Big run coming, Thank god Hanami is over
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under Marathon, Training
On May 9th I am doing a 50 kilometer run in Hinoshi here in Tokyo and until today, I honestly haven’t done much in the way of serious prep.
Well Hanami is over. Thank God.
Today I went for a long, hot run. After a brutal wine class last night I got home and went to bed. Today I got up, checked my weight, I weigh about the same as some small eastern European CARS, and then I put on plastics to really punish myself and I went running.
Let me try and explain how weak this effort was and how out of damn shape I am after 2 weeks of MASSIVE alcohol and food consumption: 1 hour, 25 minutes and I ran a total of about 8 miles. That my friends is what I like to call VERY SLOW.
It was sunny today and I was burning up, especially with the plastics I had on but, I felt I really needed to sweat big time and those did the trick.
After the run I went to the park (after I popped inside and changed my saturated sweat dripping rags) and there I did an abbreviated version of BODY ARMOR, by Lt. Michael Murphy R.I.P. Warrior and then I almost threw up. Then I shadow boxed for 25 minutes. Hands, then hands and elbows, then with knees and finally adding kicks. I had about 20 kids who were all playing in the park staring at me, daring each other to run by me, even a few of them were shadow boxing with each other.
Just planting seeds…planting seeds. Future Masatos there.
So over the next 4 weeks I have to run and insane amount in order to get ready for this race. I have to pull my weight down. I have to get in the gym just in case a fight pops up for me and I have to help some friends that are fighting at the end of April.
I’m pumped!
OK so…a decent video of the “PITBULL” ARLOVSKI training, I found it motivating.
STAY HARD, NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE
Tags: Arlovski video, Hinoshi Ultramarathon, Shadow Boxing, Training with plastics
KettleBell: those damned Russians
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under MMA strength training, Strength Training, high rep training, weight training
Ahhh Kettlebell. Fun fun fun.
I finally got around to ordering one of these, the local sports store only had them up to 10 Kilograms, not impressive Japan, I know. the one I got is 24 Kilos. Its pretty decent too. I am getting beat up by this thing 2 times a week now, usually in the mornings, before I train at the gym in the evening.
For the unintiated the KEttle bell is something the Russkies came up with.
The kettlebell or girya (Russian: гиря) is a cast iron weight looking somewhat like a cannonball with a handle. Many companies produce their own brands of kettlebells and kettlebell exercise programs. Some modern kettlebells feature adjustable weights.
While today, there are sizes that range from 5lbs to 70lbs, the traditional Russian kettlebell is usually one which weighs 1 Pood (roughly 16kg / 35lbs).
Unlike traditional dumbbells, the kettlebell’s center of mass is extended beyond the hand, similar to a Clubbell’s. This allows for swing movements not possible with traditional dumbbells. Because more muscle groups are utilized in the swinging and movement of a kettlebell than during the lifting of dumbbells, a kettlebell workout is said to be more effective, and yields better results in less time.
This translates into alot of pain and efficiency.
My current workout is as follows.
4 sets, each comprised of 5 exercises done for 1 one minute each. I do each in rapid succession, then I take a minute break, then I go into the next set. The entire workout then, only takes 24 minutes plus a brief body weight warm up.
1- Upper cut, double handed swings, coming fromlow right to upper left, then low left to upper right.
2- Over hand swings, double handed, upper right to lower left, then upper left to lower right.
3- Clean and press, alternating arms, I never set the weight down, just take it to waist level.
4- Two handed swing, alot like a dynamic deadlift, the kettlebell is swung between the legs,and up to eye level.
5- Squat, Kettlebell held at chest level and you squat all the way into the hole and up.
Like I said, I do 4 sets (for now, more soon) and I get only a one minute break. I assure you, try it and your heart will be pounding, your muscles aching and your stomach in a knot.
Pointers- I, as you can see, have wrapped the handle of my kettle bell in medical tape. It helps once your juices are flowing to kee ahold of it.
