I often ponder what makes a certain workout routine good for mixed martial artists. While a workout may be good for general fitness and include fight type exercises, it doesn’t mean it’s a good MMA workout. In fact, I am becoming increasingly aware that the body of internet knowledge isn’t really helping guys understand MMA workouts at all.
Googling “mma workout”, I noticed that you get no less than 14 bazillion results. There’s an article where one fighter tells one of his routines, a youtube video of Bas Rutten or Ken Shamrock doing their thing, a link to a forum discussing some hot new MMA exercises. But all in all, it wasn’t helping.
What I seek to set forth in the MMA Workout Basics series is a collection of fundamental workout principles - sport specific information that may help you from becoming a collector of techniques and programs. Instead, my hope is that you get enough know-how and wisdom to guide yourself on how to put together an exercise program (long term) and an exercise routine (one workout).
Along the way, of course, I’ll post different factoids about someones training regimes, or I’ll give my two cents on specific exercises, just like I did with pull ups. However, within the posts titled “MMA Workout Basics” I’m going to stay true to my goal - to help you understand the fundamentals of mixed marital arts workouts.
As usual, if you have any questions or comments, I’d love hearing from you.
Tags: conditioning, workouts
Waaaagh! Wrestlers. They’re a tricky sort, and as big names like Randy Couture, Matt Hughes, and Brock Lesnar have shown. The purpose of this article is to help fighters who have difficulties in dealing with wrestling based mixed martial artists. Certainly, I don’t know it all. Hopefully though, you’ll get some tips and ideas to take to the mat and gain an upper hand against wrestling MMA’ers.
In part 1, I discussed the basic wrestlers strategy, side control management, preventing the guard pass, and striking from the guard.
In part 2, I want to add some details about dominant positions, submissions from the ground and elaborate a bit about the standing striking game.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: clinching, grappling, jujitsu, strategy, take downs, training, wrestlers, wrestling
I like to be entertained, I admit. But enough is enough. One thing that has bugged me for some time is the “bloodsport” image that gets perpetuated about mixed martial arts. It’s very popular to market MMA with the extreme sport angle: heavy metal, bikini babes, gruff voices, blood spatters and tattoos.
The thing is, I think the testosterone driven approach will always push MMA from being totally mainstream. Sometimes it gets a little immature for me.
Plus, I don’t think the public really gets how professional many MMA fighters are - partially because of a self-perpetuated stereotype. Many just see the brutal highlight reels and competition event names like ” Fight Night XX: Abomination”, “UFC Z: No Remorse” and “MMA Challenge II: Penultimate Destruction full of pain.” MMA fighters are top notch athletes and extremely physically talented, not some brutish animal pushed into a cockfight. I’d like to see them get the approval they deserve in the sports community, and if that means means less strippers and death metal, I’ll go for that.
Anyway, I enjoy the complexity - and dare say ART -of MMA. I just don’t like all the attitude. A little attitude I can abide … but that’s the end of my soapbox rant.
Tags: rant
Pull ups are a measure of your toughness - and lets face it, a barometer of your true manliness - whether you’re a fighter or not. Nearly since the dawn of time, the US military has been using pull ups to de-sissify recruits and weed out wimps. If you are a mixed martial artists, the pull up definitely needs to be in your rotation of exercises.
The Reasons
But why should you do pull ups in favor of other exercises? Glad you asked. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: conditioning, mma conditioning, mma workouts
Part of me doesn’t want me to say it, but I just can’t hold it anymore. I can see the future.
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Tags: MMA, musings
After posting the million different variations of the omoplata, I wanted to give you some deeper instruction on the reverse omoplata, aka the inverted omoplata. Over at Aesopian’s blog, he mentions
As a beginner at the time it struck me, “How many ways can you think about a position? When is mount not just mount? When is guard not guard?” Those questions have become a kind of mind-clearing Zen koan. It opened me up to thinking about a lot of things in new ways and a lot of good has come from it.
What happens when I think of mount as “guard from the top?” I get omoplatas.
He then proceeds to walk you through a tutorial with 3rd degree blackbelt Eduardo de Lima.
