Bump... yeah I know it was a sticky Anyway, how you doing Puma? Haven't seen you in a while everything still going strong?
:thumbsup Yes sir. Been training real hard by doing the exercises in this thread and running 5 miles 3 out of 5 days on the treadmill. Also, looking to add more things in terms of variety involving sandbags and homemade strength training equipment. Video of the one armed push up and its progression will be made after I have a little bit of down time. if anyone has requests for making a video of certain exercises like the pistol w weight, please make the request known so i can knock it out all at once. Remmy, looking very strong in those pics brother!!!!thumbsup This is a good one for now [YT]RiiAPWs2CvU[/YT]
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Only a few pounds left to the light welter limit. Ps. not bad for someone who doesn't do weights eh Haven't done any heavy labor either lately, so I think I'm going to do some strength work next week. All I have is a gunny sack and a pile of sand so I'm going to get creative as well.
My 22 doesn't mean **** on there so i'm cranking em out as I post. Gotta catch up check this out http://www.geocities.com/fightraining/fitnessst.html
Conditioning for Speed and Power Athletes Patrick Beith, CSCS, PES, USATF Lv. II With so many articles on Speed Training, you would assume that there is plenty of great information available. The problem is that the topic of speed is not being totally covered. There are categories of training that are just not being discussed. There are so many athletes specializing at a young age, and we are seeing a drop in overall work capacity. This is due to low levels of general strength and conditioning. Everyone wants to be doing pure speed work all the time and nobody seems to be building the proper base needed for your body to be able to handle that force and power. The better your work capacity is the easier it is to recover from your speed workouts so the more speed work that you will be able to handle. Basically, you need to add conditioning and recovery days (tempo days) to become a faster, more powerful athlete. Tempo Training Tempo work is low intensity training (60-75% intensity) that has many great benefits for speed/power athletes. This type of training is used as recovery, general strength and conditioning work. Tempo work can help maintain healthy joint and soft tissue strength, provide some aerobic capacity work, is a good recovery workout, is core strengthening, helps with balance/coordination/proprioception and enhances gross motor performance. Another positive advantage of tempo work is the increased blood flow and capillary density adaptation provided. As you know, increased blood flow (from your increased heart rate) provides heat to the muscles and helps to stimulate hormones to aid in recovery and also to flush out debris in the muscles. The importance of the improved capillary density is that you can maintain that heat to your muscles for a longer period of time. This will help speed/power athletes because they need longer rest periods in between their intervals on intense days of training (speed work, plyos, weight training, etc) due to the stress each rep places on the central nervous system. Remember, you don’t get faster from the actual speed work; you get faster from the recovery from the speed work. Tempo training, as mentioned before, will improve development of your aerobic (work) capacity. As a speed/power athlete, I'm sure you do not want to spend your time out on the road running useless mileage that is placing unneeded stress on your joints. As a speed athlete, you should not be running mileage. Sample Tempo Running Workout: (On the grass of a football field) Run 100 yards (all 100 yards performed at 65%) Walk along the goal line across the field Run back 100 yards Walk along the goal line across the field Repeat 3 more times Rest for 3 minutes. Active rest, keep moving and do not sit down. Run 100 yards Walk along the goal line across the field Run back100 yards Walk along the goal line across the field Repeat 3 more times Like all of your workouts, you want to be as efficient as possible and get the most bang for your buck. General strength circuits do just that. Most young athletes lack the general strength it takes to produce the proper force and lack basic work capacity, so we get both of these great benefits from GS work. General Strength Circuits General strength circuits are usually bodyweight exercises that involve little or no external loading. The day after a speed/power workout is the ideal time to add a general strength day. A speed/power day places extreme stress to your CNS (central nervous system) and it takes 24-48 hours to recover from it. This is why you can't perform speed/power workouts day after day (well you can, but you would be asking for an injury!). So the GS circuit is used as a recovery workout to help your body recoup and get ready for another