How to become quicker?

[marques]

The bad news is genetics predetermines a lot about speed.

The good news is we still can do something about it.
- Generally speaking, good technique is fast. Without unnecessary, parasitic movements that made things slow and predictable.
- Short movements are faster than longer. Seems too obvious to be written. But seems not so obvious when seeing other people sparring/fighting.
- Good stance (optimized for each instant).

Then there are also ways to overcome slowness, being slow.
- Changing speed. A jab that stops in the middle of the way and lands when the guard is being open to see what is going on, seems a quick jab. Because it is unpredictable (a couple of times).
- Feints. If you send enough fake information, you can create all the time and space you need for your strike (potentially).
- You can also fatigue your opponent if he overreacts (to feints, to anythings that mves...). So you get faster (than your opponent, after a while).
Good timing...

For sure there are more points, and all this is arguable (but then going to details in an online forum, it ends nowhere...)

Last thing, there are other similar threads. So if you, the OP, or someone else can find the link and put it here, it would be nice.

 

[Headhunter]

Ask your trainer he knows you better than we do, he knows your body type than us and your training better than us he'll help you more than we can

 

[Mattattack]

One thing I was told to do strike a hanging hand towel. The goal was to develop speed and snap to where the the towel would bow outwards without settling on your hand. Simple low tech training tool

Good topic. Would like to hear more

 

[JowGaWolf]

Back when I was 140 pounds and much weaker, (teen years) I was able to move crazily fast, quick hands and quick kicks, and quick footwork. Now I am much heavier and stronger, I find myself considerably slower.

I know big guys can be quick because I have seen it often, my question is how do they become so quick? Is it simply something you get from repetitive training or are there methods to train that are geared to becoming quicker?

You can train to be quicker. It may require that you lose a little weight if you are over weight. I'm fast but I would be faster if I lost 20lbs and not be over weight. People who are fast train to be fast. They may not be the fastest but they are fast enough. Weight is always calculated in terms of being fast and that's only because we have to deal with gravity. I'll let you know how much faster I get after losing 20 pounds.

 

[Dirty Dog]

More mass means you're going to move slower. You cannot argue with physics.
When people get quicker, what they're actually doing is learning to read their opponent better, so they react sooner.

 

[JowGaWolf]

Back when I was 140 pounds and much weaker, (teen years) I was able to move crazily fast, quick hands and quick kicks, and quick footwork. Now I am much heavier and stronger, I find myself considerably slower.

I know big guys can be quick because I have seen it often, my question is how do they become so quick? Is it simply something you get from repetitive training or are there methods to train that are geared to becoming quicker?

Forgot to tell you that you can increase your speed in as soon as 5 minutes. The way to do this is to learn how to move while relaxed. If you are always tense then your speed will be slower.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Besides the footwork speed, there is body speed while your legs are not moving.

The Zimen system has a "speed" training. It's called "break through 3 joints". The training is to loose up shoulder joint, elbow joint, wrist joint, and be able to send energy from shoulder all the way to the finger tips.

- Stay in a horse stance.
- Raise your right palm next to your right ear. Strike your right pam on the left of your left knee (loose your shoulder joint).
- Bend your right arm, strike your right pam in from of your chest (loose your elbow joint). Straight your elbow but keep your wrist bend.
- Straight your right arm, and strike to your right (loose your wrist joint).
- Drop your right palm on the right side of your right knee (send energy to your finger tips).
- Repeat your left arm.

When you can move your arms so fast that you can only see "blur", you have developed some "speed".

 

[punisher73]

This is a VERY multi-faceted question.

1) Speed of observation-if you dont' see what is happening, you can't react....period.
2) Speed of recognition-how fast do you recognize what the other person is doing? Through training we recognize the little body cues to know what technique is going to be throw.
3) Speed of formulation-how fast does your brain create a response to that action?
4) Speed of execution-how fast does your body actually carry out that action?

The last one is what most people are asking about when they say "speed". Only how fast their body moves. Even though in a "fight setting" It's 1-3 that are the most important aspects of it. That is why most attackers use a set up and sucker punch, if your brain is stuck in the initial loop you can't get to #4.

Repetition will gain speed because the body is lazy and won't work harder than it needs to. If you do proper training reps, muscles you don't need won't be firing and the "muscle memory" (the common term for your brain wiring your nerves to grease the groove and perform more efficient) makes the movement smoother and faster.

