Customer Reviews

The Mixed Martial Arts Instruction Manual: Striking

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I had been eagerly anticipating this books release since I first heard it was coming out a few months back. Needless to say, I wasn't disappointed.

The layout and format for this book is very well done and it abounds with literally hundreds of full color photographs printed on glossy paper to ensure their richness and clarity, and this is just the aesthetic properties of this book, and I haven't even got to the quality of the actual content, which is nothing short of fantastic.

For the most part, the techniques themselves are described in very good detail to go along with the numerous photographs depicting the actual technique. However, there were a few instances were I felt that a little bit better description would have been appropriate. But please don't let this even be anything more than a minor inconsequential annoyance compared to the wealth of material that is presented here. The author does a very good job of providing a lot of good solid information on a variety of subjects, although no great amount of in-depth discussion is really given to any one subject.

The following is a list of the main topics and the sub-topics which are discussed in this book.

1. STANCES & FOOTWORK

A. Stances
B. Footwork

2. COUNTER MOVEMENT

A. Evasive Techniques
B. Parries and Blocks
C. Checking Techniques

3. STRIKING TECHNIQUES

A. Punches
B. Elbows
C. Kicks
D. Knees

4. ATTACKS

A. Same Stance
B. Opposite Stance
C. Feints
D. Striking to the Clinch

5. COUNTERATTACKS

A. Same Stance
B. Opposite Stance
C. Countering Kicks

Each section is loaded with sound well-rounded information and goes over numerous techniques and combinations. This is definitely a book that any aspiring MMA fighter wants to own in order to improve their fighting skills in the cage. I would highly recommend this book without any reservations whatsoever. Here are two other books that I would also recommend.

Wrestling for Fighting: The Natural Way

Mixed Martial Arts: The Book of Knowledge

Shawn Kovacich
Martial Artist/Creator of numerous books and DVD's.

I just recently got a chance to read one of the newest books from Victory Belt publishing, Anderson Silva's "striking" volume in his upcoming book series. Firstly I want to say this is one of the better striking instructional manuals I've seen. I've never seen any book break down angles, concepts, and strategies like this book. First thing the book stresses is the importance of learning to strike from both stances, because whether you're fighting opposite stance or same stance really determines your angles, your strategies, and in general what techniques you can execute. Secondly it stresses the difference between a high and a low stance, and how the degrees of separation between the two stances will determine what techniques you can execute more easily than others. The third thing this book stresses is good foot/head movement. All the footwork and body movement (slips, bob/weave, ect) sections are very simply displayed, and any subtle movements are made more clear with graphical arrows to demonstrate the movements. And as mentioned before, the importance is stressed between inside movement and outside movement, as well as proper movement during same stance fighting and opposite stance.

The first few chapters of techniques are all movement and defensive based. Checks, parries, slips, foot work, blocking with high guard, and circling out are all covered in thorough detail. The next few chapters cover all of Anderson's striking techniques. These chapters focus on the base technique it's self (without combos or counters). The pictures show in multiple angles with and without opponent, to show the accurate way to execute these techniques. The attacks cover the entire range of strikes you'll see from Anderson Silva, or anyone else for that matter. Everything from inside cut kicks to spinning rear elbows are covered. There's a chapter for punches, elbows, kicks, and knees covering each in heavy detail.

The final few chapters are meat and potatoes of the book in my opinion, and it's also what other books I've seen haven't covered. The sections are broken down in attacks and counter attacks. And each set of attacks and combos are broken down by same stance (say orthodox on orthodox) and opposite stance (say orthodox to southpaw). The same with the counterattacks. If you've never really sat down and analyzed the difference between the two situations, you will likely be amazed by this section. Anderson really covers all the scenarios between each different circumstance. The counter-attacks section is the same. There are huge differences between how you slip a punch and counter a southpaw and an orthodox.

The technical information in this book is right on. Technical notes through out highlight important features that may not be covered in the set of still photos such as lead foot placement, maneuvering around your opponent, and proper counters through switching stances. I'm not sure where it mentions that punching and round kicking range are the same, but that's a valid technical point. If you're practicing muay thai and kicking with your shin (which is the proper technique) your kicks range will about the same or maybe only an inch or two longer than your punches range. Overall it's a great book, and any martial artist will be able to pick up a thing or two to add to their game. I highly recommend reading this book if you get the chance.

