Question

I am a 40 year old martial artist, I like to keep my body flexible and toned, and I was thinking about investing I a total gym. I know free weights and weight machines are what most fighters use, and a lot of trainers feel you must train standing not lying or sitting down because the movement must be functional. With this in mind do you feel the total gym would still be a good home gym to train by whole body.. thank you

Answer

Have you ever heard of Chuck Norris? He's the guy in the Total Gym commercials with Christy Brinkley (Chucks the one with the beard - Christy has the good hair). He's one of the most well known, respected and decorated martial artists of his generation (supplanted by Jackie Chan and more recently by Jet Lee) and he uses the Total Gym to keep in top shape.

When Chuck Norris trains on the Total Gym he does it for a reason, and no, it's not just a bunch of marketing B.S. that Chuck uses the Total Gym either. How do I know that you may ask? Let me explain…

The Total Gym is used by many martial artists for keeping their strength while retaining their flexibility because many exercises on the Total Gym require a long range of motion and total muscle control (working against gravity) with the core muscles and stabilizers taking on large significance in performing each repetition. It's the same reason you'll find the Total Gym at many rehab facilities - it's a good machine when used correctly.

You know when you mentioned that most martial artists train for functional strength (core stability) but use weight machines? Well they're not using their core muscles on weight machines, they're pushing weight through a static plane of motion determined by the machine (their loss is your gain). While it's true that for some exercises on the Total Gym you are lying down, there is still substantial core involvment with the exercises if you focus on keping your core tight and engaged throughout each movement.

As you're probably aware, the Total Gym (or any exercise machine) can't completely replace sport specific movements or the dynamics of martial arts combat,  but it's an effective way to build strength and flexibility to enhance your other training efforts in the dojo.