How massage helps this climber reach new heights

Rotimi epitomises the joy and spirit of London community. Through building his climbing community Clmbxr from the ground up, he leads the way for Black representation in what he calls hidden spaces. We visited him at one of his climbing spots, City Bouldering, to discuss how he took the climbing community by storm and the importance of massage in his regime.

From climbing fan to Clmbxr founder

Back in 2019, Rotimi Odukoya took up a friend’s offer to go indoor bouldering – a sport he’d never taken an interest in before. Despite growing up with a huge love of sport, throwing himself into any and every activity he could, climbing had simply never crossed his path. Little did he know that one session would change the course of his career.

Rotimi describes climbing as the perfect blend of endurance, strength and problem-solving – ideal for an athletic software engineer. His love for climbing quickly replaced his boring gym routine, and as more and more friends began to join him, the Clmbxr community - which stands for climb x Rotimi - naturally took off.

What started as a Whatsapp group with a couple of his friends has now grown to over 4,800 followers on Instagram, fuelled with like-minded climbing enthusiasts. They meet up twice a week at various climbing locations in London to refine their technique, share their expertise but ultimately, to have a good time. He’s now helped over 500 people find a love for climbing, building their confidence through his bi-weekly sessions.

And It isn’t just fans of climbing that’ve taken interest in Rotimi’s work. He’s been snapped up as an ambassador by the likes of Adidas, Nike and The North Face – becoming part of their Explorer team in 2021. He also joined the National Indoor Climbing Award Scheme as a Trustee in 2022.

Pursuing climbing as a full-time career

Rotimi previously worked as a software engineer in London, which explains his love for the problem-solving aspect of climbing. But after being made redundant over a year ago, Rotimi started to wonder where he could take his career next.

Was it time to make Clmbxr his full-time job? As a dad to a toddler, it wasn’t a decision he was going to take lightly: “It was kind of a pivotal moment for me. I had to think about going back to work because of my circumstances, I'm a family man.”

After a lot of deliberation, he decided it was time to take the plunge: “I thought to myself yes, I actually want to pursue this full time. I want to see where I can take it for at least a year. It's been close to 18 months now and we're doing okay,” he smiles.

A day in the life

Rotimi’s average day looks very different now in comparison to his previous nine-to-five. From content curation to leading corporate bonding days, no day is the same: “It’s all really fun. I’m also a North Face ambassador, so I have some obligations around content, interviews and performance.” He takes his training pretty seriously too and likes to get his heart rate up in the morning, whether that’s with a climbing session or hitting the gym.

Each year he tasks his community to set goals for the year ahead, and this year he decided to set some for himself, too: “My aim is to do the pancake splits – it's when your legs are extended and your chest is on the ground. I'm nowhere close just yet. 

“In climbing, you need a lot of mobility,” he explains. “So if you can do something like the pancake splits, you have great mobility. It helps being able to get to certain positions, so it's a nice skill to have.”

Massage – magic for the muscles

For Rotimi, convenient massage empowers him to train injury-free, soothing sore arms and back muscles after particularly intensive workouts: “For someone who's as sporty as me, I need massages quite frequently. So Urban is great, it’s such an easy way to get a massage quickly. The convenience of someone coming to your house is amazing.”

“I think it's one of the best things for recovery. It sets me up to get straight back on the wall.”

He sees massage as a must,  especially for people who like to put their body through its paces: “For so many of us, our bodies are tired after putting in too much work. We fuel our bodies with the right food, but we also need to make sure that we get rid of any tight knots. And a deep tissue massage is a great way to get rid of things like a stiff back.

“Massage sets me up to feel mentally in a good space, but also physically in a good space as well,” he says. 

But his favourite massage? It might not be what you think: “Sometimes I just need a foot massage. Climbing shoes specifically are really tight, and you're in them for hours on end, so sometimes your toes just need some TLC."

Join a Clmbxr session

Whether you’re a seasoned climber or a complete newbie, Rotimi encourages all to attend his bi-weekly Clmbxr sessions. As a community that thrives on encouragement, it’s a place where everyone feels welcomed.

Head to the website to book a session or become a Member, or follow their antics on Instagram.