Climb Smarter: Top 5 Tips for New Climbers

Rock climbing has taken the world by storm over the last decade. With the historic ascents of the Dawn Wall, captained by Tommy Caldwell, the daring free solo of El Capitan by Alex Honnold, and the most challenging route in the world sent by Adam Ondra, new historical feats are happening every year in climbing.

A byproduct of the popularity is the rise in indoor climbing gyms worldwide. According to the Climbing Business Journal, as of 2024, there are nearly 900 climbing gyms in the United States. Over five million climbers attend an indoor climbing gym each year, and the number keeps rising.

It’s a perfect time to be a beginner climber. The state-of-the-art facilities and coaching classes available are the most extensive in history, providing you with the best possible start to this incredible activity. Discover the top five tips for beginner climbers to help them succeed and have fun.

Start with the Right Gear

Shoes. All you need to start is a pair of climbing shoes. While you can get by with the rental option at your local gym for some time, you’ll truly experience the difference climbing shoes can make once you get your own pair.

It can be challenging to make the initial investment in gear when you’re just starting out. After you’ve discovered you want to be a climber, instead of dropping hundreds of dollars and getting everything you need to go on an expedition, start small by picking up a pair of shoes and a chalk bag/chalk from an indoor climbing gym.

Learn the Language of the Wall

Understanding climbing grades will inform you of what you’re getting yourself into before you get on the wall. You’ll want to learn the V-Scale and the Yosemite Decimal Scale (YDS).

V-Scale: Used in bouldering. V0 is the easiest grade, while V17 is currently the hardest. As the number gets higher, the boulder gets harder!

YDS: Used in rope climbing. The 5 indicates a route that requires climbing, as opposed to hiking/scrambling. The period is an indicator for the following number, which notes the difficulty of the climb. Most gym climbs most accessible grades start around 5.5.

Once a YDS grade reaches 5.10, algebra comes into play (it’s not that bad, though, really). For every number 5.10 and above, to the world’s current hardest grade at 5.15d, each number can have a corresponding letter between a-d to note its difficulty further.

For example, a 5.10a is easier than a 5.10d, while a 5.11a is harder than a 5.10d. So on and so forth!

Technique Over Strength

The urge to pull yourself up the wall with your biceps is strong when you first start climbing. Who needs feet when you have upper body strength, right? Wrong. Your lower body is just as crucial for helping you stay on and get up a wall.

Learn to trust your feet and shift your weight to help you balance and step up onto holds, rather than relying solely on pulling yourself with your hands. Your forearms will thank you, allowing you to climb for longer!

Climb with Confidence

Yes, it’s easier said than done, but confidence is a learned trait! When climbing, try to focus on your breathing and one move at a time. By avoiding quick and shallow breaths, you can help avoid becoming overwhelmed on the wall, which will improve your confidence when making new moves.

A huge way to learn confidence on the wall is to fall off it. Yep, you read that right. Learning how to properly fall in a controlled environment can help you overcome your fear of the unknown when climbing, such as the concern “What if I slip right now?” An indoor climbing gym is the perfect place to learn how to fall. There are soft mats everywhere!

Consistency Is Key

To make progress on your indoor climbing gym journey quickly, you must stay consistent. Climb regularly, not randomly, and set a weekly rhythm. It can be helpful to form or find a group of friends who can regularly meet on a specific day of the week. This will help motivate you to improve while getting to mingle with your friends.

Tracking your progress can be helpful for some. Much like how many weightlifters have a notebook filled with workouts and their reps/sets, you can keep your own about the grades you can do, what you’re working on, and what you want to work toward. Be sure to note the angle of the wall when you keep track! A slab V2 is very different from an overhung V2!