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Speed, power and precision: how to mechanize and optimize our moves

In martial arts terms, when we talk about muscle memory we refer to the capability that our psychophysical system has to facilitate, accelerate and / or improve the execution of a certain move (eg. a kick, a throw, a defensive step, etc.).

Note – This article has been asked by one of our Core Course practitioners on Patreon (see how to attend our home study classes here Learn Kung Fu online: a beginner-to-expert course).

In combat, to have good muscle memory (in relation to a given technique) means:

To be able to call even a complex series of movements instantly
To act rapidly and in a coherent / effective way
To do not (necessarily) need to involve the rational mind in building a useful motion
To connect a fast and timed response to an external stimulus (at a speed near to the one of our reflexes)

Benefits and risks related to muscle memory

To deeply work on muscle memory is at the same time an advantage and a potential risk for a high-level fighter:

An advantage – It is an advantage because it allows us to be extremely fast and effective (even exploiting only our combat instinct)
A risk – It can be a risk because if ours are too common mnemonic movements, they could be provoked and therefore exploited (naturally only by serious opponents)

A note by Master Kongling – Substantially, if against a low-level adversary a basilar muscle memory can be an always winning card, against a high-level one, it easily becomes a risky ballast that makes us maneuverable and predictable.

Is it mandatory to work on our muscle memory?

If against a skilled opponent it could represent a limit, should we truly persist on its development? Yes, muscle memory is not something that can be skipped or avoided: we strictly need it to build fighting quality.

The secret is to develop it:

In a way that doesn’t make us predictable
In a way that it remains under our full control

How to correctly develop muscle memory?

The classic method

Many serious martial arts schools develop muscle memory through the infinite repetition of a specific technique / sequence and this certainly works below a certain level but if we want to aim higher: it can start to become counterproductive.

A note by Master Kongling – In traditional Kung Fu(read The disadvantages of “traditional” Kung Fu) or Karate, for example, the endless repetition of the forms is a sort of muscle education (read Are Karate’s Kata, Kung Fu’s form (etc.) useless?).

6 Dragons Kung Fu’s method

The implementation

In 6 Dragons Kung Fu muscle memory’s instinct is used only:

For smaller mechanized sequences (harder or useless to be reognized)
In terms of instant defense
To acquire qualitatively high mobility

All the rest of the defense / counterattack / attack techniques is in the hands of quick reasoning and of the tactical capability to improvise and adapt (more about this later).

The premises

Muscle memory in 6 Dragons Kung Fu is not something for beginners, before addressing it, there are 2 fundamental steps to do:

Acquire a basic combat instinct (through the fundamental technical exercises read /// Subscribe (it's free!) or Login to see this content ///)
Learn the technique (at least at a basic level of understanding)

A note by Master Kongling – In our way to see Kung Fu and martial arts, there is nothing worse than trying to add power, speed and / or mechanizations to a move that is executed in the wrong way. These are the kinds of errors to avoid, the ones that slow down our martial growth.

The principles

After the 2 mentioned steps, we can start to work our muscle memory, focusing yes, on repetition but:

Not always in the same exact way (read Martial arts: the secret for the perfect training)
While executing (as much as possible) practical tasks
Maintaning high the concentration level (searching for errors, limits, tactical gaps, etc.)
With the idea to always improve (even slightly, in relation to the previous execution)
With the idea to interiorize the motion (adapting the technique to our specific psychophysical system)
With the idea of endless improvement (always searching for new ways through experimentation)

The development path

Given a certain move to work on, we execute it:

At a medium-low speed without regard to the details
At a medium speed focusing on effectiveness but no details
In a smooth and steady way but at the slowest possible speed
At a high-speed but without regard to the details
At a very low speed curing every technical detail (muscle chain, etc.)
With speed, power and complete attention to the details
At medium speed, power, with complete attention to detail and against a static / cooperative target
Gradually at full speed, power, attention to the details and against an uncooperative / moving target and / or in adverse situations (obstacles, etc.)

A note by Master Kongling – There is no specific number of repetitions because we do not put limits to the martial evolution but we are talking about 100-10.000 daily repetitions (depending on our preparation, on the type of task and the level we aim to reach).

The benefits of our muscle memory development method

In relation to a specific move, implementing our muscle memory development method, we improve (in relation to it) our:

Structure (we learn to arrange and maintain our body elements at te right level of tension / relaxation)
Power and efficiency (inside a muscle chain, we learn where to load more power and where to do not lose it)
Balance (we automatically learn to position our body elments in the most )
Trajectories (we learn what are the best paths, the wrong ones and how to correct them during the execution)
Speed (we dramatically decrease the time and space we need to perform the chosen action)
Precision (with the time we inevitably become able to dynamically reach smaller and more complex targets)
….

In the next article of this series, we will talk about how to allow our mind and our body elements to reach increasingly ambitious goals (read Analysis and improvement of performance).

In-depth video courses

Muscle chain for martial arts: how to – A step by step visual guide to build effective muscle chains (through muscle memory)
Basic 6 Dragons Kung Fu Exercises – The fundamental technical practice to learn to basically (instinctively) implement the muscle chain
Worst combat errors to avoid – A video course about the most common mistakes that hinder the martial growth

In-depth articles

Achieve maximum performance – How to reach our personal peak performance
Introduction to the idea of Precision Control – The capability to control and coordinate all our combat skills

Questions

Reply in the comments and share your experience:

Have you ever worked on muscle memory?

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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