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The Value of the Basics

No matter the sport, when athletes return to fundamentals like basic footwork, simple conditioning drills, or technical review, they build long-term stability for top-tier performance. In sports science, this is typically referred to as a “base-building” or general preparation phase. It’s meant as a precursor to more advanced work. In this period, the athlete focuses less on highly complex tasks associated with peak performance (like crazy fast triple zwerchs or complex multi-step blade preparations) and more on reinforcing the foundations: movement quality, endurance, and technical precision. It’s laying the ground work for what will come in the following weeks/months of a longer training cycle.

For historical fencers, this can look like a variety of training strategies:

• Simple Movement Patterns: Repeating clean, simple footwork or and 1 or 2 step blade actions to reinforce (or build) the wiring of your nervous system. We want to strengthen the motor programs that make more advanced techniques or compound attacks automatic under pressure. Without this continual practice, sloppy habits can creep in unnoticed. You need to revisit the basics again and again as an elite athlete, always with a critical eye and high standard for execution.

• Strength Endurance: Early-season training for “strength endurance” in the shoulders and legs will help you from fading in the late rounds of a tournament as we layer on more difficult work. Emphasize things like controlled, steady iso holds or repeated footwork patterns with added weight to build muscle stamina. If you’re bicep’s “battery life” with a saber is super short or you’re wearing out in round 2 of pools, you need to take this part seriously.

• Injury Prevention: Research shows athletes who dedicate time to foundational drills and strength work have lower rates of overuse injuries. For fencers, that means still spening time strengthening key muscle groups like the posterior chain, rotator cuff / shoulder, and knee stabilizers so you see fewer knee, hip, and shoulder issues when the season heats up.

Think of it this way: your summer of fencing workshops and events gave you a technical leg up and helped maintain your general fencing stamina. September is about filing down the rough edges and layering in polish, so when you step into the ring this winter or classes start to intensify, your performance feels smooth, stable, and sharp.

HEMA Hot Take:

Too many historical fencers skip the simple drills once they’ve been fencing a few years. If they hit the pell at all, they tend to practice whatever latest-and-greatest technique they’ve been thinking about or working to hone, and skip what seems ‘boring’ or ‘beginner-level’. Additionally, those who stay engaged with basic techniqe through teaching or helping with beginners also find that they spend a lot more time explaining drills than doing drills. Here’s the rub: if you want to feel fast, balanced, and strong in the ring, the boring basics need to never leave your toolbox. Make September your opportunity to recommit to them.

Coach’s Corner: Make it Easy

Rather than continually preaching that your experienced fencers need to be doing footwork or exercising/drilling on their own, give them at a quick 15-20 minute routine that will get them started with the habit this fall. Post it in your club’s discord and invite group participation. Do it one day during practice and then talk about it the following week. Sometimes, all we need is a little push (or peer pressure) to get going.

Here’s an example of a simple 20 minute home routine with no equipment:

1. Dynamic Mobility (4 min): Warm up with hip openers, shoulder circles, a runner’s lunge series and stretch “around the world” with your feder.

2. Footwork (8 min): Work advance/retreat combos, adding in more complicated movements like check or stutter steps, passing steps and offline footwork. Spend 4 minutes with the left foot forward, 4 with the right. Suggest combos that coordinate with classwork or let them make their own. (Hint: check my youtube footwork playlist)

3. Conditioning (8 min): 3 Rounds of bodyweight exercises:

   • 30 second split squat iso-holds per leg

   • 10 push-ups

   • 10 Jump lunges

   • 30 second Bear Crawls

Done. They’ve worked mobility, fencing mechanics, and strength endurance in less time than it takes to post a dumb meme on Tryhard HEMA.

Health & Fitness Tips

The Prepared HEMAist
The kiddos just bought a new backpack and pencils, so take some time and freshen up your own gear bag this week. That’s right, it’s time to clean out your HEMA bag! It doesn’t have to be fancy: you have my permission to dump the contents of your bag out on the ground, throw out all the granola bar wrappers and wadded-up tape balls and get any dirty gear into the wash. Take a look at your tournament to-go kit (you have one, don’t you?) and restock anything it needs like electrical tape, or tylenol or string / hair ties for gloves. Start fall off on the right foot with a clean bag.

Conditioning Move of the Week

Landmine Overhead Press

This up-and-out form of a press is perfect for imitating the overhead movements of longsword. Conveniently, it’s also a bit safer on the shoulder for those with a history of instability, and as an added bonus works the core in an anti-rotation fashion.

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