Weighted Clothing

Weighted clothing has made an appearance in a variety of anime: Dragonball, Naruto, Hajime no Ippo, Prince of Tennis, and even Yakitate! Japan, just to name a few. It's a simple concept. If you weigh more, your muscles will have to be stronger to support you. However, wearing weights is not something that should be rushed and shouldn't even be attempted if you are out of shape. They are not a shortcut to ultimate power and you can and probably will be injured if you jump straight into wearing weights without being in fairly good shape first.

First of all, what does it mean to be in "good shape." The answer is: it varies. If you've been involved in sports or regular physical exercise for several years, it's probably safe to start training with weighted clothes. However, if you are a complete novice, you will need the time to build the proper muscle, bone, tendon, and joint strength in order to be able to properly utilize these training tools.

You have some options when it comes to weighted clothing. You've got the classic wrist and ankle weights, then you've got things like weighted gloves, weighted belts, thigh weights, weighted shorts, weighted vests, upper-arm weights, and weighted shoes. You could virtually cover every square inch of your body in weights. That, obviously, is not a good idea. The best place to add weight during your training is your core, because it places less stress on your joints. However, if you wish to add weights to your limbs, do so in very small increments, such as 1/2 or 1/4lb, if possible. The best kinds of weighted clothing are generally made with little slots to add or remove weights in increments. Don't settle for the soft, sand-filled wrist or ankle weights, as they'll just get torn and spill out all over the place.

If you work hard and diligently, you will definitely be able to increase your strength. You can choose to wear your weights only when you train, only when you are not training, or all the time. For a second, imagine this scenario.

You weigh 150lbs and, through rigorous training, have worked your way up to wearing an additional 50lbs of weight at all times (1/3 of your total body weight). Think about the differences in your movement-- the power, the speed, the agility-- when, being used to weighing 200lbs, you all of a sudden weigh 150 again. It's a quite a staggering thought. However, as I said before, this is not something that is going to happen over night, or over a week, or a month... it will probably take years, especially if you are out of shape.

And you don't have to wear any weights at all. You can just train with your own bodyweight and do weightlifting workouts. It's whatever YOU want to do. Most of us aren't professional athletes, so the most important thing for us is to find a fitness regimen that we enjoy and keeps us healthy. That's what Real Anime Training is for me.

November was a little busy for me, but December should be a lot more productive for Real Anime Training. So, until next time, good luck and train hard!

Ippo on the Beach

Ippo prepares for the next stage of the Japan East Rookie Tournament by going on a week long training camp with Takamura, Aoki, and Kimura. It's a brutal week in which Ippo builds his ability to turn on a dime. Ideally, you should have access to a beach or at least a long stretch of sand to do this workout. So, here it is. It really is hell, so scale it back a little if you have to.

Ippo on the Beach

Morning

1. Run 3 Miles in sand, with 7 sprints
2. 3 x 3 Minute Rounds Sparring or Mitt Hitting (if partner available)
3. Tennis Ball Catching- 100 Balls

4-6 hours later

1. Run 3 Miles in sand, with 7 sprints
2. 3 x 3 Minute Rounds Sparring or Mitt Hitting (if partner available)
3. 5 Sets of 5 x 3 Minute Rounds (Yes, that's 25 Rounds)

Notes:

• When running in the sand, make sure to really push off with your toes. Otherwise, you won't be able to run as fast and you'll miss out on an important part of the training: making your big toes stronger. You can jog a little slower than normal if you like, because you'll have seven sets of sprints throughout the run. Really push it on the sprints! Remember: Toes, toes, toes!
• When catching the tennis balls, stay on your toes. Have your training partner throw the tennis balls to either side of you (doesn't have to alternate) and you must catch them. Try to keep an even pace at first, but then you can speed up after some time.
• There is a LOT of shadowboxing in this workout. Your rest periods should be from 30 seconds to 1 minute in between rounds and 2 to 3 minutes in between sets. It will look like this. 5 x 3 Min Rounds with 1 Min rest in between rounds. After the fifth round, take a 2 to 3 minute rest and then start the next set of 5 rounds. Although there are rest periods, this is almost 2 hours long.
• You can tone this workout down if you need to. If you take a vacation to the beach, and you are in shape enough, give this workout a try for 5 days in a row or as long as you are there.

That's all for today. Sorry for the lack of posts. I've been busy with work and home life. Hopefully will have some more stuff up tomorrow or the next day. Until then, good luck and train hard.

Martial Arts and Fighting

What is the purpose of the martial arts? What do the parents who sign their bullied 11-year old up for Tae Kwon Do want to gain from the training? What is sold, day in and day out, across the country as the purpose of the martial arts?

Discipline? Confidence? The instilling of virtue in the next generation? Health and fitness? Art, maybe? Sure. I'll allow all those things to be listed as the purpose of a martial art. However, all (and I do mean all) of these things take a back seat to the granddaddy purpose of them all:

Fighting.

