Nathan's Body Weight Training

Posted by: Nathan MacDonald

Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/21/10 08:10 AM

I have made a body weight training routine and want to run it by you guys first.

It consists of:

(In the morning I do some yoga then eat breakfast then I do the following)

Legs:
-Squats 10x2 rep
-Hindu squats 10x2 rep
-Lunges 10x2 rep
-Burpees 10x2 rep

Core:
-Plank 10x1 rep
-Side Plank 10x1 rep
-V-Sits 10x1 rep
-Bridge 10x1 rep
-Hip Lift 10x1 rep
-Seated Oblique Twists 10x1 rep
-Alternating Superman 10x1 rep

Pressing:
-Push Ups 10x2 rep
-Hindu Push Ups 10x2 rep
-Reverse Push Ups 10x2 rep
-Hand Stands 5x1 rep

Pulling:
-Pull Ups 5x3 rep
-Chin Ups 5x3 rep
-L Pull Ups 5x3 rep
-L Chin Ups 5x3 rep

Hands:
-Tiger Claws 5x2 rep
-Spider Ups 5x2 rep

After this I work on Martial Arts footwork, Ukemi, Stances, and Timing.

Then I work on some katas and techniques.

Them I warm and cool down, eat, and then go practice soccer.



I do this work out 3 times a week (Mon, Wed, Fri) and have a Martial Arts class on Tuesday.

I would appreciate some feedback and suggestions.

Here is some info on me:
Age: 16
Weight: 140 lbs
Height: Not sure, sorry.
Martial Arts: Beginner. (maybe 10th or 9th kyu. probably 10th, but I have no idea)
If you need any more just ask for it.

Thanks You,

-Nathan MacDonald
Posted by: Cord

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/21/10 08:52 AM

Why dont you know what grade you are in your martial art? confused Is it an official class, or is it you and some friends working through a DVD or whatever?

Come to think of it, what art do you study? that may have a bearing on the conditioning work you need to focus on.

Also, are you limiting yourself to bodyweight work because you have no access or money to use a gym, or because you think thats what martial artists should do?
Posted by: Nathan MacDonald

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/21/10 10:03 AM

Well I started only a couple months ago and haven't taken any tests or anything so I am amusing i'm 10th kyu but I don't really know how it works and I don't even know if there is tests. And yes, it is an official (but small...only 4 people regularly) class.

I study Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu.

I do bodyweight training because I have no money and there is no gym in my town anymore since it closed a little while ago. but, I also do it because it's just the way I always imaged it. Waking up with the sun to go and train in the woods...I dunno, there's just something that I like about that :P
Posted by: Cord

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/21/10 06:57 PM

I have some experience of Bujinkan, and can tell you that above all else, you will need gynmastic ability. Few arts rely so heavily on ukemi (rolling). It is also quite a 'soft' art (this relates to the principles of its biomechanics), and so like Aikido and daito ryu (arts taijutsu shares a common lineage with), many practitioners do not consider the western idea of muscular strength to be a vital component.

With no gym at your disposal, what you have listed seems balanced enough, but I would urge you to seek out a local gymnastic club/school team with which to train, or even a local free running/parkour group, as these skills will help in your Bujinkan training more than being able to do a lot of push-ups.
Posted by: Stormdragon

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/21/10 07:57 PM

I'd even not recommend heavy weight training at all even if you get the chance until you've gotten to be pretty good at the art as it tends to make people want to "muscle" through things in a psychological sense, and that's bad anyway but especially an art like that (as opposed to say freestyle wrestling). Mobility exercises (i.e. gymnastics, pilates, etc.) would definitely be more useful, as Cord was saying.
Calisthenic circuits are great for overal conditionuing imo (for example organize a variety of exercises in a circle, do say 30 seconds of each, running to the next- pushups, followed by pull ups, followed by crunches, followed by jump squats, followed by paralell bar dips. 30 seconds each station going through as many times as you can). `
Work on handstand pushups too, those are phenomenal for a lot more than just building your shoulders.
Posted by: Kathryn

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/22/10 07:03 PM

Nathan:

I am totally impressed that you do yoga before all that! However, a recent study found that doing extensive stretching just prior to other athletic work, it will weaken the muscles and lessen performance.