Next, do not set the weight down during your set, even if you are exhausted and cant get another rep, hold onto it and support its weight somehow. This is going to drastically increase your grip strength. I usually cool down after this by shdow boxing for 20 minutes.
You can feel this workout in your joints, all those connective fibers, and in your glutes and hammies. Great for increasing strength, speed and endurance. It also, as I have noticed in just 4 weeks, really does alot for your metabolism.
Tags: Kettlebell, MMA strength training
The Moment: A few pictures from Magnum 22
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under Event Report, Kickboxing
I wrote about Mutsuki Ebata and Sacrifices, here are some images from that night.
This was a night that will not soon be forgotten. Congrajulations Mutsuki, you earned every moment.
Tags: Eric Barnes, Fly weight champion, Korakuen Hall, Mutsuki Ebata, Rionne McAvoy, Shin Nihon Kickboxing
Making Sacrifices
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under Kickboxing, Motivation, News
Making Sacrifices
One of my New Years resolutions was to post more frequently on this blog. I was excited about this idea but also a little weary because, in order to post on this blog, it is necessary that I do something special. That might sound like an oxymoron to some, but a fear of failure can be intense. I often feel that what I am doing simply does not warrant blog attention. I am fortunate though in my life to be surrounded by people that are doing the type of things that deserve attention. Mutsuki Ebata is one of these people. Last night I was lucky enough to be seated 5 meters south of ringside at Korakuen hall and I got to watch this kid humiliate and essentially own the now FORMER fly weight champ, Hiroki Koshikawa. From the bell of round 1 untill the end of round 5, Mutsuki was faster, more technical and more aggressive. By the end of round 2, Koshikawa was simply trying to survive. Mutsukis straight right hand, that gracefully flowed from his cheek and slipped subtly passed the outside of Hoshikawas guard, continually clipped the former champ, badly bruising him. The repeated body kicks, horrible hard kicks like someone hitting you in the torso with a baseball bat, landed time and again. Mutsukis use of boxing style body shots, a rarity in many kickboxing bouts were sublime. Finally his elbows, these were upright, in line, clean and precise, no desperation or lack of intent, they repeatedly found their mark on Hoshikawas forehead. At the end of the 5th round everyone knew who had won, it was undeniable, even in a country famous for screwing people out of decisions, this would have been nearly impossible. Mutsuki Ebata was now the new Champ.
Mutsuki Ebata
Mutsuki Ebata is one of the 19 year old twin brothers I nick named “The Double Dragons” when I first saw them sparring together back in 2005. He was 14 then. Now, 19 years old, last night at the MAGNUM 22 event, he became the Shin Nihon Kickboxing Fly weight champion.
I know many people reading this, and more still who saw the event muttered the words “My god, to be 19 year’s old and champion, lucky kid.” I even thought this to myself but then, I reflected on what I know of Mutsuki and what I know about what he has been through and the sacrifices he has made over the year’s because there have been many. Luck? Luck has nothing to do with any of what happened last night. Mutsuki Ebata lives and breathes kickboxing and he has as long as I have known him when he was a tiny little amateur tornado destroying all comers side by side with his brother. When he was still in Junior High school, he spent his vacations sleeping on apartment floors of more senior gym members just to be closer to the Home Gym, Ihara Dojo for a week or two. While other kids were sleeping in or even going to Jyuku or studying to prepare for High School entrance exams, Mutsuki Ebata was studying the human body and how it can be made to do amazing things. When the time came for him to decide between going to High school or training more, he choose to forego high school, for a time, and focus on his dream. That is a Sacrifice. He wakes up every morning, cold, rain, hot, humid, beat up and bruised or just mentally exhausted, he wakes up every morning and runs, then after the run, in an alley behind a building or in a quiet park lit by the sunrise you can find him shadow boxing for 40 minutes. He doesn’t go through the motions, every punch, every slip, check, right hand, elbow, knee and graceful head high round kick is thrown as if he is in the fight at that moment. He looks at himself, assesses his weakness and consciously tries to fix them. On some days, if his part time job at the local fitness center (a 10 minute walk from the Gym, not by accident I assure you) allows him the time, he is at the boxing gym across town, a dirty, gritty hole in the wall called Kimura Gym, to sparr with professional boxers and get punching advice to refine his game that much more. He goes to THEIR house and sparrs with them under THEIR ideal rules and conditions because it is harder. Then, after that, he makes his way to Ihara Dojo for more training, sparring, neck wrestling etc. Not to mention the “tough love” from the boss and head coach Mr. Ihara. Mitts with him can often hurt you more than an actual punch in a fight. At least then the other guy is wearing a glove.
