Dec 06 2010

Quick MMA Conditioning

Category: Conditioning,MMA,Power Training,Strength Training,Uncategorized — Rob @ 5:40 PM

As a strength and conditioning coach I am always willing to try new things when it comes to getting the most out of my combat athletes especially those that like to fight MMA.  By now people all know the importance of conditioning there is no need to pound that into the ground.  There are many conditioning protocols out there that coach’s use with their fighters.

Majority of the protocols out there “mimic” and actual MMA fight.  They make each set of the protocols timed to the amount of time in each round.  This works well for many fighters. One thing I have been experimenting with is making the sets shorter and raising the intensity.  I have been finding that there really is not much of a difference at all in the conditioning level of the fighter with these shorter protocols.

With these shorter protocols I have also have experimented with reducing the recovery time in between each set.  With the longer protocols I would use a one-minute rest period but with the shorter versions I have been using thirty seconds.

Shortening the rest time really puts the athlete to the test.

In this video I use the Battling Ropes and a forty-five pound plate to work on conditioning.  The first part of the protocol starts with thirty seconds of the ropes.  When starting off with a fighter and it is their first time using the ropes I choose one exercise and have them do it with the ropes.  As they progress and begin to work the ropes better I tell them to use whichever movement they want or mix it up for the thirty-seconds.  After the thirty-seconds is up he then moved to the forty-five pound plate pushes for twenty-five yards down and back.  Plate pushes are one of my favorite exercises as it helps with the fighters driving power as well as developing power in their legs and endurance.  This conditioning protocol is very simple but effective and last about two minutes.  The time however is dependent on the athletes conditioning level.  So give it a try and if you don’t have the ropes do the plate pushes for two round trips and tell me how that feels.

Train Hard! Train Smart!

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Nov 30 2010

Sled Training for MMA Fighters

Category: Conditioning,Jiu-Jitsu,MMA,Power Training,Speed,Strength Training,Uncategorized,Wrestling — Rob @ 6:16 AM

Winter is almost here and I can smell the first snowstorm is lurking around the corner. That means is that it will be time to dust off our sleds and head to the hills for a little sleigh riding.  Looking back when I was a kid my dad used to take us to this fancy golf course in the rich neighborhood and we used to go sledding for hours.  We had a blast doing so.  When we were really young my dad would drag the sled back up the hill with us after going down sometimes with one of us in tow.  Once we got a little older we had to start dragging the sled up the hill ourselves usually with my sister whining behind us that she had to walk up the hill.

So there we were complaining first about going up the hill and second having to drag the sled up.  Remember sleds were a little heavier back then and I was a wimp back then so dragging it was a pain.  Little did I know that forcing me to drag this sled up the hill was making me stronger.  I knew nothing then about strength back then but if I had a Delorean I would definitely hop in it with my Hoverboard and head back to 1985 to drag that bad boy up that hill for hours.

But there is no time machine that I know of, however lucky for me I own my own sled.  Now it’s a little different from the sleds we go down hills on but it is still fun nonetheless.  This sled I am talking about can and will improve strength, power and speed if used the right way.

In the sports of MMA or in combat sports in general it is important to have strong legs as well as strong pulling muscles.  Yes people that would be your back.  Being strong and powerful in those areas is not enough either, those same muscles need to be well conditioned as well so you can continuously use them within a fight.  The following sled training will help in all aspects.

The sled on the video is loaded up to 165 pounds.  You will see two videos, the first being of Carlos as he pulls the sled explosively for ten yards then drags the sled for ten yards all the way to the fifty-yard line.  The pull is done explosively as you will see the kettlebell falling off.  Next time a little more control will be better but what the hell it’s Carlos and he goes 110% everytime.  The second video is of your good friend, me doing the same exercise back the other way for fifty yards.  I will let you know the quad burn on the walking backwards drag is great.

Now many are saying but I don’t own a sled, like I have said before, you have some options.  Grab a used tire, drill a hole and pull and drag that.  Or going back to my original story when it snows volunteer to drag the neighborhood kids back up the hill on their sleds while they are still sitting on them.  Let me know how you feel during and after that training session.

Train Hard! Train Smart!

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Nov 13 2010

Training with Rocks

Category: Conditioning,Jiu-Jitsu,MMA,muay Thai,Power Training,Strength Training,Striking/Stand-up,Strongman,Uncategorized — Rob @ 8:29 PM

Thursday I had the day off from work, now I knew I was going to go train jiu-jitsu and muay Thai at night but I really wanted to get a strength session going in the morning.  I had been planning this session all week, and I knew exactly what I was going to do.

Now my backyard is not the biggest backyard you will ever see but it would work just fine for what I was attempting to do.  A while back I was cleaning out the back of the garage so they could install a fence in my yard.  There beside the pot of gold I found some pretty big rocks.  I knew one day that these rocks would put me to the test in training I just did not know how.

Well I figured out a great way for one of these rocks to test me.  So I headed behind the garage and rolled this bad boy out into the backyard.  Now I am a really crappy judge on weight, I was thinking this rock weighed about 60-70 pounds but in fact when I brought out the scale and nearly broke it I found that it weighed in at about 125-130 pounds.  The wife did not seem to happy when I told her I almost broke the scale.

After a brief warm-up this is what I did.  I brought out my sled threw on a thirty-five pound plate and attached it me.  I picked up the rock, which I thought weighed 70 pounds and did two laps around my backyard with it.  I repeated this for six sets.  After doing the first set, which was about 50 yards total, I felt as if I rolled with someone in a jiu-jitsu class.  My heart rate was up and my muscles were fatigued.  This was my first time doing this training session so next time I will add some more weight to the sled to increase the intensity.

After the rock carry I used the same weight on the sled, I attached these wide grip pull up handles to the sled and did 6 sets of explosive rows.  As I pulled the weight across my backyard I used my entire body to assist in the pull.    Squatting down slightly and then exploding backwards.  I was feeling my legs burning but the rock carries had more to do with that than the explosive rows.

To finish off the session I grab the two 35 pound plates and did overhead carries for 15 yards then did 5 presses and walked back the other way with the plates overhead.

This concluded my training session in the yard.  So why am I telling you this.  Look around your yard find some heavy stuff and put together some type of training with it.  Take what you have and go to the next level and stop making excuses that you can’t get it done.  Train Hard! Train Smart!

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Nov 08 2010

MMA Agility Part 2

Category: Agility,Conditioning,Jiu-Jitsu,MMA,muay Thai,reaction time,Strength Training,Uncategorized — Rob @ 8:19 PM

In a MMA fight a fighter must be aware of where his body is at all times.   We have seen many fights won in a scramble and the fighter who has been able to control their body the best has usually been the one that has come out on top.  In my coaching I have been working on finding new ways to work what is called kinesthetic awareness.  A few months ago I posted a video with Martin Rooney discussing the use of gymnastics to increase kinesthetic awareness.  In that video Rooney shows us three gymnastic movements that will help improve this critical component in combat sports.

Another thing that I have been working on in my coaching laboratory is combining two components of athleticism while training.  Obvious many of you know about combining strength sessions with power and or conditioning within a training session.  What I have been doing is combining gymnastic movements within agility drills.  Here is what I am doing in my coaching.  I start off with basic agility drills such as a box drill and have the fighter perform the drill.  This gets the fighter using his body the right way. After completing 3-4 sets of the standard drill I then add some new move into the drill.  Using basic gymnastic movements like forward rolls and cartwheels help with kinesthetic awareness within the drill.  Finally I also add a MMA specific movement into the drill, like a punch combo, a knee or a defensive move.  I have found that this is helping the athletic ability of the fighters and as the sport evolve’s athletic fighters will be taking over the MMA world.  So give the drill below a try.  Train Hard! Train Smart!

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Oct 27 2010

MMA Agility

Category: Agility,Conditioning,Jiu-Jitsu,MMA,muay Thai,Power Training,Quickness,reaction time,Speed,Strength Training,Uncategorized — Rob @ 5:48 AM

Being agile in MMA and many other combat sports are very beneficial.  Training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Muay Thai has made me realize how important being agile really is.  That is why when I train my fighters we work on agility drills to make them better.

