How Warriors Train for ENDURANCE

Posted on September 21, 2016 by Jon

Warriors Need to HIIT!

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is one of the best ways to train for endurance. It will enhance all 3 energy systems in the body, as well as prime the nervous system to recover automatically during lulls in activity.

Simply put, HIIT alternates periods of high intensity exercise with periods of rest and recovery. It can be performed with almost any exercise and can be utilized both with and without equipment.

The variety and adaptability of this style of training is second to none in results.

How else does improving your endurance through this type of conditioning aid your martial arts training?

I’m glad you asked!

If the benefits discussed above weren’t enough, consider that having a high level of conditioning also aids in learning new skills.

How’s that possible?

To put it simply, when the central nervous system (CNS) is fatigued, the body cannot effectively process new skills, especially technically advanced skills. So, in essence your lack of a general level of fitness and conditioning will actually impede your learning process as you will tire more readily and not have the ability to recover quickly enough during training.

Want to train more, at a higher level, for a longer period of time?
Want to get more out of your training time both at home and in the dojo?
Want to build new skills and enhance your technical arsenal?

My brand new WarFit Combat Conditioning Program will show you how!

Top 5 Fat Loss Strategies

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Jon

Today, let’s take a look at my top 5 favorite, no-brainer strategies for losing fat like a champ.

If you are not seeing the results you want with your current fat loss plan, implement some, or preferably all of the following strategies and watch the fat literally fall off you! Continue reading →

Warrior Fitness is Going Primal!

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Jon

There are quite literally hundreds of different diet books lining the shelves of bookstores coast to coast. Each one with a slightly, or radically, different approach than the next to helping its reader shed unwanted pounds, improve body composition, tighten up their waist line, and increase health and longevity. And do this all quickly and painlessly to boot! But what if I told you that even though all these numerous programs, approaches, ideas, and methods are valid and do work, to a point, for some individuals some of the time, there is actually only one diet that is suitable for us all? This is exactly what author Mark Sisson asserts in his book, The Primal Blueprint. You see, prior to the Agricultural Revolution some 10,000 years ago (give or take), all humans – everyone on the planet – ate basically the same diet. Of course there were some variations due to geography, climate, and seasons, yes, but basically the same diet. And what if I told you that this one diet kept our caveman (and woman) ancestors leaner, stronger, fitter, and even healthier than we are today? It enabled them to survive and thrive for over 2 million years.

Enter the Primal Blueprint. According to Sisson (and considerable research), our genes have remained virtually unchanged since pre-agricultural times. We are quite literally cavemen in business suits – some of us more so than others! The Primal Blueprint premise is that our current genetic expression is influenced, positively or negatively, by our lifestyle. So that how we eat, how we exercise (or don’t), how we rest, play, and sleep all combine to create the body we have today. This means that we literally have the ability to optimize our genetic potential one forkful at a time. Sisson lays out 10 Primal Blueprint Laws to help us begin reprograming our genes by changing our lifestyle behaviors.

Law #1: Eat Lots of Plants and Animals

This is pretty self-explanatory. Vegetables, fruits, and meat should make up the bulk of your diet. Round it out with nuts and seeds. These foods formed the diet that fueled human evolution for 2 million years. The whole plan is laid out in the book.

Law #2: Avoid Poisonous Things

You’ll notice grains and other processed foods at the top of this list. Yes, even the supposedly healthy, whole grains. Why? Simply because humans did not evolve to digest grains properly. They make us fat and unhealthy. Remember our genes have not changed since pre-Agricultural times. Want to know more? Read the book.

Law #3: Move Frequently at a Slow Pace

Hunter Gatherers spent a lot of time walking. This very low intensity aerobic exercise provides a great base upon which to build physical fitness.

Law #4: Lift Heavy Things

Brief intense muscular efforts to climb, lift, carry, drag, pull, etc. were required by our caveman ancestors. These functional, full body movements prompt improvements in muscular size and strength.

Law #5: Sprint Once in a While

Whether running for your life or sprinting to take down a kill, the ability to run fast was definitely a skill needed 10,000 years ago and today.

Law #6: Get Adequate Sleep

This is a hard one for us. Studies constantly tell us Americans do not get enough sleep. Usually 8 hours is recommended as the average, but how many of us get more than 6 hours a night? Find out why sleep is so important in the book!

Law #7: Play

Hunter Gatherers had much more down time than we do today. Take some time to get outside in the fresh air and enjoy yourself.

Law #8: Get Adequate Sunlight

Regardless of the term, Caveman, our prehistoric ancestors did not spend much of their time in caves. They were outdoors most of the day. Adequate sunlight exposure is one of the best ways to obtain sufficient Vitamin D.

Law #9 Avoid Stupid Mistakes

Back before emergency rooms and doctors for that matter, a careless injury which would sideline us for a short time today would be deadly to a caveman. They had to maintain awareness – zanshin anyone?

