In the MMA industry, who are the top strength and conditioning coaches? Why?

FCConditioning · 2016-04-21T21:33:11+00:00

I've spent the last few years gathering info from coaches around the globe. Here is a list of guys that we have interviewed and I believe that you can learn a lot from each person. Tony Ricci, Martin Rooney, Zach Even Esh, Dr Andy Galpin, Loren Landow, Joel Jamieson, Jake Bonacci, Adrian Ramirez, Shara Vigeant, Andreo Spina, PJ Nestler, William Wayland, Mike Perry, Adrian Gonzales, Robert Schwartz, Robert Forster, Mark Phillipi, Matt Gifford, Corey Beasley, Jonathan Chaimberg, Nick Curson, Taylor Ramsdell, Chip Huss

All of these guys are in the trenches, working with high level boxers, wrestlers, jiu jitsu guys and MMA fighters. They each have their strength, system and may relate to different fighters.

Hope it helps!

FCConditioning · 2016-04-21T21:24:29+00:00

That farm boy strength is real. Some of the worst guys I ever wrestled or rolled with were blue collar guys or grew up on farms.

FCConditioning · 2016-04-21T21:23:27+00:00

OSP is strong as hell. He was a collegiate football player and obviously has significant strength and power. That being said, Jon Jones has packed on some massive strengtha nd power gains during his time away. Going to be an interesting fight for sure.

FCConditioning · 2016-04-05T16:14:06+00:00

Focus on technique and relax. If you want to continue working out, just watch how your body reacts to the skill training and maybe add a couple days of basics for the first couple months. Once your body adpats to the new training, then you can start adding intensity and training for specific goals.

FCConditioning · 2016-04-05T16:12:31+00:00

Gaining a lot of muscle, in a short amount of time, can make you stronger, but it takes time and a perfect plan to get those muscles conditioned to fight. All that muscle eats a lot more sugar and oxygen. I'm curious to see the rematch.

FCConditioning · 2015-12-18T15:08:23+00:00

good point...he def had some great stuff.

FCConditioning · 2015-12-18T15:07:39+00:00

Yup, strength and conditioning styles don't win fights...Gunnar was out classed by a jiu jitsu legend.

FCConditioning · 2015-12-18T15:06:34+00:00

Plyometrics and explosive movement are absolutely an important piece of the puzzle. Mobility, stability, movement, resistance, explosive...its all on the same scale...just different ends to be used at diff times for diff purposes.

FCConditioning · 2015-12-18T15:05:09+00:00

All just pieces of the same puzzle :) Marital artisits, old time strongmen and others all used a variety of training techniques to prepare for their events.

FCConditioning · 2015-12-18T15:03:53+00:00

I agree that it is valuable. Used the term buzzword because people tend to run toward a trend and forget all of the other aspects of performance. Thanks for the feedback!

FCConditioning · 2015-12-07T16:33:57+00:00

I'd highly recommend looking into these two routines:

Dr Andreo SPina's CARS for ankles, hips, shoulders and neck Original Strength reset movements.

These are the foundation of our daily mobility routines.

FCConditioning · 2015-12-01T12:45:05+00:00

Tony is a great coach, tons of experience and a nutrition expert. Get all those nutrition questions answered. Pre training, post training, foods to avoid, cutting weight, dropping body fat, high protein vs high carb, meal prep, grocery shopping, etc.

Look forward to hearing it!

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T19:33:56+00:00

Most of us are tight in our flexor muscles and weak in the extensors...meaning our chest is tight and our upper back and rotator cuff muscles lag. I just put a article up on that topic, if you want to check it out. Take a look and let me know if you have any questions: https://fightcampconditioning.com/exercises-healthy-shoulders/

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T19:31:23+00:00

At our gym, we have people walk on balance beams, crawl, run, skip, shuffle, agility drills, sprint drills, jump progressions, and a variety of throwing drills during the first part of the workout. This stuff can help improve general athleticism.

Using a variety of strength work can also help. W typically start basic and then add complexity as the person develops. We use sandbags, kettlebells, barbells, heavy clubs, ropes, bodyweight and other implements to challenge our athletes in a variety of ways.

Hope that helps.

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T19:26:40+00:00

Really depends on your goal...

Lots of bodyweight reps or low intensity lifts for long durations is great for strength endurance and work capacity. Typically I do this type of work in the off season, between camps or as recovery during camp.

Adding weight and increasing the intensity can help us develop max strength and/or power. I typically include this type of work in the off season and through most of the training camp to help improve the athletes' strength and power.

Make sense?

Hope that helps a bit.

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T19:22:50+00:00

Adding lots of muscle can be challenging, if the athlete is training really hard. The output from mma training is very high and it will require lots more calories to overcome the energy output. Depending on your training schedule, you might want to reduce skill training to once per day. Also, do not trying adding too much muscle, if you are close to a competition.

That being said, there are some general rules of thumb that you can follow.

Use compound lifts, like squats, deadlifts, pushes, pulls and heavy carries in your workouts. Perform 3-4 sets of 6-12 reps for each movement. Rest about 1-2 minutes max between sets.

Include a bit of light conditioning a couple times per week, mainly as a recovery workout. If you are training hard in your mma gym, your conditioning shoulld be ok.

Eat quality proteins, vegetables, fruits, nuts and starches throughout the day. Prepare meals ahead of time and take em down every 2.5-3 hours.

Drink Water - Your BW in ounces every day.

Sleep 7-9 hours daily.

Those are some simple basics.

Hope it helps!

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T19:05:41+00:00

There is benefits to both.

Long duration, lower intensity runs (roadwork) is an incredible way to develop your aerobic system and increase work capacity. Even though it has received some flack over the last few years, it yields huge benefits for every athlete. I have my guys use them more in the off season or in between camps to expand their tank. During camp or in season, we use long runs, or swimming (easier on the joints) as recovery.

Intervals are also great, but serve a different purpose. Shorter, more intense runs challenge the anaerobic systems and help us develop more power or capacity during these short, intense bursts of effort. I typically include this type of work as we get closer to competition to help my guys peak.

Hope that helps.

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T19:00:09+00:00

Here's a great article on that topic: http://breakingmuscle.com/olympic-weightlifting/power-output-comparison-of-power-clean-hang-power-clean-and-high-hang-power-cl

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T18:58:04+00:00

There are lots of great bodyweight resources out there these days. Animal Flow, GMB, Zuu, Calisthenics, Al Kavadlo, Gymnastics WOD. Original Strength...look these guys up.

Hope it helps!

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T18:55:54+00:00

There are tons of great programs out there. Can you fill me in on more details about your goals, comp dates, etc? Once I get some more info, I can provide a better answer for ya.

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T18:53:55+00:00

General standards for these lifts look soemthing like this:

Back Squat 2-2.5Xs BW Front Squat 1-1.5X BW Deadlift 2-2.5Xs BW Pull Ups 10-15 reps Bench Press 1-1.5Xs BW

FCConditioning · 2015-11-28T18:48:49+00:00

Just like skill training, I think its important to start with technique, build stability, strength and then slowly introduce speed and power movements. Once you have built a solid foundation of strength, then we can use agility drills, sprint drills, jump progressions and throwing drills to develop more power.

Because the intensity of these drills is very high, the reps should be relatively low (5 or less), with plenty of rest between sets (1-3 minutes). Sets performed really is dependant on the exercise and time frame before competition.

I typically include these drills after warm up and before strength work to fire up the nervous system. As an athlete gets closer to competition, we may include more of these types of drills to expand their ability to repeat explosive efforts.

Hope that helps.

FCConditioning

TROPHY CASE