Ashleigh Chrich
Karate Thesis
Preparing your body in order to gain maximum potential during karate training
Flexibility
What flexibility is
A person's flexibility refers to the ability of their joints to move through a full range of motion (ROM). Having flexibility in your muscles allows for more movement around the joints and you can achieve this with a basic yet regular stretching workout. Stretching before your work out in order to reduce the chances of injury.
After your workout, when your
muscles are warm and pliable, is a great way to increase flexibility
and keep your body protected from injury. It is
extremely importing to go through a thorough warm up before
committing to any strenuous activity, as if the warm up is missed,
the body is at great risk of obtaining a serious injury that could
delay your progress in the art.
Why is
it important?
If you have a great degree of flexibility in your joints the more you will be able to put that flexibility to use in the range of movement you have at your disposal. It goes without saying that the more flexibility you have in a martial art, such as karate, the better. Most martial arts styles require some level of flexibility and therefore improving will help you grow to new heights in your practice while still remaining safe from injury. While some people seem to have a natural ability to be flexible most need to work at improving their level of flexibility for karate.
However, the flexibility of one joint does not reflect the flexibility of all joints of the one being. Each joint is likely to have a different range of flexibility, which will also differ between the directions the joint is moving. To illustrate this, one may be able to perform front splits perfectly with no hesitation, yet may struggle with side splits, even though it is the same hip joint. The reason for this is that the joint is moving in two complete different ways. This is why it is important that a good flexibility exercise plan should involve training of all the joints in all direction. This is the only way in which the full potential of all of the joints can be obtained.
Furthermore, it is also important that flexibility training co-exists with strength training in order for the flexibility gained can be used sufficiently by the muscles. In addition to flexibility and strength, learning to co-ordinate tension and relaxation is also extremely relevant. This means that power and focus can be issued at the strike. Russian Cossacks used to train with their sabers by standing waist deep in water and slicing into the water with their blades. As they began to understand they would learn to relax on the down stroke and then tense and use their power at the moment of strike.
How it
can be gained ?
Good or bad stretching
methods…
There are five different types of stretching that occur. Some are seen as being more efficient than others and some that are suggested to lead to an injury rather than preventing it.
Ballistic Stretching:
This is defined as rapid lengthening of a muscle by the use
of jerking or bouncing movements, for example, bending down touching
your toes and bouncing repeatedly to touch them. This type of
stretch is not recommended. In fact, it produces the type of sudden
stress to the muscle that produces injuries in the first place.
Quickly pulling a muscle into a full stretch causes it to lengthen
beyond a safe stretch and may injure the muscle which is the exact
opposite of what you are trying to achieve with stretching.
However, the advantages of ballistic stretching are that
they will help improve the range of movement and are used by coaches
as they have the advantage of being executed for specific needs.
If ballistic stretching is used it is important to start slowly with
a small ROM, building up speed and using full ROM only towards the
end.
Static Stretching
This type of stretching is characterized by a slow and
sustained (e.g.., for 15-60 seconds) lengthening of a muscle by the
martial artist without help from a partner. This is one of the best
types of stretching because it does not pose the risk of injury to
muscle and connective tissue as ballistic stretching does.
Passive Stretching
Passive stretching is identical to static stretching,
except that a partner is used to gradually move the arm or leg. The
advantage of using a partner is that a greater range-of-motion can
be achieved compared to stretching without a partner. A possible
disadvantage to this method is that your partner may not be reliable
in knowing how far they should push the muscle and this would also
lead to an injury.
Isometric Stretching
Isometric stretching is simply static stretching with the
aid of an immovable object. An example of this would be pushing
against a wall to stretch the hamstrings. The wall enables the
stretch to be sustained without having to have somebody else to help
you. The fact that the object is immovable enables different amounts
of pressure to be applied at great ease.
Proprioceptive Neuromuscular
Facilitation (PNF) Stretching
PNF stretching sounds more complicated than it really is.
Technically, PNF stretching involves passive muscle lengthening with
the use of a partner after an antagonistic muscle is contracted. PNF
stretching is considered to be an excellent technique however the
risk of injury is slightly greater than the other methods since the
range of the stretch can be greater.
For clarity, think of a hamstring stretch (on
back, face up) for each of my following examples. The martial artist
places one leg extended, flat on the floor and the other extended in
the air as close to right angles to the body as possible.
- Hold-Relax
A partner moves the martial
artist’s extended leg to a point of mild discomfort. This passive
stretch is held for 10 seconds.
On instruction, the athlete
isometrically contracts the hamstrings by pushing their extended leg
against their partner's hand. The partner should apply just enough
force so that the leg remains static. This is the 'hold' phase and
lasts for 6 seconds.
The athlete is then
instructed to 'relax' and the partner completes a second passive
stretch held for 30 seconds. The athlete's extended leg should move
further than before (greater hip flexion) due to autogenic
inhibition activated in the hamstrings.
Contract-Relax
A partner moves the
athlete's extended leg to a point of mild discomfort. This passive
stretch is held for 10 seconds.
On instruction, the athlete
concentrically contracts the hamstrings by pushing their extended
leg against their partner's hand. The partner should apply enough
force so that there is resistance while allowing the athlete to push
their leg to the floor (i.e. through the full range of motion). This
is the 'contract' phase.
The athlete is then
instructed to 'relax' and the partner completes a second passive
stretch held for 30 seconds. The athlete's extended leg should move
further than before (greater hip flexion) due to autogenic
inhibition activated in the hamstrings.
Hold-Relax with
Opposing Muscle Contraction
A partner moves the
athlete's extended leg to a point of mild discomfort. This passive
stretch is held for 10 seconds.
