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Explosive movements: how to keep our body active

Reconnecting to the topic of the effectiveness of martial arts (read Why martial arts do not work: 5 reasons), we want to give those who want to approach our discipline a starting point in the development of real physical abilities.

For a good martial arts practitioner it is imperative to stay fit daily; in this regard, it is important to make a distinction between:

Technical / martial training – Articular levers, etc. (read /// Subscribe (it's free!) or Login to see this content ///)
Athletic training – Running, etc. (read /// Subscribe (it's free!) or Login to see this content ///)

Although each 6 Dragons Kung Fu’s practice session includes both components (often amalgamating them), it is crucial not to get confused: one part without the other lower the quality of our preparation (at least) by 50%.

The exercise

Let’s see now the exercise (it has been inspired by Master Wong, our version is very similar).

Preparation:

Let’s find a countdown timer (eg. a smartphone app)
Let’s do some stretching / warm-up (read How to correctly perform warm-up and How to correctly perform stretching)
Let’s set the timer to 1 minute (to start without too much effort)

How to perform the exercise:

Let’s bend to the ground and make 5 push-ups (during the execution we have to imagine to push the ground away)
Let’s choose the type of push-up we prefer (in relation to our athletic level)
Let’s get up immediately
Let’s do 5 jumps by opening and closing legs and arms laterally (jumping jacks)
When we open our legs let’s try to gain the ma bu stance (read The correct position of the rider (ma bu))
When we open our arms, let’s get up with a horizontal jump and let them cross behind our head
When we lower our arms we must imagine hitting two opponents with a cutting shot
Let’s swing quickly to the ground (with a falling, if we are able to do it safely)
Let’s do 5 bomb diver press-ups; at each of them, let us stand up explosively and make a vertical jump (not too high and with joined legs)
Let’s make a falling (or let’s just lie down on the ground) and make 5 abs (of our choice but in a supine position)
At the end of the abdominals, let’s cross our feet, let’s move forward (with arms, head, feet) and let’s stand up (pushing down with our feet)
Let’s jump and go back to the ma bu position
To stand up, who is capable, can also make a kip-up or a Bagua Zhang cross-legged torsion (turning on the opposite side) and then jump
Let’s restart and continue until the countdown ends (let’s try to execute at least one routine)

Notes:

The exercise must be performed dynamically (explosively) and without pauses
The exercise must be performed by giving our maximum performance (power, speed, etc.)
The exercise is customizable depending on our abilities level
If we are out of shape, the first few times we might not be able to complete the routine or do it in the best way (let’s do not be discouraged)
As soon as we are able to complete the circuit we must increase the difficulty (speed, type of exercises, weights, etc.)
An ideal moment to do this exercise is in the morning and / or before a non-cardio conditioning exercise
If we are able to perform this exercise, it does not mean that we are in shape enough to face a fight
If we are not able to complete this exercise, very likely we are not able to sustain a real clash against a prepared opponent

This is a first basic functional training circuit, later we will see much more intense versions and especially more correlated to fighting.

In-depth articles

Physical conditioning: how it works – A general view of the necessary conditioning types
Physical performance in martial arts – How to gain good quality results during training

Questions

Reply in the comments and share your experience:

Can you perform the exercise without heavy breathing at the end?

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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