Mutsuki Ebata wakes up everyday and he Sacrifices, he does THE RIGHT THING, EVERYDAY. How many people can honestly say that? Can you?
Tags: Ihara Gym, Kickboxing, Korakuen Hall, Magnum 22, Making Sacrifices, Mutsuki Ebata, Shin Nihon Fly Weight Champion, The double Dragons
My weight training
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under Boxing, Kickboxing, MMA strength training, high rep training, power kicking, power punching, weight training
I train at a gym, a kickboxing gym, that it is fair to say, is pretty old school.
Weights…sure we have weights. There are a couple dumbbells, some rusty kettle bells and a few dirty medicine balls. There are two simple cast iron pull up bars bolted into the walls and there are about 4 sit up benches.
Weight lifting is just not something that is big in my gym.
One thing I have noticed however is that, the strongest, most consistent fighters I have met, in my gym and out, all of them use some kind of regular strength training routine that incorporates moving around heavy objects.
I am not big on weight lifting.
Years ago, in the military I was doing it regularly and although I was strong, I was always paying for it. Shoulder pain, knee pain, lower back pain especially was chronic.
Since I got involved seriously in prize fighting however, all this has been going away. I have traded that chronic weight training pain for sour hands, painful wrists and the occasional broken nose.
I do however notice the difference in power when I life and when I dont. so I did some research. I read some books. I tried some things. I decided not to beleive that bench press and squats are the best way to develop dynamic, explosive power.
So what do I do? High reps.
Thats right…I do high reps. I come from a strength training background in which if you got caught doing high reps, you got bitch slapped. So this transition was not so smooth.
I has been however very beneficial. I have alot of power in my punches and I can feel a tightness in my torso movements when I slip, roll or even when I get hit, kicked or kneed that I like.
The routine Im using is simple, straight forward and it works.
Get a couple dumbells, Im doing this with 4o lbs deals.
I do this whole routine in quick succession, about 1 minute between sets and I do it twice, usually before my training in the afternoons Monday and Wednesday.
DBell press flat. X 5o reps.
DBell rows standing X 5o reps
Lateral raise X 2o reps -4os are pushing it for lat raises.
Lunges X 5o reps -this is fun-
Hammer curls X 4o-5o reps first unilaterally then going to bilateral for burn out
Over head Tri ext X 5o reps
Shrugs X 1oo reps
Thats it. Two sets only takes about ten minutes but I feel it something good.
Keep in mind I do lots of pushups and pullups and abs and sprints and cycling and all sorts of other crap in addition to kickboxing wrestling. I have found this workout gets the job done without exposing you to the kind of joint pain that often precedes a training injury.
Good luck with it.
Tags: Combat sports conditioning, high rep training, HITT, kicking power, puching power, weight training
October Updates: Scott Schaffer and Martin Schatz and MAGNUM 21
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under Event Report, Kickboxing, News
October is a Busy month!
Summer in Tokyo anyway, is long gone and Everyone is looking forward to the Autumn action.
I am training with people at Ihara Dojo to help them get ready for “Magnum 21″ on October 25th.
Ikeda is back in the Ring to defend his title and has enlisted the help of Former Champion Fukatsu to get that razors edge in his training and sparring.
I am also getting ready for fight I hope will be in November…training hard. Regular work with a new boxing coach the former Champ and now actor (dirty Yakuza films only) Takeshi Yamato my hands and stamina are looking better and better.
