Why should children climb? – Clip ‘n Climb

Do you know that rock climbing isn’t just for adults?
Do you know nowadays we have the so-called indoor rock climbing to try out and/or to train ourselves?
Do you know there are many benefits of rock climbing for kids?

Rock climbing is a very healthy sport, although some may think is really dangerous.
1. It’s a very good sport for training the flexibility and core strength.
It takes a lot of strength to pull yourself up vertically and you need flexibility, endurance and coordination to maneuver along the way.

2. It helps to nurture the kids on problem-solving.
They have to think and find their solution on how and which route to take in order to make it to the top.

3. It helps them to overcome fear and build self-esteem.
Rock climbing can be scary. To be able to climb up to the top, you have to overcome your own fear of heights and making sure yourself not to fall. Even if you are not at the top, being able to overcome your fear to go for that challenge can boost one’s self-esteem and confidence.

We took the chance to challenge smarties to go for rock climbing. Gor gor was freaking out when he heard that but we managed to “tai chi” to him some courage and persuaded him to go Clip n Climb HomeTeamNS. Mei mei on the hand was thrilled and laughing at him for being such a scardy cat.

When we reached, we were attended by 2 friendly staffs and we were made to sign some declaration and indemnity forms as usual for such “extreme” sports. It’s pretty cool that they provide free lockers for us to put our stuffs so that we did not have to worry about our valuables. As soon as we entered the area, we were greeted by really high and colourful climbing walls. The facility actually features 19 exciting climbing challenges with different difficulties suitable for all levels of climbers. Unbelievable!

Before we start, we have to listen to a briefing and watched a live demo on how to secure yourself onto the belay system for each climb. He also showed us how the belay system which uses the magnetic braking technology ensures us with tip-top safety with a controlled descent on your way back down. Smarties were listening attentively to the guy, making sure they have all the details and information right.

Once the briefing was over and we have put on our safety belt properly and checked, smarties started exploring and nominating the best and easiest wall to climb. They selected the most fanciful wall: Big Cheese. Ok…who moved my cheese?

Each wall has its level of difficulty stated with the number of carabiners and how you can challenge yourself or with friends. Cool huh? You don’t just climb for the sake of climbing…

Guess what? After the Big Cheese wall, mei mei freaked out. She went in search for the easiest wall to climb and that’s this mini wall. Why I call it the mini wall because it is low and it doesn’t require a belay. Gor gor accompanied her for a while but found it boring and so went back to search for other challenges. Surprised huh? The one who was freaking out before we came, now enjoying so much while the person who laughed at others, now become a scardy cat.

Frankly speaking, even for an adult, I find this wall the most strenuous. I wouldn’t be amazed if gor gor couldn’t even concur this because I couldn’t due to the unsteadiness of the spaghetti ropes and this is level 3!

I love this wall. Isn’t this cool? I challenged with gor gor to climb this Frozen wall. Yeah, we called it the Frozen wall because it’s the Dry Ice wall. This particular wall requires loads of hand-eye coordination and problem-solving skills. You have to think and decide where and how to place your ‘ice picks’ and pull yourself further up. Although gor gor couldn’t make it to the top, I enjoyed the sight of him challenging himself on this wall.

We enjoyed our time there as each of us get to explore and climb on our own.

We didn’t manage to concur all the walls as our arms and legs were really sore (yeah, due to lack of arm exercises) after trying out a few challenges. When the time was up, we were all famished with really really bad sore arms. Smarties were burnt out. Checked out their droopy eyes while having their lunch. Once we reached home and settled down, smarties straight away went to lalaland.

The trip to Clip ‘n Climb was really enjoyable and we get to spend time together as a family while challenging each other. As a matter of fact, climbing is not an easy sport as it requires a lot of physical skills and because of this, it helps children feel more confident in their bodies and in themselves. You need to trust yourself in order to make it to the top. As a parent, we will need to model to them how we overcome our own fear so that they understand and adopt the same behavior as well.

Clip ‘n Climb is located at 51 Tampines Ave 4 #03-03 Our Tampines Hub.
If you are going there, do remember to wear comfortable clothes and appropriate shoes.

To find out more, you can check out their website.

Disclaimer: This is not a paid post. Any views or opinions represented in this blog are personal and belong solely to the blog owner and do not represent those of people, institutions or organizations that the owner may or may not be associated with in professional or personal capacity, unless explicitly stated. Everything written here is based on our own experiences.