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Extreme Training for Martial Artists: Economy of Training 2
November 8th, 2009categories: Combat Conditioning, Extreme Training, Extreme Training Routines, Martial Arts, Mental Muscle
Ridge Training
Want to take your Training to the Next level?
Go Outside and do some Extreme Training.
Take a few training items and head for an Extreme Place to work out. Use your Imagination and find a place that provides you with Fresh Air, Challenging Footing, and something interesting to look at.
What does this have to do with the Economy of Training? Everything! Training is something that can be done anywhere and at any time. But for this workout, you want to find a special place. The top of a mountain, the beach, a secluded area in the woods, a pile of rocks, a junkyard. Anything that is OUT OF THE ORDINARY.
What will this do for you? It will bring you Back to the Foundation of your Art.
The 3 Elements introduced today are:
1. Build the Foundation
2. Recharge
3. Focus
Every once in a while it is good to mix up your routine. This is not about changing exercises, sets, reps, weights, and rest periods – those are things that you should already be doing. This is about taking a step backwards and getting a new perspective on your training and your life.
One: Build the Foundation: Consider this. When a building collapses, or a city is ravaged by a natural disaster or time, what remains? The Foundations. Foundations and foundation walls. The rest collapses over time.
As you build your body and mind you should Focus on Strengthening the Foundation. For the Martial Artist, this means building the Core of your Art, your Stances. We’re not talking about Stances that Look Good. This is about Stances that Work. Do your stances work? How do you know? Try training them on a rock pile, in the snow, on the beach, on the side of a mountain, and you will discover that some stances are better than others, and you have an understanding of some more than others.
Extreme Range and flexibility, is not something just for show, but is about adaptability. Can you reach from one rock to another. Can you cross a stream and find the solid stance if you are attacked halfway across?
Remember that the Martial Arts is fundamentally about combat. The stances that can be so painful to execute in the safety of your Dojo are the foundation of your art. They are designed for specific purposes in various settings. Do you know what they are?
Go outside and find out.
In the process, and for this Training Adventure, do 500 Horse Stance Squats on various types of terrain and angles. Adapt. Adapt and pay attention.
Two: Recharge: Taking your training outside of the Gym or Dojo will change everything. Horse stance squats on boulders, in snow, or on the sand, will work muscles that you didn’t know you had. You will also feel a sense of power as you breathe in the unfiltered air. real air, with real smells, perhaps the scent of a Mountain Lion watching you train.
This is as much about Play as it is Training. Let everything go and appreciate your environment. Get Energized. Get Recharged. Find your Balance Points.
Three: Focus: Focus on your stances, not as a matter of classical, the way the stance is supposed to look, but what the Stance supposed to Do. This is about discovering what works, as well as what doesn’t.
Now that you’ve complete your 500 Squats in various positions (Side Horse, Front Horse, Fighting Horse) on different terrains, find something to lift.
Find a Rock or Tree Stump (use your imagination) that calls out your name. It should be something you can lift over your head at least 10 times.
Now the fun begins. Pick up the rock and throw it, just like you would throw an opponent. Pick it up and throw it again.
Start with 25 throws. If everything feels good, no muscles are feeling strained, go for another 25. If you think that throwing a rock is hard, try throwing a person who doesn’t really want to be thrown. The Rock is just a Rock. All it does is wait for you to figure out how to lift it and throw it.
Be smart. If something hurts, stop. Focus on what you are doing. If the rock (or other item) you first pick is too heavy, find another one. The rock doesn’t care and neither should you.
This is not about ego. It is not really about the numbers. It is about going outside into a new Environment and Returning to the Foundation, the Heart.
Don’t be deceived. This may sound all too peaceful and philosophical to be Extreme. However, when the workout is complete, you will appreciate the mind-side of this training adventure. Your body will be otherwise engaged with the process of walking.
Have fun and make it home safely.
If you have any related thoughts or questions, please post them below.
The Extreme Training Newsletter is in the final stages of production. (It is amazing how the simple details of on-line publishing can be the most problematic. Sorry for the delay, but hang in there.)
Extreme Training for Martial Artists: Economy of Training 1
August 16th, 2009categories: Combat Conditioning, Extreme Training, Extreme Training Routines, Martial Arts
Do you find yourself with more Essential Training to get done than you have Time to do it in?
Results of Extreme Training
This can be a difficult position to be in.
Here are the First THREE STEPS you can Take to make more Efficient use of your Training Time as well as a BONUS: Part 1 of a Workout Program Designed for Martial Artists Driven to get Stronger, Bigger and Improve their Skills in one Training Session per Day.
FIRST: Plan your Workouts. This is a MAJOR TOPIC all by itself and will be discussed in greater detail in following Articles. But for now, KNOW WHAT YOU WANT TO GET FROM YOUR WORKOUT.
