Rock climbing is certainly a popular sport and for good reason, it’s an excellent workout for your back, shoulders, fingers, and core. And while it may not look daunting when you’re at the bottom of a route, it is certainly a challenge once you start your ascent. But what kind of rock climbing is better: Indoor or Outdoor? Sender One Climbing takes a look at both sides of this long standing debate.
Before You Go Outside
If you examine the inception of rock climbing, it undoubtedly began as an outdoor sport. Before there were state-of-the-art climbing gyms, climbers were tackling outdoor rock faces for decades. So why start inside now? It’s essential that before you attempt your first climb outdoors, you build up key muscles that you likely don’t regularly exercise. An indoor climbing gym is an ideal, safe environment to get comfortable with the motions of climbing that are key for outdoor climbing too.
Customize Your Climb
...improve your climbing skill, it’s more convenient to build upon routes at indoor gyms.
While it’s true that when you climb outdoors you have the option of choosing which rocks and routes you’re going to take, when it comes to indoor climbing there is a great deal more versatility in a confined amount of space. At Sender One, a three foot stretch of wall may offer climbers the choice of 5 or more different routes depending on your skill level. If you’re trying to improve your climbing skill, it’s more convenient to build upon routes at indoor gyms.
Environment is Key
Often times people assume that gym climbing is a lot easier than climbing on a rock face. It probably looks that way if you’re new to climbing; the routes are shorter, your path is laid out with brightly colored tape, handholds aren’t as sharp, and footholds aren’t as small. There’s plush padding below every boulder to catch you should you fall, but many climbers actually find that indoor climbing can be more difficult in comparison to scaling rocks outdoors.
What’s Our Favorite?
At Sender One, we don’t discriminate - indoor and outdoor rock climbing go hand in hand. As long as you’re safe and knowledgeable about where you climb, we encourage everyone to get out and try both. Climbing indoors may increase strength and endurance but the outdoor environment and appeal is undeniable. Both indoor and outdoor climbing are unique, and we encourage you to try both because of their difference and challenges.
...many climbers actually find that indoor climbing can be more difficult in comparison to scaling rocks outdoors.