Few sports offer the sort of excitement you can expect from rock climbing, whether that’s at an indoor climbing wall or scaling a mountain. That also means that it can seem like a daunting sport to try, with far greater risks than something like running or cycling. Getting involved can also be a trickier prospect, from finding where to do it to buying the kit you’ll need.

But if you can get over those small hurdles, rock climbing offers a fun and safe way to make friends and stay fit. It also opens up a whole new way to enjoy the outdoors, adding a dose of adrenaline and rewarding you with fantastic views – if you get high enough.

The main thing for beginners venturing into the world of rock climbing is to learn the ropes – literally. The best way to do this is to find a qualified instructor that can teach you the fundamentals of staying safe. Once you have the basics down there’s a wealth of information that can be accessed online, from tutorials to YouTube videos covering specific aspects of how to develop your skills.

In this guide, we’ll run through some of the most important information for beginners looking to take up climbing.

Getting Started With Climbing

Your local indoor climbing wall is a great place to start climbing and means that you can learn the basics in a safe and fun environment. Bouldering – low-level climbing without ropes – is a good way to begin honing the necessary skills, and all you need is a pair of climbing shoes and some chalk. Most walls will offer shoes for hire, so you don’t need to invest in a pair until you feel you’re ready.

If you want to try indoor climbing with ropes, then you’ll also need a harness, which can be hired from most climbing centres as well. Your local venue will also be able to provide you with an instructor to learn the basics, such as tying into the rope and belaying your partner.

The British Mountaineering Council (BMC) has a number of resources to help get you started, including finding your closest climbing wall.

Going From Indoor Walls To Outside

Climbing indoors is great fun and many people prefer to stick to those walls rather than ever heading to the great outdoors. For many, however, the prospect of climbing up some actual rock is the end goal. To do that you’ll need to make some adjustments. As well as requiring specialised kit, you’ll need to add some extra skills to your repertoire. One of the best ways to make the transition is to join a local mountaineering club where you’ll be able to find support and guidance from like-minded people. You can also book an instructor for a group introductory session.

Finding An Instructor

When looking for guidance to improve your skills you should ensure that you hire a qualified Rock Climbing Instructor or Rock Climbing Development Instructor. You’ll find these via the Mountain Training Association. If you want to do something a bit more adventurous such as a multi-pitch route you’ll need a mountaineering and climbing instructor or a British mountain guide. For indoor training use a qualified climbing wall instructor.

You can also consider attending events like the Arc’teryx Lakeland Academy. This annual weekend-long event aims to educate and share skills so that climbers can enjoy the crags safely. It includes clinics for complete beginners and runs several women-only sessions. It’s friendly, inclusive and has a welcoming low-key festival vibe. It’s also a great way to try kit for free before making expensive purchases. 

Where And When To Go

The UK has loads of great places to climb, from big mountain multi-pitch routes to roadside single-pitch crags and sea cliffs. You can also climb on all rock types and do both sport and traditional climbing. For beginners, the best time to climb is during the spring and autumn and you should always aim to head out on a dry day.

See related

• The Best Places to Go Rock Climbing in London
• Where to Start Rock Climbing Outdoors
• Rock Climbing in Yosemite

Essential Climbing Kit

If you’re new to rock climbing, check with your instructor what they provide. For your first few times, you can get away with climbing in your trainers, but if you get into it, you’ll want to buy some rock shoes. You’ll also need a helmet, a harness, a belay device and some chalk as a bare minimum. If you really get into it, rock climbing is a great hobby for gear junkies, with kit and upgrades galore.

Always make sure you wear something comfortable that’s baggy or stretchy enough to allow plenty of movement. Even in summer, a few extra layers are a good idea because there will be parts of the day where you’re not moving and the crag might be windy or shaded.

Climbing Tips For Beginners

There are certain techniques that can make climbing easier for beginners, and ensuring that you’re moving effectively can save energy and help you feel more confident. We spoke to Katy Whittaker, an elite-level climber and Arc’teryx ambassador, for her top tips for beginners starting out.

• Climbing might look like it is all upper-body strength – which can seem like an intimidating prospect – but it actually very much requires technique rather than sheer strength.
• Focus on your feet first. Make sure you place them carefully on the best holds that you can find and keep your weight over them.
• Always think about your hip positioning – try to move into different positions so you know which ones make moves easier or harder. Try moving your hips from side to side and closer and further away from the wall.

Free climbing is both the best and the worst way to introduce yourself to the sport. It all depends on what you mean by free. One type of free is without having to spend money, which is an excellent way to try something for the first time and see if you like it without investing anything beyond your time.

The other kind of free climbing is climbing without aids like pegs and pitons, which is something that complete newbies should definitely avoid. Rest assured we’re talking about the type where your wallet stays in your trousers throughout.

Global Climbing Day falls on 18th August and to celebrate the occasion The North Face is putting on free climbing events all over the world. Last year 20,000 people took part in The North Face’s Global Climbing Day events, and this year the outdoor gear brand is hoping that 100,000 people will join in as part of its Walls Are Meant For Climbing campaign.

See related

• The Best Places to Go Rock Climbing in London
• Where to Start Rock Climbing Outdoors
• Legendary Free Climber Alex Honnold On How To Control Fear

For every person that registers to climb at one of the 150 centres in the campaign The North Face will donate $1 to Khumbu Climbing Center in Nepal (up to $100,000), an institution that promotes safe climbing and offers vocational training for the people who live there. So even if you don’t enjoy climbing at all you can at least go home safe in the knowledge that you helped contribute to a charitable cause.

In the UK there are five confirmed climbing centres participating: in London, Stronghold Climbing in Tottenham Hale, Barbers Climbing Gym in Hackney and Hackney Wick Boulder Project will have free entry all day, while Harrow Wall is free from 2-6pm; and in Manchester, Rock Over Climbing is offering free entrance from 2-7pm.

All the centres will have experts on hand to help get you set up and ready to climb, and if you opt to go bouldering you won’t need to learn the ins and outs of ropes and harnesses because it doesn’t use them. Not because everyone who does bouldering is a daredevil, but because you don’t go high enough to need them, making it perfect for beginner climbers.

Register for one of the limited spots as quickly as you can at The North Face website.

Bouldering for three hours a week can help treat depression, reducing the sufferer’s symptoms from moderate to mild, according to a small study conducted in Germany.

In the study, 100 participants were split into two groups. One group immediately started bouldering – climbing short routes without ropes or harnesses – while the other waited to start the sport. The intervention lasted eight weeks, with participants bouldering for three hours a week, before a follow-up period that took the total length of the study to 24 weeks.

