If you're involved in any kind of free-style fighting or grappling at your school, eventually you're going to get hit, kicked, thrown or choked out. It's all part of the game, and players need to experience this incrementally over a period of time to desensitize themselves to the physical and psychological discomfort of getting busted up. While general exercise gets us in shape to sustain battle, traditional exercises were created to condition the body to take a certain amount of abuse without incurring any serious or permanent damage. Before I delve any further into this, it should be noted that some of these body-hardening techniques are somewhat controversial and have the potential to do far more harm than good. Women may have difficulty accepting these routines and they're not recommended for kids. You've been warned.
The ancient karate form sanchin is a kind of moving isometric muscle builder that emphasizes deep breathing with a sharp hiss. Performing sanchin is akin to moving an imaginary heavy weight. When being tested for this kata the student is expected to withstand sound kicks and punches delivered to the legs and torso. In demonstrations, the expert sanchin performer endures objects being broken over his body with no apparent ill effects. Some practitioners really go overboard and actually end up with high blood pressure and related problems from the forced breathing aspect of this form.
Kotekitai is a forearm muscle conditioner done with a partner. Students pair up and alternate striking the inside and outside of each others forearms similar to a blocking drill. This is an importatnt routine for Isshinryu karateka, where blocking is always done with the muscular side of the forearm. In many styles, the mechanics of the block exposes the bony ridge of the forearm (ulna), which can cause it to break upon impact, especially from a kick.
A makiwara is a striking post, usually padded with straw, rubber or carpet to cushion the impact of the strike. Fist, elbow and shuto (blade-hand) strikes are practiced. Old time practitioners used to develop large calluses on their knuckles from years of training on these devices. In actuality, the object is to develop strength and precision in all areas of striking that can't be duplicated in sparring or forms practice.
In certain Chinese martial arts, qigong (chi gung) is emphasized. This esoteric practice of manipulating one's chi or ki energy is reputed to have the capacity to reinforce areas of the body against blows. These methods are referred to as iron shirt techniques, and date back centuries. The existence of ki/chi remains questionable as modern science has not investigated this area enough to prove anything conclusive.
While I believe that the student has to get a feel for what a real fight is like through sparring and occasionally taking some hard shots, I'm not totally convinced that it's possible to strengthen parts of the body through repeated blows. I do believe there is an emotional component connected to the "shock" of getting hit that needs to be overcome. Is it really possible to turn one's body into protective armor? If you're willing to find out, proceed with caution.
Posted by John V.