speed/power workout the following day. The circuits will increase your heart rate, but are low in intensity enough to have such positive effects on your body restoration abilities. Sample General Strength Circuit: (Great for group/team training sessions) Split squats – 10 each leg Jog 50 yards Rotational push-ups – 8 each way Jog 50 yards Bicycles – 1x30 Jog 50 yards Burpees – 1x10 Jog 50 yards Military push-ups – 1x10 Jog 50 yards Russian twists – 1x25 Jog 50 yards Backwards lunges – 10-each leg Jog 50 yards Lateral lunges – 10 each leg Jog 50 yards Reverse crunches – 1x20 Jog 50 yards 1 Leg squats – 10 each leg Rest 3 minutes and repeat circuit. In under 45 minutes, you just improved your strength, balance, aerobic conditioning, core conditioning, help prevent injuries and worked on mental focus during fatigue all while recovering your body from yesterdays speed workout! Speed training needs to focus on being efficient in each energy system and modality. Having an incomplete training program is asking for injury or guaranteeing that you will not reach your full speed potential. Remember, you not only want to train harder but work smarter to stay A Step Ahead of your competition. About The Author Patrick Beith is a Performance Consultant for Athletes' Acceleration, Inc and has helped develop the Complete Speed Training System. To learn more about Patrick Beith or for the latest training tips, programs, cutting edge strength and conditioning news, speed training and much more, visit AthletesAcceleration.com.
Firstly El puma, great thread:good Here's my workout routine All excersies are done untill failure-usually 5-8 reps and with 2 minute rest between each set. Monday- 6 sets of bench press, 4 sets of dumbell flys, 1 set of fist pushups with elbows going straight behind, 1 set of wide fist pushups with elbows going to the sides. Tuesday-6 sets of overhand pullups on a ledge (because on a pullup bar I can do about 15 reps), 4 sets of bent over rows, 2 sets of upright rows and 6 sets of lateral raises Wednesday- 6 sets of squats with dumbells in hand at sides of body (not with a barbell resting on my upper back), 6 sets of static lunges with dumbells at sides. Thursday- 6 sets of crunches holding a weight behind my head, 6 sets of crunches without weights (more reps but 1 minute rest between sets), 6 sets of side bends Friday- 6 sets of barbell curls, 4 sets of 21's, 6 sets of tricep kickbacks, 2 sets of single arm tricep extension. Cardio is half an hour of skipping rope monday to saturday. In addition to this I do around five 100 metre sprints 3-4 times a week with a few minutes rest in between, shadow boxing, sparring, hitting the pads and heavy bag on most days. once a month I run the treadmill about 8 kilometres in 50 minutes) and I have a swim once a month. I train the forearms everyday by lifting a chair straigt out in front of me (about 3 sets of 4 reps) and by rotating a dumbell with weights on one side by using my wrists. I also squeeze forearm grips. Finally, I also do one arm push ups (or attempt to at least:yep) and finger pushups on the index finger and thumb. I've been following this particular weight training routine and the sprinting thing since september 2008 (everything else I used to do anyway) and it looks like I've put on a bit of muscle as people have commented that my chest looks bigger and my abs are more defined. I just weighed myself and according to the scale have put on 3 pounds. However, just a few weeks back I weighed 3 pounds less so I don' really trust the scale. However, while I wanna look good, my ultimate goal is to become stronger, more powerful, more explosive, faster, have more stamina and become an all round athelete. The sort of athelete that would be able to compete in Ninja warrior. I've seen many huge bodybuilders on there that can't even get past the first stage, all that muscle seems like its for show. Your excercises sound very interesting and I would like to try some of them. I spend about 3 hours a day 5 days a week on training and I don't wanna waste my time if these excercises are just for show. In your opinion Puma, which excercises do you think I should get rid of and which of your excersises should I do to achieve my goals, and how often? If you could replace my training routine with something that will be more useful (will make me a better allround athelete rather than just build muscle) I would be so grateful. From what you said earlier, I guess the first thing I need too if I wanna get stronger is to stop training till failure, but does training untill failure have its benefits too? A bit more info about me. I'm 5'5.5 and weigh 114.5 pounds. I'm not a boxer but train in Kung Fu so I guess I would have similar goals to a boxer. And it looks like I'm an ectomorph since I have a short upper body but long arms and find it difficult to put on muscle but not difficult to maintain a 6pack. Sorry for the essay man but I have a lot of questions and am excited.