As a kid free playing outside was the agility drill.  Playing touch football out on the street and having water gun fights with all the neighborhood kids we all learned how to be agile without even realizing it.  I remember playing “Kick the Can” crawling under bushes, rolling across the grass, running for cover before you were called out by the person that was “it” even cheating at times when you were so caught but never admitted it.  Yes, people cheat to win and always will, no big surprise there. There were countless games that we played that being able to change direction at a moments notice helped win and let’s be honest who does not like to win, I know I do.

The problem today is that many of these children do not have these opportunities to play like this.  Actually let me rephrase that many of these children choose not to participate in these activities for whatever reason.  I am not going to get into the lazy child rant now I can go on for days about that.   The thing we need to learn though is that these many of these children are growing up and wanting to become MMA fighters.  With the growth of the sport we are seeing more and more children leaning that way.

So now back to the point here.  In MMA and many of the other combat sports out there we need to train to become more agile.  Many times in a fight we find ourselves in scrambles, or using our footwork just to get out of the way of a punch or set up a devastating attack.

Agility drills are also easy and fun to set up.  Easy meaning they are easy to find a place to train them by no means is it easy to actually do them.  Find an open field or your backyard if it’s big enough, buy yourself some soccer cones or if you can’t manage that use some rocks, just don’t fall on them and go!  Let me say this though about agility, speed or quickness drills, they are meant to work your technique and make you build on those qualities not as a conditioning session.  So make sure to get a good recovery time in between sets.  This is not to say that the drills are not challenging.  The drill in the video below was challenging and worked my heart rate a bit as well as my muscle endurance.

As you will see in this video I use multi-directional work as well as MMA specific moves to create an agility drill.  You will see in the video as I begin to slow down but at all times try to keep proper posture and technique on all the movements.  Being able to move fast from one movement to the next and maintain control of your body is another key to the drill.  So give this one a try on your way to becoming a combat athlete.  Who knows maybe a good game of “Kick the Can” will start on the block and you can school all the young bucks with your newfound agility.

Train Hard! Train Smart!

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Oct 12 2010

Explosive Power Using Mini-Hurdles

Category: Agility,Boxing,Jiu-Jitsu,MMA,Power Training,reaction time,Uncategorized,Wrestling — Rob @ 7:00 PM

In sports there are two very important factors when trying to achieve victory.  These two factors go for pretty much any sport on the planet.   Those two factors that separate the champions from the rest are being to exhibit power and reaction time.

In combat sports such as Jiu-Jitsu, wrestling, MMA and boxing being able to move a mass with speed and being able to react are keys to victory.

So before the weather gets nasty here in New York I want to get as much training done as well as video for the site.  In this video I will be using the mini-hurdles. The drill is designed to build on lower body power or explosiveness as well as reactive abilities.  The pattern of how you attempt your hops over each hurdle is up to you as the coach or the athlete.  Remember to hop back to the center of the hurdle after hopping over each hurdle.

The one thing I want to focus on more than the pattern of the hop is reacting with every hop.  The drill is designed to move quickly and generate power.  Once you begin to hop the object is to have the least amount of ground contact as possible.  Once your feet hit the ground you are jumping in the next direction you have chosen.  Remember you do not want to land flat footed; also use your arms to help yourself jump. This will help you generate more speed going in and out of your jump.

So why is this important to combat sports such as MMA?  These are the types of drills that will turn a fighter into an athlete.  As the sport evolves so must the fighters in the sport. Being a combat athlete is the way the sport is heading.  Using agility drills such as these will only enhance your athletic and fighting abilities. These types of drills especially for lower body power and reaction time will help with a fighters takedowns, takedown defense, footwork and punching power.

Train Hard! Train Smart!

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Oct 10 2010

Manage Your Training and Life

Category: Agility,Boxing,Conditioning,Jiu-Jitsu,MMA,muay Thai,Power Training,Strength Training,Striking/Stand-up,Strongman,Uncategorized — Rob @ 8:46 PM

Being a father, a husband, a teacher and a coach keeps me plenty busy throughout the day.  If I am not with the most important family I am working with the other.  Some people call this juggling I call it life.  Add to the list all of the fun things that you like to do with your spare time and it can make for a pretty packed life.

