by Roscovitch Sun Mar 10, 2013 12:45 am
New to the forum, but I thought I could add a little to the discussion. First, I was NSCA certified in a former life and spent many years powerlifting. In regards to deadlifts, I would say that using straps may be a mistake. Developing grip strength for deadlifts requires a little time, but it can be done. I've seen a 200 lb guy rep 700 lbs. Be patient. All the other grip training ideas are great too. I love gi or towel pull ups.
In regards to Tudor Bompa, strength training mentality, and Oly lifts, I thought I would challenge a few things. Read Mark Rippetoe's take on the NSCA (who certify ALL strength coaches). Basically they over complicated strength training to the point that sport coaches could no longer provide workouts, thus guaranteeing them a job. As long as a person does an exercise explosively on the concentric phase, it is developing maximal power. To assume that Oly lifts are the only way to do this is faulty logic. The body doesn't know which weightlifting sport it is doing, it just knows it is under stress. Olympic lifts a incredibly technique oriented, and require alot of coaching (thus requiring a trainer). This is counter productive as one could simplify the lifts and focus technical training on there sport. Also, periodization is difficult with combat sports because it was intially designed for a development of athletes in there off season. Combat athletes have no off season where they do not practice. Therefore, they must be trained the same as an in season athlete. This means that intensity should stay low, making olympic lifting an issue. My practical experience found that the excessive engagement of forearm muscles in the transition to the catch phase of olympic lifts, combined with the forearm stress of judo training resulted in some SERIOUS tendonitis.
I apologise for the length of this, and I am open to others opinions. Basically, if you do a well balanced workout, put maximal effort in the concentric phase of exercises, watch your intensity level, you do not need to worry about "sport specificity" and "explosive training"