Great thread Puma! With all the crap that gets posted on strength/power development across the various forums this is very refreshing!!!
MMA STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING ROUNDTABLE INTERVIEW BY JOSH BEATY The following interview was conducted with James Smith, Jamie Hale, Liam Taku Bauer, and Michael Frye. JBeaty: What is your take on the notion that the combat athlete has no need for training in the weight room since there are no weights in the ring? JHale: I doubt if there are very many MMA coaches who still believe that non-sense. There are numerous research studies as well as mounds of anecdotal evidence that support the need for weight training to optimize athletes performance. If there are MMA coaches or athletes who still need to be convinced I would suggest they speak to numerous (successful) coaches and look into the scientific data. To be honest if I am speaking with a coach and he or she really believes they don’t need wt training to maximize their athlete’s strength or conditioning I probably wouldn’t waste my breath. JSmith: Such a notion is ignorant to the 10th power. While the role of resistance training must not be limited to that which can be accomplished in the weight room, anyone would be naïve to think that the entirety of a fighter’s training must be limited to the mat, ring, cage, and so forth. Taku: I think that this is a ridiculous notion. There are always exceptions to the rule but for most athletes I feel there is a need for strength training with resistance provided by implements other then ones bodyweight. Like all other factors the individual’s strength must be assessed and then training prioritized accordingly. MFry: I disagree with that 100%. I feel that there is a place for weight room training for combat athletes. It’s up to the coaches and athletes to determine what that training is based on the needs for their athletes. People need to remember that bodyweight training and conditioning only takes you so far. JBeaty: Since we know jogging/running long distance is NOT the optimal way to train a fighter of any sort, what are your favorite methods of getting your fighters in prime shape? JSmith: Aside from more specific forms of training/conditioning that include all fight/skill related maneuvers- loaded and unloaded, I strongly suggest the integration of movement complexes that consist of various combinations of loaded and unloaded calisthenics, rope climbs, plyometric exercises, implement throws (med ball, kettlebell, sand bag, etc), weight lifts, sprints, sled pulls/drags, and so on. These complexes must be performed at intensities, durations, and mechanical similarities which approximate contest/round length, type/discipline, etc in order that the training has a profound effect on the improvement of the sportsman’s contest results. Managing the dosage and duration of training is of the utmost importance. It is imperative to plan the training such that the sportsman is primed for contest day and to ensure that one form of training does not negatively impact or compete with another. JHale: there might be some role for this type training in MMA athletes. Depends on their goals, conditioning levels, their fighting style and the time limits placed on their bouts. With my athletes we use low intensity aerobic training sparingly. I don’t think it hurts the athlete if done in moderation. I think excessive aerobic activity can be detrimental as it can have negative affects on a wide array of other motor qualities. Yet, many people will say hey this guy or that guy runs 3 miles per day and they have great endurance (what type endurance). This individual might have great endurance despite of not because of. On a final note, as with everything it depends. Taku: My favorite methods for getting my fighters in prime shape are different interval training protocols. I will design a wide variety of interval protocols based on where we are in the fighter’s preparation plan. Some of these will use basic equipment such as versa-climbers, Air-dynes, rowing machines, U.B.E.s etc. I make them more specific as the fighter approaches his/her peaking phase. MFry: I like to do lots of rope climbing for upper body endurance, stadium stair running, kettlebells, sandbags, versa-climber / Airdyne, and dumbbell complexes. Now for weight loss and pre-fight conditioning I will do long distance running however when the fight is scheduled I switch to the exercises above and sprint training. JBeaty: Do you have one specific gnarly drill that readers may not be familiar with? JHale: Actually I have a few but for simplicities sake I will suggest one drill that is great for anaerobic endurance, agility and quickness endurance. This is SPP (special physical preparedness) drill. 