This weeks post is in response to a request from one of the coaches I’ve done a seminar for. He’s after a finisher to stick on the end of his Muay Thai training sessions. Ok, so here’s the brief:

10 – 15 mins in duration

to go on the end of 2 or 3 Thai boxing classes a week

kept simple (3 or 4 best exercises)

all bodyweight with little or no equipment

to target power endurance development

I decided to use a combination exercise I’ve come up with that I call a ‘Donee’. I’m sure it’s been done before, and it probably has a proper name, but as I independently strung it together for my Muay Thai classes, I needed a name for this concoction in my session notes, and a Donee fits. ;) It’s easier to see it than verbally explain it, so check out the following video.

This body weight movement uses lots of coordinated, elastic, stretch-shortening cycle action for some full-on power-endurance training. And you can add the chin up bar option if you want amp the exercise up even further. To successfully execute this exercise, you’ll need good ankle and hip mobility, along with sufficient core, lower body and upper body strength and explosiveness.

The training protocol is one I’ve borrowed from the CST (Circular Strength Training) and TacFit guys. It’s the relentless ‘Every-minute-on-the-minute’ format — thank you Michael Addison and Will Chung!

The objective for week 1 is to complete between 5 to 7 Donees as quickly as possible, every minute in succession for 10-minutes straight. The quicker you do them, the more rest you get before the next minute starts and you have to go again. Pick the number of reps that take between 30-40 seconds to complete flat out. If you’re taking longer, either regress the exercise in some way or reduce the number of reps.

For each round, monitor how many seconds remain on completion of each set before the next one begins. Try not to slow down as the routine continues, and even try to get through the fastest on your final round. If you’ve got a heart rate monitor, measure your peak and recovery heart rates for each round too.

Progress the routine in week 2 by going every-minute-on-the-minute for 15-minutes straight, and 20-minutes in week 3. I know that’s a little beyond the time constraint set in the brief, but I want to push you!

Lots of great benefits for a fighter here, both in terms of athletic movement and also in Aerobic Power and Anaerobic Capacity (energy systems) development. Give it a go, and let me know how you get on in the comments below.