Best in the World Highlights #3- Old School with Masutatsu Oyama

This man was ridiculous. He turned his body into a piece of stone and then broke people with it. There are more videos out there of him, so check them out if you get a chance. I find it unfortunate that we do not have more footage of him, because I'm sure watching him fight would have been amazing.



Hope you enjoy the video. Until next time, good luck and train hard!!

Grappler Baki Workout- Orochi Doppo's Training

This workout is for the God of Karate, Orochi Doppo and is patterned after the real-life Karate Master, Masutatsu Oyama. Doppo killed a tiger bare-handed; Oyama killed a lot of bulls bare-handed. Oyama was the founder of Kyoukushinkai Karate (Shinshinkai in Baki) and was one of the great fighters of his era. This workout is based on some of his actual training. I'm not certain you'll be killing any tigers or bulls, but this will definitely make you tougher.

1. Jump Rope- 10 Minutes
2. 300 Knuckle Push-ups
3. 100 Decline Push-ups OR Bodywt Bench 500 Reps
4. 100 Dips
5. Jump Rope- 10 Minutes
6. 200 Sit-ups
7. Side Hops Over 2 Cement Blocks- 5 x 2 Minute Rounds
8. 25 Freehand Handstand Push-ups
9. Front/Back Hops Over 2 Cement Blocks- 5 x 2 Minute Rounds
10. "Stone Lifting"- 3 x 2 Minute Rounds
11. Box Jumps- 5 x 2 Minute Rounds
12. Hand Walking- 100 Yards Total
13. 100 Squats w/200 lbs
14. Run 2.5 Miles
15. 200 Straight Punches to Striking Post (Total)
16. 200 Shuto Strikes to Striking Post (Total)
17. 200 Rear Front Kicks to Striking Post (Total)
18. 200 Side Kicks to Striking Post (Total)
19. 200 Round Kicks to Striking Post (Total)
20. Additional Karate Practice- 1 Hour
21. "X" x 3 Minute Rounds Karate Sparring

Notes:

• This is a "Day Workout," so you can break up the workout however you like along the course of a day. All reps do not have to be without stopping, so if it says "300 Push-ups" you can break it up however you like and do them over the course of the day. 
• As always, never attempt to do more than you can. Scale the workout back to fit your needs or only do part of it if you can't do the whole thing.
• Push hard in jumping rope.
• The "Stone Lifting" is quite literally lifting stones. If you can find a big rock that you can actually lift, pick it up off the the ground and set it back down as many times as you can in the time limit. If you do not have a stone, a sandbag can be supplemented. A stone is recommended, because they are generally more awkward to carry and will toughen up your hands and forearms. However, the benefit of the sandbag is that it is possible to lighten or increase the load.
• For the side hops, lay the cement blocks on top of one another longways and, with your legs together, hop back and forth over the blocks. Do your best to jump back over the blocks as soon as your feet hit the ground.
• Focus on trying to hold the handstand as long as you can freehand. After you feel confident enough in doing that, practice doing handstand push-ups freehand. Any you can't do freehand below the 25 prescribed, finish up against the wall.
• The Front to Back hops are a lot more difficult than the side to side, so please be careful and have a mat behind you if possible.
• Do the Knuckle Push-ups on the index and middle finger knuckles. You can do them in sets, but the eventual goal is to do them straight through.
• For the Box Jumps, find a box/step/wall to which you can jump up. Make your jumps quick and try to push yourself in height.
• Your handwalking goal is to go 100 yards non-stop, but if you can't, just break it up however you need to in order to get to 100 yards.
• You can squat with a barbell or a weighted vest for your squats, but make sure you are going full depth (top of your thighs parallel to ground). Start with 100 lbs and work your way to 100 reps. It is not necessary to force the 100 reps if you can't even do 5 without stopping. You can do them in 10 sets of 10, but your eventual goal is 100 straight reps. After that, you can add weight. Or, if you are stronger, you can start with 200 lbs.
• Really push yourself on your 2 mile run.
• If you do not have a striking post for your punches, shuto, and kicks, you can use a smooth telephone pole, a smooth tree, or something along those lines. If you like, you may wrap the pole or tree or whatever in rope to soften it. You can also just use a heavy bag if you don't want to hit something that hard. Please work into this or you will hurt yourself. Gradually increase your strength over weeks of training and if you feel like your hands or feet are starting to really hurt, but you are only at 20, 40, or 50 reps-- STOP! You don't want to injure yourself.
• By "X" x 3 minute rounds, I mean that you may do as many 3 minute rounds of Karate Sparring as you like. Karate Sparring uses no gloves or headgear, however there are no hands strikes to the face, no open-hand strikes, and no elbows. You can, however, kick to the head. Please be careful.
• If you are just starting, it's alright to cut the reps or weight or whatever by 1/2 or 1/4 or whatever. The workout as listed is pretty much the top level.
• You can do 300 Knuckle Push-ups, 100 Dips, and 100 Decline Push-ups altogether OR you can do 500 reps of Bodyweight Bench Press. Whatever you choose, I wouldn't do the same thing every time you do this workout.
• Additional Karate practice can be kata, kihon (basic techniques), kumite (sparring of any kind), or body conditioning.
• Also, these exercises do not have to be done in order.

That's all for today. As always, good luck and train hard.

