About a month ago, my husband and I took a beginner climbing class, and soon we decided to sign up for a yearly membership. Climbing has this power to suck people in, and since the moment I started to climb, I have not been disappointed.
Just like swimming, I like to call climbing a whole-body workout. Climbing works one’s body from the very finger tips to the toes and it makes sure that it takes care of one’s brain muscle too. In the rock gym, every route is marked with colored tape – each color indicates the difficulty of the path. Before you set your foot on the first rock, it is most efficient that you strategize your steps in your mind. A rule of thumb is to maximize the usage of your legs and reduce the exercise of the arms, because legs are generally stronger than arms, regardless of gender.
I remember the excitement when I reached the top the first time, though two days were consumed to recover from the stiffness of my forearms. I remember the fear that suddenly occurred to me the first time I looked down, though I knew affirmatively that my partner would belay me. I remember I slipped on a rock, dropped several inches and swung away from the wall and I finally learned to trust my partner, take short breaks and restart my challenge.
As I write this article, I am just back from the rock gym. Tonight I tried a new route, at one point, the next step up seemed so out-of-reach; I felt that I pushed three of my toes of my left foot, and my body was lifted by several inches. Before the momentum ran out, I freed my right hand and grabbed that out-of-reach rock. I was there for a tiny second, and before the moment ticked by, none of my body parts could have stayed on the wall, and I started to swing back and forth like a pendulum held only by the rope and my partner.
I did not want to give up, so I gave it another try and another after another. What did I get? Stiff arms and a sweaty body, you bet, were in exchange of little progress every time I tried. I did not make the top tonight, but I will come back and resolve the unfinished business between me and the rock.
[...] myself a shy person, but this question used to trouble me. Back in summer 2005, I signed up to a beginner’s rock climbing course at a local gym for me and my husband Jeremy, with the intention to turn him into my belay slave. It didn’t [...]