Some training tips and nutritional guidelines:
Do you need to be fit to defend yourself when most street fights last less than ten seconds and rarely more than a minute? Well it certainly helps! Here are 8 reasons why:
1. Any self-defence skill requires repetitive training, which requires fitness.
2. Aggression plays a major role in the outcome of almost any fight. Most people have to develop their aggression through the right type of rigorous training regime.
3. Mental toughness is another vital element in a self-defence situation and generally comes from demanding physical training.
4. Adrenaline can sap a person’s energy very quickly. A good level of fitness should leave enough ‘fuel in the tank’ to cope with this.
5. Fit people can metabolise adrenaline more effectively and, if they have trained in a combat-oriented way, they experience a lower adrenaline release in a crisis, anyway.
6. The ability to fight all-out requires a good level of anaerobic fitness, but most training tends to be aerobic. It is important to train anaerobically, as well.
7. A fit, well-toned body is less prone to injury when sudden extreme effort is needed without an opportunity to warm-up and stretch properly in a self-defence situation.
8. Fitness creates confident, self-assured body language, which can act as an effective subconscious deterrent to a predatory criminal looking for an easy target.
Your fitness training programme should include both aerobic and anaerobic elements, as well as some toning and flexibility. Strength is not essential, but knowing how to generate maximum power from body movement is. Our Combat Fitness programme addresses these issues.
As an ideal minimum, you should aim to do three 45 minute workouts each week, at a vigorous aerobic level (where you're breathing hard, but talking is still manageable) and include some anaerobic 'bursts', of flat-out 100% effort where talking is impossible, for as long as you can sustain the effort. Stretching is also important.
Diet, or nutrition, plays an important role in developing physical fitness and supplying the body with a reserve of readily-available energy should the need arise. A reasonably well-balanced diet, tailored to suit an individual’s training regime as well as their general lifestyle, is therefore an important element of combat fitness.
Food consumption should be controlled in three respects; the balance between carbs, proteins and fats; total calorific intake; and essential vitamins and minerals.
For most purposes the balance should be roughly 40% carbs, 30% proteins and 30% fats. The fats should be polyunsaturated, not monounsaturated or saturated.
Carbs come in two forms; simple and complex. Both have nutritional value but enter the bloodstream at different rates to be converted into glycogen for energy. Complex carbs provide a slow release of energy, which is ideal to fuel a workout. Simple carbs provide a rapid supply of energy, which is better for restoring your energy levels quickly after a hard session.
Complex carbs are found in starch-based plants and grains, like potatoes, rice, pasta and cereals. For example, porridge oats is an ideal breakfast before a day’s training. Granary and wholemeal bread should be used for toast and sandwiches.
Simple carbs, which should be consumed in moderation, are found in white bread, biscuits, cakes, buns, sweets, and sugary cereals and drinks.
Proteins are important because the amino acids contained in the structure of muscle fibres are built from proteins. In order to maintain and develop healthy muscle mass a good blend of carbs and proteins is essential.
Good sources of protein include lean meats, with white meat and fish being healthier than red meat (from a fat content perspective); eggs; cheese (but watch the fat content); milk (preferably skimmed or semi-skimmed); yoghurt; beans; nuts; soya and tofu products; hummus; and green leafy vegetables.
Fats contain more calories per gram than proteins and carbs, which can be a problem (from a weight gain perspective), as is the type of fat consumed.
Monounsaturated and saturated fats are a major contributor to heart disease and consumption should be avoided or very limited. Polyunsaturated fats are healthy to eat in moderate quantities, bearing in mind that they should contribute no more than 25-30% of daily food consumption.
Fats play an important role in the storage and generation of energy. Ideal sources are; olive oil, sunflower oil, safflower oil, oily fish and nuts.
Butter and margarine should be used in moderation, with olive oil being a better choice of dressing.
Animal fats are unhealthy, so meat should always be trimmed as much as possible, and cooked in a way that allows much of the remaining fat to be drained as it is cooked. Vegetable oil is not a good form of fat to use in cooking.
A useful guide is to avoid any kind of fat that is solid at room temperature, like lard, butter, hard cheeses and bacon, for example.
Fruit and vegetables are a major source of essential vitamins and minerals, and the standard advice is to eat five portions a day. How much food is in five portions a day?
According to the Food Standards Agency, one portion is 80 grams. Typical quantities representing one portion include:
1 apple, banana, pear, orange or similar sized fruit
2 plums or similar sized fruit
½ a grapefruit or avocado (but avocados are high in monounsaturated fat)
1 slice of large fruit like melon or pineapple
3 heaped tablespoons of vegetables (raw, cooked, frozen or chilled)
3 heaped tablespoons of beans and pulses (e.g. lentils)
3 heaped tablespoons of fruit salad (fresh or tinned in fruit juice) or stewed fruit
1 heaped tablespoon of dried fruit (e.g. raisins and apricots)
1 handful of grapes, cherries or berries
1 dessert bowl of salad
150ml glass (¼ pint) of fruit juice
Note that potatoes and rice are not considered as vegetables for these purposes.
The recommendation is to aim for maximum variety, to ensure a broad nutritional intake, rather than doubling or tripling the amounts of a narrow range. Obviously, greater quantities of one type can be consumed, but they should only be counted as one portion for that day, especially in respect of fruit juice, and beans and pulses.
For the pragmatist, a simple rule of thumb is to consume about one pound in weight of varied fruit and veg during one day. 1lb is 450g. If one portion is 80g, then 5 portions x 80g = 400g.
Calorie counting is only really an issue if you are over- or under-weight. The basic rule of thumb is that an adult female needs around 2,000 cals per day, and a male needs around 2,500.
To lose weight you most increase your activity level and reduce your calorie intake, but don't starve yourself as it slows down your metabolism so that your body can hang on to the fat longer. Fad diets don't work because you slip back into your old habits when you get sick of the unnatural diet.
Aim to adjust your diet to a well balanced range of foods that you can stick with permanently. Moderation and variety are the key. Adjust the quantities, and your activity levels, until the weight comes off slowly but consistently. Be patient.
To join our Combat Fitness classes, call Phil: 07985 22 66 56.