leg strength

**IndoChinese** · Posted On: 7/22/2003 7:51pm

i am quite many of you are pasty, underfed/overfed, computer geeks who rarely see the light of day, much less get off your ass and train.

on the other hand, to be sure, there are some extremely fit and well trained martial artists here as well.

i do kuntaosilat and we have some interesting walking patterns designed to strengthen our legs. generally they are practiced in a very low stance. they are the same footwork patterns we use in our techniques, but done as conditioning. its not really an exaggeration to say that a set can be quite grueling, and most cannot play 'follow the leader' for too long.

this is my question.

i can raise my leg straight up to waist level, creating a ninety degree with the ground. then keeping the heel of the standing leg on the ground, slowly squat and come to rest against my standing foot heel. i keep the extended leg level, and parallel to the ground. coming to a complete stop, i pause and then stand back up, keeping the extended leg in place the whole time.

no wobbling, foot flat the entire time, slow and controlled with a complete stop at the bottom. and a clean press back up to standing position, keeping the kick in waist height front heel kick posture.

no bitch noises, either.

how many of you can do this?

it is not very easy.

just wondering.

P.S. i can do like 3 to 5 reps on each leg without pausing.

peace.

<marquee>REDANTKUNTAO</marquee>
<marquee> INDONESIAN GUNG FU</marquee>

Edited by - kuntaokid on July 22 2003 20:11:06

**noodles** · Posted On: 7/22/2003 8:02pm

"then keeping the heel of the standing leg, slowly squat and come to rest against my standing foot heel."

What does that mean?

**IndoChinese** · Posted On: 7/22/2003 8:13pm

sorry,

'keep the heel of the standing foot on the ground'

that is what makes it difficult. staying flat footed and balanced the whole, and of course keeping the other leg extended in kick position.

peace.

<marquee>REDANTKUNTAO</marquee>
<marquee> INDONESIAN GUNG FU</marquee>

**FingerorMoon?** · Posted On: 7/22/2003 8:45pm

Yeah thats hard. I can do the exercise with not much problem but I'm highly flexible in the legs (can touch knee to shoulder) which helps in an exercise like this.

(Thats actually one of the advanced exercises in Matt Furey's Gama Fitness program...)

We do it in class but often hold the toes of the extended leg with the arm on the same side - reduces difficulty but lets you get higher reps.

**Kuroneko** · Posted On: 7/22/2003 9:56pm

Maybe I misread your instructions, but I can't do it clean...
... I don't like it either cuz my knee goes beyond my front toe. Too much stress for my knees...
... I can go into low stances though and stay there forever, or move around in them easily ...

...do you have a pic of this?

**IndoChinese** · Posted On: 7/22/2003 10:52pm

"... I don't like it either cuz my knee goes beyond my front toe. Too much stress for my knees..."

uhmmm... yea it can be rough on the knees. i dont do it everyday. it is more like a 'test' i do every few days or so.

"... I can go into low stances though and stay there forever, or move around in them easily ..."

oh well, it is probably just a matter of coorination and a litte practice for you.

in silat, dropping down(seating) and rising swiftly(springing) is an integral part of training. strong thighs are emphasized. of course all arts have this need for strong legs as well, but we make some pretty big elevation changes and it is a requirement that you remain upright and maintain balance while doing so.

peace.

<marquee>REDANTKUNTAO</marquee>
<marquee> INDONESIAN GUNG FU</marquee>

**TheHungsta** · Posted On: 7/23/2003 2:13pm

Kuntaokid, could you name some of these exercises please? I feel that my leg strength needs to be improved

**PizDoff** · Posted On: 7/24/2003 5:01am

that makes sense to me (first post)

hmmmm.....can't do it, as soon as I start bending my knees i get pain, hurt them in soccer....

:(

--
Hard work, Patience, Dedication.
http://www.fightauthority.com/

Hey guys, do you think we can meet sometime and get some organised despair together?

**IndoChinese** · Posted On: 7/25/2003 12:15am

TheHungsta,

Chicken- stand upright, pivot a quarter turn at the waist and drop one knee down towards the ground until it is one inch away. stand up and pivot and repeat on opposite side. it is like going into the single kneeling position(kinda like shikko, the 'samurai' knee walking. make sure your back remains straight. try to work up to fifty reps.

Twisting Horse- step out into horse stance. twist your hips and let your feet turn until you have pivot into a scissors stance(crossed leg) and then drop all the way down until your knee is one inch from the ground. rise and untwist until you are back in the horse stance. pivot and repeat on the opposite side. again shoot for fifty reps.

Springing- lunge out with one foot, like doing a jab, but use a bit of a wide stance. now, step back with that same foot back behind you into the scissors stance, and drop all the way down to the ground(patella one inch from the ground). instantly spring back up and step out with a strong front punch, covering a much distance as possible. generally i 'spring' and slide into the heavy punch covering roughly 6 to 8 feet.

you should also look into plyometric jumps. i dont think these silat drills qualify as plyos. i believe for plyos, you shouldn't flex and extend the knees. they are done relatively straight legged. little short bounces. they work the legs in a different way. i am sure one the other posters has more info on plyometrics.

a good way to strengthen the legs is to practice kicks at a very slow pace. i do a triple kick drill. lift the right leg, extend into a front kick. retract the leg to chamber postion(crane), then extend a side kick. retract. extend a back kick. i usually do three 'cycles' per leg as a rep. the leg never touches the ground between kicks. gets a little strenous after a few reps.

i prefer this type of training because it is directly related to my art. while training my legs i am also training my postures. i could go to the gym and do squat and presses, but this is 'splitting' effort. i rather spend the time seating and springing. and i have had some guys with strong legs who like to lift weights and have very powerful legs. unfortunately, this doesnt really transfer to leg drills. not sure why. i think it is because of the isolated training that weights give you. their hips are too weak compared to their legs. kinda like the guys with big biceps and little wrists. i think 'wholistic' training is far superior for overall strenth, compared to isolate training( ala weights). like when i was in the corps, we had guys come in that were frickin huge, weightlifters and such. those where the biggest weak asses on the march i have ever seen. and within a few months, they would slim right down. then they would be able to keep up. funny, you would expect them to be way stronger and more endurant. LOL, not a chance. i think that type of muscle development is not 'balanced'. some muscles end up to big for their 'supporters'. anyhoo, got off on a tangent.

if my post is unclear, say wtf and i will reword it.

peace.

<marquee>REDANTKUNTAO</marquee>
<marquee> INDONESIAN GUNG FU</marquee>