Nutritional Guidelines and Exercise according to Aliran Tempur Ikhtiar
The approach and implementation of the martial art Aliran Tempur Ikhtiar is realistic. Absolutely no myths, no magic, no party tricks. The Badek (or Badik) is also used in the Ikhtiar cyllabus. The Badek is one of the many weapons invented by the Bugis of South East Asia. It is characterized by a single edge blade with a straight back and a distinctive curved hilt. A certain level of tradition is maintained concerning mannerism and culture. Ikhtiar does not have the unrealistic and arrogant claim to be a 'complete' system. There is no such martial art in existence. It is merely a tool that can be used in many situations.
A diet for those engaged in exercise is one which involves eating for energy and for prevention of injuries which are often due to nutritional deficiencies. Advised is a diet of approximately 65% carbohydrates, 10 to 15% fat (of vegetable origin) and 10% protein. A typical traditional South East Asian dish is well balanced and will include all the necessary specifications, with the exception of dished like Nasi Lemak, which is too oily. Also in some parts of South East Asia people have started to eat more meat since more people can afford to buy it, which confuses the balance of the meal.
With training a martial art and physical exercise comes care for ones body and health.
Carbohydrates gives time released energy necessary to sustain extraordinary effort and combat fatigue, fatigue being one of the principle causes of injury. Rice is a complex carbohydrate, which means that it contains starch and fibre. Complex carbohydrates are digested slowly, allowing the body to utilize the energy released over a longer period which is nutritionally efficient. Rice has low sodium content and contains useful quantities of potassium, the B vitamins, thiamine and niacin. The average portion of rice of 50g provides about 11% of the estimated average daily requirement of protein.
A major cause of fatigue is too much milk and animal protein and fats. They are difficult to break down and use up a great amount of energy for digestion and assimilation. People who have been eating a junk food diet or one with poor food choices often have weak enzyme systems, and some proteins and fatty foods may take several days to break down in this case. Traditional diets for athletes consisted of a high percentage of meat, cheese and milk. Although a steak has a lot of protein it may also contain as much as 80% fat. Also pure soy protein is difficult to digest.
65% Carbohydrates - Sayur (vegetables), buah (fruits), and beras (rice).
10 to 15% Fat -Minyak sayur or minyak kacang (Oil of vegetable origin).
10% Protein - Ikan (fish), sotong (squid), udang (prawn) or kambing biri-biri (mutton). Tofu, mee and meehun made of fish and udang (shrimp) are also good sources of protein.
Multi-Vitamin + Minerals - A formula containing Potassium, Magnesium, Alpha Ketogluturate, Inosine, Malic Acid, Ferulic Acid, Trimethylglycine, and Coenzyme Q10 taken sublingually 30 minutes before competition.
Vitamin E - 800 I.U.
Selenium - 100 to 300 mcg
B-Complex - 2 to 3 tablets 1/2 to three hours before exercise.
Vitamin C with Bioflavonoid - 2,000 to 4,000 mg. of vitamin C in a formula rich in bioflavonoid.
Calcium - 600 mg.
Magnesium - 400 mg.
Zinc with Vitamin A - 30 mg. per day taken in the morning. Do not take at the same time as calcium/magnesium as they will tend to neutralize each other.
Fish Oil Capsules - 2 per day.
Injuries
When an injury does occur the advise is to eat as much fresh nanas (pineapple) as you can in one hour. Do this every other day. Pineapple contains the enzyme bromelain, and this enzyme along with other nutrients in the fruit, help the healing process by breaking down the injured tissue. Eat the nanas within an hour of taking off the husk. After an hour the bromelain loses its effectiveness rapidly. Along with the nanas large doses of vitamin B-6 (as much as 1800 mg. per day) will act as a natural diuretic and help transport damaged tissue out of the system without affecting mineral balance as do most diuretics. B-6 also makes the protein in the body more available for tissue repair. Once the injury is healed stop taking the B-6 as long term intake of this amount of the vitamin may damage nerve endings, while short term during recovery from an injury is very helpful.
Salts - Excess salt leads to changes in metabolism that increase the potential for injuries and impair wound healing.
Caffeine - affeine reduces blood supply by narrowing blood vessels. One wants the blood vessels wide open to carry all the nutrients to all the muscles, so a reduction of coffee and most soft drinks is necessary.
Fast Food - Fast food diets in addition to the fat, salt, and sugar content are deficient in vitamins and minerals. The mineral deficiency can lead to muscle pulls and cramps.