Scotty Schaffer Is on the move again in Asia. He is with Bob Sapp as he and Bob hit Hong Kong and Tokyo for two seperate bouts that Bob has committed too. Scotty has recently been working with coach Ivan Sallavarry to keep his game sharp untill he can get back over to Japan in December or early next year.
I am wishing Scotty all the luck in the world on whatever fight comes his way next, getting back to Japan and running around as a member of the Sapp circus.
Finally….my boy Martin Schatz just kicked another ass in his latest amateur bout in California. He scored a standing 8 count and two other stoppages but the fight went on to him winning the decision and right fully so.
Congrats Martin, looking for more wins from you in the near future!
Stay hard and remember pain is just weakness leaving the body.
Tags: Bob Sapp, Boxing, Eric Barnes, Kickboxing, Magnum 21, Martin Schatz, Scott Schaffer, Takeshi Yamato
July 5th 7 hour team Enduro at Fuji Speedway Circuit- by Keith Powell
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under Cycling, Event Report, News
Keith Powell a member of the Team Ataque Masivo tells the tale of how he and his Team came from nowhere to kick ass and take names!
Our race started way back in May. Cycle racing in Japan is not a spur of the moment decision! Applications usually have to be made at least six weeks before the race and often fill up within two days. As the race required registration and number allocation on the day before we also had to find somewhere to stay. The wonderful Green Plaza Fuji fit the bill perfectly!
Fuji Green Plaza Hotel
We set off from Setagaya on Saturday afternoon after picking up some supplies for the evening. I have a rack on the back of the car that can hold 3 bikes. Mine goes inside with the one rear seat down. Two others go on the back. My “superb” navigation skills took us to Gotemba where we got hopelessly lost until seeing a van with bikes on top. “Follow that van! It must be going to the track!” And sure enough it was!
Registration was easy, sign in, pick up your race numbers and free sports drink and a list of instructions. Our team number was 007 so we had a license to KILL! We then had to find the hotel. Mikes iPhone navi was doing its usual trick of losing its signal every 3 minutes so we asked one of the other racers if he could check on his car navi which way we had to go. The guy was a star and told us to follow him there! He drove 20 minutes out of his way just to help us! Only in Japan. We all agreed to not kick his back wheel if he was in front of us in the race!
That evening we loaded up on the carbs. I had made a tuna and pasta salad to compliment our French bread and cheese selection. This was washed down with a rather nice bottle of South African Pinot Noir and a couple of beers.
Race day morning we were up early and straight down for a breakfast of eggs, bacon and as much toast as we could eat. A quick stop at the 7-11 to buy race supplies, ice for the 4 liter water cooler, snacks, bananas, and pocari sweat. Then to the track to get a good place in the pit area. Dooh! Turned out that everyone had beaten us to it! But we managed to snag some space in the shade just outside pit no. 16.
The race was being held at Fuji Speedway Circuit, which is the full F1 track owned by Toyota.
This graph show the up down nature of the course. Total lenght is just over 4.5 km. The start is fairly flat, going downhill for about a kilometer, then up down to the finish line.
We were entered in the 7 hour team endurance race. The rules for which are, teams can have from 3 to 6 riders, each team has a transponder band that goes around the ankle of the rider. Rider changes are made in the pit lane. One rider comes in, the ankle band is changed over and the next rider goes out. Teams can use any number of bikes and can change rider at any time. The 7 hour event had 82 teams. There were several other races all starting at the same time.
(1) 100km individual race (22 laps)
(2) 200km challenge 7 hours to finish 200 kms
(3) 4 hour team race where all riders ride at the same time.
All team members distances are added to find the winner.
(4) Team 5 hour endurance race
There were going to be more than 2000 riders on the starting line!!
This meant that the start was going to crowded and chaotic at best! Or dangerous and full of crashes at worst!
(Last minute preparation in the pits. 30 mins before the start Micheal finds a split in his tire! )
Our team plan was to have Michael as our starting rider. Get on the grid early to secure a position near the front. At the gun go out fast and stay at the back of the pack of fast riders and out of trouble. Our first rider change would be after 4 laps.
