Innervate Combatives : What and Why?

At Innervate CrossFit, our vision is to Forge Elite Lives and Make People Better. We have programs that improve fitness and wellness across our youth and children through to our seniors (Silver legends). These programs are all offered with an emphasis on some central tenets of the CrossFit methodology, namely Constantly Varied, Functional Movement executed at high intensity.

Why Innervate Combatives?

We developed the Innervate Combatives program out of recognition that the ability to fight or defend yourself is arguably the single most important functional movement one can learn. We also found that fighters are some of our most functionally conditioned athletes due to their need for agility, strength, speed and power. These all come together to create a level of fitness that most specialised sports don’t even come close to.

Innervate Combatives training offers three major advantages over most martial arts:

1) The fundamentals can be used in any fight

2) Real-world conditioning keeps you going

3) Training at high intensity and under fatigue develops situational awareness under realistic fight conditions.

It may not be glamorous, but it works.

The essence of Innervate Combatives is readiness: being prepared for any kind of attack, and prepared to attack any opening. This preparation derives from the variety of combatives disciplines grounded in quality fundamentals such as proper stance, movement, striking, and conditioning.

What is Innervate Combatives?

Combatives is a term loosely used to refer to hand-to-hand combat training and techniques, sometimes referred to in the military as Close Quarter Combatives. At Innervate CrossFit we take Combatives to refer to Functional Fighting Fitness.

CrossFit offers a fitness program that doesn’t specialise or discriminate, with a goal of General Physical Preparedness. The Innervate Combatives program is a fitness program that takes a multidisciplinary approach, combining concepts from martial arts, grappling, self-defense and boxing to strengthen your core, improve rotational power and overall fitness.

Athletes will learn a combination of close quarter striking and ground fighting techniques including punches, knees, elbows, kicks and  takedowns. These techniques are combined and integrated into CrossFit workouts to produce short high intensity training sessions.  

Classes will be familiar to CrossFit athletes as they will follow a similar format to our regular CrossFit classes including a group warm-up, a strength / skill component, and one or more Combative WODs (workout of the day).

Workouts are designed to take both the skills and the benefits from a fighter’s training program and integrate them into CrossFit workouts. We incorporate a combination of combative techniques with familiar CrossFit movements.

The skills have great carryover and application to personal safety and defense readiness. The same protective stance, proper movement, power to stop your opponent, and stamina to outlast him/her are needed in both the competitive arena and that of a street fight.

Effective combat and self-defense tactics--and training--should work with the body's natural movement patterns and instinctual responses to attack and fear. When analysing a realistic self-defense we take a scenario based approach. Scenario-based training is all about harnessing those instincts and conditioning the mind to working under high-stress physical and mental conditions.

For personal protection and self-defense we integrate elements of our Personal Defense Readiness Program (PDR). This program is also available to those who wish to look into personal protection and realistic scenario based self defense in more detail.

Who is it for?

We believe the Innervate Combatives program is for anyone and everyone. From an experienced professional fighter to regular Janes & Joes looking to blow off some steam and improve their fitness. We offer the combatives program to accommodate a variety of tastes and interests. Those interested specifically in a comprehensive self-defense system should look into our Personal Defense Readiness Program (PDR), which is "realistic, scenario-based self-defense" taught as part of the patented S.P.E.A.R. (spontaneous protection enabling accelerated response) system.

Our Combatives Program is beginner friendly. Each one-hour lesson addresses drills that will enhance and improve combative calisthenics. These are techniques that have a combative application and by practising them we improve timing and force generation. Theses techniques are then combined with other functional movements in a high intensity workout.  

You can start the program at any time and participate in any class without previous experience. We take safety as our number one concern, teaching good technique with sound mechanics before combining it into a workout setting. Sparring is never required, and the classes are all appropriate for all skill levels from rank beginner to the seasoned fighter whose conditioning training we will supervise.

Just like our CrossFit program the workouts, movements and intensity can be scaled according to the athlete's individual tolerances.  

What is the difference between CrossFit and Innervate Combatives?

The main difference between CrossFit and Innervate Combatives is that fitness itself is the sport and goal of CrossFit, and, for Innervate Combatives, fitness is a means to better fighting and self-defense. Strength and stamina are necessary in a fight, but they are useless without the techniques to translate them into powerful strikes. Intense bag, shield, grappling, ground fighting and pad work are part of the combatives repertoire. CrossFit workouts can be measured (load × reps/time = measurable intensity). Combatives training is harder to quantify. Athletes are conditioned to bring intensity to the workout both by the structure of the workouts and by visualizing the attacker or opponent. In either case, you can’t train mildly and expect good results.

With Innervate Combatives you can be assured of the following;

• You will have alot of FUN.

• Techniques are easy to learn.

• You WILL NOT be forced to fight people.

• You will learn practical combative techniques that can be used to protect yourself.

• You will have one heck of a workout that will develop your physical conditioning.

• You will be challenged and pushed to find your limit.

• You will develop physical and mental toughness.

JOIN US TODAY! Our Innervate Combatives classes are up and running! We're happy to have you join us in our classes! Head over to our Sign Up Page to get registered today!