A Programmers Guide To Cheating The Clock For Basic Climbing Fitness
This year marks the 20th year since I first started rock climbing. It’s been a roller coaster of a ride over that time but as a whole climbing has brought a lot to my life that I may not have gotten if I had taken another path. In a lot of ways I feel like the demands of climbing led me to a career in software development as there are striking similarities between the two. Climbing for me is all about wilderness, adventure, problem solving, and athleticism while software development is all about creation, modeling the world virtually, and overcoming problems. The overlap is primarily in the problem solving component but to be successful at either takes both mental and physical health. With a busy life it can be difficult to maintain the balance needed to perform both on the rock and at the office. While many climbers out there may think a desk job, especially a computer job, is a huge barrier to regular climbing and many programmers may think the reverse, I have no desire to give up either. So, in the spirit of keeping active and strong in a busy world I have outlined some basic practices to help maintain a basic level of health and fitness for rock climbing through daily activities.
1. Ride your bike like it’s going out of style
There is no questions that biking is an increasingly popular mode of transportation and offers many benefits over the alternatives. Sometimes biking to/from work is the only real exercise I get in a day yet that seemingly small amount of peddling has a noticeable impact on my physical condition after sitting at a computer all day. If biking to work takes 30 minutes that is 60 minutes per day that you get to exercise, prepare for work, decompress from work, and experience your city up close and personal. Don’t have a “good” bike to commute on? No problem! Forget about buying a fancy light weight road bike to get around town. Buy a cheap clunker off Craigs List that you don’t have to worry about getting stolen and who’s weight gives you that much better of a workout. If you would prefer a nicer commuter consider a ride that is a bit burlier to take the abuse of a commute and that you like to ride so much you always grab it as your first choice of transportation. Put some fenders and panniers on it so you can load it up with groceries and have little reason to get around town on anything else.
2. Forget about technology and do things the hard way
We have a big yard for the Denver area and while we plan to utilize a lot of that space for producing food we currently have a significant amount of grass to maintain. So in the spirit of keeping things simple and taking advantage of day to day opportunities we bought a good ol’ fashion push mower. Well, actually it is a fancy new one that is surprisingly easy to push yet works your muscles more than a motorized mower would. I know it sounds a little silly but consider that pushing a rotating steel blade around for 45 minutes works nearly every muscle in your body in a way that is likely more balanced than 45 minutes at the gym where we tend to over work certain muscle groups at the expense of neglecting others.
This logic doesn’t only apply to mowing the lawn. Think about the way you might use technology to replace the use of muscle power and consider the opportunity lost from that activity. It may be insignificant in some cases but in others it may be the difference between getting 30 minutes of beneficial exercise or not.
3. Sit on the floor
We spend a lot of our time sitting at a desk which often leads to a whole host of physical issues that are hard to take care of. An obvious issue is stiff inflexible muscles. Sitting on the floor when doing some computer work at home or watching TV encourages you to stretch those muscles that tend to shorten and tighten while sitting for long periods of time. If simply sitting straight legged on the floor is an active stretch for you then consider doing this regularly until you can start to incorporate more regular and varied stretches into this great opportunity to multi-task. Climbing, as well as any other physical activity, requires a certain degree of flexibility to not just perform at a higher level but to prevent injuries. Many of the climbing related injuries I have had where a result of inflexibility where incorporating basic practices like this into day to day life could help.
4. Join a local bicycling group
These can be surprisingly fun, non-competitive, and a great way to meet new people. One of my local bike shops Yawp Cyclery organizes informal after work group rides around town, weekend mountain bike rides, and once a month non-competitive team mountain bike weekends which are super fun and help to keep up with regular cardio. If you’re already biking to work you will be well prepared for these types of rides which will help with that all important but often overlooked cross-training component of climbing.
