 Towards
an Understanding
of Pattern Overload
Repetition is the mother of learning, but
at what point does this repetition become
a negative factor on the long term health
of a martial artist's joint structures.
It behooves all Kung Fu, Tae Kwondo, Karate
and other martial artists (both students
and instructors) to analyze the volume of
training when it comes to certain movement
patterns.
Pattern overload as defined by strength
coach Paul Chek describes injury to soft
tissues resulting from repetitive motion
in one pattern of movement or restricted
movement in one or more planes of motion.
As well balanced as most kicking arts are
with their rather unique bilateral loading
of the body, there are areas within training
that can lead to this kind of pattern overload.
It is my observation that more and more
whilst attending gasshuku (training camps),
the senior instructors are teaching less
of the hundreds and hundreds of repetition
type drills and leaning more towards teaching
good technique and allowing the karate-ka
the opportunity to pace themselves at their
own unique tempo. This is a very good thing.
Here are a few practical examples of how
to avoid the pitfalls of pattern overload.
Consider the following – A Karate,
Kung Fu or Tae Kwondo athlete stands with
his feet together, knees slightly bent,
arms relaxed by his/her side and proceeds
to execute snap type front kicks alternating
between left and right legs. Because this
is by nature a rather isolated way of doing
front snap kick, there is less load sharing
across the joints as opposed to performing
the kick in the classical forward moving
manner from a front stance, where the whole
body helps to share the load. See pictures
below.
In short, one needs to be careful about
performing too many isolated drills. |
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 According
to the laws of physics and the potential and limita-tions
of the human body, a karate punch accelerates
from its initial position at the side of the body
and reaches its maximum speed when 70% extended.
Deceleration rapidly takes place after the 70%
stage. One of the reasons for this is that the
stabilizing muscles come into play, which prevents
the arm from dislocating itself (from Kane and
Sternheim Physics).
Ed. – Try hitting a striking pad with tate-zuki
(vertical fist punch). “Big impact!”
 Whole
body movement is about power and protection
of the muscles and joints. The “Snatch”
– an official Olympic lift is a prime
example  of
a whole body technique. Increasingly this exer-cise
is being recommended for athletes and martial
artists across the board with all-round strength
and flexibility benefits. But it must be executed
properly (under the guidance of an experienced
lifter or professional train-er).
Mark Robinson,
pre-vious Africa Strong-Man Champion, demonstrates
The Snatch.
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