4 Corner Shadow Box and Shoot / Sprawl Athlete (or coach) picks out a three or four punch combination, throws combination while facing a corner of the ring, pivots and throws facing another corner, once the combos have been thrown facing all four corners the athlete sprawls gets up then shoots. Concentrate on good technique and total work. This drill is usually done for 3-4 minutes, 3-5 rounds. I have many of these drills I use as well as numerous non wtted, and wtted GPP movements. JSmith: Probably not- important to note is that the likelihood of a ‘new’ drill existing is minimal and the concept of familiarity is a largely confining notion. Logic suggests that the remainder of that which may be pioneered lies in the planning and organization of the training. The farther the sportsman gets from practicing the sport itself the less the training has a direct impact on the improvement of sport mastery. For this reason, I do not place a great deal of relevance on specific conditioning drills; but rather, the optimal stimulation of the sportsman. Taku: Using my interval plan as a base I will create more dynamic mini-circuits using Med-balls, weighted vest etc. As an example, during a 90 second work interval we may switch between 3 30 second bouts of different total body, Med-ball movements. These are killers. MFry: - It’s not a drill but a great exercise circuit that really pushes your muscular endurance to new levels. Here is how it works. Perform a power clean using 35-40% of your one rep max for one rep ever 6 seconds. We will do this for 2-3 minutes depending on where we are in our schedule. It’s a great workout that we do 2-3 times a week for 8 weeks. You should give it a try Jamie. I think you will enjoy it. JBeaty: Of all the combative athletes you've worked with, what are the biggest mistakes that seem to be made in their training and preparation? JHale: Copying the training regimens of their heroes and assuming if a workout makes you tired it is effective at promoting the desired results. Those are a couple of many, but probably the two most common. JSmith: The biggest training errors and this is surely not limited to combat athletes, typically come as a result of an insufficient understanding of sport science. This is not to be confused with exercise science or exercise physiology; but rather the science of sport. Any particular training flaw or careless coaching action will almost always come as a result of lacking a sufficient enough understanding of the science of sport. This includes the physiological effects of training, biomechanics, bioenergetics, and so on.
Taku: The most common mistakes I encounter are; 1.Overtraining during the peaking phase of training. 2.Poor nutritional habits which lead to making weight using less then optimal means. 3.Poor stress management skills which just cause general energy leaks that can really decrease performance. MFry: The two biggest mistakes I see are not training the right way (conditioning) and poor nutrition. It drives me crazy sometimes to see fighters who have loads of potential waste it with poor training and nutritional habits. Some times it’s not the athletes fault but their coaches JBeaty: Is their one thing all winners seem to have in common? JHale: I have seen winners come in all shapes and sizes (concerning personalities and physical qualities). I think there is a wide array of physical traits among fighters under A class level, but less variation as athletes become A class fighters. Most A class fighters are able to take criticism, posses’ strong work ethic, and realize the importance of a properly designed strength and conditioning program (this includes proper nutrition). Smith: I’m not sure that I comfortable limiting my answer to one quality; but, if I must then I will state that every winner possesses an unrelenting will to achieve their objective. Taku: The ability to persist. Winners will keep their eye on the prize and can adjust themselves in the moment, reevaluating their plan of attack while staying focused on their goal. MFry: A strong mental belief that they are going to win. They say sports are 90% mental and in the fight game it can be closer to the truth. You can have all the talent in the world but if you don’t think you’re going to win, you won’t…If you’re a fighter or combat athlete and want to be at the top of your game I would recommend adding mental training to your current training regimen. JBeaty: Some coaches advocate committing there fighters to attaining a 3xbodywieght deadlift, 2.5 bodyweight bench, and 2.5 bodyweight squat? What do you think about this guideline? JHale: I think if these coaches are