thegirlsclub

[robyn]

Hey i thought about this for some time. I mean- I can weightlift as much as I can, but muscle power alone will never get my blows hard enough.
I think I have some technique, but what I have to learn now is speed and being precise.
My swords are alredy pretty small and as thin as allowed. But sometimes I think they are still too heavy for me to make them really fast. With short LARP-swords I have no problems with getting fast and precise- although hitting really hard is not allowed in larp and they frquently complain that I hit a little too hard.
I am at a point where I am kinda stuck. I put this problem back for a while to work on my defense, but now that I survive a little longer in battle I have to face the problem that I want to be able to kill my opponents. about 50 percent of my shots get called light and this drives me nuts. Because this means without the problem I could actually win 50 percent more battles....

So has anyone of you suggestions on how to improve my speed or some slow work that helps me deal better with the weight of my swords?

Thanks a lot,
Rob
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I'm just a person trapped inside a woman's body.
-Elayne Boosler-

[Wrenn]

I'm a big believer in slow work. I do mine with a light length of 1"x2" cut to the same length as my sword- I also have a super light shield for slow work. Because the sword and shield are not making me tired I can really make sure my shots/ combos are accurate & I can practice my follow through, which helps a with power because I'm not teaching myself to stop a blow just as it hits. Building correct muscle memory is really important for me.

For strength I throw shots with a hammer, I do this while I'm watching TV (:

As for as speed I find cardio really important for me.

I should maybe point out that I'm 6' but I think my thoughts arent really height specific.

[Jesmond]

I have found something very useful to increase my strength and power. I hope this is helpful to the extent increased strength can assist with increased speed

shovelglove(dot)com (I can't post links yet!)

Do not do the full 14 minutes the first day. By the way, the first thing I noticed was how sore my back was. If you have a bad back, go slow and think twice. Now that I have been doing this, I have really strengthened my back, and this seems to have a significant effect on my ability to generate power.

Until last week, my knight had insisted on me using a REALLY light sword. This meant if any aspect of my technique was off, the blow would not land. The new plan is to start with a heavier sword. I think being stronger means I am better able to swing a heavier (not heavy, but heavier) sword which hits with a little more authority.

[freiman the minstrel]

http://www.shovelglove.com/

[SuGyong]

I would actually (and have in the past) fight with heavier swords. Go 2.5" or 3" rattan! You'll be moving the same movements and get a cardio workout while lifting those "weights" and building up stamina and strength.

When you feel you are fighting about what you would normally be without the clubs, then swich back. You'll be so surprised at the speed you can get.

[Cunian]

A lot of speed is mental speed - how fast your brain is reacting to what is happening and deciding what to do about it. Doing your pell work with some imagination - ie Sir Jehan the Brute threw that horrible blow x, so now I pivot and swing y at his ribs. If you practice the scenario at the pell or even in your head going to sleep, you should get faster/better at doing it.

I like that shovelglove site too. Have to try that. Of course I have a fair number of actual digging jobs that do need doing too. *sigh* This yard resembles Sisyphus's (sp) hill.

[Isabella E]

Starting with a really heavy sword and doing slow work means when you get our your whippy stick, you'll be swinging with the same power but less weight. So that's pretty good advice.

It's tough to say without being able to see how you're throwing your shots. Have you looked into some of Duke Paul's stuff on power generation? There's ways to use the rest of your body to increase your shot throwing power without working your butt off to increase muscle strength. But he could probably explain it a lot better than me. When I throw a shot though it starts down in my legs and goes up through my back and shoulders and I pivot just a little bit to give my shots oomph without using arm strength. I have a creaky sword elbow and it aches if I try to just muscle shots with my right arm.

[Terentia]

Ok.. not that I know very much... but Something I work on for speed and power is I do the 1-1 through 6-6.... Its something made up by Jade of Starfellow (FORGIVE me if that name is wrong please I try to get all these names right) and I just work on my combos and speed... I'm sorry if this isn't very helpful.. but I do find it works for me...

[Terentia]

Ok I just need to fix something with that name because I found it out for sure Its Duke Sir Jade of Starfall.... I feel bad when I mess up on names.....

[audax]

So to generate some conversation around here (because it's been kinda dead ) how about we talk more about speed.

If you read the Tao of Jeet Kun Do, Bruce talks about being relaxed whilst fighting. My experience bears this out. I've been training martial arts for many years and if I try to be fast, I'm not. Speed should feel effortless. Relaxation leads to fluid movement which means increased speed. I was taught and passed along when I became a teacher, that good technique comes first. Speed and power will follow along in techniques footsteps. Tension kills speed.

Thinking too much will also impede your speed and power while fighting. Build the neural pathways first (the technical term for muscle memory) so your body moves without your minds intervention.

Much more important than actual physical speed is timing. The elite fighters have mastered this concept and appear faster than they really are. Timing requires years of practice but it allows me to win fights with younger, faster opponents. Patience is a virtue as well.
_________________
Martel le Hardi
squire to Meser Lyonel Oliver Grace, fostered to Sir Gaston de Clermont
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The Minstrel's Champion

[freiman the minstrel]

I was once taught a partner drill that was designed to build hand speed and reaction time.

Two fighters stand on opposite sides of the pell. Fighter one (I will call her the aggressor) throws a normal speed shot at the pell, and fighter two, with no warning on when the aggressor is throwing, tries to get the stick on the pell first. The defender doesn't get to throw until the aggressor throws.

We didn't do the drill long enough for me to make a decision on it's affectiveness, but it felt like we were doing something positive.

Also, doing Karate for nine years will give you fast hands too, but that is beyond normal drill types.

f
_________________
Surf less, fight more

[adamstjohn]

Use your pole. Thrust them in the face.

It works for me.

[Barobrand]

Hi there..

well I'd say that the pole-in-the-face-thing is one option, but if you are trying to get a fester sword then it really not going to work.

The question is:
are you hitting too light?
not fast enought?
not precise enought?
do you pull /push the through the oppoent?
or what?

there are a few things thatI have seen with beginning fighters.
1) a lot do not really mean to hit, the tend to stop before realy making contakt with the target, they do not push the sword far enought , instead the pull it back before the force can be felt.

2) are you realxed? sounds strange, but my fest fights are the ones where I really dont't care if I win or loose. as Aeth can attest.
the more relaxed you are the less hinderance you are to your self.

3) if you are not happy with how the fighting is going, maybe a different form is better for you. .. mabe a 2handed mace or somthig like that?
I tried a center grip oval a few weeks ago and wiped the tounrey feild clean, and this from a person who fights a medium well weapon and shield.

4) is your body tenision there? are you realxed or tense?

I'd say try a few differnt things to see it f there are options you have not thought of..
we all never stop learning..

cheers
Barobrand




one thing that I have seen is that the more relaxed you are the quicker your reflexes.

[Dorothea]

Audax said: