Combat Sports Training

[zedrein]

This is my inaugural post here on BB.com so please bear that in mind before criticizing the possible redundancy of this topic. That said, I was drawn to this particular forum because I feel as though I'll be able to pick the brains of men & women who actually train, whether that be for bodybuilding competitions or other athletic endeavors.

Bar none my favorite sport today is MMA. I'm confident that promotions like the UFC and the fighters therein need no introduction to you folks so I'll fast forward to my question: What is the general approach for a typical fighter-athlete as far as his/her strength and conditioning regimen? I recognize that this is an extremely general question but I've heard many different opinions on how a fighter should go about preparing themselves for competition, everything from practicing only body weight exercises to incorporating traditional dumbbell (high weight, low repetition) lifting to eschewing all forms of resistance exercise and instead focusing on cardiovascular endurance. Now I'd imagine that to become "well-rounded" one might likely train their body using many forms of exercise but I'd like to hear from some veterans here on the forum on what has worked for them in the gym and what they've since left behind since becoming involved in a martial art. I'm hoping to become more educated on how a fighter differs from other athletes and maybe even determine how I might become more physically able myself. -- Thanks!

[krakkerz]

Almost every fighter has a different way of training. It will depend on the fighter's strengths and weaknesses as well as their fighting and training philosphy.

When I fought, I worked on making my main weakness (general conditioning) a strength and at the same time, making my biggest strength (limit strength) even stronger.

As such, at 0430 every morning, I would lift and lift heavy. Then, I would do a higher intensity conditioning workout. In the evening, I would do another conditioning workout. It would either be a longer, slower run or something like shark tank wrestling.

Others have entirely different philosphies.

If you check out Joel Jamieson's site (8weeksout.com) or Martin Rooney's (trainingforwarriors.com), you'll get a good look at how a number of professionals train.

[B12345]

Hey op I've been in mma for 7 years so I know exactly what u need for the conditioning spectrum , first of all u need to build your endurance try running 5 miles don't worry about how fast just worry about getting it done that way u build ur fighting endurance

What I recommend next is starting a strength program but u get no breaks that way it targets ur cardio for example bench press then jump rope 5 min then bench right after with no breaks also u want to follow 5x5 program or 5-3-2 with no breaks depending on how conditioned u are after the strength part grab some light dumbells no more than 3 lb and focus directly on speed and technique


So example you do weighted jump squats 3 sets of 10 then with no break skip rope or high knees for 5 because in combat u have to learn to keep pushing urself and not fatiguing during fighting

But op main thing to practice is technique and cardio. I say this because I person with great technique and cardio will beat a opponent 100 lb bigger with lousy technique I've seen it happen in ufc and in my dojo also don't do too much bodybuilding stick to high intesity for explosive strength because what good is it to be strong but slow I should iam for being fast and explosive that's how Muhammad Ali was great n same with tyson so technique beats hardwork when hardwork doesn't work hard !

[DCSpartan]

^^^^problem with that is that you waste a lot of time and go nowhere with your strength training. All that cardio gets in the way of your weight training. All that cardio takes away from your lifts, so you wont be gaining much in the way of strength. If you are going to lift, focus on getting stronger. If you are going to do cardio, focus on that.

When you do sport-specific training, that is the time to combine everything together, but not in a bench press session.

[a_emory]

OP, these guys will argue with me but I know for a fact that plenty of successful fighters, both MMA and boxing, train with Crossfit.

I don't fight, though I am very drawn to the sport. From what I consider to be the demands of the sport and the stimulus of Crossfit training, I would definitely make that my core approach.

[DCSpartan]

OP, these guys will argue with me but I know for a fact that plenty of successful fighters, both MMA and boxing, train with Crossfit.

I don't fight, though I am very drawn to the sport. From what I consider to be the demands of the sport and the stimulus of Crossfit training, I would definitely make that my core approach.

you dont fight. Your shoulders get beat up enough from striking that adding high rep Oly Lifts and kipping pullups into the equation is bad, bad, bad.

Thats my personal experience btw, not some promo I read on some website.

[1wrestler31]

i'm a wrestler so i will add my own input the mix since i i think it will work on this thread. SO as it is i lift 5x a week right now. Leg day then upper body day then rest day and repeat. I can see my strength is getting better but endurance lacks behind. So on my 2 rest days i do cardio. On rest day #1 i go for a 3 mile run( need to increase in future). and on #2 do HIT so i go for a 1.5 mile run but i jog for 30 seconds then sprint 10 seconds and so on. My question is if i was to go for a run or HIT on a lifting day would that have a negative effect on the lifting i did in the morning because not enough recovery?

[B12345]

^^^^problem with that is that you waste a lot of time and go nowhere with your strength training. All that cardio gets in the way of your weight training. All that cardio takes away from your lifts, so you wont be gaining much in the way of strength. If you are going to lift, focus on getting stronger. If you are going to do cardio, focus on that.

When you do sport-specific training, that is the time to combine everything together, but not in a bench press session.

.