training fighters their in the wrong sport. There is absolutely no correlation with these numbers and fighting ability. At the same time I am not implying that fighters shouldn’t work on the development of maximum strength. Keep this in mind if big gym numbers are your main objective fighting is not for you as this will generally decrease Max strength. For big gym numbers eat a bunch; make sure you plenty of protein and wt train. Forget about training seriously for mma as the volume and nervous system fatigue will probably inhibit Max Strength gains. JSmith: I would suspect that none of these coaches are responsible for producing a single world or nationally ranked fighter Taku: I find this guideline somewhat irrelevant. Each athlete is unique. I constantly evaluate their training to help them refine what their goals should be. If we are improving in the desired areas then I know the plan is working. I have not found a direct correlation with specific poundage’s and success. But, strength is a key component and must be optimized. MFry: I don’t follow these guidelines. I work with a lot of big athletes and if you’re a fighter, who weights 300lbs you’re then asking them to deadlift 900, bench 750, and squat 750. I don’t know too many athletes who can do this so no I don’t follow them. JBeaty: How concerned are you with a fighters "weightroom numbers"? JHale: Depends on the fighter. If they feel really strong and powerful in the ring there weight room numbers are probably decent (of course this is relative and depends what you are comparing to). I have seen other fighters who have relatively good wt room numbers, but appear weak in the ring. This could be due to a number of reasons. In general, power (work divided by time- Rate of force development) seems to be more important than Max strength. In most combat situations there is insufficient time availability to display Max strength. I haven’t seen any thing that suggests weight room numbers alone correlate with success as a fighter. JSmith: The degree to which I may or may not be concerned with strength as it is demonstrated in the weight room is directly related to the preparedness of the sportsman. Certain fighters would do well to perform a higher volume of weight training while others already possess a high enough level of the non-specific strength which comes as a result of lifting weights. Taku: Following off the last question one may think that I am not concerned with a fighter’s weight room numbers. Actually I am concerned only in that I see progress in the areas I feel need it. We will have target goals and I want to achieve them. My experience shows that I can expect a certain percentage increase in strength within a certain amount of time. If the numbers do not move in the right direction in a reasonable time frame I must look closely at our plan and make sure all aspects are optimized. With the above being said, I do not have any magic numbers that I expect from everyone. MFry: I’m not concerned with them and don’t put any valve to weight room numbers as what was asked previous. Here is a list of the things I track. •Pre-workout heart rate •Pre-workout bodyweight •Post exercise heart rate. •Recovery time between exercises •weight used J Beaty: If there was one lift that separated the men from the boys in the ring what would that be? (Considering both has equal levels of conditioning) JHale: There is no magic lift. Numerous factors come into play. In general, my athletes perform primarily compound movements. If a particular lift seems to be injurious to an athlete we strike that movement and use a substitute. No matter how good a movement has the potential to be if it is injurious it is probably not the best choice. JSmith: Allow me to first state that it is unlikely that strength in a certain lift would ever distinguish the winner from the loser. Having said this, I have always felt that the ‘strongest’ individuals are those who posses great back strength. Accordingly, a fighter who possesses great pulling strength is certainly at an advantage when in the clinch, throwing, grappling, etc. Taku: I honestly don’t have one lift that I feel is key to an individual’s success. I have many favorites such as Clean Deadlifts and Overhead Squats. I train my athletes to achieve balanced strength throughout their entire body. Each athlete will require different prescriptions at different times depending on their individual needs. MFry: POWER CLEANs, power cleans, power cleans. Great total body exercise. J Beaty: How much time and effort is divided on separate goals such as maximal strength, conditioning, etc? JHale: Depends on strength and weaknesses, training goal, and experience levels. In beginners