Grappling Tips Newsletter

Here is some feedback and some more pull-up variations that drifted in from the ether since the last newsletter (which had the link to the 19 Pullup Variations video)

1 - Here are two other BJJ-oriented pull-up videos that Martin Rooney made available online (thanks to "Shanghai BJJ" on Sherdog for pointing these out). Get more information about Martin Rooney at Training For Warriors

• Partner Gi Pullups
• Gi Pullup Series
  

2 - This is the Typewriter Pull-up (similar to my Triangle Pull-Ups). Thanks to Ike, a Grapplearts Newsletter reader, for writing in with this.

" I have always liked the typewriter variation. Go to the up position and hold chin above the bar, Now move your body right and left towards your hands,then back to center and down. Smokes the delts, traps, and lats. Enjoy!"

3 - Here is a variation on the Towel & Gi Grip Pull-ups. Thanks to Philip, another Newsletter reader, for sharing it.

"I cross my arms to replicate a palm-up palm-up, or palm-up palm-down cross collar gi choke. It really simulates grabbing the opponents collar and sucking them in for the choke."

4 - and some advice from Ryan (Precision Health Studios)

"One thing I vary is the tempo of these movements. You can perform pull-ups for speed/power (like your plyo pull up) by performing 3-5 as fast as possible to work fast twitch fibers. Heavy eccentric pulling movents work well functionally for grappling.

Also, for those individuals who have difficulty with regular pull-ups can use superbands under the feet to give them a bit of a boost, or have a partner help you with assisted pullups.

Finally, remember that while TRX suspension handles and rings are cool, a few feet of chain or ropes work just as well."

5- A question from "Snitz" on the Sherdog forum:

Question: "Awesome! Pullups are a staple of my workouts, being a crossfit devotee. What do you think about kipping?"

Stephan: Kipping Pull-ups are great, that bar was a little low, the cage too unstable, and my kipping skills not yet polished enough to show them properly in that video.

Labels: conditioning

In previously newsletters I've sung the praises of the pull-up. Grappling is much more about pulling than it is about pushing - using your arms to maintain the over and under grip in rearmount, tightening up the rear naked choke, bodylocking an opponent, or hugging someone's leg when applying the kneebar are all examples of pulling. Pull-up training makes your pulling movements (and your isometric holds) much stronger.

So check out the new Youtube video I finished editing last night. It features 19 variations to challenge your upper body pulling and gripping muscles.



For your reference, here is a list of the exercises I show:

1. Standard Pull-ups
2. Standard Chin-ups
   
3. Parallel Grip Chin-ups
   
4. Wide Grip Pull-ups
   
5. Triangle Pull-ups
   
6. Alternating Chin-ups
   
7. Towel Grip Chin-ups
   
8. Gi Grip Chin-ups
   
9. Bodylock Pull-ups
   
10. Short Choke Pull-ups
    
11. Crunched Pull-ups
    
12. Upside Down Pull-ups
    
13. Weighted Pull-ups (weightbelt)
    
14. Weighted Chin-ups (medicine ball)
    
15. Weighted Chin-ups (weight between knees)
    
16. Reclined Pull-ups
    
17. Reclined Rope Pull-ups
    
18. Plyometric Reclined Pull-ups
    
19. Weighted Chin-up (heavy bag)
    

I filmed this video in a 40 minute span and was getting tired by the end - I wonder why? My lats were also pretty sore for the next few days, a pleasant and ever-present reminder that my body was recovering and getting stronger.

Additional resources on this topic:

• My Favorite Upper Body Exercise
• More About Pullups
• Details on the Rear Naked Choke (including the "over under" grip)
  

Labels: conditioning

Today I want to tackle a bit of newsletter housekeeping. A series of recent newsletters on conditioning have generated a lot of feedback, and more than a few questions.

First, I want to sincerely thank everyone who wrote in, even if I wasn't able to respond to every email personally (there were too many). Please rest assured that I did read and appreciate every single comment.

Secondly, let me take a stab at answering a cross-section of the questions posed by you, the readership:

Q: I just started up with your newsletter and really enjoy it. One thing you did not mention in Mat Time vs. Conditioning Time article is periodization. Amateurs can train as if they are pre-season, in-season, and post-season. This is a reasonable way to train to make sure time is given not to overtrain and to combat "stale" training.

A: I completely agree that periodization can be used to prevent overtraining - leaving it out of that article was an oversight on my part. Periodization systematically varies the quantity and intensity of your training over the course of weeks and months, and prevents the burnout that comes from training at full intensity all year long.

I have previously discussed periodization in an article on peaking and tapering for competition, and it's still a good read for anyone interested in the topic.

Q: How strict is the form on your pull ups. Do you do a dead hang before pulling up, or are your arms a little bent.

A: It depends. I usually start out a set pretty strict (unless I'm doing kipping-style pull ups), but then as I start getting tired I sometimes start cheating a little in order to crank out a few more reps. Cheating might include a (small) kick with the legs, or only going to 95% arm extension instead of straightening them the whole way.

Q: In a previous article where you wrote about recovery from workouts you mentioned proportions of carbs and protein for pre and post workouts. May I ask what brand you use for getting these?

A: Any bodybuilding or health food store has lots and lots of pre and post-workout recovery mixes. I don't use any of them, for three reasons. First, they are expensive. Second, most of them contain whey or soy protein, both of which I try to avoid (allergic to whey, leery of soy). Third, for marketing reasons many of them contain exotic chemical mixtures, the long term effects of which have not been sufficiently studied and the risks of which are not understood.

I usually brew up my own mixture, using gatorade or powerade crystals (carbohydrates and electrolytes), maltodextrin powder (a carbohydrate) and lots of water. Sometimes I add hemp protein to the mix, but usually I just eat a little bit of protein-containing 'real food' together with the drink.

Finally, sometimes I just go berserk with my juicer and enjoy a carrot-watermelon-parsley-cukecumber juice, or whatever other veggie and fruit concoction strikes my fancy at the time. It may not be the exact scientific ideal every single time, but it still helps my body recover and it's a heck of a lot better than nothing at all.

Q: Would you explain in a little more detail the back hypers and the hanging knee raises?

A: Someday I might write an ebook on this topic with detailed pictures and instructions, but until then you'll have to make do with these:

Back Hyperextensions: you can see this exercise in these pictures here, in this little video loop here, as well as in the bonus section of my Dynamic Kneebars DVD. Back extensions are a great injury prevention exercise, as well as a very functional grappling exercise (which is why this exercise was included as part of the bonus in the video in the first place).

Hanging Knee Raises: I wrote about this exercise in a previous tip on the half guard, of all things. Note that you DON'T necessarily need expensive ab slings to do this exercise: you can try it out first by fastening two weighlifting belts around a pullup bar.

Q: Do you do workouts like you described every day or take days off?

A: I definitely, absolutely take days off!! In fact, in an average week I only do about 3 conditioning sessions, but every week is different.

One of my training challenges is that my firefighting schedule is on an 8 day rotation, whereas the rest of the world, including dojo schedules and training partners, function on a 7 day rotation. On a week when I get more mat time in I do less conditioning, and when I can't do any rolling I do more conditioning.

Labels: conditioning, overtraining

Forget the work-life balance! Let's talk about something much more important: the balance between mat time and conditioning.

I bring this up because one of the questions I get asked most frequently is about how to structure one's training and conditioning for maximum benefit, and also how to fit that in with work, family, socializing and the rest of life. In fact today's newsletter is partially a response to a question a BJJ purple belt asked me after I sent out a batch of newsletters dealing with conditioning routines.

Balancing mat time with conditioning time can be a very tricky problem. There are only so many discretionary hours in a week, and doing more of one thing almost always means doing less of something else. If you have, say, 6 free hours a week, and you want to be the best grappler you can be, then the question arises whether you should spend all 6 hours on the mat, or spend at least some of those hours doing conditioning.

