Q:   “I want to get stronger, but I avoid weightlifting because I’ve always heard it makes you slow and reduces flexibility. Is this true?” A:  Old-school weightlifting is one of the best ways to build strength. Weight workouts are also a tried-and-true method for improving your personal power output. There are, however, a few secrets to success you may not know. Once you master them, you’ll drastically improve your strength without sacrificing other attributes you need for m

In English, our slang expressions and idioms reflect the role firearms have played in our history. No doubt you've heard many of them: “He's firing with both barrels,” “You should stick to your guns,” and so on. In Japan, the sword was the weapon that dominated. Whether you were a samurai who carried two swords or a member of another class who wore a single long or short sword, the blade played an enormous role in your culture.

When you’re sparring, getting punched is frustrating, not to mention painful. On the street, getting punched can be far more devastating. The reason: Most street punches are thrown at unsuspecting targets. Have you seen any of the so-called “knockout game” videos on YouTube? If so, you’ve witnessed just how dangerous it can be to fully absorb a punch to the head when you don’t see it coming. The danger doesn’t come just from being knocked out; once you’re unconscious, even if

Once avoided for fear it would lead to unwanted weight gain, dietary fat is now embraced by health-conscious martial artists. Scientific research confirms the benefits of eating this macronutrient: It helps your body break down fat-soluble vitamins, increases satiety, provides and stores energy, and even improves heart health. Not all fats are good for you, however, and even the beneficial ones can have their drawbacks.

Q:  You talked about lifting conventional weights for enhanced martial arts performance. What about other forms of weightlifting? A:  There is another type of weight training that deserves discussion. It entails attaching extra weight to your body — specifically, your ankles, wrists, or torso — and then engaging in functional martial arts training. Before I begin, let me say this about “functional training.” All too often, people use the term to refer to a hodgepodge of movem

It will be fascinating for you, if you have the opportunity, to visit one of the museums in the West that have suits of Japanese armor. That’s because feudal Japan took a different approach to body armor than we find in Europe. To some degree, the samurai traded protection for mobility. Rather than using rigid, curved metal sections like the European knights did, the Japanese constructed their armor from an elaborately woven series of leather panels. Roughly half the size of

I'm amused — and, in some ways, delighted — by the comments that still get posted on YouTube regarding the 1987 matchup of Rickson Gracie and me. Judo enthusiasts say they're proud I was able to upend Gracie a couple of times. Any advantage I received, however, disappeared as soon as we hit the ground and I was caught in an armbar. So judoka say judo won, while Brazilian jiu-jitsu stylists insist their art won. It's a true win-win situation for the martial arts.

As the theme song to the 1978 Burt Reynolds movie Hooper noted, “There ain’t nothing like the life of a Hollywood stuntman.” A lot of martial artists take those words to heart. There’s a seeming army of skilled — and not-so-skilled — practitioners of karate, taekwondo, kung fu, and other arts trying to break into the motion-picture industry by making use of their ability to kick and punch, but how realistic is this? What do martial artists interested in stunt work need to kno

On January 29, 2015, the British Journal of Sports Medicine  posted the results of a research study that examined 131 MMA fighters and 93 boxers. It concluded that “greater exposure to repetitive head trauma is associated with lower brain volumes and lower processing speed in active professional fighters.” Although not surprising to many, this inevitably will lead to questions from martial artists who wish to continue to make head contact during training but want to maximize

When asked about the aesthetics of a certain martial arts bout, Helio Gracie  once replied gruffly, “A fight is a fight.” It wasn’t that he didn’t see beauty in the art of jiu-jitsu. He merely thought it was imperative to emphasize that fighting is a serious affair with potentially dire consequences for the loser — and sometimes for his or her family. Judging whether a martial art is good is very different from judging whether a dance or a painting is good. Dancing and painti

“Sensei, is what you’re talking about similar to what Miyamoto Musashi said in Go Rin No Sho  when he was explaining the effects of go no sen ?” This is the sort of question one occasionally hears in the dojo. Of course, we can say that there are no stupid questions, but we need to understand that at times there are inappropriate questions. One of the most inappropriate questions you can ask in the dojo is one that’s intended not to better your understanding of a topic but to

On November 12, 1993, two men stepped into an oddly shaped cage to determine who possessed superior fighting skills. Twenty-six seconds later, the face of the martial arts and the entire sporting landscape had changed forever - although no one knew it at the time. One of those men was a massive sumo wrestler from Hawaii, who fought under the name of Teila Tuli. The other was a lanky Dutch striker named Gerard Gordeau. Their looks weren’t the only thing that was different; the

