Student Level 2

Every training session begins with a warm-up for a reason: the body must be prepared for the workload gradually and correctly. Two types of exercises are used for this purpose.

General preparatory exercises condition the heart, blood vessels, and musculoskeletal system as a whole. They include various forms of walking and running, jumping, and exercises for coordination, strength, speed, flexibility, joint mobility, and balance. They are performed both in place and while moving, with equipment (dumbbells, jump ropes, medicine balls, gymnastic sticks, and resistance bands) or without it. Gymnastics apparatus such as the horizontal bar, parallel bars, rings, and wall bars is also often used. Acrobatic exercises have a special role: they develop coordination and directly support the learning of attacking and defensive actions.

Sport-specific preparatory exercises follow the general exercises and last 10-15 minutes. Their purpose is to prepare the nervous system and muscles for the exact work required in the main part of training. These include wrestling-bridge exercises, partner-safety and breakfall techniques, simulation drills, elements of techniques and combinations, and throwing a grappling dummy.

The preparatory part of the session ends with a short rest of 3-5 minutes, during which the athletes prepare the equipment, form pairs, and take their places on the mat.

The exercise program must not remain unchanged; it should be updated regularly. If the same movements are repeated for too long, the body adapts and the training effect decreases. Coaches therefore vary starting positions, pace, and exercise duration. The length of the preparatory part is not fixed either: the younger and less experienced the athlete, the more time is devoted to warming up; as skill increases, this time is reduced.

A routine is a structured daily schedule: when the athlete wakes up, trains, studies or works, eats, and rests. Knowing in advance what must be done and when during the day, week, or year makes it possible to plan training deliberately rather than haphazardly.

A sound routine balances training loads, balanced nutrition, and adequate rest for recovery. Following it consistently helps the body adapt and reach its potential; repeated disruption disturbs the body's natural rhythm and reduces performance. It is therefore best to wake, sleep, eat, and train at consistent times.

The schedule depends on the training stage and whether the athlete also studies or works. For students, the day usually revolves around school or university classes in the first half of the day; the main task is to eat properly between classes and recover before evening training.

Sample Daily Schedule for a SAMBO Athlete Combining Study and Training

06:45 - Wake up, personal hygiene, weight check

07:00-07:20 - Morning exercise (light warm-up and stretching)

07:30 - Breakfast

08:30-14:00 - Classes (water and a light snack, such as fruit or nuts, during breaks)

14:30 - Lunch

15:00-17:00 - Homework (best not left until after evening training)

18:00-20:00 - Training

20:30 - Dinner

21:00-22:00 - Free time, preparation for the next day, weight check, athlete's training diary

22:00 - Bedtime (at least 8-9 hours of sleep)

This schedule may vary with the athlete's age and course of study, but the underlying principle remains the same: the routine should be optimal. Both too little and too much sleep, training load, or food are harmful. The farther the deviation from a reasonable level, the greater the harm to the body.

Like every sport, SAMBO has its own language: a set of precise terms used and understood in the same way by coaches, referees, and athletes. This prevents confusion. When everyone uses the same word for the same action, training and competition become clearer and fairer.

Body Positions

During a bout, a SAMBO athlete may be in a standing position or a ground position, meaning that any part of the body other than the feet touches the mat. Ground positions include: on the back (both shoulder blades touching the mat), in a bridge, on the side, on the chest or stomach, on the shoulder, on the buttocks or lower back, and in a half-bridge, where the athlete touches the mat only with the head and one foot (or with a shoulder and the sole or soles).

Actions During a Bout

Zakhvat (Grip) – an action in which a SAMBO athlete uses the hands to control a part of the opponent's body in order to attack or defend.

Technical action – any action intended to gain an advantage or achieve victory.

Brosok (Throw) – a technique that causes the opponent to lose balance, fall onto the mat, and touch it with any part of the body except the feet.

Defense – an action that prevents the opponent from completing a technique.

Counter-technique – a counterattack in which the athlete first defends, then takes the initiative and attacks.

Combination – a sequence of two or more techniques in which the first appears to threaten an attack but actually creates a favorable position for the next technique.

Threat and feint are tactical devices: a threat forces the opponent to defend, while a feint conceals the attacker's true intention.

Perevorachivanie (Turnover) – a technique in the ground position in which one athlete rotates the opponent to create an opportunity for a hold-down or painful hold.

Roсk (Rolling breakfall) – a fall in which, as a result of the opponent's action, an athlete touches the mat successively and without stopping with different parts of the body, such as the side, stomach, buttocks, or shoulder.

Hold-Downs and Painful Holds

Uderzhaniye (hold-downs) is a situation in which one athlete keeps the opponent lying on the back for a specified time, pinning the opponent's torso (or the torso and arms held close to the body) with their own torso.

Bolevoy priyom (painful holds) force the opponent to submit and are divided into several types:

Rychag (levers) are based on hyperextending an arm or leg at a joint.

Uzel (knots) are based on rotating a bent limb at the joints.

Ushchemlenie (crushes) involve compressing tendons or muscles.

A separate category consists of chokeholds, which compress blood vessels or the airway by a permitted method. They are used only in Combat SAMBO.

Strikes, Knockdowns, and Knockouts

In Combat SAMBO, strikes with the hands, feet, or head are permitted to the areas of the body allowed by the rules and with the permitted degree of force. If, after a strike or throw, an athlete temporarily loses the ability to continue the bout but recovers within 10 seconds, this is a knockdown. If the athlete does not recover within 10 seconds, a knockout is recorded.

Technique

In SAMBO, technique means the complete set of attacking and defensive actions mastered by an athlete: the arsenal developed in training and applied in a bout.