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Comment by dade_ | Hacker News Reader

Upper body strength is in decline period and it is major indicator for life expectancy and health. Fortunately rock / gym climbing is rapidly gaining in popularity.

Sport climbing will be part of the 2020 olympics. I love it and look forward to going with a buddy of mine each weekend. Also have grip exercisers in my carry on because I travel so much.

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Sports are great, but you're never gonna get most people exercising that way. Most people will consistently exercise, over the long term, only if it's a necessity: like for their job, or for transportation.

It really has to be built into one's daily routine. The Netherlands is a great example here, they have very high rates of active transportation (walking/biking) for the developed world.

Social clubs of various forms have been a part of society for a long time. You could get a long way if sports clubs were a welcoming place to go hang out and socialize instead of just rentable facilities where you have to book a time and provide your own opponents.

Many gyms have open times when any member can show up and join a pick up game of basketball / tennis / racquetball.

It seems to me that in order to be successful exercise cannot be something that one adopts to meet a specific goal (i.e. look better, fit into a piece of clothing, address a health concern). Instead people need to adopt a way of life that includes exercise.

That's why I think the "cult" aspects of CrossFit are a lot of what makes it so successful. Other examples are people that adopt yoga or martial arts as a way of life rather than just an activity.

Tai Chi, or taijiquan, https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&c...

Judo, which is wildly practices everywhere outside of USA, builds grip strength by constants practice. And at least here in Europe almost every small community have a Judo club where hordes of children attends. And Judo has been in the Olympics for a long time.

Jiu jitsu practitioner here - we also tend to develop grips of iron from constantly grasping the Gi (very thick, coarse kimono worn as a training uniform). Both judo and it’s sister sport jiu jitsu will develop your musculature insanely fast.

I have a friend who trained for a while with an instructor in a traditional form of Scottish wrestling. When he left his instructor gave him a sleeve that had been cut off of a BJJ gi so that it could be slung over a pullup bar and gripped to do pullups.

Oh yeah I do that one too - that’s a fantastic exercise! Also a good use of an old beat up gi that would otherwise get thrown out

Rock climbing can be great exercise but despite recent growth in the sport only about 2% of Americans do it at all.

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