A Meditation on the Complexity of a Climbing Session

For seasoned climbers who spend hours each week at the climbing gym, the act becomes a unique ritual. From slowly warming up one’s body and fingers with floor stretches and easier routes, to climbing hard and pushing oneself, to finishing a session training on tension and hangboards, many value their methodical routines, allowing them to destress, connect with others and get strong.

While my climbing sessions tend to vary depending on busy schedules or finding rides, I can always look forward to my typical Sunday afternoons spent at The Pad, where my friends, Li Ow-Wing and Ellie Feistel, and I spend time getting lost in climbing projects and swathed in thick layers of chalk.

Warming Up

Li Ow-Wing takes time to incorporate stretches into her warm-up routine /Photo by Angie Stevens.

Working my way up the grade difficulties, I often stretch on the wall as I climb through the moves /Photo by Li Ow-Wing.

Chalky gear lines the outskirts of the gym’s pads /Photos by Angie Stevens.

After a sufficient warm up and time bouldering, we choose to channel our inner climber-Barbie and head to the lead wall.

Photo by Angie Stevens

Ready to climb, Ow-Wing and Feistel ensure they are tied in correctly /Photo by Angie Stevens.

Clipping the rope into the wall as she climbs, Ow-Wing trains her endurance on this long route /Photos by Angie Stevens.

After sending the route, Ow-Wing and Feistel are all smiles– everyone needs a celebratory embrace with their climbing buddy once and awhile /Photo by Angie Stevens.

Training Off The Wall

A session is never complete without time spent gripping slopey holds or paper-thin edges in efforts to strengthen one’s fingers.

While hanging for periods of time on bad holds is an often uncomfortable and challenging workout, for me, it becomes a sort of meditation. Closing the eyes, clearing the mind and focusing on my breath, I slip into a focused and calm mindset, allowing me to hold on for longer.

Keeping shoulders engaged and mind focused, Feistel hangboards as an after-climbing workout /Photo by Angie Stevens.

Photos by Angie Stevens.

Sore, calloused hands: an indication of a successful climbing session of hard work/ Photo by Angie Stevens.

Whether it’s a session of thirty minutes or three hours, climbing at its roots is a deeply spiritual practice, entailing a smooth agreement with the mental and physical worlds of oneself. And whether you’re focused on technique, delicately dancing up the wall or working through hardcore sets of training, one can get whatever they put into their climbing routines.