Have you taken your family indoor rock climbing yet?

In 2020 rock climbing will be a hosted sport at the Olympics for the first time. Over the last two decades changes in safety technology and social culture have allowed climbing to grow as a sport with an estimated 25,000,000 people now climbing regularly worldwide. As the participation in the sport continues to grow we are gaining a better understanding as to how the sport is helping people mentally as well as physically.

Here are a few ways our customers have been benefitting from getting up for some rock climbing:

1. Becoming more confident

One of the great things about rock climbing is it usually starts on the ground, so you can choose how high you want to go. Indoor rock climbing gyms usually have a variety of different difficulty climbs so that there is something suitable for every age and ability. We recommend that you start with something easy and focus on practicing climbing as high as you feel comfortable with and then coming back down. Keep doing this until you feel ready to try and climb a little bit higher or move onto a more difficult climb.

2. Getting physically ACTIVE with way more FUN!

Climbing is a full body workout. Every climb is made up of different difficulty “routes” as they are commonly called. Every route is usually different and designed to engage your body physically in different ways – using strength, balance, speed, co-ordination and techniques. Check they type of indoor rock climb venue first as some are better for different ages and abilities. Finding a climbing venue that uses auto-belays means that you can move from one climb to the next and maintain an active and aerobic state throughout the activity!

3. Becoming more intelligent

No joke! Climbing is a sensory engaging experience for all participants that is not easily replicated in other sports. Dependent on the climbing venue you go to the climbs are often colourful, mentally engaging, physically engaging and tactile. Climbing up and abseiling back down from the climbs is likely to increase the levels of some useful neurotransmitters in your body.  This type of sensory engagement activity has been scientifically proven to create and strengthen neural pathways in the brain that help to make us more intelligent.

4. Fun for all the family

Climbing is a confidence boosting, physically active and mind growing activity – but best of all it can be AWESOME FUN for all the family. Over the last couple of years there has been an increase in the number of climbing venues in and around Melbourne; and there is something suitable for any age and ability.

At UpUnlimited we have had climbers aged from 1.5 to 70 years old (We are only restricted by a 10-150kg weight limit and the ability to wear a climbing harness.)

By David Spelman, Venue Manager, UpUnlimited www.upunlimited.com.au