My forearms were screaming!

This was the reason I was in such a good mood after the weekend. 2 hours of rock climbing and I felt like I had just taken a 2 week vacation!

We were having so much fun that I only thought to take that one bad (really bad) picture.

I am now an addict.We went to our local indoor climbing gym. It was amazing. It was like being in a giant cave of fun wonders. They had beginner areas with fixed belays (safety thingies) that they just allowed you to go wild on. They also had more complex areas that I am going to have to work up to. Another fun thing they had were areas for “bouldering” or climbing without ropes. Those were fun as well and really really difficult. The people doing that were amazing!

This was a killer workout. It was so much fun that you didn’t even realize that you were working out but before you knew it, your hands and forearms were cramping and freaking out in ways that you never knew were possible. One thing I noticed is that of all the people in the climbing gym… almost every single person was in decent shape! It was a nice change. Once you do a little climbing, you will know why. You can just feel the benefits of this exercise almost immediately.

My new goal is to try to go at least once a week (for my weekend workout). I can’t emphasise this enough… GO… TRY… IT… OUT! Look up your local climbing gym. This is an amazing experience.

You are it!

Remember playing the game of tag on the playground as a kid and how much fun it was? Well I never really grew up. I am still known for going up to my wife, poking her and then running away encouraging her to give chase. Or I might pretend to give her a kiss but stop short and then turn around and run away.  It is just so much fun!

There is just something about being chased or giving chase that really gets your hormones going. Tag is all in good fun but you still get a hint of that fear adrenaline and fun endorphins as you are running away or after someone.

How is it primal? Imagine you are chasing down prey or running away from something trying to make prey of you! There is the hormone response of fight or flight that your body goes through without having to worry about bad consequences like… oh death. Tag is also a great workout in the form of sprints. You sprint away or towards, then you stop and formulate strategy and play mind games, then you sprint again! If your game of tag is like ours, then you have obstacles to overcome too. We jump over couches, run up stairs, circle tables.

If you don’t believe me then try it! Plan a game of tag with your kids, your spouse or loved one or your friends (I like to pretend that I have those). If they don’t seem into it then taunt them into chasing you like I do to my wife! It is a great way to get yourself out of breath. The endorphin rush is great as well!

Do you play tag (either impromptu or planned)? Give it a whirl and post your stories!