After a long count down they were off….. Sadly a lot of riders were really off! sliding along the tarmac!! Lycra doesn`t offer much protection. The first two laps were chaos! We never saw Micheal and started to wonder if he was one of the fallers. Then on lap 3 we saw him in perfect position getting a nice pull at the back of the front runners. I was next out so it was time to put down the coffee and get my helmet on! I got us a 2 lap penalty at the Arakawa enduro for forgetting to put my helmet on. The other members will NOT let this happen again!
Our first and all other change overs were pretty slick. Jess took the band from Mike`s leg , put it around mine and I`m off in seconds. The fast group are still on the track but have made about 200 meters on me during the change over. I managed to catch them just before the uphill section and settled into my rhythm, 80-90 rpm and heart rate around 85%. Riding in a group is much easier than solo riding. The front rider of a pack is using 10-20% more energy than the riders in his wake. Thats why you always see cyclists in a long drawn out line. This is perfectly legal and fair, and is part of the sport. If you are in a group like this, you are expected to take your turn pulling at the front.
I was feeling fine at the end of the 4th lap so stayed with the fast group for one more lap before pitting in for Jess to start his efforts. Our 4 lap plan also had a plan B in that we would come in after 3 laps if we were feeling tired and our average time was dropping. The next rider would always be ready to go out. In between rides we kept our blood sugar level high by eating cakes, chocolate cookies and other assorted snacks all kept cool in the team cooler box. I have to admit that our pit area was one of the most professional! Cooler box, camp chairs, tool box, work stands only thing missing was the bikini girl with the umbrella!
We changed riders a few more times, the fast group had either been lost or disintegrate in the change overs, so we were now riding solo for most of the race. At one point I overtook a small group of riders who then jumped on my tail for the pull. After a few kilometers I moved left for the following rider to take the lead but he just sat on my tail…. At the start of the climb I put in a quick burst to breakaway, at the top of the climb I was alone again.
After pitting in I went for a wander around the pit area. Most endurance races have an hourly update showing the leaders. I noticed a group of people looking at monitors suspended from the ceiling in the pit. These were showing real time video of the track from various angles and current leader boards. The screen flipped over and there we were … Ataque Masivo in 2nd place after 3 hours! The leader was 20 seconds ahead. The next time the screen changed ,we were in the lead by 45 seconds. “Just don`t let any riders with green numbers pass!”
We were now changing rider after 3 laps and maintaining a good pace. Our lead continued to grow over the passing hours. There were now fewer riders on the track as the 100km and 4 and 5 hour races had ended. It was almost all solo riding from here in, with no drafting opportunities. The hill before the straight was starting to take a toll, legs were getting tired!
With about 45 minutes to go I checked the leader board one last time before going out for my last laps. Our lead was now more than a lap. Only a puncture or crash could keep us off the podium. Time to play safe, leave plenty of room overtaking and stay away from any groups of riders on the corners. As Micheal came into the pit lane he was followed by one of the safety motorcycles. This one had a banner on the back…. leader! This motorcycle would stay about 10-15m in front of me and sound his horn for slower riders to move off the racing line as we passed them. I remembered getting lapped by a group of pros during my first 100km race at Motegi circuit in January and seeing a similar motorcycle. Much better circumstances this time! I don`t know whether it was the presence of the “leader” motorcycle or the knowledge that these were my last laps so I could give it everything I had left, but my second to last lap was my fastest of the day. I managed to sprint the last half kilometer! Luckily Micheal was able to stop me falling off the bike in my exhausted state. Jess would now do 2 laps then pit in for Micheal to finish 2 laps and take the checkered flag! I could now take off my helmet and cycle shoes, relax and watch the finish with the one beer that was left in the cooler!
