I Don't See Any Camels

A smile hit my face and spread from ear to ear when I read Patti's e-mail saying that her trip had been canceled and that we could go climbing on the weekend.

Patti pulled a muscle doing the yoga portion of P90X. She would normally start out on a 5.8 to warm-up but started out in my neck of the woods on a 5.6. We played monkey see, monkey do for awhile. She climbed Truxton or Bust then I climbed it. I even attempted a 5.9 (Patti's neck of the woods) and made it half way up. When it was time to warm down, Patti asked me if I wanted to down climb the route. I did. When I came back down, Patti asked me if I wanted to climb the route again. I did. And I down climbed again. I went up. Down climbed. Patti looked at me with wide eyes.

Me: This might be the last straw...

Patti: I don't see any camels.

I went up again but this time I asked Patti to lower me because I was fatigued.

Down climbing was good though. I was much more aware of when my body wasn't squared off or when I wasn't properly balanced. It was a nice challenge to do laps on that route and I felt like I got in a great workout:

5.6, Truxton or Bust (Warm-Up)
5.8, Bright Idea
5.8, JW
5.9, One Liner (Attempted)
5.8, Face Plant
5.8, A Savage Salvage Project
5.6, Unnamed Yellow Route (Ascended 4x's & Down Climbed 3x's)

Here's a video with some tips on down climbing.

How to Down Climb a Rock Wall - Courtesy of Trails.com

And You're Ready Now?

It's amazing what a crowded Upper Limits will force me to do. I had already climbed Truxton or Bust (5.6), A Bright Idea (5.8), An Early Winter's Frost (5.7), Face Plant (5.8), Sol (5.7) and a 5.8 with simply JW on it.

Patti: Where to?

Me: I can't believe that I'm saying this but the red route i.e. the And You're Ready Now?, a 5.8b route

I knew that I was facing an uphill battle but there was, literally, nowhere else to go.

I made one attempt. Went back down to get some tips from Patti who suggested that I do a drop knee, a concept that I don't quite get yet. Patti asked Jamie, an Upper Limits staff member, if he would explain the concept. Jamie was demure -- said that he wasn't a good explainer but he did give me some good tips. He said that he tells people to turn their hip. He also told me that I needed to get my hip into the wall. Yeah, I have a problem with my butt being pushed out when I do planks too.

Furthermore, Jamie advised me to kind of squat with my legs and have straight arms when I was, well, not climbing or at a pausing point. And I'm thinking I can squat; I've been doing that a lot in Cardio and Muscle class.

Jamie also said that it's counterintuitive but you should not be climbing energetically. And that's me -- in a nutshell. I tend to attack things when I take on something (like an elephant in a china shop).

I attempted And You're Ready Now? about five times but, apparently, I wasn't ready. LOL.

I was thinking about buying a chalk bag on Etsy but I was worried about the size. Earlier, I asked Patti if she remembered how tall her bag was and she said that I could check it out when we went climbing today. Surprise, surprise. Patti handed me a chalk bag and chalk ball from Jessica -- what a nice surprise.


Now, I just need to get a harness and I'll be an official rock climber.

In addition to calluses, I got another rock climbing memento from a drop knee of a different sort. I do need to be a little less energetic...



Check out this chica dropping knees all over the place.

Calluses Rising

I felt like it would be a good day for rock climbing and my instinct was right. I was more relaxed plus I had watched some videos and read some tips.

I found this info in Indoor Rock Climbing Information and Tips! particularly helpful.

8. Climb in an X shape with your hips being the middle of the X. Hang with your arm straight. Your skeleton can take much more of a load than your muscles can. If the heel of your foot is hanging too far down you may notice your leg start to shake like a “sewing machine”. This is very common occurrence, simply apply more weight to your toes so your calf muscle spasm can stop.

I made it up my nemesis, the 5.8 Face Plant route and I also made it up another 5.8. I had some false starts, takes and marching orders from Patti who, I believe, said finish the freakin' route (newest and scarier 5.8 nemesis). I was about two holds away from the top when I thought I couldn't make it. Jessica said that her mom does not use freakin' very often. Patti was a firecracker all morning and I did finish the route. LOL.

I was surprised, though, when Patti told me that she didn't feel like an athlete. Okay, the woman is a great rock climber and that, alone, qualifies her for athlete status.

Here's the Dynamic Duo (i.e. my main rock climbing partners in crime) waiting for a route to clear.


And here are my budding calluses:

Causes
Corns and calluses are caused by pressure or friction on skin. A corn is thickened skin on the top or side of a toe, usually from shoes that do not fit properly. A callus is thickened skin on your hands or the soles of your feet.

The thickening of the skin is a protective reaction. For example, farmers and rowers get callused hands that prevent them from getting painful blisters. People with bunions often develop a callus over the bunion because it rubs against the shoe.

Neither corns nor calluses are serious conditions.

I've been finding some short but helpful videos about rock climbing. This guy says it helps if you climb with someone who climbs at or above your level and the Dynamic Duo definitely fit the bill in the above category, I might add.