increasing max strength generally enhances other motor qualities assuming that weight gain is not too rapid (generally decreases relative strength which decreases movement abilities). Intermediate and advanced trainees generally have much wider responses to training programs. JSmith: This is entirely dependent on the sportsman’s preparedness, the contest schedule, the discipline being trained, and so on. One universal rule in my view, however, (specifically in regards to fighters) is that the training of maximal strength via non-specific means (in the weight room) must greatly diminish, if not cease, approximately 3-6 weeks prior to a contest. The training of maximal strength yields high stress to the central nervous system (CNS). This presents too high a strain to the human organism when combined with the increased volume of fight specific training that must be included as a contest approaches. The CNS is the largest branch of the nervous system. When the CNS becomes excessively depressed the remainder of the nervous system (autonomic) is also likely to weaken. As a result, the regulation, control, and monitoring of muscle, sense, and organ function may become impaired. Restless sleep, illness/immune dysfunction/weakening, fatigue, and impaired motor function are not desirable qualities for any sportsman. Taku: Again this question can only truly be answered in a case by case basis. If we look at Tudor Bompa's Training Factors Pyramid we see that the base is GPP. All fighters need to have an excellent GPP base. We then customize training according to all their personal factors. These may include but are not limited to age, state of health, injury status, etc. My goals is to create highly conditioned fighters with enough strength, stamina and flexibility to get the job done with gas left in the tank and come out as injury free as possible. MFry: Prior to a fight being scheduled I spend a lot of time working on maximum strength. Like I said we will do long distance aerobic running and we get our anaerobic work during grappling classes; it’s only when we get the call for a fight that we switch to power endurance training and anaerobic conditioning. I would say pre fight we are 80-20 aerobic – anaerobic and after a fight is planned we switch to 90-10 anaerobic – aerobic.
There are many ways to increase the intensity of your workouts. In order to do so, you could increase the weight you lift, increase the amount of reps you perform, or increase the number of sets you do. Incorporating any or all of these three factors can give you an unlimited number of combinations for changing your workout. But there is another, often overlooked, factor: time. Shortening your rest periods or performing an exercise for a certain amount of time can give you a big boost in intensity. Tabata is the name of a Japanese researcher who discovered an interesting way to increase both anaerobic and aerobic pathways at the same time. It's an excellent program for any looking to lose fat quickly. The Tabata method incorporates this time factor. This method got its name from a Japanese researcher who found a way to increase aerobic and anaerobic pathways at the same time. The method is simple, fast, and you don’t need any special equipment – just a clock or stopwatch. To incorporate the Tabata method, perform an exercise for a “20 seconds on, 10 seconds off” pattern. Do the exercise at maximum intensity. In other words, don’t pace yourself; go for as many reps as you can. See the example below: * Choose an exercise. * Perform the exercise for 20 seconds at full intensity (as many reps as you can). * Rest for 10 seconds. * Repeat 7 more times. * This will take 4 minutes Trust me; this is not as easy as it sounds. It really taxes your muscles and gets your heart rate up. It transforms exercises you once found easy. I wouldn’t recommend this method for those just starting out, as you should have a good foundation of strength and cardiovascular fitness before trying this method. The Tabata method works great with these exercises: * Push ups * Sit ups * Pull ups and chin ups * Bodyweight squats * Front squats (use significantly less weight than you usually lift) * Sprints I would also suggest using big compound lifts that work many muscles at once such as thrusters, front squats, or squat-and-press. But remember that when using weights, you should use around no more than 30% of your maximum. That’s it, a simple but highly effective fat loss strategy that’s guaranteed to have you crying for your mommy. I dare you to try it! Next up in the extreme fat loss strategy, I’ll be tackling how you should tweak your exercise program for optimal fat loss. __________________ TRAIN LIKE A MADMAN!