Climbing sucked me in with its culture of aggressive friendliness and addictive progress.
I hope I never leave.
When, I wondered, would I be able to go to the gym again?
And, maybe most importantly, was everyone hanging out at the gym without me?
This was historically without precedent.
Thetrendhas beenpicking up steamfor years, especially since the sport made itsOlympic debutin 2020.
It seems like everyone has a bouldering photo on their dating profile or a carabiner holding their keys together.
Im at peace with that.
The cutie, sad to say, proved too elusive to get anything regular going with.
I was looking for satisfaction that had nothing to do with a paycheck.
For me, climbing offered the perfect cocktail of motivating factors.
Still, at the end of the day, its me against the wall.
If I lose, I havent tanked anyone elses shot at the playoffs.
Friends are a key ingredient in climbing, both for practical reasons and moral support.
The good news is that if you dont already have them, they will be easy to find.
No rom-com-style meet-cutes at the gym yet, but Im holding out hope.
Of course, there are barriers to entry.
I once briefly, for about six months at the end of college, got into running.
I kept squeezing my forearms and hoping they wouldnt waste away before I could get back in the game.
But if I had to, I would.
source: www.bustle.com
