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Living in Las Vegas, Nevada affords me many great opportunities, not the least of which is being smack dab in the middle of MMA’s epicenter. Being a rabid fan of MMA, partaking in MMA training (Specifically Muay Thai and Jiu Jitsu) and having the honor of working with many of the incredible MMA athletes (amateur as well as professional) gives me a multi-dimensional viewpoint when it comes to what works and doesn’t work with MMA conditioning training. I am humble in my approach as I feel I am forever a student of the body and I would like to believe that is what helps me to achieve great success with my clients. I don’t pretend to know it all, but rather I voraciously pursue furthering my knowledge base by means of reading cutting edge scientific journals, attending as many relevant certifications as possible and just flat out keeping an open mind.
Something I see happen all too often, is a random trainer calling himself a “MMA conditioning specialist” with little to no practical knowledge or experience in the field. Training Mrs. Smith to lose 10 pounds of fat is ever so slightly different from training an elite athlete to perform at his/her peak in competition.
(Did my sarcasm show through just now?)
While a lot of these trainers might have good intentions, they are sadly setting themselves and their clients up for failure by applying antiquated belief systems and training paradigms to what might be considered the single most challenging athletic endeavor out there: MMA. These athletes need a flowing, balanced blend of speed, strength, skill, flexibility and endurance that is tailored to their own unique physiology in such a manner that the outcome is a harmonious dynamic of purposeful movement that does the “Art” portion of the moniker justice.
A true professional MMA conditioning coach approaches their athlete with a goal of improving their structural and movement based efficiency, facilitating effective improvement in the goal based aspects of the program and all the while minimizing opportunities for injury and/or overtraining. This requires a thorough grasp of exercise science and the ability to apply it in an individualized manner that is both progressive and periodized as needed to accommodate the athlete’s goals. The balancing of speed, strength, skill, flexibility and endurance is of paramount importance to the MMA athlete’s success.
There are three main steps to this process:
- Assess the athlete for goal orientation as well as physical needs/capabilities
- Design the program based around the information provided by the assessments
- Instruct the athlete utilizing the well-designed program
If you or someone you know is thinking about working with a MMA conditioning coach, make sure that coach can answer the following questions:
- What muscles groups should be trained? Why?
- What basic energy sources (e.g. anaerobic, aerobic) should be trained? Why?
- What are the types of muscle action(s) (e.g. isometric, eccentric) should be trained? Why?
- What are the primary sites of injury for the particular sport or activity, and what is the prior injury history of the individual?
- What are the specific needs for muscle strength, hypertrophy, endurance, power, speed, agility, flexibility, body composition, balance and coordination?
A true professional will be able to answer all these and more.
Originally posted 2014-12-18 18:40:59. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
The post Not All MMA Conditioning Coaches Are The Same appeared first on The Fight Mechanic - Jason Parsons.
by Jason Parsons via The Fight Mechanic – Jason Parsons
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