TRAINING ASSESSMENT

These are four highly functional exercises you can easily add to your day to create a basic strength training program. They form the foundation for daily strength movements. Performing these several times a day, several times a week will enable you to do more with less effort and with more confidence.

You can do them anywhere, anytime:

• Push-ups: Start with wall push-ups and progress to placing your hands on the kitchen counter. You can do 5-6 while waiting for the microwave to finish. These firm your chest, arms, abs and back.

• Squats or lunges: Most reaching, lifting or bending involves and element or squatting or lunging. Remember to push out your bum and don’t let your knees go farther forward than your toes. You’ll strengthen your knees, quads and hips.

• Shopping Bag Lift: Each time you go shopping strengthen your arms. Use each arm and lift the bag 6 times to the front, side and rear. You can also do a modified bicep curl. Just remember to keep your shoulders back and abs tight while working your arms.

• Lift: Pick-up that heavy pet food bag or laundry basket by squaring your feet shoulder width apart, squatting down, grabbing hold and pushing up with your legs. Put it down and do it again. If your knees hurt, practice lifting from a chair until you get stronger.

TRAINING MOVEMENTS AND METHODS

Their are a wide variety of movements and action sequences in sports. Some are simple and involve few learned skill components, where others are extremely complicated. Depending on your requirements or athletic performance goals, plyometric training has a broad spectrum of simple and complex exercises.

 You could examine the major muscle groups involved in movements basic to many sports and provide a rationale for using certain drills to train that muscle group to perform the movement more powerfully.

Below I am going to show you two different types of Plyometric exercises. Although there is a vast range and different types and levels of difficulty to choose from, we are going to look at; angle hops and side hops. Notice these two are a similar exercise but uses different apparatus, also require a different amount of effort and physical level.

The angle hop requires less physical ability, stamina, physical maturity and conditioning. Due to being a more low level manoeuvre, you could use this as a exercise to begin with using an apparatus. The side hop follows a similar pattern hopping left to right, but does require more physical maturity and conditioning, flexibility and strength. Because the hop is jumped over higher obstacles, the impact on your joints, tendons and ligaments are at greater risk of injury. Just as much so performing the 'depth jump/box or platform drop'. Dropping off a box 18 to 45 inches high these require more conditioning than other exercises.

DEFENCE AND COUNTER SEQUENCE
Here we can show you an illustration of how to perhaps implement a defensive technique in a 'more plyometric way' and also 'how not to'. Lets say for example you are going about your daily business and some person starts to cause trouble, and you find yourself face to face with someone determined on knocking your head off. Or even better still, simply in your Dojo training. Lets say the attacker is going to punch you in the face followed by a punch in the stomach, because this is a setup scenario this type of sequence is more for training, you would probably do something else in a real fight. ''So'', you step backwards in a tactical manoeuvre to maintain Ma-hi and block Teisho-Uke, Gedan-Barai with a Gyaku-Zuki counter. A simple technique that any level of Karateka can perform but is fast and effective when performed in a Plyometrics way. Which makes this an ideal beginner technique to learn and employ plyometric movements.		Defence sequence plyometric.   In this sequence your body is moving backwards during the block Teisho-Uke.  Then plyometricly moves forwards blocking gedan-barai and punching Gyaku-Zuki simultaneously. The backward movement is the start of the plyometric sequence, loading the muscles which  accelerates you forwards executing Gyaku-zuki with lightning speed and penetration.   ''That's the objective, a singular three part sequence''.		Defence sequence non plyometric In this sequence after the block Teisho-Uke, your body position remains statically there for the next technique, gedan-barai. The counter Gyaku-Zuki punches after the gedan-barai, and not simultaneously. This is what makes this wrong or an ineffective technique. All the three movements become singular techniques. Resulting in a slow counter attack. Giving you opponent time to maintain Ma-hi 'Distance or even attack you again.

ATTACK SEQUENCE 1

Executing an attack when someone is ready for you and their adrenalin is pumping, isn't always a successful mission. All be it in the street, dojo or in competition fighting. But either one can have different results down to the level of expertness of your opponent.

Lets look at this from a prospective of competition fighting, not that I personally have much experience in this field, this is just an observation because these fighters are trained specifically to move fast and in a plyometric way. You'll need to be as fast if not faster, but not only speed will give you success, a different range of techniques will also be required. What ever the technique you employ, lets have a look at one technique (Below) where Plyometrics takes place, moving off line be it to the outside or inside.

In this sequence you attack Jodan Kizami zuki taking their guard up closing distance, attack Chudan Gyaku Zuki taking them off guard, side stepping along side their body at 45° spinning and attacking Jodan Gyaku Zuki to ST 5. For a knockout, or ippon. This technique requires fluent speed because your attacking on their inside, your open to them equally attacking you. Much safer to go on their outside but you attack any target that presents itself, if that means going on the danger side then so be it!

ATTACK SEQUENCE 2

This sequence not being much different from the one above takes a similar path, showing attacks being made offline  at 45°. What I didn't show in this illustration is after attacking Jodan Kizami Zuki, you could leave a little tempting pause offering them on open target to the ribs. If  they take it as a Gyaku Zuki, still move offline and attack Jodan Uraken to ST 5 or GB 20. Depending on their body position, putting you this time on their outside position where you could spin and take their front leg with an hooking sweep. Not on their inside as we are (below) finishing off with a Gyaku Zuki.

