Can muscle hinder your ability?

[NATURALLYINTENSE]

I started full contact fighting about when I weighed in at about 160lbs almost 2 decades ago, and as a bodybuilder, was able to see the differences in my speed, cardiovascular ability and strength as time went on and I slowly increased my bodywieght and overall muscularity.

Strangely enough, back then everyone was very much against being too muscled, but my teacher at the time disagreed. Sure enough, at my highest weight fighting at about 190lbs, I was faster, stronger and had even greater endurance than when I was lighter, even though I trained the same way, the only addition was my added size, and I won all my fights.

From striking to grappling there was an immense improvement in my performance, however I will say that few that weight train actually do so correctly, and so the lack of cardiovascular abilty and inflexibilty could simply be a result of improper training technique.

I have since trained several fighters, and using the training methods I did, (a high intensity bodybuilding routine) they have all improved all around from the increased muscle size.

 

[the_alcatraz]

You will gain strength but lose speed...depends which is it that you want more! It's a trade-off! I lift and fight, so I know first hand what happens when you gain immense muscle!

 

[Djimbe]

you will NOT "Lose Speed" because you get stronger , this is a silly wives tale . In fact Speed IS muscular strength . The Stronger you are the faster you are . The problem is that Impirically stronger ppl tend to be bigger framed and thus have more Mass to move , but look at how fast Linebackers are !

 

[... J Rock ...]

I never lost any speed, if any thing i gained speed along with power.I think this contributied to my loss of stamina, but im tring to correct this with a more intense
cardio program.

 

[holden636]

I doesn't necessarily "hinder" your ability but, rather, it determines which fighting style would be the most effective for you. For example, if you are smaller with more lean muscle, the most advantageous fighting style for you would be on the ground using more jiu-jitsu and scrambles. If, on the other hand, you are large with more bulk, you may want to develop your fighting style more towards the standup or, for the ground, more of a wrestling base.

 

[sshadoww]

I heard somewhere that bulking up too much can hinder your fighting skills. Is this accurate?

You need to stretch and stay flexible, though you may lose some range of motion depending how much mass you put on. People may train differently so as to add muscle size instead of strength or speed gains. Bolo was big as well as flexible, but I'm sure Bruce Lee could hit him numerous times before he could manage a counter...just my humble opinion

 

[Djimbe]

You need to stretch and stay flexible, though you may lose some range of motion depending how much mass you put on. People may train differently so as to add muscle size instead of strength or speed gains. Bolo was big as well as flexible, but I'm sure Bruce Lee could hit him numerous times before he could manage a counter...just my humble opinion

oh dear sweet jesus where do you guys come from ?

NO , Bruce could NOT hit Bolo without him managing a counter . In fact Bolo was a far better , more extensively trained , and more experienced Martial Artist than bruce ever was .

 

[DSS]

You just need to keep training for fighting as you are gaining mass and see how it feels or affects your fight. If you keep stretching and fight training, while you gain, then you should be able to keep your skills. The weight that you put on should be quality weight and not fat. You run into problems when you stop your fight training and bulk up with less than quality weight.

Keep up the cardio as you gain. More muscle requires more oxygen.

 

[sshadoww]

oh dear sweet jesus where do you guys come from ?

NO , Bruce could NOT hit Bolo without him managing a counter . In fact Bolo was a far better , more extensively trained , and more experienced Martial Artist than bruce ever was .

I would love to hear your reasoning provided your responses stay respectful- unlike the last sarcastic reply.

Bolo indeed studied martial arts, and was very flexible for his size, especially considering he was a power lifter- perhaps because he was also an acrobat when he was younger- but I don't see how you can say he was more extensively trained or more experienced than Lee. Before getting into film, they both learned martial arts from a young age- both had great teachers, but Yeung's focus turned to body building (he became a bb teacher) whereas Lee's focus was on martial arts/JKD.

 

[SaiBoT]

If you gain weight at a steady and slow pace there shouldn't be a reason you your performance should diminishe... Providing that you do cover all the paths to excell at martial arts. On the other hand if all the weight gain is made abruptly you will loose speed, stamina and consequently power until your body gets used to your new weight. Anyway too much weight even lean muscle is counterproductive, but it all depends on your frame and bone structure.