Hammer Exercises

By Jeff Sauber
2004

TO STRIKE edgewise, it is required that a man accustom himself to strike edgewise..with some cudgel or other thing apt for the purpose... Giacomo DiGrassi (1594)

This is a series of exercises developed specifically with the the goal of building up the fencing skills. Strength would be a swordsman in mind; it aims to train all parts of the arm and body to natural side effect of that training. Above all, you must never, they work together in a coordinated fashion to increase range of motion, told us, do any sort of upper body training, especially weight flexibility, strength and endurance. The exercises are called training, because it will make you slow, and spoil your flexibility. Hammer Exercises because they utilize a common 1-3 pound There is a certain truth in this, since the kinds of exercise that you rubber mallet (although other objects can be used) for resistance, do will train your limbs to move in a certain way. For example, if you but they are effective if performed empty-handed, too. practice slow, simple movements utilizing large weights and a small number of repetitions, as body builders often do, you will train your body to move in slow, small ranges of motion, and tire after a few repetitions. Moreover, bodybuilding exercises usually focus on isolating individual muscles & body parts, sometimes even getting them to work antagonistically against each other. So if youre looking to strengthen yourself for fencing, not just any strength training will do.
Disclaimer This material is presented for informational purposes only. I make no claims as to its safety or efficacy, and I take no responsibility or liability for any injury resulting from the material contained herein. Never attempt any exercise regimen without first consulting a doctor.

Strain & Structure

One of the biggest troubles that a fencer has, is that of his body getting in the way of his fencing. The arm always seems to tire just too soon, and the fingers become less responsive & sensitive just when the action gets the thickest, and he needs that strength the most. It seems that if one could strengthen the lower body by

Preface

When I first started fencing, the prevailing wisdom of the time was practicing things like lunges or jogging, then there should be that the only physical training you should do for fencing was exercises that you can do with the arms as well. fencing. Well, you could bolster your training a little with running, biking and miscellaneous leg warm-ups, but for the most part it was In my early explorations, I worked on developing my hand strength lunging, footwork, lunging, drills, and lunging. All the exercises that & forearm strength. It helped my fencing a lot. My bladework we did were done with an emphasis on correct form & function, with became crisper & stronger, also more accurate, but I also started 2

getting more aches & pains in my arm, particularly strains to the The secret it seems, is that the arm needs to be strengthened from tendons & joints. These can lead to the the dreaded soft-tissue the ground up. The ground, in this case, is where the arm connects injuries, like tennis elbow. Such injuries often take months to heal, to the body. and sometimes dont heal at all unless you cease ALL activity. What Having a strong base(shoulder joint & torso) on which the arm is I didnt understand at the time was that muscles of the forearm (and built, then, will protect the rest of the arm & also free up the rest all other muscles, for that matter) pull equally in both directions, of the arm by making it more able to bear the weight of the weapon, exerting their pull outward to the hand, but also against the upper so that the rest of the arm can manipulate it freely. (Be aware that arm. When the strength of the extremities of the limb are Im not considering the size or mass, but rather the strength). Ive even spoken to weight trainers who advise beginning weightlifters to avoid any arm training (biceps, triceps, etc) until theyve worked on strengthening their trunk & shoulder joint muscles for a year or sojust to avoid the potential of injury. One way to improve the ability of the arm to hold the weapon is disproportionate to the base of that limb, youre asking for trouble. through static exercises, such as holding the arm out at full To look at it another way, imagine the arm as a tree. Its ability to extension, perhaps with a weight held in the hand, for a number of stand strong against the elements is based on its structure: the minutes. This addresses static strength & endurance, but it can also trunk is solid, but as you go outward, the branches become put a lot of stress on the shoulder joints, and it doesnt directly progressively thinner. Now imagine a tree whose branches are improve ones facility in moving the weapon. thicker than the trunk. Would you want to build a treehouse in that? I started looking at different ways to train the kind of strengths I was looking for. Certain Asian martial arts had such exercises, but there were usually tailored to their own specific and stylistic needs. There was a form of exercise popular in the 19th and early 20th century called Club Swinging. It utilized a pair of wooden clubs, called Indian Clubs, which were often weighted, and these were whirled around in beautiful but complicated patterns. These 3

