Body conditioning

Discussion in 'Ninjutsu' started by ceyeb0rg, Nov 3, 2016.

  1. ceyeb0rg

    ceyeb0rg Valued Member

    As many of you know from my other thread, I just recently started studying Ninjutsu in Ottawa, Canada.
    This teacher took me under his wing and I'm now part of his small class and the more I train/study, the more I relate to everything and feel like it's the right martial art for me.
    The thing is,I injured myself in my upper back (probably stretched a muscle or something, nothing really intense) while receiving a technique during practice, and it raised a questionning in my mind concerning my general physical health/condition. I told my teacher about it and his reaction was that he remembered to make me (as well as a few other beginners) sign a paper that states I'm aware of the risks and that makes him immune to lawsuits coming from injuries & stuff, which I found kind of insulting at first but this is not my main point here.

    What I'm getting at, is that my teacher never says anything about body conditioning/workout/exercise, which I find odd since the guy is ex-military. When I asked him about it a week back, he just told me to do pushups and some hiking (which I do everyday with my 2 dogs).
    I understand ninjutsu techniques tend to use your body/weight as a whole so you don't need to pack a ton of muscles for the punches/kicks/throws to be effective, but I'm still looking to achieve physical health/fitness through training.

    My question is this : Aside from technique practice, what kind of workout/exercise do you guys do to condition your body in order to perfect your art? What are your everyday routine, eating habits, activities outside the dojo? Also how do you prepare yourself before a class, what kind of stretching, breathing techniques, relaxation, etc.?

    I've been through 2 of Hatsumi's books already and he never said anything about body conditioning either. There is this one called "The Grandmaster's Book of Ninja Training" in which he briefly says that Takamatsu Sensei had a really hard training routine compared to what budokas do nowadays, without explaining much.

    I'm trying to get into this, I think it could be interesting and useful to talk about here, for both beginners and advanced students.

    Thanks.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 4, 2016
  2. hewho

    hewho Valued Member

    I'm not a ninjitsu guy, and never have been, but whatever martial arts I've done in the last couple of years, and whatever I do in the future, the backbone of all my conditioning has, and I imagine will continue to be, been weight work. If you want to be stronger (Which will always be in your favour as a physical advantage) you need some form of progressive resistance training. Add in some form of cardiovascular training (I like skipping, and sprints) and some power work (clap pressups, box jumps etc) and I'd say you'll get fitter, but obviously, that's just general fitness advice, and if you have injuries to work around, you should consult a medical professional before beginning any exercise programme. Good luck!
     
  3. ceyeb0rg

    ceyeb0rg Valued Member

    What kind of weight work are you referring to for a better backbone?
     
  4. hewho

    hewho Valued Member

    ah sorry, must be my phrasing, I just meant that weight work is what I base my workouts around :)
     
  5. Dead_pool

    Dead_pool Spes mea in nihil Deus MAP 2017 Moi Award

    Squats, deadlifts, rows and presses, you can do these with weights or with bodyweight.

    Do you do the pressups with good form? most people cant, if not, start with a plank, and then build up to full pressups.

    The warmup in martial arts is for warming you up, not making you strong, if you have a preexiting weakness, go to a gym and/or or hire a personal trainer for a few sessions.
     
    Last edited: Nov 3, 2016
  6. hewho

    hewho Valued Member

    Yeah, if I had to pick just five Barbell exercises it would be squats, deadlifts, bent over rows, chest press, military press.

    If you're going to go with bodyweight exercises a good benchmark is the ability to do strict form pullups or chinups, although you'd want to work lower body too. Squats!
     
  7. ceyeb0rg

    ceyeb0rg Valued Member

    Thanks for your answers so far, but what I'm looking for is people explaining what they actually do for themselves, rather than "you can do this or that" I mean I know what I can do, with all the gym culture nowadays it's pretty obvious that people lift weights and do pushups & stuff.
    I'm trying to go beyond the obvious & figure out what ninjutsu students do, specifically. And I'm way more interested in flexibility/health than the gym/weight workout itself.
     
  8. Dead_pool

    Dead_pool Spes mea in nihil Deus MAP 2017 Moi Award

    I think your making the mistake of thinking about Ninjutsu specific health and fitness, you need to get generally strong and fit, before thinking about art specific excercises.

    BUT if you want to look into that just Google ''junan taiso''

    In terms of what to do, its really quite simple

    1) Do regular exercise - (see pushups and hiking)
    2) Turn up early
    3) listen to your sensei/coach
    4) Eat less bad food.
    5) Stretch / do yoga etc after a class, NOT as a warm up.
     
    Last edited: Nov 4, 2016
  9. ceyeb0rg

    ceyeb0rg Valued Member

    I'm not necessarily looking for ninjutsu specific health & fitness, what I meant was I want testimonies from people who train & study the same art as I do, as to what they do aside from technique drilling.
    But thanks for pointing out Junan Taiso, it already seems closer to an answer than what I had so far.
     
  10. hewho

    hewho Valued Member

    EDIT: didn't see the bit about wanting ninjitsu practitioners stuff, sorry!

