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I don't know how good the material is but this looked to be an interesting and r
elevant article.
http://voices.yahoo.com/a-complete-basic-guide-iron-body-iron-hand-2825859.html
A Complete Basic Guide to Iron Body and Iron Hand Skill Training
Iron Skills Training the Metaphysical Boxing Way
Josh Skinner
Josh Skinner, Yahoo Contributor Network
Mar 12, 2009
Introduction:
Iron hand and iron body skills have always intrigued me and I'm not alone. You c
an find quite a few articles on the subject and there are more than a few people
selling books, videos, and courses on the subject. The idea of developing bone
crushing power and the ability to take the most power strikes your opponent can
muster is always going to be compelling for the martial artist. However, I've fo
und that until now there all that has been available are routines that are eithe
r too conservative in their approach, too extreme, or simply provide an incomple
te picture of iron skills training. In terms of this training I've had hands on
instruction, bought books, bought videos, and even attended seminars. I've pract
iced what I learned for nearly ten years now. Over the years I've mixed routines
, added drills and exercises, and dropped things out completely. What I now prac
tice and teach is, I feel, the most effective and efficient method of iron skill
development you will come across. The method presented in the following piece i
s the basic level of iron skill development. Higher level development includes m
ore advance internal power development exercises. However, what you will find in
this piece is much more advanced than most other information on the iron skills
you can obtain for free or purchase.
I feel that a complete course in the development of the Iron Skills should invol
ve considerable conditioning of the following aspects of the marital artist:
1. The Mind and Internal Energy - this can be accomplished through the use of Qi
gong, internal power exercises (nei jing gong), and the proper use of focus (int
ent and will).
2. The Musculature - This can be accomplished through the use of specific physic
al exercises.
3. The Underlying bone structure and skin - This can be accomplished through spe
cific types of impact training.
My method of Iron Skills development includes all three of these aspects. In the
following piece I will describe in detail the Metaphysical Boxing approach to I
ron Skills Development, I include all the basic drills and exercises for the dev
elopment of basic level iron hand and iron body as well as a discussion on how t
o set up a routine to get the most out of your training.
Exercises and Drills
Qigong:
1. Open and Close the Gate Qigong - Begin standing up, spine neutral, and with y
our feet should width apart. Your arms should be held out in front of you at che
st level. Your palms should face each other and be about a foot apart. Place you
r tongue to the roof of your mouth. You will be breathing in and out of your nos

e in the Buddhist manner* for both of these Qigong.

First, place your attention on the back of each hand. You should be able to feel
the back of your hands with your mind. Inhale and begin to open your arms as th
ough you are about to give someone a huge hug. You will open your arms fully unt
il you are in a cruciform position. At this point you will begin to exhale, reve
rse the movement, and switch you attention to your palm as you begin to close yo
ur arms. Once your hands are about 6"-1' apart you will to inhale and, once agai
n, place your attention onto the backs of your hands. This time, however, instea
d of opening your arms you will turn your palms so that they face away from you
and you will be drawing your hands in towards your chest. Make sure to keep your
elbows down as you do this. When your hands reach about 6" away from your chest
you will reverse this movement. Remember to coordinate this final movement with
you exhalation and to place you attention on your palms. When you have returned
to the starting position you will have completed one repetition of this qigong.
You will need to complete a total of nine (9) before moving on.
Remember to always coordinate your physical movements with your breathing and st
ay relaxed. You will place you attention on the backs of your hands as you open
your arms and as you draw your hands to your chest. You will place your attentio
n on your palms as you close your arms and as you push out with your hands. Doin
g this will lead your qi (internal energy) to those areas which is a vital abili
ty for later exercises.
2. Gathering Clouds Qigong - Begin standing up, spine neutral, and with your fee
t shoulder width apart. Your arms will hang loosely at your sides. Place your to
ngue to the roof of your mouth. Your breathing will be the same as in the first
qigong.
Start by inhaling and raising your arms up towards the sky in an arching motion
with your palms facing up. Continue this movement until your arms are overhead a
nd your palms are facing each other - they should be about 6" apart. As you begi
n to exhale turn your palms downward to face the ground and move your palms alon
g a downward path towards your groin area. You will keep your hands close to eac
h other and close to your body as you do this. Once your hands reach your groin
area you have completed one repetition of this qigong. You will need to complete
a total of nine (9) repetitions before moving on to other exercises.
Muscle Strengthening:
Static Core Work: The following drills, of holding static postures for periods o
f time, will greatly strengthen your body - especially your core. While you hold
these postures remember to breathe through your nose with your tongue held to t
he roof of your mouth and utilize the Buddhist Breathing method.
1. Floor Plank - Begin lying on the floor on your stomach. Your forearms will be
under you and you will press up as though doing a pushup except all of your wei
ght is on your forearms not your hands. You will maintain this static position f
or as long as possible, but your goal should be one minute. You can work up to m
ore than one minute but anything more and a minute and a half won't be necessary
. I'll explain further in the building a routine section.
A) Ball Plank: You can make this exercise more difficult by using one of those h
uge abdominal balls. Simply place you feet on the ball or place your forearms on
the ball. To make it really difficult you can attempt to suspend yourself betwe
en a chair and a ball (feet on chair, forearms on ball) or between two balls.
B) Side Plank: Another variation I like to throw into my routine is the side pla
nk. In this variation you will begin by lying on your side with your feet on top
of each other. You will use one forearm to support yourself. Don't let you hips
sag down. This will really strengthen you oblique muscles. Thirty seconds to on

