Science of leg conditioning

So I've been pondering leg conditioning in the shower.

I was sparring on Saturday and covering up for 123 low power roundhouse combination when I started to get my check timed. My partner started switching their timing drilling in pause knees to my soft vulnerable quads. They hurt. My lead leg is smashed today.

I've noticed my shins getting tougher. I can smash the hardest most unforgiving bag at the gym full power for reps with nothing but minor discomfort now (I felt like crying the first time I hit it). But I'm wondering if something similar will occur on other parts of my leg. You hear it does.

Is the change physiological, neurological, psychological or all or none of those?

Anyine know?

 

Yeah the thighs learn to take a hit over time. I went for about a year when my leg was a solid state of yellow from bruising because I couldn't check a leg kick. Of course with that comes getting better at defending it in he first place so you don't have to condition yourself like that. I prefer not getting hit.

 

I used to think my legs were conditioned until I started hitting bags out in Thailand. Was like hitting a concrete pillar.

 

Me too! Haha

It's not usually a huge issue as my checking is quite solid however I was being massively outclassed. The kicks were following on from fast solid hand combinations and I was initially checking them but I he started timing my check and switching to a knee as my foot came down then back to the hands... Relentless.

 

Parry the jab (with your right hand for orthodox) followed by a step in and quick return jab/elbow and then inside leg kick to the lower inside leg to disrupt the balance.

Liam Harrison taught me that one, it works.

 

Common theory is that the bones have micro fractures and the bones heal and harden, whilst the nerves deaden, skin gets thicker etc.

Psychologically, you gain confidence in hitting the bag and because you now have better technique; you also learn power transference when you smash the bag.

I hate checking kicks though. I'm pretty sure I felt my femur bend a few times too. I would say my weakness would be taking an inside leg kick to the thigh, as I rarely get kicked there and am not used to it.
I bruise very easily there. And that sickening slap is not something I like to hear.

 

I can pull this off against other people. I like to touch in a right knee after the inside lead kick too as the angle is often perfect for it... But my coaches hands are too fast for me atm. I usually eat the jab, shell the cross, comb the hook then I'm raising the check as the kick comes quicker than I can react.

I just need more time.

 

Wolfs law bones will adapt to the stress placed on them Wolff's law - Wikipedia

 

How about soft tissue and muscle (inside and outside leg)?

I vaguely remember someone in here saying nerve deadening was a myth... Might of been vanzandt.

 

My unscientific answer would be your body gets used to the stress put on the leg, muscles thicken and skin toughens hence you can normally take a front leg kick after a few months of training but if anyone kicks your rear thigh you normally cry like a baby as its not used to that punishment lol, have to wait for a scientific answer though sorry

 

I wonder what the theory is on them softening again I haven't done any leg kick sparring or heavy bag work for years, I imagine if I checked a leg kick these days i may be hobbling

 

You sparred hard contact without shinpads? I find shinnies take literally all the sting out for checking. Which is why I'm attempting to build my shins up on the bag as my bright white Sandees don't match my going out shirt

 

I have a very few times, the other guys had much better shin conditioning than me at the time.
The first minute wasn't so bad but it got painful quickly I was much happier wearing the shin pads

 

My shins are toughening up but I really, really don't think they are ready for bone on bone kicking. Or maybe they are and I'm too scared to try.

 

I can certainly say that mine weren't ready for it at the time and most the others were 5-10kg lighter than me at the time

 

Some of it, I think, is your overall "system" getting just getting used to the shock. The stimulus can be the same (hurts the same) but your brain just goes "I know this feeling" and doesn't "react" as much.
Not sure on the physical side of things but anything new or unexpected will trigger more than the same thing with a bit of previous exposure or familiarity.
Think treading on a plug or lego piece stumbling to the bog in the night. Agony!

 

A lot of that is down to adrenaline. Shin to shin hurts in sparring no matter how used to it you get. You don’t really feel it in a fight. Adrenaline takes over.

So many people will talk that to you, but it’s true. It’s not like you don’t feel anything but once you’re in the zone you just won’t care.

 

Yeah, it's a product of pain signals habituated in the brain. Unless you actually damage the nerve during conditioning you won't change its ability to conduct impulses. What does change is how it's perceived in the brain.
It's like how your brain will eventually ignore your watch on your wrist. The nerve signals don't stop, your brain just stops paying attention to them.

 

I still don't know what mechanism reduces bruising over time though...

 

I think Davis' Law is to muscle and soft tissue as Wolff's Law is to bone, so it could be a major factor. Muscle gets damaged, bleeds, body metabolizes and heals, muscle gets stronger and tougher and more resilient. If you think about it, basic muscle growth and strength gains work the same way (hypertrophy). Stronger muscles injure less easily, so it seems to reason that they also bruise less easily, so maybe muscle density over time is a factor (denser meat, less vascular damage from blunt impact). And, I think its safe to say that lack of training and conditioning which weakens muscle over time should also tend to increase bruising again, and if you search online opinions, people seem to report that (more bruising again after training cessation). Of course there could be some genetic components as well...some people naturally bruise more than others or have poorer cardiovascular health. Davis's law - Wikipedia