Throughout the period participants, who were mostly new to bouldering, were also given advice on how to build positive social interactions, and taught about mindfulness and meditation.

Within the group that started bouldering immediately, the participants’ Beck’s Depression Inventory scores – a widely used test for measuring the severity of depression – improved by 6.27 points, enough to see their symptoms classed as mild rather than moderate. In the delayed-start group, the improvement was only 1.4 points.

RECOMMENDED: The Best Places to Go Rock Climbing in London

There are several aspects of bouldering the team behind the study believe could help sufferers of depression. “Bouldering, in many ways, is a positive physical activity,” says study lead Eva-Maria Stelzer from the University of Arizona.

“There are different routes for your physical activity level, and there’s a social aspect along with the feeling of an immediate accomplishment when bouldering.”

The lack of ropes and harnesses also means bouldering requires a high level of concentration if you don’t want to take a tumble.

“You have to be mindful and focused on the moment,” says Stelzer. “It does not leave much room to let your mind wander on to things that may be going on in your life – you have to focus on not falling.”

The team behind the study believe bouldering could complement traditional care for depression. It is not being suggested that it can replace other treatments entirely.

Other physical activities like yoga and running have also been shown to have a positive effect on the symptoms of depression in the past, and Katharina Luttenberger from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg in Germany, who co-led the study, stressed that people should try any sport they enjoy.

RECOMMENDED: How To Use Running To Help Your Mental Health

“I’d always encourage patients to do the sport they like – climbing or something else – as sport is a wonderful possibility to prevent all possible sorts of illnesses, mental and physical,” says Luttenberger.

We’d definitely agree with that last point. If you’re keen to give bouldering a go, you’re in luck, because new centres are springing up all over the UK.

RECOMMENDED: Where To Boulder In And Near London

Could the phrase “They don’t make ‘em like they used to?” be any more appropriate than when applied to the mountaineers of the olden days? There they were, stood at the foot of some cloud-shrouded peak, ready to scale their way to the top in little more than a down jacket, Old Faithfuls laced to their feet, a couple of sandwiches in their pocket and a do-or-die mentality. 

There’s no denying it’s a romantic and hugely masculine image. But that was then. This is now. And things have come a long way. And as much as we’d all love to channel the hardy spirit of ye olde adventurer complete with frozen beard and frostbitten finger nubs, taking on a pinnacle without an arsenal of modern tech and equipment just seems, well, a little irresponsible these days.

With that in mind, we’ve made a top-drawer kit list for you to tick off before you take your first step on the vertical climb. And boy, have we covered all your inevitabilities. We’ve got essential tools like Black Diamond’s crampon foot grips and that all-important helmet. There's Finisterre’s weather-beating outerwear, and even a spicy, masculine scent to splash on to mask the days of hard graft when you reach the bottom again. See? We’ve thought of it all.  

• Finisterre Eddy base layer top, £50; Eddy short sleeve T-shirt; £42, finisterre.com 
• Pulsar Chronograph watch with orange runner strap, £125, pulsarwatches-europe.com 
• Karrimor Hot Rock walking boots, £35, buy on karrimor.com
• Black Diamond Mojo Repo chalk bag, £12, buy on snowandrock.com
• Adidas Tycane Pro sunglasses, £178, buy on sunglasses-shop.co.uk
• Finisterre Incus gilet, £95, buy on finisterre.com 
• Hugo Boss Boss: The Scent, eau de toilette, £47, buy on hugoboss.com 
• Black Diamond Snaggletooth crampon foot grips, £140, buy on blackdiamondequipment.com
• Black Diamond Victor helmet, £75, buy on snowandrock.com
• Black Diamond Easy Rider Via Ferrata set, £79, buy on rockrun.com

Only the most masochistic can sustain a fitness regime they don’t enjoy, so it’s always music to Coach’s ears when someone attempts to make exercise more entertaining, and few things sound as fun as clambering around a climbing wall attempting to splat virtual bats.

That’s just one of the games on offer with the Augmented Climbing Wall. Created by a Finnish startup with the aim of making climbing, already a pretty enjoyable pursuit, even more exciting. Games are projected onto the climbing wall, and respond to how the players move via a variety of sensors that effectively turn the wall into a giant touch screen.

All you need is a climbing wall, which is admittedly a tall order for most homeowners. However, with luck, the Augmented Climbing kit will be taken up by bouldering centres around the world, as international orders are now available. Given the games and apps available on the Augmented Climbing Wall, it’s well worth petitioning your local centre to be the first to embrace the tech.

RECOMMENDED: The Best Places to Go Rock Climbing in London

The Games

There are currently four games available with the Augmented Climbing Wall, with fresh developments in the works.

Whack-a-Bat

Scamper around the wall as fast as you can to deal with the bat infestation that has taken root in this endurance game.

Augmented Problems

This might be the best feature of all. The Augmented Climbing System allows users to create and project an unlimited amount of routes onto the same wall, so you never run out of new upward paths to conquer. There’s even an interactive teacher mode, where beginners can follow 
a virtual climber up to the top.

Climball

Two players mount the wall and bat a ball back and forth, air hockey style, until one manages to sneak it past their opponent and score.

Sparks

An electric maze is projected onto the wall. Climbers can use any holds they like, as long as they don’t come into contact with the fizzing beams of electricity.

augmentedclimbing.com

The Paralympic Games are upon us. One athlete who won’t be in Rio, but is already lining up a spot at a future Paralympics, is 15-year-old Matthew Phillips, who was born without his right arm below the elbow and is already part of the GB Paraclimbing Team.

What originally got 
you into climbing?

The first times that I ever went rock climbing were 
at parties, and I always 
really enjoyed that. I was 
a swimmer before but it began to get quite dull, and 
I needed something new. 
I went along to the London edition of the Paraclimbing series, which is the event 
to get into the team, and 
I managed to come second there. I then went on to seek professional coaching, and 
I haven’t stopped since.

Is there someone who inspired you?

The people who inspired me have always been the people who overcome anything they have in their past and go for it. I want to prove that I’m 
not just a disabled climber – 
I can be as strong as any of the other climbers can be. My coach Robin O’Leary has always been a big inspiration for me. He’s been really supportive and helped me push myself.

RECOMMENDED: “I have High Expectations of Myself” – Paralympian Gordon Reid

What are you looking forward to in the Paralympics?

I was a national swimmer. 
My aim was to get into the Paralympics there. I didn’t manage to do that, but 
it means a lot to me. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do and I’m really looking forward to watching the swimming in particular.

Sport climbing will 
be on the Olympic 
roster in 2020, and they’re pushing for
 inclusion in the 
Paralympics, too. Is that 
an aim for the future?

