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ROCK CLIMBING
How many calories does rock climbing burn? Advantages Disadvantages Who should participate? Learning to climb Rock climbing guidelines Rock climbing gear Glossary of terms For a rock climber, reaching the top is not the point. Like rearing children or praying, it is the journey that matters most if you are climbing for fitness. Whether their journey lasts 2 hours or 2 days, rock climbers can benefit from a mental workout as well as a physical one, according to competitive climber Michelle Hurni, president of the Colorado-based American Sport Climbers Federation (ASCF). Physically, rock climbing burns fat while strengthening muscles if pursued at a vigorous pace. Mentally, rock climbers exercise their ability to focus fully on a single task- an increasingly rare occurrence in this age of multitasking. Climbers also get practice confronting their fears- the fear of heights, the fear of falling, the fear of equipment failure. Ultimately, the sport can improve your self-confidence- if you learn how to climb safely, that is. Until recent years, scaling cliffs and huge mountain peaks was considered the most legitimate form of climbing, and shorter routes were considered practice for these longer endeavors, according to Rock and Groove Online Climbing Magazine. More recently, indoor climbing on artificial walls, shorter outdoor climbing routes, and competitive, or sport climbing have gained popularity. Over the last 10 years, writes David Humphries, MD, in a 1998 article for Medscape Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, "rock climbing has grown from a pursuit engaged in by only a hardy few, to a relatively mainstream adventure activity." According to the ASCF, there is an estimated 1 million rock climbers in the United States today. Increasing numbers of people are introducing themselves to rock climbing in indoor climbing facilities, or rock gyms. The number of rock gyms in this country has soared to 700 from only about three 15 years ago, Hurni says. Located in schools, universities, as well as in commercial facilities, rock gyms provide climbing walls of varying difficulty levels equipped with movable holds, ropes, and pulleys. Reputable rock gyms provide expert instruction and rent climbing shoes, harnesses and other equipment you will need to climb safely. Many basic climbing skills mastered in a rock gym can be transferred to outdoor climbing- a more exciting, albeit more dangerous, pursuit. "Bouldering," or climbing boulders, is probably the simplest and safest form of outdoor rock climbing since boulders are low to the ground and can be climbed without ropes or other gear. Sport climbing involves rope and other safety gear but is associated with shorter, safer routes and more difficult athletic movements, according to Rock and Groove magazine. Traditional "trad" climbing on big rock faces, such as El Capitan in Yosemite, emphasizes the use of holds and various protection devices inserted into cracks as the climber ascends. Because these devices take some skill and effort to place correctly, trad climbing moves are slower and less powerful, compared with sport-climbing moves. "Free climbing" uses natural rock features to climb with ropes and other devices to protect against falls. How many calories will rock climbing burn? Ascending a natural or artificial rock wall burns up to 700 calories an hour if you weigh 140 pounds, or up to 974 calories an hour if you weigh 190 pounds. Rock-climbing sessions tend to last at least 2 or 3 hours. In addition to offering an aerobic workout, rock climbing exercises almost every muscle group, according to Hurni of the ASCF. Rock climbing two or more times a week improves your strength, endurance, flexibility and mental toughness. Rock climbing, particularly the outdoor version, is inherently dangerous and potentially fatal. It is beyond foolhardy for a beginner or even an intermediate rock climber to pursue the activity without sufficient instruction and hands-on guidance from a qualified instructor or a more experienced climber. Even experienced climbers should work in pairs. Surveys have found that 75% of climbers sustained some form of injury during their climbing careers. The injury risk seems more closely tied to how long a person has been climbing, as opposed to experience levels or degree of difficulty of climbs performed, the researchers concluded. Most rock-climbing injuries involve the hands and arms. Common overuse problems reported by climbers include spinal syndromes, tendonitis of the forearm and shoulder, carpal tunnel syndrome, and finger strains, Humphries' Medscape article states. Another frequently reported problem, especially among older