Jon Haas is – Certified Underground Strength Coach-Level 2, 9th dan Black belt, Certified Personal Trainer, and creator of the Warrior Fitness Training System. I have spent over 30 years - a lifetime - training, studying and working with the
Why is conditioning so important?
Frank Gotch, the first American professional wrestler to win the world heavyweight free-style championship, and credited for popularizing professional wrestling in th... View MoreWhy is conditioning so important?
Frank Gotch, the first American professional wrestler to win the world heavyweight free-style championship, and credited for popularizing professional wrestling in the United States once said, "Conditioning is the greatest hold" - And he was right!gotch-16You know that sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach when you feel like you're on the verge of gassing out in a sparring match, a game, or in the ring? You want to avoid that feeling at all costs!
Possessing a highly conditioned body is the key to unlock ALL the other attributes and skills you've trained so hard for!
bullet2-1Without conditioning a fighter has no access to his techniques...
bullet2-1Without conditioning an athlete has no access to his strength..
bullet2-1Without conditioning a warrior has no access to his skills...
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All the techniques, tactics, and strategies you've worked so hard to learn and develop as a martial artist or athlete are far less effective when fatigued UNLESS you've trained to preserve power and strength in that fatigued state!
In my training and research I discovered these 3 critical combat conditioning mistakes that that separate the top performers from the ordinary...
Conditioning Mistake #1: Focusing on Aerobic Fitness
Combat, like life, does not happen at one constant rate of speed. It is multi-faceted in nature. There will be periods of brutally intense activity followed by lulls in the action, again followed by another flurry of activity. Being able to use those lulls in action to recover is a critical ability for the warrior.
Steady state cardio, Long Slow Distance (LSD) training simply will not cut it. Running on a treadmill may be appropriate for a hamster in a cage, but human beings require more. Long distance running can be beneficial for mental toughness and/or active recovery, but it should not be the primary focus of a warrior’s endurance training.
Conditioning Mistake #2: WOD Envy
The current rage in conditioning training, especially when talking about combat conditioning, is to completely change up the workout for each and every session.
This has the advantage of keeping the training fresh and throwing the body into chaos each time so it never knows what hit it. The hardcore advocates of this type of conditioning stress that this environment will create a very broad and general fitness that prepares the trainee for almost every physical contingency, both known and unknowable. This enables one to prepare for the chaos and uncertainty of combat by training in an uncertain and chaotic environment.
Seems to make a lot of sense on the surface, right?
However, one of the problems resident with this type of training is that random training yields random results. It’s difficult to measure progress when the parameters are constantly shifting.
In order for the body to produce an adaptation for improved performance in life, sport, or martial art, we must apply specific stimulus as per the SAID Principle (Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demand). This basically means that the body adapts with a specific type of fitness to any demand which is imposed on it. When the same exercise is performed for too long, the body adapts to the stresses of each set and the adaptations or returns get smaller and smaller. Once it has adapted to the stress, then it’s time to change or increase the stress or else we fall into that trap of diminishing returns.
Conditioning Mistake #3: All High Intensity ALL the Time
Training harder demands training smarter.
We all know people who think they can continue to grow and continue to make gains indefinitely by simply pushing harder and harder in their training day in and day out. But what always happens to them? Injury, burn out, sickness, stagnation. Then what? Well, once they get back on their feet they start the same cycle all over again. Why? Because maybe, just maybe they weren’t pushing hard enough or using enough brute force last time to succeed and this time will be different. Riiigghhht…
How about this instead?
Train Smarter AND Harder.
Bring the intensity every workout, yes. Push the limits, hell yes. Keep moving forward, always. But not always in a straight line. What do I mean? Training smarter involves the usage of planned back-off workouts and deload weeks which, in effect, allow the body to take a step back in order to spring forward again with greater energy and intensity.
Additionally, it is of paramount importance to have a properly structured strategy in place for recovery and restoration. Continued progression and development demands it. Without a recovery strategy, the gains in fitness slow, plateaus are hit and NOT overcome, injuries occur, and as we said earlier, progress sputters to a screeching halt.
So what's the solution?
https://shop.sanmateoblvd.com/warfit