The interesting thing is that everyone struggles with this. It's a dilemma for the 25 year old professional fighter who has hours a day to train, as well as for the 45 year old professional accountant who likes to train a few times a week but wonders if he should also be pumping some iron.

Everybody struggles with optimizing their training time, it's just that the constraints are different. The pro fighter worries about overtraining and getting injured, and the accountant worries that his family will forget his name if he disappears for yet another weekday evening, but nobody can do as much as they want.

Be very cautious when you read about the training schedule of a professional fighter or competitor, especially if you are looking for ideas on how to structure your training. Keep in mind that:

1. they often lie about how much they do (to intimidate their opponents)
2. there is a major difference between a pre-competition training camp schedule and regular maintenance training. Their maintenance training (when they aren't getting ready for a competition) might be a lot less than they let on.
3. a pro competitor in hard training does nothing but eat, train and sleep, a luxury not available to the vast majority of grapplers
4. they may well be taking steroids or hormones to improve recovery time
   

To get closer to an answer you need to look at how much time do you have to spend on grappling each week. If you can train a lot, then you also need to figure out if you have the ability to recover from all that training. If you grapple more you get better. If you do more conditioning you get better. But if you do too much overall then you get sick or injured (i.e. if you are overtraining).

So let's say that you've figured out that you have a certain number of training hours per week. For some people this number will be low (3 or 4), for serious amateurs with a lot of extra time on their hands this might be 6 sessions (90 minutes long) per week, and for professionals it might be a lot higher (8 to 15 sessions per week). How do you allocate these sessions?

There are no cut and dried answers for this topic, so here are some thoughts and guidelines you might want to consider while planning your weekly routine.

• If your goal is primarily the development of skill and technique, then do more grappling and less conditioning. Mat time is usually the best way to improve performance, especially early in your grappling career.
• If you have dual goals of skill development AND improved fitness then allocate anywhere from 10 to 50 percent of your available training time to conditioning and the rest to grappling.
• Consider that many professional fighters have had great success only doing 2 to 3 pure conditioning sessions per week. They do a lot of additional conditioning, but it comes from sports-specific activities like doing drills, hitting pads, wrestling for takedowns, sparring, etc.
  
• If you're already doing a fair bit of grappling then 3 hard conditioning sessions per week are probably plenty (and you've likely already reaped 80% of the benefits at two hard workouts per week). Also if your grappling sessions are already fairly hard physically (i.e. they have tough warmups or have lots of sparring) then you don't need as many additional conditioning sessions.
• One way to prevent overtraining is to use periodization, in which you vary the quantity and intensity of your training over the course of weeks and months. I have previously discussed this in an article on peaking and tapering for competition.
  
• If you despise any form of conditioning, running or working out, then relax - it's OK to do more grappling and less conditioning. The acquisition of grappling skill is a long term process, and if you don't enjoy the journey then you might never reach your goal.
• For the 'older' grappler I highly recomend at least one weight training session per week. This session can be as short as 30 minutes, if you use a lot of multi-joint movements like squats, pullups, lunges, presses, etc. What constitutes 'old' is, of course, a matter of debate, but I think it's fair to say that one is generally past one's physical prime by age 35 to 40. Sensible and proper weight training slows the loss of muscle mass and injury-proofs your body, both of which will really help your jiu-jitsu or submission grappling.
• The longer you've been physically active the more you can probably heap on your plate conditioning-wise. Your body will get used to recovering faster, and you'll have more experience to know when you're worn out and need to back off the throttle a bit.
• Finally remember that any conditioning is better than no conditioning. If you hate running, hate weightlifting and hate pushups but love Ashtanga Yoga, then do Ashtanga Yoga. It may or may not be the perfect complement for your BJJ classes, but doing something you enjoy is better than finding excuses not to do the hypothetical perfect conditioning session.

Labels: conditioning, training

Most of my text message communications to my friends are pretty short and mundane. Recently, however, I had a very interesting conversation with MMA fighter Denis Kang, partially over the phone but mostly using text messages. Despite the limitations of this conversational medium I came away with some great insights into MMA conditioning.

Denis has spent the last several months in Montreal Canada, both to help George St. Pierre's with his pre-UFC training camp, and also to prepare for his own upcoming title defense in the Spirit MC organization. Denis has worked with a great number of top conditioning coaches, but he told me that while working with coach Jonathan Chaimberg his strength and endurance has jumped to new levels.

One of the things that Denis and George St. Pierre do are circuits which incorporate heavy low-repetition exercises (like weighted pullups) followed by explosive plyometric movements (like medicine ball slams). This combination of weight training and plyometrics is called 'complex training'

To illustrate what complex training in a conditioning circuit might look like, Denis put one circuit, a small part of his workout, onto Youtube and agreed to let me tell the Grapplearts readership about it.



If you think that this circuit might be tiring, then imagine doing it several times in a row, with far too little rest in between. Oh, and before you even hit the weights, make sure you first 'warm up' with some leg-shredding and heart-pounding Tabata sprints on a steeply inclined treadmill!

Now you have an insider's perspective on what these athletes go through to mold their bodies to be ready for the rigors of combat sports. Isn't the life of a professional fighter appealing?

P.S. Click here for examples of other MMA conditioning routines.

P.P.S. Here is Denis teaching the Anaconda Choke, a submission he has used to great effect in MMA competition.

Labels: conditioning, MMA

Quick: what's the most important meal of the day?

If you said "breakfast" then you're wrong, at least if you're a hard-training combat athlete. According to Martin Rooney, author of 'Training For Warriors, the Team Renzo Gracie Workout', the two most important meals of the day are your pre and post-workout meals. Furthermore, Mr. Rooney isn't alone in this belief: there is research on sports as diverse as endurance running and weightlifting showing very significant effects of preworkout, and especially postworkout, nutrition.

Getting some extra liquid, carbohydrates and protein into your body shortly BEFORE a workout allows you to train harder, longer, and minimizes muscle damage and compromise to your immune system during your workout.

Eating (or drinking) within 45 minutes AFTER exercise actually helps heal your body, builds new muscle, and replenishes your body's energy stores so that you'll feel fresh for your next workout. Lack of proper postworkout nutrition is a huge contributing factor in overtraining. If you often feel like a stumbling zombie for 24 hours after intense training then the first thing you should try is making sure that you get good nutrition into your body soon after the training stops. If you're doing multiple workouts in a day then then postworkout nutrition is often the only thing between you and total system breakdown.

It is important that your post-workout meal be consumed soon after your workout (within 45 minutes). After training your body experiences an 'anabolic window', during which the cells of your body are especially able to absorb and use nutrients. This window starts to close soon after you stop training, so it is better to get something into your belly fast rather than waiting and having the perfect meal two hours later.

OK, so what should these meals look like? Most people agree that the pre and post workout 'meals' should be in liquid form, both to provide you with liquid to replace lost sweat and to speed absorption of the nutrients. Basically we're talking about an athlete's version of the bodybuilder's shake.

THE PREWORKOUT MEAL (c. 10 minutes before exercise)
This is a chance to get some liquid, fuel (sugar and carbohydrates) and electrolytes into your body before your workout, giving it something to burn up and sweat out. The addition of a small amount of protein helps limit muscle breakdown. A typical preworkout meal might consist of:

• 12 oz of water
• 20 to 30 grams of carbohydrates (glucose, sucrose and/or maltodextrin)
• 5 to 10 grams of protein (e.g. whey protein)
• electrolytes (mostly sodium, potassium and magnesium)
  

THE POSTWORKOUT MEAL (within 45 minutes of finishing exercise)
This feeding gets nutrients into your body at a time when it needs them most and also when it is most receptive to them (the 'anabolic window' window again). A typical postworkout meal might look like this:

• Lots of water
• 20 to 30 grams protein
• 80 to 100 grams carbohydrate
• electrolytes (e.g. sodium, potassium, magnesium)
  

These formulations have a lot of carbohydrates, and that's not random or accidental. Many athletes are so fixated on protein that they overlook carbohydrates, but carbs help replenish your body's energy supplies AND have stimulate your body to build more muscle. If I had to choose between a postworkout meal consisting either of carbs or protein I'd go with the carbohydrates every time (but obviously having a mix of protein and carbohydrate is the best).

