Have you been inspired to give climbing a try? Check out our beginners guide to climbing in our latest blog.
A beginners guide to climbing
As one of the newest sports in the Olympics (making it's second appearance), climbing has been exposed to a whole new audience. Many people may have seen Olympic climbing on their TV and thought 'that looks cool, I want to give it a try'.
As with most sports it can be daunting trying for the first time. Climbing is a diverse and complex sport, so it might be hard to see where to start.
What do you need to know?
Climbing is not just one sport, there are different types and disciplines of climbing. Some climbers stick to one discipline, others have a more varied approach. What you do is a matter of personal choice and there is no defined path to move from one to another
In the Olympics three disciplines were on display with two sets of medals up for grabs in Olympic sport climbing. Speed, Lead and Bouldering (Combined)
Most climbers will start either bouldering or top rope climbing (similar to lead in the Olympics with a fixed rope at the top of a wall).
Where to start?
In the UK we are lucky to have some amazing climbing walls all over the country. Indoor climbing or bouldering walls are a great starting place for new climbers.
They are safe, accessible and provide lessons for beginners! Your local climbing centre is the perfect place to start your climbing adventure. Check out this climbing wall finder to find one close to you: Wall Finder.
What do you need to start climbing?
The great thing about climbing indoors is you don't need a lot to start climbing. You don’t need to own any climbing gear except whatever loose and comfortable clothing you’d like to wear while climbing. You can rent shoes, a harness (if top rope climbing), and a chalk bag to get you started.
Climbing Shoes
These weird minimalist pieces of fabric and rubber may seem odd at first, but will soon become an obsession and your best friend on the walls or crags.
Climbing shoes are designed to help you grip on to holds or rock and are essential to all disciplines of climbing. They are usually tight, to provide power and control and come in lots of different shapes and sizes.
It is a myth that climbing shoes need to be painful to work properly. Climbing shoes are designed to be tight, but they are not supposed to be uncomfortably tight. While first starting out a comfortable pair will keep you climbing longer and help you progress.
Most people start off renting shoes until they are ready to take the leap and buy their first pair. Our relaxed fit range of Climbing Shoes make great first shoes - these are comfortable whilst still having features which will help you improve your climbing.
Chalk
Apart from Shoes - if you are bouldering or climbing in a gym you the only other thing you will need is chalk.
Climbing chalk is used to help you grip the rock (or holds) better. The chalk absorbs moisture from your sweat to increase the friction between your hands and the hold.
Other gear
Whilst chalk and shoes are enough to get you climbing indoors there is a whole world of climbing gear to discover once you have mastered the basics of indoor climbing.
From ropes, to pads and carabiners to harnesses - depending on what sort of climbing you are doing you will need a host of gear as you progress to other disciplines.
Do I need to be fit to climb?
Whilst the climbers competing in the Olympics are very fit and strong - the beauty of climbing is that it anyone can climb, regardless of your fitness or body shape.
Although climbing can be very physically demanding, you can start off easy with routes or problems designed for beginners.
What next?
So you've started climbing, been bitten by the bug and want to move on from your local gym or wall so what is next?
The short answer is anything!
Many climbers will move outdoors - exploring their local natural landscape and even further afield, while some will stick indoors and move up the grades at their local gym.
