Owner: MarksChat URL:markschat.blogspot.com Join Date: Fri, 28 Sep 2007 03:35:24 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: Fighting and training methods for unarmed martial artists Site statistics:Click here
Martial artists handstand press ups 2007-09-27 05:11:00 The handstand press up is one of the best strength builders a martial artist can use. When performed for a period of time, greater power can be noticed when punching, clinching and ground fighting, and will also help in creating stronger choke holds.
When doing these it is always best to do them against a wall, even if your a world class gymnast because YOUR SHOULDERS WILL BURN! Facing a wall place your hands about a foot and a half away and push with your feet so you end up in a handstand position, with your feet braced against the wall (This is the hardest part of the exercise as beginners find it mentally challenging sometimes to do this). Lower your body towards the floor and when your head touches, press your self back up to the starting position. Always do four sets of as many reps as you can to achieve the maximum results. As you progress you should be able to do more and more. Advanced variations are to press on your knuckles, or even fingers, to push your hands slightly of th Read more:Martial
Neoprene heat belt 2007-09-26 16:48:00 For people wanting to lose weight or fighters who need to cut weight for an upcoming fight, there is only one way to do it. Burn more calories during the day than your body takes in. Through exercise, diet or a mixture of both, THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO DO IT!!! A good tool that's helps though is the neoprene heat belt.
Being relatively cheap they are excellent in sweating out excess water around the stomach area. Also if looks are what you're after they will help reveal the six pack of muscle faster than if you didn't have it. It can be worn at anytime during the day, as all it does is build heat around the stomach forcing sweating. When exercising you should feel warmth and a break of sweat within a couple of minutes of use. Like i said, there cheap costing no more than £10 and can be found at most fitness websites. Try them!
Self defence breakfalling 2007-09-25 04:46:00 This is just a quick comment on break falling. Last week when training nage komi (full throw repetitions) my partner was on the receiving end of a harai goshi. As he broke the fall by slapping his LEFT hand on the mat, he gave no thought at all to his head. As a result his head hit the floor pretty hard and although it was a matted surface, he still was slightly dizzy from the fall. Two little pointers regarding head guarding,
Always keep your chin tucked in, mouth shut and tongue pressed against your top jaw.Use your non break falling hand to cover the side of your head so if you does lose control of your head it will be your hand that you hit rather than the floor.
Read more:defence
Street fighting and MMA style fighting 2007-09-21 04:25:00 Over the last few years we have seen UFC, Pride and others bring out the most advanced fighters the world has ever seen. They are able to punch, kick, grapple, ground fight and submit. Also the level of fitness they attain for each fight makes them some of most well conditioned athletes alive. Does this mean that they are also great street fighters?
Firstly let me point out that when i say MMA fighter for this topic i am referring to MMA sport fighters who train under rules and regulations. And this is just what i mean. RULES AND REGULATIONS. In a street fight there is no ref, so no one will stop you gouging eyes and pulling inside of cheeks (fish hooking) if there are weapons around (sticks, bottles, walls to be thrown into) you wont get disqualified by using them to your advantage, and most importantly
IN TODAY'S DAY AND AGE YOU DON'T FIGHT JUST ONE PERSON. This is the most important point. If your rolling around on the floor looking for a submission or clinched up trying to deliv Read more:Street
Judo and Karate Ashi barai timing 2007-09-20 04:30:00 The foot sweep (called ashi barai in Karate
and Judo) can be extremely effective. It can be used to distract your opponent while attacking in combination and sometimes can be used to take down opponents.
There is one other way that it can be used to not only 99.99% of the time take down your opponent but also make him/her think twice about moving in to you, and if they cant move in to you, they cant hurt you. Your opponent will move in by moving his feet towards you, sliding, stepping or any other way. As they move in, there front foot will momentarily be off the ground and for that moment there balance is unstable. If you can sweep that front foot just before it lands back on the floor, whilst also being cautious of any oncoming attack, there is a high chance they will fall, and if they don't fall they will certainly lose there balance for you to carry on attacking. Psychologically it will also make them think twice about closing the gap. It requires a lot of practice and drilling
Shin toughening 2007-09-19 07:23:00 Shin toughening is a must for all Mauy Thai fighters and should be included by every fighter in my opinion.
