body hardening exercises?

drummingman

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what all styles of martial arts do body hardening exercise? if a bunch do it what styles do the most and what styles do the least.
i was watching some clips on youtube where some karate teachers were beating the crap out of their students as part of the training. is this normal? this is one of the vids that im referring to
 
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Doc_Jude

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what all styles of martial arts do body hardening exercise? if a bunch do it what styles do the most and what styles do the least.
i was watching some clips on youtube where some karate teachers were beating the crap out of their students as part of the training. is this normal? this is one of the vids that im referring to

You know, this kind of training was part & parcel to traditional karate as little as 30yo, even here in the U.S., when folks did martial arts and weren't all friggin' PC about stuff like taking a shot for the simple point of being aware what it actually felt like to get hit like that. You'll notice that in this video, most of the blows are actually hitting large muscle groups and no vital targets. The solar plexus isn't lethal by any means (as long as the xiphoid process doesn't break off and lacerate the heart lining or the diaphram... but anyways...)
Trust me, this kind of training is beneficial. You get an idea of what it feels like to get hit by someone that can actually throw a punch, such as that little guy in the vid, you've got a better chance of not going all "deer in the headlights" when the SHTF. You're lucky if in a stress situation you have "Fight or Flight", but half the time, you simply FREEZE. You don't want that.
Good luck in your training choices. Find something that's as well rounded as possible, with striking, grappling, conditioning, and pressure testing.
 
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foot2face

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A lot of styles do it, all most every striking system incorporates some manner of body hardening as part of its curriculum. We did similar things at my school as the stuff in the clip, and we were TKD. However, it's mostly up to the instructor, not the the style, whether or not body hardening will be part of the training. Most neglect it for various reasons. If you're interested in practicing it your best bet will probabally be with a system that has an Okinawan lineage, but even then check up on the school to see if they still incorporate it in their training and to what extent.
 
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drummingman

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well, being that im looking at usa goju karate and wing chun do either one of these do the body hardening?
ill be honest, im not looking to get the crap beat out of me like in that vid that i posted. if there is some body hardening i wont mind but im not looking to just get beat on.
 

Jade Tigress

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Well, I don't think you should beat the crap out of your students to "harden their bodies". There are conditioning exercises where you subject an area of the body to repeated impact to strengthen it. This could be in the form of punching something hard to condition the knuckles, etc. But it should be something that is slowly worked up with in order to "condition" and not injure.

There are also exercises where you are struck by your training partner in an area in order to condition, or desensitize the area/desensitize yourself from freaking out when if you get hit. But this is controlled and far different from beating the crap out of someone.
 

mib2112

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If you look around a little at some of the Iron Palm / Iron Body Shaolin stuff, you will find good exercises. The Shaolin seem to favor starting slowly, Going from Tapping, to Beating, then to Pounding.

Tapping limbs at first, getting them used to the light impact and starting to toughen up the bones and muscles.

Then beating, hitting harder. And finally pounding. But it takes quite a while to work up past beating, if you ever want to go that far. Some old masters have hands or feet that look like gnarled tree limbs.

Finding a good jow helps the healing process as well. But your best bet is to find an inteligent instructor and talk with them. A lot of Jow recipies are family secrets and not handed out freely, but you can buy pre-made batches from various places.
 

Laurentkd

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well, being that im looking at usa goju karate and wing chun do either one of these do the body hardening?
ill be honest, im not looking to get the crap beat out of me like in that vid that i posted. if there is some body hardening i wont mind but im not looking to just get beat on.

Any instructor that does what you see in that video to a brand new student is not a good instructor in my opinion. What I am saying is, if you find a school that does body conditioning MORE THAN LIKELY you won't be experiencing it at all initially and certainly not at that level. It will be something that is done slowly and in a way that works up to that type of thing.
At my dojang not everyone does body conditioning. It is only done in adult classes by students who want to do it and at a level they are comfortable with. Newer students to the exercise will often pair up initially and just talk eachother through it (as to how hard the want to go, how fast, etc). As for me, I know that my sahbonim may walk by at any time and give me a nice hit to the solar plexus, arm or leg (major muscle areas) to see my reaction (always followed with a nod and maybe a smile). And then there is everything in between.
I would not stay up at night stressing you are going to join a school where you get the crap beat out of you day 1- not if you find a good school with a good instructor.
 

morph4me

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well, being that im looking at usa goju karate and wing chun do either one of these do the body hardening?
ill be honest, im not looking to get the crap beat out of me like in that vid that i posted. if there is some body hardening i wont mind but im not looking to just get beat on.