The finish line had a big digital clock hanging above it. When this reached 7 hours a loud horn blasted and the race was over. Micheal crossed the line with his hands in the air ( been watching too much Tour de France) and a big grin on his face. The loudspeaker then announced the race results totally murdering our team name! We had 20 minutes before the award ceremony so decided to load our kit into the car ready for the home journey.
On the Podium!
They had a pretty female announcer to read out the positions and call riders to the podium. I joked with Micheal that she would have trouble with his name ( Polukosko). She did! And Jess and my names too! We all climbed onto the podium and were awarded an engraved glass plaque, a cerificate, some bike goods, a crate of sports drinks and a huge bottle of shampoo! This was just a dummy bottle, we later received a years supply through the post. The prizes were presented by a cycle journalist. I later recognized him on TV as one of the studio experts during this years Tour de France.
The final result!
After the awards ceremony and photo taking, we took a show in the excellent facilities at Fuji Speedway. We didn’t want to be stinking up the car on the way home. First track played through the car speakers on my iPod……..
Queen….. We are the Champions!
Team ATAQUE MASIVO
Team Ataque Masivo`s next Endurance race is a re-run of this race, 7 hours at the same track on October 24th. Hopefully our team jerseys will be ready by then.
Tags: Ataque Masivo, Cycling, Fuji Speedway circuit, Japan Cycling, Keith Powell, Race report
Muay Thai Master, Shin Nopadetsorn
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under Training
Shin Nopadetsorn
Born:1979, January, 29th.
Nationality: Thai
134 fights, 108 wins, 25 Kos.
Weapon of choice: Right leg rounds house, Knees
I first met “Nop” at the very end of 2003 at Ihara dojo in Tokyo, Japan. I was in Tokyo on a training vacation checking out various kickboxing and MMA clubs and was going to catch the new years eve PRIDE FC show at Saitama super arena. Originally my focus had been on the “Takada Dojo” home of the legendary Kazushi Sakuraba as I was doing MMA in California.
As it turned out, Takada dojo was not too impressive and I told a Japanese friend this after training. I think she took this as an attack on the integrit of Japan as a nation state or something, because through a friend she arranged for me to have some serious training at Ihara dojo the next day. This was when I met NOP.
At that time, Fui Chalmsak was also a coach/trainer at Ihara dojo and although I didnt know much about kickboxing at the time, it was clear to me that both of these guys knew their shit big time.
Below is a photo of me on my first day at Ihara dojo, Nop is to my left in the photo, Yuk, or Fuji Chalmsak is to my right.
Training with Nop is amazing yet horrid. He is SO good, his technique is SO sublime, tha at times it can crushing when you re-alize “I am never ever going to be a ble to do that.” This as particularly true in regards to his kicks and knees. with very little run way he could generate an amazing amount of force with his knee strikes. His balance is superb, allowing him the ability to kick, punch and knee at any time with maximum power.
Generally Nop didnt care about KO’s. He said “A win is a Win.” Trying to Knock people out leaves you oen to get knocked out alot of the time so he kept it all inside and tight. His kicks are devastating and would soften peole up for knees inside.
I once saw him break a guys arm in the 2nd round with a round kick because he said “My cell phone bill is fucking crazy this month, I need the KO bonus badly.”
The other most impressive things about NOP are that he remains largely unknown despite an amazing record and wins over great opponents and multiple champion belts in Thailand and abroad. Also, he is the most relaxed, laid back and low key guy you will ever meet. One would be more likely to take hi for a dancer of some sort with his sft voice and upright posture than for a wrecking machine.
The point of all this- if ever you have a chance to train with this man or see him in action, which wont happen many more times as he is getting older and has been at it for far too long, you should take advantag and do it. You will be impressed.
Tags: Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Shin Nopadetsorn
Rapid weight loss, log 3
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under Rapid weight loss, extreme diet
Today is….august 24th.
Im not doing to hot.
Sitting solid at 102 kilos.
The worst part is that its my fault. Well…me and the beer.
But good news is that I feel great. Lots of energy and my power is sky high.
I was at the beach saturday and got some comments, I mean good ones, not insults, about my build etc.