e minute on each side is a good goal time.

2. Iron Bridge - You will need two chairs for this exercise. You will suspend yo
urself between the two chairs. Place your feet on one chair and place your upper
back and head on the other. Use only the muscles necessary to keep yourself str
aight - no sagging! As you get stronger move the chairs further and further apar
t until you are suspended between the two with only your feet and head. You can
further increase the difficulty by resting small weight plates on your lower abd
omen. Start slow and don't increase the weight too soon! Your goal is one minute
.
3. San Shou Bridge - This form of the Bridge is similar to a Wrestler's Bridge.
You begin by lying on your back with you knees bent, feet flat on the floor, and
your hands near your ears. You may need a towel or small pillow for your head.
From this position lift yourself up so that your weight is supported between you
r feet and your head/hands. You body will form an arch. While holding this posit
ion you can do some rocking and attempt to touch your nose to the floor. As your
strength and flexibility increase you will be able to do it. Again strive to re
ach the one minute mark.
4. Front Bridge - Matt Furey, the author of Combat Conditioning, recommends that
those who work the Bridge on a consistent basis should spend some time in the F
ront Bridge as well. Start by lying on your stomach with your feet spread apart
and your hands near your head. Lift your body off the floor so that you are supp
orted by only your feet and head/hands. Make sure you touch your chin to your ch
est. Hold this position for one minute.
You can perform this series of exercises in circuit fashion. You should strive t
o hold the positions for 1 minute to one and half minutes. You can rest anywhere
from 30 seconds to one minute between positions. When you become more advanced
you can move through each position with no rest between them. You only need to c
omplete one circuit of these exercises.
Dynamic Strengthening:
1. Abdominal Wheel - You will need to pick up an ab wheel from your local fitnes
s retailer. To use it start by kneeling on the floor (you may need a pillow for
your knees) and holding the ab wheel by the handles. The wheel should be on the
floor and near your legs. Keep you core tight and push forward on the wheel to r
oll out. Your goal is to reach out as far as you can so that your body is just h
overing over the floor. Then reverse the movement and return to the starting pos
ition. Inhale as you roll out; exhale as you return to the starting position. Wo
rk up to being able to complete multiple sets of 10-20 repetitions.
2. Twisting - Stand holding a weight (I prefer a medicine ball, but a dumbbell o
r some other weight will work as well) straight out in front of you and keep you
feet should width apart. Begin twisting your upper body to the left and right a
t a fairly quick pace. You can also vary the angle of your twists for a more com
plete development.
3. Side Bends - Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and your arms above yo
ur head and simply bend side to side. You can make this exercise more difficult
by holding a weight in your hands. At first a weight as little as 2lbs will be s
ufficient. Start small and work your way up slowly.
4. Fingertip and Knuckle pushups -You will need to do pushups on both your knuck
les and your finger tips to strengthen the muscles, tendons, and ligaments in yo
ur forearms and hands. When doing knuckle pushups you will place you weight on t
he last three knuckles. When doing fingertip pushups you need to make sure you k
eep your fingers bent in a claw shape. Attempting to keep them too straight will