This post is for those combat athletes that love to train MMA, Jiu-Jitsu and kickboxing for fun, love to hit the weight room and have the family and job to attend to.  I for one am one of those people that love to train for fun.  My passion is in the weight room but I love to hit the mats and Thai box every week.

I am also a firm believer of spending as much time with your kids as you possibly can.  I always hear people say, “They grow up so quick!”  The last thing I want to do is miss anything when it comes to my lil warrior. So how do I manage the family life on top of the full time job, starting my business and training?  Well here is how I have set up my schedule to get all this in:

Monday

5:30 am: Deadlift and conditioning

8am-2:40 pm: Work

3:10 pm-8:00 pm: Family time (Best time of the Day)

8:00 pm-12am: Work on the strength and conditioning coaching biz

Tuesday

8am-2:40: Work

3:10 pm-7:20 pm Family time (Best time of the day)

8pm-9pm: Muay Thai Kickboxing class

9pm-10 pm Travel time, shower, eat

10pm-12am Work on the strength and conditioning coaching biz

Wednesday

5:30am: Power Clean and conditioning

8am-2:40pm: Work

3:10pm-5:30pm: Family time

6pm-7pm: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class

7:30pm-830pm:Thai boxing class

9:30pm-12am: Work on the strength and conditioning coaching biz

Thursday

8am-2:40pm: Work

3:10pm-5:15pm Family time

6pm-7pm: Teach strength and conditioning class

7pm-8pm: No-gi grappling , couple of rds of rolling

8pm-9pm: Thai boxing class

10pm-12am: Work on the strength and conditioning coaching biz

Friday

5:30am-Front Squats and conditioning

8am-2:40pm: Work

3:10pm-8pm: Family time

8pm-whenever I decided to sleep:

Work on the strength and conditioning coaching biz

Saturday

Sleep in until the little human alarm clock wakes us

Strongman Training

Family time

Sunday

Family Time

So here is how I am working the training schedule in right now.  Thought I would write this post for those of you who are combat athletes out there and are having a hard time managing everything in your life.  As you can see the days that I wake up at 5:30am I am only doing one lift and some conditioning.  I pick a compound movement like the deadlift, power clean and front squat and train for about a half-hour to forty-five minutes just doing that lift.  Then I add a conditioning protocol at the end.   Hopefully you can pick up some tips on how to organize your training schedule if you lead a similar lifestyle but still want to have all your training fun in there.

P.S. I love to take the family out to the field when I train outside and just have fun out there.  Usually when I am shooting video for the site, I take along my wife, to shoot the video and my daughter who you sometime hear in the background yelling or crying for mommy and daddy.  It also keeps her active as she runs around the field.  Here is a video of my daughter playing with the mini-hurdles the last time out!  Good times!

Train Hard! Train Smart! And Enjoy your Family!

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Oct 05 2010

Coaches Wanted

Category: Boxing,Conditioning,Jiu-Jitsu,muay Thai,Striking/Stand-up,Uncategorized,Wrestling — Rob @ 8:06 PM

Here at Combat Trainer I strive to bring you quality strength and conditioning content to help you achieve your goals.  That being said I am looking to add some even more exciting content to my site.   If you have been on the site you know it is dedicated to the combat athlete.

This is the plan, I am going to not only bring quality strength and conditioning tips but I am going to bringing in different training from the different martial arts that make up MMA.  I am currently on the search for different coaches from many different disciplines.  I am looking for jiu-jitsu trainer, a wrestling coach, a boxing coach and Muay Thai trainer.

This is what I am looking for out of the individual trainers.  Each trainer will share their knowledge of the discipline they teach.  These trainers will get to show off their training philosophies to the world.  Through interesting posts with video and pictures they will educate us all on the different arts.  This will only enhance your training in mixed martial arts.

I am dedicated to bringing you the best training in combat sports.  This will start by creating a great team of knowledgeable coaches to share what they know.  A great team will enhance your fighting abilities and bring those of you that follow my site to new levels in your career.

So if you are a trainer in any discipline that would be found in mixed martial arts, or you know someone that is a trainer and would be interested, please contact me either through email at combattrainer@gmail.com or on Twitter at @combattrainer.