Vitamin C - Vitamin C with bioflavonoid is helpful for several reasons:
- It helps keep the immune system strong under stress
- It helps maintain collagen, the protein necessary for the formation of connective tissue.
- It speeds healing. It can cut recovery time by as much as 75% in a number of wound and surgery situations.
>> The bioflavonoid helps maintain the strength and integrity of the capillaries resulting in less bruising and less haemorrhaging around sprains.
>> There is much less soft tissue injury
>> There are fewer sprains
>> There are fewer muscle problems and tendonitis
Zinc - A zinc supplement greatly speeds up healing and regeneration of damaged connective tissue. Surgical incisions close up cleaner and faster.
Magnesium - A magnesium supplement aids in healing cartilage injuries of the knee, and in the cartilage strains of the shoulder joints.
Calcium - A calcium supplement helps prevent muscle cramping.
Vitamin E - Helps reduce inflammation and increases blood flow to injury sites. It also extends the available usage time for the oxygen necessary for healthy cells and increases the amount of energy available.
Omega 3 fatty acids - Helps prevent build up fat in the circulatory system, thin the blood for better transport of nutrients, and protect against various inflammatory problems, including those resulting from injuries.
Physical Exercise
Physical exercise has to be done with care and with respect for the human body in order to avoid injury. It is important to know which muscles are utilized and where they are on the body. Ikhtiar encourages jogging. Endurance exercises like running make your muscles stronger and less likely to get tired. This sort of exercise doesn't only benefit your skeletal muscles. It also enlarges your heart so it can pump blood around your body more quickly; Increases the capacity of your lungs so you can breathe in more oxygen with each breath; Improves your digestion; Makes your metabolism more efficient; Strengthens your skeleton; Improves your coordination. Being able to run and be active for a period of time is the ultimate survival tool. You can increase muscle size by doing resistance exercises. Resistance exercise involves using your muscles to move an extremely heavy load. This type of exercise forces your muscles to contract as hard as they can, which leads to an increase in the number of contractile filaments within your muscle cells. This makes your muscle cells enlarge and, as a result, it makes your muscles bigger. Extreme muscle size is not functional. However, some additional muscle volume will protect your body in case of violent impact. Some forms of exercise offer the benefits of both endurance and resistance exercise. Swimming improves endurance, and as you have to push against water to move forward, it is a resistance exercise too. Energy is directed to your muscles during exercise. If you're doing intense exercise, other systems in your body focus their efforts on helping your muscles. Your heart beats more quickly so that it can pump more blood to your muscles, to provide them with more oxygen and nutrients. Your digestive system slows down so that it does not use up energy that your muscles need.Your mind avoids complicated thoughts in order for you to perform. After 40 minutes of exercise endorphins are created in your body, taking away pain and giving moments of euphorism. Therefore exercise is said to make people happier.
Knee Bones
Ikhtiar techniques incorporate lowering the body and erecting the body with use of the knees. Ikhtiar encourages jogging and also incorporates squatting in some of the techniques. The knees are therefore very valuable. The bones of the knee are the femur (thigh bone), tibia (shin bone) and patella (kneecap). The femur and tibia meet to form a hinge with the patella in front of these two bones protecting the joint. The patella slides up and down in a groove in the femur (the femoral groove) as the knee is bent and straightened.
Ligaments
Ligaments hold the knee together and give it stability. The medial (inner) collateral ligament (MCL) and outer (lateral) collateral ligament (LCL) limit sideways motion of the knee. The posterior and anterior cruciate ligaments (PCL and ACL) limit forward motion of the knee bones, keeping them stable.
Cartilage
Two structures known as menisci sit between the femur and the tibia and act as cushions or shock absorbers for the knee. A torn meniscus is often referred to as torn cartilage. Menisci are one of two types of cartilage in the knee. The other type, articular cartilage, is a smooth and very slick material that covers the end of the femur, the femoral groove, the top of the tibia and the underside of the patella. This articular cartilage allows the bones to move smoothly.
Tendons
Tendons connect muscle to knee. The quadriceps muscles on the front of the thigh are connected to the top of the patella by the quadriceps tendon, which covers the patella and becomes the patellar tendon. The patellar tendon then attaches to the front of the tibia. The hamstring muscles in the back of the leg attach to the tibia at the back of the knee. The quadriceps muscles straighten the knee and the hamstring muscles bend the knee.
Bones, ligaments, cartilage and tendons all work together to build a healthy knee. It is important that the knees are never used to the point of injury. When they feel too tired and like they are not stable, rest is advised.
Aliran Tempur Ikhtiar