A strong kick to the shin especially with shoes can end a fight. There are many methods in conditioning shins, some people roll glass bottles and metal pipes over them while others tap them with rolling pins. Personally i dip a cloth in water, ring it dry, roll it up into a ball then hit my shins about 500 times each leg. I do this about three times a week and along with shin kicks on the heavy bag, i feel my shins getting stronger and stronger. Does anyone have any tips they care to share?
Evasion and reaction training 2007-09-18 04:17:00 If you look at old Muhammad Ali fights one thing you will notice is that his reaction
and evasion to punches is probably the best ever witnessed in the ring. Being lightning fast I'm sure his opponents would get frustrated not been able to hit him. Reaction and evasion technique is something that every fighter MUST have.
I have developed a way of training this which requires nothing more than a sheet of paper. Its called the paper drop drill. Starting from a normal standing position, hold the sheet of paper as high as you can then let it drop, then quickly assume your natural fighting stance as the paper drops down above your head. Being so light in weight the paper will sway from side to side through the air, and the objective is to use movement, side stepping, bobbing, weaving and slipping, to not let the paper touch any part of your body. When the paper drops to about chest level, flick it up again and let it drop. Also, when flicked back up, you may push it away from you, so move
Roundhouse kick striking areas 2007-09-16 13:06:00 The roundhouse kick is used in many martial arts and is probably one of the most used kick there is.
Its quick and can be very powerful. Another reason why it is used a lot is because there are different surfaces on the leg that can be used for striking. Thai boxers tend to use the shin for striking, as it can do the most damage. A shin kick to the thigh is like having a baseball bat wrapped around you. In other martial arts the top part of the instep is used. Its not as powerful as the shin but there is less chance of your opponent grabbing your leg as with the shin, and can be used in a jab like fashion. Personally i like using the shin when kicking to the legs and upper area, but i think when kicking to the midsection, the ball of foot is the most effective. Its a very awkward kick to defend as its small point of contact can thrust through peoples guard delivering a different kind of pain. To understand what i mean try tapping your ribs with your fist, then with just one knuckle. D Read more:areas
Forearm strength grippers 2007-09-14 17:42:00 Having strong forearms are crucial for martial artists as they aid in blocking, punching power and grip strength
.
One of the best devices which can be used to build forearms are hand held grippers which are cheap to buy, easy to use and portable. Taking them anywhere you want constantly grip the device, hold for 3 seconds or so, then release. This can be done all day if wanted. Also short bursts for a minute or so, where you grip and release as many times you can. The burn and pump you get is painful but worth it, as your grip when grappling will improve, your punching wrist will become solid and blocks will smash against your opponents arms and legs like baseball bats! so start gripping!!!!
Read more:Forearm
Home workout Part 1 2007-09-14 10:24:00 Part 1 gives a workout dedicated to cardiovascular, strength and flexibility increase.
This circuit has been tried, tested and used for many years by myself. Although it gives greatest benefits to martial artists, it can be performed by anyone to increase all the above. It can be performed anywhere as all that's needed is about 3 meters of room.
Perform each exercise for 1 minute and gradually increase to a maximum of 3 minutes over a period of weeks.
If 3 minutes is too easy, then the aim should be to increase intensity by performing more repetitions each exercise.
Perform the circuit at least three times (3 sets) working up to as many times as you can.
Have some water handy and takes gulps after each set.
Don't over strain yourself for the first week as it could result in injury.
Below are the exercises,
Jumping jacks - Starting from a natural stance, feet shoulder width apart, with hands by your side, jump and open your feet double shoulder width apart and bringing your han
Defending the takedown (for strikers) 2007-09-13 05:29:00 When sparring its not always going be a case of exchanging strikes. Sometimes an opponent may try to take you down to the floor, especially if he feels dominated.
A few suggestions to stop this from happening are,
UNDERHOOKS - If you and your opponent are holding on to each other, always make sure that your arms are under his/her armpits. These should give you best control over the situation.