You can buy powdered shake mixes that purport to give you the exact right mixture of these ingredients, typically with the addition of some secret or proprietary compounds (exotics like black mamba venom, or fancy chemical names like 2,3-diethyl-dichloro-cancer-some-day). While these mixtures are convenient they are also very expensive.

A cheaper alternative is to buy bulk powdered sportsdrink (Gatorade, Powerade, etc), maltodextrin (an easily absorbed carbohydrate) and protein powder (whey, hemp, egg, etc.). Play mad scientist, mixing up different concoctions using water or diluted fruit juice as a base until you find a mixture with flavor and consistency that you like. Feel free to experiment: for example I eventually discovered that my body reacts quite badly to whey protein and now use a variety of other proteins instead.

I can't say that I follow these guidelines religiously, but the bottom line is to try and get something into your belly immediately before and immediately after exercise. If all you can get your hands on is a small bottle of Powerade or Gatorade then that is still way better than having nothing at all. Please note that I've skipped over a lot of chemistry and physiology in this article: if you want to know more about this topic check out just about any sports nutrition book ('Nutrient Timing' by Ivy and Portman is one of my favorites).

Train hard, recover smart!

Labels: conditioning, Injuries, overtraining

Physical attributes are things like balance, neck strength, limb length, explosiveness, leg flexibility, and percent body fat. Your physical attributes are the foundation of what you can do with your body, and are influenced by genetics, training, age and injuries

Some instructors teach as if everyone, regardless of age, build and flexibility, can use the same techniques. Well I'm here to tell you it's not true: physical attributes do strongly affect which techniques you'll be able to use against a struggling opponent. How your body is put together is an important factor to consider when you build your game.

The rest of this article will take a look at some concrete examples of how physical attributes aid, or hinder, the performance of specific techniques.

• Explosiveness and endurance are prerequisites for a 'mobility' game. If you don't have these attributes then you're still left with the option of a slow crushing 'positional' game.
• Different throws require different attributes. Great balance is critical for some throws like Uchi Mata, but others like Seionage require explosiveness. Timing is great to have for most throws, but some throws like footsweeps just won't work without it.
• People who regularly apply successful collar chokes tend to have killer grip strength (which can be improved by exercise)
• Standing guard passes require more balance and leg strength than do kneeling guard passes
• Longer legs are great for applying triangle chokes, and short-legged grapplers definitely need to make some adjustments in order to finish this submission
• Leg length is important for some, but not all, footlocks. The most leg-length-dependent footlock is probably the straight ankle lock (but Andre Arlovski proved me wrong by ankle locking giant Tim Sylvia in the Octagon). Leg length is a bit of an asset for heel hooks, but less so than for the ankle lock. On the other hand, leg length doesn't have much to do with successfully executing most kneebars, hip locks and calf cranks
• If you want to master the rubber guard (example shown here) then flexibility is very important; at a minimum you probably need to be able to put one foot behind your head and touch both knees to the ground when doing the 'butterfly' stretch.
• Strong arms can make some submissions more effective, including most guillotines, the Brabo choke, and the Kimura. Arm strength isn't as important for performing the armbar, but it is very helpful when it comes to defending the armbar.
• Leg length amplifies the effectiveness of the spider guard, but is relatively unimportant when it comes to using the half guard and X Guard
  

Keep in mind that every grappler who has ever set foot on a mat has had one or more 'weaker' attributes. You can compensate for weak attributes in several ways.

First of all, many attributes can be changed: flexibility, strength, endurance, speed, and balance can all be improved with training and conditioning.

Secondly, you can build your 'A game' around your strong attributes and figure out how to avoid depending on your weaker attributes.

Third, there may be technical answers to your problems. Talk to your instructor, ask your training partners and look on the internet for ideas. For examples of how the internet can help I'll point you towards three threads discussing adaptations to help short legged people develop effective triangle chokes: thread 1, thread 2 and thread 3.

In closing, let me emphasize that you should still spend some time learning and practicing techniques that aren't well suited for your body. Doing this will tighten up your defense: by practicing techniques, even ones that don't fit your body, you sensitize your spider sense to tingle when people are getting ready to try those technique on you. Also keep in mind that you may end up teaching some day, and you want to have techniques to show people who are physically dissimilar from yourself.

Labels: conditioning, Injuries, physical attributes, techniques, training

If you are a longtime reader of this newsletter you know that I think very highly of running as a conditioning method. Long runs, sprints, hill runs - as you can see from the following articles I think that they are all great.

• My Default Cardio Workout
  
• All Else Being Equal, Work On Your Endurance
• There Can Be Only One: Running vs. Swimming
• A HIIT of LSD
• Some Sample Anaerobic Routines
  

What you might not know is that I used to have a love-hate relationship with running, and I had a long list of excuses to prevent me from just doing it.

Excuse #1: "I'm not fast". I used this excuse up until I graduated from high school. If you sent me around a track with a bunch of my peers I usually ended up towards the rear of the pack. What I didn't realize at the time is that your relative speed is completely, utterly beside the point if your primary goal is martial arts conditioning. What matters is getting your heart rate high, your lungs burning and your legs fatigued. Even though I don't possess enough fast twitch muscle to ever come close to a 4 minute mile, any running I do will improve my cardio and that will improve my performance on the mats.

Excuse #2: "It hurts too much". In my late teens, inspired by Bruce Lee's ardent advocacy of cardiovascular training, I decided to give running a second try. I didn't like it this time either. My lungs hurt, my legs hurt, and when my knees started to ache after a few weeks of regular running I decided that I just wasn't built for running. "I don't want to blow out my knees", I thought, and my running program ground to a halt.

In retrospect I probably tried to go too far too fast - had I started with a walk-run program and been properly fitted for running shoes to compensate for tendency of my feet to pronate (roll inward) then I probably would have been able to continue pain-free.

Excuse #3: "It's boring". Ten years later, in my late twenties, I suddenly had two very good reasons to start running again. Firstly I had just started this intense new activity called Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and it was obvious that better cardio would equal better BJJ sparring and competition performance. Secondly I had set my sights on becoming a full-time firefighter, and just about every department I was applying to had some sort of timed run, 1.5 miles in less than 12 minutes typically being the minimum requirement, but added points being awarded for faster times.

This time when I started running again I was equipped with more knowledge and professionally dispensed running shoes. My problem wasn't pain, but rather boredom, especially on runs longer than 15 or 20 minutes. I tried to compensate for this by listening to music on my shockproof Walkman (this was pre-iPod) and by running in scenic locations. As I persevered for month after month, driven by the goal of becoming a firefighter, a curious transformation occurred: the boredom started to fade away and really started enjoying my runs. I'm not exactly sure how or why this change occurred - perhaps it had to do with my cardiovascular system becoming conditioned enough so that my mind could focus on things other than pain and discomfort - but it was a very welcome change nonetheless. Although I still sought out scenic running trails I no longer needed (or wanted) music very often - I began to appreciate the sound of my breathing and the slap of my shoes on the dirt.

Excuse #4: "I'm injured". In 2001 I sustained a serious foot injury while doing Judo. At first I thought my running career was over. Several surgeries later I was back on the trails, gratefully plodding away.

One year later a severe case of ITB (Iliotibial band) syndrome, resulting in severe pain on the outside of my knee, stopped my comeback dead in its tracks. This time the solution was going to orthotics, custom footbeds to correct your foot's rolling and twisting on the ground. These were 'silver bullet' solutions - my ITB pain went away the day I put them into my shoes and returned only when I took them out.