5. Install a hang-board or pull-up bar in your house
This isn’t always possible if you are renting but at the very least get a door-jam pull-up bar and stick it in a place that you walk by regularly so it’s easy to stop and do a couple pull-ups while walking by. If you are lucky enough to have a lot of space consider building a larger panel with an assortment of holds and even hanging holds/rings to make it more fun. While many people avoid finger board training there are few climbing specific training techniques more effective than regular finger training on hang boards/system boards. Additionally, sessions are very short making them easy to fit into a busy schedule. Set a basic daily goal for hang board workouts and/or pull-ups and try to stay on it. These don’t need to be intense. They can be just enough to keep your base fitness up but may also grow to lead to noticeable improvements.
6. Do Yoga
In my experience people tend to view Yoga as either a stretching routine or some sort of flowy fitness routine. I see it as neither one by itself although stretching and fitness do play a part. Yoga traditionally was an activity to prepare for meditation. Most of the yoga classes you find today are a modern variation of it’s origins but can be very effective at stretching, strengthening, and aligning the body while also practicing mental focus. Something climbers often overlook is training for relaxation and focus. Yoga combines many beneficial activities that help stay healthy day to day and improve performance where flexibility and focus are important. Considering a typical Yoga class is about one hour it is pretty easy to squeeze in a session either during the day or after work.
7. Regularly visit a health care practitioner
There are many types of health care being offered, all with their own strengths and weaknesses. It is good to combine types of care depending on your health goals so knowing a few practitioners with different specialties is often helpful. Seeing an Acupuncturist, Massage Therapist, or other practitioner can be beneficial as an injury prevention mechanism and/or to deal with the stress of daily life. I am lucky in that my wife is the owner of Resilience Acupuncture and is experienced with climbing and biking related health issues. Regular “tune ups” every month or two can help in these areas while also providing an opportunity to address any aches and pains you may have before they grow to be more of a problem. The last thing you want when balancing a busy and ambitious schedule is to miss precious climbing days because of troublesome injuries.
8. Regularly go to the gym
This is probably obvious but don’t just join any gym, join one that feels right to you and that you love going to. There is nothing that can replace the benefits from regular climbing when it comes to maintaining your climbing ability. Binge climbing can be useful but can also lead to frustration and injury when trying to aggressively climb hard right off the couch. Many climbing gyms also offer additional services like Yoga as part of a regular membership fee which can help round out your weekly routine. Another benefit that can’t be overlooked is that it is much more time effective to go to the gym for an hour or two than it is to compete with daylight after work at your local crag. I fought this idea for many years but in the end the gym is a very effective environment for training which is very practical with a busy schedule.
It can also be very beneficial to go to a small group/personal fitness gym to target specific fitness goals as a way to cross train. I have known climbers to break through barriers in climbing by breaking out of their usual climbing habits with professionals who can help target weaknesses.
9. Eat more plants and lay off the Micro Brews
Professional athletes of all types have known the benefits of a healthy balanced diet for a long time and climbing is no exception. I recently read that one month of proper diet can equate to six months of additional training. That is a subjective statement but the truth is that eating healthy helps to improve not just your climbing but also your general health and how you feel day to day. I know this sounds obvious but this is incredibly important when living a relatively sedentary life during the week and charging into the crags on the weekend. I have found that eating smaller portions of food that is more plant than filler on a regular work day leaves me with plenty of energy to bike around town and climb after work. Alcohol should also be considered in this equation. Many of us appreciate a good Craft Beer or Cocktail but regular drinking can have negative affects on performance, and the energy needed to juggle a busy schedule.
10. Manage your work time wisely
If you’re a software developer it is likely that you have a fairly flexible schedule but you also have more work than time to do it which can lead to erratic and/or long work days. Programming is both time consuming and addictive which means it’s even more important for those in this position to manage their time wisely. I have found that starting the day early and working in 2 – 3 solid blocks of time helps to be more productive and to more clearly define when work ends and your time begins. If following this strategy you can fit in regular workouts or errands between coding time blocks. This can be very beneficial for your coding productivity as well because getting exercise mid-day is surprisingly rejuvenating. Don’t believe me? Give it a try.