Rock climbing is rubbish. It's rubbish. It's rubbish, it's rubbish, it's rubbish rubbish rubbish…read more Well, this is what I initially thought, until I lived with two ex-punk, Spanish rock climbers who, as you'll probably have guessed by the way I've described them, really liked rock climbing. It's a fantastic facility, even if I don't trust crash mats to fall on even from half an inch away, the staff are really professional and didn't laugh at my inability to get more than a metre off the ground as much as my pals... which was really nice of them and they helped me as much they possibly could. It had a real community spirit and sense of family. I actually had a really great time because I laughed so much. My arse felt great the day after too... Maybe if I could do it every day I'd look like Hulk Hogan like I've always dreamed of.

Okay kiddos, let's talk business. Are you a climber? Or, having never climbed before, would you…read moreconsider yourself an adventure-seeker? Someone who likes trying exciting new things? Don't mind the gritty feeling of chalk beneath your fingernails? The ache of muscles long-unused? If you're already a climber, then I can guess that you, like me, will pretty happily take whatever climbing venue you happen to be gifted with! If not, Alien Rock 1, happily nestled within the walls of an old church, complete with an upstairs observation deck, a small bouldering room, facilities that offer tea, coffee, and snacks, and a team that would be happy to teach you--well, go on then!! If you've never climbed before, you should know that this is not the sort of adventuring you can sashay your way into and pick up on the fly. Climbing gyms like AR1 are affairs where a little know-how and training are musts in order to not injure yourself or others. (If you're not sure if you would even like climbing in the first place, I would recommend scoping out nearby AR2 which specializes in bouldering, in which you can come and go as you please with little instruction except in the way of safety, and free climb without the aid of ropes). Climbing at AR1 means it is essential that you, or at least one or more of the people you are with, know what they're doing in order to safely belay and tie the knots involved to keep anyone from well... hurtling to meet the floor from great heights. Do I honestly have to stress this? Nah, didn't think so. If you've no experience belaying or tying the knots involved in top-rope climbing, no worries: Alien Rock 1 will teach you all the things you need to know, guaranteed. While it is pricey at around 45 pounds, I was lucky enough to have discovered a Meet-Up group for climbers in Edinburgh that allowed sessions for special discounted rates of learners that made it a much more tolerable 25 pounds or so split between a group of 6, arranged for a three-hour slot between 6:30 and 9:30 pm. (If you're looking to learn on the cheap and meet new folk at the same time, I would absolutely recommend sniffing around for this group: pennypinchers rejoice!) On the other hand, if you're just starting out but know a friend who's registered at AR1, if you sweet talk 'em some they may be willing to show you around the place and even belay you. If they do this willingly you certainly may owe them as it does end up a one-sided affair, as they can't climb themselves when you can't belay them in return. But you could certaily get an idea for if you like it! If you decide you fancy climbing more at AR1 on a long-term basis, or at least once a week, I would certainly recommend a few things: first of all, purchasing a white card, which allows you to enter at a discounted rate. Not only that, you should absolutely consider buying your own set of shoes and a harness, because honestly, who wants to stuff their own feet into the rented, smallish shoes that so many others have worn time and again? (Not only that, but watching my learning group attempt to sort out the variously colored straps and clips on their harness vs. putting on my own super-simple one made me feel quite lucky to avoid all that!) It's a sound investment as it'll save you hiring both accessories each time you visit for a fee of around a fiver ON TOP OF your entry fee of 9 pounds. (For more pricing, http://www.alienrock.co.uk/alien_one_pages/alien_one_prices/alien_one_prices.html should do you!) But enough of all that garbage. For those climbers who know their stuff, well, AR1 is certainly a pretty cool place to climb. Out of the gyms I've been to in the past it's extremely laid-back, with the staff appearing as needed to help but otherwise letting their climbers sort themselves out. The church-turned-gym itself is novelty enough, but having the upstairs observation deck filled with seating area that you can take a break and have a chat or a tea in is pretty cool. Also the tiny bouldering room available for warm-ups, learning, or just escaping the crowd downstairs is nifty as well. My only real beef with AR1 is mild at that, and it's merely the wish that while there are plenty of climbing routes to scope out on the main floor, I do wish that they'd have a bit more difficulty ranges to choose from at each section. Tying in over and over to just have one in your range means you do feel you kill some time roping up, so it'd be nice if there was at least an easy, medium, and hard per wall. Some it seemed to my untrained eye had only hard, some only easy. But routes change all the time, so who could say what'll be up on my next visit! What more can I say here that I haven't already? Climbers gonna climb, and AR1 is a lovely wee facility to get your game on. You'll certainly find me flexing my puny climbing muscles at AR1, and are welcome to shout a hullo if you do, after all climbers are normally the friendliest of folk! So go on then!! Climb on!!