HIPS LOW - By keeping your hips lower than your opponents it will be impossible to get thrown and by dropping your hips and pulling him/her down hard you will disrupt there balance and could pull off a throw of your own.
SPRAWL - When your opponent dives in for your legs in a rugby tackle type attack, kick your legs back, and drop your chest onto his upperback area. You will both end up on the floor but lying on his back, it should be YOU in the dominating position.
STOP HITTING - As soon as you see your opponent getting close to you, fire out a technique which tells him BACK OFF. Jabs are go Read more:takedown
Skipping 2007-09-12 10:52:00 Skipping is one of the vital training methods a fighter can undertake and a great way to get into shape. If your new to it it will take you a short while to become efficient enough to turn it into an excellent workout, and to begin with i recommend keeping your feet jumping simultaneously and try not to kick your heels back when doing so. Also learn to keep on the balls of your feet. By doing this, if your a martial artist or boxer you'll be working your footwork the best way possible and it WILL start to show soon enough. If your pretty good with the rope but are getting bored of the same routine then try adding certain things. Hopping on one leg, crossing your feet backwards and forwards, lifting your knees alternately touching your chest, moving up and down and side to side in the room(if your have the space) and other adventurous ideas. I like skipping in rounds, starting from 1:30 secs sometimes going up to 5min and try to do as many rounds as i can. After a couple you feel like Read more:Skipping
Close quarter strikes (for grapplers) 2007-09-12 05:23:00 Most grapplers tend to think that because nearly all fights end up at grappling range, that they don't need to know anything else regarding self defence. In judo, jiu jitsu and other grappling tournaments strikes are not allowed so they rarely discuss never mind train them. Although they may win countless grappling tournaments the harsh reality is that unless you know a few good strikes your making life much harder if you every get into a confrontation where you have to defend yourself outside of the dojo or competition mat. Below are a few easy effective strikes that can be mastered by anyone.
KNEE KICK - The knee kick is a very powerful and easy technique to perform. Once bent the knee becomes solid. As your knees are low, it makes sense to strike low areas including groin, thighs and opponents knees.
ELBOWS - Like the knee, when the arm is fully bent the elbow becomes solid, almost like a large knuckle and can be very effective by swinging, thrusting and dropping. as the elbows Read more:Close
, quarter
On the Ground (for strikers) 2007-09-11 08:15:00 Since I'm familiar with striking and grappling its interesting to see strikers when they hit the floor, struggle. A lot of them don't know what there doing as they haven't practiced groundwork and do whatever they can just to stand up and start striking again wasting valuable energy in the process. Ive come up with a few suggestions below. let me know what you think.
Don't panic - yes you're on the floor but so is you're opponent.Be relaxed but ready to reactIts not just grappling - don't automatically think that because there's a lot of grabbing and pushing that you cant strike. Bear it in mind to strike but start off with control, especially if your partner is new to ground fighting.Keep your hand up and elbows close to your rib cage - this will protect your face and torso, and make it harder for your opponent to try and arm lock.As soon as you see a chance to stand up, DO IT - if you feel that you can fight well on the ground, don't think that it is the best place to be
Raw speed 2007-09-11 05:12:00 One of the most effective weapons a fighter can have is raw, hard earned speed.
There's different types of speed including muscle speed in movement, eye speed in seeing something happen and reaction speed in reacting to seeing something happen.When it comes to eye speed and reaction speed, although there are lots of ways of improving these with certain exercises (and there are many good books today to help with this) the best way to improve this is by lots of sparring but fully concentrating every time when you spar. Gradually over time you WILL improve and as you open the fridge door, you'll instinctively be putting your hand out to catch the butter that was foolishly left balancing on the side! To work muscle speed, again sparring helps but solo drills are better as you can work fully without getting popped everytime you let your hands down for a second. A drill i like is called the red line drill which i picked up in Chuck Norris's competition karate book. You basically perform
Heavy bag tips (for beginners) 2007-09-10 09:34:00 When using the heavy bag, you will always see amateurs walloping the bag carelessly. Each strike is telegraphed as they think there adding more power this way, and they get tired before the professional has even put his mitts on! If your new to the bag or are just looking for a few pointers then try some of these,
1. Warm up PROPERLY including wrists, fingers and knuckles.
2. Always start with repeating basic strikes and kicks softly in repetitions of 10-20 (remember to work right and left side evenly), as this will further warm up the muscles and striking tools.
