by Todd Daigneault

Created on: May 09, 2009   Last Updated: May 17, 2009

Rock climbing is such a different sport from running, bicycling, swimming and everything else. But in a lot of ways, it incorporates elements of many sports. Doing a lot of these other sports on an aggressive manner can help prepare somebody to do this incredible, ever growing sport. Building up the strength in your shoulders, arms and chest goes a long way towards being able to scale up a sheer rock face, or over an ever-increasing gradient of a mountain or range, starting up from the beginning. Working on chin-up bars to pull your weight up and down helps to build up the incredible strength needed to scale a mountain. Doing at least twenty chin-ups on the chin-up bar in the gym goes a long way towards building up the strength needed.

This simple yet hard endurance exercise helps to build up the proper muscles needed to pull your weight up a muscle. By doing the chin-ups, effectively you are pulling your weight up a sheer mountain face. This exercise should be front and center for the aspiring mountain climber, popping out your arms and shoulder. To start preparing for what can be a very grueling climb, start by building up your arms and shoulders by doing the chin-ups. Also, bench pressing assorted weights is basically doing the same thing, just at a different angle.

Working with the cables in the health club is also good for developing the upper body to build up the necessary strength and power to climb. Most of the upper-body excersises and equipment in the health club or at your home go a very long way towards developing the necessary strength to climb up.rocks. Rock climbing is an exceptionally gruelling sport, requiring enormous endurance, stamina and physical strength. It also requires agility and good teamwork. Having strength, endurance, agility, good teamwork, and coordination with your team goes a long way towards being able to do this extreme sport successfully and safely.

Climbing the artificial, excersise walls, found in some health clubs or play-areas for adults, safely-tethered also goes a long way towards not only developing the skills mentioned, but gives a little experience or refresher for more seasoned athletes. Also, concentrating some of your effort into developing an excellent cardiopulmonary system also helps to build up one's heart and lungs to help one scale these rocks, which can feel like running a marathon also.

It helps too with a thinning air environment. Thinning air can occur in some situations, especially when doing such a gruelling climb at higher elevations. Building up oxygen capacity in your lungs through cardiopulmonary excersises, is an absolute necessity. The extra breathing capacity will give you that extra push in your roack ascents. Proper and safe training is so very important to being very successful as a rock climber. Don't over do it-remember the stresses your joints and muscles are going to be under.

Mental and emotional training is also critical to doing this extreme sport. A strong, innate mental strength is very necessary to do extreme sports in the beginning. Following all of the proper training through excersise, climbs and proper preparation goes a long way towards bolstering the human psyche to climb well. Visualization, affirmations and other strong mental excersises to tweak the psyche to a fine point helps a rock climber. In concert with the physical preparations, no aspiring, intermediate or advanced rock climbers could ever have a mishap and should always do well. Always prepare well with the right equipment and supplies

Now that you are physically, emotionally and mentally prepared, you can go out and enjoy that climb!

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