Ilias Vyshutin is a former professional athlete and numerous historical medieval battle champion. He has been in HMB since 2012. Vyshutin is a winner and runner-up of the Battle of the Nations, a current member of the Ukrainian national team, and he’s currently a coach of the Kniaz HMB club.
Ilias has shared his opinion on training routine and soft equipment.
What’s the perfect training routine to prepare oneself for a battle?
To participate in various HMB tournaments, you have to devote a lot of time to training. Everyone has his or her own training routine. Someone hits the gym to build up muscles and strength. Others do Crossfit to increase physical stamina or practice mixed martial arts to master the basics of fighting and striking techniques.
As a former professional athlete and someone who’s taken part in various historical medieval battles, I can assure you that all types of training are quite effective. But still, there’s no right way of perfect and efficient training. But what you should take into account is that in HMB, you use different kinds of weapons and equipment, so your training routine should be more specific. I use soft equipment because it resembles real armor and weaponry which are used in battles.
How does soft equipment help you in your training routine?
This kind of equipment is perfect for duels as well as 5 vs 5, 10 vs 10, and 21 vs 21 group battles. For instance, you can use the shield to work on your striking techniques and the sword to train oneself for a duel. You can also easily hold a weapon in your hand and do throws and carry out different attacks. Due to the superb ergonomics and low weight of the equipment, it has a great impact on your speed and movement and it meets the conditions of the real battle. So it doesn’t matter what you do — train for a duel or take part in a group battle — this equipment is right for you.
What advice can you give to your fellow athletes?
No matter what kind of training routine you have, soft equipment should become a cornerstone of your combat preparation and it will help you hone your fighting skills and techniques.
