🧗♀️ The Wall Doesn’t Care How Old You Are: Precerpt from Grandma's Ninja Training Diary (Leaver)
Reflections on Strategy, Gravity, and the Art of Falling at 75
I haven’t been back to the rock gym in a while—it’s thirty miles out, and other demands have crept in—but the wall is still in me. I think about climbing often: the problem-solving, the weight shifts, the quiet math of reach and momentum. What stays with me most, though, is this truth—climbing walls don’t care how old you are. They don’t care if your arms are short, your knees creaky, or your ID says you’ve been around for seven and a half decades. All a wall asks is: what’s your next move?
🦵 Planning Beats Reach
I climb slow. Not out of hesitation, but precision. I have proportionally short arms for climbing, so getting high means using my legs as leverage—sometimes even when there’s no foothold. That’s where strategy takes over. I’ve learned that leg pressure can transform vertical surfaces into temporary holds. In biomechanical terms, it’s dynamic friction: your momentum temporarily overtakes gravity, letting the wall behave like a brace point even when there’s nothing obvious to grab.
It’s not brute force—it’s forethought, adjustment, and trust in body intelligence.
🍑 Master of the Fall
My climbing instructor once used me as the demonstration model for how to fall safely. No training required—my padded backside is pre-programmed for optimal descent. Anytime I fall, whether bouldering or just missing a step at home, my butt hits first. It’s textbook technique: protecting your ankles, knees, and spine by letting your glutes absorb the impact. For me, it’s instinctive. Call it a gravity-optimized asset.
I may be a tad (just a tad) over ideal weight, but it turns out that little extra cushioning is a secret weapon in fall resilience.
🌗 Middle Zone Mastery
I stick to the middle zone—not too easy, not absurdly hard. It’s where real learning happens. Every climb is a negotiation: How will I get from point A to point B with limited reach? Can my legs push with enough force to override gravity on a blank wall? How do I keep moving even when the route stalls?
That instructor invitation—to join her and a few other climbers—didn’t pan out, but I cherish it. She didn’t ask my age. She saw how I moved. That was the invitation.
💥 Aging Strategically
Climbing has given me more than grip strength and bruises. It’s shown me that aging well means aging strategically. You assess, adapt, and ascend—without apology. You trust muscle memory, fall smart, and plan five steps ahead. You honor the body not for what it once did, but for what it still can.
In my upcoming book Grandma’s Ninja Training Diary, I’ll break this down muscle by muscle. From forearm torque to glute-led landings, ninja training has no age limit—it just has new rules.
Grandma’s Ninja Training Diary is the inspiring true story of a 75-year-old grandmother who dares to dream big—by training for American Ninja Warrior. Teaming up with coach and trainer Brittany Renz, she embarks on a three-year journey to build strength, resilience, flexibility, balance, and endurance—starting from scratch.
Told in a dynamic mix of diary entries, coaching insights, and behind-the-scenes reflections, this book chronicles the ups and downs of late-in-life athletic training. From gym workouts to rock climbing, yoga to injury recovery, sleep to mindset—every aspect of the transformation is explored with honesty and humor.
Grandma shares what she’s learning; Coach Brittany explains why she’s right—or wrong. Together, they offer a realistic, encouraging look at what it takes to pursue an extraordinary goal at any age.
Part training manual, part motivational memoir, Grandma’s Ninja Training Diary is packed with practical tips for readers over 50 who want to improve their fitness, health, and confidence. You’ll also get insider insights into the world of American Ninja Warrior, strategies for balancing real life with ambitious goals, and hard-won wisdom about success, failure, and the joy of simply showing up.
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