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elliott_00
Oct 22, 2006, 2:21 PM
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I want to be a good climber, but I feel I am to big for the sport. Looking at trying to get smaller. For the time being, I was wondering if any one had any technical advice for me until I get a little smaller.
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rockguide
Oct 22, 2006, 2:29 PM
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If your only goal is to be a high end sponsored athlete, you might be out of luck.
If your goal is to have fun, meet great people, get stronger and have great adventures, you have come to the right sport.
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elliott_00
Oct 22, 2006, 2:31 PM
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My goals are to have fun and to meet good people. But I also want to become a good climber in the process. I don't want to climb to make money.
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rockguide
Oct 22, 2006, 3:10 PM
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Welcome!
:D
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bear829
Oct 22, 2006, 3:25 PM
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Well E, size really doesn't matter. The only thing that does, is that you are willing to climb and get progressively better at it the more you climb. If you are truely worried about your weight, just do lots of cardio in addition to your new climbing routine. Don't forget to stretch! Good luck and welcome. Climb on!
Sarah
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elliott_00
Oct 22, 2006, 3:29 PM
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Thanks for the advice. Im starting to run and other cardio exercizes. Elliott
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carpenterdude
Oct 22, 2006, 3:36 PM
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Focus on good technique.
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rockguide
Oct 22, 2006, 3:37 PM
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In reply to: Thanks for the advice. Im starting to run and other cardio exercizes. Elliott
Just don't put off the climbing part. Really. Get amongst it.
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c4c
Oct 22, 2006, 4:50 PM
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Aid! What weight you gain with a huge rack you will lose with effort!
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chossmonkey
Oct 22, 2006, 6:26 PM
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Use your feet better.
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overlord
Oct 22, 2006, 7:11 PM
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In reply to: My goals are to have fun and to meet good people. But I also want to become a good climber in the process. I don't want to climb to make money.
you know, being a 'good climber' does not neccesary mean 'climb har routes'.
for me, a good climber is (mostly) fun, willing to help others, safe, know a lot about climbing (how to build anchors, how to bivy, retreat etc) and is having a good time while pushing hes/hers limits. grades climbed are not even on the list; in fact i know a few climbers that climb hard routes but i would never consider them being a 'good climber'.
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sungam
Oct 22, 2006, 10:00 PM
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To lose weight, Bike, Row, or Run, first two are better, but last one is good too.
In the meantime, sounds like you will be working on your technique alot!
You actually have an advantige, your strength AND technique will rise greatly while you are heavy, then you will burn it off, and then your strength will be proportionally higher, and you've got beastly technique!
Send hard!
-Magnus
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iamcolinslack
Oct 22, 2006, 10:19 PM
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I like beer too much to worry about that shit.
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agoodnap
Oct 24, 2006, 4:48 AM
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I started climbing just about a year ago. I am not sure what you think of as big, but I have gone from a 16 to a size 8. Don't let it stop you! Find supportive people to go with and just keep doing it. You will find yourself being able to climb higher, last longer and use your own body differently.
Granted, I was excercising and changed my diet... but climbing was my goal!
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chossmonkey
Oct 24, 2006, 1:22 PM
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In reply to: I started climbing just about a year ago. I am not sure what you think of as big, but I have gone from a 16 to a size 8. Don't let it stop you! Find supportive people to go with and just keep doing it. You will find yourself being able to climb higher, last longer and use your own body differently. Granted, I was excercising and changed my diet... but climbing was my goal!
That's awesome! :righton:
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the_climber
Oct 24, 2006, 9:59 PM
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Hey, I'm not a light climber either, but I have fun and I think I do pretty good too. the game of life dictates your weight will go up and down, just deal with it.
A small amount of Technique will go further than loosing a small amount of weight. There are LOTS of 200+lbs climber out there who are good climbers and who climb hard.
Just always remember to have fun (however you define "fun")
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fricckinfracck
Nov 7, 2006, 7:39 AM
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Not just in climbing, but normally those who are in good shape should not have much trouble handling their own body weight, regardless of what their body weight is. Your legs are used to carrying you around, and a general rule of thumb is that a "fit" person should be able to lift their own body weight a decent amount of times with just their arms (well arms and chest if you want to be technical).
However, I am not sure if this applies to climbing. I would assume so though.
As far as losing weight, that is one of my specialties. I have a guide that I put together for my squadron on getting in shape. PM me if you would like me to email it to you. It covers cardio, different methods of working out, and the most important thing...a healthy diet. In short though, here are a few tips.
::Try and do cardio in the morning when your stomach is empty. The body will need energy and will try to get it by using food. The food in your belly will have already been digested and used while you slept, so the body will look to its next source, which is body fat. The norm for a good cardio workout is 30 minutes of a continuous workout, so start with a pace you can do for 30 minutes with no break and work up from there.
