The Only Way Is Up

Rediscovery

As noted in many of my posts, I’m going through a period of change in life. In doing so, I’m rediscovering some of the things I used to do but either lost focus on, or didn’t have the time to engage in.

The biggest example of this is music, specifically playing in bands. I’m in the middle of forming one band, and it may not be the only one.

Something else that I lost focus on was climbing. I used to go multiple times a week with a few friends of mine, and loved every minute of it. Life changed, I moved away, my friends now live in a different country, and time became scarce. When I visited them last year, we went climbing and it made me want to start trying it again when I got back.

I’m now back climbing (specifically indoor bouldering), and rediscovering some of that love. I’m also approaching it differently than I used to.

Why I love climbing

There is something really satisfying about being able to climb up a difficult set of holds, and getting to the top. Also, there is a large amount of problem solving, as you are trying to work out ways of moving your body to make a climb easier/possible. It also forces you to not rely on brute force, as some climbs are much easier with better technique.

There are different grades of routes, which appeals to me in terms of measuring progress.

Also, shoes are a big part of climbing. Given half the reason I got into running was because of my love of shoes (via the YouTube algorithm and recommendations), another hobby which requires thinking about shoes is an easy win for me!

The community around climbing is also really nice. Back when I used to climb in my 20s, and a little bit recently too, I’ve had people I’ve never met who are encouraging me to climb, or suggesting routes to try, and generally just being really friendly.

A different approach

The approach I’m taking with climbing now, compared to when I did it in my 20s is different. Back then, outside of music and IT, I didn’t tend to put as much time into the how of doing something. With climbing, I stubbornly kept climbing a route until I could do it, never really thinking about better techniques, more efficient ways of doing it. I assumed technique would naturally improve with time.

While this approach does kind of work eventually, I’m going in a lot more prepared this time. I’ve gone headlong into the YouTube climbing rabbit-hole, looking into different techniques, different mental approaches, and spending more time watching how other people climb.

Also my general level of fitness is far higher than in my 20s. Now that I run, cycle and do some weight training, I can climb for a lot longer than I did before. I still get muscle aches towards the end of a session, but I can make more attempts before getting to that point, and recover a lot faster. I also anticipate that once I start focussing more on weight training, it is going to have a big impact on climbing too.

Finally, I now place importance on warming up and stretching, which I never did before. Running has taught me the problems with not stretching. I injured myself quite often when I first started running through inadequate/lack of stretching and warming up. Now that I prepare properly for a run, I haven’t had any real injuries since. Applying this mindset to climbing is helping me avoid injuries too.

A shared activity

Not only is climbing a very social activity, it is also something I can do with my children too. I’ve taken them a few times already, and they love it (as well as the pizzas the local climbing place make). As my life transitions into that of a single dad, finding activities that we can all share and love is going to be key, as well as giving us some structure.

I’m hoping this is something me and the kids will do for years to come. Even if it isn’t, I’m always going to have the memories of taking them, the joy and accomplishment they get going up the walls, the pride I get when they do it, and the glorious pizzas afterwards.

Rethinking

One thing this has made me think about is some of my fitness goals for the future. I’m going to maintain running, and strength training is something I’m really looking forward to focussing on.

What it does mean though is that I am probably unlikely (at least initially) to get a Zwift setup. I had thought that Zwift would be useful as a way of keeping fit on days when the weather isn’t great, as well as providing a social outlet (through online races).

With climbing, I’ll be able to go when the weather isn’t great, go during work hours (climb on my lunch, work in the cafe), and it provides an in-person social outlet too.

I’ll still cycle, but more for leisurely rides/getting around my city/going to and from the climbing gym.

Now this is by no means me saying I’ll never get a Zwift setup. However I tried to calculate how to fit in enough running, strength training and climbing while also having rest days across a 2 week period. There wasn’t a spare moment to add anything else, so something had to give.

Let’s get chalky

It’s been nice to reconnect with something I loved. While life is uncertain, finding parts of my “old” life that I can get back into helps with feeling like myself.

I’m bringing together the parts that I liked about my life before kids, the parts of life I like with kids, while also working on the parts of me that I didn’t like (thank you therapy!), all of which is helping me become (hopefully!) the best version of me.