Good Or Bad endurance/cardio drill?

[Kintanon]

A drill I was introduced to and have tried a couple of times involves putting a couple of 10lb wrist/ankle weights on, putting a pair of boxing gloves on, and holding your guard up tight for 5 minutes. During that 5 minutes someone else wearing just the boxing gloves works basic 1-2 and 1-2-3 combos against you, forcing you to move around keep your head covered and really work on your defense while wearing 10lb weights on your arms.
After 2.5 minutes I was just about dying, after 3 it was almost impossible to keep my hands up, but I made it through the 5 minutes without getting clocked in the face/head too bad.

So, opinions, is this a good drill? a bad drill? Can anyone recommend something more effective for developing guard endurance? I'd love some opinions before I make this part of my regular workout routine.

Thanks,
Kintanon

[bmolles]

I have 't tried this exact excercise. However I think it is worthwhile. I usually do a full resistance workout before working on the speed bag or dummy. I think it is important to learn to kick and punch while your arms and legs are very tired and hard to control. This way when you do the excercise with out the weights you will have faster response and more endurance. Just my opinion here. I'm sure there are others

cheers

[oldman34]

I did what bmolles is talking about once and it was sore as hell the next day.

I now hit the bag before I lift.

The best way to gain guard muscle enduarnce, IMO, is low weight high rep stuff, that targets the shoulders, and arms. The type of endurance you are working on, is what my BJJ Instructor calls , wrestlers endurance. I would think that the weights are helping you build up your static endurance ( just holding them up) vs your dynamic endurance ( the ability) to move them, and block hard strikes without fatigue) which high rep low weight works on.

I am by no means an expert, this is just something I learned from a book I bought a few years ago, by Loren Christiansen.

[From Bell2Bell]

Working your defense is great, but I wouldn't want to wear weights; I'd rather do the drill with just gloves. My understanding is that using weights for that sort of thing is counter-productive because it will train your muscles to move more slowly. IMHO for building up endurance keeping your guard up and throwing punches the heavy bag is the way to go.

[ESP]

There are 2 major benefits to that 'cardio exercise'.

One if the 5 minutes of isometric lifting for your shoulders. The other is the increased blood flow generated from the extra stabilizing contractile force need in the abdomen shoulders and back as you move your body (the 'cardio' part).

I could see this exercise being contraindicative for someone who is not aware that they should keep their back strait through out the 5 minutes (especially if they bob and weave) or they might suffer strain of the erector spinae and other muscles.

I would suggest just wearing a weighted vest while you train boxing and train your shoulders seperatly.