Training for rock climbing at the top level requires the development of a huge amount of stamina and strength on the part of the climber. Whereas moderate strength and fitness are more than adequate for the easy to middle grade climber, trad climbs in the E9 grades or 5.14d big wall epics demand athleticism and dedication on a par with any Olympian.
Preparing yourself - your body and your mind - to engage in high standard climbing requires dedicated application to some very specific climbing training regimen. Mental and physical conditioning is necessary in order for you to enjoy and benefit from overcoming the challenges of rock climbing as the gymnastic style movements frequently take place in stressful situations with the potential for long and serious falls.
Whether you engage in extreme, trad or sport on rock; ice climbing or mixed climbing, you must include strength and stamina training as part of your rock climbing training exercises. This will keep you fit and ready to get the most out of your climbing and will keep you physically ready to push yourself towards more difficult and challenging climbs.
In training for rock climbing, parallel bar and balance beams have started to appear in some climbing wall or climbing gym setups, alongside the now normal array of beast boards, system boards, circuit boards and the ubiquitous leading and bouldering walls. The variety and scope of training facilities available to the modern climber are stunning.
Extreme rock climbing enthusiasts have developed a range of strategies for preparing themselves for specific climbs, even going to the extreme of modeling particularly difficult sequences of rock climbing holds on their own indoor "woodies" (indoor climbing wall built at home frequently from sheets of heavy duty plywood). For most climbers aiming to develop their extreme climbing skills, a more general training program is required.
As well as the obvious need for as much climbing at the edge of your ability as possible, it is necessary to identify your strengths and weaknesses and then to target the weaknesses in your performance envelope. Training can then be focused on these areas using the walls, boards and gym equipment to isolate and develop specific patterns of muscle recruitment and particular hold techniques and movements.
If you have identified a weakness in your ability to hang on to crimps, you can set up a system board with a set of crimp style holds on it and develop a routine for improving that specific skill. Other skills may well suffer slightly in the short term, but you will eventually develop as an all round climber.
When getting into training for rock climbing, the obvious areas of concentration are your arms, legs, shoulder muscles, and overall endurance. But what has become a key issue now in climbing at ever higher standards is the importance of your core strength. High standard climbing demands extreme power sometimes to be applied in outlandish positions. Without exceptional core strength and stability, it is impossible for the arms and legs to apply their power in a direction that works on some of the available but unfriendly holds. This is part of the reason some of the more traditional gymnastic equipment such as beams, parallel bars and rings have started to put in an appearance in the training rooms at the more forward looking climbing centres. Training for rock climbing has never had the potential to be so effective.