::Eat MORE...If you are working out hard, and doing a decent amount of cardio, your body will require more energy each day. Just make sure that the calories you are putting into your body are good calories. Not calories from junk food. When you eat the proper amount, you will not suffer from cravings as much. Try to eat a small meal every few hours to keep your metabolism up. I suggest taking your daily intake and dividing it into 4-5 meals. Remember this though, only eat until you are not hungry. If you are eating until you feel full, you are eating too much.
::Cut out the sugar. Anything that has a "wheat" variation, go with the wheat kind. Pasta, bread, crackers etc can all be replaced with wheat instead of white.
--Cutting sugar will improve your energy as well as cause your body to store less fat.
::Drink healthy. Cut soda out completely. Drink only water and juices. Try and pick healthy natural juices. Water is the best though, it is like oil in a car. Having enough water will allow your body to do everything it is supposed to do in an efficient manner. Especially burning fat.
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chanceboarder
Nov 7, 2006, 7:58 AM
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In reply to: you know, being a 'good climber' does not neccesary mean 'climb har routes'. for me, a good climber is (mostly) fun, willing to help others, safe, know a lot about climbing (how to build anchors, how to bivy, retreat etc) and is having a good time while pushing hes/hers limits. grades climbed are not even on the list; in fact i know a few climbers that climb hard routes but i would never consider them being a 'good climber'.
Jason
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tisar
Nov 7, 2006, 9:01 AM
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There's this great article on loosing weight by jt512. Definitely worth reading!
Just don't forget to have fun...
- Daniel
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fenderfour
Nov 15, 2006, 7:00 PM
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[reply]I like beer too much to worry about that shit.[/reply]
Beer is usually not the problem. It's all that fatty food people eat with it.
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shrug7
Nov 16, 2006, 5:42 PM
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When I started climbing about 6 months ago, I was close to 275lbs. (big climber) However now i'm about 230ish and I have a goal of about 200ish.
What really helped was just a combination of Climbing. I try to get to the gym at least 3 or 4 time a week. and just a change in diet really helped. I.e Take out all the crap.
As far as technical advice.
Climb with your legs.
Rely very little on your arms. They will tier very very quickly however they will build up after time.
Get a good harness that fits well and make sure the belay loop is as center as you can get. I recommend the Petzl Corax.
A note on harnesses for bigger climbers. Check them after each fall no matter how short of a fall it was. I managed to rip the stitching out of 2 harnesses after some 10 and 15 foot falls.
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yokese
Nov 18, 2006, 1:14 AM
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In reply to: ... a general rule of thumb is that a "fit" person should be able to lift their own body weight a decent amount of times with just their arms (well arms and chest if you want to be technical)...
I'd say that we all have seen "chubby" but technically skilled climbers hike up crimpy 5.11s that would spank many big-guns "20ish-pulluppers".
Anyways, since this thread is in begginers forum, I'd say to the OP: just climb and enjoy, probably your weight or height are not the main detrimental factors in your performance.
As others have already pointed out, healthy diet is very helpful in getting an appropiate weight.
(This post was edited by yokese on Nov 18, 2006, 1:39 AM)
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BIGcrazy
Nov 24, 2006, 8:20 PM
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I was 311 when I started climbing, you may end up with a lot of tough climbs that you can't finish, oh well.
I am 280 now I can't do a single chin up but I can flash jsut about an 5.9 indoors.
Think of it this way your weight and you lack of skill will hold you back right, so if you both tackle your lack of skill adn your weight at the same time you will improve quicker than your lighter friends, why because you will have the strength to climb witha heavier weight but be lighter
feel me?
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BIGcrazy
Nov 24, 2006, 8:31 PM
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My biggest challenge is finding a properly fitting harness, and well geting my buck 40 buddies to belay outdoor wherre there is nothing to tie down to can be a challedge, but on the plus side if I pull them up we get two people thinking about how to finsh the route instead of one
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hugin
Nov 25, 2006, 9:19 PM
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Hope I'm not too late to have an impact, but I just wnated to interject.
I was, at my peak, about 250. I wanted to get back into climbing, but I worried I was too heavy (that did, in part, stem from the fact that I have a history of connective tissue disorders in my family, and I didn't wnat to overstress my joints, but that was somewhat of an excuse rather than a reason given that I'm in my mid 20's). So, I put it off for, like, 2 years while I worked to lose weight. I lost a good 50-60 pounds before I started climbing again, but I hated every step of every run, because it was just about losing the weight. Dietary changes were easy for me, because I love just about every kind of food there is, so I could enjoy eating a healthier diet just as much. The moderation was a little difficult.
What I've found now, though, is that getting more weight off and keeping the weight off are *much* easier since I started climbing because I *enjoy* the exercise I'm getting to the point that I can't wait to get out of work just to go climb in the gym. It's almost unbearable to wait until I get to a crag or a bouldering spot. I found that I regret waiting to start climbing just because of my weight.
Have fun.
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