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From: http://www.myodynamics.com/kicks.html
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LESS AEROBIC TRAINING MEANS GREATER KICKING POWER by Christopher D. Hess, SMAC Posted 11/27/97 |
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What is extended aerobic training? Beginning with Dr. Kenneth Cooper and right on through the various U.S. Surgeon Generals, a simple format of three, 20 minute aerobic sessions per week has been the prescription for maintaining aerobic fitness. Due to individual differences, some people require up to 30 minute sessions to achieve this basic aerobic fitness. But beyond 30 minutes, aerobic training is considered extended because the training is developing something beyond basic fitness. This is an important distinction. In order to develop the fastest and most powerful kicks, you don't need extended aerobic fitness. Instead, you need to keep in mind the different types of muscle fibers and supporting enzyme systems that are trained. Performance Systems Every person has some percentage of two basic types of muscle fibers: slow twitch (Type I), and fast twitch (Type II). The relative percentage in each individual is the result of genetics and training. The Type I, slow twitch, fibers are the ones used in sustained aerobic performance such as long runs. When you engage in aerobic activities over 30 minutes in duration you are using, developing and recruiting this muscle fiber type and its supporting enzyme system. On the surface, the ability to run five miles or stay on the stairmaster for an hour seems like an appropriate goal. But the development of an extended aerobic system will not help you develop faster, more powerful kicks. This is because slow twitch motor units have limited potential for both rapid force development and low anaerobic (high intensity) power. This is why you will never see a marathoner doing well in a 100 meter sprint. Neither will you see Ben Johnson lining up for a marathon. Specialization As a martial artist, you need to develop the same type of motor units as a 100 meter sprinter if you want to have the fastest, most powerful kicks possible. You therefore want to develop your force output, or anaerobic capacity. To increase your force output, you need to use, develop and recruit your fast twitch, Type II capacity. This does not occur through extended aerobic activity. In fact, extended aerobic activity decreases anaerobic potential. Developing any energy system, whether the oxidative slow twitch type or the anaerobic fast twitch type, requires specialization. This is because the systems themselves, to a significant degree, are mutually exclusive. This is particularly evident in the development of mitochondria during extended aerobic training. Mitochondria are the oxygen cells that, when developed, enable you to run extended distances. But there is a tradeoff with the increase of mitochrondia cells in your energy system: these cells literally "crowd out" the recruitment of Type II muscle fibers, reduce the concentration of anaerobic enzymes, and decrease muscle mass in endurance athletes. In other words, having more mitochondria than necessary will compromise the speed and power of your kicks. To illustrate this point, consider the vertical jump ability of elite endurance athletes. These athletes often have 4 to 6 inch vertical jumps. For the martial artist, that would be pitiful. It might mean you could run a 10K, half or full marathon, but your kicking ability would be severely blunted by the overdevelopment of the low power (aerobic) energy system. How to Train To develop kicks that will knock your sparring opponent backward, you need to moderate your aerobic training and specifically develop the high intensity, anaerobic system. You need some aerobic capacity, that is certain. But the ability to end a street fight in a few seconds or even last several rounds in sparring does not require an ability to run five miles. Instead, you should perform some form of aerobic training for 20 minutes in duration, 3 to 4 times per week, at approximately 70% of your maximum heart rate (220 minus your age). Then, with the time that you may have previously spent in endurance training, train your high-intensity, powerful energy system. One way to do this is with resistance training in the form of squats or lunges. To develop maximum force and power, you will want to cycle through a training plan that leads you to eventually performing sets with a high load (weight) and few repetitions. This type of training will develop the explosiveness of your kicks, the type that ends a street fight in a matter of seconds. Or, if you are a tournament fighter and need the ability to perform several rounds, you will want to develop your local muscular endurance (LME). To do this with resistance training, you go to the other extreme than what was described for developing power. For LME, use very light weights and perform many repetitions, perhaps 20 to 25. This will develop your ability to deliver successive kicks in a tournament format. Besides resistance training, you can perform short bursts of high intensity effort on the heavy bag and on the running track in the form of sprints, which is much more beneficial for the development of your power than running for 30 minutes or more. New Mindset The real question here is whether you can challenge the myths that have been passed on about aerobic training. Undoubtedly you have read of some national champion who claims that running an hour a day is absolutely necessary to keep delivering all those kicks in competition. And what confuses the issue is that person's success. But by understanding the differences in the energy systems, it becomes apparent that success is very relative. In other words, the person who swears by their one-hour routine could be even more successful if some of the extended aerobic training was replaced with specific power or LME development. Running an hour a day will obviously increase your endurance for sparring or tournaments, but the effect is indirect and delivers only half the benefit you could receive from specificity training. Let me be very clear about this. Cardiovascular training will help, to a small degree, your ability to throw five consecutive roundhouse kicks. But if you want those roundhouse kicks to be powerful, you must use specific training methods such as high weight, low volume resistance training. Or, if you want to be able to deliver ten consecutive kicks, you must develop the endurance of your quadriceps through low weight, high volume training to meet this goal. Don't waste your time and energy on activities that bring only minimal benefits. Train your aerobic capacity moderately, in proportion to the actual requirements of your martial art goals. If you are only training for self-defense skills on the street, emphasize high-intensity training. If you're sparring and competing in tournaments, train for high-intensity and LME. Detraining Effects Due to individual differences, it is difficult to identify exactly how long it would take for you to re-program your energy system from low power aerobic ability to high power anaerobic ability. If you commit to a program of aerobic detraining, your muscles and enzyme systems will begin "swapping out." This process may take several months to complete. Within a month, however, you should begin seeing an increased vertical jump and the ability to push heavier weights once mitochondria is sacrificed for an influx of protein and anaerobic enzymes in your muscle contractile tissue. You may find that you've enjoyed extended aerobic training for its own benefits and good feelings, especially from the endorphines associated with endurance training. But if you truly want to be as powerful as possible, some of that aerobic base must be replaced. That power is available by training for it specifically. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: In addition to the martial arts, Mr. Hess is a licensed cycling coach who regularly works with successful endurance athletes with tiny vertical jumps. He author of Total Quality Martial Arts: Pathways to Continuous Improvement. |
From: http://www.myodynamics.com/kicks.html
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