump. While some preparation is important, excessive prep pulls often waste energy, disrupt timing and reduce the explosiveness of the movement.
In most cases, a single confident prep pull is all that is needed to generate momentum and commit to the dyno. Additional movements usually give the brain more time to overthink the jump, increasing fear, hesitation and uncertainty before take-off.
Good dyno climbing relies heavily on commitment, timing and confidence. Learning to trust your movement and commit decisively can significantly improve your dynamic climbing performance and make dynos feel smoother, more controlled and more efficient.
Why You Should Train Dynos
Dynos are a bit like marmite — some climbers love them, while others avoid them at all costs. Regardless of how you feel about them, every climber can benefit from training dynamic movement and improving their dyno technique.
For climbers who already enjoy dynos, the reason to train them is obvious. Dynamic
climbing is one of the most explosive and technical styles of movement in climbing. Dynos happen extremely quickly and require precise coordination, timing, commitment and body positioning. Without regular practice, it can be difficult to consistently improve your power, accuracy and confidence on dynos.
If you want to improve your dynamic climbing, check out our “Dynamic Climbing Explained” article where we break down practical methods for training explosive movement both on and off the wall.
For climbers who dislike dynos, it can be tempting to simply avoid them altogether. However, dynos push dynamic movement to its most extreme, meaning many of the skills developed through dyno training transfer directly into other areas of climbing performance.
Learning how to generate momentum, use the hips effectively and coordinate explosive movement can make techniques such as deadpoints, dynamic rockovers and powerful cutlooses feel significantly more controlled and efficient. Even climbers who prefer static climbing can benefit from improved coordination, confidence and movement efficiency gained through dyno training.
Modern climbing continues to become increasingly dynamic, especially in competitions and commercial gyms. Developing strong dyno technique not only improves your ability to tackle coordination moves, but also helps you become a more adaptable and well rounded climber overall.
If you want to improve your dynamic climbing and build confidence on explosive movement, Waddage Climbing offers coaching and resources focused on dynamic movement and climbing performance.
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