A Warrior's Thougts on the Martial Arts

Disclaimer: Geeky stuff ahead. If you're afraid of physics, do not read. Also, I don't have everything in order just yet, but I wanted to release this before going to Poland, so the missing Figures will be inserted ASAP. Now Anna, a good friend and student of mine, decided to work on her high kicks. Determined, she told me she was going to stretch a lot. That's the point where, as a trainer, I felt the need to intervene and set things into persepective. You see, while some people might definitely benefit from some targeted flexibility training, what most need is actually mobility. Where's the difference? Well, in a nutshell, flexibility measures the "length" (or rather, the ability to relax) of your muscles, whereas mobility measures the range of motion (ROM) you can take a joint through under control. For my german speaking readers, this is pretty much the difference between "aktive Beweglichkeit" and "passive Beweglichkeit" [WEI2010]...

So today's post just shows some highlights of last saturdays training. This time, it features Valentin, Anton and Dominik. Valentin and Anton are preparing for both semi- and light-contact fights in Poland next Sunday, hence there's a strong emphasis on kicks. Speaking of kicks, my next post is going to deal with fixing the high kick, so stay tuned. So long, don't get hurt

Today's post is all about Anna, one of my students who are going to fight in [Poland] . During alactic capactiy training, Anna hit the pads with 13 left roundhouse kicks over the course of 6 seconds (although the video shows the previous set, which comes at 12 repetitions) - definitely not bad. "Hitting like a girl" takes on a different meaning here. The following video just gives you an impression of Anna's impression during yesterday's class. Countdown until departure is at T-8 days. Stay tuned. So long, don't get hurt

So here's some of the [promised] footage of our last sessions. The kids are pushing the pace hard when it comes to light contact and semi contact sparring. Guess we're going to have a blast in [Poland] . Without further ado, enjoy. As always, I'll keep you posted. So long, don't get hurt

Today we had a boxing masterclass with [Tom Knöbl] . Since I'm currently handicapped, I wasn't able to do most of the stuff he taught, but that's ok. At least, I know what what we'll be working on over the course of the next couple weeks. In essence, what Tom covered was weight distribution during stepping and striking. Especially, he explained something of a pendulum jab, where you bob into your strike to increase effective mass and thus, punching power. Tom also covered the importance of conditioning, as fatigue leads to a decrease in concentration and situational awareness, which in turn puts you at a greater risk of being knocked out. That's exactly what I preach all the time. Strength and conditioning first and foremost fulfill the role to keep the athlete injury-free and enable him to actually exhibit his technical and tactical skills over a longer time. 'nuff said. Below, you'll find a couple of pictures of the class. Note tha...

Just a quick follow up on my [last post] , where I outlined my plans for my strength training over the course of the next 8 weeks. Here's what my sessions actually look like: Weighted Push Ups: Do a modified [PTTP] program, i.e., take three steps forward and two backward with the weights. In essence, this means that the weights go up by 7.5kg over the course of a week, and 2.5kg from week to week. E.g., 40, 42.5, 45; 42.5, 45, 47.5; 45, 47.5, 50; ... I deviate a bit from a "pure" PTTP program because I'm resting for just a minute in between sets. Also, I'm reducing weight from set to set. Basically, I guess you could say I'm doing something of a hybrd, staggered [drop set] , where I stop when I cannot hit 5 reps on a given set anymore... So it's rather the "How to become a bear" program outlined in PTTP.  Front Squats: Same thing here, only I don't come as close to failure as with the weighted push ups. Safety first. Handstand practice...

Time for an update, I guess. A week ago, while attending a [Luta Livre] workshop with Daniel D'Dane (watch the video above for some info on that guy. Note that obviously, it's not the workshop I've been to.), I ruptured the extendor tendon in my left pinky finger. No big deal, but then again, the doc says 16 weeks no grappling or boxing. Now that's a big friggin' deal. Especially since we're about to go fight in [Poland] again. Great. Another tournament where I'm sidelined and just attend as a coach. Well, nevermind, though, since four of my youngsters are going to compete, so there'll be quite some work for me anyway. Ok, now what do I do with no boxing or grappling? Pout and sob - a lot. But when I'm done with that, I'll be going to work. Do what you can, with what you have, where you are     --Theodore Roosevelt I can still kick, so that's what I'll be working on. No rocket science here. I can shadow box and I can wo...