How many times do we hear, regarding the effectiveness of some system, various statements such as ‘technique not strength’, ‘no matter the opponents size’ etc?  Strange how the people usually hard-selling such notions are often not in ‘prime’ condition themselves, or their target market are the vulnerable persons wanting a ‘magic-wand’ system of evening the odds already stacked against them.  Time to wake up ladies and gentlemen. Combat is an intense physical affair.  It stands to reason that the more physically capable you are, the better off you’re likely to be should you decide, or be forced, to indulge. 
 
Technique is extremely important, yes, but so is the physical ability required to pull it off against fully resisting opponents.  Is it any coincidence that every army, through history, has promoted some form of physical training?  No coincidence either that the more elite and likely to encounter force that a combatant is, the better the physical condition they will be found in.  It has long been recognised that the better shape you’re in before combat, the better shape you’ll be in during combat.
 
Take a close look at the specialist police and military teams, the ones doing the business on a regular basis.  Do they undergo gruelling physical training for fun?  No, of course not, they, and their decision makers, know the score. Most of these units weed out unsuitable applicants during the initial stages of selection and training using some form of hard physical testing, as it is accepted as being one of the most important basic attributes.
 
Excellent physical condition is of vital importance for all combatants in the forces. As has already been stated, combat is a supremely strenuous affair.  Not only does it provide a strong machine for the tools needed by the job, but also fitter individuals are more resistant to injuries and can retain more mental concentration through periods of stress-induced fatigue, and subsequent fatigue-induced stress.
 
Getting back to the point, is your ‘machine’ powerful enough for your chosen ‘tools’?  Techniques, the tools, are vital, but I would argue that they are not enough on their own; you need a machine that is up to the job. 
 
My advice is to get down to the gym and do whatever you can to improve your physical condition – strength, muscular endurance and cardiovascular training, everything.  It all counts.  I place particular emphasis on strength for combat, as my personal style of fighting is based upon heavy explosive impact tools, with muscular endurance coming a close second in order to sustain this high-energy output, if required.  Cardiovascular training is the foundation activity; CV fitness has so many benefits, not least the ability to reduce the resting heart rate, which in turn helps to keep you in the ’performance zone’ under duress.
 
I used to be dead against weight training, before I tried it in earnest, probably for the very same reasons that most of its detractors use.  I thought it would slow me down, and as I use velocity extensively to produce high impact, I wasn’t keen on that happening.  I thought my push-ups, pull-ups and all the other exercises would suffice.  The one area where I really felt the pinch was when bodyweight was being directly applied, during grappling and general manhandling of adversaries.  I was at times struggling to control stronger and heavier opponents, often getting properly mauled in the process, which I always compensated for using impact, which in turn wasn’t always ideal for the circumstances.  I decided to increase my usable body mass (i.e. muscle not fat) and strength as direct result of this failing, as I was involved in an increasing number of tasks requiring the application of force, both in a military and private capacity.
 
When I first started resistance training, I was still serving in the forces and it was, and still is, a hugely popular activity.  Luckily, I learnt from some master craftsmen, seriously dedicated types, and eventually I progressed to qualifying as a NABBA certified weight-training instructor. Since then, I’ve met and trained with some truly phenomenal examples of muscular development, and I’ve been able to learn much more.  I make resistance training my number-one combative support system, and I’ve developed a whole range of specific exercises for nearly all my fighting requirements.
 
Strength is vital to all physical activities; even Formula One drivers have extensive physical training programs.  Just technique?  No, not enough I’m afraid.  Teaching control and restraint methods to colossal doormen and the like puts you straight – the best hold in the world can be overpowered by some lunatic who has 150% of your body weight, and maybe 200% of your strength, and that’s without adding any chemical factors.  Don’t get me wrong, I’ve never advocated any use of ‘cold’ grappling, instead I always prescribe large doses of anaesthetic impact before such risky operations.  If you have never trained with such individuals, and you train for the real thing, then you need to find some – look under ‘Big Nasty B******s Ltd’ in the yellow pages!  You need to be strong and have good technique, no question about it.  Try to remember the following adage – “Quantity can have a nasty quality all of its own.”
 
If you do know any huge meathead types (don’t tell ‘em I used this term) try your arm / leg / neck holds on them, with and without resistance.  I’ve trained with, and taught, men who have virtually zero flexibility, and so much bulk that it’s almost impossible to secure any effective holds – even with compliance in some cases, and you sometimes get the impression that if they flinch, something of yours may snap!  Try putting a real strangle on a man with a 22” neck. Scary isn’t it?  If you don’t agree, I strongly suggest that you stick to activities that have weight categories, for your own safety.  Thankfully, heavy impact that targets the central nervous system still works in these extreme cases, but even then – strength is an important factor.  Impact is highly influenced by simple ballistics, and a basic premise is that if you want to make a bigger bullet go further and faster, you put a bigger bang behind it.
 