Law #10: Use Your Brain

Creative expression for mental health and well being.

Does It Work? My Primal Experience

Let’s get down to the real question though – does it work and how difficult is it to implement? Well, I’m half Italian so I love my pasta and bread, and my wife is Filipino so we love our rice and noodles. I’ve always been taught grains are a staple and necessary for energy not to mention healthy – bottom of the food pyramid, right? However after reading The Primal Blueprint and understanding why grains are not necessary for you and really not as healthy as we’ve been led to believe, I was more than willing to take Sisson at his word and give it a try. Dropping grains out of my diet wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Many of us, me included, have strong emotional attachments to our food. The Italian part of me was literally screaming – no bread? No pasta? Are you nuts??? But once I got over the initial hump, it was actually pretty easy. The fact is though no matter how much I tell you about my own experience you won’t really know until you try it for yourself. I went cold turkey on the grains – can you? Give it a shot. You’ll be surprised at what your body can do!

What about my results so far? I’ve been following the Primal Blueprint laws, as laid out above for about 2 weeks now. I feel great! Energy levels are high and steady, no post meal crashes. I’ve already begun to lean out some more and am looking forward to even greater fat loss while increasing lean muscle mass. The best part for me is that I’m not constantly hungry. Usually, as those who know me can attest, I’m the first one to be ready to eat at meal times. Now I hardly even notice what time it is, I just eat when I’m hungry. I am even able to skip meals with no sluggish side effects. Warrior Fitness workouts align very well with Primal Fitness concepts (brief high intensity sessions, no chronic cardio) so I have not really made too many modifications there. Although, I am definitely looking to add some sprinting in to round out my training week now. It just seems like too much fun not to do it.

My opinion? The Primal Blueprint is intelligently written, well researched, and also quite entertaining to read, and it just might save your life. Highly recommended!!

For more information, check out Mark Sisson’s blog, Mark’s Daily Apple – HERE!

Sample Exercise from Warrior Fitness Guide to Striking Power

Posted on September 8, 2011 by Jon

A Word on Strike Conditioning

Swinging your sledge hammer at an old tire is an excellent old school conditioning exercise for anaerobic strength and work capacity. It will insure your strikes have not only power, but endurance and as well. Old tires are fairly easy to come by, usually any Tire and Auto place will have a bunch of old tires sitting in a pile outside waiting for disposal. If you ask nicely, they are pretty happy to give you a couple for free.

There are a few different protocols that I like to use for this exercise:

Density training is one option. The concept of Density Training is pretty simple. Do more work in the same amount of time or do the same amount of work in less time. So, for example using hitting the tire with a sledge hammer as the exercise and the last time you used this protocol you managed to do 100 swings in 5 minutes, then this session you would either try to increase the number of swings you can do in 5 minutes or strive to do 100 swings in less than 5 minutes. Not rocket science, right? What if this is your first time attempting this type of training? Pick an amount of time, say 5 minutes. Then try to do as many hammer swings as you possibly can in those 5 minutes. Crank them out. Push yourself. Remember the time limit used and amount of reps achieved, or preferably write it down, and the next time do more.

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is another one. It is perhaps one of the best ways to train for endurance. It will enhance all 3 energy systems in the body (2 anaerobic and 1 aerobic – see here for an overview), as well as prime the nervous system to recover automatically during lulls in activity. Simply put, HIIT alternates periods of high intensity exercise with periods of rest and recovery. It can be performed with almost any exercise and can be utilized both with and without equipment. The variety and adaptability of this style of training is second to none in results.

No discussion of interval training would be complete without touching on the Tabata Protocol. Dr. Izumi Tabata at the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo, Japan performed perhaps the most well known study on interval training. A group exercising with moderate intensity endurance training was compared to another group using high intensity intermittent training. Each group exercised 5 days a week. The moderate intensity group exercised for 60 minutes, at 70% VO2 max. The high intensity group did 8 intervals of 20 seconds, followed by 10 seconds of recovery. They operated at 170% VO2 max.

After 6 weeks, both groups experienced improvements in maximal oxygen uptake. The biggest difference between them was that only the high intensity group gained improvement in anaerobic capacity. The high intensity group actually realized a 28% increase in anaerobic capacity AND a 14% increase in VO2max. So, the study concluded that high intensity intermittent training can improve both the anaerobic and aerobic systems simultaneously. Very impressive results!

I know that after reading the amazing results achieved by Dr. Tabata you’ll be ready to try using his protocol, I sure was! The protocol itself is pretty simple, in theory. Choose an exercise – say sledge hammer swings, for example (since we’re talking about them). Perform the exercise for 20 seconds as fast as possible while still keeping good form. Rest 10 seconds. Complete 8 rounds.