exercises had a certain appeal, but they stressed symmetryusing

handle is solid. You dont want it to fly apart and bean your

both arms in a balanced manner, but I wanted to focus on neighbor, your TV or yourself. To that end, also wrap the handle in developing ability in each arm by itself, since one rarely uses two some sort of grippy tape. I use tennis tape, the wrapping material swords in tandem, at least in western fencing. works the best. You wont find anything here thats never been done before, just a set of tried & true techniques from varying sources In choosing an object of the appropriate weight, its a good rule of put together in a practical & logical system. thumb to start out with something that feels a little too light. Youll So here I present a small series of dynamic exercises that have find that the object becomes surprisingly heavier & more difficult to worked for me. Hopefully youll have as much luck with these as I did. wield before youre through with even a single set. If, after practicing with an object a few times, it still doesnt feel challenging, then go for the handle of a tennis racket. Its cheap, and grippy but also a Ultimately, I put together a bit of everything into a system that I feel bit soft & yielding. You can find it in sporting goods stores.

The Basic Equipment

Initially, I wanted to do these exercises with a piece of athletic

on to something heavier. I havent found a need to go beyond 3 pounds with these, since you can increase the resistance just by

equipment called an indian club. Its a 19th century bit of exercise moving fasterbut take your time at first! A three pound hammer equipment that looks like a bowling pin, and its usually weighted. will give you quite a workout. Remember, most swords rarely They were used often in pairs and swung in such a way as to weighed over three pounds. provide weight resistance for the arms, some cardio conditioning. They also strengthened the wrists by virtue of the way they were At the end of this booklet, Ill discuss some other objects you can held. These are somewhat difficult to find nowadays, since theyve practice with. fallen out of common use, and I dont believe that they are made anymore. However, an inexpensive 1-3 lb rubber mallet turned out to be even better. The rubber head is slightly kinder to the occasional piece of furniture that Ive struck (and my own knees, for that matter). Since the hammer has two distinct faces, it relates more closely to a bladed weapons two distinct edges. Also, theyre much easier to find, and theyre inexpensive, too. Make sure that the one you use is well-made, that the head is on securely, and the 4

Preliminary Exercise
To get the feel of the motion THE STARTING POSITION Take your hammer in hand. Hold it as if you were going to hammer something: the front face of the hammer lines up with your knuckles, the back face toward your thumb. Stand straight up, feet about a foot apart, toes forward. Weight should be evenly distributed across both feet. Allow your hands to hang at your sides. Make sure the hand holding the hammer is perfectly relaxed. This will be the same starting position for all of the exercises.

Make sure your hammer has plenty of room to swing freely, and theres no danger of anyone or anything being hit. Observe what your body is doing and feeling. Are you able to move the arm freely? Are there any points along the arc that are particularly difficult or impossible to move through? Do you feel or hear any grinding or popping in the shoulder joint? If you do, or you find any other sensations out of the ordinaryconsider seeing a doctor or an orthopedist. Really. Its better to go to a doctor with a small ache or even a false alarm now, than it is to exacerbate a tiny problem into something serious (OK, end of lecture). The Preliminary Exercise Simply repeat the above but this time, relax & keep swinging the arm around in that one circle from outside to inside, 15 repetitions in one direction, more if its comfortable. At all times the arm should be relaxed and straight (particularly on the last rep!). The grip should be firm, but not tight. The circle should be generated from the shoulder. The body should give slightly with the circles, not be rigid, but not doing too much of the shoulders work. And, though relaxed, you should not be so relaxed that the joints feel like theyre pulling apart. When youre finished with this set, switch arms & repeat. Notice whether theres a difference in the performance and feeling of one arm from the other, and what it is.

THE MOVEMENT Gently move the arm in a full, slow, circle in front of you, like a When youve finished this second set, take the hammer back windmill, keeping the arm straight and relaxed, moving only from into the first hand, & repeat again, this time, swinging in the the shoulder. 5 opposite direction.