It is really difficult to find a good book on striking. Most of the time, they just show a couple of moves that you can find in every other book. Not in Anderson Silva's instruction manual. He shows the proper way to throw basic and advance strikes, and then goes on to show dozens of ways to set those strikes up through movement. He covers advanced footwork, advanced counterattacks, and dozens of the combos he's pulled off in fights. There are literally thousands of step-by-step photos in this book. I don't think there is anything on the market as far as striking that comes close to this book.

I was very excited to receive the latest Victory Belt publication in the mail: Anderson Silva's MMA Instruction Manual STRIKING.

I'm a huge fan of this series. Co-authors Erich Krauss and Glen Cordoza have also done books with Randy Couture, B.J. Penn and Karo Parisyan.

Like the others, this one is a very well produced tome -- clearly written, excellent color photos, step-by-step instructions on techniques both basic and advanced.

The first thing to jump out at me on perusing this one was a bit of disappointment. A quick glance at the section titles left a glaring omission: Stance & Footwork, Countermovement, Striking Techniques, Attacks and Counterattacks...where's the section on the Clinch?!?!? I had to flip through the book four times, seeing only the barest reference to the Thai Plum or the Dirty Boxing Clinch before I noticed Page 271 --- "Related Projects by Anderson Silva". There it was -- Anderson Silva's MMA Instruction Manual: THE CLINCH.

Ah, I see, they're going to do a whole 'nother book on Silva's clinch work. Damn. The dude has so much to say about the clinch that it needs its own book.

Anyway, the book I have in my hands is still totally awesome. My favorite thing about the Victory Belt series is the insight these books give to the fighting style of the authors. This book, like Anderson Silva, is an interesting combination. Its two parts methodical attention to footwork and positioning, two parts tactics -- how to set up combinations and how to counterattack, and one part crazy flash moves that reveal Silva's love of martial arts movies!

The bit on the Lead Reverse Back Elbow (the move he famously KTFO'd Tony Fryklund with, watch it here) is classic. Anderson describes how he first saw the move in a movie called Ong Bak starring Tony Jaa, a Muay Boran master. He decides that he's going to use it in his next fight and his trainers tell him to quit wasting his time with stupid movie moves that are never going to work. So he goes home and gets his wife to hold the pads for him while he secretly practices the move hundreds of times. Then he unleashes it in Cage Rage.

So after I've flipped through it a few dozen times and looked at all the flashy, exotic moves, I go back and read from the beginning. The thing that jumps out at me is just how much of Anderson Silva's flashy flashy fighting style is based on his total mastery of fundamentals. He puts everything in a context of footwork and positioning, combinations and counter-attacks.

The amount of information I gleaned about striking, particularly footwork, from this book positively dwarfs that I've gotten from every other MMA book combined. Lets face it, Silva is light years ahead of most MMA practitioners as a striker and comparing his striking instructionals to those of B.J. Penn or Randy Couture is like the difference between basic algebra and advanced calculus. You will not be disappointed if you buy this book looking to learn about advanced striking technique for MMA.

I've been going back and watching all of Anderson's fights and I can already tell the difference in my level of understanding of his artistry. I've even spotted him using several of the combinations and counters from the book.

You will be a bit bummed if you were looking to learn about the clinch but we'll just have to wait for 2009 when Victory Belt releases that one.

On the whole this is another excellent production by Krauss and Cordoza and I recommend it highly. Even if you don't train (like me) its a great way to learn the nuances of the sport so you can appreciate it even more when you watch it. If you do train, this book could unlock a whole new world of striking technique for you.

I'm an MMA coach in Nor Cal, and this is by far the best striking book out there. Great combos. Great counterattacks. Anderson Silva has technique that blows every other fighter out of the water. He is a true tactician, and it shows in this book. Even his smallest movements are exact. I will use this book to help teach my students, for sure. Every guy who trains MMA needs to pick this up.

Silva is surely a great MMA fighter and I love watching his fights. This however does not automatically make his book any better than others. To give you a reference point, I am boxing and kickboxing for 2.5 years and just got into MMA; not terribly much but not nothing either.

