The importance of properly stretching & warming cannot be overemphasized. Particularly as a person gets older, many problems can develop from chronic injuries resulting from improper or non-existent pre exercise warm-ups. The most com-mon injuries in fencing occur when an athlete fails to warm up properly and pulls a muscle or blows a tendon. Some exercises I would recommend are as follows:
POGOS: Simply jumping up and down, with your feet together and your arms and shoulders loosed and relaxed. this should be done for fifteen to twenty seconds.
JUMPING JACKS: The time honored classic calisthenics we all should know from grade school. Ten to twenty times, please. In case you missed these, or have simply blocked out most of your childhood due to whatever childhood trauma you may have experienced, Jumping Jacks are done thusly:
Stand with your feet together, and your arms at your sides. then hop in place, landing with your feet apart and simultaneously swinging your arms up over your head like a bad imitation of a seagull taking off in flight. While hopping again, return to your original position. Repeat fifteen to twenty times.
PALM TWISTS: Stand with your feet at a comfortable distance apart, with your arms extended and parallel to the floor, palms up. Then turn your palm down so that they rotate as far as possible forward. If you can turn your palms more than 360degrees in any direction, SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION IMMEDIATELY! Your wrists are probably broken. Twist each direction eight times consecutively, provided of course your wrists are still intact.
WINDMILLS: Another classic. Stand with your feet slightly more than shoulder width, arms extended parallel to the floor. Then bend at your waist and twist so your right hand touches your left foot. Return to original position. Repeat with left hand/right foot. Repeat ten to twenty times, or until bored.
CIRCLES: While standing with your feet apart and your arms out, like with the Windmills, slowly make small circles with the ends of your arms, spiraling out until your arms are rotating in as large a circle as possible. Then reverse the process, spiraling inward until your arms are again parallel to the floor. when you have finished this, reverse the direction of your spiral and repeat.
CROSS ARMS: Beginning in the same position as with the previous exercises, swing your arms horizontally until your arms cross and slap the opposite shoulder. Then swing your arms so they return past their original position as far as possible. Repeat, first with the right crossing over the top, then with the left over the top. If at any point your hands should touch behind you, a career as a contortionist is recommended.
GRAB WRIST/PULL: With both hands up over your head,
grab your left wrist with your right hand and pull right, bending at the
left elbow so that your left hand comes near your right shoulder and lean
to your right as far as possible. hold for eight to ten seconds, then switch
arms. Repeat six or eight times. If your shoulder should become
dislocated, you may skip this drill in the future. If your
arm comes off completely, it may be used to beat your opponent about the
head and shoulders. Please be
careful not to get blood on the floor. (It adversely affects
traction.)
TORSO TURNS: Beginning with your feet at shoulder width, turn your upper torso as far right as possible, keeping the hips facing forward as you do so. Still keeping your hips facing forward, turn your upper torso the other direction. Repeat six or eight times.
DEEP BREATHING CURLS: While standing with your feet at shoulder width, close your eyes and take a deep breath in through your nose, exhale through your mouth. Next, take a deep breath, and as you exhale, slowly let your head droop forward first, then your shoulders, and waist, letting your arms dangle relaxed until you are bent over as far as possible, yet still in a calm, relaxed state. Keep your knees straight, and don't bounce! After being in this position for eight to ten seconds, slowly uncurl yourself, eyes still closed and breathing in as you come back up. The point of this exercise is as much to relax your mind as it is to stretch your lower back and the back of your legs. Mental flexibility is at least as important as physical limberness.
LUNGE STRETCHES: Beginning with your feet perpendicular, heels touching and hands clasped behind your back, take your sideways-pointing foot and begin to slide it behind you with your knee locked, at the same time keeping your other leg bent with the knee directly over the ankle. Slide the sideways pointing foot as far back as possible, keeping your chest over your hips and your spine straight. Hold the position for eight to ten seconds. Repeat with the other leg behind you.
BUDDY STRETCHES: Grab a limb and make a wish! First,
find a partner. Then reach behind you with your palms facing out.
Your partner will GENTLY grab your wrists and raise your arms up behind
you until you say stop. Your partner should hold your arms up for
eight to ten seconds, then GENTLY lower them. Do the same for your
partner. Next, find something to lean against. While standing
with your back flat against the wall, lift your leg as high as possible.
Your partner assists you at
this point, helping to lift your leg until you feel a good stretch.
Hold this position for eight to ten seconds. Keep that leg straight!
When done, turn sideways so one shoulder touches the wall. With the
help of your partner, lift the same leg as high as possible and hold for
eight to ten seconds. Do the same with the other leg, then help your
partner stretch.
BUTTERFLY STRETCH: While sitting on the floor with the soles of your shoes touching each other, pull your heels as close to your groin as you can manage. Lean as far forward as you can, and press your knees as close to the floor as you can. One of my assistants happens to be so limber as to be able to raise herself several inches off the ground this way. Wow.
The Sport And Art Of The Sword
Chapter one: The Pre-history Of Fencing
Chapter Two: Through The Ages
Chapter Three: The Evolution Of Fencing
Chapter Four: Sport And Art
Chapter Five: Da Rules
Chapter Seven: The Zen Of Fencing
Back
to my Homepage
![]() Back |
![]() Home |
![]() Next |