So...I'm being a climbing spectator today! And yes the actual climbing part is awesome, but I'm…read moregoing to review the cafe as that is where I'm spending my time. For a small cafe in a sporting centre it's very good. The hot chocolate was nice, as was the latte, but nothing special. The paninis how ever were very yum! Hit the spot for sure. I couldn't decide between the Brie, Apple and cranberry or the salmi and cheese, so we got both and halved them :D yum yum! Not much fuss but tasty! We then shared a slice of paradise cake and my goodness! One of the best coconut cakes I've ever had :D nom nom! The staff are lovely, and the cafe space quite open plan and useful. Complete with a log burning fire *yay* toasty!

I've been hearing about bouldering a lot recently, and then a friend suggested a trip for her…read morebirthday. Yes please! I actually wasn't really sure what it was, and pictured that there would be more boulders and less walls. It is in fact just rock climbing without ropes and on shorter walls. The Climbing Academy seems like a cool place. It's a big space with a proper cafe serving sandwiches, cakes, lots of drinks etc and lots of seating as well for parents/observers. We were doing a 1 hour induction session which cost £10 including shoe hire. All you need to boulder is some kind of comfortable gym gear, and to hire the shoes. Super snug shoes with grippy soles to help you climb. I kept my socks on, apparently it's better to go without. Mmm, not when I'm hiring them it isn't. We were shown around the centre and the novelty of jumping on the squishy flooring never got old. I imagine if you fell from the top it would still hurt, but it was nice having padding to break your fall (seing as I'm used to falling while on skates onto a basketball court). Climbing was relatively straightforward. Apparently you're meant to start from a seated position on the floor, but due to my lack of upper body strength, that just wasn't going to happen. You follow the coloured grips on the wall and can challenge yourself by advancing through the colours. I think I just stayed on purple and black though because I was a bit rubbish. The instructor was really helpful and encouraging. As were the people I was with, so it was a good atmosphere. It was really fun climbing stuff, although my hands and arms were really sore really quickly. If you keep going you build up callouses, I'm not really sure about that. The hour went by pretty quickly. I would definitely go back, and the only reason this isn't 5 stars is because I feel like I wasn't really there long enough to experience properly. A fun way to spend a mate's birthday!

Reception was warm, friendly, efficient and informative. The lobby is huge - and it was filled…read morewith different kinds of sofas & chairs. The cafe makes a great decaf soy latte - and the views of the climbing walls are fantastic from the cafe. The lockerrooms are pretty nice - clean and lots of space (no bumping into people as you change or access a locker). The coin-return system used by the Edinburgh Royal Commonwealth recreation system is great - just leaves you with a key to keep track of though (at the Royal Commonwealth pool - the key is on a bracelet). The climbing gym itself is huge - I wasn't prepared for this from the pictures - there's no way to do it justice. The 25 m wall just goes on and on! There are walls that are at a slope (like slab climbing) and corner problems with shelves for mantling and problems you have to jump onto - which we don't really have at my local climbing gym chain (Touchstone). The materials used for the walls and the jugs/pieces are much more abrasive than what we have at my local gyms (though ours could just be worn). Everything is color coded as well - you have a climb with all the same color pieces -- it's much simpler that way, though at night - the kind of lights they turn on make all the red-colors blend together (ie, is that purple or red? I can't tell now that the lights are on!). The ropes they use are different, too - esp on the 25m top rope routes - much stiffer (for obvious reasons) and overall, the ropes all seemed to be heavier and stiffer. If you're used to having to "prove" you know how to belay - EICA just has you sign a waiver that says "I'm a grown up and I know what I'm doing and won't sue you if I'm an idiot" - no belay test, no belay card - have at it, kiddies! On this visit, I didn't get to try any of the outdoor climbing - but I'll work on my lead climbing classes and certifications this winter so I can travel and climb outdoors more next year. I hope to visit England again - and want to see more climbing gyms - I've heard there are some in old churches (ie, crazy high walls and indoors).