A note about orthotics: these devices DO work for a lot of people, alleviating foot, knee and back pain while running or walking. You could try an over-the-counter insert first: two popular brands are Sole and Superfeet inserts, available at most running shoe stores. If the generic inserts don't work and you want to upgrade to custom orthotics I strongly recommend that you go to a qualified podiatrist to get them: orthotics are dispensed by lots of doctors, massage therapists, chiropractors and running shoe stores, but only podiatrists spend 100% of their time dealing with feet, and the depth of understanding they bring to the table isn't matched by anyone else. Be prepared though - custom orthotics are EXPENSIVE! Be prepared to pay $300 to $500 for your first set.

Labels: conditioning, Injuries, the mental aspect

As is so often the case, Mark Twain said it best: "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog." This applies to dogs, grapplers, MMA fighters and jiu-jitsu players alike.

Obviously a grappling match is a physical and technical battle, but having a strong will to win gives you the edge when technical and physical attributes are closely matched. The size of fight in the dog (or the will to fight of the jiu-jitsu practitioner) is not constant however, and sometimes it can disappear altogether. When you're sparring you can sometimes feel the exact moment when your opponent's will to fight slips away. All of a sudden he doesn't want to be there anymore, his movements and techniques lack conviction, and often he offers you easy submissions just to bring the match to an end.

The ebb and flow of your will to fight can be influenced by many things, but the two huge negative factors are 1) exhaustion, and 2) frustration. Both of these factors can absolutely sap your will to fight. In this article we're going to take a look at preventing these fight killers.

1) EXHAUSTION

The most obvious reason for getting exhausted is that you might be out of shape. You don't have to be fat to be out of shape: you might be skinny but if you're not challenging your lungs and muscles at regular intervals then it is unlikely that you're going to be in grappling shape.

What can you do about it? Check out these resources (all are previous articles and tips on Grapplearts.com):

• All else being equal, work on your endurance
• 'Cardio' for martial artists
• My default cardio workout
• Going anaerobic, part 1
• Going anaerobic, part 2
• Going anaerobic, part 3
  

If you ARE in good shape but still find yourself regularly exhausted while grappling then there might be some other factors at work:

You might be holding your breath while grappling.

and/or

Someone might be blocking you from breathing with their weight - choking your diaphragm. Escaping this often requires bridging, but not really to escape the position. Initially at least your bridging will be more about creating room to shift your body slightly and get his weight off your diaphragm.

and/or

You might be getting smothered, making it hard to breath, leading to exhaustion, leading to your will to fight vanishing.

and/or

You might be freaking out and wasting all your energy due to claustrophobia, a condition often undiagnosed among grapplers. Learn how other grapplers recognized and dealt with this condition.

2) FRUSTRATION

Frustration on the mats is very disheartening: it's hard to keep your spirits up if nothing works, no matter what you do. Severe frustration can be enough to make most of us start doubting our own abilities, and can even make some people throw in the towel altogether.

If you're feeling frustrated because opponent is bigger and stronger than you and nothing you try is working, then check out what I've previously written about this topic:

• Beating the bigger, stronger opponent
• Beating the big guy (again)
  

If you frustrated by your opponent's technique then it might be time to change the rules and confront him on another playing field. Is he an open guard player? How about attacking with leglocks? Does he open your closed guard with ease? Maybe it's time to baffle him with the half guard. You can read more about the concept of using your strengths against his weaknesses here.

Sometimes all you need is to make a little adjustment and your frustration vanishes. A good illustration comes from my own sparring: recently I was trying to escape my training partner's sidemount and things just weren't working at all. I started getting very frustrated with myself and my technique, but then I realized that I was only trying to escape by using lateral hip movements to put him back into my guard. I had been completely ignoring escapes involving bridging and/or coming onto my knees.

On that day I had a uni-dimensional side mount escape game, and this meant meant that my opponent could anticipate and shut down all my escape attempts, resulting in a very frustrated and disheartened Stephan Kesting. As soon as I realized what was going on I faked with lateral hip movement, bridged, turned and turtled. From there I spun and put him in the guard, and immediately started feeling a lot better.

Sometimes (albeit rarely) you will be outclassed on every front: your opponent is bigger, stronger, faster, more conditioned, more flexible and more technical than you. In this case you're allowed to feel frustrated, so long as you take this frustration back to class with you and resolve to develop an unstoppable level of technique.

Labels: conditioning

Several months ago I wrote a piece about online grappling drill videos. I recently came across a few other videos that are relevant to that list.

The first features Renato Tavares, a third degree BJJ black belt, and the second features Hywel Teague, the editor of Fighter's Only Magazine

Labels: conditioning

Longtime readers will recall that I’ve written about overtraining, under-recovering and exercise-induced illness before (e.g. Don't Get Sick and Overtraining in MMA). It sucks to have a streak of hard training sessions interrupted by the flu, and being overtrained makes catching that flu almost inevitable.

About the only objective measure of overtraining I know of is to track morning resting heart rate. To do this take your pulse before you get out of bed: after a week of doing this you'll have a pretty good idea of what your normal rate is. If your heart rate on a given morning is 10% or more higher than normal you might be coming down with something and/or be inadequately recovered from your last training session.

Most mornings I reach for the stopwatch and take my pulse for 30 to 60 seconds. These days I’m usually reading between 42 and 44 beats per minute. If I wake up and my heart rate is higher than usual - more than, say, 46 beats per minute - I monitor my body and energy levels very carefully that day. If I notice other signs of sickness (e.g. fatigue, sore throat, etc.) then I will either train very lightly or not train at all that day.

Another advantage of tracking resting heart rate is that it can tell you when your fitness is increasing or decreasing. A gradually decreasing resting heart rate usually indicates improving aerobic (and possibly anaerobic) fitness. Your resting heart rate can also go down if you lose a lot of weight, since your heart now has less body mass to force your blood through.

On a side note, one of my fitness goals is directly related to resting heart rate. I’ve been doing a lot of running and cardio recently, and my goal is to wake up one of these mornings and find out that my resting heart rate is 39 beats per minute or less. Wish me luck!

Labels: conditioning

Someone asked me recently "if the bodyweight conditioning routine on your website is an easy workout, then what does your BJJ coach, Marcus Soares, consider a hard workout"?

With Marcus every warmup workout is different, although generally the sequence he uses goes something like this:

1. arm and chest exercises
2. leg exercises
3. neck strengthening
4. abdominal conditioning.

Every workout he does is tough (and they get even worse before a competition). Also for a while we were training at a place that had a lot of small dumbells (2 to 10 lbs) available, and the exercises that he made us do were just brutal.

To give you an idea of what a typical tough workout is I've written down a routine that he made us do a few days ago. I'd be lying if I said I did every repetition - I've only seen a few people do an entire Marcus workout perfectly, and they were all 160 lbs or less.

• Jumping Jacks c. 3 minutes
  
• 5 sets of 20 pushups and 20 "jumps", for 100 pushups and jumps in total. Jumps are basically partial squat thrusts: keep your hands on the floor and hop your feet from being close to your hands to a pushup position (i.e. photos 2, 3, and 4 of this exercise without standing up).
• 50 Chinese pushups (Exercise 3 in Marcus's 'easy' workout)
• 100 mountain climbers - start in a low sprinter's starting position, both hands on the ground, one leg bent and forward, the other straight and backwards. One count involves jumping and switching legs (forward leg goes back back leg goes forward) and then jumping and switching legs again.
• Standing stretching forward and back
• Bodyweight squats for 3 minutes (I did c. 130 squats) - go from standing straight-legged to a low squat position with your back upright. The picture below illustrates the final position:

• 15 sets of a compound exercise where you do 3 partial squats and one jump up into the air, feet clearing the ground. For the partial squats go to a low squat position (pictured above) and bob your but up and down by c. 6 inches, but never straighten your legs. Leap up from this position as well.
  
