Some theoreticians state that interpreting simply consists of understanding in one language and explaining in another language, that speech comprehension in interpretation is the same as in everyday situations, and that it is merely a matter of accurately transmitting meaning as intended by the original speaker. According to this approach, interpreting into one’s mother tongue is essential for the correct transmission of intended meaning, since it is in this direction that the interpreter possesses the necessary underlying linguistic and cultural competence. The author believes that this theoretical approach fails to take into account language specificity in interpretation, as well as the implications that the languages involved and the their direction have on the interpreting process and on training. In this article, the author analyses the linguistic and cultural characteristics of English and Spanish and how these characteristics influence and affect the training of future interpreters of English into Spanish. Finally, a global training method for simultaneous interpreting that targets Spanish-speaking students is proposed.