A popular question I get is, "how can I get faster?" We all want to be faster, without a doubt.
In fact, we want to be fast at everything we do, not just martial arts.
I don't know about you, but when I'm playing soccer (futbol), I train for speed.
When I was competing, I trained for speed.
When I play ping pong with buddies, I try and smash that innocent, light as a feather, plastic ball with a quick forehand.
I've already discussed one way to make you faster, and that's through improving your OODA Loop- making it smaller.
Let's begin a lesson in muscle fiber recruitment.
You may not like it, but it'sthe truth.
And, if you know the truth, then you'll understand how to train so you can perform at your peak.
We are all born with a certain number of 1 of 2 types of muscle fibers, including a mix of both- "white fiber" and "red fiber.
" Or, in other words, "fast twitch" and "slow twitch.
" Fast twitch or white fiber muscles are responsible for our quick, powerful bursts.
Slow twitch or red fiber muscles are responsible forendurance.
In simplistic terms, sprinters have an abundance of fast twitch fibers and marathon runners have an abundance of slow twitch.
So, let's talk about you and where you fit in this whole scheme and how you can use this information to your advantage.
Were you always good at sprinting or long distance? If you were always good at long distance and not so much at sprinting, it's very important that you focus heavily on developing your power and shrinking your OODA Loop to give you an advantage over the fast twitch people.
"But can't I turn my red fibers into white fibers?" Ooh, I wish we could, but we can't.
The best we can do is train the ones we have to the best of our ability.
Then we must train to build response timing so we recognize our opponents attack and can counter attack at the drop of a hat.
I've seen really slow people that were incredibly awesome with their timing drills and could stick it to a faster opponent every time while sparring.
Now, if you're a white fiber person, you've got an advantage, assuming you're not lazy.
Some of the laziest athletes I've ever known (inside and outside martial arts) had high white fiber counts.
I'm guessing it's the athletes natural ability that made things come easy and didn't require as much blood, sweat, and tears.
On the other hand, many of the champions around the world have high white fiber counts.
So you better be taking notes.
Here's what I recommend- white or red fiber: 1.
Train in a fashion that develops your fast twitch muscle fibers.
You do this by engaging in plyometric exercises.
Plyometric exercises are explosive, or sometimes known as 'ballistic', movements.
These exercises develop your fast twitch fibers.
2.
Forget going on long runs.
You'll just de-condition your white fiber muscles to act like your slower endurance fibers (red).
To build your stamina, do sprints over and over again.
Or, do sprints up a hill.
3.
Train explosively for the length of a match and no more.
Then repeat the drill, only resting for the amount you have in competition.
When athletes make the mistake of training longer than what they actually compete for, their intensity decreases.
They condition themselves to be less explosive and less powerful over a longer period of time.
Keep training!
In fact, we want to be fast at everything we do, not just martial arts.
I don't know about you, but when I'm playing soccer (futbol), I train for speed.
When I was competing, I trained for speed.
When I play ping pong with buddies, I try and smash that innocent, light as a feather, plastic ball with a quick forehand.
I've already discussed one way to make you faster, and that's through improving your OODA Loop- making it smaller.
Let's begin a lesson in muscle fiber recruitment.
You may not like it, but it'sthe truth.
And, if you know the truth, then you'll understand how to train so you can perform at your peak.
We are all born with a certain number of 1 of 2 types of muscle fibers, including a mix of both- "white fiber" and "red fiber.
" Or, in other words, "fast twitch" and "slow twitch.
" Fast twitch or white fiber muscles are responsible for our quick, powerful bursts.
Slow twitch or red fiber muscles are responsible forendurance.
In simplistic terms, sprinters have an abundance of fast twitch fibers and marathon runners have an abundance of slow twitch.
So, let's talk about you and where you fit in this whole scheme and how you can use this information to your advantage.
Were you always good at sprinting or long distance? If you were always good at long distance and not so much at sprinting, it's very important that you focus heavily on developing your power and shrinking your OODA Loop to give you an advantage over the fast twitch people.
"But can't I turn my red fibers into white fibers?" Ooh, I wish we could, but we can't.
The best we can do is train the ones we have to the best of our ability.
Then we must train to build response timing so we recognize our opponents attack and can counter attack at the drop of a hat.
I've seen really slow people that were incredibly awesome with their timing drills and could stick it to a faster opponent every time while sparring.
Now, if you're a white fiber person, you've got an advantage, assuming you're not lazy.
Some of the laziest athletes I've ever known (inside and outside martial arts) had high white fiber counts.
I'm guessing it's the athletes natural ability that made things come easy and didn't require as much blood, sweat, and tears.
On the other hand, many of the champions around the world have high white fiber counts.
So you better be taking notes.
Here's what I recommend- white or red fiber: 1.
Train in a fashion that develops your fast twitch muscle fibers.
You do this by engaging in plyometric exercises.
Plyometric exercises are explosive, or sometimes known as 'ballistic', movements.
These exercises develop your fast twitch fibers.
2.
Forget going on long runs.
You'll just de-condition your white fiber muscles to act like your slower endurance fibers (red).
To build your stamina, do sprints over and over again.
Or, do sprints up a hill.
3.
Train explosively for the length of a match and no more.
Then repeat the drill, only resting for the amount you have in competition.
When athletes make the mistake of training longer than what they actually compete for, their intensity decreases.
They condition themselves to be less explosive and less powerful over a longer period of time.
Keep training!
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