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In a real fight, you probably won’t have to use your muscles to the point of exhaustion. Real attacks (and defense) don’t last that long.
It’s different in the world of martial arts training. Sparring seems to go on and on. Sometimes, because of muscle fatigue, one may feel it impossible to continue. Oh … the muscle burn! Oh, the pain …
Chi Sao and Push Hands for Muscle Endurance
If you practice Chi Sao from Wing Chun, or Push Hands, from Tai Chi, then you know about arm and shoulder exhaustion.
Have you ever felt the “burn” in the shoulders from repeated rolling in these exercises?
Beginners feel their arms become sore in just a few minutes. As soon as their shoulders tighten, they want to quit.
Note: It`s funny — they want to take a break before I even feel the first inklings of a burn in my shoulders. I keep telling them that they`ll `build` over time.
The point of this is that I have them push past their thresholds. I make them continue rolling.
If their arms cramp, I tell them to shake it out and then continue.
I work them past their burn, past what they initially think is their personal point of muscle fatigue.
Jelly Muscles and Loss of Precision
Yes, eventually they/we lose all precision of technique when we play past the point of real exhaustion. It doesn`t happen for a long time — not nearly as soon as the beginners think.
Eventually, the muscles in the arm feel like jelly.
I remember (fondly?) the nights where Steve Golden, and original Bruce Lee and Ed Parker student, made us roll with a partner for over an hour straight. Our arms ached.
We built endurance. We learned to last … to get past the cramping.
We also learned the energy of our practice partner … every push, every shift, every move.
Imagine practicing night after night. A few times a week, you push your arm muscles past the point of exhaustion. Then one night, maybe months down the road, you notice that your arms aren’t really getting tired any more.
The training hasn’t changed.
The beginners look just as tired as ever — complaining about their aching arms and shoulders.
What has changed is “you.” You are building up one particular kind of martial endurance. And even though real fights don’t tend to last, I am willing to bet that you’ll more than appreciate knowing that your muscles will hold up.
End note:
For those who say, “But I don`t practice Chi Sao or Push Hands, so how does this apply to me?”
My answer is — Yes, exactly. How does this apply to you?
What training could you practice … past the point of exhaustion? Bag punching? Shadow boxing?
Which muscles are important to you for martial endurance?
Are you going to become a side-kicking machine?
How about your straight blast punches?
Keith Pascal is the author of The Punch Papers: How Punch Harder, Faster, and More Efficiently.
If you like martial arts articles by Keith Pascal, you’ll love this collection, all about improving your punches.
Develop devastating punches now! “This book makes me feel like I have a teacher in the room with me.”
http://www.PunchHarder.com
