Is Rock Climbing Good for Weight Loss? Is it Recommended?

rock climbing for weight loss

Not all people are born with excellent physical fitness abilities. 

To attain their desired level of wellness, they usually begin the process by making small changes. They may eat more greens, exercise regularly, and commit to their set goals. Through continuous effort, they achieve better fitness one day at a time. Once comfortable, a person may decide to make extensive changes, depending on the practices that work for them.

One of the best ways to maintain one’s fitness goals is to find things they love doing.

There are a lot of workout options to chose from. Some people love exercise with a mix of adrenaline and adventure, and rock climbing encompassing these.

Rock climbing can either involve indoor rock climbing gyms or outside on natural rocks. Both will effectively work your muscles and guarantee breaking a sweat.

Rock climbing is an activity with several health benefits. However, it’s pretty challenging, and you have to take several lessons to be quite good at it.

The lessons are available at local rock climbing centers, or you can join a team that does outdoor rock climbing. Proper instruction will help to improve your experience and learn safety tips too.

Is Rock Climbing Good for Weight Loss?

Rock climbing is an adventurous sport. However, most people are surprised upon knowing it offers several health and weight loss benefits. 

Rock climbing involves cardio and strength, plus improves your overall fitness level. Therefore, it can benefit anyone who wants to lose weight and improve their fitness level, while participating in an activity that is different and adventurous. 

How Good is Rock Climbing for Weight Loss?

Rock climbing is an excellent exercise that helps you lose weight since it combines cardio and a fair workout effort. It requires a lot of stretching, coordination, and balance.

All these activities shouldn’t worry you if you aren’t good at them. You’ll surely learn them with time and practice. People love climbing because it’s enjoyable and challenging at the same time. It’s also offers a sense of accomplishment.

The climbing gym will offer you several climbing routes. Different routes make climbing fun, engaging, and the best way to lose weight.

Climbing stands out from other outdoor sports since it entails several mental and physical aspects too.

In climbing, you don’t have to only focus on one area – you’ll naturally get better at it with practice. Go and enjoy the sessions, do it once or twice a week, and listen to your body. 

How People Lose Weight from Rock Climbing 

Rock climbing is more favored than other exercises or activities because almost everyone can do it. 

You’ll likely be motivated too because a gym or in a club, you’ll be with friends or other individuals who love rock climbing too.

It’s simply amazing, plus it has different routes that will always keep you planning ahead on which to take. Note that you should regularly do it to get more practice. 

To be a part of rock climbing, you can get a climbing gym membership or join local fitness groups in your area. Rock climbing has rules, and for a better outcome and safety, you need to follow them strictly. 

Plus, the rules are set to ensure your health is top priority. Most often, it is recommended to rest at least one day after a climbing session. 

You should be considerate about your body by listening to it; if it hurts, then take a break. To avoid injuries, start out slow and work towards more challenging opportunities.

If weight loss is your goal, it would be best to incorporate the following tips when rock climbing:

  • Take part in the rock climbing activity weekly, at least two or three times per week. It helps you reach your goal faster and provides consistency.
  • You should find climbing buddies such as other gym members and/or friends. They will help motivate you to work out, as you share a similar interest.
  • Set realistic goals and don’t be focused on quick results by overworking your body, which can be harmful. Know that improvements happen slowly, overtime.
  • Train yourself to enjoy climbing if you believe it’s the right activity that will help you achieve your health and weight goals. 
  • You could consider rock climbing training applications, especially when first beginning this sport. The apps can be free or paid for, like Crimped, and will help you learn specific workouts. The applications are available for almost all platforms such as Android and Apple.
  • When climbing, select different routes in a specific order – such as up and down and side to side, etc. This can help have a fantastic aerobic-focused session.  

Does Rock Climbing Have a Weight Limit?

Amazingly, rock climbing has no weight limits. Therefore, people at various weights can participate in this activity or sport. With rock climbing, you’ll probably start indoors using top-roping.

It’s safe and easy, plus it helps you work past any initial fear, plus an indoor fall is likely not that high and usually under supervision. The best way to learn rock climbing is by joining a climbing class or lessons.

Moreover, make sure to participate in climbing with all the climbing safety equipment. The equipment needs to be quality material to withstand extreme forces since climbers can sometimes experience big falls, especially outdoors in nature.

