stamina/endurance

[jazzysingh]

firstly let me start off by saying.. Mods if this is in the incorrect area please move coz i am pretty new to the site and not sure where i should be posting this...

my questions is pretty simple:
How do I increase my stamina?

Now just so u know what i currently do:
Taekwondo classes 3/4 times a week. Approx 6 hours a week.
And NOTHING else.

I am NOT self motivated to join a gym - dont get me wrong I am asking for advice how I should go about increasing my endurance. I am just pointing out I prefer a classroom environment than being left to my own devices.

I used to run lots, as time as gone by my weight has increased, and fitness decreased.

Please reply with ideas that will help me.

Thanks in advance.

[slipthejab]

If you're looking for a type of fitness and stamina that will apply to martial arts as a whole and TKD or similar stand up arts then you really want to be heading for a 70/30 split between anaerobic and aerobic conditioning.

The two types of conditioning are quite different.... as an example:

Marathon runners use a steadystate type of cardio... meaning they get the heart rate up to a certain level and keep it there for long extended periods of time.
Aerobic endurance. I'm guessing that rate is somewhere around 70% of max. heart rate. No big fluxuations... steady, even cardio.

If you look a boxer or at a basketball player or many many other sports... you will see the focus is far more on anaerobic endurance. That is the fluxuations in the exertion, oxygen intake and energy are expended in a much more erratic way. Intense outputs followed by short breaks followed by intense outputs. The output phase is often around 80% or higher of the max. hear rate. Hustling down court, a flurry of punches or kick combinations, a shoot and rapid transitions and positional change.

The key is that you don't really want one or the other... you want that 70/30 mix of the two. They reinforce each other. So one longer run a week is good to condition the aerobic side of it and daily drills in the anaerobic world are a good mix.

Some examples:

Aerobic
Working at 70% of your max HR
5K or more runs
Cycling for long extended period - again at 70% of max hr
Swimming for distance

Aerobic is longer and smooth build up and slow wind down. You reach a comfort level because you get into a zone and go... the body does it' thing because it's over a regulate and extended period of time.

Anaerobic -

Working at 80% of your max HR
Wind sprints
Hill runs
Tabata type training

Anaerobic is short and intense followed by a short rest and then back at it.
You never reach a comfort level because it's always kicking your ass.


At any rate... the tabata training can be hard without someone kicking your ass to do it. 99% of people wont push themselves to the zone where they start to see real change. This is where solid training partners come in... or simply hire a PT. That's the reason they exist... the good ones anyhow. Your own personal drill sargent. They can change the way you workout for the better in way most people can never quite manage on their own.

At any rate... hope that makes sense... I'm still getting through the morning cup of coffee and been up since 5am running people through their anaerobic workouts. lol.

[OselLing]

Excellent reply Slipthejab, could you explain tabata training, enjoy your coffee.

[Frodocious]

The tabata protocol is fairly simple. You do 20 seconds of an exercise then rest for 10 seconds and repeat this 8 times so you have 4 minutes of mind blowingly hard work. The key is to use exercises that really challenge you to work at a very high intensity. It is possible to string tabata sets together, e.g. pick 4 exercises and do 1 tabata set of each, which will give you 16 minutes of incredibly challenging exercise.

For example, use burpees, pushups, bodyweight squats and chinnies.

Your first set would be:

20 secs burpees, 10 secs rest.
20 secs burpees, 10 secs rest.
20 secs burpees, 10 secs rest.
20 secs burpees, 10 secs rest.
20 secs burpees, 10 secs rest.
20 secs burpees, 10 secs rest.
20 secs burpees, 10 secs rest.
20 secs burpees, 10 secs rest.

You would then repeat this protocol for each of the other exercises and at the end of the workout you should be gasping for breath and wanting to die! :)

[Dhalsim-on]

Heavy bag is the most enjoyable way to do anaerobic. Definitely my favourite training tool.

[jazzysingh]

thank u all for the replies. has been VERY useful. I just need to design myself a routine for the days where I am doing nothing. thanks

[Frodocious]

Have a look round the 'Health and Fitness' section of MAP. You can find some really useful information in there.

[Mitch]

You can do all sorts of variations. I sometimes run with 30 second sprints then 1.30 jogging recovery. Keep going for as long as you can manage. I use a little gymboss timer to beep at me so that when I can't see or think straight anymore I only have to repsond to the sound of a beep. :D

I'm going to move this thread to H&F, seems more appropriate to that area.

Mitch

[Frodocious]

I use a little gymboss timer to beep at me so that when I can't see or think straight anymore I only have to repsond to the sound of a beep. :D

A gymboss is excellent when you reach that point!

[Mitch]

A gymboss is excellent when you reach that point!

Normally just at the end....

...of the first 30 second interval :(

Mitch

[Frodocious]

Normally just at the end....

...of the first 30 second interval :(

Mitch

Oh yes!