result in poor conditioning. Also do not allow your fingers to bend backwards a
s this will result in unsatisfactory conditioning. It may be very difficult to c
omplete a proper fingertip pushups at first. You can progress from static holds
in the kneeling pushup position, to kneeling fingertip pushups, and finally prog
ress to full fingertip pushups.
5. Pushing and Pulling Iron Block - Begin by standing with your feet wider than
shoulder width apart and knees bent. You will start with your hands near your ar
mpits and palms facing outward. Inhale and tense all of the muscles in your body
. As you exhale press your hands forward as though you are pushing a huge iron w
eight. Once you fully press out your arms (but, not to lockout), grab with your
hands and pull backward as you inhale. When your hands reach the starting positi
on you can relax and take a single full breath before moving on to the next repe
tition.
6. Fist Clenching -This is a simple exercise to complete. Start with your hands
fully open. Now begin to fully close and open your hands. You will want to do th
is as quickly as possible. You should be able to at least complete 100 reps as q
uickly as possible.
7. Forearm Roller - You can either make a roller or buy one where they sell fitn
ess supplies. To make on simply drill a hole in a thick wooden dowel (I'd use a
dowel that is about 2.5' long) and tie a rope in the hole. Tie the rope to some
weight. This setup is simple to use. Simple grip the roller and begin twisting i
t as though your are wringing out a wet towel. This will cause the rope to wrap
around the dowel. Continue doing this until the weights reach the dowel. When th
e weights get heavy and you need more of a challenge. Stand on two chairs that a
re wider than shoulders distance apart and get into a half squatting position (H
orse Stance).
Place the roller on your thighs so the rope hangs between your legs and the chai
rs. now begin rolling up the rope and weights.
8. Gripper Work - I also suggest you make regular use of hand grippers. The best
can be found at http://www.ironmind.com . I'd start with the Trainer and the #1
Gripper. If you can close a #3 gripper you have a world class grip.
I like to set up my Dynamic Strengthening workouts in the following manner:
1. Warm-up
2. Pushing and Pulling the Iron Block - 10 reps x 3 sets (30 seconds of rest bet
ween sets)
3. Alternate Fingertip and Knuckle pushups - Complete a set of knuckle pushups (
rest 30 seconds) then complete a set of fingertip pushups. Repeat for 3-5 sets.
4. Dynamic Core Circuit:
Abdominal Wheel - 10-20 reps
Twisting - 10-20 reps
Side Bends - 10-20 reps
No rest between exercises, 30 seconds rest between circuits. Complete 3-5 circui
ts
5. Grippers - 3 sets of 5-10 reps with a heavy gripper
6. Forearm roller - 5-10 sets of rolling the weight all the way up.
7. 150 Fast Fist Clenches.

Impact Conditioning:
Body:
1. Self Slapping- To begin your iron body training you will start with regular p
alm slapping. This is a very simple. Start with a slap that is mildly uncomforta
ble. Over time you can work up to a harder and harder slap. Begin by slapping th
e entire surface of your torso (that you can reach). 5-10 rounds around your bod
y should be enough. I also suggest slapping your forearms, thighs, and shins to
condition them as well. You can also enlist the aid of a training partner. When
using a partner stand in your typical fighting stance and have your partner slap
predetermined areas of your body (front of the torso, thighs, back, ect...). Wh
en being struck make sure to focus your mind on the spot being struck. You shoul
d also tense the area as it is being struck. You should be proficient in this me
thod before moving on.
2. Self Punching - The self punching method is identical to the slapping method
except the fist are employed for striking as opposed to the palms. Remember to s
tart with light strikes and over time begin hitting harder and harder. I recomme
nd the use of a partner for this method as it is much more effective. You will h
ave to know when to stop, so don't over do it.
3. Medicine ball hits - You will need a partner for this method. You will also n
eed to wear an athletic cup. Simply stand in a high Horse stance (knees bent but
not extremely so) with your guard up high to protect your face. Have your partn
er throw the medicine ball at your torso from all angles. Start light and over t
ime work your way up to harder and harder throws. Bring your mind to the area be
ing struck and tense to help you protect that area. You can also try lying on yo
ur back and have your partner drop the medicine ball on you. Start low and work
your way up. When you get really advanced your partner can a bit of force to the
drop.
Hands:
1. Phone Book Iron Hand - You will need to obtain an old, thick telephone book a
nd some sort of stand to put the telephone book. The stand should be tall enough
for the telephone book to be at your navel level. Make sure it is nice and stur
dy. You will be striking the telephone book with the following hand surfaces:
a.
b.
c.
d.

Palms
back of the hands
knuckles
knife hand

Some feel it is best to simple drop the hand onto the striking surface while oth
ers feel it is best to add some power to the strike. I feel the most effective w
ay to develop the iron hand is to actually strike the target (as opposed to simp
ly dropping your hand on the striking surface). As long as you take it easy in t
he beginning and slowly work your way up to striking the telephone book harder a
nd harder you should never encounter any health problems or real injuries. Now y
ou have to keep in mind that you will never be striking the telephone book as ha
rd as you can. Even the Japanese Karate-ka, who are famous for their amazingly c
onditioned hands, never hit their makiwara as hard as they can. You should never
need to hit the striking surface with more than 60% of you power.
For each surface of the hand you will need to complete 25-50 strikes or 100-200
strikes total.
I like to start with by conditioning my palms and the backs of my hands. I start
with my right hand and strike with the heart of my palm, then immediately strik

e
p
y
h

with the back of my right hand. I repeat this with the left hand and keep it u
with a nice rhythm until I complete 25-50 reps. Then I shake out and stretch m
hands before moving on to the next hand surface. Make sure to shake and stretc
out your hands after each set of hand surface conditioning.

