shin conditioning

[Evil Eye Gouger]

I'm a bit on the fence when it comes to knuckles. I think some conditioning is necessary, but that too much is harmful. Guys with really conditioned knuckles have deformed clubs for hands and I want to type, play guitar, and do many other things with my fingers when I'm older.

I don't think you can condition your knuckles enough to prevent knuckle injuries without at the same time completely screwing up your dexterity. If you develop tough-as-nails knuckles, you will inevitably give up lots of your finger mobility and probably develop arthritis when you're older.

The trick is to avoid punching hard things bareknuckle unless really necessary. Conditioning is good, but hitting hard things will mess up your knuckles, there's hardly a way around it. Use correct technique to avoid breaking or chipping bones and accept it as a part of the programme.

 

[Joey M.]

Kicking the heavy bag is good, but it's simply not enough. There really is no easy way to do it; you have to spar with someone, you have to throw a good kick, and it has to hurt before the conditioning process can begin. It's something we've all had to do, so it's best to just do it quick and get it over with.