So this is somehting that’s puzzled me. I’ve often heard commentators say, after a fighter gets rocked, that he’s able to recover so quickly because of his conditioning. Maybe I’m missing out on what exactly happens when a fighter gets rocked (I’m under the impression that it has to do with rattling the brain inside of the skull, or in cases of getting hit “on the button” theres a particular nerve in the jaw that gets crushed and goes lights out.) But what I dont understand is how does an efficient cardiovascular system have ANY effect on the central nervous system?
Many fighters condition themselves to take hits and keep going. GSP somewhere talked about how he conditions himself to fight when rocked. He spins around in a circle until he gets dizzy and shadowboxes.
think we talked about it on another thread… but yea it’s a common wrestling drill. But excellent for MMA
Close your eyes, hold your breath, spin in circles then spar/wrestle with fresh opponents till you recover your equilibrium.
rinse, repeat.
Imo, it’s from the snapping of the neck. especially backwards… not sure what it is (medula oblongata?) but that part of your brain at back of your neck (you can pierce it like barely 2-3inches in and die or something) gets shocked from the snap and that shit goes out.
I’ve been armdragged so hard that it snapped my neck and i got flash knocked out…
which explains how crocop can kick the top of someones head look like a glancing blow but they’re knocked out…it’s the “snap”. In addition to the brain getting shook all over the damn place.
I can back that up with NOTHING but just shit i’ve seen/experienced. So take it with a grain of salt… it’s not scientific at all lol
When they say conditioning they aren’t talking about cardiovascular conditioning, they mean neck training, taking hits in sparring etc.
[quote]JonnyTMT wrote:
When they say conditioning they aren’t talking about cardiovascular conditioning, they mean neck training, taking hits in sparring etc.[/quote]
Well, it somewhat has to do with cardiovascular conditioning too though. Since being rocked and being extremely tired are similar in feeling (minus the ringing in your head, flash, etc… that goes along with being cracked). They also both momentarily reduce brain function, motor skills and other traits that make one more vulernable similarly.
And that taking punches will tire you out. So, the more conditioning you have the more gas you’ve got in the tank so to speak.
Cardio will not improve your “chin” though. That’s a genetic trait that cannot be improved upon. You’ve either got it, or you don’t.
You can do things like learn to keep your chin down to prevent your head whipping (which like Xen said is usually responsible for a KO), roll with strikes to dissipate the force, keep your mouth closed to help prevent your jaw from being broken, and other good habits.
But your ability to take a good solid strike will still be ultimately governed by your natural born “chin”.
The spinning around method is not very effective at all. You’re talking about two different systems when you refer to the dizziness that occurs from spinning as opposed to the dizziness from a neural shock/jolt that comes from a punch/kick/blow.
Your recover abilities are someone determined by the conditioning you have in a few aspects and yes you can condition for this.
The most effective way although not healthy is to take blows over and over again, ie through sparring and fighting.
The safer way is to have super strong supporting structures, ie the neck, shoulder and trapezius muscles as well as chest muscles. Flexibility as well helps much more than just being strong without the flexibility.
Proper mobility in the spinal segments is also important. Many people have pretty bad cervical alignment due to whatever reasons and it doesn’t help if your neck is already in a compromised position.
Sorting out all of the above mentioned things helps “conditioning”.
The jaw muscles also play an important role and these can be strengthened through exercise as well.
Taking the blows although not healthy familiarizes the central nervous system so that when you do eventually get hit for real by someone with bad intentions, it just doesn’t surprise you like it would a layperson or someone who isn’t as conditioned.
Cardio vascular fitness does also come into it somewhat as the fitter you are, the less likely that you will just flop out of exhaustion when hit with something substantial.
When the heart is pumping, adrenaline throbbing, lungs burning, legs acidic and someone bops you a nice one it is that much more difficult to take a shot.
So all types of conditioning come into play.