The key is to try and practice these techniques plyometricly moving side to side trying to confuse your opponent moving in and out opening and closing the range. Or maintaining their range and then moving in. It's not easy to move plyometricly without lots of practice and muscle development. But having a look and analysing the mechanics is a good start. These animations don't give justice to demonstrating fluid Plyometrics  but hay you cant do that with photo's either. But it does show a basic method of moving around an opponent finding points to strike.

With many more years of practicing I am sure I will get somewhere with this-developing approach to body movement. It's easy to look at others and see how good or bad they move plyometricly, but no so easy to watch yourself. So in the future I would like to do a video reference to analyse my progression, something only others get to see of you.

PLYOMETRIC DRILL EXERCISES

Rhythm Hop Jog

This exercise is basically a slow jog, except that every time a foot contacts the ground, you leap off it as quickly as possible. The hop jog is distinctly different for speed and power plyo's. Perform hop jog plyo's slowly in both speed and power fashion until you feel comfortable with both techniques. With rhythm plyo's, do not strive for speed or power. Your goal is to execute the exercise in a smooth, coordinated and rhythmic fashion. These should be performed as a warm up before speed and power plyo's.

Power Hop Jog Plyometrics

First perform rhythm plyo's to ensure that you are fully warmed up. When ready to begin with power hop jogs, start from a very slow jog. After three or four steps, hop off the right foot as high as possible. When the left foot contacts the ground, reduce the amount of time that it is in contact with the ground as much as you can. Spring off the left foot explosively, attaining as much height as you can. Continue until each leg has made eight to ten hops. The two important factors are height (determining the amount of force your muscles must quickly generate) and the length of time that the foot is in contact with the ground.

Speed Hop Jog Plyometrics

First conduct the exercise in the rhythm mode until fully accustomed to it and as a warm up before each plyometric workout. Speed hop jog plyo's are the same as the power ply'o exercise described above except that it has only one emphasis, speed. The height attained is not important. The length of time that the foot is in contact with the ground is of utmost importance. If you hop too high, you will not be able to spring off the ground fast enough to stimulate the neuromuscular system to adapt.

When performed properly, this exercise feels more like a skip than a hop. Since hopping up slows the muscular contractions down too much, it is necessary to hop forward. If the right foot is driving off the ground, the left leg swings forward, almost straight. When the left leg contacts the ground, it drives forward with a strong pulling action of the hamstring muscles. In this method, the foot is in contact with the ground for only a small fraction of a second.

Two-Legged Speed Hops

The basic movement of the two-legged hop plyo's is the broad jump, performed repeatedly. For two-legged speed hops, this exercise is the same as the standard broad jump except that all movements are kept short and quick. The legs do not bend much and the arms do not have time to swing fully. Hop forward ten times, each time making sure that the feet are in contact with the ground for as little time as possible. Attaining approximately a two-foot distance while not bending the legs much should help you avoid having too long of a muscular contraction. This provides sufficient stimulus for adaptation. Attaining more distance frequently leads to losing your balance.

Two-Legged Power Hops

Two-legged power hops require that you drive up as much as possible, only moving forward about 18 to 24 inches. Compared to two-legged speed hops, the knees bend considerably more, the arms drive up much more, and the legs handle considerably more force. Think of two-legged power hops as a kangaroo hopping at full speed and two-legged speed hops as your attempt to hop across a hot lava field without burning your bare feet.

If this exercise feels awkward, try performing the same exercise on one leg. Use the same principles outlined above for both speed and power one-legged hops. Unlike the hop jog, there is no changing of legs. The same leg that begins the exercise continues for the set of eight to ten repetitions.

Box/Platform Hops

Another more advanced exercise is to jump off a one or two foot high platform. This should only be done on a soft surface as this exercise can be especially hard on the knees and back. Jump off a chair or other platform, landing on both legs. For speed plyo's, do not jump off anything over 18 inches and do not jump upward when you take off from the platform. Jump straight out so that you do not fall from a height greater than 18 inches. Of course, the instant your feet hit the ground, explode back up. You can immediately follow up with a second two-legged hop if desired. For power plyo's, you can jump off a slightly higher platform or jump up a little. Or you can land with the knees bent a little more.

CONCLUSION

To conclude Plyometrics,  which in many cases can be an overseen issue as a basic requirement for martial arts. It has become apparent to me, the effectiveness Plyometrics make, to any techniques or combinations performed in karate, when performed in a plyometric way. Over the past 12 months before putting this page together, I have noticed in training the difference between using and not using Plyometrics in karate. It takes along time to get the feel of what Plyometrics actually is, but once you feel it, it feels different!

Sensei Dave Hague and Sensei Dave Hook have regularly been running training sessions for the higher grades, practising using plyometric motion. This has been a great experience to practice and see the difference, not only in our training but from video references of Sunday workshop sessions where other Kissaki clubs come together. Its made a big personal difference to me in Dave Hague's Cardio Karate sessions which I thoroughly enjoy, working out plyometricly makes it much easier to perform.