Definitely. It’s always something I’ve wanted to 
do. Hopefully it will make it in. It would mean a lot to me to compete. It’s a goal of mine to prove that everybody who is disabled can do any sport they want if they really want to.

Matthew stars in this 
year’s Channel 4 Paralympics advert Yes 
I Can. You can watch over 600 hours coverage of the Paralympic Games across all Channel 4 platforms.

While London doesn’t have any mountains to conquer, climbers are still spoilt for choice when it comes to indoor walls, with over 20 climbing centres across the capital. Whether you’re a beginner or regular climber, there’s a good chance you’ll be able to do it in a convenient location on your side of town. But what if you’re looking for something specific? We asked Maja Wis, who’s been climbing for nearly a decade and has tried almost all of London’s walls, to recommend the best spot for rope climbs, bouldering and having the wall to yourself. And, of course, what the café’s like.

RECOMMENDED: Where to Start Rock Climbing Outdoors

Best for Climbing with Ropes: The Castle

You’ll find more than 450 top-rope and lead climb routes (you need your own ropes for the latter), ranging from 4 to 8a, in this north London centre. The centre spans several floors and includes some bouldering, a campus board and a gym. If you’re just starting out, though, it may not be the one to commit to: “It’s got the most expensive membership, and since I prefer bouldering, it feels like I’m never using all it has to offer when I climb there,” Wis says.

Planning to spend all day climbing? There’s no need to leave the premises to eat. “The Castle also has a cute café serving food from their garden,” Wis says, “which is definitely worth mentioning.” The café is closed at the moment, but in the meantime, they’ve built an outdoor café serving delicious stone-baked pizzas. castle-climbing.co.uk

Best for Bouldering: Mile End Climbing Wall

“Mile End is definitely in my top two [along with The Arch, below],” Wis says. “It always has the best atmosphere. I really like how friendly people are – you can strike up a conversation with a random stranger.” The centre also has some of the highest walls without roped protection in London, as well as the Monkey Room where you can boulder across the ceiling, which is why Mile End is Wis’s top choice for bouldering in London. The centre also includes decent training areas such as the Board Room for more advanced climbers to take on more technical routes.

“The Board Room is definitely not for beginners because it’s really easy to get an injury if you don’t know what you’re doing or if your fingers are not strong enough,” Wis says. The room has a 50° wall and Beastmaker equipment – cunningly designed wooden climbing kit perfect for practising – to play on, giving a challenge to even the most experienced boulderers. Mile End also has some of the cheapest prices: adult entry is just £7.50. mileendwall.org.uk

Best All-Rounder: The Arch

“The Arch is definitely the best for variety,” Wis says. “Under one membership, you get to climb three walls: Building1, The Biscuit Factory and The Arch North.” The newest of the three walls is The Arch North, which is divided into ten areas, mostly made up of overhanging climbs. There’s also an extensive slab wall, a horizontal roof and barrel wall feature, two large standalone boulder islands and some of the most impressive strength training facilities you’ll find anywhere, including a 45° training board, gym rings and fingerboards (for training grip and technique) as well as gym equipment. archclimbingwall.com

Best Place to Improve: Westway

If you’re looking for a challenge, take a trip to Westway in White City. Westway has 350 climbing routes and 110 roped lines, graded from F3 to F8a, as well as up to 100 bouldering problems, changed every four weeks, up to V10. It has one of the overhanging wooden walls with rungs known as a campus board, as well as gymnastic rings, lapis balls – spherical climbing holds designed to improve your bouldering skills – and Beastmaker fingerboards, which makes it a great centre for variety as well as strength and conditioning. A lot of London climbers say the grading at Westway is tougher than the other indoor centres, giving you fewer easy wins and forcing you to push yourself harder for longer. If you’re committed to improving your climbing, Westway’s your best bet. sports.westway.org/climbing

Best for Beginners: VauxWall

VauxWall is a bouldering-only climbing centre (so expect low ceilings), with over 250 routes to choose from. The venue’s stand-out feature is the grading system, which uses easily distinguishable colours and patterns so you won’t get lost reaching for a V5 hold when you’re looking for V1. “Vauxhall is convenient if you work in central London and can avoid the crowded times,” Wis says. “Unfortunately it’s a bit small, so it gets overcrowded really quickly, and the sets are either super easy or very hard. I found little in the V4 area.”

If you do live or work nearby and are just starting out, it’s ideal. “It’s good for beginners,” Wis says, “as there are quite a few easy problems and it has the lowest walls of all the centres. It’s a good place to introduce bouldering to a beginner who is a bit unsure about heights.” vauxwallclimbing.co.uk

Best for Having it All to Yourself: The Reach

The Reach has 80 top-rope routes up to 11m and 50 lead climbs, all ranging from grades 4 to 8a. “The Reach in Woolwich is good for ropes and has a fantastic café,” says Wis. “I thought the bouldering was very uneven though – there were low-grade problems that were more difficult than they were supposed to be and higher-grade problems I could walk up.”

Sure, getting to an industrial estate next to the Thames Barrier in Woolwich takes time if you don’t live nearby – but that does mean it doesn’t get as busy as the other climbing centres, and you won’t have to queue for routes as you might at a lot of the other London centres. thereach.org.uk

RECOMMENDED: Rock Climbing in Yosemite

Rock Climbing Courses

The National Mountain Sports Centre in the heart of Snowdonia offers challenges no matter what your climbing level. No experience at all? Try the two- or five-day Learn To Climb courses for £195 and £600 respectively. If you have a little experience indoors and want to head outdoors a two-day course is £250 and five-day course £635.

Peak District company Pure Outdoor leads climbers on trips around popular spots like Stanage, Burbage and Millstone. For those with little or no experience there’s either an outdoor rock climbing taster day or outdoor beginner bouldering course (both £85 for one day).

The Sea Cliffs and Quarries venues in Swanage and Portland are close by in Dorset and Freeborn Climbing provide specialist climbing courses along the coast, including a two-day introduction costing £150. Offers opportunities for bouldering, rope climbing and even “deep water soloing” – free climbing (with no rope or harness) on rocks that overhang the sea at heights of between 10-50 metres.

RECOMMENDED: Where to Go Rock Climbing in London

5 Awesome Climbs for Beginners

Some climbs look harder than they actually are – these five locations are suitable for those in their first six-12 months of climbing, but still merit bragging rights

Southern Sandstone

This is probably the most accessible outdoor crag rope climbing opportunity for Londoners, being located in Tunbridge Wells. The routes are accessible for all different levels, though a Rockfax guide book is recommended to help you find your feet: it has gradings, descriptions and other helpful information.