Perhaps if you separated the yoga for afternoon or a seperate day you would develop faster on the strength work.
Posted by: Stormdragon

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/22/10 09:34 PM

Maybe do yoga for a cool down.
Posted by: Cord

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/23/10 01:03 AM

Good point Katherine - developmental stretching (including yoga) shuts down the muscles synaptic pathways and makes contraction less complete and efficient. For this reason, warm ups should be progressive but always dynamic, not passive. Stretching is a facet of exercise deserving of its own place in a weekly routine, not merely seen as a 'bookend' to 'proper' exercise.
Posted by: Nathan MacDonald

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/23/10 08:19 AM

Would it be fine if I did yoga and then just waited at least an hour and then do a proper warm-up and my workout?
Posted by: Cord

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/23/10 09:09 AM

Not really. You could do it the other way around.
Posted by: Stormdragon

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/23/10 07:58 PM

You know, I had no idea static stretching shut down the synaptic pathways i nthe muscles. How does that happen?
Posted by: Cord

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/24/10 04:30 AM

Basically, prolonged stretching overrides the muscles 'stretch reflex' - as you know, explosive contraction happens best after an eccentric motion primes the muscle for an elastic reaction. An example would be if you rack a bar in the power rack at the bottom of the squat, crouch down and get in position with your ar$e near your heels, and then unrack from there, you will find the drive upwards much more difficult than if you had lowered the weight before hand.

The stretch reflex is a natural power system, as well as being a safety feature to prevent joint damage. It is hardwired into your CNS.

Long stretching tells the muscles in question to shut this feature down. As the muscle fibres get the message and begin to lose their tension and resistance, the stretch itself feels easier, and range of motion increases - this you can feel as you do it. The trouble is, that this stimulus then renders the muscles less able to respond dynamicaly, because you have sent the localised NMC to sleep, and it takes a a good while after stretching for it to return to optimal function.

Time for a Cord patented analogy:

1. You are at home, watching TV, when the patio door slides open and a strange guy pokes his head through to look around. You are shocked, but after a split second, you are on your feet shouting and the dude runs away.

That is your muscles in a normal daily state.

2. You have been warned by neighbourhood watch of a series of home invasions in your area. Having a hot wife and a big TV, this info is never far from your mind, and you keep a baseball bat by your armchair at all times. As soon as you hear the patio door slide, you are up, the bat is cocked and you are ready to destroy anything stupid enough to poke its head into your property.

That is the muscles when warmed up.

3. After smoking a bowl of primo jamaican, you fall into a dreamy sleep, only waking after the duck-tape has secured your wrists.

That is the muscles after a developmental stretching session.


All exercise is a message, or a request, you send to your body, and you have to ensure you dont send mixed messages or it simply doesnt know what to do.
Posted by: Stormdragon

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/24/10 05:18 AM

Very infortmative as always, and I love that analogy. So then, dynamic stretching will prevent this whil allowing the muscles to become more loose before working out?
Posted by: Kathryn

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/24/10 08:01 AM

Nathan, just me personally, I do the yoga and pilates mat exercises on days when I'm not doing any other major activities.
Posted by: Cord

Re: Nathan's Body Weight Training - 08/24/10 10:12 AM

ballistic, or dynamic stretching can indeed be an element of a warm up, as it conditions and prepares the stretch reflex instead of switching it off, but even then, it does not have to be an essential ingredient.

Warm up, especially for sport/variable motions, should be progressive and dynamic, so you might start with spotty dogs and progress through to jumping split squats, alternate knee ups to jumping knee highs, short distance traveling knee-highs and heel kick runs. Basically, its not treating the temp increase and range of motion increase as seperate entities, you combine it all into a moving process designed to prime the body for the work ahead.

As Katherine does, treating flexibility/mobility as a worthwhile workout in and of itself has been proven to be the most effective way of improving it.