I’ve honestly never had too many reservations about tackling the highly trained types -sorry to sound so arrogant – during the course of any work that I’ve been doing.  The people, and I use that term lightly, that make me wonder if I’m in the wrong place, are the monsters, the ogres, the raging bulls – you know, the ones who you know are going to be nigh-on indestructible, and those you know will throw your team around like rag-dolls.
 
I could give so many examples of such freaks of nature, as I’m sure many of you could, but none are so vivid in my memory as a giant Dutch soldier that I, and three others, once had the ‘pleasure’ of meeting.  During a NATO Escape and Evasion exercise, we captured said soldier and proceeded to attempt to restrain him while transport arrived to whisk him off for some very unpleasant interrogation.   Was he coming quietly? Not likely. It soon became a bit of a concern if he was coming at all!  Ever see anyone burst Nylon Plasticuffs?  We hadn’t either.  Ever see four big men savaged and thrown around by one, much bigger, man?  Think of a ‘World’s Strongest Man’ competitor here.  All the technique in the world wasn’t getting us very far that day, and I can hear you saying “No matter how big he was, my eye strike / groin kick / sleeper hold would have sorted him out.”  Yes, we tried all of that, in turn, with three men trying to hold him down, and it seemed to make things worse.  In the end he gave up before the transport arrived, he was “Only messing” with us after all!  This was only a training exercise.  For real?  It would’ve been done with bullets, without a shadow of a doubt.  We all wished we’d been a lot stronger that day I can assure you, just as you would if ever you found yourself in the same situation, and someone decides not to play by the rules of nature.
 
Tell the UFC / NHB / Vale Tudo fighters, or any boxer or Judoka, not to bother with strength training because technique is all they need.  Imagine the response you’ll get, and these are all sports – however hard they are, real combat is in a league all of its own.
 
Generally, and hopefully, the average street thug, if there is such an animal, hasn’t got the kind of devastating power that a sport combat champion has, but is your training geared toward general, fingers-crossed, assumptions?  If it is, good luck to you, but I’m playing it safe and training worst-case every time.  There are very few surprises this way, take it from me, and anyone else who gets his or her hands dirty on occasion will agree.  I can always tone it down if maximum force isn’t required, but what if it is and I’ve never really trained for it?  Multiple attackers, weapons, and combinations of both, are situations where the sudden application of maximum force is possibly your only chance of survival – and the stronger you are the more this chance improves.
 
Back to strength training, I’m not going to delve into specifics here – I intend to cover these in future articles – but I can’t recommend it enough.  Don’t ever think that as soon as you start lifting weights over your head you’ll experience massive, instant, muscular growth.  This seems to be one of the most popular misconceptions.  It isn’t as easy as all that, if you can prove me wrong on this, we stand to make a lot of money together, partner!  Another mistaken belief is you’ll become ‘muscle bound’ and lose suppleness.  Not the case, check out an American bodybuilder called Tom Platz, he’s now no spring chicken and still has some of the biggest legs in the business, yet his flexibility is amazing.  Also, take look at gymnasts, especially the men; they have outstanding muscular development giving astonishing power, control and agility.  As long as you train your muscles with a full range of motion, they will develop with a full range of motion, and as long as you maintain your flexibility, you’ll retain your flexibility.  It’s as simple as that.  The clumsy awkward types that you encounter are the result of clumsy awkward training – remember, the very first ‘muscle’ you should always train is the big grey one between your ears, learn from a real expert if you can find one.
 
You need strength.  In close combat – strength counts.  If you’re taking a door off with a ram during a room entry – strength counts.  If you’re levering two lunatic drunks apart in a bar – strength counts.  If you’re carrying a wounded client or colleague to safety – strength counts.  If you’re getting bounced around a dark deserted car park by thugs – strength counts.  Get the picture?  Do I have to say it again?  Yes – strength counts.
 
To sum all this up, I view the technique as the tool, and the body as the machine, as I’ve tried to make clear.  If the tool isn’t sharp enough, or not suited for the job, then the results won’t be great.  If the machine hasn’t enough power to make the tool work properly, then once again the results won’t be great.  Carefully select and hone your tools, and put together a powerful machine – then check how great your results are!