The Cuttings

Inland crags on the Portland coastline in Dorset with fantastic views, The Cuttings have high climbs on vertical rock with routes to suit all levels including a well-used beginner wall and other far more difficult routes. Sheltered enough to be climbable all year round.

Winspit Quarry

As the name suggests, this is a disused quarry, situated near The Isle of Purbeck in Dorset. Sheltered enough to allow climbers to experiment with a wide variety of routes even during the winter months.

Stanage Edge

This Peak District climb is all grit, grit and more grit. Head for The Plantation for bouldering, Grotto Slab for an easier rope climb and up the highest point, High Neb (458m above sea level), as much a pilgrimage point as a peak.

FountaineBleu

A legendary bouldering hot spot just outside Paris. It has its own unique rock formations (mostly sandstone boulders) and is full of crags and rocks that go up to 15 metres in height. Where many climbers go, a strong climbing scene also follows. Expect climbing, climbing and more climbing.

RECOMMENDED: Rock Climbing in Yosemite

Learning to climb in Yosemite National Park is a bit like choosing to do your first 5km race at the Olympic Stadium or trying your first round of golf at the Augusta National. It’s inspiring, but it’s also a lot of pressure. Rock climbing as we know it came of age at Yosemite, and in North America climbs are rated by difficulty on the Yosemite Decimal System. But you can’t let the fact it’s beloved by experts make you think it’s no place for beginners.

Swan Slab is an ideal starting point for newcomers – at 60ft in height at its lowest point it will still make you feel like a hero when you complete an ascent. As with all new activities, there’s plenty to learn. Depending on what time of year you go, for example, mosquitoes could be out in force, so make sure you’re well sprayed with suitable repellent. If one of the little b*stards starts draining your blood mid-climb there’s not really a lot you can do about it.

Lesson two is that it’s hard to write about climbing. Not because it’s difficult to convey the experience, but because your fingertips can be so frayed and tender from a day of doing it that using a keyboard is a painful endeavour. As a beginner, you don’t spend much time pulling yourself up by your fingers, but they’ll come into contact with enough rough rock to make you feel like you’ve worn a layer away. Experienced climbers develop tougher skin, but the average pampered office worker will find it a rather chastening experience initially.

To make any progress up a mountain you’ll need some ill-fitting climbing shoes. The odd-looking, smooth-soled, tight-fitting footwear (“They should feel comfortably snug”, I was told as I tried them on, “without pinching”) is the most essential piece of kit you’ll wear. Although you should never attempt to climb without a helmet, at least it’s possible to do so, but without these shoes you won’t make it up to the first toehold.

RECOMMENDED: The Best Places to Go Rock Climbing in London

Before you begin a climb you need to wipe the soles on your trousers to clear off the grit and dust that will prevent your shoes from sticking to the wall. As tight as mine were I actually wish I’d got them even tighter because it helps you stick in the toeholds.

Contrary to what you might guess, your leg muscles will be the workhorses when you start climbing. Any visions you had of it being an extreme pull-ups session will be obliterated when you discover how important it is to “step up”. Once you have a climbing shoe pushed in a toehold with your knee bent, you then have to push hard through your thighs to straighten up enough to find the next spot. Solid quad strength will be a bonus here, but calves can get tired quite quickly. I’d been suffering off and on with Achilles pain from hill running back in the UK, and also uphill hiking in Yosemite the day before (12 miles and the equivalent of 210 flights of stairs), so this came back with a vengeance when I was standing in toeholds looking for the next step, because of the way your toes can point up and stretch out your Achilles. So don’t stop for too long if you can help it.

I’m not scared of heights but I have a pretty healthy fear of putting myself in a position where I could realistically fall to my doom from a great distance. This was most pressing at the very beginning when we had to abseil (or “rapel” as the Americans call it) down a rock for the first time. Although I knew it was safe – someone had already done it and I was firmly attached to the anchor – persuading my feet to step off, and for my upper body to lean back, took more work than I expected. It feels totally counter-intuitive – and bonkers – but once the first step was taken and I could feel myself supported by the harness I was able to relax and even enjoy it. It’s not very physically taxing and yet makes you feel like a proper climber – a huge confidence boost before starting an ascent.

RECOMMENDED: Where to Start Rock Climbing Outdoors

I was about half way into my first climb when I got “the fear”. I’m not sure exactly what brought it on, but it crept up from my ever-important toes through my once-powerful legs, shot up my spine, made my fingertips feel weak and settled in my head. My mouth was so dry it was as if I’d been up all night doing shots of soy sauce. I felt like I had the eyes of the world on me rather than a handful of other beginners. Maybe it was just the fatigue; it’s hard to relax doing this as a newbie, but it’s also impossible to keep your body tense and not suffer ill-effects. Until this point my only fear had been not being able to do it at all or cracking the face of my Apple watch on the rock. Now every finger or toehold seemed too small or too far away. It became a psychological battle. Rock climbing isn’t just you versus the wall, it’s your body versus your mind. To combat this, I just reminded myself that I’d got 30ft up just fine and that I was well secured – there was no reason to think I couldn’t do another 30ft or that I’d even fall anywhere if I lost my footing. With my head cleared I was able to put the fear out my mind and continue the ascent.

It’s almost impossible to measure how many calories you’ll burn from climbing because unlike, say a run or swim, ascents vary dramatically and will always involve some periods of standing round. But a sure sign of a good calorie burn from an activity is an intense appetite in the hours that follow – you’ll polish off a big dinner, that’s for sure. If you’re having lunch out on the mountain keep it relatively light – you don’t want to feel weighed down. A good option is to buy an “unmade” packed lunch. The constituent elements are all individually wrapped in cling-film so when you assemble it on the mountain your sandwich will be fresh rather than soggy. You’ll usually get a side of trail mix with it as well – grazing on dried fruit and nuts in between climbs is vital for maintaining energy.

If you’re a total newbie you probably wouldn’t devote two consecutive days to the activity, but in case you’re considering it – don’t. I was told I might have difficulty getting dressed the following morning, a suggestion I laughed off because I either run or go to the gym four or five days a week back home. Laughs gave way to groans when I attempted to shower the next morning. Due to constant droughts it’s bad manners to take long showers in California. I did wonder if the water shortages were due to the difficulty people have washing after this sort of activity.

Thanks to Patagonia and GoPro for providing some essential climbing gear.

How did you get into climbing?