On instruction, the martial
artist contracts the hamstrings by pushing their extended leg
against their partner's hand. The partner should apply just enough
force so that the leg remains static. This is the 'hold' phase and
lasts for 6 seconds. This initiates autogenic inhibition.
The partner completes a
second passive stretch held for 30 seconds, however the athlete is
instructed to flex the hip (i.e. pull the leg in the same direction
as it is being pushed). This initiates reciprocal inhibition
allowing the final stretch to be greater.
Here are some other general guidelines
when completing PNF stretching:
1. Leave 48 hours between PNF stretching
routines.
2. Perform only one exercise per muscle group
in a session.
3. For each muscle group complete 2-5 sets of
the chosen exercise.
4. Each set should consist of one stretch held
for up to 30 seconds after the contracting phase.
5. PNF stretching is not recommended for
anyone under the age of 18.
6. If PNF stretching is to be performed as a
separate exercise session, a thorough warm up consisting of 5-10
minutes of light aerobic exercise and some dynamic stretches must
precede it.
7. Avoid PNF immediately before, or on the
morning of a freestyle or kata competition.
A possible injury ?
One method of treating a hamstring injury is
by using the RICE technique. This stands for Rest, Ice, Compression
and Elevation. Depending upon the severity of the injury, the leg
must be rested from karate for between several weeks and several
months.
Learning the correct way to stretch and then
making it a part of both getting ready for your practice and the
cooling off after a practice will ensure that you take care of
yourself and you can enjoy karate for years to come. Any pain from
your muscles while stretching is a message from your body to your
brain to tell you to stop what you are doing. Under no circumstances
should you stretch muscles which are painful. There is a big
difference between painful and uncomfortable. It is important to
learn the difference, as a stretch being uncomfortable is good, as
it is doing what it is meant to be. A painful stretch however, can
be dangerous.
Cardiovascular fitness
Cardiovascular fitness is important in karate.
To do this it is required to regularly elevate our heart rate for
extended periods of time and, training in martial arts can help us
do this. Therefore, training itself is an ideal
way of helping the body become stronger, healthier and more
efficient.
The basic idea of cardiovascular fitness is
quite simple. When the muscles in the body are working harder, they
require more oxygen, which is why the heart beats faster so that it
can deliver more blood to the oxygen depleted muscles. By elevating
the heart rate, causing the heart to beat more often, the muscle
will gradually become bigger and stronger. This will result in more
blood being pumped out per beat, therefore more oxygen reaching the
muscles in a quicker time. This means that the body will be able to
perform better.
The more often the body is subjected to
exercise, the stronger the heart muscle will become, which in turn
will mean that the muscles in the body will have more oxygen and
this will eventually result in a better performance overall.
Diet and health
To keep the body in shape, and in order to
expect to be able to gain maximum fitness levels, it is extremely
important to be aware of how you are treating your body and
considering what effects the food and drink you consume may have on
your health and fitness levels. 
A healthy diet is one that helps to maintain or improve health. It is important in the prevention of many chronic health risks such as obesity, heart disease, diabetes and cancer. A healthy diet consists of consuming appropriate amounts of all nutrients, and water.
A healthy diet needs to have a balance of
fats, sugars, proteins, carbohydrates, minerals and fibres as well
as adequate amounts of water, without inducing toxicity by having
excessive amounts of one.
A good diet can give a martial artist an
enhanced performance for many reasons. First of all, carbohydrates
are necessary for energy. They break down the simpler substances in
the body such as sugars that can eventually be burned inside the
body and produce energy. These sugars in the body
for energy production are essential for the human body as they carry
out functions and enhance performance. It has also been discovered
that a lack of carbohydrates stops the brain from functioning
properly or to its maximum.
When a martial artist consumes a good amount
of carbohydrates it enables the brain to function properly and
mental processes are enhanced, which is obviously important during
karate. This is why it is advised that any martial artist should
have a carbohydrate rich breakfast every day, as the carbohydrates
form the previous day have been burned over night as the body rests.
It is also relevant that carbohydrates cannot be stored in the body
as fats and proteins can. The body can only store a small amount of
carbohydrates in the liver, around 100
grams, so it is very important that one should replenish the
depleted amount regularly. As a good amount of carbohydrates are
necessary for everyday living, it is essential that one should
consider the depletion that karate training will cause and ensure
they replace this.
In addition to this, protein is extremely
important for a martial artist as this is basically a body building
substance. The martial artist’s strength is partially dependent on
this substance, and good mobility also requires it. Fats are also
important as they serve as a source of energy and keep the body
warm. It is important to limit the amount of fat in the body, as
this can lead to obesity.
Though carbohydrates, proteins and fats are
important, they are not the only substances that are important to a
martial artist’s diet. There are additional things that are known to
help improve performance in the human body. These include minerals
which are also known as vitamins, from the two words vital
and minerals. It is these substances that allow
the body to maintain good health and prevent it from getting
diseases. It is these that help the body remain strong and healthy,
and ensure that the bones in the body are strong.
Mind
Karate is a prestige art that deserves to be
treated with the greatest respect. It is important
that in order to gain the most out of the art, and to reach your
greatest potential, that you are always in the right frame of mind
during training. If you want to wear a belt just for others to see,
then you are not worthy of it. A martial artist knows that hard work
and perseverance are needed in order to be worthy of a belt.
When training, it is extremely important to be
in the zone where your mind and senses are sharp and alert. This can
only be achieved when the martial artist is willing to put every
effort into training, working to your full potential and pushing
your body and mind to achieve what your need to. One needs to be
able to understand that you get nothing for free and in order to
achieve in karate one has to put every effort into the art and free
their mind form any other distractions. A martial
artist also needs to be able to know how their body works, being
able to control their reactions and use them to their greatest
advantage.