toughening the body

[tsuma]

in kyokushin training while toughening the abs do you throw same hard punches to the solarplexus,stomach and liver as to the muscles below,or lighter?

for example a hard uppercut to the liver is very painful....how do you prepare the body for that?

[sensei8]

I'm a big proponent for tossing around a Medicine Ball to build up ones core.

Various stomach crunches can build up the solar plexus region; it's the core of nerves around and behind it that one wants to build up. Can't build up the nerves, it's the muscles in that region. Yoga, another method of building up the solar plexus region.

For the liver region...same thing can be achieved in the liver region as you would in building up the solar plexus....crunches, yoga, and medicine ball.

Then, there's the old school...spar!! Receiving blows to those areas will do two things. One, you'll build up tolerance. Two, you'll suffer from having been struck in such a way that that becomes fatal.

I'd not recommend that you stand there and get hit repeatedly to build up those areas because fatal injuries HAVE occurred when that path is taken.

Good luck, and please, be careful. Be mindful of what your body is telling you, and don't shrug off to see a doctor is something isn't quite right.

[Archimoto]

The beautiful thing about sparring, regardless of the art that you study, is that you train how to hit AND and how to be hit. In other words, among other things you learn while sparring you condition your body to take and absorb impact. For instance, there are few things as numb to the world as the shins of a Muay Thai fighter. I know this from personal experience. In my opinion I think you train as you normally would - and if it's conditioning against strikes that you seek than I recommend increasing the frequency and intensity of your sparring - perhaps to competition level. As to drills that specifically train you for impact - I don't like them. For instance, I've seen Muay Thai guys roll glass coke bottles along their shins on a daily basis in order to reduce the sensitivity in the nerves in that area - while it might dull the pain I understand there are possible long term health risks to this type of exercise. As to a well placed shot to the liver - I've received a few of those and even at the peak of my form I can't think of anything to prepare you for it. Of course, my overall conditioning helped me on one occasion get back to my feet in time to salvage the round - this was on one occasion. On another, during a light sparring session in the school a light but perfectly placed shot to the liver brought me to my knees, and I stayed there for several minutes !!! Some things are hard to prepare for. In my humble opinion you train to be a martial artist, to endure the pain, but some pain is good, it can be a great motivator to train harder and fight smarter.

[scohen.mma]

When I was doing Muay Thai, my kru would have us drop down and do leg raises at random times. For every rep, our partner would have to smack our Abs with a thai pad. It felt like it was knocking the wind out of me! Eventually my body adapted to it and I got stronger. So I wouldn't recommend targeting areas like your liver... Getting hit there can really hurt you long term. You can have someone do lots of punches on your Abs really fast but not as hard (it'll hurt eventually anyway). But I really love what my Kru did. Lots of different abdominal exercises!

[Wastelander]

When you're taking punches to the body for conditioning, you need to have a partner you can trust, who has control. Start light and work up to higher levels of power--be sure to communicate to your partner so they know when to stop increasing the power! Also, I do work on conditioning the entire core, but I recommend palm heel strikes to the liver and spleen, instead of punches.

[sensei8]

When you're taking punches to the body for conditioning, you need to have a partner you can trust, who has control. Start light and work up to higher levels of power--be sure to communicate to your partner so they know when to stop increasing the power! Also, I do work on conditioning the entire core, but I recommend palm heel strikes to the liver and spleen, instead of punches.

Imho, the bold type above is essential for the well being of the practitioner. Just letting someone hit you without taking the health properties into consideration is dangerous, to say the least.

[tsuma]

its very impressive to see karatekas on knockdown tournaments to take very hard punches to the stomach.......

[Hawkmoon]

Hi tsuma,

Kyokusin prepare with core core and more core work!!

there is no short cut to getting a strong middle, its work and more work!

Practice fights at 50% to 75/80% is generally how a fighter conditions/builds up towards a tournament!

This is for the mind, the pain management if you want to say that,

The more used to the pain you are the less it affects you!!

Sit ups are well known, don't stop doing these.

Leg lifts, medicine balls, Russian twists the list goes on are all effective and almost law in a Kyokushin dojo when conditioning the body ready for a tournament.

If there is a secret to any of the core work done, its repetition ... repeat repeat repeat!

Leg lifts for example; we all do them we lie down lift our legs up (90degrees) and lower to about 6inches of the floor.

... and repeat.

... maybe we write the alphabet in the air with our feet or write the club name etc.

