There are a lot of different strength training programs out there. Some focus on timing (when to work out as opposed to which exercises to do), some on tempo, some on poundages, and so forth. One popular type of program is to describe in detail a small set of exercises - somewhere around 2 or 3, but sometimes more, - and claim that doing these particular exercises produces an overall strength increase sufficient for most people's functional needs. Some of these programs have you build up to these exercises by starting with easier versions (so the "royal" exercise might be pullups, but if you can't do them, you do assisted pullups or body rows or whatever until you can do "real" pullups).  Some of them also overdo the promotional advertising and claim truly magical results from doing that particular combination of movements.

The first such program I heard of (although it may not be the first one) was Matt Furey's Combat Conditioning. If you're not familiar with it, he basically tells you to do Hindu Squats, Hindu Pushups, and neck bridges in large numbers (as in building up to hundreds of repetitions). Many of Pavel Tsatsouline's programs/ books take this format as well. Enter the Kettlebell? Swings and... I can't remember - is it swings and presses or swings and snatches? (sorry!). Naked Warrior? Pistols and one-armed pushups. Power to the People? Deadlift and bent press. You get the idea. Simplefit is pushups, pullups, and air squats done in a variety of routines (for time, max reps, sets, etc.) In a way, many powerlifting and O-weightlifting programs take this format, at least the ones that really emphasize the 3 core lifts, but that's more a function of the competition - if you're going to snatch in competition, you'd better make the snatch a BIG part of your regular workouts.

I like these programs a lot (although some are definitely better than others). Why?

• They're simple. There are only so many variations you can do on 2 or 3 exercises, and it's certainly many fewer than can be done with 12 or 15.
• They give you a chance to really master those movements. Look at Pavel's stuff in particular. You focus on those 2 movements, but he gets really technical about how you generate tension and so forth, so you get a chance to really master the form in a way you wouldn't if you were trying to learn many movements at once.
• They require either little or minimal equipment. By definition, you aren't going to need to buy 7 different pieces of equipment to do 2 exercises.
• They are usually brief. I imagine there are some very high volume limited exercise programs out there, but most of these programs can be accomplished fairly quickly. Compare them to a typical 75 to 90 minute bodybuilding routine with 12 exercises and you'll see what I mean.
• These programs won't overkill any particular movement pattern. It's not like you're going to overtrain your quads by hitting them 6 different ways - if you're only doing 2 exercises it's fairly easy to pick 2 that won't overlap much.
• The exercises chosen are usually efficient, compound movements that involve the core nicely.
• Once you learn these movements you can focus your skill training on mastering your martial art instead of on strength training.

Are there any downsides? I think so.

• Some people might find these boring.
• No set of 2 or 3 exercises is going to adequately build strength in every range beneficial to a martial artist. In fact, one of the planes of movement that I think is most important to a fighter is usually underworked - hip adduction and abduction. Hip abductors and adductors are both very important for lateral movement and for kicking high. You're not going to find 2 exercises that will produce the right amount of strength everywhere you might want it although some might come close.

I've been trying to come up with my own royal flush of exercises, narrowing down my routines to the smallest possible handful of exercises that cover all your strength bases. I'm not sure how successful I've been, but here's my stab at things:

I figured I'd start with the core exercise for developing punching power - the kettlebell swing. Then I needed something for hip abduction/ adduction. Isometric stretching is okay, but it won't do anything but adduction, and I wanted something more general. Then I needed an upper body exercise that would work the core nicely so you'd be able to transfer all that hip drive into your punches and blocks.

Joe Berne's patented (not really) Royal Flush of exercises:

1. Kettlebell swings - works glutes, hamstrings, lower back, and shoulders - produces the "hip snap" that drives all your strikes.
2. Side lunges - works adductors, abductors, and knee extension for high, powerful kicks.
3. Scott Sonnon's 1/4 Turkish Getup. Perfect for generating punching power with the upper body. My new favorite exercise.

Ta daa... And you can do the whole routine with a single kettlebell. You might want a few kettlebells, of different weights, but you won't need two at once.

Are these enough to develop overall strength? I don't really think so. Are they enough to get a pretty good start on striking powerfully with the hands and feet AND moving yourself out of the way of your opponent's strikes? I think so.

I'm a little concerned about hip abduction (not having your hips kidnapped, I mean lifting your legs to the side) but I have a hard time finding good abduction-centric exercises. If you know of any (other than leg weighted leg raises) please post to comments.

I'm also concerned about strength imbalances. Is there enough upper body pulling with the back hand drive on the getup and the swings? I don't really think so. I'd like to add renegade rows or bodyweight rows or pullups, but that brings us to 4 exercises. Still, this is a pretty good start.

