[Madmick]

http://www.thespotter.net/jsp/viewArticle.jsp?id=121
The following is taken from an interview with Joe Dowdell (the owner/operator of Peak Performance in NYC). I find that too often guys focus on a single aspect of training. Dowdell simply says that a properly planned program should include the following:

1) Dynamic Warm Up
2) Activation Drills
3) Strength Training
4) Energy System Training
5) Regeneration
6) Nutritional Guidance & Supplementation

To that, I would add Flexibility Training for any striker or grappler. Also, "activation drills" are more commonly referenced under the rubric "neuromuscular activation."

Food for thought.

[STWACOACH]

I like it.

[Madmick]

And in case you haven't seen it yet, here's a great interview with Alwyn Cosgrove (the TKD black belt who regularly contributes to T-Nation), Martin Rooney (author of "The Team Renzo Gracie Workout: Training for Warriors"), and Joe Dowdell:

http://www.alwyncosgrove.com/ModShow/ShowPage/79785

The Best Mixed Martial Arts Training Interview Ever!
(reprinted with permission from CBathletics.com)

What happens when you put 3 of the top MMA strength coaches in the same room? I don’t know either. But when you email them a list of questions, you get some amazing answers.

I’d like to introduce to you Alwyn Cosgrove, Joe Dowdell, and Martin Rooney, the 3 best strength coaches in North America when it comes to training Martial Artists (in addition to the thousands of other athletes that they train).

If you are at all serious about improving your athletic performance (in any sport), losing fat, or improving your nutrition and training, you must pick up Alwyn and Martin’s training books. Let’s find out a little bit more about each coach.


Alwyn Cosgrove:
Personally I have a Fourth Degree Black Belt and had National, European and World Titles over five different weights in my career. I was fourteen when I got my first degree black belt and started competing in the men’s division. It was competition that got me interested in sports science – which led to my going to college and ultimately my career as a sports training consultant today. I began training other martial artists in 89/90 when I was still competing and had good success.

Currently I have trained the entire gamut of martial athlete – from the rookie to several national champions, five world champions and a Commonwealth Games Gold medalist. I own and operate a training facility in Santa Clarita California and have authored an e-book on “Secrets of Martial Arts Conditioning” available at www.alwyncosgrove.com.


Joe Dowdell:
I began studying both Tae Kwon Do and freestyle wrestling during high school. While in college, I was training at a place called Waering’s Gym in Virginia Beach, VA where I began to box. After college, I moved to Paris, France for work and began studying Muay Thai at a place called RD Sporting Club. Today, I still enjoy kickboxing and I continue to incorporate it into my weekly training regimen.

As for my practical experience with working with MMA fighters and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners -- I conduct all of my instruction at my facility in NYC called Peak Performance (www.peakperformancenyc.com). Several of the fighters that I have worked with or consulted with on their strength & conditioning programs, include Colin O’Rourke (Team Renzo Gracie), Rolles Gracie Jr. (Team Renzo Gracie), Igor Gracie (Team Renzo Gracie), as well as several other Renzo Gracie students.


Martin Rooney:
I have been lucky to be working with many of the top MMA and Brazilian jiu jitsu practitioners in the world for the last 5 years (Renzo Gracie, Ricardo Almeida, Rodrigo Gracie, Sean Alvarez, Roger Gracie, and many others). I have set up everything from their physical training, to nutrition, to strategic development, to even help corner them at events such as Pride, UFC, and the ADCC world grappling championships all over the world. I currently am on the editorial counsel for Gracie Magazine in Brazil and write all of their training columns. I am also a 2 stripe blue belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and am currently training wrestling and Muay Thai as well.

All of the last 5 years of experience have led to my newest book “Training for Warriors: the Team Renzo Gracie Workout” which can be purchased at www.elitefts.com. The book is what I consider one of the most comprehensive training books for MMA. I have spent the last 2 years writing it, and it contains everything our team has done from physical training, to weight cutting and diet, to pre-fight warm-ups and strategic preparation. We are lucky to be training at the 30,000 square foot Parisi Speed School. This state-of-the-art facility boasts everything a fighter could dream of for training.


CB: Everyone has very impressive credentials. You guys are definitely the top guys for MMA training. Let’s talk about the athletes. What are the physical characteristics of a top MMA fighter? How much muscle do the top fighters need?

