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Over the last decade mixed martial arts (MMA) has transformed from sanctioned street brawls to a well-respected sport that attracts some of the world’s finest athletes. Now the fastest growing sport in the world, MMA is more popular than ever; because of this the demand for great fighters has increased. It’s just not enough to be a tough guy who likes to brawl. Today’s MMA fighter must be a skilled and well-rounded athlete. With the increase in competition, fighters have taken their training to the next level.
Like any sport-specific training, fighters do exercises which mimic the nature of competition. This can be a challenge, because fighting demands many different athletic skills. A fighter must have a combination of speed, strength, explosiveness, endurance, flexibility, agility, dexterity, and coordination. Due to these diverse demands fighters do a variety of training exercises. Ever wonder what it takes to train like a champion? Here is a look at some of the training techniques today’s MMA fighters are using.
- Plyometrics: Builds explosive power. Examples: Box jumps
- Olympic Lifts: Strength and explosive power. Example: Power clean, snatch, clean and jerk.
- Circuit training: This high intensity style of exercise closely resembles the physical demands of a fight. Most circuit workouts are designed with 5 minute rounds and one minute rest.
- Sprints: Builds speed and explosiveness. Depending on the rest periods sprints also help develop a fighter’s lung capacity. Sprints can be done at a variety of distances.
- Distance running: Great for endurance and keeping a fighters weight down. Usually try to keep the duration around 30-45 minutes.
- Interval cardio: Short bursts of exertion followed by less intense periods are the norm for many fights. Intervals do exactly that. Example: Sprint 100 meters then jog 200 meters repeat this for 15 minutes.
- Yoga and Pilates: These both develop balance and flexibility.
- Power lifting:Used to develop brute strength. Examples: Deadlift, squats, barbell bench.