3. Perform basic combinations (no more than 4 techniques) keeping in mind proper distance as punching and kicking distance are different. Repetitions can be used but for a more challenging workout use time periods gradually increasing them as you become more proficient.
4. Concentrate on just arm techniques or just leg techniques and throw them in a free environment. The main emphasise should not be power at the beginning, Read more:Heavy
Where your eyes should be looking when sparring 2007-09-10 07:53:00 Ive heard time and time again of many people that when there sparring, they are constantly looking at there opponents eyes. When they attack, defend, counter and everything else, they always look in there opponents eyes.
I decided to try this once as normally i gaze at the chest area, as it seems natural to me. After two minutes of looking at my opponents eyes i noticed that i was getting beaten all over the place. From the hands down i was blind and it wasn't long till i was looking naturally at the chest area again. Any views on this?
Martial artist's Plateau Effect 2007-10-01 07:49:00 Over my training years, there have been countless times when i have thought that no matter what i do, i haven't been able to improve, even sometimes i have felt that my hard acquired skills are decreasing!! The strange thing is also that my training has always been consistent. I once read a chapter in a book entitled The Karate Do Manual by Sensei Vince Morris, in which he talks about the plateau effect.
In a nutshell he says that it is a short period of time when your brain is soaking in new information and it will feel as if you can not do anything right. When sparring you will be getting hit constantly, your balance will be completely lost on striking pads and the simplest of Kata's movement's will be forgot. He also mentions not to worry, and this plateau will soon disappear. I completely agree with Sensei Morris on this one as i have had this happen to me countless numbers of times, but these plateaus always disappear and i DO feel a more better Martial
Artist after them, so
Defence and counter attack timing 2007-09-30 15:49:00 Imagine your opponent is standing, facing you in a right lead stance (southpaw) and he is about to go for a roundhouse kick with the back leg.
Firstly he would probably make some kind of movement with his arms (either slightly raise his left arm, or just drop his front arm). Next, maybe a slight pivot with the front foot, or moving it slightly forward, then his knees would bend as he lifts his back leg of the ground, whilst still moving his arms in a direction natural to him to generate momentum. Finally his kicking surface, (shin, instep) would be swung into his choice of target (probably thigh, midsection or face). Now all of this would happen in about 1 second and most beginners would start there defence or counter attack
when they see the leg swinging in towards them. The best timing to start your defence or counter is WHEN YOU SEE THE INITIAL MOVEMENT. In this case it would be as soon as you see his hands move, or if not then, then no later when his front foot moves. This is the
Bob and Weaving while Freestyle Fighting 2007-09-28 07:55:00 If there is anyone out there who doesn't know what the bob and weave is, just look up old Mike Tyson fights on Youtube and you will soon find out. A master of the bob, weave and slip, Tyson would make his opponents look like amateur's when they got frustrated trying to hit him.
But when I watch MMA fights i rarely see this important boxing defence. Theres a simple reason for this. In a boxing fight, only hand blows from the midsection up are permitted. Theres no low blows, kicks, knees or grappling. For instance if knees were allowed, every time a fighter tried to bob and weave, im sure the next thing his opponent would do, would be to slightly lift his knee to strike the face area, which would probably cause a lot of damage. This MAY be why you rarely see the bob and weave in Mauy Thai fights. Please dont get me wrong. It is worth mastering as there is never anything that can not be pulled off in a fight (as long as it is in the rules), BUT be cautious. In a MMA fight if your oppon Read more:Freestyle
, Fighting
The Key to Judo, Uchi komi & Nage komi 2007-10-12 03:28:00 Practice is the key to everything. Nothing will become second nature if you dont practice over and over again the same thing.
