Power Training For Fighters

Weak and flimsy punches? If this is you then you may need to increase your power production!

Power training for fighters is crucial for not only developing an impressive foundation of speed and strength but also build the physical requirements for creating a solid knock out or take down. Power is defined as the most work completed in the least time and in a sport setting, moving faster and resisting harder. This is crucial for so many different combat sports athletes as the harder and faster you can kick, punch, knee, throw, take down or submit, the more likely you are to be able to win in a fight. Boxers do plenty of speed punching training, wrestlers are known for their explosiveness, Judo throws are extremely elegant but quick, all these martial arts demonstrate power as one of the key components for success.

Two determinants for increasing overall power output are neuromuscular control and overall muscle mass. The first being the most amount of muscle you can allow to produce force in a single contraction which comes from enforced movement pattern and motor unit recruitment via the brain sending out signals to the muscle to contract. This is done through practice and technique as you may have the ability to produce power but are not coordinated enough to allow the elicit action to be expressed. An example is poor punching technique or your first time trying to do a double leg takedown and not having a grappling background. The second is referred to how much muscle we then have to produce power. Muscle is what makes movement and regardless of what many people say, you require muscles to be strong. Power is often referred to velocity x force so without adequate muscle mass, we may potentially produce a lot of velocity but ultimately may be lacking sufficiently in force. 

There are so many different methods that we can use to train power production. Here are a list of them to help illustrate the differences and how they can be included into your fight training.

Ballistics

Ballistics are described as throws or loaded jumps and can be implemented in a way that is specific to fighters. Exercises such as Med Ball Punches or Explosive Landmine Rotations all have a high dynamic correspondence to striking. Exercises such as Med Ball Scoop Throws or Loaded Single Leg Bounds all relate back to wrestling. These exercises should be done with the most speed and again we want to relate the movement pattern back to the sport for the highest transference of performance. 3-6 sets of 3-5 reps is the recommended 1-3x per week. 

Plyometrics

Plyometrics are defined as bodyweight movements such as jumping, pushing or pulling in an explosive manner. Exercises such as Jump Squats, Jumping Lunges or Plyo Push Ups are all listed as plyometric exercises. They are useful in a sense where you require minimal equipment, train relative to your body weight and enforce speed qualities whilst performing the movement. 4-6 sets of 1-5 reps is the recommended 1-2x per week

Sprints

Sprints can be done with so many different variations. Sled Sprints, Parachute Sprints, Hill Sprints or Varied Distance Sprints all have a carry over to move our body weight from one spot to another in the shortest time possible. Going back to the term power having correlation to work and displacement within the shortest time possible, you are training to move within a space in a shorter time making it very beneficial for maneuvering around your opponent. Sets of 10m, 20m or 40m sprints 4-5x per session and 1-2x per week is recommended.

With these guidelines and methods, it is also important that you keep in mind that you are performing these to improve the power production in your fight game and not just increasing power in itself. If you are doing multiple sessions a day with many days of hard rolling or sparring, you do not want to over train as it will impact your skills practices. Pick and choose whichever exercise fits into your regime and sport and pick the bare minimum. Hopefully this article helps all you fighters out there looking to up their power production! 

Coach Matty