For example, if your goal is to add some Serious Muscle to Complement your Martial Arts Training, you should have a workout plan which focuses on the core Power Lifts – Squat, Deadlift, and Benchpress.
KEY: In order to get More Muscular you need to GET STRONGER!!
While this may Seem Obvious, it is OBVIOUS that many Martial Artists do not know this. Now, while Body Weight Exercises are excellent for conditioning, unless you adopt a SIX HOUR a DAY ROUTINE, Body Weight Exercises are not enough (another Future Topic to be discussed in this Extreme Series).
Enough Said.
SECOND: MAKE YOUR TRAINING TIME SACRED. In other words, NO DISTRACTIONS. If you have an hour for your training, you will need to become Ultra-Efficient in order to continue to improve. THIS PROGRAM IS RIGHT FOR YOU IF YOU WANT TO:
1. You want to Get Stronger.
2. You want to improve your Martial Arts Skills.
3. You only have time to perform One Morning Training Session and One Evening Martial Arts Session or Class.
Now return to Step One and determine what Martial Arts Skills you want to develop during the next Training Phase. For this example Let’s say you want to Improve Your Round House Kick.
The Program below does not allow for distractions or interruptions. Maintaining anything except CRYSTAL CLEAR DETERMINED FOCUS will drastically compromise your results.
STEP THREE: Match your Training Objectives with your Martial Arts Objectives and get Ready to Train.
The following Program demonstrates ONE WAY to make STEADY improvements in TWO TARGET AREAS at Once. It requires HARD WORK, but will be Immediately Rewarding.
Day One:
You will perform rounds as follows:
1. Squat: 12 sets of 5 reps. Add weight on each set until you can no longer hit 5 reps. Then hold at the 5 rep range until the end. Drop weight as needed to maintain GOOD SAFE FORM.
Do one set of Squats and then move to the next exercises without rest.
2. Straight Leg Deadlifts: 3 sets of 12 reps. Go light, and only super-set on the first three Squat sets.
3. Exercise Ball Crunches: 6 sets of 33 reps.
Now the REAL FUN BEGINS:
4. After your last exercise in the series (3 rounds of 3 exercises, 3 rounds of two exercises, 6 rounds of 1 exercise) perform 20 Roundhouse Kicks to a Heavy Bag, Wave Master, or Speed Bag (alternate between these three targets) with each leg. Start low – waist height – and increase as you become warmed up.
The KICKER is that you will do any combination of three hand strikes to set up each RoundHouse Kick. For example, lead jab, cross hand hook and lead hook punch setting up for the roundhouse kick. This round should take no more than one minute.
Once finished, go right back to your next lifting set and repeat until you have completed all of your exercises and 12 Rounds on the bag. With warm-up and cool down, this workout can be done in less than one hour.
This is an efficient, fast workout that has the bonus of building Combat Fitness which includes Burst Strength and anaerobic threshold training (this part hurts).
In Part 2 to this Series we will hit a few more concepts and give you day two of this Extreme Integrated Martial Arts Strength Building Workout.
If you enjoyed this article or have comments, please leave a comment below. AND, if you are interested in receiving the Free EXTREME TRAINING NEWSLETTER, which is full of the newest training tips, simply sign up below. ENJOY YOUR TRAINING!!!
Extreme Training:Focused Muscle Blast Part 5
July 11th, 2009categories: Extreme Training, Extreme Training Routines, Muscle Building
Champions Train with Laser Focus and Relentless Intensity.
The Finish Line
This Fourth Week of Training will Test Your Courage and Reveal what you’re Made of. If you made it this far in the Program, you probably already know. And so does Everybody Else.
If you have not read and worked through Part One, Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four of this Series, the links will take you there. Prepare for an Adventure!
Quick Review: The first three weeks of the Extreme Focused Muscle Blast Program were designed to bring you the Motivation and Training Concepts necessary for you to Generate Warrior Mental Focus and Physical Intensity.
The Major Muscle Building Strategy employed in this program is Extreme Specialization. This is a very Effective Strategy for the simple reason that it is easier to develop one muscle group at a time as opposed to trying to build everything all at once.
People new to the Muscle Building Universe usually make progress in several, or even all, muscle groups at once. But, as their fitness levels increase it becomes more and more difficult to make new gains. For some people, that is fine. They feel good, enjoy training, and are in balance.
In the Real World, BALANCE IS DEATH. You are either Getting Stronger or Getting Weaker. Nothing remains the same. Is this an Extreme point of View? The answer is a matter of individual philosophy.
The Rewards of Extreme Focus are Huge! In fact, Most of the Athletes who have lived through this Program Refused to Return to the “Real World” of Training. They learned that Extreme Effort leads to Extreme Results.
The Extreme Training Zone was born so that Extreme Athletes never have to Return to the Land of the Normal (normal training leads to normal results). This Extreme Program represents the First Step on a Journey that never ends.