• Hold the low squat position 1 minute
• Stretching: stand and place your legs apart, bend at the waist to touch the left leg, and then the right leg
• Neck bridging: 30 front and 30 back. Neck bridging was discussed in this tip - I did other neck exercises instead).
• Seated butterfly stretch
• 50 x straight situps, feet on ground (I did crunches instead)
  
• 30 x modified V ups: lie on back and lift legs to 45 degrees off the ground. Now lift your torso towards your legs and simultaneously open your legs to form 'V' - at the top of this movement only your buttocks are on the ground.
• 30 x modified V ups. Similar to above: start lying on your back and start flutter kicking your legs up and down. Maintaining the fluttering motion bring your torso off the ground towards your legs and return it to the floor 30 times.
• 50 x modified leg lifts. Start in a V-up position with your hands on ground and your back and legs off the floor. Your legs move in a "V" (i.e. up to the left, down to the middle, up to the right), remaining straight for all 50 reps.
• 50 x modified leg lifts: sit as above (hands and butt on ground, legs and back off the ground). Now pump your legs in (bring feet towards butt) and then out (legs straight and in the air) 50 times.
• 15 x teeter totter stretch (the last exercise in Marcus's 'easy' workout)
  

This entire routine is done at a fast pace with no rest between exercises other than the designated stretches. Good luck getting through it!

Labels: conditioning

Last week I discussed the differences between standing and kneeling guard passes. One thing I pointed out was that some schools tend use only kneeling guard passes whereas other schools tend to mix up their guard passing and use both standing and kneeling passes.

My BJJ coach Marcus Soares tends to prefer standing guard passes. What makes his passes different is that when he stands up in the guard his legs are NOT STRAIGHT - he actually squats down into a deep crouch position which lowers his center of gravity and makes it much harder to sweep him.

His standing guard passing posture is very similar to the bottom position of the bodyweight squats that he loves to include in his legendary 'warmups' (the sixth exercise in this sequence). Obviously endurance in the leg muscles is an asset to standing guard passes - if you legs get tired you will begin to straighten them, your center of gravity will rise and you will become ever more vulnerable to sweeps.


Here are some other things to keep in mind if you want to develop your standing guard passes:

1. Do you know how to defend against the anklelocks and kneebars that your opponent might attack you with if you stand.
2. How can you free your foot if your opponent cups your heel (one idea is discussed here).
3. What are you going to do if your opponent underhooks your leg with his arm. One of my favorite responses is to drop that knee back down to the ground and attempt to apply the arm behind the back guard pass.
4. How can you control your opponent's hips while standing (i.e. the principle of caging the hips)
   

If you currently stay on your knees to pass the guard then I'd like you to consider developing one or two standing passes to be an ace up your sleeve for tricky situations. If you already use standing guard passes then I hope I've given you some food for thought to make your game better.

Labels: conditioning, teachers, the guard

When people think of conditioning they often imagine people doing cardio and strength training separately. In this paradigm you might run in the morning and then lift weights in the afternoon, or go lift weights for 45 minutes and then finish up with 15 minutes on the stairmaster. In today's newsletter I want to point you in the direction of some interesting conditioning videos to give you some ideas you can use to spice up your workouts.

This separation of cardio and strength training IS a valid approach, and many grapplers have benefitted from it. The trend in recent years, however, has been to combine the two areas into a single workout, especially as one is getting closer to peaking for a specific event.

Periodization means not doing the same training all the time, and most high level athletes periodize their training. Periodization also means having a plan, and this has to be tailored to the athlete's strengths, weaknesses and goals, as well as the availability of time, energy and equipment.

A very simple periodization routine might be as follows (assuming that you're already in half-decent shape)

1. Spend one month powerlifting for hypertrophy and overall strength development using basic lifts (e.g. squats, bench, weighted pullups, etc.) done for fairly low repetitions (e.g. 4 to 8) with perhaps 2 to 3 minutes of rest between sets. During this phase you might also be doing a couple of longer runs for cardio each week.
   
2. Spend one month concentrating on the more explosive lifts (cleans, jerks, snatches), plyometric movements (box jumps, clapping pushups, etc.) and sprint workouts.
   
3. The final stage would be a month of whole-body endurance training using a lot of supersetting and circuit training.
   
4. Now you would taper your training over about a week and prepare for your competition.

Most of the routines below would fall into the final category (whole body endurance training). Longtime readers of this newsletter will recall that I value endurance over strength when it comes to grappling, so it is perhaps predictable that I would find these types of circuits fascinating. I hope you enjoy them too:

Fight Gone Bad by Crossfit
This is the circuit that BJ Penn compared to "a fight gone bad", hence the name. I found the video a little confusing, so I went to the Crossfit site to find out what exactly they were doing

Randy Couture's Circuit Weight Training Routine
Randy is THE man, need I say more?

Jake Bonacci Interview (S&C coach for Xtreme Couture)
In addition to demonstrating different exercises Jake talks about program design, which is possibly the most underestimated and poorly understood aspect of combative conditioning.

MMA Conditioning Circuit
MMA fighter Hywel Teague demonstrates a tough conditioning circuit.

Rich Franklin's Workout
It's interesting how Rich's circuit, unlike many other pro MMA fighters, incorporates a lot of machine work.

Mirko Cro Cop Training
I particularly like the exercise which combines sprawls, lateral jumps and strikes, forcing Mirko to produce explosive power while fatigued, just like in a real fight.

Jeff Monson Pre-UFC Circuit Training Video 1
Jeff Monson Pre-UFC Circuit Training Video 2
It's obvious from Jeff's physique that he has put in a lot of time under heavy iron, but this is how he develops the endurance to stay strong even when tired.

Shawn Sherk Caveman Training
Shawn is one of the best conditioned MMA fighters out there, and this video helps explain how he got to be that way.

Brock Lesnar's UFC Preparations Part 1
Brock Lesnar's UFC Preparations Part 2
This guy is an animal. When is the last time you saw someone this big and strong with this much endurance?

Pablo Popovitch Preparing for the Abu Dhabi Combat Championships
I like how they use the monkey bars for different whole-body exercises!

And Now Some More Conditioning Videos

The next 6 videos I'm listing aren't exactly circuits, but they are too cool to be left out of discussion of grappling conditioning. There are many useful grappling-specific exercises and variations in these videos.

Karl Gotch Conditioning for Combat Sports
Karl Gotch, may he now rest in peace, trained many of the pioneers of Pancrase, Shooto and Shootwrestling in Japan. His influence can be seen both on the techniques used in Japanese combative grappling and in the conditioning methods used in many Japanese dojos.

Sambo Conditioning
This is just a class warmup, but the exercises they do are significantly harder than would be done at the average recreational club.

Jiu-jitsu Specific Pullup Training
Scott Sonnon presents some pullups that look like they would benefit both grapplers and rock climbers, two sports with similar grip and pulling strength requirements

Frank Shamrock Conditioning
This video shows Frank doing some isolated exercises and some very nice solo flowing on the ground

Damian Maia in the Gym
The BJJ star shows off some of the unique exercises he does in the gym

Combative Conditioning
This is a highlight video from a commercial DVD which I haven't seen but looks good.

RossTraining
Scroll down to the bottom of the page for the videos and witness hard work without a lot of expensive equipment.

Ginastica Natural
I have to include this video: It's not really conventional conditioning, but it is applicable to grappling. Ginastica Natural is a movement and exercise system developed in Brazil, resembling a combination of yoga, gymnastics, contact improvisation dance and animal kung-fu. It has influenced many top Brazilian grapplers.

Grips and Hips
The guys on the video are from the Ralph Gracie competition team. They took home Gold, Silver, and Bronze at the 2007 Pan-Ams.

Randy Couture Preparing for Tim Sylvia, UFC 68
Randy sparring, doing plyometrics, resistance band training, etc.

Labels: conditioning

I've received lots of feedback about a previous tip discussing how some methods of neck conditioning can be problematical for some people.

Grapplearts newsletter reader Kevin shared his favorite method of neck training with us:

"A neck exercise I use (because I have the same issue with compressiing my neck) is to use a swiss ball. Place the 45cm ball on a wall at ear height - this should be done in correct spinal alignment so that when you press into the ball your neck goes to neutral alignment. Then force against the back using the front, side, back, and side of your head, and then inward rotation. This is done 30sec each for a static hold. You can then build up. Use the Paul Chek (CHEK Institute) golf biomechanics manual for a reference. Proper neck alignment and stabilization is crucial for all athletic performance."