I went there recently for a meeting not a climbing experience, but what I could see was amazing. I…read morewill definitely be back to conquer the vast amounts of climbing possibilities and challenge my fear of heights! Its a place for adults and children. Lots of space inside and outside for parking. There is a cafeteria where you can eat, converse and indulge. I am sure they are offer memberships, so why not give it a try. Just one thing - you might need a car to get there. Not sure about the public transport as its a bit outside of Edinburgh , near Ratho Station.

I did my research before joining a gym in Edinburgh, and I think that this is definitely a…read morefive-star gym that beats out the rest on quality and price. It is not just the new, fantastically-built university gym for Edinburgh University, but it is also a community gym that welcomes members of the public to join as well, for just slightly higher rates. I like that this gym has variety and great quality. The main cardio room has great machines with touch-screen TVs that are easy to navigate and the best and most current gym technology. Behind this room is a weight room that can be very busy with lots of testosterone monopolizing the weights, but at lunchtimes it is much less busy and intimidating. In the back, with stunning views of Arthur's Seat, is my favorite gym room with great elliptical trainers along the walls and many large individual mats on the floor for using weights, medicine balls, exercise balls, etc. It is much more calm than the other rooms. I also love the classes. So far, I have been to two spinning classes, two Zumba classes, and a circuits class. They have all been great with really nice and helpful instructors. You book all of the classes online from seven days before the classes, but can also sometimes show up and see if there is extra space to join in. Spinning definitely fills up quickly, but it's worth it! This is a fantastic place and has a great vibe about it. With your membership, you also have access to the pool that's in another building. Thus far, I have been more than happy with all of the many other offerings in the main building!

great gym, just the hours, the open hours should always be the same 6am or earlier. Many if not…read moremajority of gym goers are early birds, but have to wait till 9am, on sat and sunday. Notice there's a queue every weekend. All gyms , rcp included, open real early 7 days a week as they know this, dont be lazy and open earlier!

We were booked for a family session which was an hour of instruction and a shot on some of the…read morewalls. Our instructor Mark was excellent, particularly given that the group was 2 adults and 2 teenagers - he kept all of our attention, and ensured that we were all safe and competent, and weren't going to let each other accidentally plunge to our deaths/severe injury. I felt very safe the whole time. I don't know much about climbing, and what particular features or challenges that you'd look for from a climbing centre, but this place looked pretty awesome to me. Because it's in an old church, the climbing walls are really high, and there's loads of them, with all sorts of different gradients, and a big overhanging wall too. There's also a bouldering area in the basement. There was a cafe, which wasn't open when we were there, but looked like it provided some nice healthy options - there was a choice of smoothies which caught my eye. I thought an hour wouldn't be long enough, but even though I'd only done 3 climbs, my arms were pure burst by the end, so it was actually plenty of time. I'd love to go back here and practice some more.

Fancy strapping yourself into a harness, wearing some tight shoes and attempting to scale an ever…read moresteepening pinnacle? No its not Thursday night is fetish night, its the Glasgow Climbing Centre. Opened since 1994 and still going strong, the climbing centre offers a fantastic opportunity to do a bit of rock climbing in a dry and safe environment. Whether your using it as a pro looking to stay sharp or as a complete amateur trying it for the first time, there are routes to suit of abilities and nerves. Priced a little steeply at over £7 a pop its still a fantastic facility and a chance to do something that's not just cool but is amazingly good for your health...if the heights don't get to you that is! With other facilities such as a cafe, new since the last time i went, and a shop for all your climbing gear needs, this place is top notch. Oh and dont worry that you'll ever get bored climbing the same routes (around 270 combined top rope and boulder problems) as they are changed every 3 months by the resident team of trained spider monkeys kept in the basement, a spectacle in itself!!

In a standard burst of January fitness (after spending two weeks eating and boozing like Fat…read moreBastard) , The Man and I discovered that Gracemount Leisure Center is about 5 minutes from our house. How did we miss that before? Oh yeah, we were too distracted by the chippy that's RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET from it (how cruel is that??). So we checked it out. We're usually work in the garden and go hillwalking kind of people but in the dark winter months there are literally not enough hours in the day to do very much of that. On the one hand, I like it. It wasn't busy (though the pool was filling up by the time we left), the gym had plenty of machines that meant you hardly had to wait, the facilities were clean and people friendly. They offer a pretty wide range of classes here too which is nice. On the other hand, a gym visit is £6.90, and if you go to the sauna that's an extra £1.50. £1.50 to sit in a hot room for 10 minutes is pretty excessive, no? Surely it should just be part of your entry fee? You could pay £25/year for a discount (20-25% I believe), or £44/month for a gym membership. You would practically have to go twice a week (gym only) for that to make any sense and let's be honest, I'll never do that. So, no fault on this gym as I know Edinburgh Leisure sets the prices, but in a country where the government bangs on about people needing to eat right an exercise more, surely they could lower the price of a visit to a council gym?

