Martial Arts Training

[Edward Smith]

I've noticed there are a number of martial artists on the forum. I was wondering about some specific martial arts training. Mainly is there any exercises or protocols (HIIT, Tabata, Circuits, etc) you think are essential for martials conditioning? and specifically training to make my kick snappier and in general have more control.

Thanks,

Ed

[Nic Scheelings]

Hey Ed,

Just wondering since ur in melb (as am i) where u train and what in? I train at melbourne martial arts in Kyokushin. In general i would say circuit training has a lot of value for martial artists but things like the olympic lifts are essential for developing power in those hips (= powerful kicks). Depending on how long u have been training control is something i feel just takes time (my own control is always in need of improvement).

One thing i've taken to recently is filming my technique, as sometimes Shihan is correcting me and I think "that's what i'm doing!" and its only when seeing it myself I can identify the error.

Cheers

[kbryk]

First and for most go out and train like a fighter, to combine both gymnastics training and martial arts will be tough but it can work, to control your movements it will take training like anything, work flexibility, after I stopped training in school with gymnastics I was able to throw better kicks simply because of my flexibility gains, work powerful movements, such as Olympic Lifts as Demus said, working strength rather than power won't help nearly as much, work the movements anywhere you can, you need to have a solid understanding of every move/skill you learn, and you will be able to control yourself in many ways.

Circuits are great for conditioning the only thing I don't like about them for fight training is they are usually strength moves, in most styles of fighting it's about power, just work those two with each other along with interval training; short bursts, high intensity cardio and you will be good.

What type of martial art are you training, because Jujitsu is not the same as Karate, nor is Muay Thai.

[Edward Smith]

I am training Karate, at I.G.K ([international] Goju Karate). We do sparring once a week which can vary from a couple of rounds to almost a whole lesson dedicated to it. I have started Tabata and my Strength workouts keep my heart pumping, plus I get cardio from rugby and karate.

Thanks for your help,

Ed

P.S I am at the Balwyn (North) I.G.k, there's also Arnis here but you have to be in the adult class to study it.

[chauinc]

When i was in jujutsu i did slow kicks to different heights for about 30 minutes against a bag or just in the air. After a few weeks i was able to control my kicks really well. By control them well i mean being able to stop them mid kick, stopping a kick at full strength was really straining though.

And as for making the kicks snappier practicing kicks is probably the best way. Get a punching bag, put the bag around waist level and kick with of your strength with strict form. After a while your body will adjust itself to what is the best way to kick and slowly you'll get better. It worked fairly well for me and the people at my jujutsu place, the only problem is that it will take time.

As for the exercises for conditioning i don't know.

Man i miss the days that i could do awesome kicks like that, i pretty much lost it from slacking and only conditioning my kenjutsu :cry:

[Ari]

I can't be bothered tackling any points made by other people earlier in this thread, so I'll just state my views.

For success in the martial arts (real martial arts... those that are actually 'martial', not interpretive dance), excellent strength, specific endurance and mobility are required.

If you train gymnastics properly, you will develop the necessary upper-body strength. Squatting and deadlifting will develop the appropriate lower-body strength and olympic lifting will develop general explosivity.

Specific endurance is best developed through sparring. If you are already sparring daily/can't make it to training that often yet want to train that often, you can also use other methods, but your priority should be sparring.

Mobility should be developed through squat variations, deadlift/pull variations and the olympic lifts. If you can't get kicks high enough, just kick more, though I doubt the sort of un-stabilised mobility this develops is particularly healthy.

Also, check out Chad Waterbury's MMA articles at t-nation:

7 Steps To A Balanced Fighter: http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/7_steps_to_a_balanced_fighter&cr=

The Full Throttle Program: Simple Methods To Develop Fighting Endurance: http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/the_full_throttle_program_simple_methods_to_develop_fighting_endurance&cr=

Hammer Down: Endurance: http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/hammer_down_endurance&cr=

Hammer Down: Strength: http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/hammer_down_strength&cr=

Fight School: http://www.t-nation.com/article/performance_training/fight_school&cr=

I have posted these in reverse order, from newest to oldest, as his training methodology has changed over the years (as you would hope). 7 Steps To A Balanced Fighter represents most accurately his current views on aspects of the training of fighters, though most attention is given to developing specific endurance. His older articles that recommend various drills for developing endurance offer good alternatives for when sparring as often as needed to develop sufficient endurance is not convenient.

You might notice that the way he apparently trains combat athletes differs somewhat from the way in which I would, but hey, he trains the guys at Rickson Gracie's academy. I train no one.

Also, the Hammer Down: Flexibility article that was supposed to be published never was. At least, I haven't seen it anywhere.

[Okami]

Hello

Awesome message board guys, great people, tips and info. As far as my conditioning goes, I have been following what Karl Gotch used to preach. You can pretty much do some simple searches for him and find out. Here is a link for his conditioning video which I treasure like a first born son. I hope it's ok to post a link so soon.....

http://www.budovideos.com/shop/customer/product.php?productid=24698&cat=&page=1

-Jose

[Raizen]

I suppose it depends on the martial art. For example many popular martial arts (tkd, karate) kicking techniques focus more no knee extension (the snap you were refering to), while some others (muay thai, pradal serey) kick using hip-extension as the primary mover. Generally you want to train for relative strength to bodyweight, though the ratio isnt the same as gymnastics as lowerbody power is more of an issue. You could get to a decent level with pistol variations and glute-ham raises, but mastering the olympic lifts is a much better option, with much greater returns in function.

As far as endurance goes, some definately require more than others, and different types. Wushu very rarely worked by aerobic endurance, Muay Thai classes however are considerably more tiring. But then wushu artists dont need to be able to outlast an opponent for multiple rounds, so training endurance heavily would be wasting the time they could otherwise be spending perfecting their often very complex routines.

About specific training, I believe that every martial artist who is training in an actual hard-contact style should specifically train their body to recieve multiple grevious blows. The first example that comes to mind is Muay Thai practitioners heavily abusing their shins until they become usable for blocking full-force kicks and kicking with in turn. Many martial artists today have started training for more strength, power, ect... but still dont train themselves to take significant blows to bodyparts other than the stomach. (ex- I was sparring with a friend who takes karate, and gave him a half-hearted low kick to the quads, which practically crippled him).

For control, presuming you mean bodily control, I suppose you just need to develop superior bodily awareness, which will come from the constant repetition of practicing day after day after day. You can't go from backhandsprings to gainerfulls without hitting backflips in between. I believe you said you take Karate, which by my knowledge is broken into.. kata, sparring, and waza(?). So just going to class, a lot, should be enough. Getting a heavy bag and some spare floor place at home and practicing their is a good idea too. You could do karate drills on nights you dont have class a few hours after your strength training routine.

Lastly flexability is definately a must, for some styles more than others. Focus should be made on working the entire body's flexability though, not just having high kicks. If you get taken to the ground by a skilled grappler and aren't able to really maneuver, you're basically screwed.\

(Oh btw I only really glanced over the other responses, so I apologize if some of this is just being repeated from before)