Pointer: Move the hammer with even speed throughout the circle, dont let it speed up on the downswing or slow down on the upswing. Go slowly and easily. It should feel almost as much that the hammer is swinging the arm, as the arm is swinging the hammer. Your arm should swing as if it were a rope with a rock tied to the end of it. When you feel comfortable with these motions, its time to begin to learn the full Hammer Set. The full set of Hammer Exercises is divided into three sections: 1) THREE PLAINS OF MOTION Three exercises to develop the basic strength & coordination through three basic axes of motion. 2) CUTTING IN TEN DIRECTIONS Based on the cuts that one commonly would make with a swordthis section most directly relates to swordsmanship. 3) CONTINUOUS MOULINET A simple exercise to further develop coordination between left & right.

SECTION ONE The Three Planes of Motion

The first section exercises your arm & torso in each of the three simple planes of motion. They are: The median plane or vertical plane The transverse plane, or horizontal plane The frontal plane Exercise for the vertical plane: 1) Starting positionhammer in hand, arms at your sides, feet comfortably apart. 2a) THE BACKWARD SWING: Swing your hammer easily back with the same free and easy motion you used in the preliminary exercises, keeping the wrist and elbow relaxed and straight. Allow the hammer to swing the arm backwards roughly until its parallel to the floor. You may feel a comfortable stretch in the shoulder. Allow the torso to rotate as much as it needs to, but dont exaggerate the rotation. Dont try to stop it either. 2b) THE FORWARD SWING: allow the hammer to swing forward & up. Let it continue its arc straight up to vertical, then bend at 6

the elbow, so that the hammer drops down to your back (dont hit yourself!), and the elbow is pointing upward and outward. Alternate swinging forward & backward for about 12 repetitions. Itll take a bit of practice till youre comfortable enough with the movements to go all the way in each direction. Dont rush it. If you stay fairly relaxed, youll feel a bit of a stretch at each end of the swing. With a little more practice, Youll be able to swing quite powerfully without tensing any one particular part of the arm or torsothe power will come from the coordinated whole. Avoid wild swings, tightening any particular muscle (resist the urge to focus on bicep & tricep strength). Dont exaggerate the torso rotation. Be aware of any painful sensations in the shoulder.

comfortable stretch in the front of your shoulder & chest. As you do this swing, bring the empty hand up to the opposite shoulder. This will help coordinate your entire torso into the motion, so that youre not putting undue force on the shoulder. 2b) THE INSIDE SWING: keeping the hammer level with your shoulders the whole time, reverse the twist & swing inward. Keep the hand palm downward, as if you were cutting with the back edge of a sword, or executing a hook punch with your fist. Swing towards your opposite shoulder. As you swing, draw the free hand straight back towards the hip, to help coordinate the whole body action. Keep the free hand close to the body. Repeat inside & outside swings, back & forth about 12 times. Concentrate on maintaining your erect posture, and dont allow

Exercise for the Horizontal Plane 1) Assume the starting position. 2a) THE OUTSIDE SWING: Hold arm & hammer out in front of you,

yourself to be pulled off balance by the hammer swing. This swing is horizontal like the swing of a baseball bat.

palm down at shoulder level. Twist Exercise for the Frontal Plane your upper torso & arm so that your 1) Assume the starting hand swings behind you horizontally a target behind you with a sword. Keep the arm straight. Feel a 7 position. the hammer in continuous circles in front of you, keeping the arm fairly straight. to the outside, as if you were cutting 2) Swing

Start from inside to outside. Do about 12, then switch hands and repeat. 3) Switch hands again & circle from outside to inside.