climbers, is a spinal syndrome known as "belayer's neck." The belayer, or person feeding the rope out to the lead climber, is responsible for stopping the lead person's fall by means of friction devices attached to the rope. "This necessitates long periods of direct upward gaze, as the belayer usually positions himself underneath the lead climber," Humphries explains. This prolonged posturing commonly triggers neck ache and headache. Hurni knows of no deaths associated with indoor climbing and says that deaths associated with outdoor climbing usually stemmed from equipment failure or human error. Rock gyms are designed so that the falling distance is much shorter than you would encounter in most natural rock-climbing settings. However, the more difficult climbs and maneuvers that can be performed repetitively indoors place a "significant strain on soft tissues- greater than what would be found in outdoor climbing," Humphries writes. Hurni of the American Sport Climbers Federation says she has seen "every body type" try climbing and has also seen "lots and lots" of recreational climbers lose weight. "If you're out of shape, you can still try it in the gym first," she adds. According to Humphries, good strength and low body weight appears advantageous for elite-level climbing. People wishing to condition themselves to tackle challenging outdoor climbing courses should make sure their training sessions in the climbing gym involve speed work, power work, and stamina training, Humphries recommends. Rock climbing, even in the controlled environment of a gym, should never be attempted without expert instruction. Your introductory lesson will include basic safety rules. They are how to tie yourself into your harness and how to belay (the act of taking up slack in the rope as the climber ahead of you ascends, so the climber will fall just a couple of inches in case he or she loses a grip). You are also taught holds, various climbing maneuvers, and how to tie basic knots, such as the figure-8 knot. Be sure to practice what you have learned under the watchful eyes of a qualified instructor. The number of beginner lessons you'll need depends on your aptitude for knot-tying, your fitness level, and other factors. Outdoor climbs are best tackled through a reputable climbing school, rock gym, or guide company. Before making the transition from indoor to outdoor climbing, climbers need to learn resting positions, how to place protection devices in rocks, and other skills. Before making your first outdoor climb, Humphries advises you to master a system of belay (safety point) placement called SERENE (Secure, Equalized, Redundant, No Extension). "This is a well-accepted, engineering-based system to enable maximum protection under all circumstances of climbing," he writes.
According to Hurni, a basic set of gear costs about $200, half of which goes to climbing shoes. The basic equipment consists of:
Anchor: point where the rope is fixed to the rock Belay: to secure a climber who is above you Belayer: the person at the belay station securing the
climber. Boulder: climbing without being roped on boulders or at the foot of
climbs to a height where it is still safe to jump off Buttress: part of the mountain or rock that stands in
front of the main mountain face Chalk: powder that makes the hands stick to smooth
rock Clove hitch: a useful, easily adjustable climbing
knot Crag: small climbing area. Feet: footholds Handle: big banana-shaped hold often found in rock
gyms Harness: a piece of clothing worn around the torso, where various climbing equipment is attached Hold: anything that can be held onto Pocket: a hold formed by a (small) depression in the
rock Rack: gear carried during an ascent Rappel: descending by sliding down a rope Rating: number denoting the technical difficulty of a
climb Scrambling: easy climbing, without being roped Slack: word yelled when the climber needs more rope Sport climbing: competitive climbing Tick marks: chalk marks used to locate holds when
bouldering Top-rope: free climbing a route that has a safety rope
attached to the top of the climb Traverse: climbing horizontally Rock and Groove On-line Climbing Magazine American Sport Climbers Federation The Climbing Dictionary Medscape Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine Sports Medicine, April 23, 1997 American Journal of Sports Medicine, November-December 1995 Climbing Sports Group Additional Resources Want to learn more about the different types of recreational sports? Then take a look at these articles in our Recreational Sports Center: Inline Skating Badminton Basketball Kid Fit - Helping Kids Win at Fitness Golf Tennis Swimming Volleyball Rowing
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