When I was 20 I watched a very inspiring video on YouTube called “The Insiders” that features some of America’s strong young climbers. After that I started climbing at a small centre in Lincoln. I fast outgrew what that centre had to offer, however, and was already enough of a climbing nut to quit my country lifestyle and move to Leeds, where there was more in the way of climbing. Things really took off from there and thanks to climbing I ended up quitting my job and the rural lifestyle I found boring, and living and working in London.

RECOMMENDED: The Best Places to Go Rock Climbing in London

What’s your most memorable experience?

There are many branches of the climbing tree and I’ve tried most of them; sport climbing, traditional climbing; mountaineering; ice climbing, deep-water soloing… In recent months, however, I’ve been focusing on bouldering in the Peak District. Probably my most satisfying climbing achievement was in Switzerland on a mountain called Piz Badile where there’s a kilometre of perfect granite rock. A friend and I started with a three-hour walk to its base then spent 10 hours climbing and eight hours abseiling through the night to get back on hard ground – not to mention a token night sleeping out beneath the stars without sleeping bags because we couldn’t get back to the car in time.

How has climbing changed you?

Climbing is a lifestyle just like yoga, skateboarding, Parkour and thus the community is really strong – it broadened my friendship group tenfold. My relationship with myself has changed too. I’ve become more driven; I commit myself to training, which makes me fitter as well as happier.

How have you fared injury-wise?

I’ve been lucky to avoid major injury so far. When you start climbing though, your skin will tear and everything just seems to hurt all the time! But it’s important to remember that everyone goes through this and it does ease. That doesn’t mean ignore it though – climbers do need to listen to their bodies.

What’s the biggest challenge?

Fear. You’re tied to a rope, scaling a rock face [or high up on a man-made indoor face], trusting your life to a combination of your equipment and your climbing partner. Who wouldn’t be scared? Even bouldering is scary because although you climb much shorter distances, usually with the aid of a crash pad, you have no rope and you might fall anywhere between two to four metres.

What about the mental aspect?

When I’m climbing there are plenty of things to think about. Do I trust the protection methods I’ve put in? What if I fall now? Am I actually risking my life? Probably not, but it takes a long time to build up that mental strength required to push through hairy situations when climbing on a rope. During mountaineering, there’s often a choice to be made about whether to turn around due to time constraints or poor conditions or whether to push on to the summit and potentially risk getting trapped in a storm or worse… Being mentally strong isn’t all about pushing forward; it takes a strong-minded person to turn back on a climb knowing that the summit is so close but the risk is too great. I often ask myself: how hard are you actually trying? Are you really gritting your teeth and squeezing the hand holds as hard as you possibly can when your feet cut loose? Climbing is often perceived as something only strong people can do but really it’s more akin to ballet or skateboarding – it’s about technique and attitude.

What is Bouldering?

There wasn’t an awful lot to love about Mission: Impossible II, starting with the fact that its prequel proved those missions were actually possible, but the rock-climbing scene from the opening credits has stuck in the mind of most who saw it. Tom Cruise hanging off the top of Dead Horse Point in Utah without a safety rope in sight… what an opening, what a man. Admittedly no sane person would wish to do that – but if you want to try the next best thing, bouldering could be for you.

There are no ropes in bouldering, because you don’t climb that high. The challenge is devising a route up a short climb, as well as the strength and flexibility required to complete it. You can head to the great outdoors to boulder, but there are plenty of indoor options, too.

What’s Bouldering Like for a Beginner?

To get to grips with bouldering, Coach tried an introduction session at the Arch Climbing Wall in Bermondsey.

In an hour, you’re taught the basics – you can’t just head up a wall, using whatever grips you like. The routes are colour-coded and graded for difficulty, so you can only use the holds matching the route you’ve picked. You’ll also get a first taste of climbing shoes, which are deliberately tight and uncomfortable.

It’s intimidating to start with, but once you get on the wall it’s easy to see why the sport is frequently described as addictive. You also don’t need Cruise’s rippling physique. The starter routes are set up to be open to anyone.

Where to Boulder in and Near London

The Arch Climbing Wall

This bouldering centre has numerous routes to conquer, training areas, and offers introductory sessions for newbies. The Arch also has a new centre in Burnt Oak for those who don’t want to venture south of the river. The Biscuit Factory, 100 Clements Road, Bermondsey, SE16 4DG, introductory session £20, single admission £10 (£7.50 off-peak), monthly pass £50, annual pass £400. archclimbingwall.com

The Castle Climbing Centre

Both bouldering and towering climbing walls are on offer in what was once a Victorian water pumping station, but is now the most visited climbing centre in the UK. Green Lanes, Stoke Newington, London, N4 2HA, taster session £22, single admission £12.50, monthly pass £67, annual pass £475. castle-climbing.co.uk

Bowles Rocks

If indoor bouldering makes you keen to try it on real rocks, the Bowles Outdoor Centre in Kent has plenty of sandstone to clamber over. Sandhill Lane, Eridge Green, Tunbridge Wells, TN3 9LW, single admission £5, bowles.ac/outdoor-activities

RECOMMENDED: The Best Places to Go Rock Climbing in London

Rock climbing inside and outside works both explosive power and muscular endurance, all while developing your flexibility and grip strength. When it comes to building core strength, it puts sit-ups to shame. Hans Florine, who together with Britain’s Alex Honnold holds the speed climb record for fastest ascent of Yosemite’s El Capitan – one of the most difficult climbs in the world – explains what you need to know about scaling the outdoor rock.

Get hooked

‘Gripping with your hands can wear your forearms out quickly,’ says Florine. ‘Rather than using your index and middle fingers (your power fingers), give them a rest by using your third and fourth fingers or by hooking the heel of your hand (between your palm and wrist) over holds.’

Do the twist

‘Roll your shoulders and twist your hips into the wall as you climb. First-time climbers will tend to keep their chest facing the wall at all times and rely on the power of their arms to pull them up. If you twist your body so you’re side-on to the wall, you can get closer to it, reach higher and drive up with your legs, not your arms.’

6 moves to strengthen your legs

Hold true

‘Endurance, both for strength and cardio, is vital for climbing. Develop yours in the gym by doing an isometric pull-up called “The Frenchy”. Do a pull-up and hold the top position for five seconds before lowering. Then do another pull-up and, as you lower, stop at the midpoint for five seconds. Finally, do another pull-up, lower and pause just before a dead hang for five seconds. Repeat this pattern as many times as you can before failure. Rest five minutes, then repeat.’

Try our full pull-up plan

Fall for it

‘A bouldering fall from a height of just one metre creates enough force to break a limb, which means it’s essential that you know – and practise – how to fall properly. Always try to hit the ground with an open body system – with your arms and legs bent rather than straight – because this gives your joints room to flex.’

