How good are Indian Clubs and Macebells for practising techniques of various weapons esp swords?

Monkey Turned Wolf

MT Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jan 4, 2012
Messages
12,209
Reaction score
6,306
Location
New York
It would probably work well for a weapon that has a weighted end to it. Otherwise, just use a rattan stick or a wooden and/or foam-plated sword of the basic size that you want to train for. Using something with a weighted end to train for a weapon without a weighted end will just mess up your techniques.
 

drop bear

Sr. Grandmaster
Joined
Feb 23, 2014
Messages
23,337
Reaction score
8,070
I think there are certain basic movements that when used with good timing will make you a capable weapons fighter.

So a weighted club training program is probably ticking most of the boxes you need to get good.
 

Flying Crane

Sr. Grandmaster
Joined
Sep 21, 2005
Messages
15,230
Reaction score
4,920
Location
San Francisco
They would be great for practicing club techniques. A sword (a well-made sword, anyways) would have a very different balance and handles differently from a club. Technique is different as well. Sword technique is not simply swinging it like a club. It is cutting and trusting. Not the same as a club at all, really.

Why would you buy one thing in order to practice the technique of another? And Native American war clubs are not so easy to find. Ive seen them on Etsy often with a heavy price tag as well.
 

drop bear

Sr. Grandmaster
Joined
Feb 23, 2014
Messages
23,337
Reaction score
8,070
They would be great for practicing club techniques. A sword (a well-made sword, anyways) would have a very different balance and handles differently from a club. Technique is different as well. Sword technique is not simply swinging it like a club. It is cutting and trusting. Not the same as a club at all, really.

Why would you buy one thing in order to practice the technique of another? And Native American war clubs are not so easy to find. Ive seen them on Etsy often with a heavy price tag as well.

This is pretty much how Kata works. You train one thing to apply another.

So you go out there and walk around in low stances with extended movements, chambered punches and the like so you have the strength and range of movement to make the actual techniques easier.

A club is heavier than a sword on purpose.

Otherwise to train any technique really should involve enough adaptability to be able to manage a different weight to what you are used to. That way you are not stymied if it is not your sword or your gloves or something.

So that is pretty much what clubs do. Strength, conditioning, shoulder, wrist mobility, grip strength, core strength.

If those atributes are beneficial to weapon fighting then the exercise has merit.

I trained stick and have trained with very strong guys. And being able to swing harder with better accuracy is an advantage.
 
Last edited:

Latest Discussions

Top