On the book

The good:

The format is great, having an A4-sized layout gives one much more space for the pics. The pics themselves are great quality - I always wondered why it is that even relatively new books on martial arts keep putting pics in that look like they are from the 60ies, and often you can't see any detail. Well done on those formalities, I wish every MA book would adobt them. Guess it drives the price of the book up though.

The bad:

The techniques are mostly very basic, the fancy ones too fancy for someone who needs this book in the first place (reverse uppercut elbow?), and all are only described at a very high level without any detail. After 3 or 4 KB sessions in the gym, you'll know most of them better than this book describes them. There is very little 'why' or tips on corret form and key things to keep in mind when performing the respective techniques, and there is only very limited 'how' apart from the pics. The text for most techniques seems to be purely a placeholder and could usually have been ommited. Fortunately the book does go into combinations but does not explain the logic of them much, ie why do I combine those techniques, what would I want to achive by them etc. Also, no tips on how to finetune ones' own techniques, how to train them, and how to internalise them.

Some reviewers commented on how much insight there is on angles etc - I found maybe 5 respective tips in the form of very short comments across the entire book. I would have expected 50.

Finally, I find the switching between right and left forward very confusing and would prefer to either always have it my way (left) or always have to mentally reverse it.

Overall, very little insight and in my view good to teach you the very basics, in theory - at home on your couch and if you dont intend to ever hit a gym. If you do intend to, this book is a waste of money.

Anderson Silver is in a class of Fighters that I call Illusive Pugilists: Looked for they can not be seen, listened for they can not be heard and felt for they can not be touched. If this sounds like the definition of a Mystic Warrior I apologize for the melodramatic edge, but anyone who has seen the last few fights by this MMA Master would be hard-pressed to disagree.

This book is very helpful to the MMA Practitioner who works very hard to improve his/her skills and is recieving good solid training from an MMA facility. This is a very detailed-oriented book as it covers striking using the Science of 8 Limbs (Muay Thai), but does so Silva-Style: His is a Western interpretation of Eastern Martial Art doctrine. Because it does not discuss in depth the body-mechanics of transitions from movement to movement (How breathing, agility, intrinsic strength, etc...), beyond the High and Low Stance, it is meant for the MMA Trainer or the Adept to use to sharpen movement and maximize the use of striking combinations. This level of Practitioner can fill in the gaps of this information making the book very handy for quick reference to reinforce principles of Striking.

The book is written in a very understandable manner and style indicating that the writers really focus upon good training-the-trainer principles of instruction. This book should be used as a reference book of MMA Kickboxing-style after a full review of the book," Muay Thai Kickboxing: The Ultimate Guide To Conditioning, Training, And Fighting by Chad Boykin". Another good book to cross-reference with these books is the book, "Mixed Martial Arts: The Book of Knowledge by BJ Penn, Glen Cordoza, and Erich Krauss".

Master Gurjot K. Singh, M Ed., Retired US Army Ranger & NC/VA Licensed MMA Trainer, [...] Author of "The Art of Western Tai Ch'uan: The Supreme, Ultimate and Sweet Science of Boxing with 10 Limbs"

The Art of Western Tai Chi Ch'uan: The Supreme Ultimate & Sweet Science Of Boxing With 10 Limbs

Adnerson Silva is the top striker in MMA right now. His ability to KO competition isn't based on natural abilities like Chuck Liddells insane KO power. His is based on his successful modification and application of classic striking techniques.

This book covers how he's modified and altered some of the striking tools he uses for MMA. There's no super secret squirrel ninja techniques, just good solid basic skills that you can see Silva use in all of his fights. These aren't text book boxing or kickboxing techniques but they do work when confronted with a situation where grappling is allowed.

The only thing missing from this book is his clinch game, which is a big part of his standup skill set. However, it lookes lik he has a book coming out devoted to just the clinch.

This is a great book. I love Andersons fighting style and technique. The authors of the book did a great job breaking down the techniques. The illustrations and descriptions are very helpful and neat.

Anderson Silva has created a brilliant coffee table quality book in MMA Striking. The photos in this book alone were worth it to me. Add in the great descriptions and well, Anderson, and you have an excellent book!

Although I am not a great striker, Anderson shows all of the basics that I need. Once I get some of this down, I will definitely be moving on to his more advanced combinations and movement. It is great to see a book that goes after this neglected topic with such zeal. Anderson - you da man!