Yes, fighting. Fighting is what martial arts is, for God's sake. Think about it for a moment: Self defense without fighting is learning to stay indoors and praying no one breaks in. All real martial arts have their roots in fighting. This may seem like a truism, but with the way many martial artists treat their training, you might be surprised.

I'm not here to tell you what style you should practice. I don't care what style you practice or if you practice one at all. What I am here to tell you is that if you are a martial artist and are not sparring or competing in some type of fighting event, you are missing a vital part of your training. There are valuable tools that are built in sparring, such as timing, distance, and the ability to not curl into a ball when someone attempts to rearrange your face.

A martial arts master who has never fought another human being (even in sparring) is NOT a martial arts master, regardless of the level of skill he or she possesses in breaking boards, doing kata, or what-have-you. How can I say that? Because in fighting another human being, you gain real world experience about combat that you can't gain through other means. You may have gained immense power/speed/technique from your martial arts training, but until you spar/fight with another person, there is no application to what you are doing. Sure, you may be able to drop a guy in one shot with your amazing, super special punching technique, but you don't really know that until you fight someone. You also don't know what will happen if that person just so happens to dodge.

I'm sure there are many who will disagree with me. "Oh, no! My master has been training for 30 years and has never fought with anyone!" --- Then, how do you know if anything he's teaching you works? Because that's what's important. If your style fails you when you need it the most, you might not be able to correct your mistake. You might be dead.

Whatever style you practice-- you need to spar. That means you need to spar using safety gear, so you and your partner aren't seriously injured. Minimum is gloves, mouthpiece and a cup. If you're just grappling or doing a Kyokushin spar, you can drop the gloves. You should also spar against different styles. If you are a stand up fighter, spar with grapplers. It'll let you know the limits of both your styles when matched against one another. If you're a Judo player, try a wrestler. Spar against anyone you can from any style you can. You and your partner will learn a lot.

If you want to say that sparring isn't realistic, I have two retorts. 1st- It's really the best you've got unless you want to go out picking real fights or venturing into very dangerous areas hoping to get mugged. (Shouldn't have to say this, but DO NOT DO THIS!) 2nd- Self-defense techniques where you defend a single lunge punch you know is coming and then hit your immobile opponent three times or just wailing on your Body Opponent Bag doesn't really rank up there in terms of realism, either.

Of course, if you've been reading Real Anime Training, I've always been a proponent of sparring. And how could I not be with the countless number of fights that happen in the anime that we cover. Goku spars, Kenichi spars, Ippo spars, Baki spars, and a lot of guys just pick fights, but the point is the same. If you are practicing a martial art and you are not fighting-- start now.

That's all for today guys. Until next time, good luck and train hard!

On "Completing a Workout 3 Times"

Some workouts have a rule that you cannot advance to the next level of a workout until you complete your current level three times. That means you attempt and complete the workout on three separate occasions. For instance, if you've do the same workout once a week on the same day and you complete it three weeks in a row, you get to move up to the next level.

This rule does not mean that you complete the workout three times in one day or three times in a row. Plus, generally, you shouldn't do the same workout every day or two days in a row (although it wouldn't hurt to do the same workout two days in a row sometimes).

Anyway, just thought I'd clear that up.

Let me see what you've got!

If you've got an idea for a workout or have a workout planned out, just send it to my e-mail at realanimetraining@gmail.com and you may just see it on the blog.

Please include:

• The name of the anime
• The name of the workout
• Your first name
• Your city and state (or country, if you don't live in the US)

Thanks for all your support, guys! I really look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Ippo's First Three Fights

This workout is based on the training seen in the anime for Ippo's first three fights. It's similar to the other Ippo workouts but has some differences as well. Hopefully you'll enjoy it.

Ippo's First Three Fights

Morning

• 3 Mile Run

4-6 Hours Later

• 20 Push-ups
• 20 Sit-ups
• 20 Hindu Squats

4 Rounds, then

• 3 x 1 Minute Heavy Bag "Sprint"
• 3 x 3 Minutes Jump Rope
• 5 Minutes Speed Bag Practice (if available)
• 4 x 3 Minutes Shadowboxing or Heavy Bag work
• 1 Mile Run
• 3 Sets of 20 Medicine Ball Ab Strikes

Notes:

• The workout begins with four rounds of push-ups, sit-ups, and hindu squats. There is no rest in between rounds.
• For Heavy Bag "Sprints," lay into a heavy bag as hard and as fast as you can for the time limit. There is a 1 minute rest period between "sprints."
• The speed bag is useful for developing one's timing. It will take some getting used to, but you'll get it with practice.
• Medicine Ball Ab Strikes can be done by dropping a medicine ball on your midsection while you are laying down, or having someone hit your abs while standing, with your arms behind your head. There is a 1 minute rest in between sets.

That's all for today. Until next time, good luck and train hard.

P.S.- Sorry I haven't put a lot up, I've been sick for a few days and haven't felt like doing anything.

Two Edits

I've edited two workouts to make them more in line with their respective anime. The workouts are the "Himokiri Karate Workout" and "Roshi's Training." Be sure to check them out. I should also have something else up for you guys tonight.

Later!