Uchi komi is a must in Judo training. For those that dont know, it is practising a throw, where you take your opponent to the point just before he IS thrown. For example if i was practising a shoulder throw in Uchi komi, i would start by facing and gripping my partner, moving into position with my arm underneath his, bend down with my knees and pick him off the floor. From here i would let him go, rather than throwing him. I would practice this about 10 times transitioning in and out of the throw smoothly without actually throwing, and then my partner would do the same. Uchi Komi is good to start your training with by doing about 15 minutes of it. The proper way to practice it is by going to the point just before your partner is thrown which means you MUST LIFT HIM/HER OFF THE FLOOR. Its very common for people to rush there Uchi komi by moving into a throwing p
Six Pack Training Lying on the Heavy Bag 2007-10-11 03:26:00 I hope everyone knows by now, that if you want a six pack, you must watch your diet, reduce calories to reveal muscle under your fat layers (if any), and do some stomach exercises to develop your abdominal muscles.
With regards to the diet, sorry but its a slow and mind blowing process where you eat tasteless foods half the time and try to resist the tasteful ones. With regards to the exercises, there aren't many you have to do. Just five or six will do. 20 reps each, 3 sets per exercise and your well on your way. But one way in which the muscle will be developed more quickly and so will surrounding muscles of the abdominals is by training whilst lying on a heavy punch bag. Nearly every gym in the world has them so finding one shouldn't be a problem. The idea is, when you perform your exercises lying on the bag, because its round, you will have to balance yourself to quite an extent so as it does not slide away from under you. By training this way you will notice that it will be muc Read more:Training
, Lying
, Heavy
Raw Strength (Squats on one leg) 2007-10-10 07:00:00 To be able to generate a hard shocking roundhouse or side kick requires strength in the legs. Training to obtain this strength is very hard without the use of weights and because your legs are big and powerful you may require a lot of weight, which means going to the gym. Another alternative is the Squat on one leg.
There easy to do, and can be done anywhere. I like incorporating them straight after practising kicks on the heavy bag. Sometimes you see some people doing these by just extending there leg, as if holding a front kick, and squatting on there supporting leg in that position. I don't recommend this way as i find it places a lot of stress on the squatting knee. Firstly i use a wall for balance (you don't have to use a wall but i like to work strength and balance separately). Then i get into the starting position which is the chambered position of a roundhouse kick (this will turn your supporting foot slightly). Holding the wall with one hand and the chambered foot with the
Shadow fighting in front of a mirror. 2007-10-09 13:37:00 In an earlier post I talked about shadow fighting ranging from shadow boxing to shadow karate style training. I would like to add the importance of shadow fighting using a mirror.
By training in front of a mirror it is very easy to alter mistakes that you may be making but not realising. When training with your coach, hopefully you will be pointed out of them, but we have all trained on our own, only to find us getting sloppy and no one correcting us. The mirror will show you points such as, a drop of guard, not striking in the intended direction, not being loose enough with your stance and many other flaws you may have. It helped me by quickly showing me i wasn't moving far enough when sidestepping and also that i wasn't kicking straight enough with the side kick. Train loosely, not at full speed and you will be able to see any adjustments in your form that may need to be made.
Read more:Shadow
Endurance Sparring 2007-10-08 05:10:00 After sparring for a certain amount of time, or a certain number of rounds, you WILL eventually get tired. Weather its after 9 minutes or 90 it will happen. This is one of the best times that you can learn and become a more wiser fighter.
When you get tired, you become sloppy. Your guard drops, legs straighten, your mouth opens to breath more, showing a sign of weakness to your opponent, and every technique is performed slower than you ever thought was possible. If your a big guy who can bench press 200 kilos ten times, that wont matter because you wont have any energy to use that strength. This is where a fighter learns to rely on SKILL. Because you cant move fast, and each thrown technique is a great challenge, you must pick certain times to attack. You start to look for openings in your opponents guard, weaknesses in his/her defence, specific times when to release your very scarce energy. When you were fresh you were probably attacking combination after combination hoping that one Read more:Endurance
, Sparring
A Judo neck for grappling! 2007-10-05 07:20:00 When you see pictures of old school Judoka (and some new school Judoka for that matter) they seem to have short but very muscular legs, big broad shoulders, chests that look like the front of trucks and big powerful necks. Having a strong neck is VITAL in grappling.