SECTION TWO Cutting in Ten Directions

The second section of this set is the one that relates most directly

You already know this motionit is the same one that we used for the Preliminary Exercise!

to sword arts. Its the sort of exercise thats practiced in some schools of Japanese fencing, and depicted in rapier manuals, as well. Sword arts across time & history practice cutting actions with a sword as a means of developing strength & accuracy. Some schools practice motions of the arm as separate from the footwork, and some practice by working the hand & foot together. In actual fencing, the advantage of utilizing the motion of the hand & foot together is vital, but for training purposes, its helpful to exercise them separately as well. The following is training aimed at developing equal strength & coordination when cutting in any direction. The exercise for Section Two consists of ten cuts, which should be performed one after the other in a continuous, fluid way. These cuts, you will note, are executed alternately from each side of the body. Ive used the common fencing parlayance of outside and inside to denote cuts made forehand, (outside) from the armed side of the body towards the unarmed side, and backhand, (inside) those made from the unarmed side towards the armed side. I describe each cut exercise as continuing from the one previous, but each can be done as an exercise in its own right. Practice each cut, outside and inside, until you can do them continuously & smoothly before going on to the next set of cuts. 8

When you can comfortably execute all of them, then put them 2) To the Outside together into the Combined Cut Exercise. At that point, you a) Continuing from the previous cut, allow your arm neednt practice the individual cuts by themselves. As you practice these motions, its helpful to imagine that youre to continue swinging up the inside until its roughly vertical (you can bend the elbow for more control). actually cutting through an object, perhaps the size & shape of a b) Cut straight down again. small round watermelon, thats floating directly in front of you at c) As the hammer reaches the bottom of the circle, about the height of your shoulders. Please note that these movements are designed to exercise the arm through its full range of motion, and so theyre somewhat more exaggerated than the cuts youd use while fencing. VERTICAL DOWNWARD CUT 1) Cut to the inside a) Assume the starting position. all the way around to roughly vertical (overhead). Your elbow can bend slightly for better control. c) Continuing the circle, cut forward & straight down, as if splitting a target in front of you. d) As your hammer reaches the bottom of the circle, twist your body towards your inside. Let the hammer continue its circle around towards your inside, thereby executing cut number 2: DIAGONAL DOWNWARD CUTS 3) To the Inside a) With your swing already in motion from the outside of the body, allow the hammer to raise to about head height, and cut over the shoulder at a 45 degree angle downward and towards your inside hip area. Note that youre cutting with the leading edge of the hammer, and that your hand is slightly supinated (palm up). Once youre familiar with the Vertical Downward cuts, and you can b) Swing your arm backward and allow it to come comfortably do a number of repetitions, then continue onto: At this point, continue to cut alternately inside & outside for about 12 repetitions. Allow your body to twist, but dont let your body lean or be pulled off balance. Remember to use the whole motion of the body rather than one particular muscle or set of muscles. twist your body towards your outside. Allow the motion of the hammer to continue upwards.

b) Continue the swing of the hammer, and allow your HORIZONTAL CUTS body to turn to the inside so that the hammer can 5) To The Inside continue to swing upwards. a) Continuing from the last exercise, your arm is swinging upward from the outside. When it reaches the height of the shoulder, begin to 4) To the Outside a) When the hammer reaches a point slightly over the inside shoulder, cut down again at a 45 degree angle towards your outside hip area. Note that your still cutting with the leading edge of the hammer, but now the hand is slightly pronated (palm down). 6) To the Outside b) Continue the swing of the hammer up the outside of the body. At this point you can continue alternating diagonal cuts, inside & outside, for about 12 repetitions. After you do these a few times, youll probably notice that these cuts use the arm & shoulder in a very different way than the vertical cuts did. Allow the body to twist, and the shoulder to follow through, but dont be drawn off balance. For more advanced practitioners, alternate a set of vertical cuts for each set of diagonal cuts. When youre really comfortable with all of these, go on to the horizontal cuts. 10 You may continue these cuts for 12 reps, practice intermixing them with the earlier cuts, or go on to the next cuts. a) Having finished the inside horizontal cut, pronate the palm (turn it palm down) & swing to the outside, keeping the hand swinging on a horizontal arc at the height of the shoulder. Feel how these cuts utilize the waist & shoulder in a way somewhat different from the other cuts. swing it towards the inside, along a horizontal plane (just as you did in the first section, the Horizontal Plane exercise). This cut is supinated (palm up). The change from diagonal cut to horizontal can take some practice.

