In part two of Old Guys in the martial arts I gave some examples of older martial artists I’ve met and trained with and how my skills paled in comparison. In this post, I’d like to offer some theories on why that is even possible. Because as John originally said, most people will doubt a 60-year old guy can beat a 25-year old hot-shot in a fair fight. Which is true. But who said anything about fighting fair? :-)
Anyway, to explain the way I think it works, I have to give you some theoretical information first and you’ll have to read all the way to the end for it to make sense. So let’s start by bringing in the man all modern athletes owe a debt of gratitude to: Tudor Bompa.
Tudor Bompa gave the world periodization. This is a systematic approach to optimizing performance in which you alternate different types of training, depending on which phase the athlete is in. If you are serious about training and becoming skilled, there is no way around this concept. In fact, if you’re not applying it, you’ll never achieve your maximum potential. So I very much recommend you read Mr. Bompa’s books, even though some of them are expensive. They’re worth it in how much time they’ll save you in making continued progress. To a large degree, most martial artists ignore periodization though. I should know because I was one of them. Until I learned about it and implemented the system: instant results.
But that’s not why I mention Mr. Bompa’s work. I’m bringing him up for a different reason:
The pyramid
In his excellent book, “The Science of Martial Arts Training“, Charles Staley explains Bompa’s system of classifying different aspects of training an athlete. This classification serves as an analytical tool but also a hierarchical system which helps you create a logical and progressive training environment. Here’s what it looks like: [Read more…]