When throwing, a strong twist or lean of the head in the direction of the throw will aid greatly with the technique. This head movement can only be carried out with a strong neck. When groundfighting, most escapes from pins require some sort of bridge, forcing the fighter to upload most of his/her body weight onto his/her shoulders and neck. The neck muscles must definitely be strong for this, attempting this without a strong neck can actually be quite dangerous! Finally if you're unfortunate to be caught in a choke or strangle, a strong neck MAY give you the ability to withstand the technique for maybe a second longer (which could be just enough time to escape). These are just a few reasons why having a strong neck is i
Underhooks, Grappling Close Quarter Combat Control 2007-10-04 05:02:00 I may have already mentioned this before but I've decided to write a post about it as i feel it is the most important factor to be considered when grappling (standing grappling) and gaining control of an opponent.
Most advanced grapplers from styles where gi's are used (Judo, Brazilian jiu jitsu) tend to use the gi jacket for control and that is fine, but without the jacket, gaining control of an opponent is a whole new different world. This is where non gi grapplers (Catch wrestlers, Submission fighters) mostly dominate. If your not wearing a jacket the best and most efficient way to gain control of an opponent is by taking double underhooks (having both of your arms underneath your opponents armpits). As soon as you get this position your opponent will feel threatened and you can easily take down or throw from this position. If you are caught with this technique, use a front crawl (swimming method) style to slide your arms underneath again, as you will most likely find yourself on Read more:Close
, Control
Shadow Fighting The Martial Artists Way 2007-10-03 03:22:00 There are many ways to practice your shadow work. When i refer to shadow work i don't mean just shadow boxing. There are many phases of shadow work that i practice.
These are,
Shadow
punching - Where just individual punches are used on there own and in combinations.
Shadow defence - Where just blocks, slipping, bobbing and weaving is used.
Shadow boxing - Shadow punching and shadow defence combined.
Shadow kicking - Where just kicks are used, including low kicks to thigh area and sweeps.
Shadow kickboxing - All of the above.
Shadow Thai boxing - All of the above plus knees, elbows and stop hits.
Shadow close quarter combat - Staying within one meter of a wall and using whatever strikes are possible without moving away from the wall (mainly just knees and elbows, although hooks, uppercuts and close strikes are possible, depending on distance). Shadow defence must not be forgotten here
Shadow MMA - All of the above, plus sprawls, simulated throws and takedowns (also rolls and ground f Read more:Fighting
, Martial
, Artists
Punching without gloves 2007-10-18 05:37:00 In the street if you unfortunately got in a situation where you had to defend yourself, youre not going to wearing big 16oz boxing gloves or even small MMA gloves. For this reason i advise practising punching the heavy bag with your bare fists. Your knuckles and wrist will eventually build the strength needed to hit something without being damaged, also this a great way to learn how to clench your fist correctly. A lot of times when wearing gloves, fists are not properly clenched and this can be carried out when punching without gloves on.
Read more:Punching
The White Belt, Your Best Training Partner 2007-10-17 05:09:00 When you practice against higher belts of your school whatever style it is, you can learn some very valuable lessons. With all the knowledge they have gained through there years of training most of the time they cant wait to offer it all to you, and you should always act like a sponge and soak it all in, as this is one of the best ways to gain valuable lessons apart from dirctly from your coach. Personally though i think you learn a great deal more from the white belt. The beginner who knows nothing.
Now im sure a lot of you are looking at this screen, slanting both your eyebrows and are thinking that im crazy. But picture this example. You are practising a straight forward hip throw on a black belt. Somone who has been thrown countless times. You get your feet into position, bend at the knees, load him on your hips and toss them on the floor like a sack of potatoes. Easy you think, then you try it on a white belt who hasent been thrown ever. So you get in position, bend at you knees Read more:White
, Training
, Partner
Recommend Site To A Friend
