這篇 Eric J. Horst寫的文章是朋友提供的，我粗略翻譯的。
Is Climbing The Best Training For Climbing？
攀爬就是最佳的攀巖訓練方法嗎？
It『s an old adage that 「climbing is the best training for climbing，」 and many climbers lean on this line as an excuse for not engaging in any training activities outside of climbing itself. Let’s examine this precept and determine， once and for all， if it is valid.
有句流行的說法「攀爬就是最好的攀巖訓練」許多攀巖者依著這個籍口不去做任何攀巖之外的訓練活動。讓我們檢查鑑定一下是否是肯定的，如果這是有效的話。
When I am asked the question 「Is climbing the best training for climbing」， my canned answer is--「it depends.」 This is because the best type of training for a given climber depends on his or her current strengths and weaknesses as well as current absolute climbing ability. For instance， in terms of improving climbing technique and mental skills， no amount of strength training will produce direct improvements in these areas. However， for developing sport-specific strength （i.e. conditioning to improve grip strength， lock-off ability， and endurance of upper body strength）， simply 「climbing for training」 will produce limited results and only slow （or no） improvement from year to year. Sound familiar？
當我被問道「攀爬是最好的攀巖訓練嗎？」我都會這樣回答「看情況」。這是因為對特定的攀巖者最好的訓練類型是依據他或她目前的優勢與短處以及目前的絕對攀爬能力。舉個例子，談到關於改進攀巖技巧與心理技巧，力量訓練不會在這些領域產生直接的改進。然而，對發展特定運動力量（例如訓練提高抓握力量，鎖定力和上身耐力）簡單地「攀爬作為訓練」是只能產生很有限的作用，或一年年地緩慢進展。這些話，是不是似曾聽說？
One reason that climbing is not the best method of strength training is because the ultimate goals of 「training」 versus 「climbing」 are very different. For instance， the goal in climbing is to avoid muscular failure at all costs and， hopefully， reach the top of a boulder problem or climb before the arm and forearm muscles pump out. CONVERSEly， when training for climbing it is often best to exercise at the highest possible intensity and produce muscular failure in a few minutes， if not a few seconds. Summarizing--in climbing， you strive to avoid failure； in training， you tend to pursue failure.
說攀爬不是最佳的力量訓練方法，原因之一是因為「訓練」對比「攀巖」的最終目標是非常不一樣的。舉例說吧，攀爬的目的是想方設法避免肌肉力竭，在手臂和前臂肌肉力竭前有希望到達頂點。相反地，為攀巖的訓練通常是在幾秒或幾分鐘內做最高的可能達到的強度產生肌肉力竭會是最好的練習。總結來說，在攀巖，你是努力避免失敗；而在訓練，你是趨向產生失敗。
Another example that underscores the difference between climbing and training for climbing is the way in which you grip the rock. In climbing， the rock dictates a random use of many different grip positions and， at times， you may even deliberately vary the way you grip the rock. As a result， it『s unlikely that any single grip position will ever get worked maximally and， therefore， the individual grip positions （e.g. crimp， open hand， pinch， etc.） are slow to increase strength. This should help you understand why a full season of climbing may indeed improve your anaerobic endurance （i.e. endurance of strength）， but do little to increase you absolute maximum grip strength. Therefore， varying grip positions is a great strategy for maximizing endurance when climbing for performance， but it stinks for training maximum grip strength. Effective finger strength training demands you target a specific grip position and work it until failure （See HIT Workouts ）.
另外一個能揭示攀巖和訓練有所區別的例子在於你抓握巖石的方式。在攀巖中，巖石意味著在一些不同的抓握姿勢中的一個隨機的使用，有時候，你可能甚至故意變化你抓握巖石的方式。結果是，任何單一的抓握姿勢不大可能達到最大效力，因此，某個抓握姿勢（例如，crimp，open hand，pinch等）只是緩慢增加力量。這會幫助你理解為什麼一個全年攀巖者可能確實需要增加你的無氧耐力（例如力量的持久力），但較少去增加你的絕對最大抓握力量。因此，改變不同的抓握姿勢達到最大化耐力在為了成績攀巖的時候是一個很好的策略，但對於訓練最大的抓握力會是一個差的主意。有效率的手指力量訓練需要你確定一個明確的抓握姿勢位為目標，去做直到力竭。（見HIT Workouts ）
As a final note， it may be best for some climbers to engage in physical conditioning that is not sport-specific in nature. For example， an overweight individual would be better off spending their non-climbing training time performing aerobic exercise （and， of course， improve their dietary surveillance） rather than sport-specific climbing exercises. Likewise， some 「way out-of-shape」 individual （i.e. unable to do even a few pull-ups， push-ups， abdominal crunches， etc.） would be better off engaging in a period of standard circuit training to improve general conditioning.
最後一點，對一些攀巖者來說，進行不是運動專項的自然的體能訓練可能是最好的。例如，一個體重超重的人花在非攀巖訓練上的有氧運動（當然，也要改善他們的飲食控制）會比運動專項的攀巖練習要好。同樣的，一些「沒有體型」的個人（例如，甚至不能做幾個引體，伏地挺身，仰臥起坐等）進行一段時期的為改善整體身體狀況的標準訓練循環會好起來的。
In the final analysis， if you are serious about climbing performance you must not be satisfied simply 「climbing for training」， nor can you mindless adhere to old adages or train in the flawed ways as most other climbers do. Becoming the best （and strongest） climber possible demands that you become a knowledgeable self-coach and thoughtful practitioner of 「training for climbing.」
最後分析，如果你很在在意攀巖的表現成績，你千萬不要滿足簡單的「攀巖就是訓練」，你也不能不加思考地追隨老的信條或和其他大多數攀巖者一樣在一種有缺陷的方式下進行訓練。要成為一個最佳（和最強的）的攀巖者可能要求你要成為一個有知識的自我教練和充分思考的「攀巖訓練」的從業者。
Copyright 2005 Eric J. Horst. All rights reserved.
2005 Eric J. Horst.版權作有