Now that we have made it through the assessment and science-based

chapters, we can have a little fun with exercise selection for the next
three chapters. Please note that, despite this chapter’s focus on striking
and kicking, the inclusion of a given exercise here does not exclude it
from being a great exercise for grappling or wrestling.
Regardless of the sport, all strength and conditioning practices should
follow a plan with a clearly identified starting point. To this end, many
athletes, and parents of athletes, seek out my services to create a road
map of sporting excellence. Usually, they already have ideas about what
they need, and in most cases they gravitate toward speed or explosiveness as their top training priority.
This line of thought is understandable, given that common knowledge leads them to believe that all
they
need to do are some explosive jumps, medicine-ball throws, Olympic
lifts, or high-intensity sprints. Not so fast! In reality, we need to set the
foundation first, and doing so is less about speed and explosiveness
and more about stability and muscular endurance.
Imagine trying to shoot a cannon out of a canoe. This is an analogy
I use with athletes who feel compelled to do only explosive exercises
without laying a foundation of preparatory work. Even though the
cannon itself can express explosiveness, the foundation of the canoe
is unstable; it provides no solid base from which to project the cannonball. As a result, the canoe will
probably tip over or be pushed
forcefully backward, and the cannonball will have a dismal trajectory
and projection.
The goal of strength and conditioning is to best provide the stable
foundation, so that explosiveness training and power work can be
done with much greater ability later in the training process. Therefore,
90 ◆ Ultimate Conditioning for Martial Arts
throughout this chapter, the exercises are sequenced according to the
following qualities:
• Stability and muscular endurance
• Strength
• Power
• Speed and explosiveness
STABILITY AND MUSCULAR ENDURANCE
Developing muscular endurance is a must for multiple reasons. It lays
the foundation for strength and enables an athlete to maintain strength
during longer events. In addition, muscular endurance and stability
decrease an athlete’s risk of injury. Specifically, a foundation of stability helps maintain joint integrity
as a martial artist continues to throw
explosive kicks and strikes in a long-lasting match.