The Ryu Workout

Ryu Shoryuken Kazuya Announce

Ryu Quick Navigation Links:
Character Breakdown: Ryu
The Ryu Workout
The Skills of Ryu
The Spirit of Ryu

Video Walkthrough:

That duckface…

Anyway, order of business today is the Ryu workout!  Ryu has a pretty powerful build and frame, and though he’s not “huge” he’s definitely a muscular guy.  He’s very fast and explosive, with lots of power behind his punches and kicks, and lots of agility behind his movements.  We’re going to be focusing on a weighted bodyweight/sandbag workout, with a good amount of cardio and conditioning, as well.  As with Chun Li I recommend the Fighter Diet for this one, though you may find you need to increase your calories a bit to get the “bigger” look that Ryu has.

Also, make sure you always warm up before exercising!  I did a video tutorial on how to warm up properly, so check it out!

Note: This workout is split up into four levels to easily plug into the RPG Fitness leveling system!

Equipment Needed:
Backpack with rocks/books/sandWeighted Backpack(I use this army surplus bag[referral link])
OR
Adjustable Weighted Vest(also a referral link)
Chinup Bar(referral link three!)
Sandbag(check out The Kratos Workout for info on how to make your own)
Punching Bag(optional)

Strength:

Level 1(beginner):
3×5-10 Pushups(from knees if necessary)
3×5-10 Bodyweight Squats
3×5-10 Chair Assisted Pullups(substitute inverted rows if you need to)
3×5-10 Calf Raises
3×5-10 Leaning Straddle Pushups(feet a little bit wider than shoulder width, lean forward and place hands on the ground in a pushup position, with your body in a high “V” shape)
3×5-10 Step-Ups(on a chair or stair, step up on it and back down again, do 5-10 reps on each side)
3×5-10 Chair assisted Chinups(palms towards you)
3×5-10 Russian Twists

Level 2(intermediate):
3×10-15 Pushups(w/5-15 lb weighted backpack)
3×10-15 Front Squats(w/10-30 lb sandbag)
3×5-10 Pullups(palms away from you)
3×5-10 One-legged Calf Raises(each side)
3×5-10 Leaning Straddle Pushups(w/5-15 lb backpack)
3×5-10 Step-Ups(holding 5-15 lb sandback)
3×5-10 Chinups(palms towards you)
3×10-20 Russian Twists

Level 3(advanced):
3×10-15 Pushups(with 20-40 lb weighted backpack)
3×10-15 Front Squats(w/30-60 lb sandbag)
3×10-15 Pullups(with 5-15 lb weighted backpack)
3×10-15 One-legged calf raises(holding 10-30 lb sandbag)
3×5-15 Handstand Pushups(lean against a wall!)
3×10-15 Chinups(with 5-15 lb weighted backpack)
3×10-20 Russian Twists (holding 10-30 lb sandbag)

Level 4(Street Fighter):
3×10-15 Pushups(with 45-70 lb weighted backpack)
3×10-15 Front Squats(w/65-150 lb sandbag)
3×10-15 Pullups(with 20-45 lb weighted backpack)
3×10-15 One-legged calf raises(holding 35-50 lb sandbag)
3×15 Handstand Pushups(lean against a wall!)
3×10-15 Chinups(with 20-45 lb weighted backpack)
3×20-40 Russian Twists (holding 20-50 lb sandbag)

Bonus level!  Plyometric:
3×10-20 Popping or Clap Pushups
3×10-20 Tuck Jumps(squat down, jump up, tuck knees to chest)
3×10-20 Jumping Lunges
3×10-20 Sandbag Throws(5-20 lbs)(Put the sandbag on the ground between your feet.  Squat down like you’re going to do a squat, grab the bag with both hands.  Stand up in a smooth, rapid motion, bringing the sandbag up with you, pulling it straight up to your chest, sliding your hands under it, and throwing it upwards/forwards as far and high as you can.  Try to do this all in one smooth motion. Try this motion without the sandbag first.)

Cardio

Cardio A:
20-30 Minutes Jumping Rope

Cardio B:
20-30 Minutes Punching Bag Work(if you don’t have access to a bag, you can substitute the appropriate level cardio workout from The Chun Li Workout)

Cardio C:
Circuit(10-30 minutes):
3-10 Burpees(can do with jump/pushup or without)
Rest 20 seconds
10-25 Jumping Jacks
Rest 20 seconds
10-25 Mountain Climbers
Rest 20 seconds
Repeat

Schedule:
Day 1: Strength
Day 2: Cardio
Day 3: Strength
Day 4: Rest
Day 5: Strength
Day 6: Cardio
Day 7: Rest

Notes:  Substitute in the plyometric workout for any of your strength workouts, but keep it to one plyometric workout a week.  For cardio, feel free to do any cardio workout you’d like in the cardio slots, though I would recommend doing C only once a week to start, it’s a little heavy duty.  Otherwise, just remember to take things slow and steady, and rest when you need it!

That’s it for today, tomorrow we look into The Skills of Ryu.  Until then, make sure to follow me on Twitter,  like the blog page on Facebook, hit up the Tumblr, and continue to be awesome!

Dan “DaRatmastah” Wallace

15 thoughts on “The Ryu Workout

  1. Pingback: Character Breakdown: Ryu » Be a Game Character

  2. zookey says:

    How do u do the leaning straddle push ups. Everything I’ve seen online shows it being done with our lower half up in the air. Don’t think I can do that even in a beginner’s stage.

    • DaRatmastah says:

      Beginner straddle pushups you just stand with your legs spread to about twice shoulder width, and then lean forward and place your hands on the ground. Your feet stay on the ground(though you might need to raise up on your toes). You look kind of like an upside-down letter ‘V’ Hope that makes sense! I plan to do video walkthroughs of the workouts, soon, to help with things like this.

    • DaRatmastah says:

      Yes, very similar, although the straddling helps people that may have a hard time keeping balance in a pike press. Glad you got a good workout off it!

  3. Pingback: The Skills of Ryu | Be a Game Character

  4. Pingback: The Spirit of Ryu | Be a Game Character

  5. Pingback: The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Workout | Be a Game Character

  6. Anonymous says:

    Hey is this your best fighter workout for people with little equipment or do all of the fighter workouts get the same result

    • DaRatmastah says:

      This is one of the best non-equipment workouts, yup. They don’t all get the same results, but they will all get similar results, if that makes sense. Differences in training are important, but they will all get you in very good shape =D

      • Anonymous says:

        Cool i decided to try this out got another question though is this workout done as a circuit or complete all 3 sets of one exercise then move to the next and if its that how long do you recommend to rest in between sets

  7. charlie says:

    Leaning Straddle Pushups(feet a little bit wider than shoulder width, lean forward and place hands on the ground in a pushup position, with your body in a high “V” shape) what they do ?

Leave a Reply to Desmond Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.