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I just got into climbing a month ago, I've been to the gym about 7 times now, and am absolutely in love with it. I think it's one of the perfect sports/activit

I just got into climbing a month ago, I've been to the gym about 7 times now, and am absolutely in love with it. I think it's one of the perfect sports/activities for programmers, but like you said, nobody talks or knows much about it! Some guy at work kept asking me to go, he had a free guest pass. One day I said why not, and went. I didn't know that there were routes on the wall, and game-like rules. When you see pictures of rock walls, you assume the climbers are just grabbing onto any hold and going up the wall -- which is really not that interesting. What people don't know is you only have certain holds you are allowed to grab, and have to figure out how to get to the top with strategy and skill. I hate biking, running. Pilates/yoga is okay. Bodybuilding was okay. But climbing, is awesome. You are basically playing a game, getting stronger, getting in shape, and getting more skilled at something. I almost don't want to tell people about it though, because I want to keep the gym membership somewhat small ;)

benyami 12y ago
I often see developers at the climbing gym I frequent.
snowwrestler 12y ago
Well, on real rock often climbers do just grab or stand on whatever they can to advance. But it's still interesting because there is usually not much available. The complex route tagging in gyms is so they can simulate the relative lack of "holds" on real rock, while packing a lot of routes into a small space. Keep with it but be careful--climbing is addictive. You might find yourself quitting your job and living out of a van in Colorado to climb every day...
- simplemath 12y ago
  >be careful... you might find yourself quitting your job and living out of a van in Colorado to climb every day... That sounds terrible, why would anyone do such a thing? Brb, quitting job, buying van.
etrautmann 12y ago
My experience in SF is that 85% of the people at the climbing gyms are either scientists or engineers. Somehow it got popular all of a sudden.
tajen 12y ago
Climbing is exciting if you're fit - and you confirm you've been to the gym. I'm still muscular at 32 but I'm 5kg more than at 26 and it's much less fun. Every pound is one pound too much in climbing, and with experience you'll notice that climbing is frustrating for people with any bit of fat on their body.
- legohead 12y ago
  When I said "gym" I meant rock climbing gym, but they do have some weight lifting and cardio stuff there. The guy that invited me is quite a bit heavier than me. I'm about 15lbs heavier than I want to be, and he could probably lose 50-60lbs. He climbs way better than me. Weight is an issue, and he and actually has a personal trainer who is focusing on his weight and diet, but just being a little overweight is no reason you can't climb. I've seen some a few "fat" people there doing wall climbing. Climbing exerts a lot of energy and you will burn calories doing it, while building muscle. You can pick the easy routes and go up and down them over and over.
curun1r 12y ago
> I think it's one of the perfect sports/activities for programmers I think it appeals to programmers for a lot of reasons...there's an element of problem solving, it's beneficial to be skinny and almost everyone only competes against themselves. But there's another hidden benefit to programmers that you'll only discover as you get into it. When I started climbing, I was beginning to feel RSI-type pain in my wrists. My computer ergonomics is pretty terrible and I was starting to investigate ways to improve that in the hope that my pain would subside. 2 months into climbing, all that research into how to improve my posture stopped. My pain had completely subsided and I can now spend my 8+hrs/day using the worst possible posture with no ill effects. For me, I've discovered that RSI injuries are not about doing one thing too much. Instead, they're about not doing other things as much. Climbing exercises and strengthens my wrists in so many different ways (slopers, mantles, crimpers, cracks, etc) that no amount or poor habits can compromise the benefit I get from ~6hrs/week of climbing. This benefit isn't unique to programmers, but since we spend a large percentage of our time at the keyboard, it's definitely applicable to us.

benyami 12y ago

I often see developers at the climbing gym I frequent.

snowwrestler 12y ago

Well, on real rock often climbers do just grab or stand on whatever they can to advance. But it's still interesting because there is usually not much available. The complex route tagging in gyms is so they can simulate the relative lack of "holds" on real rock, while packing a lot of routes into a small space. Keep with it but be careful--climbing is addictive. You might find yourself quitting your job and living out of a van in Colorado to climb every day...

simplemath 12y ago
>be careful... you might find yourself quitting your job and living out of a van in Colorado to climb every day... That sounds terrible, why would anyone do such a thing? Brb, quitting job, buying van.

etrautmann 12y ago

My experience in SF is that 85% of the people at the climbing gyms are either scientists or engineers. Somehow it got popular all of a sudden.

tajen 12y ago

Climbing is exciting if you're fit - and you confirm you've been to the gym. I'm still muscular at 32 but I'm 5kg more than at 26 and it's much less fun. Every pound is one pound too much in climbing, and with experience you'll notice that climbing is frustrating for people with any bit of fat on their body.

legohead 12y ago
When I said "gym" I meant rock climbing gym, but they do have some weight lifting and cardio stuff there. The guy that invited me is quite a bit heavier than me. I'm about 15lbs heavier than I want to be, and he could probably lose 50-60lbs. He climbs way better than me. Weight is an issue, and he and actually has a personal trainer who is focusing on his weight and diet, but just being a little overweight is no reason you can't climb. I've seen some a few "fat" people there doing wall climbing. Climbing exerts a lot of energy and you will burn calories doing it, while building muscle. You can pick the easy routes and go up and down them over and over.

curun1r 12y ago

> I think it's one of the perfect sports/activities for programmers I think it appeals to programmers for a lot of reasons...there's an element of problem solving, it's beneficial to be skinny and almost everyone only competes against themselves. But there's another hidden benefit to programmers that you'll only discover as you get into it. When I started climbing, I was beginning to feel RSI-type pain in my wrists. My computer ergonomics is pretty terrible and I was starting to investigate ways to improve that in the hope that my pain would subside. 2 months into climbing, all that research into how to improve my posture stopped. My pain had completely subsided and I can now spend my 8+hrs/day using the worst possible posture with no ill effects. For me, I've discovered that RSI injuries are not about doing one thing too much. Instead, they're about not doing other things as much. Climbing exercises and strengthens my wrists in so many different ways (slopers, mantles, crimpers, cracks, etc) that no amount or poor habits can compromise the benefit I get from ~6hrs/week of climbing. This benefit isn't unique to programmers, but since we spend a large percentage of our time at the keyboard, it's definitely applicable to us.