Training for Climbing: The Definitive Guide to Improving Your Climbing Performance

I am an intermediate climber and have been searching for a good source of training techniques to better myself and accomplish more advanced climbs. "Training for Climbing" was suggested by the folks that work at my gym, so I ran out and bought it. This book is so full of information, that I'll be devouring it for weeks! Everything I've read so far is very fact based and straight forward. The parts on developing mental skills are especially interesting to me, as concentration is one of my biggest areas to work on. My trainer at the gym has requested to look over the book and then we will formulate a work out program to get me in top shape for climbing. I can't wait! Thank you to Eric J. Horst for this comprehensive book on Training for Climbing.

I've been climbing for a few years and I wanted to begin a more serious, structured training program to help me break through to the higher grades. Training For Climbing is the book I was looking for, given its scientific look at improving technique, strength and the mind. While such a detailed, measured approach to training may not be for everyone, it has great appeal to me as a longtime athlete who engaged in formal training for other sports. Training For Climbing helped me understand the many unique aspects to, well, training for climbing, which I found to be much different than what I had been used to from my previous sports experience. Furthermore, I enjoyed seeing the many research references and footnotes, and more importantly I was pleased by the overall LACK of "do as so-and-so hot-shot climber does" or "train like I train." Training For Climbing helped me diagnose and design the best training program for me, and I sense that the book will remain a key resource for me for many years to come.

I just read Training For Climbing, and it's really nice to have a complete guide in one well-organized package. I had previously gathered training information from numerous sources and it was kind of hit or miss. Now there's a single manual that covers pretty much every aspect of rock climbing performance and training. I would compare this book to Joe Friel's classic "Training for Ironman" and "Cyclists Training Bible" as the most concise guide to training for a specific discipline. I give it 5-Stars.

Everyone I know who has read this book agrees it is the absolute best book on training for climbing. It's well written, comprehensive, and beautifully designed and printed. The information is science based (complete with dozens of research footnotes) and accurate, not anecdotal or shallow like some of the other training books out there. It seems well crafted for beginner, intermediate, and advanced climbers to utilize. It's a bit long (almost textbook like), but everything presented is relevant and useful; definitely a great buy ... Whether you are looking for guidance on improving your strength, power, technique, or mental skills, Training For Climbing rocks!

Hearing of this new Horst book I wondered how much new material there could be above and beyond his previous books? The answer is: a lot! This big new volume has ten chapters of new or refined information that in many cases presented ideas I had not even thought of before with regards to climbing performance> One slight con to the book is the at times technical nature but overall the book is loaded with practical ideas I can begin using this winter to improve my training> There are also countless mental training< nutrition and recovery tips I look forward to trying out on the rocks In the end its a wonderful book that I could not put down!