As far as strength vs. speed. What most people mean when they say it will slow you down is one of two things. First, if you are training like a bodybuilder and lifting the weight slow and controlled, then you will train your muscles that way and they won't become explosive. Second, if you are training like a bodybuilder and doing reps for hypertrophy as your goal you will become bigger and weigh more and more weight slows you down. Many trainers will recommend Olympic style lifting to increase their strength and explosiveness.

Same thing with cardio. If you are doing long slow runs, you may be increasing your cardiovascular fitness, but you are also training your muscles to handle a long slow pace. Practicing sprinting will help and train your muscles to still be explosive.

 

[Ironbear24]

Thanks for all the helpful answers. I will work on more explosive work outs.

 

[Frost890]

Have you tried slow/med/fast? I know there is another name for it but...I c an not remember it. You start out slow focusing on the movement(moving meditation style). How your body slides in to the movement. You are looking for any snags. look to see if you have tightness in the joints. Med you can focus on strength. Work on impact and push through. Fast you are focusing more on accuracy. get a tennis ball and keep it moving.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

If you can't be fast, be clever. Most people have a lot of tells. Read the situation, environment, and the opponent and you don't have to be fast.

 

[Touch Of Death]

If you can't be fast, be clever. Most people have a lot of tells. Read the situation, environment, and the opponent and you don't have to be fast.

...to pull a fast one.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Sometime it's not the speed but the process. You should hide your preparation in your previous move and try to combine 1,2 into 1 and 1,2,3 into 1,2.

For example, Instead of doing

- step in,
- side kick,

you should hide your "step in" without letting your opponent to notice your intention. You then just do "side kick". This way, you just make 1,2 into 1.

The reason that you want to do "flying side kick" is because you want to combine your "back foot step in" and "front foot side kick" into 1 move.

 

[Prostar]

Ok, here is something to try. I know it sounds odd but this is how I got faster.

First, don't worry about getting your hand out there. Think that it is already there. Instead, work on the retraction. If you punch like your hand is already there and work on retracting it for the next strike, you are fast.

When it comes to kicks, I just got good at seeing what the opponent is going to do before he even knows what he is going to do. Imagine that this body movement usually precedes this technique. After a while you find yourself getting ahead of your opponent.

I used to freak out my students by calling out the next strike they are going to throw. The looks were priceless.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

I just got good at seeing what the opponent is going to do before he even knows what he is going to do.

Agree! If you can "pridict" your opponent's future moving path from his previous moving path, you are already one step ahead of your opponent.

Example 1:

- You throw a punch.
- Let your opponent to block it.
- The moment that you detect your opponent tries to block your punch, the moment that you pull your punch back (not all the way back, but pull back far enough to let his arm to block into the thin air).
- You then punch him through the other side of his arm.

Example 2:

This can be the "groin kick, face punch" combo. You throw a groin kick, the moment that you detect your opponent tries to drop his arm to block your kick, the moment that you pull your kick back, step in, and punch on his face.

In both examples, your 1st move is only done half way. That's where you can be fast.

 

[Buka]

To increase speed - study muscle contraction, then work it hard - both in general and specifically as it applies to the movements you use in fighting.
To increase speed - study and work torque, through core training.

The degree of how much quicker you can get is predetermined by genetics. But you can get quicker/faster than you already are, no question about that.

 

[Touch Of Death]

Ok, here is something to try. I know it sounds odd but this is how I got faster.

First, don't worry about getting your hand out there. Think that it is already there. Instead, work on the retraction. If you punch like your hand is already there and work on retracting it for the next strike, you are fast.

When it comes to kicks, I just got good at seeing what the opponent is going to do before he even knows what he is going to do. Imagine that this body movement usually precedes this technique. After a while you find yourself getting ahead of your opponent.

I used to freak out my students by calling out the next strike they are going to throw. The looks were priceless.

Return motion is only 50% of your motion.

 

[Prostar]

True enough. But it is an oft overlooked 50%. If you get your punch back more quickly you are ready for the next strike.
Also, as I mentioned before, part of the whole thing is mental. If you pay close attention to your punch it is slower than if you just imagine that it is already there. Sometimes the brain gets in the way of speed.

 

[drop bear]

More mass means you're going to move slower. You cannot argue with physics.
When people get quicker, what they're actually doing is learning to read their opponent better, so they react sooner.

Power to weight ratio. More mass also means more muscle to generate speed.

You can't argue with muscled up sprinters.

 

[Dirty Dog]

Power to weight ratio. More mass also means more muscle to generate speed.

Not all mass is muscle. Bigger muscles do not generate speed. They generate power.

Yes, sprinters have big legs. And tiny everything elses.
When you find a sprinter who looks like a young Arnold, then we can talk.