There is an old saying that in martial arts, skill and technique beats strength and power. This is a romanticized view that is reinforced by countless action movies, where slick martial artists overcome hordes of muscle-bound thugs. In reality, skill and technique certainly help to overcome strength and power, but if you are only slightly more skilled than your opponent, who is vastly stronger than you, will that be enough? If your skill levels are identical, then clearly the advantage is with the stronger fighter. Strength training is a necessary part of a complete fighter's regimen.
Function
Weight training serves a variety of purposes. The most obvious is to increase the raw strength of a fighter or a combat athlete. However, while raw strength is useful in certain situations, such as wrestling or grappling, it is only one of a number of relevant factors in a fight, whether in a ring or in a self-defense situation. Other factors include your muscular and cardiovascular endurance, your flexibility and your explosive power.
Considerations
Many traditional martial artists are suspicious of weight training, usually offering the argument that it can bulk you up and slow you down. Instead, many favor body weight training, such as push-ups and chin-ups. The problem with this is that you cannot increase the weight of these exercises, so while you may see initial strength gains, you soon will only be working muscular endurance, rather than strength. While it is true that larger muscles consume more oxygen, impairing endurance and stamina, weight training does not necessarily make you large and muscle-bound. Many fighters use all manner of exercise techniques to form a well-rounded strength and conditioning regimen.
Misconceptions
Weight training is often confused with bodybuilding. Weight training is not concerned with increasing muscle mass, only your strength and power. Weightlifting and powerlifting competitions are regulated by weight class, meaning that bulking up can actually be detrimental to your relative performance. By lifting close to your maximum for fewer repetitions, you will add strength without increasing mass. Using full-body exercises such as dead lifts and squats also minimize time needed, unlike bodybuilders who lift many repetitions, often with a different exercise focusing on different body parts.
Other Benefits
Weight training can also be used to increase power as well as strength. Strength is measured by the amount of weight you can move, while power is also affected by the speed with which you can apply force. This is obviously relevant in combat, as punching, kicking and throwing are all explosive movements where strength is less important than power. Explosive weight training is important for this, though other exercises such as plyometrics also work.
Alternatives
There are other forms of weight training outside of classic barbell and dumbbell exercises. Kettlebells, club bells, sandbag training and even lifting a human partner have all become popular alternatives. Kettlebell and club bell work is dynamic and explosive, with the added benefit of working coordination and endurance at the cost of pure strength. Sandbag and partner-resistance training are effective because of the irregular shape of the objects lifted, meaning that you must work harder to stabilize the weight lifted. Some fighters feel this is of greater benefit than the added weight, but more easily controlled barbell exercises.
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