Credit to www.alwyncosgrove.com I came from a competitive martial arts background – Tae-kwon-do and kickboxing. In our world we were more interested in how to hit harder, faster and for longer. We used the weight room solely as a means to improve our end goal – never as an end it itself. Those of you involved in fighting sports or training other athletes know what I mean. It’s not always about improving max strength. It’s about max results. So while Dave lives in his world, we need to live in ours. This program is not about building a 700 pound bench press, far from it. This program is about using the weight room for conditioning.

Republished from www.bodybuilding.com Confusion often surrounds the topic of strength training for the martial arts. There are generally two schools of thought on the subject. One school states that weight training is detrimental to martial skill acquisition because the excessive tension held in the muscles will reduce the fluidity of movement, thus robbing one's technique of speed and power. The other school says that strength training done correctly and as a compliment to the martial skill training will increase the contractile strength of the body without sacrificing flexibility, the end result being improved speed and power.

Reprinted from www.elitefts.comn order to generate force in the body and transfer that force into an effective strike, there has to be an understanding of the essential mechanics involved. In the myriad of martial art systems, be it karate, kung fu, boxing, or ju jitsu, the student is first taught how to stand. The particular stance of the system sets the foundation for developing effective strikes. With the study of stance/footwork, the student learns how to generate force from the ground up. The legs coil and uncoil, lunging and evading, all the while storing and unleashing elastic energy. So from the beginning all students learn that:

Credit goes to www.alywncosgrove.comApplying the principles of scientific training– I have come up with ten (and a half J ) training guidelines for the combat athlete that must be present to ensure competitive success. 1: Bodyweight before external resistanceMany athletes make the mistake of beginning a strength routine and going straight for the heavy weights. This usually ends up causing an injury. An athlete has no business using load if he/she cannot stabilize, control and move efficiently with only their bodyweight. So your strength program in the beginning stages may actually include no weights whatsoever. And it will work better and faster than a typical program that relies primarily on weights and machines in the beginning stages. In fact in my experience I’d suggest that some athletes cannot even work with their bodyweight so we may need to modify certain exercises. Do not rush to lift heavy loads – muscle recruitment and control are far more important than maximal strength for any athlete. Without control – the strength is useless.