Every martial artist dreams of training for life—not just hitting a peak in their twenties and fading out, but staying strong, sharp, and motivated well into their fifties, sixties, and beyond. The secret? It’s not about training harder. It’s about training smarter and building habits that keep your body—and your passion—going for the long haul. Here are the habits that can keep you kicking, punching, and rolling for decades: 1. Treat Recovery Like Training You don’t “earn” t

The July 7, 2015, edition of The Washington Post  described an incident in which a man on a moving train allegedly punched a passenger until he fell, then stabbed him repeatedly in the torso and arms until he died. As the crime unfolded, other passengers in the coach watched; not one intervened. The tendency to not get involved, dubbed the “bystander effect,” is becoming the norm these days, particularly in big cities where a sense of community doesn’t exist. Rather than help

Learn How to Deal With Them Now in the Dojo — or Use Your Techniques at Your Own Risk on the Street! I’d arrived early to meet a friend for dinner, but his class was still in session, so I watched from the viewing area. The students were practicing handgun defense under the tutelage of a senior student — which probably explained why it appeared so casual. I’m sure you’ve seen classes like that one, with mundane repetitions, comfortable surroundings and friendly pairings. You

Early Days in Silat Fighters in Southeast Asia have practiced pencak silat for thousands of years, but it didn’t capture the attention of Western martial artists until the late 1980s. Suddenly, the Indonesian system was everywhere, with its vicious counterattacks and precision takedowns attracting self-defense practitioners who wanted the best in street-fighting functionality. As a bonus, it offered a fascinating dose of Asian culture. I had the good fortune of starting my si

Most martial artists know that Fred Weintraub served as producer of Enter the Dragon , the 1973 Bruce Lee blockbuster. What few know is that Weintraub, even though he doesn’t regard himself as a martial artist, has a laudable track record in fight filmmaking. He’s produced a slew of other movies, many of which boasted notable Hollywood stars. Here’s a partial list with some of Weintraub’s fondest memories — and comments from Black Belt ’s resident cinema expert.

NEVER STOP EVOLVING Ricardo Liborio had spent most of the year preparing for a single match against grappling legend Mario Sperry at the Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championship. Then, three weeks out, he fractured his wrist. Nearly 20 years earlier, when Liborio was considered one of the best Brazilian jiu-jitsu competitors on the planet, his career had come to a similarly sudden halt. It happened when a broken jaw and the 11 surgeries required to repair

Known as Burmese boxing in the West and Myanmar traditional boxing in the land of its birth, lethwei is a bare-knuckle fight sport...

My Time With Professor William K.S. Chow It was April 1986, and I was piloting a rental up a long hill in Honolulu. Just as I started to doubt the directions, I topped out and spotted the church. The structure was dark and silent, almost looking abandoned, but nearby stood another building, the fellowship hall. The lights were on, and cars were in the lot. I parked and nervously approached the open door, a briefcase containing my letter of introduction and some photos in han

Senryu are not as familiar to Westerners as the more popular haiku. Senryu look much like haiku, but they don’t usually contain a seasonal word and they’re often more like aphorisms. They’re little bits of doggerel that often contain truths hidden in humor or quiet commentaries on the human condition. There are several senryu that address the life and culture of the samurai class and its martial arts. It’s revealing to look at them because they give us an idea of how the samu

There's something powerfully intimidating about a traditional dojo. It looks like nothing we have in the West. What is intimidating is the emptiness of it all. There’s nothing to distract, nothing to divert one’s attention. The emptiness, severe and silent, can work on the mind. This emptiness is deliberate. Life is full of distractions. Many of them serve to keep us from looking into ourselves, a process that can be uncomfortable. We can distract ourselves with video games,

If you’re taking medical advice from someone like me, you have more serious problems than can be addressed in a column. So it is that I never offer any advice on gaining flexibility. If you have questions about improving yours, consult a physical therapist. Unless your sensei has that kind of professional training, he has no business giving you instruction on flexibility other than to say, “This is what has worked for me.” That is what I would say. I can tell you, however, wh

Most combatives practitioners spend a lot of time learning to develop powerful strikes. It’s important to be efficient, to be able to exploit the momentary vulnerabilities your attacker presents and not waste them on half-assed or weak attempts at hitting and hurting. Unfortunately, what people don’t spend enough time on in their martial arts training is understanding the importance of movement, establishing range, and being harder to hit. Sure, the combatives mentality lends