There are several different ways to swing the sledge hammer. I don’t care which way you do it – vertically, diagonally, hands apart, hands together, all are fine. Just make sure that no matter which way you choose, you do not bend your back – we do not train bad habits!

In this particular example, notice the slight turn of the spine where I store energy (SEE) in my lower back. The hammer swing is powered by the release of that energy, not by my arms. Also, notice the knees bend as I squat down to hit the tire and not bend my back. Keep good structure throughout the movement.

Like this exercise? This one and many more sledge hammer, medicine ball, resistance band, and body weight exercises are described in detail along with sample workouts in the Warrior Fitness Guide to Striking Power. Pick up your copy today!!

What’s Tabata You?

Posted on March 23, 2010 by Jon

If you have been keeping up with the latest trends in conditioning research then you probably already know that interval training is the most efficient way to train. Interval training alternates periods of high intensity exercise with periods of rest to produce gains in both aerobic and anaerobic systems. Forget about those long slow distance runs to improve aerobic fitness!

The Body’s 3 Energy Systems

To briefly summarize, the body has three energy systems, 2 anaerobic, or non-oxidative, and 1 aerobic, that serve to create ATP (adenosine triphosphate). ATP is utilized by every cell in your body; it fuels muscular contractions, cognitive processes, and internal regulatory functions. Both anaerobic systems fuel maximally intensive activity, while the aerobic system fuels sustained low to moderate level activity.

The ATP-PC system provides immediately available energy for high intensity efforts from ATP stored within the muscles. This system is the most powerful, but least enduring of the three, lasting only about 10 to 30 seconds max.

The Glycolytic system, the second most powerful, is only slightly more enduring than the ATP-PC system. It derives energy from glycogen stored in the muscles and liver converting it to ATP in a process called glycolysis. Its capacity is approximately 90 to 120 seconds. Rest intervals allow the body to recuperate and restore ATP.

Lastly, the Aerobic system uses proteins, fats, and carbohydrates to produce ATP. As the intensity of the effort increases, the aerobic system relies more on glycogen for energy. If the intensity continues to increase, the anaerobic systems must kick-in to provide energy. The important idea to realize here is that all 3 energy systems are always supplying the body with the energy it needs for any activity, at any level of intensity. It’s just that one may be more dominant than the other 2 at a specific time.

If Anaerobic is ‘Without Oxygen’, Why am I Sucking Wind?

If you have been following any of the Warrior Fitness Training Programs, you are already familiar with examples of anaerobic exercises and how they affect the body. Have you noticed how after even a brief, but intense anaerobic session you are breathing heavily?

If anaerobic really means ‘without oxygen’, how come you are so out of breath?

What happens is that your aerobic system is trying like heck to help restore your anaerobic systems. All that extra oxygen is being used to metabolize the lactate that’s accumulated in the muscles during the bout of intense activity. In order to continue to supply energy for all-out, intense efforts, the anaerobic system must be replenished. Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption (EPOC) is the term used to identify this process of extra oxygen being taken in to restore all systems. So, basically, as the intensity of your exercise increases, so does your EPOC. And, that’s why you’re sucking wind!

Tabata Protocol

No discussion of interval training would be complete without touching on Tabata. Dr. Izumi Tabata at the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo, Japan performed perhaps the most well known study on interval training. A group exercising with moderate intensity endurance training was compared to another group using high intensity intermittent training. Each group exercised 5 days a week. The moderate intensity group exercised for 60 minutes, at 70% VO2 max. The high intensity group did 8 intervals of 20 seconds, followed by 10 seconds of recovery. They operated at 170% VO2 max.

How Can I Use Tabata?

I knew that after reading the amazing results achieved by Dr. Tabata you’d be ready to try using his protocol, I sure was! The protocol itself is pretty simple, in theory. Choose an exercise – say sprints, for example. Perform the exercise for 20 seconds as fast as possible while still keeping good form. Rest 10 seconds. Complete 8 rounds. Sprints are an easy example, but really the Tabata Protocol can be applied to almost any exercise. Try some of these:

Bodyweight squats
Burpees
Kettlebell swings or snatches
Sledgehammer swings
Push-ups
Sprawls
Renegade Rows
Sandbag Shouldering
Mountain climbers
Jumping

These are just a few examples of exercises that can be used with Tabata. Just make sure you don’t overly complicate it because you do have to be able to perform several reps within the 20 seconds!!

Additionally, try grouping together 4 to 6 different exercises to increase the effectiveness of the workout and create a synergistic effect where the total combined effect is greater than the sum of the individual exercises. This, I think, is where the real fun begins!

To seriously amp up your conditioning, learning how to use various breathing techniques to restore yourself quicker, lower your heart rate, and increase the effectiveness of your conditioning sessions is a MUST!

Warrior Fitness

Old School Training for the Modern Warrior

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