Do You Drill Slow Or Fast?

I wrote about this the other day but I feel like maybe another blog that’s dedicated to the subject wouldn’t be a bad thing…so here goes.

When it comes to martial arts, any martial art really, drilling is a huge piece of the puzzle. I mean, without good drilling how would you learn the moves, skills and techniques that make a champion?

What do I mean by drilling? That means you learn a technique, lets say a round kick. You would try and make that round kick perfect over time through repetitive drilling of it. Sort of like learning to ride a bike or drive a car.

All the great champions of the world, sports, business or martial arts all spend a good chunk of time drilling. You would be wise to do the same.

Now, is it better to drill slow or fast?

If you’re like me you tend to drill on the slower side. I’m the type of person that needs to have a full understanding of how a technique works. I guess you can say that I like to break the techniques down to find out what makes them work.

There is of course a time and a place when drilling fast is needed. The key when you drill fast is to make sure that you don’t lose control of the skill and make it sloppy. I always tell my students to drill fast enough that the technique works and looks right rather then really fast and sloppy.

In the end you need to find the speed and tempo that you like to drill at and that works for you. As long as you’re drilling you’re taking a step in the right direction!

It doesn’t matter if you drill slow or fast because in the grand scheme of things you’re still drilling faster then the guy sitting on the couch…

Below is a great video of Muay Thai Kickboxing champion and drilling machine Andy Souwer.