Change that!

Sure do the write words in the air thing this is good, keep it up.

BUT

when you do straight leg lifts,when you lower, lower slowly, say a count of 5 initially then 10 seconds (after a few weeks)

Two of you work together.

lie down backside to backside, leave a gap of 12inches between you and your partner

Raise your legs up and over, keep the same speed and roll your less to lower your legs to other side of your partner.

do this in sets.

Start at 20, and do it three times, rest between each set for 30 seconds.

build to ...... where you want to be!

(When you go home borrow the hoover (assuming its an upright) and do the same thing 'around' the hoover!!)

With your partner turn on your side, have them sit (just below your knees) and hold your thigh firm,sit up to your side.

When you go home, maybe the bed or settee can be used to hold you as you side sit up!

There is loads of stuff you can do, and loads you should do, have a search of the web for 'core exercise', they all work!

A surprise is the one called 'the plank' its amazing and works a treat!

Enjoy!

[Archimoto]

Hi tsuma,

Kyokusin prepare with core core and more core work!!

there is no short cut to getting a strong middle, its work and more work!

Practice fights at 50% to 75/80% is generally how a fighter conditions/builds up towards a tournament!

This is for the mind, the pain management if you want to say that,

The more used to the pain you are the less it affects you!!

Sit ups are well known, don't stop doing these.

Leg lifts, medicine balls, Russian twists the list goes on are all effective and almost law in a Kyokushin dojo when conditioning the body ready for a tournament.

If there is a secret to any of the core work done, its repetition ... repeat repeat repeat!

Leg lifts for example; we all do them we lie down lift our legs up (90degrees) and lower to about 6inches of the floor.

... and repeat.

... maybe we write the alphabet in the air with our feet or write the club name etc.

Change that!

Sure do the write words in the air thing this is good, keep it up.

BUT

when you do straight leg lifts,when you lower, lower slowly, say a count of 5 initially then 10 seconds (after a few weeks)

Two of you work together.

lie down backside to backside, leave a gap of 12inches between you and your partner

Raise your legs up and over, keep the same speed and roll your less to lower your legs to other side of your partner.

do this in sets.

Start at 20, and do it three times, rest between each set for 30 seconds.

build to ...... where you want to be!

(When you go home borrow the hoover (assuming its an upright) and do the same thing 'around' the hoover!!)

With your partner turn on your side, have them sit (just below your knees) and hold your thigh firm,sit up to your side.

When you go home, maybe the bed or settee can be used to hold you as you side sit up!

There is loads of stuff you can do, and loads you should do, have a search of the web for 'core exercise', they all work!

A surprise is the one called 'the plank' its amazing and works a treat!

Enjoy!

SOLID !

[sensei8]

Hi tsuma,

Kyokusin prepare with core core and more core work!!

there is no short cut to getting a strong middle, its work and more work!

Practice fights at 50% to 75/80% is generally how a fighter conditions/builds up towards a tournament!

This is for the mind, the pain management if you want to say that,

The more used to the pain you are the less it affects you!!

Sit ups are well known, don't stop doing these.

Leg lifts, medicine balls, Russian twists the list goes on are all effective and almost law in a Kyokushin dojo when conditioning the body ready for a tournament.

If there is a secret to any of the core work done, its repetition ... repeat repeat repeat!

Leg lifts for example; we all do them we lie down lift our legs up (90degrees) and lower to about 6inches of the floor.

... and repeat.

... maybe we write the alphabet in the air with our feet or write the club name etc.

Change that!

Sure do the write words in the air thing this is good, keep it up.

BUT

when you do straight leg lifts,when you lower, lower slowly, say a count of 5 initially then 10 seconds (after a few weeks)

Two of you work together.

lie down backside to backside, leave a gap of 12inches between you and your partner

Raise your legs up and over, keep the same speed and roll your less to lower your legs to other side of your partner.

do this in sets.

Start at 20, and do it three times, rest between each set for 30 seconds.

build to ...... where you want to be!

(When you go home borrow the hoover (assuming its an upright) and do the same thing 'around' the hoover!!)

With your partner turn on your side, have them sit (just below your knees) and hold your thigh firm,sit up to your side.

When you go home, maybe the bed or settee can be used to hold you as you side sit up!

There is loads of stuff you can do, and loads you should do, have a search of the web for 'core exercise', they all work!

A surprise is the one called 'the plank' its amazing and works a treat!

Enjoy!

SOLID !

DITTO!!