Complete Training for Freestyle Karate and Kickboxing Competition

As many of you may already know, we are thrilled to announce the return of Team EKA to our club! Team EKA was a great fight team that operated from 2008 to 2019, focusing primarily on training for competitions, including light continuous fighting and points/semi-contact matches. During its active years, the team held regular meetings and training sessions, and participated in numerous tournaments annually.

Throughout its existence, Team EKA established a positive reputation within the martial arts community, boasting national and world champions across various age, weight, and gender categories. However, due to the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, financial constraints within the club, and time limitations faced by our lead instructors, the club temporarily suspended its competitive activities in recent years.

Now, with the addition of Josh to our team, we are thrilled to announce the resurgence of Team EKA! Josh brings a wealth of experience and enthusiasm, and we are incredibly excited to see the team reunite and reignite its competitive spirit.

While much of our club's training is geared towards competitive light continuous sparring, we recognise the need for specialised sessions to prepare Team EKA for its return to the competition scene. As such, we will be scheduling focused training sessions with Josh every two weeks starting Saturday 6th April 2024 at 12.45pm, alternating with our current fight clubs.

Training for competing in freestyle karate and kickboxing typically involves a comprehensive approach that encompasses various aspects of physical conditioning, technique development, and mental preparation. Here's an overview of what you can expect:

Guidance for Cardiovascular Training: Endurance is crucial in martial arts competitions.

Guidance for Strength Training: Building strength helps improve striking power, grappling ability, and overall resilience. This may involve weightlifting, bodyweight exercises, and resistance training.

Flexibility and Mobility: Flexibility enhances agility, reduces the risk of injury, and improves overall performance. Expect to include stretching and mobility exercises in your training regimen.

Striking Techniques: Focus on developing precise and powerful punches, kicks, elbows, and knees. This includes practicing various combinations and striking drills to improve speed and accuracy.

Grappling Techniques: Even in freestyle karate and kickboxing, grappling skills are important for clinch work and defending against takedowns. Training may involve learning takedown defense, escapes, and basic grappling submissions.

Footwork and Movement: Efficient footwork and movement are essential for maintaining distance, evading strikes, and creating angles for attack. Expect to work on agility drills, footwork patterns, and sparring to improve your movement skills.

Light Sparring: Practicing controlled sparring sessions allows you to apply techniques in a more dynamic and realistic environment. This helps you develop timing, distance management, and adaptability.

Full-Contact Sparring (Optional): Depending on your level of experience and competition goals, you may engage in full-contact sparring sessions to simulate actual fight scenarios. Safety precautions and protective gear are crucial in such training.

Check out additional resources here Fight Club Rules Elemental Kickboxing Leeds (elemental-kickboxingleeds.co.uk) for sparring rules and equipment.

Visualisation and Mental Rehearsal: Visualising yourself performing techniques effectively and winning competitions can enhance confidence and mental toughness.

Focus and Concentration: Training to maintain focus under pressure is vital for competition. This may involve mindfulness practices, breathing techniques, and mental drills.

Strategy and Tactics: Understanding your opponent's tendencies and developing effective strategies can give you a competitive edge. Analysing fights, studying opponents, and working with coaches to formulate game plans are essential aspects of mental preparation.

Check out our additional resources here Fight Tips Elemental Kickboxing Leeds (elemental-kickboxingleeds.co.uk) for competition preparation and tips.

Mock Competitions: Simulating competition conditions in training helps familiarise you with the pace, intensity, and rules of actual fights. This may include mock sparring matches or simulated tournament scenarios.

Conditioning for Rounds: Training to sustain high levels of performance over multiple rounds is crucial. Work on interval training and conditioning drills that mimic the duration and intensity of rounds in competition.

If you're interested in joining Team EKA or learning more about our upcoming events and training sessions, please email your interest to info@elemental-fitness.com or speak with Josh.

Get ready to unleash your potential and join us as we embark on this exciting journey with Team EKA!