why dont martial artists like to lift weights?

[Sid Vicious]

i know some people think that it decreases flexibility, (i dont agree). is there any other reason that people dont like it? and is it possible to get "built" or "ripped" doing calesthenics? (spelling?)

[rabid hamster]

yes i think it is possible to get ripped using calithenics because all you need to do is get a little muscle and the most important thing is to burn the fat which can be done with cardio, not weightlifting. but i dont have any scientific evidence of this, its just a theory.

 

i guess they dont do it cos they think it decreases flexibility which is not entirely true unless you don't stretch.

[G95champ]

Well the comming thing is the loss of flexability. I hear Basketball players say it all the time. Weight lifting will mess my shot up. Yeah It really hurt Jordan.

 

Anyhow IMO its just an excuse. It takes a special person to live in the weightroom and do other things. I mean heck its hard work. Your talking about an hour or more a day 3 or more times a week. MA will train 3 times a week for a few hrs each session. It basically comes down to a lack of time.

 

I have a hard time getting my football team in durring the summer and they realize if they don't life we won't win as much. So for a MA to do it for no other reason than just self development is unlikely.

 

Again the comming outlook is MA don't like to life because ti takes away from our flexability just as it hurts a basketball players shot.

[Thai_Kick]

Weight lifting/Body building is bad for martial artists because...

 

When you weight lift/body build you focus on one part of your body a day (Biceps, Triceps, Quads...) One day a body builder will train on his/her legs then the next day stomach and so on.

 

This type of training is bad for the mind and body of martial artists because the mind and body slows down the movements as a whole, since they are only use to using one body part at a time and not all at once to perform a technique. When watching Muay Thai, Kickboxing, Boxing or MMA events you will rarely see massive ripped fighters and if you do, you will notice their techniques will be sloppy, poor conditioning due to the amount of weight they are carrying and are much more acceptable to bruising.

[Red J]

There is nothing wrong with a well laid out strength program. I don't go to the gym, because of time constraints with MA training taking up a lot of time. I prefer the calistenics because I can do them at any time and I don't need any equipment.

[KickChick]

There are alot of misconceptions regarding combining weight lifting and martial art training. Martial artists avoid weightlifting because they think they will loose their speed and flexibility due to bulking up. But in reality, only the genetically predisposed will posses the physiology needed to achieve these pro- body builder proportions. What results that you will get is in fact increased strength and endurance, as well as increased speed and flexibility.

 

Increased strength is the major benefit of weight because it provides the optimum amount of resistance through a muscle's full range of motion and increasing muscle endurance.

 

Speed improves with weight training also when using high speed repetitions. This trains your muscles to react quickly against resistance.

 

 

 

Flexibility is also improved through weight training. A thorough static stretching routine performed after a thorough warm up is the very best for improving flexibility, but stretching after weight training provides much faster results. True, warmed up muscles are easier to stretch but exhausted muscles from weight training provide less resistance and you will see added gains in flexibility.

 

Free weights are best for building overall power. They work the main muscle groups, but also the stabilizer muscles. This provides the martial artist greater overall body control and coordination for techniques found in martial arts.

 

You shouldn't be concerned with getting the maximem results but getting optimal results from your weight training. If your goal is to improve muscle definition and also improve muscular endurance, then use low weight with high reps. If you want to increase body mass and increase power, then use heavier weights and lower reps.

 

In response to Thai_kick and Hiya:

 

Always visualize the muscles being worked. Concentrate your attention and avoid letting your mind wander. Mental concentration being an added benefit!

 

Also the order of your weight training exercises is most important. The largest muscle groups should be worked first. If the smaller ones are worked first they drain the energy that is needed to move the large muscle groups. With the smaller muscles exhausted it is also more difficult to maintain proper form. Start with the quadriceps, then the hamstrings, calves, lats, trapezius, deltoids, pects, biceps, triceps, forearms, abs, and obliques. The abs and obliques should be last since they are the muscles primarily responsible for proper posture and for keeping stress from the lower back.

 

There is no such thing as spot reducing. When muscles are exhausted, the body will break down fat to produce energy from anywhere in the body. So although this is not "cardio" .... weight lifting does burn fat!

[Jack]

Great post Deby! Bar one small point

 

Defining a muscle is a result of building mass and lowering fat to make the striations of the muscle more visible. Using less weight and higher reps will not define a muscle - this is a popular myth.

[KickChick]

Thanks Jack ... but as far as that one point ... (I guess I was being a bit selfish) --- that seems to work best with me---I'm a "slow-twitched" - type.

 

People that seem to have a greater than average percentage of fast twitch or slow twitch muscle fibers contribute to this physique specific training myth. A person that has an above average amount of slow twitch muscle fibers will likely use "light" weights and high reps since they are usually not very strong and it would take longer than average for them to fatigue when weight training. These individuals are typically lean because slow twitch fibers don't hypertrophy enough and these types usually participate in endurance activities because they do well in them as a result of having more "fatigue-resistant fibers". The increased cardiovascular work leads to less body fat but most will see their high rep/light weight routines as the reason for their build.

 

So those that have above average amount of fast twitch muscle fibers (on the other hand) will probably use heavy weights and low reps since they fatigue quickly when weight training. These types are likely to be muscle bound and strong because fast twitch muscle fibers have a greater potential to hypertrophy than slow twitch fibers. They usually perform weight training often and endurance exercise much less since they have more strong muscle fibers. This will contribute to less of a lean build and more of a "mass" build. So they will see their low rep/heavy weight routines are the reason for their muscle mass.

 

Whether you use light weights with high reps or heavy weights with low reps, you will always be prone to develop the build that's predisposed by your genes. You cannot, by weight training ALONE, make your muscles "cut" or "bulk".

 

Thai_kick:

.....and are much more acceptable to bruising.

 

Can you explain this I'm rather curious as to how you came up with this one?

[Bretty101]

Body Building won't develope coordination and reflexes as well as martial arts. But i love it!!

 

I've got really into my weight training recently, it's done me so much good. I can't see any reason not to do weights except for the weight gain.

 

I do heavy squats and deadlifts and can still do the splits (in fact Tom Platz the guy with the biggest legs i've ever seen can do the splits).

 

Weights are great, It's just an excuse!

 

Bretty

[ZR440]

If anyone thinks lifting weights will slow you down and will affect coordination they should call Tyson or Holyfield and explain why.