Learn the ropes

Drop knee: For reaching high handholds

Drop your knee inwards by turning your foot parallel to the rock. Now reach up for your next hold on the side closest to the wall. Your hips should be perpendicular to the wall. With less distance between your body and the rock, you can reach higher, effort-free.

Heel hook: For conserving energy

Hook your heel onto a high hold, such as a nook or outcrop, and use it as a base. This makes it easier to reach for smaller holds because you’re pulling less weight up. Bonus: you’ll also save energy in your arms by passing the strain on to the bigger muscles of your legs.

Flagging: For stabilising yourself

As you step up to reach for a hold, extend your inactive leg and rest it gently on the rock face, bringing it behind your supported leg if needed. Your hips should remain parallel to the rock. This counterbalances your movement by preventing you from swinging and wasting energy trying to hold yourself still.

Prime climbs

MF top pick: Cheddar Gorge, Somerset  

The 137m-deep limestone gorge offers dizzying views and over 1,000 spectacular climbing routes from beginners to experts. Sunset Wall on the south side offers multi-pitch classics for experienced climbers.

Watson’s Dodd Fell, Lake District

The imposing crag known as Castle Rock is a magnet for climbers, with over 60 named routes in a picturesque setting.

Mournes, County Down

Ideal for multi-pitch beginners, these granite mountains boast nearly 1,000 climbs but the longest (the 162m ‘FM’) is also one of the easiest.

Stone Farm, East Sussex

An abundance of sandstone slabs offer attractive bouldering spots that are only an hour and a half from the capital.

Learn the benefits of indoor climbing 

I started climbing outdoors in the Lake District, but the introduction of indoor walls has really revolutionised the sport – and made it possible for me to train whatever the weather. Indoor climbing is a fantastic way for beginners to learn the fundamentals and it’s a great way to boost your fitness too.

Learn the ropes

The best way to get started is to go to your nearest indoor climbing wall. These days I don’t imagine there’s anyone in the UK who lives so far from a wall that they can’t get to one, and most indoor centres usually offer introductory days so you can learn the basics of climbing.

When some people start climbing they cling to that cliché that you shouldn’t look down, but it’s quite important to glance down to decide where to put your feet. It’s also essential to communicate with your belayer to let them know if the rope is too tight or too loose, or if you’re about to fall.

Reach the summit

Climbing is a brilliant strength workout. Over longer climbs you can work on your stamina, while shorter climbs are all about power. You need to concentrate on manoeuvres while you climb, which will help you build problem-solving skills. It’s also incredibly therapeutic, even relaxing, because you don’t have time to think about anything except your next move.

The element of risk makes for a rewarding experience and I find it a lot more fun than lifting weights. It’s social, especially in the big cities. There's a lot of downtime when you’re the belayer, so – like the gym – it’s a great place to meet people. And it might even inspire you to take on the thrill and adventure of outdoor climbing.

Bouldering Tips

Technique is all: It’s not just about strength but how well you move. Tension in your arms will fatigue you quickly – use your legs and let your arms dead hang until your next move.

Bodyweight rules: No one cares about what you can bench or squat on a rock wall. You should spend more time on bodyweight exercises such as pull-ups to aid your climbing strength.

Limber up: Devote time to stretching before and after your climb. There’s nothing worse than cramping up mid-movement and coming off the wall to swing around like a fool.

Plan your route: Pick your route difficulty (indicated by grip colour) and assess the best way up. Just going for it can leave you in an awkward position with no choice but to fall.:

UK Indoor Climbing Walls

EICA: Ratho, Edinburgh Max height 30m

EICA: Ratho (the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena) is the largest in Europe, one of the biggest in the world and the venue for the British Championship Finals. But don’t let all that (or the 30m-high aerial assault course) intimidate you – there are grades of difficulty to suit all abilities. eica-ratho.co.uk

The Castle Climbing centre, London Max height 13m

The Castle Climbing Centre is the most popular climbing venue in the UK and one of the biggest an impressive converted Victorian building, it has four floors of climbing walls. There’s even a gym, so you can combine technique and strength sessions in one venue. castle-climbing.co.uk

RECOMMENDED: The Best Places to Go Rock Climbing in London

The Lock Climbing Wall, Essex Max height 14m

With some of the highest indoor climbing walls in southeast England, The Lock Climbing Wall’s 100 top-roped lines cater to everyone from complete novices to experts. You can even give ‘dry tooling’ (simulated ice climbing) a try. thelockclimbing.co.uk

Manchester Climbing Centre Max height 20m

Located in a converted church, Manchester Climbing Centre’s walls offer 75 lines – which means 75 people can climb at once, so queues are unlikely. The routes are always being updated for a new challenge every time you visit. manchesterclimbingcentre.com

When deciding where to holiday with your mates it’s far too easy to overlook the UK. Sure, some European cities might have cheaper beer and the promise of beautiful women waiting to be whisked off their feet by English gentlemen. But, a) the latter part of that almost definitely isn’t true, and b) do you not remember the Hostel films?

Ill-informed, torture-porn based xenophobia isn’t the only reason why holidaying in the UK shouldn’t just be for caravan enthusiasts and groups of colourful backpack clad Spanish children. Turns out we also have a shitload of fun things to do. From impressive mountains to scale, beautiful waterfalls to swim, craggy coastlines to navigate and networks of caves to explore there’s no shortage of activities to choose from. And that’s before you consider other manly activities such as quad biking, clay pigeon shooting and err… Zorbing.

Adventure time

Getting a few mates together to go on a long weekend break in the UK was the easy part. With so many places offering cool sounding stuff to do deciding where we should go was anything but. That sounds cheesy but it’s completely true. It’s only after weeks of exchanging group Facebook messages and a couple of enthusiastic pub conversations that we decide on our destination: South Wales. Not only is it the shortest drive from London, it also has a company called Adventure Britain that does all three of the activities we most want to do: canyoning, caving and climbing. Nice! Oh yeah, and manly (of course).

With Friday and Monday booked off work Mike, Spender (there were too many guys called James in our class at school so they all were – and forever will be – referred to by their last names) and Rhian (which despite meaning ‘Welsh goddess’ is a boy’s name too, apparently) and I pick up our sexy and incredibly manly (are you spotting a theme here?) hire car from Hertz and hit the road.

Our MANLY hire car

Correction, we stupidly follow the sat nav straight through the centre of London, which takes a couple of hours more than we would have liked… and then we hit the road.

The cottage we’re staying at looks as pretty as the picture online, which itself was pretty as a picture. Cats, hens and even a wallaby roam the grounds. Any lingering concerns that our money would have been better spent on a trip where we could have had a background role in some awful Brits abroad documentary vanish entirely. We’d arrived at an entirely different kind of paradise to what we normally associated with a holiday. And it was bloody lovely.

