Another Brick in the Wall

Amidst the Food Stamp Challenge and my resulting lightheadedness, I've neglected to keep up with the true purpose of this blog, or posting about fitness. I actually took a big step yesterday, and climbed for the first time since breaking my leg!!!

Photo credit http://bit.ly/XDFntS

I talked with a few folks at the gym, and found out it isn't uncommon or frowned upon for the less-abled to climb, with protective apparatus attached (i.e. my leg brace). I texted Katie, my climbing colleague, and we met at Pipeworks on the Veterans Day holiday for some climbing.

It turns out that Katie didn't like the idea of me belaying her, since if I caught a fall I might tweak my leg. She was thoughtful and supportive, though, and belayed me for quite a while after doing her cardio workout.

I started with a short 5.5, to see how I would do. I was immediately surprised by the different feel of climbing with one fully extended, non-useful leg. I used my arms a lot more. After another 5.5, I seemed to get the hang of it. I moved on to two 5.7s, then a 5.8 on the slab wall, and finished with a 5.9.

I definitely had an interesting technique. I used my arms to pull more than normal, and would pretty much hop from foot hold to foot hold on my right leg. Sometimes, I would match with my left leg and just put enough weight on it to allow me to get to a higher right foot hold, but often I'd hop. I employed the leanback a lot, and today am really feeling it in my core.

I'm super excited that I climbed, and even more excited to go back and do more routes soon. I don't think I'll go much above 5.10a or so for now, but that should be challenging enough. I was at Pipeworks today, and stuck to my weight and core routine, which is improving as well. I'm getting better at the assisted pull-ups every time I go it!