Gear failures hardly happen; therefore, you’ll most often be safe. However, it can happen in most extreme situations. The situations in this context include a rockfall or sharp rock, but this is not an issue in the gym  environment.

The Benefits of Rock Climbing

Rock climbing is among one of the most exciting workouts because of the adrenaline it can spark. In addition, it’s challenging, fun, and many climbers share it’s even addictive. 

It can surely help you get into great shape, become fit and lose weight. Let’s look at some of the benefits of rock climbing sport.

Burn Fat

Rock climbing is a perfect cardio sport that will help you burn fat. Rock climbing involves you hanging on the wall for some time and strategically reaching and climbing on a route.

During some parts, the single-pitch routes can be as high as forty meters. To reach the top of this height level, you’ll need extra endurance. 

There are also multi-pitch routes in mountain climbing, and those need extra endurance levels too. People spend hours, and even days on the wall, therefore you must have strong cardio and endurance. 

The cardio will help quickly burn your fat, but you have to follow a nutritious and healthy diet too, in order to maintain weight loss and an overall healthy balanced lifestyle. 

Core Strengthening

Rock climbing is quite demanding and thus needs tremendous abdominal strength. Hanging on ropes for a period of time needs core tension to prevent your feet from falling.

Plus, when climbing using the tiny footholds, one needs to maintain a tight abdomen. It helps you to keep you on the wall.

To improve your climbing prowess, it’s advisable for you to also add abdominal exercises such as planks and hanging leg raises. One suggestion is to use the ab wheel since it improves your core muscles.

With the ab-specific training, it’s best to consider quality over quantity. For example, it’s better to do five repetitive but challenging core exercises than thirty less demanding ones, that are less focused.

Strengthens Immunity and Health

Rock climbing is simply an all-around exercise. Amazingly, it boosts your wellness and health. 

According to studies, rock climbing can be a supportive depression treatment, good for your overall wellness and health. Moreover, it boosts one’s confidence since it helps produce endorphins. 

Removes the Flabby Look

Rock climbing will surely tone your physique by helping you get rid of the flabby parts. Rock climbing exercise involves all your body parts – legs, abs, arms, and many more. 

The other good thing is that it forces you to be active at all times. When you’re on the wall or climbing rocks, you continue until you reach your set destination. If outdoors, you’ll also have to hike to the cliff you intend to climb. Hiking guarantees you some cardio training too.

Removes the Scrawny and Skinny Look

As mentioned, rock climbing tones your body, but this doesn’t mean you’ll look weak and thin. The activity builds your muscles and guarantees you that toned but athletic build. 

It’s because the exercise includes cardio and strength. You’ll burn fat without necessarily losing your muscles

However, mountain climbers need to be somewhat lean since the sport is strength-to-bodyweight.

Conclusion 

The article is simply for anyone who wishes to lose weight, specifically by rock climbing. It’s a fun yet challenging weight-loss activity for anyone interested, regardless of body type and weight.

To be a good climber, you’ll need constant training. Lastly, rock climbing is a fun and exciting activity that can be shared with others.

Want to Work Together?

Rock climbing alone won’t be enough to achieve specific health and happiness. Although it’s a fantastic activity that combines enjoyment and movement, lasting fitness requires more than just rock climbing during the weekend. Are you struggling to make good decisions for your health? Are you a tired, overwhelmed, or stressed woman who’s beginning to experience negative health issues such as digestive problems, chronic inflammation, aging prematurely, and weight gain? After consistently putting in long hours and juggling too many priorities, are you desperate to make a change? 

It’s easy to neglect personal wellness in exchange for what feels good and that never-ending to-do list. The thought of adding one more thing to your list – wellness – may even tip the scale. Take the guesswork out of the individual steps needed to find balance and optimal health and let the Green Balanced Gal Wellness Program lead the way. You are unique, your food and lifestyle choices should be too, and thankfully, the Green Balanced Gal approach to wellness is not a one-size-fits-all approach. Get started today with the coaching support you need to feel your very best – mind, body, and soul! 

I want to guide you through taking back the balance and health in your life. I’d love to jump on a call with you to see how we can work together. Schedule a time here>>

About Amy

I'm an Integrative Health Coach for career-oriented, busy women in search of finding balance, wellness, and lifestyle transformation in an overworked, stressful, and boundary-blurring world.

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