One other option is to do these routines (Pavel's, Furey's, mine, simplefit, whatever) in a rotating way. Assuming you've learned the movements, you could pick 2 days a week for strength training and alternate these routines. Week 1 do Enter the Kettlebell, then Power to the People. Week 2 do the Royal Court, then the Royal Flush. That way, any set of muscles that are left out by any one plan will most likely get hit by another sooner or later. You'll probably make slower overall progress but might be better rounded and less bored.

I'd also like to learn more about the side lunge. I tend to get knee pain from doing them, and I don't like lifting my foot off the floor with weight in my hand. I'm considering switching to reverse side lunges (you keep the weighted, bending leg in place and slide out the straightened, non-weight bearing leg) or some other variation but haven't worked out all the details yet.

Please post any nice ideas you have for very brief strength training routines!

Osu.

I want to say a little more about speed.

I might be the only one, but I've had the tendency to associate speed increases with an increase in quadricep strength. That is, I think (or have thought) that to get faster I'd have to develop bigger (or stronger, or both) quads. After all, look at high level sprinters - they have outstanding quad develoment. So I've tried to do things like squats (which for my body are a quad dominant exercise for some reason) or even (gasp!) leg extensions to get faster.

The problem is that I'm not a sprinter. Look at what a sprinter does. They start from a crouched position with their feet on those neat little blocks. From there, with legs bent, the initial push can indeed come from straightening the legs - all quads. Then, to maintain their stride, they need to lift the knees high and drive the foot forward with every step - quads again.

But do we do this in sparring? I never take more than two or three steps in any one direction while sparring. I certainly never get my knees as high as they go during a sprinting movement. And I am always moving from a basically upright stance - my knees are bent, but not very, and certainly nowhere near the way a sprinter's are at the beginning of their run, while they're in the blocks.

So what muscles do we use to move forward while sparring? I first realized this because of where I was feeling sore after a long sparring day. It wasn't my quads - it was in my hamstrings and glutes. So I started thinking.

When you move forward from a fairly upright position your quads can't do much. Try it - stand in a fighting stance and straighten your legs forcefully. Unless you keep your back leg kind of coiled underneath you (not a typical fighting stance) you won't get very far. What really happens? To move forward, you have to kind of pull the ground towards your back with both feet. Try it. Grip the ground with your toes and pull it back. What happens? Your body moves forward. What muscles are you using? It's not your quads - it's your glutes and hamstrings. Those are the muscles that pull your legs back, whether the leg starts in front of you or behind you. If you want, you can "load up" your legs to feel this. Face a wall and place both hands against it. Keepign your knees very slightly bent, try to push forward against the wall. You should feel this in your hamstrings and glutes.

What exercise will work these muscles? The squat will, of course, but for many people the emphasis will be wrong - it will get more quads and less the muscles you need to worry about. Deadlifts would work great, with the added advantage of working the back. My favorite, though, to get the real snap - the strength up near the locked out position of the hips - I like kettlebell swings. Heavy swings will make your closing speed (the rate at which you can accelerate forwards out of a fighting stance) better.

What about lateral movement? Well, unless you fight with your feet parallel to one another (which most people don't) anything that lets you drive your legs in any direction (side to side or front to back) will cross over somewhat to movement in other directions ((skip this if you don't care - but think, if your front leg is facing forwards but your back leg is pointing to the side at a right angle to the front, then the same hamstring and glute strength that lets your front leg pull you forward will let your right leg pull you to the right. But you'd get better motion in both directions if your front leg was better at pushing you to the right or left and your back leg could do the same.))

Now which muscles contribute to lateral movement? I don't know the names of all of them (bad me), it's a combination of hip adductors (muscles that let you spread your legs forcefully) and hip abductors (let you snap them together when they're spread). These are muscles in your groin, the outside of your hip, and some of the muscles in the glute area.

How do we work these? Swings won't do it, and neither will squats. I mean, squats will work everything a little, but won't maximize your lateral movement hip muscle strength.

I'm still trying to find the best exercise for this. I've just started doing weighted side lunges, which seem to be doing good things for my lateral speed. A slideboard should help as well. Try Thomas Kurz' isometric stretching exercises. When I think I have the best answers I'll post them.

Once again, you will be a lot faster if your skills improve - that is, if you get better at recognizing the times when you want to move your body by reading your opponent and having good strategic awareness. But that's a separate issue from strengthening the muscles you need to move around, and that's what I'm focusing on for now.

If anybody else has good lateral movement strengthening exercises, post to comments or e-mail me! In the meantime, train hard and don't forget to wash your gi.

Osu.