Rock Climbing Rocks

If you happen to know me, there’s a fairly good chance I’ve tried to recruit you into rock climbing. On second thought, if you happen to know me, I’m certain that I have. “Hey, I’m Jenna. Nice to meet you. Do you rock climb? Would you want to?” The words are out of my mouth seconds after a formal introduction

The first time I climbed a rock wall, I was addicted. I wanted more. I inhaled mountaineering books, watched mountaineering documentaries, daydreamed about climbs when I should have been paying attention to other things, and of course, I climbed.

Now, I should mention that I’m not actually a very impressive rock climber, despite how badly I want to be. But the thing is, I love it. I love the way it makes me feel physically, I love the way it makes me feel mentally, and I love that there’s an artistry in the climb itself.

I caught the climbing bug. What’s done is done. So let me attempt to summarise the many benefits of this spectacular sport. Maybe by the end, you’ll want to take up rock climbing yourself. Maybe you’ll catch the bug too.

A lot of people are intimidated by the physicality that appears necessary to rock climb, and they have a point. Rock climbing is a physically demanding sport, whether it’s done indoors or outdoors. If you’re into the idea of climbing, get ready to test your strength, agility, endurance, balance, and flexibility. However, contrary to popular belief, rock climbing is not just about upper-body strength. If it was, I’d still be standing at the bottom of the rock wall, attempting to scramble up the holds without any success. Climbing requires a lot of intricate footwork and lower body strength. It’s a lot of balance and technique and shifting your body in just the right manner. It’s a lot of twisting your limbs in ways you didn’t know you could.

Rock climbing is a sport where your progress is evident and trackable. You will feel yourself becoming stronger with every climb. You will feel the improvement of your own coordination on the wall. You will feel your heart rate elevate, your stamina increasing, your muscles building. Before rock climbing came into my life, I lacked the forearm strength necessary to open troublesome jars. Now—well, pass me a jar: I dare you. The physical benefits of rock climbing are acknowledged by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, which lists the physical activity as one known for reducing the risk of chronic and cardiovascular diseases. All of this without even stepping into the mental benefits of rock climbing.

Climbing a rock wall is a bit of a puzzle. You need problem solving abilities to be any good. You have to navigate your routes by calculating the necessary moves required to complete the climb. All this while factoring your own personal strength and energy into the equation. Alex Johnson, a climber with many accomplished first-female ascents, tells the Huffington Post, “I think the mental side of climbing is often overlooked … The movement in climbing up a route often demands body awareness and problem-solving … The way to the top is not as direct as you might assume … it takes laser focus.”

Furthermore, rock climbing is a fantastic stress reliever. It increases the levels of norepinephrine in the brain that help relieve stress. Some studies suggest that climbing can be used to treat a variety of mental illnesses, including addiction, anxiety and depression. For me, it’s been an extremely effective way of shedding anxieties. It’s been an environment where my mind is entirely focused on the task at hand without any competing worries.

In addition to the physical and mental benefits of the sport, I think there’s an artistry to rock climbing that can be under-appreciated. An inherent creativity that is required to traverse the aesthetic expanse of mountain terrain.

You need imagination to see the holds. The holds of a rock face, the cracks in the slab. There’s a need for observation, a need for an experience, a need to establish an intelligent relationship with nature. It’s this combination of acute attention to the task with a simultaneous attentiveness to the sounds of feet scraping against rock, the movement of clouds across the sky and the sound of heavy breathing.

American rock climber and writer, Pat Ament, analyzes the relationship between climbing and artistry in his book Climber’s Choice: The Best Climbing Writers Present Their Best Work. In his book, Ament explains that, “Like poets, climbing writers notice the position of the stars or the direction of the wind. They hear a waterfall. They hear the sound of a piece of equipment in the eerie acoustical silence of a deserted canyon … They bring mythical significance out of what might seem to be normal spheres of language.” According to Jon Krakauer, mountaineer and writer, “Most climbers aren’t in fact deranged, they’re just infected with a particularly virulent strain of the Human Condition.” Call me sentimental, but I think that’s beautiful, and I think it’s true.

There are three elements that summarize what rock climbing means to me. Physical prowess, mental calculation and relaxation, and imagination. I can only hope that I’ve done the sport justice with my summary. Maybe some of you reading this might start to crave your own experience on the rock wall. I hope that some of you might go and try it out. Seek a partner and head on out there! Seek me out—didn’t I say that I’m always looking for a belayer?