It's a cave, Dave

Hopping in the hire car the next morning we drive to meet our Adventure Britain guy Dave (or Andy as I was convinced he was called for most of the day) to go caving. Andy (sorry, Dave) wastes no time getting us in overalls and helmets with attached torches, and we waste no time starting to sweat profusely in the midday sun.

Sizing up the cave's entrance before heading inside

Amateur miner look acquired we head down to the cave entrance choosing to ignore the sign warning of potential death.

Not just a few, no, many people

It’s not too claustrophobic at first, but the deeper we go the tighter it gets. Stopping for a quick chat Dave delights in telling us about the deaths that have occurred in caves. Thanks Dave. Within a few minutes of moving on things get tighter and tighter until we’re crawling through a tunnel only slighter larger than us. We’re definitely not scared or anything.

Scrabbling through on our hands and knees the tunnel has icy cold water running through it and seems to be getting smaller by the metre. The end is eventually in sight, but the ordeal isn’t over yet. Getting out requires some crazy contortions and by the time we’re all through the atmosphere’s changed. Smiles are replaced by grimaces and our laughter sounds more nervous than jovial as we all wonder what Dave has next for us.

I'm not a celebrity, but still, can someone please get me out of here?

The descent

Turns out that first tunnel was nothing. After half an hour of shivering, shimmying, crawling, squeezing through gaps and at one point actually floating on our backs with only enough space between the water and ceiling for our lips to poke out and breathe, we’re clamouring for daylight and space and warmth and just generally not being in a bloody cave. Maybe we’re not as manly as we thought.

And this was one of the roomier tunnels

Despite it being a minor ordeal at the time, shortly after exiting everyone agrees it was a great experience and we’re all glad we’ve done it. Though to be honest it’ll probably be a while until we do it again.

Up next? Canyoning.

DO go chasing...

Not far from the cave there’s a series of waterfalls. We swap our overalls for wetsuits and head to the first one. For the next couple of hours we jump from increasingly higher waterfalls while heading down the river. It’s great fun and another reminder of how stunning the scenery can be without having to endure a budget airline flight to the continent.

This is every bit as fun as it looks

At the bottom of one particular ferocious waterfall Dave challenges us to make our way across a tiny ledge without getting knocked off. After several attempts we begin to think Dave is taking the piss. Surely it can’t be done? A 56-year old ex-marine, Dave casually approaches the ledge, shimmies his way across to the point we kept getting stuck on… and falls in. Apparently the water is flowing a bit faster than normal. Yeah right, Dave.

Still not sure it's actually possible to get across that without ropes

A leisurely stroll back to the car and a typically lighthearted story from Dave about a woman who nearly died by falling off one of the ledges and the mood is relaxed. Caving has already developed a smidge of rose-tinted nostalgia and our day is almost over. We top it off with a drive through the beautiful Brecon Beacons and a delicious fish barbecue back at the cottage. Perfect.

Feeling fishy

Sunday is climbing day. Or at least it’s supposed to be. Turns out that ‘perfect’ barbecue has given Mike and Rhian food poisoning, but Spender and I somehow escape the wrath of the white fish, which is nice. After a couple of toilet trips Rhian and Mike decide to brave it in the car and we all set off to meet an incredulous Dave who suspects alcohol, rather than our typically British barbecuing skills is to blame for the sudden sickness. His doubts seem to be dispelled when Mike vomits in a convincingly ill manner as soon as we arrive at our pretty coastal location.

We schlep it along the coast for a couple of kilometres carrying the climbing gear until we get to an incredible rock face looking directly over the ocean. It’s a hot, sunny day and despite yesterday morning’s experience Mike and Rhian head to the nearest cave to get put of the heat leaving Spender and I to climb.

The (short-lived) ascent

It’s a shame they can’t get involved because its an incredible location to climb. Multiple routes up the face offer different challenges and despite our initial reservations Spender and I are soon taking on the less obvious routes helped along by shouted advice from Dave. Sadly, our quick break for lunch turns into the end of the day because as soon as Spender sits down the colour drains from his face. ‘Feeling a bit peaky,’ are the last words he utters before dashing behind some rocks for a cheeky little puke.

Dave was understandably worried about belaying directly under us with food poisoning doing the rounds

Our day may have been called short, but every cloud has a silver lining and all that. I get to eat all the tasty food we’ve brought along all by myself. (Dave has his own and some understandable doubts about eating food we’ve prepared). Cheeses, meats, bread, salad stuff, and of course scotch eggs. Life couldn’t get much better. Well, for me at least.

Death march madness

On the way back Dave tells a particularly horrifying story about the Borneo death march and suddenly our own walk seems easy in comparison, despite three of us being in the throes of poisoning.

Though a little arduous, the death toll from our walk remained a healthy zero

Back at the cottage I have a steak dinner for one. Lovely, if a little lonely. We have an early night, followed by a fairly subdued drive home (none of us scream, 'ROAD TRIP!' at the top of our lungs like we did roughly every 20mins on the way there) and our adventure comes to an end.

Yeah, the food poisoning sucked. But everything else about the trip was a massively pleasant surprise. If you’re looking for an active holiday that’s about more than drinking and trying to chat up European girls with a combination of pigeon English and hand gestures then consider all the amazing places and things to do in England, Ireland Wales and Scotland. All you need is a car (or hire one like we did and pretend that you’re rich by driving a car with a larger engine than all the cars you’ve owned combined) and a couple of days off work. Can't think of anything more MANLY.

All Photography is copryright of Mike Massaro

Welsh mountaineer Mark Lewis has done it all. In his 20-year career, he’s climbed Everest and K2, logged a first ascent of Workman Peak in Pakistan and climbed mountains in Antarctica. Here, he talks us through his favourite climbs.

Mount Vinson, Antarctica

'Travelling to Antarctica was a huge challenge, but the beauty of the vast frozen wasteland was mind-blowing. It was a major achievement to reach the summit of Vinson – I was the youngest person in the world at the time and the first ever Welshman to accomplish it.’

Broad Peak, Pakistan/China border

‘As the world’s 12th highest mountain, this was going to be a tough one. With a sick climbing partner, a dying cook and extreme weather conditions that created many avalanches, -40˚C temperatures and bad communications, reaching the summit was a phenomenal achievement and my first summit over 8,000m.’

Mount Everest, Nepal

'Organising and running an expedition to the world’s highest mountain was always going to be challenging. With atrocious weather conditions, bringing deep snow and buried camp sites, we turned the conditions to our favour and rallied as a team. The joy of this expedition was managing the teams successes against the odds.’

