Slacklining good for balance, core strength — and fun

You may have seen someone walking on one at a park, campsite or gym.

Or maybe you wondered what to call the guy bouncing and doing flips off what looked like a tightrope during Madonna’s halftime show at the Super Bowl last year.

Or you might never have encountered slacklining at all. But proponents say more and more people are discovering the activity as a way to improve their balance, strengthen their core muscles and have fun.

“It started way back when people were climbing Yosemite and Half Dome,” says Daniel Carnahan, operations manager at Little Rock Climbing Center. “They’d all come off the mountain and then need something to do to heighten their skills.”

Many slackliners pick up the sport in the evenings after a day spent rock climbing with a group. “I started climbing first,” Carnahan says, “and then we were camping out and somebody set up a line.”

Not all slackliners are climbers relaxing around a campfire anymore, though.

“As the sport progressed, it’s become something where you may see somebody out in the park practicing for a competition,” Carnahan says. Some competitive slackliners even practice over a foam pit or gymnastic padding while they learn new tricks.

While there aren’t many competitive slackliners in Arkansas, Carnahan says, “there’re quite a few people [who] know how to slackline. It’s really big in the outdoorsy setting.”

One reason slacklining is popular as a way to relax is that it isn’t tiring, he says. “It’s really not that physical. It’s not something that you’re going to get your heart rate up really high or … like lifting weights. … It’s trying to keep your core and everything in line.”

“It looks easy when I’m on the line and walking it, but there are different muscles engaging,” Carnahan adds.

“It works out everything from your ankles to your shoulders,” says Russell Williams, a former employee of Ozark Outdoor Supply who recently moved to Arizona. “And you don’t even realize it till after the ‘workout’ is over.”

For beginners looking to get started on a slackline, Carnahan recommends trying one out at an indoor climbing gym. “A lot of local climbing gyms will have slacklining night, where you can come out and climb and also learn how to slackline.”

The Little Rock Climbing Center sometimes sets up a slackline at the gym during Tuesday bouldering nights. Zion Climbing Center in Searcy also sets up slacklines for customers to try and has slacklines available for sale.

But not all climbing centers offer slacklining. The Crag at the Earl Bell Community Center in Jonesboro does not. And it’s not an activity at the LCP 200+ Climbing Club in Fayetteville, where slacklines are seen as unnecessarily hazardous to ankles.

ON YOUR OWN

It’s also possible to learn on your own, although there’s more work involved. You have to get a slackline and find a place to set it up.

Carnahan recommends a line without a lot of stretch; while a bouncy line is good for tricks, it may be too unstable for beginners.

For a recent demonstration in Allsopp Park, he used a Gibbon brand 2-inch, 49-foot (15 meters) slackline, which comes with a ratchet for securing and tightening the line. Slackline kits are available from outdoor outfitters, with entry-level prices beginning about $50.

A park can be a good place to set up. Look for a grassy spot where the ground is level and the trees are large enough to support a line. “There’s a lot of tension on the line that you’re putting on the tree,” Carnahan says. “The main thing is that it’s got a good base, that it’s not dead or anything.”

A short, tight line is easier to start with, since it won’t move as much as a looser line strung over a very long distance. A 10- to 15-foot distance is a good length, Carnahan says, since longer lines will have more slack and be more unstable.

Try to hitch up the line so it’s about a yard off the ground to give it enough room to dip when you put your weight on it without leaving too much space underneath in case you fall. “You’re going to be doing a lot of falling,” Carnahan warns.

If you set your line up right, though, he says, “it’s just like coming off steps. It’s nice and gentle and you just keep [climbing up and trying to walk] until you can make it across the line.”

For starters, pick one of the tree supports and crawl up to stand atop the line close to the trunk. You can have someone walk along on the ground beside you holding your hand for support, or you can just try to stand unassisted.

“I would scrap the friend’s shoulder and just try to mount the line,” Williams says. “That is where you learn how to ride it out and save your balance.”

When you’re ready for that first shaky step, Carnahan says, your weight should be on your back leg. “Your front leg is kind of a runner to scope out [the line ahead] and then you weight it,” he says.

“Imagine if you’re a monkey or a cat or something,” he says, while pointing his front foot in an exaggerated manner, “this is your tail. This is your balance. … I’m putting my weight on my back, and my leg comes out.”

Both men recommend fighting the urge to look at your feet while trying to get your balance. “Look out into the horizon instead of at the line when walking,” Williams says.

FALL LIKE YOU MEAN IT

Whether you have a shoulder to lean on or not, Carnahan has some tips for falling safely.

“You want to be in full control” to avoid hurting yourself when you fall, he says. “If you start feeling shaky, just come [off the line] to one side.”

Slow progress at first does not predict permanent failure: “A lot of times for new slackliners it may be just standing up … and taking one, two steps; falling; one, two, three steps; falling,” he says.

Although falling repeatedly while you learn to balance may be frustrating, Carnahan says new slackliners should keep at it. “If you remember the first time you ever rode a bicycle, it’s really hard. You’re pedaling, and you fall over a little bit. It feels unstable. Once you figure out how your body wants to connect with that and keep a straight line, then you start adapting. You start building muscle memory, and everything kind of lines up.”

Once you can walk across your slackline, the next step is to start adding a few tricks.

“One of the first tricks, you want to be able to turn around and walk back,” he says. Then you can practice learning tricks like dropping your knee while staying on the line or even more advanced tricks like mounting the line by sitting on it and then bouncing up to stand on the line.