May 10 2012

What’s New at Combat Trainer?

After a layoff from writing for the website it is now time to tell you guys what I have been doing in the time period.  Last year at this time I got involved in running many different obstacle course races like the Metro Dash and several Spartan Races.  So I decided to use my coaching knowledge on how to train combat athletes and put it to the test with not only obstacle course racers but endurance athletes as well.  The results have been great with many people accomplishing their goals of finishing races to many of my top runners breaking personal records in their marathon and half-marathon times.

All along I was continuing to train combat athletes and educate myself on how to become a better coach.  This brings me to where I am today.  After obtaining my Level 2 Training for Warriors certification from world-class strength and conditioning coach Martin Rooney I decided that I would become an affiliate under his Training for Warriors system.  This move was a no brainer to me as I have been following many of the applications he was using with my own athletes.  This move will only help the Combat Trainer name and anyone who trains with me.  Martin Rooney, if you are not in the know, has three books out in the bookstore his latest Warrior Cardio will get you in kick ass shape and just in time for the summer.

With summer approaching here are few things that will be coming up in the Combat Trainer world.  The impending finishing of the garage gym that will allow me to run classes for many different types of athletes and that includes those weekend warriors.  The Combat Trainer competition team will also grow out of this as I have added a few more grapplers to the team and look to take them to a new level and help them achieve their goals.   There will also be seminars for people to learn how to train the most effective way and get in the best shape of their lives as well as for those running in any endurance type event including obstacle course racing.

Things are on the way up for Team Combat Trainer.  So finally I want to thank everyone who has been supporting me on this journey.  The ship is picking up steam and is ready to just keep going.  If you are interested in any of the classes that I will be offering you can email me at combattrainer@gmail.com.

Free Your Inner Athlete!

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Aug 23 2011

Training for Warriors Weekend

There are not many times in the life of an adult that can send your anticipation wheeling like a child awaiting Christmas or a visit to your favorite theme park.  When you are lucky enough to recapture these feelings of excitement as a “grown up” you would be a fool not to jump at the chance, or in this case, jump squat at the chance.  Visiting Martin Rooney and taking part in the Training for Warriors Level 1 Instructor Course was just this type of experience for this fitness professional.

Upon entering the Parisi Speed School location in Paramus New Jersey you are immediately in training awe.  The facility itself is impressive beyond most people’s training dreams and a feeling of wanting more is palpable.  Within minutes will be some of the most impressive motivational as well as physical teaching and mentoring possibly in existence.

Martin has an amazing presence that makes you want to share both his belief in physical and mental fitness as well as pushes you to question the things that you have been sold by the fitness industry.  It becomes obvious the difference between a job and a calling to this man, if it was just a job he would push you to think what he thinks, when it is a calling as he has he drives you to find your own meaning and place amongst greatness in the field.

When you enter a Training for Warriors Certification you will also find yourself amongst like minded people from places as far as Spain and Canada who have very purposefully landed in front of this man to gather all he has to know as well as challenge themselves physically.  Personal Trainers, Army Rangers, Law Enforcement, and champions meeting in one location with intentions to absorb as much as possible.

The information both shared and experienced hands on is priceless.  There is more given and received in two days at the TFW Certification Seminar than in most month long courses, including physical challenges that your body will not soon forget.  No secrets kept, no fitness miracles just hard work and result oriented training, common sense and a willingness to question “why”?

Martin’s methods of evaluating client’s physical weaknesses are practical and vital to good training.  The TFW concepts on addressing these weaknesses in “prehab” as well as  warmup components are helpful and can instantly be added to your personal as well as your client training sessions.  Martin explains the place new and popular workout gadgets have in a program and when the good old basics of fitness should be relied upon.  Sprints, barbell complexes, and multiple challenges are explained to keep clients physically challenged and mentally engaged.

Be willing to release the Warrior Within, enter Rooney’s world with an open mind, a hunger to change both yours and the lives of others and not just physically.

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Dec 10 2010

UFC Fighter Jim Miller Strength and Conditioning

UFC 124 is just around the corner and once again a Martin Rooney trained MMA fighter is on the card, Jim Miller who will be taking on Charles Oliveira.  Jim and Dan Miller both train with elite strength and conditioning coach Martin Rooney for their UFC fights.  Rooney is one of the coaches in the world and has taken many pro fighters as well as many other athletes to the next level.