Workman Peak, Pakistan

‘Workman Peak is located in what is known as the third pole, Snowlake. This turned into a battle for survival when one of the team died on the mountain, forcing a major rescue and testing all of my medical skills to try and save her, as an added bonus the remainder of the team climbed the mountain.’

Kilimanjaro, Tanzania

‘I love Kilimanjaro and have climbed it dozens of times with groups for charity. Being asked to take Tony Pulis, David Seaman, Nick Hancock and others to the top of Kilimanjaro as a celebrity charity challenge was going to be a challenge in itself. And their grit, teamwork and determination certainly kicked in when on the summit we got caught in the worst storm on the mountain for five years.’

What he does

As a child, American climber Alex Honnold used to terrify his mother by clambering on top of the fridge. Now he amazes the world with his adventures in big wall free solo climbing, a pure yet dangerous discipline that involves climbing colossal rock faces without ropes or a partner.

Honnold’s daredevil brand of climbing involves completing unique physical challenges in iconic locations around the world. He has numerous speed records and last June completed ‘the Triple’ by free soloing the three biggest walls in Yosemite National Park – the 3,000ft (915m) El Capitan and the 2,000ft (610m)Mount Watkins and Half Dome – in a record 18hr 50min. He forgot his chalk bag, lost his footing 20 times and endured an insect attack, but still completed 95% of the route without ropes.

“It’s important to me to be pushing my own boundaries,” says Honnold, who lives in a Ford Econoline van so he can sleep near to climbing hotspots. “Sometimes that means a speed record, but often it just means climbing somewhere I’ve never been before.” Training vanquishes any fear. “An elite marathon runner knows they can run a marathon without getting too tired. It’s the same for me. You train beforehand and then you perform.”

How he does it

When you spend your days hanging off cliffs, muscular weakness and poor balance are potentially fatal flaws, so Honnold maintains a high level of strength, stamina and core strength. He’ll then adapt his focus according to his latest project. “For bouldering, you need strong fingers and arms. For speed records, you need iron legs and amazing lungs,” he says.

For strength and muscular balance he performs press-ups and planks, plus hanging leg lifts to work his core. His stamina is derived from running, skiing, cycling and, above all, by speed-soloing easy routes. “It’s like running up a 1,000ft [300m] hill, but using your hands as well,” he says. “I hike really fast every day just to get to a climb anyway, so I always have a base level of fitness.”

Fitness is the foundation of his extraordinary climbing speed. “I don’t actually climb fast, I just don’t get tired and slow down,” he says. But nothing beats climbing itself. “So much is about skill, body position and balance. If you want to be good at climbing, you have to climb a lot.”

Top British climber Leo Houlding has just made his triumphant return from the project he’s been working on for almost a decade. The Prophet, on Yosemite National Park’s infamously difficult monolith El Capitan, is the first route up the rock to be established by a British climber, and one of the toughest – including a stomach-churning leap known as the Devil’s Dyno. We spoke to him about how he stays in peak condition.

You’ve just nailed the Prophet. Just how tough was it?

I’ve been trying the route for nine years, I’ve spent more than 60 days on that piece of the rock. When we did the free ascent it took six days, but four of those were spent in a godawful storm. So there were only two climbing days. We sat on a portaledge that flooded in full storm conditions, for more than 80 hours without moving, in a 4ft by 6ft tent, completely soaked and cold, borderline hypothermic, and then we had to dry everything out for a day and a half and go and perform at our absolute peak.

What was the hardest part in terms of climbing technique?

The really difficult bit is this feature called the A1 Beauty: it’s a beautiful, 35m crack up a totally flat wall. There’s nothing for your hands, nothing for your feet – just this minute crack to jam your fingertips in. And at that point you’re more than twice as high as Canary Wharf.

Do you train on indoor walls much?

Well, I’m a professional so I get to chase the summer around the world, which means I tend not to train inside that much. But if you live in the city, in the winter it’s not easy to train in the field. There’s a lot of crossover between styles of climbing, though, so if you want to do big wall climbing you can get some of the benefits by training indoors. Even on a high cliff it comes down to the individual moves, which you can do by bouldering.

What’s a typical training session on a wall like for you?

If I’m on a lead wall [one on which you clip your rope in as you ascend], the classic thing I do to train for endurance on the big cliffs is start on a route that’s graded relatively easy for me like a 6a, then do a 6a-plus, then a 6b, then go all the way up to an 8a-plus, then I’m usually pretty tired so I might fall off that, then I’ll go all the way up and back down. That’s about 28 pitches if you go all the way up and back down again, which should take a couple of hours.

Do pull-ups help your climbing?

Although you need a basic level of strength, I wouldn’t recommend loads of pull-ups, especially if you’re a beginner. It’s much more important to focus on technique. One of the reasons women often make good climbers is that they usually don’t have that upper-body strength, so they have to focus on technique. Also, a base level of fitness is important, so you can go on the cross-trainer or on a bike. I tend to get out on my mountain bike for fitness.

Houlding has a banging new film out that covers his battle with The Prophet. Here's the shocking trailer for it. It'll make you say 'holy' then some other ruder words.

It's garish, yes, but with good reason - the hi-vis orange trim on this boot creates a flickering effect your team-mates will pick up in their peripheral vision. In theory this means they'll know where to pass to without having to look around too much. The boot's surface is made of shape-correcting memory foam so it won't develop any bobbly bits that cause you to skew the ball off the pitch like most of the England forwards at the World Cup.

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The Buesnitz feels sturdier than many skate shoes on the market thanks to extra layers of suede on the parts of the shoe that get the most abuse from your board. It's also got a protective heel cup to help your feet cope with jarring impacts and a customisable tongue you can let fan out or cut down according to your style preference. If you're wondering why the shoe looks familiar, it's because it's based on the classic Adidas football boot the Copa Mundial.

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The Katana is made of an extremely durable and highly flexible combination of natural and synthetic materials. A prehensile area under the toe delivers optimal support for edging and gives you an excellent feel for the rock beneath your foot. It has a versatile Velcro closure system that can be rearranged to fit different types of climbing so whether you're on a climbing wall for one hour or on El Capitan for 12, your shoe will stay supportive and secure.

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Available at bananafingers.co.uk

This shoe provides incredible stability and, thanks to the extra spikes on the sole, excellent grip so there's no danger of slipping over mid-swing. What's more, the memory foam around the tongue moulds to your foot, providing an incredibly comfortable fit. After 18 holes there's very little chance of foot ache or grass stains on the seat of your trousers.

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