I've loving this whole deal Edinburgh Leisure has got going on. Granted, it's not the cheapest…read moreoption for fitness, but what you get is access to NEARLY EVERYTHING. By that, I mean across Edinburgh. Commonwealth Pool I seem to recall is the only exception to this rule. But, if you want classes, rock climbing at Ratho, a game of golf, indoor bowling, gyms, pools, there is a membership that gives you the lot. And I like that, especially as my fat backside really needs to get into shape, stat. What I had struggled with in the past was the, if I sign up to the gym near my work, then I have to trek out at the weekend, but if I do it near my home, well there isn't anything, and it means by the time I get there, I'll be too tired. This way, if I am home, I can nip out to a gym like Portobello (with Turkish baths!), or at work, run into Ratho, or Gracemount, which is a happy halfway point. Gracemount is a pleasant gym, a little rundown, and with one endlessly running tap in the ladies loos (come on, don't tell me you haven't noticed it!). It has a pool (haven't tried it), and a decent sized gym. Seriously, Meadownbank has a gym the size of a cupboard - this is mansion sized in comparison. I've never had a problem getting onto a machine here and I can work away to my hearts content, and if I am near a window, I can watch the pigeons doing what pigeons do, which helps while away the misery of a walking machine.

When I was in Glasgow on Wednesday 17 July 2019 , the Kelvin Hall International Sports Arena was…read morehousing a T-rex exhibit. Banners along the streets marked that the critter skeleton was in town and observable at Kelvin Hall from 18 April 2019 through 31 July 2019. I was a little confused as the exhibit hall looked to be part of an indoor sports arena. It was a wee bit of culture shock for me, and I was like - am I in the right place. Sure enough, a worker at the front desk pointed me towards the exhibit. The T-rex was pretty neat and had a lit-up informational display approach. Is it glow in the dark ink or an electronic display, or just really bright ink... Walking around in the exhibit was easy as the floorpan was well designed for human bipedal locomotion. A gift shop by the exhibit hall exit provided physical offerings to remember one's experience(s) by.

I was all set to give Kelvinhall three stars - partly for being such a beautiful historic building…read more(from the outside), and partly for the nice staff who work there. That was until last night, when I discovered that the water in the taps in all the changing rooms is apparently not fit for human consumption. W-w-w-w-hat?! In a sports hall? Where there is no access to water that is ok for drinking (apart from in the gym). I visit Kelvinhall twice a week and have been drinking the tap water for around a year ... I was horrified. You'd think they'd put up a sign at least? Apart from that, Kelvinhall is closing for refurbishment sometime this year so don't expect anything flash at the moment. Here's hoping they do something nice with it for it's reopening (and sort out the water!)

What a great hike! Easy enough and walkable from the majority of Edinburgh. You can take a few…read moredifferent paths to get to the summit. We took the one on the edge of the cliff and it was steep, so maybe avoid that one. There is one that takes a dirt path that is a little less steep to get up to Arthur's Seat. This summit provides a beautiful panoramic view of Edinburgh. Open 24/7, it's definitely worth a visit (maybe even more than once!)

I have hiked Arthur's Seat, an ancient volcano, a few times and it's not for the faint of heart…read more But if you want a challenging workout with fantastic views of Edinburgh as your reward, this is for you! There are a few different ways to make your way up to the top. For first timers, I would suggest taking the route near Holyrood Palace which, while not easy, is more gentle than the route near Pollock Halls. My first time up, I took the latter and ended up climbing up boulders - which felt a bit precarious. No matter which way you go up, bring lots of water and wear shoes with good traction. You will definitely feel like you accomplished something when you reach the top. And, as I mentioned, the views are spectacular! At the summit, I always make a point to touch both the white triangulation pillar and the bronze geographical indicator. On our most recent trip, it was April so the weather was perfect! The previous time, we hiked it in August when it was a little too warm and we were greeted by swarms of midges at the top!