Combat Trainer is dedicated to brining you the best training information in the fighting world!

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Oct 03 2010

Where is the Strength?

Category: Conditioning,Jiu-Jitsu,MMA,Strength Training,Uncategorized — Rob @ 10:49 AM

Nope, no video with this post, instead I am going to take a step back and try my best to yes, conditioning is very important when stepping into the cage.  But many are neglecting the other aspects to be a complete athlete.  Two aspects that many of these combat athlete’s neglect are strength and power.  Without a solid strength and conditioning program that includes strength and power training then your conditioning will suffer.  You will not be able to take conditioning sessions to the next level.

Inform some combat athletes.  I am finding something that is disturbing me among combat athletes.  I hear many of these fighter especially those that compete in MMA just talk about the conditioning aspect of their weight-training program.

The problem may be in what these amateur fighters see from the professional fighters.  No, I am not saying the pro fighters do not know how to train, well maybe some do need a little guidance, but I am blaming this trend more on the different shows we see on TV that showcase these fighter before the fight.  Conditioning sells, I know it is fun to watch someone take their body to the brink of total exhaustion, but don’t forget for one minute that these fighters have not put in the strength and power work.

Combat athlete’s love to use the term strength and conditioning but most time forget the strength part.  Building a solid base of strength or maximum strength is key to becoming a complete athlete.  Let take a quick look at this, if a combat athlete neglects the building of strength then all other aspect of their training will suffer. Without strength the athlete cannot develop power and conditioning, especially when one is performing weighted conditioning.

Let’s take a quick look at how strength can be achieved. To gain more strength the following parameters should apply.  The load should be anywhere between 80%-100% of the one rep max, 1-5 reps and anywhere between 4-7 sets.  The rest period for gaining strength should between 2-5 minutes.

So as you continue your pursuit to becoming a world-class fighter, don’t forget about the first part of people call strength and conditioning.  Building a solid base of strength is key to athletic success.

Train Hard! Train Smart!

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Sep 29 2010

Leg Conditioning for MMA

Category: Boxing,Conditioning,Jiu-Jitsu,MMA,Power Training,Strength Training,Uncategorized,Wrestling — Rob @ 9:17 PM

Having strong, explosive legs is a key component in any combat sport.  In MMA your legs can be a key component to victory.  Your legs help you in every aspect of the sport from throwing a punch or a kick to driving an opponent up against the cage to attempting a takedown, your legs are the base of your success.

It is not enough to have just strong and explosive legs.  In MMA you must be able to use that strength and power in your legs over and over again.  Even in just moving around the cage with basic footwork can be taxing on the legs and can drain them of energy.

As a fighter, strength, power and muscle endurance in your lower body is important.  Let’s take a quick look at how we can develop all three components.  Performing squats and deadlifts are the sure way to build strength in your legs.  These two exercises are surely the two best in my opinion to get the best results when it comes to strength gains.  After developing a good base of strength or within the same training cycle you can turn that strength that you just gained into power.  Utilizing plyometric training as well as using Olympic lifts such as power cleans, snatches, and jerks.

Now comes taking all the strength and power that was developed and being able to use it over and over again in a fight.  A great way to develop this type of conditioning for your legs or any other muscles in your body is by using complexes. Complex’s is combining two or more exercises with a set amount of repetitions with minimal rest in between exercises. Complexes will maintain your strength and power but also give you some great metabolic conditioning.

The complex in the following video will increase your conditioning in your legs dramatically.  It a complex taken from Dan John called the “Big 55”.  With the use of a Kettlebell you perform two exercises.  For this particular complex we used Kettlebell Swings and Goblet Squats.  This complex is done a little different and will drain your legs.  Starting with the swings you perform 10 reps followed by the squats for 10 reps, then you go to 9 reps of each then 8 reps all the way to 1 rep.  That is a total of 55 reps for each exercise making it a grand total of 110 reps between the two exercises.  All 110 reps are done without rest.  This is great conditioning for your lower body and will allow you as a fighter to continue to use your strength and power.  Give it a try!

Train Hard! Train Smart!

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