Introduction and Terminology
Before undertaking more than a generalized training program, have fun climbing and develop good technique and concentration while gaining experience. When you do start a generalized training program, do so to improve your entire body rather than concentrating on only a few specific muscle groups. Specialized training program that focuses on certain muscle groups or technical moves should come only after generalized training.
Do not overdo your training, because this can result in injury. Once injured, you must avoid training until you heal, and you will be susceptible to further injury.
About 10 litres of air per minutes are breathed when a body is at rest and this can raised to 150 litres per minutes during hard work. The nose can breath 50 litres per minute, after which mouth breathing becomes a necessity. Generally it is much more efficient to take a large breaths than short, quick ones which will tax the respiratory muscles more and not allow enough time for the blood to absorb O2.
Training affects the mechanism for transporting the O2, the heart and the blood. A resting heart pumps about 5 litres per minutes whereas a trained one during activity can pump up to 30 or more litres per minutes. This increase is achieved through the increase in the heart stroke volume that is affected by training (although training affects the lungs very little).
Training also promotes the growth of capillaries and can actually increase the volume of blood by up to 50 per cent.
Research has confirmed that the training should be specific. For example a swimmer gets less improvement in aerobic performance from using running as a training medium compared to using swimming. It follows that alpinists may want to concentrate on their legs whereas rock climbers will want bias their program towards their upper body. This is known as specifying.
The fitter you are the harder it becomes to achieve any improvement. Hence specifying is important after the generalized training program. Different specific training methods will also help.
The optimum length for a training session is 30 minutes (no less) with a warm-up and warm-down (including stretching) period each side. Three sessions (alternate rest day) a week would appear to be the most advantageous frequency.
There are a number of concepts that are basic to all forms of training and it is necessary to understand these in order to gain the full benefit from your efforts.
Overload - In order that physiological changes can occur, it is necessary to stress the body systems above a certain level, making it work harder than normal. The amount of overload is known as the intensity.
As your program advances and your body adapts it will be necessary to increase the workload in order to continue to overload the body's systems. This is known as progressive overload.
Rests - During a training session, as the work is being undertaken the body's resources are being depleted. After the workout the body will go through a recovery period which is followed by a period of enhancement and it is at this moment that you should train again.
If you leave it until after the enhancement period, you will merely be maintaining your current level of fitness not improving it; if you train before this period then you will be depleting the body's reserves still further and will effectively be lowering your level of fitness.
The rest periods of any program are as vital as any of the work periods, as it is during these periods that most of the physiological changes that result from your training will take place. To establish the correct intervals, you must keep records of your level of fitness. If it declines, your rest periods are too short; if it stays constant, they are too long.
Reversibility - The effects of all forms of training are reversible if the training is infrequent or the intensity insufficient.
Specificity - The effects of your training are specific to the type of training you undertake. This applies not only to the energy systems being employed, but also individual muscles being used and even to the range and type of movement that they use during the activity for which you are training.
Monitoring - The effect of your training should be monitored at frequent intervals and the record of your progress is compared with your own previous performance. This is to ensure the success of current training program and to help you plan future training program.
