I have a question for all you marital arts out there. I have a client that is training for his Black Belt in June for Hapkido. I besides explosive movement for power. What type of I Iso-metric work-out do you reccomend I am currently having him doing body squats on a rubber cushion holding in a parallel squat position for 20-30sec for 10-12 reps also Leg ext w/ five lbs and while he is pushing up I am pushing down. Any other Iso-metric exercise for his lower body?
Mind you he CANNOT train upper body execpt for Boxing drills because he has a torn ligament in his right bicep. So until further doctor’s notice I will not train his upper body w/ weights…
Awright, fitone. It looks like I’ll be the first one to answer this. Ko is currently in sunny and warm Puerto Vallarta and will be back on Saturday - I, in the meantime, am home holding down the fort with our four parrots. Oh, sorry way too much needless info. But, hmmm. Torn ligament? And his Hapkido Promotion in in June - I trust you have something in mind that will work his upper body (especially to maintain punching power) when he can resume upper body training? Seems like what would be good for right now in training is focusing on mobility. That would require training specifically to execute fast offensive technique AND fast defense. In any martial arts system, superior footwork is the cornerstone. You gotta learn to get into your opponent’s “kitchen” and strike fast - keep 'em busy, moving - and also know when to move defensively. You can’t allow your upper body (shoulders, head, eyes) to give off signals to your opponent as to your next move. So, in a way, this injury could be a godsend for your client. May I suggest incorporating basic plyometric exercises? I have a book by Donald Chu that is very good - and I know of another book about plyometrics, but haven’t seen that one, so I can’t really tell you if it’s good or not. I know footwork drills may seem boring, but those were some of the toughest training sessions for me. You work so hard on making your movements look effortless and you have to gradually work in speed, and pinpoint punching/blocking techniques. Ko will be calling me later tonight - I’ll pass on this question to him and see what he has to say. He’s more knowledgable on this topic, while I’m more of the “muscle-head”.
I got him on the agility stuff and pyo already I just was wondering about some ISO-METRIC exercises because it looks like when he does the katas stances he is holding a squat position for a long periods of time so I felt that Iso-metric exercises will help him. Haven’t really done too much Iso training so I am kind of new. I do but what I can think of is
Having him in a squat postion and holding it at parrell @ 20-30sec on a rubber cushions is good and also knee extension machine and I am holding it for 10secand he is pushing on my hands is another good one. I was just wondering if there are other Iso exercise you can recommend? Thanks
I’m not sure how different the Hapkido Katas differ from Karate (I’m trained in Ryobu-Kai) and I am familiar with Taekwondo forms. I do know that since the Okinawan originated Karate alot of the stances are low, bending at the knees - almost Sumo. And a good reason as to why so many of my dojo’s Black Belts have got knee problems. Anywhoos - I do do free standing squats at home - believe it or not - I hate having to watch my favorite TV show and not do anything - so I’m either doing artwork, stretching or doing a variety of movements. As for Isometric - have you tried anything with a large rubber band? Or have you thought about incorporating a fitball? You can do some funky squats with a fitball that would also help with balance. One thing that would help would be static poses. Have him hold his squat, but have him also contract the thigh muscles. You would treat this like a regular workout (sets, reps). Do you have access to a heavy bag where he’s working on kicks? I always preferred to kick into a heavy bag or hand mitts. I believe kicking into the air (as was the case in regular Karate training) caused knee problems as well. Have you also used cables for his leg training? That’s something that you could consider also.
Martial Arts? explosive training is what he neeeds… Box Squats, glute ham raises… too bad for that bicep or else I would highly recommend power cleans, and snatches. Definetely the plyos and GPP. Focus on 50% intensity with 3-4 reps at 8-6 sets w/30 sec. or so rest. Develop his posterior chain.
Read the damn forum dummmy. It says that he has a torn ligament in his bicep… I know all about weight training and explosive power movements I don’t care to much about his strength and power we already have etablish to that point and he can spar the thing that I am worried about is when he goes to the Kata stances and does his form movements is what I am worried the most about because we haven’t do ne to may iso-metric training… Please I am not looking for answers on power cleans, and squats and dealfits I know that stuff… I am looking for more Iso stuff to do…
Plus he has a torn bicep… NO I REPEAT NO upper body movements strictly lower…
I do a lot of BOXING Drills for his upper body strength…
Thanks for the insite I know we disagree on some issues in the past but I think you and KO and some of the other people are on the right path in writting in these forums… Others have no clue as to what they are talking about. Can you also please pass this forum on to KO I would like to have his insite on this also…
Try having him do ski squats with either one leg or 2. Ian King describes it in his limping into october series. Squat against a wall and gradually move down in 5 different positions holding each position for 20 seconds. It’s a real killer exercise especially when done with one leg. Deep horse stances for time would be another good one…especially with someone standing on top of your thighs while in the horse stance.
Why, thanks and I will definitely have Ko respond to this thread. He’ll be back on Saturday. And with his many years of martial arts training as well as instructing, he’s always a good resource. What’s so ironic? I’m half-Chinese and here I am after growing up with Bruce Lee as my idol, studying a Japanese form of martial arts - and Ko is half-Japanese and has always wanted to study a Chinese style of martial arts. But you could say that Joe Lewis is our primary martial arts icon now…Anywhoos - again, yes, the cable for legs. That’ll provide some excellent workouts. I’ll be talking to Ko tonight - I didn’t afterall last night - so I’ll see if I can get some type of response at least tonight…
I mentioned this thread to Ko and what he said was that if this guy’s training for his Black Belt and this promotion is scheduled for June - he should be concentrating on his forms (Kata) as well as sparring. Alot. We know of this dojo in Japan that have black belt promotions with ALOT of sparring. Weight training is great - but with the amount of readiness that he’ll need, the energy may be best spared for specific training for the promotion. I would keep working on boxing drills and plyos and the iso-metrics for the legs. You didn’t mention where he is at in regards to his injury (early stages, middle…?) - but I’m assuming that since he is performing boxing drills that his arm is healing nicely and there is no chance to aggravate this injury? Ko’s going to one of those “internet cafes” in Puerto Vallarta today and will be checking this out. He would have yesterday, but he went to a Bullfight…