Training independently

Posted by: jkdwarrior

Training independently - 05/23/05 09:33 PM

Hi, how's it going?
I go to a JKD class once a week for 1 1/2 hours and this is the only time I get to train with other people. I practice for around 45 mins per day. What I have found is that initally I improved a great deal, but I really feel that I need other methods of training that can be done solo.
The thing that have worked for me so far are:
Heavy bag
Shadow fighting
footwork, head movement, punching and kicking drills.
Any ideas?
I've thought about adding more difficult techniques, but I know that basic movemnents are more important. With shadow fighting, I have learned to strike with power from any angle because I began at a snail's pace pausing to think after every movement to ensure I was using the quickest and most direct movement possible. The heavy bag has taught me how it feels to hit a solid target, and the drills have enabled me to move in any directon quickly.
What I really need, though is a method of making my lonesome training more realistic. I try things like hanging a tennis ball from the ceiling and moving out of the way pretending it is a punch, but I'm running out of ideas. I'll be more than happy to hear some of your ingenius methods of independent practice as well as some outrageous ones. Thanks
Posted by: Rumble

Re: Training independently - 05/24/05 02:04 AM

Do you lift weights or jog/sprints? these are some other physical exercises you can do on your own. Another good training tool is a double end bag in which you can practice speed cordination and accuracy on a moving target.
Posted by: JKogas

Re: Training independently - 05/24/05 06:44 AM

Personally, I'd be working on the strength and conditioning aspects. Work the bags like you said. Then hit the weights and run. Do standard jogging and windsprints. Push your anaerobic capacity. That is the best thing you could do when solo...just like all the pros. You don't have to BE a pro to train like one.

-John
Posted by: jkdwarrior

Re: Training independently - 05/24/05 07:21 AM

I've been lifting wieghts for years and also doing aerobic conditioning and my diet is good as well. What I'm really looking for are methods for martial arts practicing that people do when not in class.
Posted by: Chen Zen

Re: Training independently - 05/28/05 03:22 AM

Try Hackey Sack. Not the normal MA excercise but its entertaining. Aside from that it gets your heart rate up, teaches you to kick at all angles and with a relaxed leg and foot, and it also challenges your footwork.

I truly wish that people would forget running; the impact is bad on your heart. I never run. Instead I shadow box and work the bag or spar for my aerobic excercise.Look at Pro Boxing. 3 minute rounds with a minute in between. 12 rounds. If you are throwing blows the whole three minutes of every round then it can be tedious.
Posted by: DragonFire1134

Re: Training independently - 05/28/05 09:18 AM

Quote:

I truly wish that people would forget running; the impact is bad on your heart.



You advise folks not to run?!?!?

Man if you can provide some sort of proof that running is bad on your heart, then I would stop right now. If its the impact then wouldn't skipping rope and hard sparring be bad on the heart as well?
Posted by: MattJ

Re: Training independently - 05/28/05 09:26 AM

Chen -

I am going to have to go with Dragonfire1134 here. Where have you heard that running is bad for the heart?

That is a new one for me.
Posted by: kroh

Re: Training independently - 06/07/05 08:34 AM

Have you tried a mook jong?

http://cine-hk.chez.tiscali.fr/Hkcine/Images/lexique/mookjong.jpg

Posted by: Chang Wufei

Re: Training independently - 06/30/05 07:53 AM

I'd have to say running is perfectly healthy, mainly because it is the second best form of exercise reccomended by doctors, the first being stretching.
Posted by: MAGr

Re: Training independently - 06/30/05 08:39 AM

a mook jong is not just a piece of equipment, you need instruction on it and you need to learn the wooden dummy form. There is no [point in using it like a punching bag/makiwara. You have bags and makiwaras for that. wooden dummy is supposed to teach you how to destroy someone guard.
It is a great training tool but you need instruction.
Posted by: knightcommander

Re: Training independently - 06/30/05 12:37 PM

You really need more than 1 lesson per week for ma.
Posted by: mantis_boxing

Re: Training independently - 07/29/05 05:54 AM

my instructor said before he left for the USA, spar and spar again (i recommend full gear, full contact). get a good training partner/s and train at home for free. get a platform speed ball. perfect your basics, get in 100 jabs 100 straights 100 hooks 100 uppercuts 100 hook kicks 100 side kicks(fine maybe 50 side kicks will be ok). skip rope. run (it is not 'bad for yuour heart'). a double ended bag is good, get the smallest one you can find. a maize ball - tyson used this alot. punch/ kick a piece of paper - BL did this a lot. also makiwara training if you want KO power. pls let me know what you think, thanks.
Posted by: Chen Zen

Re: Training independently - 07/31/05 04:15 AM

Yes I advise people not to run. As for the source that indicated that it was bad for the heart Ill have to get back to you all on. Iv one of my numerous magazines. Mainly it suggested that running is bad for the skeletal structure of the knees and shins and that the constant jarring motion over a long period of time could lead to early exhaustion of the heart. That years later, a person who ran a mile everyday or better would be healthy, but later cut years from his life due to overworking of the heart.