Obviously is not a fight and would not last 3 5 min rounds but ok

[B12345]

Doing my program above will teach ur body to be conditioned and strong throughout the fight this Is not for beginners
now if u do what Spartan said and do strength on 5 days and cardio weekends when u end up fighting u will be explosive for about the first round then when u hit second you will have some cardio but no strength

but if u do my program you will condition urself to be strong and maintain your strength throughout the whole fight so that way u won't be gassed and will stil have knock out power till the end of the match instead of a lot of power in the beginning but once your strength fails it's all about your cardio that's not the best way to train mma fighters well true mma fighters don't believe in rest and train in intervals

also being super strong does not mean u can fight so it's best to do cardio and strength because that's what u need in a fight so why not incorporate the two . Also the better the cardio the less u will be fatigued and more strength endurance the less likely you will throw weak punches so you will be performing at a high level versus the noobs but also remember it's mostly technique u must practice

for example the worlds strongest man enterd the mma that guy got beat the **** out because he does strength and has no cardio or doesn't incorporate enough cardio so he tires out that's why he looses fights look him up
No disrespect to any1 just my experience

[krakkerz]

OP, these guys will argue with me but I know for a fact that plenty of successful fighters, both MMA and boxing, train with Crossfit.

I don't fight, though I am very drawn to the sport. From what I consider to be the demands of the sport and the stimulus of Crossfit training, I would definitely make that my core approach.

You think too highly of yourself. I won't argue with you. Lots of fighters use Crossfit. But lots more don't. And many of the very best go to the resources I mentioned.

[DCSpartan]

Doing my program above will teach ur body to be conditioned and strong throughout the fight this Is not for beginners
now if u do what Spartan said and do strength on 5 days and cardio weekends when u end up fighting u will be explosive for about the first round then when u hit second you will have some cardio but no strength

but if u do my program you will condition urself to be strong and maintain your strength throughout the whole fight so that way u won't be gassed and will stil have knock out power till the end of the match instead of a lot of power in the beginning but once your strength fails it's all about your cardio that's not the best way to train mma fighters well true mma fighters don't believe in rest and train in intervals

also being super strong does not mean u can fight so it's best to do cardio and strength because that's what u need in a fight so why not incorporate the two . Also the better the cardio the less u will be fatigued and more strength endurance the less likely you will throw weak punches so you will be performing at a high level versus the noobs but also remember it's mostly technique u must practice

for example the worlds strongest man enterd the mma that guy got beat the **** out because he does strength and has no cardio or doesn't incorporate enough cardio so he tires out that's why he looses fights look him up
No disrespect to any1 just my experience

I never said do strength 5 days a week and cardio on weekends. I said dont screw up your strength workouts by trying to do cardio in between sets. You should be developing the capability to fight tired through your sport, not your weight lifting.

doing nothing but interval training is stupid and leads to injury, you may not realize that at the advanced age of 16 but trust me you will.

[Wrestler5229]

Like krakkerz said, much of the training of the pros is on weakness correction. At points of the year their training may be more conditioning based, and at others strength based, and sometimes mobility, flexibility. In general the three elements are always present. It is very important to remember than the cool **** you see in interviews with the battle ropes, and the sledge hammers, and the exercise bikes, and stuff - does NOT comprise the central, most important, or majority of their training. It is even more important to remember that they weight train and run for fighting. Not for the sake of doing it. I have met some fighters, yes ufc, who do not even lift weights because they dont feel they need to. That being said most do. All of their training accomplishes what isn't accomplished in practices and classes, and can not interfere with those practices. "I cant do doubles or knee strikes today because I'm too sore from widowmakers on the leg press" doesn't fly.

[a_emory]

You think too highly of yourself. I won't argue with you. Lots of fighters use Crossfit. But lots more don't. And many of the very best go to the resources I mentioned.

Im glad you feel that way. Food for thought, "nothing is either good nor bad, but thinking makes it so." If you can tell me, without using google, what two "people" that quotation should be attributed to I will teach your 6'6" 280lb self how to safely do a kipping pull up.

[krakkerz]

for example the worlds strongest man enterd the mma that guy got beat the **** out because he does strength and has no cardio or doesn't incorporate enough cardio so he tires out that's why he looses fights look him up
No disrespect to any1 just my experience

BZZZT. Wrong. Pudzianowski (the guy you're talking about) has a 7-3-1 record and has some pretty good opposition.

[krakkerz]

Im glad you feel that way. Food for thought, "nothing is either good nor bad, but thinking makes it so." If you can tell me, without using google, what two "people" that quotation should be attributed to I will teach your 6'6" 280lb self how to safely do a kipping pull up.

What two people I don't know, but one is Shakespeare. Unless you mean Hamlet, the character. Yes, I went to school in an English speaking country.

You can keep your kipping pullup. Whether it is good or bad, I think poorly of it.

[a_emory]

What two people I don't know, but one is Shakespeare. Unless you mean Hamlet, the character. Yes, I went to school in an English speaking country.

You can keep your kipping pullup. Whether it is good or bad, I think poorly of it.

Dude, come on. Yahoo and bing are still cheating.

[krakkerz]

Dude, come on. Yahoo and bing are still cheating.

Whatever, Cockhead. I had to study 7 Shakespearean works in high school. Aside from which, you're hardly the first person to use the quote since then. It might surprise you, since your own comprehension is pretty poor.

[DCSpartan]

Its hilarious that a guy that has never trained in Combat Sports is advising people to use a generic, injury-intensive, workout regime to prep for it.