DIAGONAL UPWARD CUTS 7) To The Inside

are useful for fencing, but also as exercise. All the other cuts are made with the leading face of the hammer, and therefor the outside

a) On the outside, drop your hand to the height of of the arm, but the last two are made with the back-edge of the the hip. From the area of the outside hip, this cut hammer, and utilize the inside anatomy of the arm. comes upward diagonally towards the opposite Proceeding from the very last motion (King Arthur): shoulder. The hand is quite supinated (this is somewhat stressful to the wrist so be careful). 8) To The Outside a) On the inside, drop your hand down to the level of the hip. Cut from the inside hip in the direction (palm down). Think King Arthur pose, with sword aloft. As always, allow your entire body to work integrally. Notice the way the upward cuts utilize the motion of the torso in a slightly different way than the other cuts do. Again, you can continue practicing upward diagonals (12 sets), or any combination of the previous sets of cuts. VERTICAL UPWARD CUTS In many fencing systems, the previous eight cuts will make up the bulk of the cutting practice. There are two further cutsvertical upward cutsthat will round out the entire circle. These two cuts Repeat for about 12 sets. 11 10) To the Outside. a) The hammer comes down the inside of the body until it reaches its lowest point, then cuts straight up, again using the reverse edge of the hammer. 9) To The Inside a) Allow the arm to swing straight back behind you on the outside. Pivot the body as required. Let the hammer execute a complete arc until it is parallel with the side of the body. your wrist as you did in earlier cuts. Your palm should be facing towards your leg, the knuckles out. The thumb-side of the hand is facing forward. c) Continue the swing forward from your side with the back edge of the hammerthe thumb-side leading. Cut straight upwards. d) Allow this cut to continue up and around to your inside. Pivot body & bend the elbow as necessary.

of the outside shoulder. The hand is pronated b) When the hammer reaches your side, dont turn

You will note that in feeling this is very similar to the first exercise from Section One, Swinging in the Vertical Plane, but this is a continuous, circular swing. As always, dont allow yourself to be pulled off balance, resist the urge to use any one particular muscle group. When youre comfortable repeating all ten cuts, try putting them together: Combined Cut Exercise:
Assume the starting position. Then execute the cuts in the following order: 1) One Vertical Downward Inside 2) One Diagonal Down 3) One Horizontal Inside Inside
FOLLOWED BY
Horizontal Diagonal Upward

Vertical Upward Diagonal Upward

Horizontal

One Vertical Downward Outside One One One One Diagonal Down Horizontal Diagonal Upward Vertical Upward Outside Outside Outside Outside
Vertical Downward Diagonal Downward Diagonal Downward

4) One Diagonal Upward Inside 5) One Vertical Upward Inside

In this way youre working your way all around the circle. In additional to the physical exercise, this will be a work out in mental discipline too. When youve gotten the hang of doing the full circle of ten cuts, try repeating the Combined Cut Exercise for 12 repetitions. This should also enhance the fluidity of you fencing bladework. And Dont forget to practice equally with both arms.
Imagine cutting at a target about arms length in front of you

12

SECTION THREE Continuous Moulinets

Section Three is made up entirely of continuous diagonal cuts performed in an inside-outside fashion. The thing that makes it different is that after each set of inside-outside cuts, you switch the hammer from one hand to the other without interrupting the motion! It will develop hand-eye coordination, and nimble fingers, but it requires a bit of patience & persistence. Be sure youve been practicing all the previous exercises with each hand before moving on to this section! There are two variations to this exercise: Cutting upwards & cutting downward.

a) Execute a cut from the outside to the inside. Keep going... b) Execute a cut from inside to outside. Keep going... c) Begin the outside-to-inside cut again, but this time, when the hammer reaches the midpoint of the cutdirectly in front of you, as in Fig. 1 (the handle will be pointing right at you)reach out with the free hand and grab the handle, continuing the swing, uninterrupted. Now repeat all the above with the other hand: Outside cut, Inside cut, outside cut to center-and-switch. The hammer should be swinging in continuous windmills around you without any pause when you switch hands. All it takes now is a bit of practice.

1) CUTTING DOWNWARD 1) Assume the starting position.