Another reader, Dylan, talked about his own neck training apparatus:

"One thing i do for my neck is to tie my belt in a loose loop (just like it goes around my waist) through the handles of an elastic exercise cable. I then place the loop around my forehead and do front back and side to side movements. This seems to work well for me."

'Matt' commented that

"In regards to neck harnesses, one of the best pieces of equipment I've ever bought is Lifeline USA's neck harness. Because it uses elastic resistance instead of weight plates, you're able to change the angle of the resistance much more easily, plus there's no momentum. I actually recall seeing footage of Rickson Gracie training with something much similar (although also much more crude...basically just rubber tube attached to a pole with some tape around it)."

ALSO: several readers enquired about where to get neck harnesses that you can load with weight plates or dumbells. They are available at various places online, but if I was to get a new one I would check out the neck harness at Hatashita.com.

Labels: conditioning, Injuries

Q: I would like to own a grappling dummy but all the ones I have looked at are very expensive. Do you have any suggestions?

A: There are many commercially available throwing and grappling dummies available on the market, including the Bubba dummy, Erik Paulson's Motion Master and Submission Master dummies, the Adam Takedown Machine, the Big Blue Dummy, etc. These are all quality products and can all be valuable training accessories, but as you point out they are very expensive, ranging from c. $400 to over $2000, not including shipping!

One possible solution is to try and make one yourself. An example of plans can be found on this site. If you make it and find that you DON'T enjoy using it then at least you are only out about $50, rather than ten times that much.

One quick note: if you build a dummy make sure that the knees and elbows bend. I have only limited experience with grappling dummies, but I have found that I prefer dummies in a 'turtle' position rather than in a standing position (ie straight legs and arms). The 'turtle' position simulates ground postures and positions (both top and bottom) much better than a straight up, 'standing' position.

Labels: conditioning

Q: I was wondering if you had any tips/techniques/ideas/routines for anaerobic conditioning drills?

A: Yes I have some suggestions for you. First of all, check out some routines here and here, first published on this site a long time ago:

If these aren't enough for you then also check out the interval training suggestions on this site: www.trainforstrength.com/Endurance1.shtml

Labels: conditioning

STAIR TORTURE

I have a love-hate relationship with running stairs. Today it hurts to sit down and it hurts to stand up. I limp around slowly, but still feel a bit smug about having had a great workout three days ago. Nothing gets your heart rate up and your lungs burning like hill or stair sprints,

I used to run a lot of stairs as part of my conditioning program. My favorite was the "Wreck Beach" stairs, consisting of about 400 steep steps going down to a nude beach (this is the West Coast, after all). One sprint from bottom to top took a little less than 3 minutes, and after 3 repetitions I'd be completely, utterly done. It's been years since I lived in that area, though, and getting to a good set of stairs takes too much time to do it regularly.

So recently, while out and about, I found myself with a half an hour to kill. I saw some steps heading down to the ocean and decided that it was time to do some anaerobic work. I walked down the stairs, and then sprinted up as fast as I could, trying not to chuck my cookies near the top. The trip from bottom to top took about 2 minutes, so I walked back down and did 2 more sets. Recovery time plus walking to the bottom of the stairs took about 4 or 5 minutes each time, so the whole workout took less than 20 minutes. I'm not exactly what my final heart rate was, but it was probably between 180 and 190 beats per minute after each sprint.

The reason my legs are killing me is because my legs are essentially unaccustomed to this kind of work. You can do all the lunges, running, squats and stairmaster you want, but none of it simulates the extreme stress of uphill running. It's fantastic, effective and efficient conditioning for the legs, heart, lungs, and fighting spirit.

-------------------------------------

Next week I'll continue working my way through the pile of questions submitted by the readers.

Labels: conditioning

If you have ever met or trained with my BJJ coach, Marcus Soares, then you probably know that he considers physical conditioning to be very important for the BJJ fighter. In the newest Grapplearts article Marcus discusses the how, why, where and when of BJJ conditioning. He also shares a bodyweight conditioning routine you can use to get fit anywhere, without any specialized gym equipment.

Labels: conditioning

Whenever I read an interview with a fighter there is usually a question that goes something like "what do you do for conditioning?" Too often the fighter says something like: "I run, I swim, and I lift weights"

This generic answer is frustrating to me because I want details! How long does he swim? How often? What strokes does he use? When he runs, does he run steadily or does he do sprints? When he lifts weights does he bodybuild, powerlift, olympic lift or do circuit training?

I want to know these things for several reasons. Firstly they are interesting trivia. Secondly they may give me some good ideas for my own training. Thirdly - and this is what this week's tip is all about - part of me wants to see how my own level of conditioning stacks up against his.

Now I'm not a superstar competitor, but I do dispense conditioning advice fairly frequently in this newsletter. If I follow my own philosophy then I need to post my own training achievements for other people to scrutinize, criticize and compare.

So here are my 'numbers' (i.e. the best I ever did at an exercise or event). Keep in mind they reflect a 10 year span during which I fluctuated from 205 to 220 lbs, depending on my ratio of weight training to cardio at the time.

1. 400 meter sprint: 1 minute, 17 seconds (yes this is slow: I don't have alot of fast twitch muscle)!
   
2. 1.5 kilometer run: 9:45
3. 1.75 kilometer run: 11:02
4. 11 kilometer run: c. 55 minutes
5. Firefighter Combat Challenge: 1:32
6. Barbell squats: 225 lbs for 25 reps, 405 lbs for 2 reps
7. Barbell bench press: 225 for 3 reps
8. Body-weight pull-ups (good form): 20 reps
9. Weighted pull-ups: 50 lbs for 5 reps, 80 lbs for 1.5 reps
   

Labels: conditioning

I have always loved running at nightfall. Tonight I slipped out of the house at 9:30 pm, and ran for 40 minutes, thinking mainly about two things. The first was the fantastic montage from the movie Ali, where a young Cassius Clay is running through darkened city streets preparing for his match with Sonny Liston. The second issue bouncing around in my head was the controversy between aerobic Long Slow Distance training (LSD) and anaerobic High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) for jiu-jitsu and grappling conditioning.

As discussed in Cardio for Martial Arts, conditioning sessions can be long or slow, easy or hard. Most MMA and jiu-jitsu conditioning experts currently advocate HIIT, consisting of short bursts of high energy exercise and/or some form of circuit training. According to this school of thought, grappling matches and MMA rounds are essentially sprint events; the old school boxer's long hours of roadwork are counterproductive and only condition fighters to run long distances, not to fight.

I know I am in the minority here, but I think that doing some LSD or aerobic work is very important, at least for me.

In various phases of my competitive career I have alternated between doing a lot of anaerobic work and a lot of aerobic work. When I was trying to get on the fire department, for example, I was running longer distances 5 times a week (a typical run was 45 minutes long) and my grappling felt GREAT.

After I got onto the fire department I competed in the Firefighter Combat Challenge, an essentially anaerobic event. Accordingly I did tons of sprints and relatively little distance work. Despite a lack of fast twitch muscle I eventually ran a 1:32 in this event which is a very good time (1:40 is considered 'elite' level), so my anaerobic conditioning must have been pretty good. My grappling did NOT feel as good during my Combat Challenge career.

Now two anecdotes don't prove or disprove anything, it is just food for thought. Perhaps LSD's beneficial effects on me are reflective of my fighting style (fairly measured and even-paced), or perhaps there was something else entirely going on. Regardless it would be very hard to convince me not to do aerobic work if I were preparing for a major competition. Furthermore I sometimes hear rumors that there are some elite fighters - Pride's Fedor Emelianenko for example - who also run long distances as part of their training, so maybe I'm not totally out to lunch

I'm not anti-HIIT at all, I just like to include a lot more LSD training than is currently fashionable. I run slow and fast, long and short, depending on my mood and my training schedule.