Dont get me wrong, Im still just a big hairy man the crawled out of a cave in the mountains but shedding that 7 kilos made a difference I think.
Got to drive on now!
Have a goal to reach.
Ouch… proper hook technique
Posted by EBarnes | Filed under Kickboxing
I can tell you this much….
Do not punch with your thumb.
Tuesday I got into the ring to work mitts with my coach NOI.
No kicks, just punches and movement.
Easy enough right?
Wrong.
Although its been said that my boxing is my strong suit, I’m not so sure now.
I was half way through the 4 minute round, feeling good, loving the satisfying “CRACK CRACK CRACK” the mitts make when my punches connect, sounds alot like a 22 rifle being fired.
Im big, Im moving faster than a big man should, rifle-esque report echoing around the basement gym which is Ihara gym, all eyes on me and then Noi held for my left hook, my best punch and my mind is on alot of things other than what Im doing so at full speed I manage to connect with the pad with my thumb. My thumb nail to be more precise.
Ouch.
I damn near ripped it off but I finished the round strong and remembering to stay focused or dont bother.
So today the area under my thumb nail is a not so attractive dark purple.
This prompted me to think about my hook, which prompted me to write this blog entry.
The hook in boxing and the hook in Thai kickboxing is different…in fact…Ive worked with about 10 different coaches over the years in boxing and kickboxing and I have seen 10 different variations on how to throw a hook.
The hook is a sneaky little bastard. It can come out of nowhere and its a very dangerous weapon, its also very strong, not unlike a right straight but its closer to the target so its readily more accessible than a right straight.
Freddy Roach (world famous boxing super coach) has said “Only suckers get hit with the right hand.” He is a big advocate of the jab and the left hook.
One of the principle differences I have noticed in the boxing hook compared to the kickboxing one the tendencey to wind up used by thai fighters and alot of kickboxers.
The left shoulder is brought back just before the left foot steps in hence providing the hook with more run way if you will and more power in total. Most boxing coaches Ive worked with dont like that, its a tell, a signal to the keen observer that your going to hook. I however, load up all my punches.
Heavy weights are expected to hit hard.
The lead foot pivoting with the punch in order to involve the legs is another widely used technique, one not taught by my coach….I am not sure why but I think it has to do with the rythum he likes. Big punches followed by big kicks, always from the furthest distance possible to stay clear of the elbows (elbows in muay thai are like knives, and allowed in the matches) so the pivot doesnt really fit in. Most of the power is coming from the shoulders, back and just sitting down on the punches.
The hand position seems to be another bone of contention when discussing hooks.
Should the palm be facing the person throwing the punch or should it be facing the floor? Ive heard arguments for both. palm down connects harder and has more torque, palm facing you is anatomically more correct hence a harder punch.
Whatever. I punch palm facing me because it feels more comfortable.
The big point here is to make sure you are throwing the hook and connecting the your knuckles and NOT your fingers. I was wearing a glove Im not used to when I hurt my thumb so perhaps that had something to do with it, but its more likely that I just wasn’t paying attention and I connected at an odd angle, nearly ripping my thumbnail off.
From my perspective the following points should be observed when using the hook:
From your guard position…
1. Pull your guard in tight but keep your chest high, chin down.
2. Draw your lead shoulder back a bit while keeping your guard high and tight.
3. Step straight into your target with your lead leg.
4. As your step, keeping your legs slightly bent, maintaining general balance, bring your lead shoulder forward and around.
5. As your shoulder rotates forward, let the momentum carry your hooking lead hand in a decent ark, not too wide or too tight, like a rainbow (lovely analogy).
6. Make sure your fist is CLOSED on impact and your knuckles land squarly.
7. You should being trying to punch THROUGH the target, imagine ripping the persons head completely off.
8. Whether you hit or miss, keep your balance and return quickly to a good guard position.
This is a very thai style hook, its how my coach teaches it and how I punch now. Its also the most efficient for generating knock out power that I have experienced.
Remember….10 coaches, 10 different hooks.
