KenpoSerge’s BodyBlog

Visiting bodybuilding’s articles I found some interesting ones on plyometrics exercises.

Plyos are great to enhance power, in this is a main issue in martial arts. So I read much in the subject, remember a book I’ve bought years ago from Health for Life on the subject. Next step was to choose what’s best fit with my need and add them to my Thursday workout.

For the results, as with everything, I’ll have to work it out for some weeks to see improvement. No problem, this is interesting stuff to work with.

Also, I’ve added few exercises in static stances… that is taking some stances such as the horse stance, the back stance or even the side kick stance (just as you’re hitting the target) and keep on pushing against a wall/unmovable target. It helps working on stabilizing muscles and showing if you don’t have a stable, grounded stance.

Finally, I’ve also added some time doing the horse stance, to improve some weakness I’ve had keeping this low stance for more than 2-3 minutes. BTW thanks for all those I’ve asked infos and bothered on the subject (Marc-André, Stéphanie and recently, Sandy). Keeping in mind how my abs had improved in few months of hard, continuous work last year, I’m sure this will solve the issue and even bring me pleasure working on it!

With this new training schedule, I’ve starting working my Thursday session at home, where I can work martial arts related stuff. Here I mean specifics body exercises as well as kenpo stuff.

Yesterday’s session was great, renewing the "training at home".

I’ve starting with abs working with the swiss ball, whose great at building stabilisation abs muscles also. Followed with various abs and triceps exercises.
I’ve then worked on my tonfa kata ("Hamahiga no Tonfa") and some tonfa drill to improve dexterity. Better doing this before getting your arms tired too much, thus defeating the purpose (dexterity improvement).
Then I’ve switch to the heavy bag, working some drills, then worked some 1 inch punches and some variations to help improve the "whip the hip" motion in my punches. Also worked some "U punches", shuto strikes while moving in back stance. The bag is great to teach you if you’re hitting the target with power or not! Found it great to help find why left hand strikes were weak compared with the right hand.

Doing a good part of this bare hand also helps getting a good feeling of hitting the target… but I use the glove for the power punches exercises.

Starting this week I’ll be using a new schedule. I’ve been trying for month to find the best way to accomodate both my weight training and my karate training. I wanted to have time to train karate at home, so I could improve on specific details/technics, mastering more complicated stuff and things like that.
This will be weight training on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, Karate (at the dojo) on Tuesday and Saturday, Karate at home Thursday.

At first, this may seems a lot of training, but keep in mind that I’m not exhausting myself or some bodyparts… I have to do my weight training with my karate in mind… not the same objective one have with a BB competition in mind!

Gee, this feels weird…

As I’m getting married next year (Aug 2nd), me and my girlfriend had dinner last thursday to celebrate our… "-1" year of marriage! We’re all used to celebrate "x" years of this and that, but not of a future event!

Well, some have a training deadlines such as competition, mine will be that one to be in great shape!

Welcome to my Bodybuilding.com BodyBlog.

I’m not very used to blogs (less having my own!) but I’ll try to regularly post something interesting. If you ever read something interesting, feel free to participate, comment and give feedback!

Serge