Sunday, January 27, 2013

The Book!: Fight with All your Strength

I have fun news!

So I've been convinced to make a book of strength and conditioning instruction. And step one is market research.

What do you want to see in the book? What topics?
Here's a first draft chapter list:
  • Needs Analysis - What are the demands of your fighting?
  • Basic Biomechanics of Fighting
  • Assessment/Testing
  • Dynamic Warm-up and Flexibility
  • Agility and Footwork
  • Core Stability Training
  • Strength and Power Essentials
  • Cardiovascular Conditioning
  • Program Design and Periodization
  • Plyometrics
  • Injury Prevention
  • Specifics for Different Kinds of Fighers
    • Grappling and Wrestling
    • Unarmed Striking
    • Cutting
    • Thrusting
    • Wearing Armour
  • Unconventional Training Tools
    • Javelin and Shot put 
    • Sled
    • Chains and bands  
    • Sandbag and bell 
    • Heavy bar, sledge hammer and battle ropes
  •          Environmental Conditions and other Special Considerations
Should there be a separate book for instruction on individual exercises? The above book will say to do squats, does there need to be a separate item for how to do squats? Should it be pocket sized so you can bring it to the gym with you?

I'll be doing a Kickstarter project to generate funds for professional services like editing, layout and photography. What kinds of rewards would interest you?

What haven't I thought to ask?

The book will focus on fundamentals of strength training and explain the science of why particular types of training produce the results we are looking for. The book will contain the building blocks of a successful program. I'm not going to prescribe a very specific program or follow any fads.

The question I've been asked most often is: what the difference is between a more well known (general) strength training book and what I'm working on?
Here is my answer:
My objective is to condense a lot of knowledge on strength training and conditioning, as it relates to weapon martial arts and combat sports, and put it all in one place.

For starters, the basic book on strength training that forms the foundation of my education in the topic is a college level textbook. It's over 400 pages and written as densely as any other biology textbook. But most of it is way more than a fighter needs to know to train well. And it's not at all complete.

I supplement this with several other books and research that covers upper body power development. Taking the relevant exercises from a comprehensive book on power development and putting them in one place. Then I do the same for agility books and research. And for cardiovascular conditioning.

My library also includes a stack of peer reviewed journals, so I'll be including up-to-date information on emerging modes like: mixed intensity interval training, repeated sprint and repeated effort training and rate of force development training. And the point is not that any of these is a fad, but that each of these is supported by numerous studies demonstrating consistent, useful results.

If somebody already has a general purpose book on strength training do they need to have my book? No. But I would hope that I can refine that persons training. Maybe fill in some gaps. Expand it to address previously under-served aspects of training.

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