I've got to take my post-run shower now, but before I do I want to emphasize that, for the vast majority of people. any training is better than sitting on the couch. If running longer than 15 minutes bores you silly then sprint, sprint, sprint. If you don't like to be gasping for breath, then enjoy your long jogs, and don't worry too much about these academic debates.

Labels: conditioning

This week I added a new article to the Grapplearts library called The Drills of Shaolin. In this article renowned BJJ and MMA fighter Vitor 'Shaolin' Ribeiro show four of his favorite drills that he uses for conditioning and sport-specific skill development.

Now 95% of people who read this article are going to look at it, think that this is sort of cool stuff, and then let the material fade from memory. I am urging readers of this newsletter to actually try doing a very specific workout and see how it feels.

Here is my challenge:

Get a willing partner and spend a couple of minutes fooling around with each drill, just so you have the body mechanics down. This will make it harder to cheat when you actually start training.

Now take the first drill (the swinging armbar) and do it AS FAST AS YOU CAN for 40 seconds. Your partner watches the clock so that you don't have think about anything else other than armbars and how tired you are. When you are done, switch top and bottom positions (no resting) and your partner does his 40 second sprint. Switch positions and repeat until you have each done the exercise three times

Now immediately go on to the other exercises (kneemount drill, top armbar drill and guard passing drill). You and your partner each do 3 sets of 40 seconds for each exercise. Try to keep your movements FAST AND LIGHT from beginning to end, and don't rest between techniques or between sets.

The whole workout is just over 16 minutes long, with 'only' about 8 minutes of work for each partner: sounds easy doesn't it? Give it a try and see!!

Labels: conditioning

This week I will continue to discuss pull-ups, which are my favorite upper body strengthening exercise. Here I tackle a few questions I’ve received since last week.

Q: How many sets of pull-ups do you do in a session?


A: If I am doing a ‘normal’ strength training session I usually do 3 sets, but it really depends on my energy levels and what other exercises I’m doing in that workout. If I am tired I may only do one or two sets. If pull-ups are the main focus of the workout then I may do 5 or 6 sets, varying hand position each set.

Q: How many pull-ups do you do in a work out?


A: Again this really depends, both on the speed of the pull-ups and on how many sets I do. If I do the pull-ups slowly and with good form then I might only be able to do 10 to 12 pullups per set, so if I do 3 sets with strict form I will do about 35 bodyweight pull-ups. If I do the pull-ups faster with slight cheating (kicking with the legs, etc.) then I can do a lot more. The number of pull-ups someone can do is affected by their bodyweight, strength, grip, endurance, hand position and the speed of the pull-ups. Don’t get too hung up on the total number of pull-ups you can do, just do them!

Q: How much time for recovery is necessary after maxing out?


A: I usually rest one to two minutes between sets of pull-ups (and most other exercises as well). The less time you rest between sets the more you are working on muscular endurance. The longer you rest the more you are working on strength. Sometimes I shake things up and jump on the stairmaster for a minute between sets of pull-ups, which really makes me feel miserable!

Q: What about seated pulldowns on a cable machine? Are these equivalent to pull-ups?


A: I think that pull-ups are mostly superior to cable pulldowns, but obviously doing pulldowns is better than not doing anything at all. Pull-ups are harder (especially if you add weight) and they may also impart a little bit of gymnastic athleticism.

Labels: conditioning

If I could do only one upper body exercise it would have to be pull-ups. Grappling is much more about pulling than pushing, and pull-ups are a convenient way to develop strength and endurance in your lats, biceps, and other pulling muscles.

You can do pull-ups in the gym, on a tree branch, or on monkey bars in a playground. I try to do pull-ups using three different hand positions: palms facing away from me, palms facing towards each other, and palms facing me. This develops strength in slightly different ways, and on the mat you never know exactly how your arms are going to be positioned.

Here are some additional pullup variations you may want to experiment with:

• Pull-ups with extra weight (tuck a dumbbell into your lifting belt)
• Pullups with static hangs: pause in mid-pullup
• Pullups gripping a gi or towel draped over the bar
• Upside-down pull-ups (pike up so that your feet face the ceiling)
  

Don’t get too hung up on the number of repetitions you can do. The maximum number of pull-ups achievable really depends on how fast you go. If I go up and down really fast, and bounce a bit at the bottom of my pullup, I can probably do twice as many as if went through each pullup slowly and smoothly. They are tough no matter how fast you do them.

Labels: conditioning

Some people say that you should change your conditioning workouts on a weekly or even daily basis; "you have to shock your body" they say. I believe that there is some truth to this, but I also think it is important to have a routine, or a constant workout that you do repeatedly.

Let's talk about my default cardio workout. To do this workout I run a trail over gently rolling hills near my house. Close to the end of the trail is a park where I usually stop and do two sets of pullups. After the park I have 5 more minutes of running uphill and then I'm headed for the shower. All in all it takes me about 25 or 30 minutes to complete the run, and I usually do it once or twice in an eight day cycle.

Do I think that one should vary one's conditioning routine? Absolutely! Do I believe that sprint work is important? Yes, especially close to competition! So why do I do this same workout again and again? Here are some of my reasons:

1. By doing the same workout periodically I have an objective measure of fitness: if it takes me over 30 minutes then I am either out of shape, tired, or getting sick.
2. It maintains my aerobic fitness, which is the base for your anaerobic fitness (see one of my early articles www.grapplearts.com/Martial-Arts-Cardio.htm for background information on aerobic and anaerobic fitness)
3. It conditions my body for more intense training, such as stair running or intervals
4. I don't have to think or plan this workout: I just go do it.
5. If I am not feeling energetic I can do this run slowly and still achieve some base aerobic conditioning.
   
6. I enjoy it: running a trail through the forest is quite relaxing

Until next week...

Labels: conditioning

I thought I was done with last week's topic ("Isn’t Stretching Supposed to Prevent Injuries?") but I recently had an interesting conversation on the topic with Charles Brown. Not only has Charles been a fitness trainer and competitive endurance athlete for over 20 years, but he also subscribes to the Grapplearts.com newsletter!

Below I am posting what Charles said - I think it is a valuable contribution to the discussion of stretching, grappling and martial arts:

"I noted with interest your recent comments about stretching. The recent proliferation of articles about the dangers of pre-event stretching cite nothing new. The true risks and benefits of stretching have not changed in decades. What the recent research achieves is to highlight the misunderstanding about how and when to stretch, which have existed for decades."

"The importance of stretching lies in its proven ability to prevent injury by maintaining range of motion, not as a quick-fix approach to preventing acute injury during an event. Stretching cold muscles (the typical pre-event stretch) has always had a tendency to increase injury. The problem with pre-event stretching lies not in the stretching itself, but in the failure to warm-up adequately."

"A solid warm-up requires a minimum of 8-10 minutes. There is no shortcut. Think about the last time you started running at a very easy pace. At some point, early in the run, you probably noticed a sudden onrush of perspiration. I'd be willing to bet that event occurred about 8-10 minutes into your run. That is when you were warmed up. Stretching after that point, done sensibly, would represent absolutely no risk of injury. In fact, the warm-up itself will do more to prevent acute injury than any stretching."

"The role stretching plays in preventing chronic and acute injury lies in its increasing (or preventing the decrease of) range of motion of a particular joint or series of joints. In order to accomplish this, however, stretches must be conducted with thoroughly warmed-up muscles, and must be held for 30-60 seconds. The typical 15-20 second stretch has absolutely no benefit in improving, or even maintaining, flexibility. In other words, stretching need not occur in direct proximity to your event in order to prevent injury."

"So, what can athletes, including martial artists, gain from all this?

1. Warm-up all working muscles thoroughly before training or competition with at least 8-10 minutes of continuous, very low intensity activity.
2. Engage in a regular routine of static stretches held for 30-60 seconds.
3. Stretch before or after an event, but ALWAYS after a warm-up."
   

