Life Lessons from Rock Climbing

There were a lot of lessons learned in this one..mainly because I’m afraid of falling from high surfaces and I’m scared of heights.  Many thanks to my friend Christine who decided to come with me on this adventure.  


Some things we learned about climbing and life:

• Sometimes, you need to do opposite of what you think needs to be done.  My first thought was that I didn’t have the upper body strength to climb...what I found out was that it was all in the legs.
  
  

• My first instinct was to try to use my arms and muscle my way up however, it takes way too much energy and it is not efficient for long periods of time.  How many times in life do we try to force our way to make things happen?  Suggested book reading: Power vs Force by David R. Hawkins.
  

• The people at the gym were very helpful, it was a community environment and we had to learn the rules.  People saw that we were beginners and came to help us.  They showed us how to start and in some cases, how to climb the path….and they made it look easy!  People can show you the way, yet you need to walk or in this case, climb through the door.
  
  
• I observed some of my thoughts and they were excuses I had, I’m not strong enough, tall enough, etc and the someone who was shorter than me would come along and do what I could not.  That was inspiring to see that with practice, it would be possible as well
  
  
• Christine learned that she couldn't let go when she got to a certain point and that was keeping her from reaching the next hold on her path.  You can’t reach the next step if you’re not willing to let go of the one that you are on.
  
  
• Sometimes you need guides as they can see things that you can't.  We were watching each other to help the other person know where to go.
  
  
• Once you get use to falling, it’s not such a big deal.  Once you get use to failing and failing often, it gets easier to get back up.  Fail and fall often.  Learn from each attempt.
  
  
• Falling with grace.  There is a way to fall gracefully.  The more you fall, the easier it is.

We had a blast.  Our arms were sore, I couldn’t even grip the steering wheel of my car when driving home, but I felt great! Remember to keep trying new things!  If you think rock climbing or bouldering could be for you, http://www.verticalreal.com/home/index_e.php