Rock climbing is a great indoor and outdoor activity for anybody that needs some extra excitement in their lives. It’s a varied and physically demanding sport that requires good preparation and focus. It tests people’s endurance, physical and mental strength, and balance. It can be quite dangerous, especially if you decide to try outdoor rock climbing, therefore good preparation, skill, and technique are needed. Usage of specialized climbing equipment is something you must learn before conquering your first route. However, rock climbing has plenty of health benefits that will make you love this sport even more.
During one single climbing workout, the body is challenged to execute various tests including boosting the heart rate, building muscles and developing stamina. Upper body strength, especially the arms are needed to get the body moving upwards while the core and leg muscles are used for supporting and maintaining balance throughout. With these tasks, the whole body gets used and you actually have an effective and demanding workout while hanging on the rocks.
Rock climbing motivates the participants to extend their range of motion through completing difficult tasks of reaching, leaping, and climbing to handholds and footholds usually far from a comfortable distance. Therefore, it’s recommended that you stretch the whole body at least twice a week if you want to improve flexibility, blood circulation, and range of motion.
Rock climbing activates so many muscle groups in your body that you will be surprised by the fast results you’ll get. Abs, obliques, delts, traps, biceps, lats, quads, calves, you name it, rock climbing will help you strengthen each of these muscle groups and transform your body relatively fast if you work hard on it.
In rock climbing, and especially in bouldering, you will need a lot of mental strength as well. In bouldering (climbing without ropes or safety equipment on short routes) the routes are called problems and just like in rock climbing you will need problem-solving skills. Individual abilities, such as reach, the strength required to complete the next step, current energy levels and route planning are some of the elements involved in finding the safest and fastest possible solution. There are times when it’s hard to decide which way to go or how to ascend to the next level, but it’s all part of the climber’s mental growth.
Well, of course, it does! A 155-pound person burns 818 calories per hour while rock climbing. Burning 500 calories more than one eats per day can help in losing 2 pounds a week easily.
Every outdoor activity is good for reducing stress, and this is especially the case with outdoor rock climbing. You get to be so focused on what you’re doing while hanging on a rock that there is no possible way you can think of anything else. With rock climbing, you become more optimistic as a result of the difficult tasks that you find yourself overcoming.
The different exercises involved in rock climbing can help in the prevention of various chronic diseases such as heart disease, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol and diabetes. The intense exercises applied while rock climbing improves the circulation of the blood in your body which stops many of these illnesses developing and can even decrease any existing symptoms.
As you can see, rock climbing has tremendous health benefits for us and as soon as you start practicing, the healthier you’ll be. There is nothing better than improving your mental and physical health while doing your favorite outside activity. Take care and good luck!
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