GRAPPLER BAKI- PART III

BAKI ESCAPES... INTO THE MOUNTAINS

After a demoralizing loss to Yuri, Baki decides he needs to up his game a little.  Thus, like Masutatsu Oyama (the founder of Kyokushin Karate), Baki travels into the mountains in order to break his softness and in order to follow in his father's footsteps.  Baki packs all of his gear (into quite the large backpack) and begins to make his way, on foot, up into the mountains.  Hiking long distances through the mountains is a serious test of endurance, especially if coupled with an enormous pack, and should not be attempted without proper training or supervision.  Walking up and down steep, uneven terrain; climbing small boulders and even scaling rock faces with a pack (or without safety equipment, for that matter), Baki eventually makes his way to a small cottage inhabited by a giant of a man, named Ando.

Ando, a friend of the family, spent some time with Baki's dad training on this very mountain, chopping wood and dealing with the harsh environment.  After a display of wood-chopping power and a bit of advice about eating (which we will cover in a moment), Ando makes a promise to turn Baki into a powerhouse.

Seeking to Fight a Monster

Baki, although thankful for Ando's willingness to help, is more interested meeting another resident of Yasha Crag: the Yasha Ape.  Some time ago, Baki's dad hunted one of these monster's down by hand and the young Hanma feels it's time he did, too.  Ando warns against fighting the beast, and for good reason.  The Ape is almost seven feet tall and built like a mountain, vicious and is capable of easily killing a bear.  However, Baki wants to meet the monster, so he sets up camp deep in the woods in order to draw him out and, sure enough, during his training, he emerges.

Before we get into the details of the fight, it is important to note that the likelihood of a human being able to kill a bear or a gorilla (which this essentially is) bare handed, or even sometimes armed, is extremely low and should never ever be attempted for two reasons. 

First: You will most likely be seriously injured or killed if you fight a large and/or vicious wild animal.  

Second: Seeking out a creature in order to kill him, just to say you can do it, is mean-spirited to say the least.  

Ando comes to help Baki, but both are quickly beaten, with Ando's belly being ripped open.  In his defense, Baki throws his lantern on the Ape, who retreats into the woods.  Back at the cottage, Baki attempt to disinfect Ando's wound with vodka, to which Ando replies would do nothing against the bacteria on the Ape's claws.  Thus, using gun powder and a lighter, he disinfects the wound in a, I must imagine, very painful manner and, then proceeds to get Baki to call for help.

The lesson we draw from this is that it is important to have a working knowledge of first aid, even if very little.  Learning how to properly clean and dress wounds and even how to set a bone for the short term will be valuable knowledge in case something goes wrong in the wild, or even in a scenario where help is not immediately available.  Also, do not go into the wilderness without first letting someone know exactly where you will be, having a way to contact someone if there's an emergency, or having a way out if things get too hairy.

Ando is taken to the hospital and Baki... wants vengeance.

"In Fighting, the One Who Eats the Most is the Winner"

It's an interesting way to look at fighting, but it's a bit of an oversimplification.  Essentially, what I think our dear friend Ando meant is that in order to become stronger in training it is important to eat properly.  However, in Baki's case, with the extreme amount of training in which he is undergoing, it means to eat as much as possible.  Baki's nutritional requirements, I'm sure, are off the charts.  This would be the case for any athlete who trains all day long. Proteins would be needed to rebuild muscles, carbohydrates would be needed to fuel the training, and fat would be needed for long-term energy and body health.  It is important for you to find out just how many calories you need in order to function properly as an athlete or martial artist.  As a general rule, the number of calories needed at any given time is based on factors such as your activity level, your weight, and your metabolism.  For an athlete, the basic calorie requirements should first be set from your protein needs.  

Light to Moderate activity: ~.7 grams of protein/pound you weigh

Moderate to Heavy activity: .7-1.2 grams of protein/pound you weigh

Super Heavy activity: 1.2-1.5 grams of protein/pound you weigh

Gauging what is Light, Moderate, Heavy, and Super Heavy in terms of activity is very important.  You don't want to take in too many or too few calories.  Light activity can be classified as 0-45 minutes of low intensity exercise and 0-30 minutes of moderate to heavy intensity exercise.  Moderate activity can be classified as 45-90 minutes of low intensity exercise and 30-45 minutes of moderate to heavy intensity exercise.  Heavy activity can be classified as around 90-120 minutes of low intensity exercise and 45-60 minutes of moderate to heavy intensity exercise.  Super Heavy activity is anything that falls above the limits of Heavy.  These are merely guidelines to help you determine about how much protein you need.  The breakdown of your other macro-nutrients are 30% calories protein, 30% calories fat, and 40% carbohydrates.  I know this is a lot to take in, especially if you're new, so we'll leave at this for now, even though there are volumes to be covered.

Trying to Cross the Line

To push himself to greater heights, Baki utilizes a body chemical known as endorphins.  Wikipedia states: 

{Endorphins work as "natural pain relievers..."}

{During a release of Endorphin the person may be exposed to bodily harm from strenuous bodily functions after going past their body's physical limit. They may be able to keep running despite pain, and thus possibly come to bodily harm from endorphin release. }

 It is important to state that it is never a good a idea to push past one's limits on a continual basis.  Rest, food, and the proper amount of training make you stronger and keeps you from being injured.  However, Baki, being a super-elite level athlete (and an anime character) uses the combination of endorphins, a ridiculous amount of training, and a large amount of food to produce super results within a short amount of time.  

However, that is not this only line Baki must cross to continue his journey to meet his father's power.  So, he faces fear, and, in the ultimate "cliff-hanger" to an episode, jumps off a cliff.