But don’t worry about what comes next. Focus on where you are and what you are going to accomplish in the Final Week of this Adventure.
WEEK FOUR: THE CLIFF
DAY ONE: EXTREME LEVEL 1
Group One: Exercise 1: 20 sets of 3 reps. Rest :60 seconds between sets.
Group Two: Exercise 1: 20 sets of 3 reps. Rest :60 seconds between sets.
Total workout time should not exceed One Hour. Start with your 5 rep weight and hold on as long as possible. Then, drop weight as necessary.
Your objective is to become increasingly efficient at these two exercises. Find the groove and stay in it.
If you finish in under one hour, feel free to do 3 sets of abs, 30 reps each set.
DAY TWO: EXTREME LEVEL 2
Group One: Exercise 2: 1 set of 101 reps. When completed rest 2:00 minutes and move to the next exercise.
Group Two: Exercise 2: 1 set of 101 reps.
On these first two sets, you should use a weight you can do at least 25 reps straight with. When you fail, put the weight down, take five deep breaths, pick up the weight and keep moving. Keep moving until you get to 100 reps. After 50 reps it is OK to slightly reduce the range of motion on the exercise. Your goal is to complete the set. Breaking form by limiting motion is OK. Swinging, and jerking, twisting and straining, NOT OK!!!
Group One: Exercise 2: 10 sets of 10 reps. Rest :60 seconds between sets.
Group Two: Exercise 2: 10 sets of 10 reps. Rest :60 seconds between sets.
Start light on the weight and see what happens before increasing. Remember. Pain from exertion is in your mind. Any other type of pain, STOP and reevaluate. In other words, DO NOT COMPLETE A SET IF YOU FEEL PAIN. It is far better to cut the workout short than to risk an injury which will really dampen your progress.
If you feel like doing abs and cardio, go for it.
DAY THREE: EXTREME LEVEL 3
Group One: Exercise 1: 3 sets of 55 reps. Rest 2:00 minutes between sets.
Group Two: Exercise 1: 3 sets of 55 reps. Rest 2:00 minutes between sets.
Start with a weight you can do at least 15 reps with. At failure, put the weight down, rest for five breaths, pick up the weight and keep moving.
Group One: Exercise 1: 9 sets of 9 reps. Rest :90 seconds between sets.
Group Two: Exercise 1: 9 sets of 9 reps. rest :90 seconds between sets.
Start with a comfortable weight and focus on maintaining form. As your form starts to loosen, reduce the weight.
Abs and cardio, only if you feel the need and have the time.
DAY FOUR: EXTREME LEVEL 4
Group One: Exercise 2: 15 sets of 11 reps. Immediately move to next exercise for super-set.
Group Two: Exercise 2: 15 sets of 11 reps. Rest :90 seconds between super-sets.
Use a weight you can do 15 reps with and hold on as long as possible. If you start to strain, or shift your lifting position, Stop and reduce the weight and then continue.
Group One: Exercise 1: 15 sets of 2 reps. Rest :60 seconds between sets.
Group Two: Exercise 1: 15 sets of 2 reps. Rest :60 seconds between sets.
Start with your 12 rep weight and add 5-10 pounds per set so that you are close to your 3 rep maximum on the 8th set. Then, stay or reduce weight to stay at 2 reps.
You may want to save any energy you have left over for tomorrow.
DAY FIVE: EXTREME LEVEL 5
Group One: Exercise 2: 5 sets of 50 reps. Immediately go to the the next exercise for a super-set.
Group Two: Exercise 2: 5 sets of 50 reps. Rest 2:00 minutes after each super-set.
Start with a weight you can do 20 reps with. At failure, put the weight down, take five breaths, pick up the weight, and keep moving. Feel free to reduce the range of motion after 30 reps of that set as necessary. Reduce the weight on each set so that you can get at least the first 20 reps in a row.
Group One: Exercise 2: 5 sets of 5 reps. Rest :60 seconds between sets.
Group Two: Exercise 2: 5 sets of 5 reps. Rest :60 seconds between sets.
You may be able to increase the weight during these sets as the fatigue leaves your body. Work smart, keep good form, and stop at the first sign of pain.
Nothing else.
DAY SIX: REST
Really.
DAY SEVEN: EXTREME LEVEL 5+
Group One: Exercise 1: 1 set of 250 reps. You know the drill. Take 5 breaths between reps as necessary. Every 25 reps, stop and reduce the weight.
Group Two: Exercise 1: 1 set of 250 reps. Same as above.
This is actually more about good and efficient form, and mental toughness than anything else. You know you can do this, but you will feel GREAT when you have finished this workout. Discomfort is temporary. Greatness is forever!
What next? Stay tuned for the next Extreme Training Program which will take your sharpened mental and physical powers deeper into the Undiscovered Territory where Growth is Unlimited.
I hope you enjoyed the Journey! Please leave comments or questions below.
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