This whole detailing of the omoplata - it isn’t just about the submission, it’s about the thought process. I love the dynamic, nebulous and mind expanding nature of jujitsu. Most submission techniques are usuable in many positions and situations - the limiations are due to your static perception. Anyway, if you’re inclined, expand your mind with the revrese omoplata instruction here.
Tags: jujitsu, omoplata, submissions
I know many people have whined, “Where do I go to see the UFC pay-per-view events in Utah?!”. I know. I cry with you. I don’t like the idea of shelling out $50 to watch it. Plus, I don’t even have cable. Where in the heck can I go?
I’ve been calling around and found where you can go to a sports bar/ regualr bar and watch the UFC 91 pay per view show tomorrow. Remember, the following are VERIFIED - Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: pay per view, places, ufc 91
ABOVE: The bridge and roll side mount escape
Happy Friday! I’d like you to kick off the weekend (ie: start slacking immediately) and check out go check out Animals Performing Jujitsu Moves over at one of my other project sites.
Normally I’m not much of a “cute” person, but combine it with jujitsu and you’ve got me.
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Tags: jujitsu, tigers
Note: My remarks were sparked by some thoughts given by Paul R Scheele in his incredible book, “PhotoReading“. If you’re into accelerated learning or speed-reading, check it out ASAP.
Also Note: This lion cub is totally submitting the other with the rear naked choke (mata leo choke, ten finger variation). I’m totally going to make “grrrrrrr” noises next time I get this move.
Also Also Note: Fedor choked out Sylvia in the Affliction Banned event with this choke. You know, FYI.
Summary
Strict practice has it’s merit and place. Try incorporating playfulness to sparring or drills and being creative with your training methods. Keep your ego subdued - compete against opponents, train with friends, and have fun with a lifetime of martial arts.
The Human Animal
Man, as a species, is an unusual animal. We are the only animal that is not born with the innate knowledge of how to survive. When it comes to fighting, we may have the natural emotion and cause to fight, but we don’t intuitively know how to do it. Children have the inborn inclination to wrestle, but do so without technique.
This type of play-fighting is done by most hunting animals (lions, tigers, etc), and is an essential part of activating their abilities to stalk, strike, and kill. For humans it’s no different - playing is a big part of how we acquire skills.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Philosophy, training
For a long time now, I’ve harbored the belief that spending an hour on the treadmill is retarded. For MMA’ers, I think there are better things to do with your time. Personally, I love to hate fast as possible, puke-your-guts-out, sprinting.
It’s not that this notion is new, or without it’s detractors and misinformed proponents. An article that bring up the basic idea was put up recently at Men’s Journal, titled Cardio is Bunk. Essentially,
As opposed to aerobics, this type of exercise [anaerobic exercise] involves maximum-effort training, such as sprinting and lifting weights, in which the intensity of the exercise exceeds the body’s ability to supply oxygen to muscles. “Shorter, high-intensity workouts burn off glucose much faster than long runs, so you start burning fat at a much higher rate, your heart beats so hard that it becomes stronger, and you’re pushing yourself to such extremes that anything else you do feels easier.”
.. [I]n terms of sports performance, endurance training is no longer seen as the key to being a better athlete.
Now, I don’t agree with everything said there, but it’s a decent introduction to the idea.
For fighters, developing a bigger gas tank (IE having more fight endurance) is crucial. If you are considering fighting competitively, consider this: How long will you be fighting - total rounds, duration, and rest periods. Are your current workouts modeling the body workload and energy expenditure of a real fight?
If you’d like to ponder over endurance a bit more, I’d suggest reading a few articles at Gym Jones including Endurance V.2 Using Short, High Intensity Circuits and Intervals to Sharpen an Endurance Base and Strength for Endurance How Increasing Strength also Improves Endurance.
Interestingly enought, at the University of Utah, a friend of mine is beginning a study involving hypoxic training, ATP production and lactic acid thresholds. Essentially, try doing a round of shadow boxing/heavy bag hitting breathing through a snorkel and see how that effects you. Hopefully, this study will further develop a body of research to help fighters train better.
Tags: conditioning, mma conditioning, workouts