    I have three different workouts for strength. Day 'A' is a deadlift day, so I'll work my deadlift, upping the weight each week/fortnight, depending how I feel, I also work chest if I am not going to the gym after work that week. Day B is a squat day, and I also work shoulders and upper back. Day 'C' will be a barbell complex, with a few sets, two on a weight I struggle to get to ten reps, and one on a weight that I can bang out to fatigue and get a decent pump with (not MA oriented, but hey ho)
    Health wise, assuming you mean diet, I'm not currently super religious about it. I try and avoid most processed sugars, have lots of fruit and veg, and being vegetarian I don't end up eating low quality meats. I have spoonfuls of peanut butter post workout, and drink lots of milk. either whole or skimmed, depending on if I'm cutting or bulking.

    Flexibility, I stretch every day, after every workout and at the end of any work I do (I PT and teach spin classes). I'll also occasionally follow along some yoga routines on various apps, if I'm feeling stiff, or taking a light day. I have a rolldown routine on youtube somewhere that I can post, if that's okay with mods? It's not a video I make money from or anything.
     
  11. ceyeb0rg

    ceyeb0rg Valued Member

    Thanks for sharing yor routine, now we're getting somewhere.
     
  12. hewho

    hewho Valued Member

    if you'd find it useful I can PM you the first serious barbell routine I followed to get a bit stronger alongside doing sanda? But remember that I was a scrawny 19 year old trying to put a bit of muscle on, and sparring or rolling four times a week for cardio, so it's not an entire programme, and your mileage may vary
     
  13. Please reality

    Please reality Back to basics

    Ask your teacher to show you ryutai undo(dragon body exercises). This is the conditioning method of our schools and what I swear by. Of course lifting, running, and other more conventional exercise are also beneficial.
     
  14. ceyeb0rg

    ceyeb0rg Valued Member

    I was expecting you, buddy, I knew you'd come up with something specific and in my line of research. :hat:
     
  15. aaradia

    aaradia Choy Li Fut and Yang Tai Chi Chuan Student Moderator Supporter

    Mod Note- Ceyeb0rg, I see you are relavively new to MAP. Please be aware that profanity - including masked profanity - is not allowed.

    You might want to take a minute to review our Terms of Service, which can be found by clicking the button at the top and bottom of very screen on MAP. Thanks!
     
    Last edited: Nov 4, 2016
  16. Late for dinner

    Late for dinner Valued Member

    Sorry to butt in here, particularly since I am sort of off topic, but to me the best thing to condition is the old ''spidey sense'' that says what sort of teacher starts you out signing a damage waiver and doesn't provide any sort of adequate explanation of required conditioning methods (or why not).

    We can tell you what we do, whether related to Strength and Conditioning, ninjitsu, other specific arts or whatever. We can also tell you about body conditioning methods used to get used to taking hits/contact. All of this stuff doesn't mean squat if you don't exercise your brain and make sure that you watch out for your own health.

    Oh, not 100% sure but I am pretty sure that damage waivers aren't worth the paper they are written on. It might be good training to find out where you stand BEFORE you end up hurt by accident.

    Rant over :' P

    LFD
     
  17. gapjumper

    gapjumper Intentionally left blank

    Do you train at the Hayabusa Ninjutsu Dojo by any chance?
     
  18. Dunc

    Dunc Well-Known Member Moderator Supporter

    Here you go [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0u3KO5C0bko&sns=em[/ame]

    I recommend also training sanshin low and long to develop the flexibility and strength in the legs, kicking trees and striking heavy bags with the various fists - start gentle and work up from there - and getting good at rolling (which will also loosen up your back if you train slowly)

    Hatsumi-sensei recommends walking a lot, I cycle and take the stairs whenever I can as that fits my urban lifestyle better (although I also walk the dog on weekends)

    Training should be developing some fitness and strength/ flexibility if you're working on your kamae and upping the intensity as part of class
     
    Last edited: Nov 4, 2016
  19. Theidiot

    Theidiot New Member

    The easiest way to injure a muscle or tendon (some of the most common training injuries) is to extend them beyond their limits so they tear.

    The easiest way to reduce the risk of a muscle going beyond its limit is to stretch it, so that it's limit is greater. Perhaps equally important stuff to strengthen it so that it can resist a greater force.

    So in short, don't underestimate the importance of stretching.
     
  20. Knee Rider

    Knee Rider Valued Member Supporter

    I also recommend stretching/yogic exercise after training or on separate days.

    I'm no expert but seeing as you are canvassing for personal approach, my penchant is for Indian wrestler's movement s such as Hindu squats and Hindu pressups. My most significant conditioning leaps came from high volume reps of these exercises.

    I used to do Gotch's Bible with reds presses and blacks squats three times a week. I used to hold bridges and stretch after. I felt these exercises aided my work capacity, strength and flexibility massively and really improved my body as a tool for grappling. The only thing holding me off then now is ongoing (and unrelated) shoulder and now hand issues, although I am getting back into them gently. I swear by them but YMMV.
     

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