I HATE running. Its boring. It hass nothing to do with my own strategy of survival and it just hurts. I never feel good after running. When the benifits of running can be achieved through other activities without any of the downfalls then why not do these other activities? Swimming, bag work, sparring and shadow boxing can give you the benifits of running without all the damage to the body.
Posted by: mantis_boxing

Re: Training independently - 07/31/05 04:49 AM

this must be breaking news to all people, running is bad for your heart. i agree it may hurt and is boring in the beginning but eventually it becomes an exercise in a person going against his worst opponent - himself. to push yourself to continue running and not stop. while it hurt in the beginning, the pain i not only eventually got used to but went away altogether because my body must have gotten strong enough to take the impact of running, i guess thats why its called conditioning. i dont recommend running on concrete or paved roads if you have a choice but i do because its what ive been doing. i never would have thought that running in the early morning would have so much benefits not only to my endurance but raised the quality of my life overall. true it may not be for everyone but for those who are brave enough to risk your heart to run. im sure there should be more risk in practicing martial arts seriously compared to running when impact and joints are concerned. if running is considered dangerous we all might as well foam-line our homes for safety. Come one bro, it running..... sorry i just really enjoy it. maybe even more than MA. maybe i should train to join a marathon peace
Posted by: cinattra

Re: Training independently - 08/03/05 07:42 PM

Its impossible to train realisticly alone. All you can do is drills over and over.
Posted by: Neonomide

Re: Training independently - 08/04/05 11:28 AM

Quote:

Yes I advise people not to run. As for the source that indicated that it was bad for the heart Ill have to get back to you all on. Iv one of my numerous magazines. Mainly it suggested that running is bad for the skeletal structure of the knees and shins and that the constant jarring motion over a long period of time could lead to early exhaustion of the heart. That years later, a person who ran a mile everyday or better would be healthy, but later cut years from his life due to overworking of the heart.



I perfectly agree that many of the benefits one can get from running can be got from various other forms of activity. I also confirm that running can be screwed up in a variety of ways.

But speaking as an european and having read a lot of magazines here, I cannot agree on that running is bad for your heart. The cardiovascular system largely benefits from running on so many levels, it put your body to work more holistically than cycling and can be done anywere. A strong heart can only be acquired by constant, sufficiently straining aerobic activity and running is tremendously good method in that. I have never bumped into any information that running rationally is in any way bad for cardiovascular system or heart itself.

Many premature deaths during or after running have been a result of using EPA and other doping. The danger of sudden death is there with any stranuous activity, not just running. But the danger is extremely small, almost nonexistent.

Many run too fast, it is deprimental to one's progress and makes one more susceptible to several kinds on injuries. Many also run on far too hard surface, the softer the surface the better it is to your feet and spine. Many do not run with sufficiently good quality pair of shoes and run with incorrect technique.

Running sould be IMHO one of the most important self defence techniques as well. But of course, we are talking about emergencies, so long distance running is not primarily meant to train that department. But efficient running routine should also include short sprints and interwall training with some footwork thrown in. I also do not believe in monotonous running exercises, nobody trains like that, even specialized runners.

A lot of exercises become strainous and even dangerous if repeated too much, with a bad technique and with inadequate overall physical condition. Test results based on 20 mile/day-runners are definitely not to be connected with efficient cross-training that an effective martial artist should do. Repeating the same training routine is not a good thing to do, whatever one does, for years in identical form.

I enjoy running. I prefer to run in forests in opposed to a road, partly because I think it is far more interesting and I have had pproblems with my knees before. I now know my limits better. Thanks to my rational running program, I feel that I'm in great shape overall. And it only takes a half an hour 4-5 times a week.
Posted by: Chen Zen

Re: Training independently - 08/07/05 12:36 AM

Quote:

Its impossible to train realisticly alone. All you can do is drills over and over.



I dont agree with that. Self exploration is one of the most important aspects of ones training and is best achieved alone, free from outside persuasions.
Posted by: funstick5000

Re: Training independently - 08/07/05 09:03 PM

Quote:

Its impossible to train realisticly alone. All you can do is drills over and over.



then what exactley are katas/forms?