Hey guys, I have just started going to a wrestling club, and have the option of doing some freestyle and greco. If I do this it is only to get better in folkstyle, but I would compete and add that to the folkstyle tournments I plan on going to (to supplement my lifting, practicing and running.)
If I am only training to improve in folkstyle, do learning the international styles make a big difference, or could my time be spent better on other things?
Thanks a lot
-Nick
I can say this, looking at all Div.I NCAA champions, and for the most part all of them have freestyle/greco experience. Folkstyle wrestlers, who dont have freestyle/greco experence can get pretty good, but I dont think they will ever reach their full potential without doing something extra. Many top level folkstyle wrestlers wrestle freestyle/greco, and many even practice judo as well. The more exposure you get to other styles, will make you a more well-rounded wrestler. If you want to be the best, you have to do something extra.
Suplexman is correct...it is that little extra that you need.. these 2 styles do the following: Develop the bridge extensively, in folkstyle it's onkly used when on your back, in international style its used as an attack in par terre, a throw, escape and the back is arched when on your stomach in par terre. Over all body development is also some thing to take into consideration. The gut wrench(both attacking and defending) develops the shoulders, legs, hips, back, ribs. Defending a gutwrench is so tazing on your shoulders, it is an icometric workout on its own. When gut wrenching you have to have a work horse mentality drive with all your force, drive his face in the mat, get underneathe and bridge explosively this will give u plenty of power if you practice these often. Greco= great footwork, such as backstepping, penetrating there legs with your own to setup the suplay, etc. You can really benefit from greco if you ractice the lifts from par terre. This is one of the most difficult situations in all of wrestling, it seperates the men from the boys, it is extremely difficult to lift a competant wrestler who doesnt want to get lifted. One of the most important things that you will gain is mental and physical toughness. Folkstyle is very safety oriented; if your getting your shoulder cranked in freestyle, then guess what, u either gotta let ur self nbe turned or fight the hell out of it and hope ur tendons dont rip by the time the ref blows the whistle, u really gotta have ur balls screwed on tight in certain situations in freestyle/greco roman
More mat time alone can be a great asset.
Ditto what MFranco said. The wrestling coach at our club strongly encourages Greco in the off-season, as well as Judo.
Great post by MFranco, although I don't know if I agree with: "Folkstyle is very safety oriented..."
In my experience, Folkstyle is much more physical and brutal than the international styles. The only exception is the "slam rule." In folkstyle you can throw someone, you just can't spike them into the mat - you're free to do that in the international styles. Aside from that, folkstyle is the rougher style in my experience.
The international styles are great and simply help you develop into a more well rounded wrestler. One thing that the international styles taught me is to be more aware of my body positioning - folkstyle is a little more relaxed in where your back is than the international styles. You must CONSTANTLY be aware of your back and hip positioning.
Actually, there are really too many things to get into here, so... suffice it to say that yes, you should absolutely get into freestyle and greco to improve your folkstyle.
Good luck with it!
Yea i didnt mean to make folkstyle seem not as tough, it may be even more intense due to the constant grappling, i meant safety oriented with the joint locks and throws. In international you are more prone to getting something twisted from your refusal to get turned from a static defensive position.
Thanks guys
I will add my $.02, if I may.
For I am a folkstyle fan.
Freestyle/Greco is not as big in NJ as other states.
Many wrestlers here train strictly folkstyle, all year round.
If it is folkstyle you wish to improve, it is folkstyle that you should be training.
FS/GR training has some things that may benefit you, as detailed above, but you can also simply work these techniques into your folkstyle training.
Matt Gentry, this years undefeated NCAA champion went against the grain in his training. He has no experience with FS or GR and endorses folkstyle only training if thats what you want to be successful at.
i can name dozens of NJ guys who only train folkstyle. If this is what you want to do, win HS states, win NCAA, etc, you better concentrate on your folkstyle.
I ve also seen lots of wrestlers get bad habits from FS, where they get away from looking to score the takedown and start looking more for the rolls.
theres my $.02
An interesting article by Zeke Jones, that pertains to this topic: http://www.wvmat.com/whyfree.htm
Thanks a lot guys. Being a NJ wrestler, I understand what you're saying GrapplerHK. I have been doing both recently however, andI have been noticing some benifets.
My handfighting has gotten better since training greco, and I feel a lot more comfortable when clinched.
I also have been hitting Jap-whizzers (not sure if it's Jap or Jack, forgive me if I'm wrong) on people in folk-style, which not only is great, but feels really cool :)
Thanks
Nick