If youre having trouble coordinating the change of hands, take your time. Make sure you have a sure grip with the second hand on the

2) Begin to practice Diagonal Downward Cuts, continuously, handle before releasing. outside to inside, until you have a comfortable rhythm. Go Note that you can only change hands on an outside cutwhen the slowly!. When you are ready to pass the hammer from one had hammer is cutting from the outside of your body TOWARDS the side of your body where your hand is empty. to the other do as follows: Fig. 1

Fig. 1

2) CUTTING UPWARD 1) Assume the starting position.

What Other Equipment Can You Use?

You dont need the hammer. There are lots of other options, items

2) Begin to practice Diagonal Upward Cuts, continuously, outside of different weights and shapes to address different needs. What to inside, until you have a comfortable rhythm. Go slowly! When else can you use? A short stick, a parrying dagger (not sharpfor you are ready to pass the hammer from one had to the other do your own safety!). Small barbells or hand-weights work well, as follows: a) Execute a cut from the outside to the inside. Keep going... b) Execute a cut from inside to outside. Keep going... although they wont give you the same wrist & grip development. A can of beans, held at one end will be helpful to your finger-grip (you may want to put some grip-tape on your training beans!). A

c) Begin the outside-to-inside cut again, but this time, when the baseball (hardball, unless youve got really big hands), a round hammer reaches the midpoint of the cutdirectly in front of you, rock, a lacrosse ball. To practice with less weight, use a tennis ball, as in Fig. 1 (the handle will be pointing right at you)reach out or go freehanded, with the palm held flat (karate-chop style) or with the free hand and grab the handle, continuing the swing, balled up into a fist. In all cases, test the object you choose by uninterrupted. swinging slowly thought all the motions first. Whatever you choose, be certain that you can keep a firm grip on the object, and Now repeat all the above with the other hand: Outside cut, Inside that you clear the furniture. Avoid using jagged, cut, outside cut to center-and-switch. The hammer should be irregularly shaped or obviously dangerous swinging in continuous windmills around you without any pause objects like claw or ball-peen hammers, when you switch hands. axes, glass bottles or housepets. 14

Some Sage Words From the 16th Century:

Let a man be never so strong and lusty, yet he shall deliver a blow more slow and with less force than another who is less strong but more exercised...they deceive themselves, for such weariness is vanquished by exercise, by means whereof it is not long but that the body, feet and arms are so strengthened that heavy things seem light, and that they are able to handle very nimbly any kind of weapon and in brief, overcome all kind of difficulty and hardness... The sword, as each man knows, striketh either with the point or the edge. To strike edgewise, it is required that a man accustom himself to strike edgewise..with some cudgel or other thing apt for the purpose... As touching weight or heft..I commend not [those] who will, for the strengthening of a mans arm, that he handle first a heavy weapon,

Influences and Further Reading

Much of the moulinet cutting motion in Section Two comes from the Italian style of saber, as taught by Ramon Martinez in the USA, and Andrea Sinclair in Italy. Club Swinging by W.J. Schatz (1908), Reprinted by Brian Dub, Inc. NYC 1990. Anatomy of Movement by Blandine Calais-Germain, 1993, Eastland Press, Seattle

The following can be found on the web:

because being first used to them, afterwards ordinary weapons will seem Giacomo DiGrassi, His True Art of Defense (1594) the lighter unto him, but I think rather the contrary..that first to the end, he U.S. Army Physical Training Manual (1914 Edition) do not over burden & choke his strength, he handle a very light sword, and such a one as he may most nimbly move. For the end of this art is not to lift up or bear great burdens, but to move swiftly... But yet, after that he hath sometime travailed with a light weapon, then it is necessary according as he feeleth himself to increase in strength in his arm, that he take another in hand that is something heavier, and such a one as will put him to a little more pain, but yet not so much that his swiftness in motion be hindered thereby. And as his strength increaseth, so increase likewise the weight little by little. So it will not be long but that he shall be able to manage very nimbly any heavy sword. Giacomo DiGrassi, His True Art of Defense (1594) 15
Hammer Exercises 2004 Jeff Sauber, all rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or utilized any way without the written consent of the author.

The Encyclopedia of Indian Physical Culture