Thanks to Charles for his thoughts and insights!

Labels: conditioning, Injuries

Stretching has recently gotten some bad press. Various studies and articles looking at runners, army recruits and soccer players have come to light suggesting that stretching doesn’t actually prevent injuries. If you want to read summaries of some of these articles check out www.runnersworld.com/article/0,5033,s6-197-200-0-7001,00.html and www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0852.htm.

So does that mean that we all should stop stretching? Not at all! These studies were mostly conducted on running athletes. Running has quite a small range of motion, and very few people find flexibility to be the limiting factor in how far or fast they can run.

Martial artists in general spend much more time at the limits of their range of motion. Just think about how much more flexibility is required for high kicks compared to running down the street. Grapplers in particular end up in all sorts of contorted positions on the mat: they need strength and flexibility in their whole body. Even if your game doesn't require flexibility you may not have control over what positions you end up in: an over-eager opponent might tie you in a pretzel, and without flexibility you are just cruising for an injury.

These studies make fascinating reading for those interested in exercise science. They come to some surprising conclusions, but I think it would be premature to stop stretching if you are also challenging your body with the rigors of grappling.

Labels: conditioning, Injuries

For the past two weeks I have been talking about breathing, concentrating on unusual situations, like hyperventilation and the Valsalva Maneuver. I should probably have started out by talking about something that is a bit more universally applicable.

Let’s talk about this: no breathing equals no oxygen equals total exhaustion.

It's storytime: a few months ago I was talking with a very frustrated and discouraged grappler. For the sake of this story, let’s call the grappler ‘Fred’. Anyway, ‘Fred’ was a fit guy who did lots of cardiovascular conditioning to help him with his endurance, but had an unusual problem with his grappling. In his own words:

“The situation seems to occur when I train against new people who are very aggressive, usually wrestlers. I try to relax, but it doesn't seem to be working. I still seem to tense up and gas out. But when I fight guys who are so much better than me I can train for a long time and even roll for 30-40 minutes at a time with minimal breaks.”

In other words he had MORE endurance when he was sparring advanced people who kicked his butt than he did when he was grappling aggressive beginners.

It took some experimentation and discussion, but what we finally discovered was that he was holding his breath while fighting certain types of opponents. When he grappled beginners he tensed up and held his breath because he did not want to tap, or get schooled, by a beginner.

Against advanced grapplers he knew he was going to tap: he could accept that they were more skilled than he was, could concentrate on putting up a good fight and doing his best on the mat.

His anxiety was causing him to hold his breath. No breathing equals no oxygen equals total exhaustion.

The solution was fairly simple: he had to concentrate on his breathing before all else. He started to focus on inhalation and exhalation while doing pushups, while doing Yoga and especially while grappling.

Fred also used a fairly simple tool to ensure he wasn’t holding his breath while grappling: every 5 or 10 seconds he would check in on his breathing and ask himself if he was holding his breath. Submissions, body positions and techniques were all secondary to focusing on the breath, making sure that it continued to flow in and out during the heat of the battle.

Here is what happened in Fred’s words:

“When it came time for sparring, I picked one of the heavier aggressive guys to go against. I did what you said and kept reminding myself to breathe. Every 5-10 secs I was just saying to myself breathe, breathe, and breathe. I wasn't even thinking 'too hard' about my attacks and defense, I just wanted to relax and flow.”

“But you know what happened, I was thinking so clearly. I subbed this guy 5 times in 5 minutes! I have never subbed anyone that many times before in that amount of time. I hit triangles (I suck at triangles, trust me) twice, two of your kneebars, and then the ‘Minotauro’ choke.”

“The important thing was I wasn't even trying, it was weird. I mean I wasn't lying like a log, but I was just focusing on breathing rather than just trying to 'fight'. And everything was so clear. I even let this guy take my back and pass my guard, but I recovered easily.”

“The next rolling partner I had was a solid blue and I asked him to just smash me. He did smash me, but I wasn't gasping from escaping. I kept breathing and just trying to remember good posture. It was really good. I gave him a tough time and he really had to work to get me.”

“The next partner was probably the same level as me. I kept the breathing concept in mind and I nailed some more moves I don't easily pull off normally in sparring.”

Things went really well for the next couple of weeks. So well, in fact, that he decided to enter a NAGA tournament:

“Well since everything has been going so well thanks to you I am gonna put my money where my mouth is and compete in NAGA in 2 weeks. My wrestling is something that needs improvement but I feel confident enough that my other attributes will even things out.”

Shortly thereafter I received an email from Fred: below you can read parts of it:

“Stephan! I won my division in NAGA. Thanks so much for all your help. I was doing well with my breathing until the finals, where I left it all on the mat. I did not notice I was breathing a lot until they called time and I felt the exhaustion. But no one scored any points on me and I got some nice armbars … Throughout my matches I did the breathing check every 10 seconds. If you told me to compete in NAGA 2 months ago I would have laughed and thought you were crazy.”

If you find your endurance fading unexpectedly, be it when fighting certain types of opponents or in certain situations (competition at tournaments, sparring at other clubs, etc.) the FIRST thing you could do is to ensure that you aren’t holding your breath. Ask someone to watch you, and/or do an internal breathing check every 5 or 10 seconds. Think a little bit less about technique and constantly remind yourself “breathe, breathe and breathe!” You may be pleasantly surprised.

Labels: breathing, conditioning, the mental aspect

Today’s question is: “should you ever hold your breath while sparring”. Many instructors would tell you that holding your breath is a big no-no, and generally I agree with them. What I want to talk about today, however, is a possible exception to this rule.

Doctors (and powerlifters) refer to something called a ‘Valsalva maneuver’. In this maneuver you attempt to breath out forcibly while keeping your mouth and nose closed. Internally it feels like you are bearing down on your lower abdomen.

Why on earth would you want to push your breath like this? The reason doctors sometimes get their patients to do it is that if a doctor listens to your chest with a stethoscope while you are doing the Valsalva maneuver he or she might be able to diagnose certain heart conditions.

More relevant to grappling, powerlifters use the Valsalva when they are lifting maximal weight (their one or two rep maximum). Use of the Valsalva at the most difficult part of a squat or deadlift helps stabilize the shoulders and trunk and makes the lifter a little stronger. Powerlifters make sure to release their breath after they have passed the sticking point of their lifts, because if you hold a Valsalva for any length of time while lifting you can easily pass out!

What does this have to do with grappling? I believe that the Valsalva maneuver is a legitimate way to occasionally generate a little extra power in an emergency, so long as you recognize its limitations.

If you have ever absolutely, positively needed to generate maximum power you may already have used the Valsalva. Some people might use it when they are bridging out of the mount of a heavy opponent, escaping an armbar, or lifting an opponent to finish a takedown. Often times an audible grunt at the peak of effort is a sign that someone is using the Valsalva maneuver (although they may not be aware of it).

Regardless of the ‘grappling emergency’ it is not a good idea to use the Valsalva for more than one or two seconds (at the most). An inappropriate use of this technique might be to finish an armlock on an opponent who is defending well. Typically an armlock attempt might take 5 to 10 seconds to succeed, and that is way too long to hold your breath. If you don’t succeed you’ll end up very tired (or unconscious). It is also not a good idea to use this maneuver too often – like I said earlier, powerlifters use this for their maximum lifts, not for repeated submaximal lifts in training.

I’m not saying that you should adopt this type of breathing consciously, but if you are going to use this technique on purpose then keep the following precautions in mind:

• Use it in emergencies, not as a staple technique
• Don’t hold your breath for more than a second or so
• Be sure to resume regular breathing immediately after your maximum effort, whether your attempt succeeded or not

Labels: breathing, conditioning

Here are some more ideas if you want to try anaerobic conditioning. The common theme this week is that more time is spent going hard than resting, so willpower is important here!

1 – Find a treadmill and warm up. Now get the treadmill going quite fast and set the incline high too – basically it should be so difficult to run on that you could only maintain that pace for 30 seconds. Jump on and