Today, I would like to write about what the fascinating factors about climbing that I can think of.
I think all climbers know/feel this, but if you have no climbing experience and see this page, I hope this page gives you a little bit of useful information.
Why climbing is so fascinating
You can train your body (especially upper body) while having fun
Climbing involves moves of repeatedly grabbing holds while climbing upwards, which inevitably stimulates and strengthens the muscles of the back, forearms, and shoulders, etc.
Even if you are not aware of it, after a couple of months of enjoying climbing, you’ll notice that your upper body is getting fit and your back muscles are growing.
It is a great brain workout as well
You need to engage your brain a lot when thinking about how to move from the start hold to the top hold.
This is because the holds to use are basically specified for each problem when climbing indoors, but the order or how to move your hands and feet differs for each climber.
The way of climbing may vary considerably even for the same problem because every climber is different in terms of the following properties:
・Height (arm length and leg length)
・Muscular strength
・Core strength
・Flexibility
・Sense of balance
While thinking about the moves that suit you for each problem, you can try coming up with different moves if one move doesn’t work well, or you can simply try climbing many times until you get used to the problem. Climbing involves combination/repetition of these, so you need to surprisingly use your brain while climbing.
You can enjoy climbing at your own pace
Whether it’s bouldering or lead climbing, I think one of the attractive parts about climbing is that you can climb at your own pace.
After trying one problem, you can return to the resting space and rest your muscles.
You may rest for 5 to 10 minutes between each try, and the rest time is usually much longer than the time you are actually climbing.
You can take breaks at your own pace and climb whenever you like, so you can enjoy climbing in accordance with your physical strength.
If there are other climbers around you, you can enjoy conversations with them during breaks, which I believe is another fun part of climbing.
You can enjoy alone or with many people
If you want to lead climb, you need a belayer, but for bouldering, as long as you have shoes and chalk, you can go to a climbing gym and enjoy it on your own.
You can climb quietly by yourself, or you can climb with climbing friends. It’s totally up to you how you can enjoy climbing.
You can gain a great sense of accomplishment
Whether it’s bouldering or lead climbing, you may feel instinctively scary when you climb up to a certain height, but when you overcome such fear and get the top hold, the sense of accomplishment that you have is nothing short of an amazing feeling.
Especially when you finally manage to reach the top after spending days or weeks working on a difficult problem, the feeling you have will be indescribable.
Of course, this is partly due to the fact that you have sent a difficult problem, but I think it is also largely due to the feeling of growth that you have surpassed yourself of the past.
If you’re a gamer, I think it’s a feeling similar to that you feel when you finally defeat a strong boss monster after improving your levels in an RPG.
Outdoor climbing is also very enjoyable
I think there are many climbers who mainly go to climbing gyms and never climb outdoors, but climbing outdoors is also quite fun.
Before I came back to my hometown in Hokkaido, I hadn’t climbed outdoors much, but since climbers that I met here in Bibai made me realize how fun it is, I’m hooked on it.
Fascinating parts about outdoor climbing
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Feeling so good：Although it depends on the weather, climbing when the temperature and humidity are just right makes you feel really exhilarating.
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Any food will be tasty：It feels just like going on a picnic. If you eat outside, even one rice ball is simply very delicious. It may be partly because you feel hungry after climbing with all your strength
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Becoming strong：Unlike climbing gyms, you can’t make dynamic moves when you climb outdoors, so you often climb while hanging onto holds to make static moves, which will surely make you strong. Another reason may be that we tend to put more strength than necessary when climbing outdoors due to the danger and fear of injury. I believe this will also make you a strong climber!
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You will meet new climbers：You will meet climbers who don’t usually come to your home gym, and some of them are extremely strong, so it’s so much fun to see their climbing as well.
※However, when climbing outdoors, there are some manners that we have to observe such as follows, so I hope you can enjoy outdoor climbing while strictly observing those manners.
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Do not disturb the neighbors by shouting.
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Do not destroy the natural environment (landscape). Do not throw away any trash.
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After climbing, brush the chalk off before leaving the area.
These mentioned above are what I think the fascinating parts of climbing are.
It’s simply great enough to have a regular exercise routine by playing sports, and if it is climbing that you enjoy regularly, you can feel yourself growing while enjoying it, which I believe makes climbing a wonderful sport.
If you live in or around Bibai City and are interested in climbing at the Bibai City Sports Center, please feel free to contact me, Mayama.
