The Most Important Training Activity in Martial Arts

For some odd reason, most martial artists don't seem to put enough emphasis on sparring. Whether its over-emphasis on forms, drills, belt testing or talk of theory, sparring seems to take a back seat.

Although some exercises help condition, others develop tactile awareness, some aid in relaxation, and still others speed improvement, there's one all-important activity that assists both.... sparring.

This holds true for traditional martial arts as well as combat sports such as boxing, kickboxing or MMA. You have to practice as closely to how you will need to respond when it matters.

Therefore, there is no subsitute for sparring. You have to know what it feels like to hit someone and how it is to take a hit. Our purpose is not to hurt each other. We want to make each other better. You have to spar regularly and often to become a well-rounded martial artist, regardless of what other exercises you may do.

Nearly every martial artist develops some kind of rhythm to their movements. But when push comes to shove, the comfort and familiarity of this rhythm doesn't stay with you. Your opponent's movements break your rhythm forcing your movements to be desperate, rigid and broken. Sparring not only improves your skill, but it also conditions your body for fighting by forcing your muscles to become accustomed to the violent, broken movements that distinguish fighting from any other activity.

Sparring is not only the most important conditioning activity, it is also the most important "sharpening" activity, even more so than Chi Sao. It perfects your timing and judgment of distance in punching against a live and elusive target. It grooms you to make exactly the right combination of moves in a split- second-instinctively.

The next best training exercise that I've found is called Chi Sao. It can be found in Jeet Kune Do and Wing Chun Kung Fu. It blends the traditional Chinese pushing hands exercises of Tai Chi with the vertical self-defense planes of European bare knuckle boxing & fencing. Chi Sao does for combat technique what a sharpening stone does for a blade. An energy drill it teaches good body structure, relaxation, forwardness, timing, distancing, pressure, advanced listening (senstivity) skills and more.

Shadow boxing is also good for conditioning and sharpening. It is all too often looked past by martial artists. It might be described as fighting an imaginary opponent or visualization of the actual fight. It is particularly helpful in developing footwork. As you shadow box, go through the same offensive and defensive movements you use in sparring. To be most valuable, your imaginary fighting should be done at top speed.

Bag striking and wooden dummy training are other exercises that condition and sharpen. Work on the wooden dummy or bag will develop all the muscles you use in striking. The wooden dummy has the unique ability to train perfect positioning.

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