If you have spent any time around rock climbers, then you know one thing about them. What is that thing? They love chalk. Rock climbers love to chalk up each and every time they jump on a hill, if you are going to do it, you'll need to know why. Rock climbing has a few very practical purposes that must be accounted for, as there is not just one single reason for its use. The most commonly spouted reason has to do with getting a better grip, but that isn't all.

It starts with the grip
Rock climbing is an exercise in dexterity and it is also a little bit dangerous. Rocks are jagged and they are difficult to grab. Even rock climbing walls make things extremely difficult on people who would rather just use their hands. Chalk helps create a more abrasive surface on the hands so that climbers have a better ability to grip rocks. Some of the rock climbing moves are difficult to pull off and climbers will have to rely upon the chalk to give them a grip where they might not have had one. This is why so many professionals and amateurs alike rely on the stuff.

Making the most of your strength
One thing to know about rock climbing is that you will need to use all of your strength if you are going to be successful. Making the appropriate moves is almost impossible if you don't have the requisite strength. When one has a solid grip, he is better able to use upper body muscles and go from one hold to another. When a person feels like he's slipping, strength is marginalized and the sport becomes almost impossible.

Preventing blisters
One thing that chalk does for the hands has to do with health. No one likes to get blisters, and these can happen at times when climbing. Though using the best chalk will not immediately take away all of the risk of blisters, it will help prevent them to some extent. Your goal should be to climb as safely as possible, and a blister can put you out of commission from the beginning. For this reason, people chalk up and keep away painful and irritating blisters.

Keeping away the moisture
Ask anyone who has climbed for any period of time and they will tell you that rock climbing is a sweaty sport. There is simply no getting around this, so you must keep it in mind. Chalk helps keep this sweat away, making your climbing session a much more enjoyable one. Sweat can thwart your best efforts to grip things strongly, so it pays to use chalk. This is something that chalk provides and gloves simply do not. For this reason, many people prefer to use chalk over gloves when they have the opportunity.

Ultimately there are plenty of reasons to use chalk. Most have to do with comfort, grip, and getting the absolute most out of your body when climbing a wall or mountain.