I didn't look at the video but I did take usa goju karate about 20 years ago, and when we sparred we went full contact to the body and only light contact to the face and head. Like Doc Jude said, it teaches you what it feels like to be hit and how to keep going, a very useful skill when the SHTF.
 

Jade Tigress

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If you look around a little at some of the Iron Palm / Iron Body Shaolin stuff, you will find good exercises. The Shaolin seem to favor starting slowly, Going from Tapping, to Beating, then to Pounding.

Tapping limbs at first, getting them used to the light impact and starting to toughen up the bones and muscles.

Then beating, hitting harder. And finally pounding. But it takes quite a while to work up past beating, if you ever want to go that far. Some old masters have hands or feet that look like gnarled tree limbs.

Finding a good jow helps the healing process as well. But your best bet is to find an inteligent instructor and talk with them. A lot of Jow recipies are family secrets and not handed out freely, but you can buy pre-made batches from various places.

I agree, and I forgot to mention the importance of jow for conditioning exercises.

[QUOTE-morph4me]...it teaches you what it feels like to be hit and how to keep going, a very useful skill when the SHTF.
[/QUOTE]

Yep, that's what I was trying to convey when I said "desensitize yourself from freaking out when you get hit." , you said it so much better. :)
 

tshadowchaser

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was watching some clips on youtube where some karate teachers were beating the crap out of their students as part of the training. is this normal?

my instructor enjoyed having us do Sanchin while he tempered our bodies.
We also would punch/kick each other while the other person just stood there. this actualy is a good way to get used to being hit but should be started with light contact and worked to a stronger/harder contact with time
 

still learning

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Hello, Very few people train like the old Okinawan Ways of martial arts in America!

Hard bodies comes from hard training...lots of full contact sparring and hard hitting training.

Boxers will tell you it takes time to get use to the hitting before the bodies get tuff enough!

Judo is one sport that gets your body hard...because of all the throwing and drills you do everyday! Being toss onto the mats.

If you style does not make to much body contact? ...than your training is NOT hard style of training.

Football players, off season..the bodies get soft....when the training begins...in time there bodies get use to the pounding....

Hard bodies comes from hard hitting....this is pain condition. IT hurts! alot in the beginning....also in the end too!

NO pain? ...NO gain! there is only one way to get a Hard body....is HARD CONTACT TRAINING!

There are many martial artist whose "shins" and "arms" feel like lron...comes from years of hard training.....

Aloha ( coconut training works too!)
 

rabbit

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Can anyone posts some good links for conditioning knuckles and shins. I would like to know the methods.

Does it increase power?
 

foot2face

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Can anyone posts some good links for conditioning knuckles and shins. I would like to know the methods.

Does it increase power?
It doesn't really increase power, proper technique, speed and mass behind the blow, determine the power. Weapon conditioning is more about being able to deliver a powerful blow and not damage yourself.
 

rabbit

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If I am kicking with the foot it seems like it wouldn't hurt but the shin seem very sensitive to me. I was kicked in soccer once I had this big bump on my shin for a long time. I hurt my wrist hitting a heavy bag. I wonder if I am ever going to use a powerful left hook again on the heavy bag.


My instructor wants us to start doing specialty board breaks. I was thinking of doing some power breaks. I don't know what I want to do yet. a punch, maybe? or maybe an elbow strike. I don't know much about what has and hasn't been done before. I want it to be impressive. Any suggestions are welcomed
 

dancingalone

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I don't know much about what has and hasn't been done before. I want it to be impressive. Any suggestions are welcomed

I like combination breaks. Also, the short distance breaks done with something like the crane's beak strikes are frequently more crowd pleasing than the typical jumping side kick break.
 

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