In this video we will see one of Rooney’s conditioning sessions with Jim Miller.  Rooney uses many different training implements to get the job done in about 5 minutes.  Miller starts off with the sledgehammer, which increase power in the abdominal region, he then moves on to one of my favorite pieces of equipment the Prowler.  The Prowler will improve a fighter’s lower body strength and power.  This power in the lower body will help improve punching and kicking as well as help develop an explosive takedown.  Next he moves to bands and does a whole bunch of pulling movements.  The agility ladder is next.  This will help improve a fighter’s footwork and coordination.  Since Miller has gone through the other exercises especially the prowler his legs are a bit fatigued, doing the ladder in this fatigued state is more difficult than it looks.  Finally he finishes off with the kettlbell swings, which develops total body power.

Each exercise is done for a minute with a short recovery in between each other exercises.  This type of conditioning is grueling but will get you prepared for a fight.  They are also simple to create pick five exercises and do them for a minute and you have your MMA round.

At the end of the video you hear Rooney telling his fighters that getting their heart rate low in between rounds is important.  If they are able to have a lower heart rate than their opponent at the start of the round then they have an advantage.  An opponent with a higher heart rate will fatigue quicker in the next round, which will be an advantage to you.

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Nov 08 2010

MMA Agility Part 2

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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Aug 03 2010

Ricardo Almeida Strength and Conditioning

Category: Conditioning,MMA,Strength Training,UFC,UncategorizedRob @ 8:35 PM

UFC 117 is only a few days away and this card is stacked from top to bottom. We all know the main event pits Chael Sonnen going against defending champ Anderson Silva for the title. The one sided war of words has been well documented over the last few months and soon enough it will be time to close the mouth and step inside the Octagon.
For the next couple of days I am in hot pursuit of finding strength and conditioning videos of some of the fighters that are on the card at UFC 117. For starters I am going to begin with Ricardo Almeida who is taking on a legend in Matt Hughes. This is going to be a battle and I see it going to the judges. That being said both fighters will have to be in top condition.
Ricardo Almeida’s strength and conditioning coach is the world renowned Martin Rooney. If you follow strength and conditioning Rooney is one of the leaders in the industry and I myself have learned quite a bit from this great coach.
The video below is a short one. The deadlift is one of the best movements an athlete can perform. The deadlift builds the muscles of the posteiror chain. In this video Rooney has Almeida doing a variation of the deadlift. Rooney calls this modified version the sprawling deadlift. Obvious the sprawl is essential in MMA. The key to this lift is to do it as fast as possible and generate power. So don’t load the bar to heavy because it will not allow you pull it up fast. So check out this video. And don’t forget to watch Almeida take on Hughes this weekend.

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May 03 2010

Gymnastics and MMA?

Category: Conditioning,MMA,Strength Training,UncategorizedRob @ 4:53 PM

In my You Tube adventures over the weekend I ran into this pretty cool video by world-class strength and conditioning coach Martin Rooney. If you don’t know who Martin Rooney is you should without a doubt pick up some of his books such as: “Train to Win”, “Training for Warriors” and his new book which should be a good one, “Ultimate Warrior Workouts”. He trains some of the best MMA fighters in the world. The first seminar I ever attended as a personal trainer back then was being co-hosted by Rooney. That seminar was the “Training to Win” seminar. It set me on the path to become a strength and conditioning coach. From that time on I have learned a lot from Rooney’s training techniques and philosophies. If you train fighters or any athlete you should look into Rooney’s methods of training to help guide you as a strength and conditioning coach.
In this video Rooney talks about some of the research he has been doing on kinesthetic awareness.. Basically kinesthetic awareness is being able to coordinate your body’s motion and awareness of where your body is in that moment and space. He shows us three gymnastic moves that will help improve our kinesthetic awareness. The three exercises he shows us are the cartwheel, the round off and the handstand. Sometimes we get caught up with the latest technology or new equipment in the strength and conditioning field, but many times going back to old school methods delivers just as good as results if not better.  So check out the video below and don’t forget to Train Hard, Train Smart!



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