SPP/SSP for traditional martial arts conditioning

[hammer_2020]

Oops. I found I could post in the FlowFighting® forum but not view the content there, but only after I posted this there, so I'm reposting here.


Here's a discussion that goes out to Coach Jones and all our other martial artists/combatives students out there who are into some of the more old-school conditioning methods.

I'm in the process of designing for myself a SPP/SSP 100-day foundation training cycle, set to take place round about next year, to supplement my fight training by developing certain traits I reckon would help me in my pursuits, specifically those developed by iron palm and iron body training.

I have chosen a 100-day duration based on directives from old chinese martial arts texts stating that is the duration needed to build a firm foundation for any skill, and also on my own sports science training and experience. The tricky bit will be training every single day without pause, as indicated by CMA traditional consensus, while fitting in other more general conditioning work to keep overall fitness up and avoid overspecialisation. To that end, I'm considering using what I call a spotlight format, fading the primary drills into positions of greater or lesser prominence throughout the training week without completely leaving them out on any given day. My hypothesis would be that, so long as daily stimulation is applied to the body systems being trained, it will be sufficient to continue the onset of desired adaptations started by the more intensive days.

An example using a 7-day training cycle with hypothetical numbers would look something this:

Day #1 - Moderate Intensity

Through-arm spinning arm circles - 75% of maximum allowable

Iron palm conditioning - 75% of maximum allowable

Iron body qigong - 75% of maximum allowable

Various strength drills

Intu-Flow®


Days #2 and #3 - High Intensity

Through-arm spinning arm circles - 85-100% of maximum allowable

Iron palm conditioning - 85-100% of maximum allowable

Iron body qigong - 85-100% of maximum allowable

Day #2 - Circuit/complex-based training; Day #3 - Heavy contact Skills-based training/High-energy taijiquan and Prasara/other yoga

Intu-Flow®


Day #4 - Moderate Intensity


Through-arm spinning arm circles - 50% of maximum allowable

Iron palm conditioning - 50% of maximum allowable

Iron body qigong - 50% of maximum allowable

Low-contact Skills-based training/High-energy taijiquan and Prasara/other yoga

Intu-Flow®


Days #5 and #6 - Zero Intensity

Through-arm spinning arm circles - 25% of maximum allowable

Iron palm conditioning - 25% of maximum allowable

Iron body qigong - 25% of maximum allowable

Intu-Flow®, focusing on compensations and releases focused on traits undergoing training.


Day #7 - Low Intensity

Through-arm spinning arm circles - 50% of maximum allowable

Iron palm conditioning - 50% of maximum allowable

Iron body qigong - 50% of maximum allowable

Prasara yoga, Intu-Flow® and other compensations and releases focused on traits undergoing training.


Thoughts, comments and critique all welcome.

[Coach Jones]

James,

It looks interesting, but what jumps out at me immediately is that you're scheduling two high-intensity days followed by a moderate intesity day. That's a whole lot of teardown without any recovery.

[hammer_2020]

Coach Jones,

I understand completely where you're coming from, but if you'll look again, you'll find that Day #4 moderate intensity is just hovering on the edge of being low-intensity. Less will be done on that day than on Day #1, and the intensity applied will be more sophistication-based than sheer tonnage or volume.