2. Heavy bag and focus mitt conditioning - When I work the heavy bag or focus mi
tts I wear a pair of MMA gloves. When I'm done with my session I like to take th
e gloves off and work my strikes. I train the jab, the cross, rear hand palm str
ike, rear hand knife-hand strike, lead backhand strike. I focus on single, hard
strikes. I will usually do about 10-25 repetitions in this manner and my hand (e
specially my knuckles) are usually really red after this. I would recommend taki
ng up this practice if you are serious about developing an iron hand.
Recovery:
After your training session you should do a full body stretch routine. I would a
lso recommend obtaining a foam roller and use it to give yourself a self-massage
(do an internet search for: myofascial release self-massage). Pay special atten
tion to any sore spots you find.
After your workouts you should shower if possible. Get the water as hot as is to
lerable and let it wash all over your body (though, I'd avoid the face and genit
als). Pay special attention to those areas you have conditioned that day and do
not forget to run hot water over your hands. Before you get out lower the water
temperature and let cold water wash all over your body. Again pay special attent
ion to all striking surfaces including your hands. You can also opt to apply a g
ood Dit Da Jow liniment, especially on areas were there may be some bruising. If
you are unable to find a good Jow, you can also use witch-hazel. A witch-hazel
rub can be found at any drug store. I find witch-hazel easier to come by and use
it most often.
Setting up a Routine:
At first you should train your iron skills daily. Muscle conditioning exercises
and Impact Conditioning will change from day to day. You should split your routi
ne into "A" days and "B" days. On "A" days you will do your Qigong, Static Core
Work, and Impact Conditioning (hand conditioning). On "B" days you will do you Q
igong, Dynamic Strengthening exercise, and Impact Conditioning (body conditionin
g). Notice that Impact hand conditioning is done on "A" days when only static co
re work is done as opposed to "B" days where dynamic strengthening is done. All
of the knuckle and fingertip pushups, and grip work on the dynamic strengthening
day will weaken the musculature of the hand. You don't want to engage in impact
hand conditioning when the musculature of your hands is weak. Damage to the ten
dons, ligaments, and bone structure would be much more likely. So, impact hand c
onditioning should be done with the static core strengthening exercises because
those exercises stress the musculature of the hand to a lesser degree. Impact co
nditioning for the body is less strenuous on the tendons, ligaments, and bones s
o you don't have to worry about the dynamic strengthening exercises being detrim
ental to your impact training.
So in the beginning your week would look like this:
Monday: Iron Skills "A" Day Qigong
Static Core Work
Impact Conditioning for the Hands
Tuesday: Iron Skills "B" Day Qigong
Dynamic Strengthening Exercises
Impact Conditioning for the Body

Wednesday: Same as Monday

Thursday: Same as Tuesday
Friday: Same as Monday
Saturday: Same as Tuesday
Sunday: Rest
As you progress into more advanced stages you can incorporate your Qigong and mu
scle strengthening exercises into a more traditional routine (I like to use the
Static Core strengthening circuit as a finisher to some of my workouts). When yo
u have developed your iron hand and iron body you will not have to condition the
m on a daily basis. If you do regular sparring and heavy bag work you should onl
y have to do additional iron training once or twice a week.
Closing Remarks:
Hopefully this piece on the Metaphysical Boxing Method of Basic Iron Skills Deve
lopment will help many of you who have been seeking a practical and effective tr
aining method for the above mentioned skills. Remember to begin slowly and know
your limitations. Do not let an inflated ego get the best of you. Know when to s
top and you will save yourself a considerable amount of time recovering from inj
uries that are a direct result of over training. Take your practice seriously, d
evote yourself to it, and don't get caught up in all the flashy stuff. Occasiona
lly, we Metaphysical Boxers do practice breaking skills (like breaking boards an
d patio blocks). However, this is only to teach focus and have a little fun. We
use this method very sparingly as it does not provide any real benefit that coul
d not be develop with other methods more effectively. So, keep that in mind when
training. You are not developing this skill to impress others with how many pat
io blocks you can break or to see if a friend can break a wooden pole across you
back. You should focus on how well you can break a nose or a few ribs if you ne
ed to. Because that is what this training is really about - developing your abil
ity to take and deliver powerful strikes. With this development comes a confiden
ce in your ability to use your marital skills training in a real combat situatio
n. When seen in this light all the theatrics associated with the Iron Skills see
m juvenile and pointless.
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