Not long ago, a fellow trainee mentioned that he was having trouble finding help for his construction business. Every time he hired them, they quit after a few days because the work was too hard. He couldn’t figure out what the problem was; after all, he’s spent every day for the past 20 years climbing ladders, hauling lumber and moving heavy equipment. Well, unlike his younger employees who worked out in a weight room, he spent years developing functional strength, and when it comes to fighting, he’ll give you an edge.
The first time I learned about functional strength was not from a training book, fitness studio, or veteran trainer, but from a children’s book of folktales. One story was about John Henry, a railroad worker, and the great strength he gained from hitting with his mallet day after day. In the story, he showed what he could do when he was up against a steam drill. He was able to tunnel through a mountain using only a sledgehammer, iron will, and brute force to defeat the machine. While it may be a work of fiction, history reminds us that if you want to develop real power, it takes a lot of hard work.
Most bodybuilders can lift an impressive amount of weight, but they can only do it in short bursts. They can probably lift a weight ten times before they have to give it up, but have them do it until they can’t do it anymore and probably only have a few more reps left. While bench pressing 500 pounds sounds impressive, the average janitorial worker in New York City lifts about 13 tons of trash into his truck every day. For real combat martial arts, you need long-term strength. You shouldn’t give up weights, but they shouldn’t be the only way to build muscle. If you want to survive a street fight, you need explosive power that lasts, because you won’t have breaks.
Things like chopping wood will burn a ton of calories while building muscle, but not everyone lives on a farm. If you’re stuck in a desk job and only have a small apartment, you can still benefit from functional strength. Calisthenics exercises are a great way to build muscle using only your own body weight. You don’t need any equipment and there is no danger of “doing too much” when you train. You can get a lot out of doing push-ups, sit-ups along with other exercises and just running. If you’re already doing weight training, include calisthenics in your workout. You’ll find that you’ll need to spend less time lifting weights, and you’ll actually feel stronger and more flexible.
Many people take up martial arts because they are not very strong and want a different advantage in a fight. While the right techniques help you improve the way you are, the better you will be. Just because you’re learning self defense doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stop developing your body. The longer you are able to fight, the more likely you are to survive your attacker and win, so keep training and doing your self defense training.