JD:
First of all, physical characteristics can vary from fighter to fighter based on their genetic physical attributes (i.e., limb length) as well as their dominant style of fighting (i.e., grappler, striker, etc.). But, usually, the top fighters excel in several of the following areas:

 Strength
 Speed
 Power
 Endurance
 Quickness
 Agility
 Flexibility

That being said, I think the real key is to figure out which area or areas that your fighter is weak in and then improve his or her ability’s in those areas while maintaining their strengths in the other areas.

The really top fighters also exhibit really high levels of relative strength for their desired weight class. So, rather than looking at it from the perspective of how much muscle does a top fighter need, I think it’s most important to look at their relative strength. Furthermore, an increase in muscle mass could ultimately move that individual to higher weight class--where they may no longer be able to dominate their opponent.


MR:
Obviously, if you asked me to just list the most important characteristic, that would be impossible, but a few is easier. A top fighter today should possess anaerobic endurance, strength, speed, power, and flexibility.

Interestingly, many of the top fighters have different amounts of different styles of fighting technique (striker, grappler, or wrestler) so there is no physical characteristic that I feel is most important. For instance, a fighter can be weaker than another, but have better technique which makes him look stronger. Or a fighter can be less flexible than another and still successful. I do believe that anaerobic endurance is at the base of my ideal fighter. Strength, speed and power all disappear when a fighter is dead tired.

There is no muscle mass amount required to be a top fighter. There are many muscular fighters that are successful (Mark Coleman, Kevin Randleman, Ken Shamrock) and then many less muscular as well (Pete Williams, Sakuraba, Royce Gracie). Interestingly, the fighters I just listed in the less muscular category beat the fighters in the more muscular. What I will say is that top fighters need enough muscle mass to be strong for their weight and need to have a highly efficient nervous system. Hypertrophy is not the key as many would suspect, strength is.


AC:
Speed. Power. Flexibility. Strength. Lactate Tolerance. And the ability to develop high levels of these while keeping bodyweight low! Really they have to have it all. To step into a ring against another fighter who is equally skilled is like preparing to go to war. One ***** in your armor can make the difference.

They need to have explosive power and speed to attack and defend effectively; they need to be able to have the physical “armor” to withstand attacks. And they need to have the physical and mental endurance to continue to withstand and deliver punishment over several rounds!

Muscle mass is a function of the athlete’s need for this physical armor, and their need for strength with respect to their weight class. Basically the more muscle the better within the weight.


CB: Describe the strength training portion of a fighter’s program. What type, how much, what exercises to avoid, and when in their schedule is strength training performed?

MR:
I perform some form of strength training all year long at the Parisi Speed School with the fighters. I have been lucky that my fighters are consistent and we usually do physical training 3-4 times per week. Depending on where certain fighters are physically at is going to determine what I do with them. Since each is on a different level, each is working on different things.

For the most part, easy rules of thumb for my training are that we do general heavier work and eccentric training further out from a fight, and move to light faster, more specific movements as the fight approaches. We avoid super heavy work and eccentrics to prevent the trauma and subsequent soreness that follows.


AC:
Typically I only use ground based lifts (deadlifts, cleans etc). I have a great photo of Tito Ortiz in full triple extension – exactly what the Olympic lifts develop. Who says the Olympic lifts don’t transfer to sport?!

We tend to use a lot of offset lifts (i.e. loading in one arm, DB snatches, etc.) to better simulate the lack of balance in a fight.

Prior to any weight training we use bodyweight exercises – a fighter has no business using loads if he (or she) cannot stabilize and control their own bodyweight.

And as far as the lower body goes – a fighter spends so much time in a split stance or on one leg we use a LOT of unilateral work.

As far as typical weaknesses – every ATHLETE I have ever worked with needs more posterior chain work. Fighters are no exception.

The other main thing to look at is that most training programs take place in the sagittal plane. Fighting takes place in all three planes – but particularly the transverse plane. So a training program needs to have frontal plane and transverse plane exercises in addition to sagittal plane exercises.

I avoid isolation exercises unless there is a clear reason to do so (imbalance, injury etc).
We periodize the training according to upcoming events – increasing intensity but backing off on volume AND frequency as we approach fight night.


JD:
Strength training should be performed all year round with the exception of several weeks of active rest built into the fighter’s yearly training schedule. I will vary the type, duration, frequency, intensity and volume of training depending on the following situations:

1) The amount of sport-specific training the fighter is performing.
2) The number of Energy System Development sessions they are performing during the training phase.
3) Their ability to recover from workout to workout, particularly on multiple training sessions in a day.

As they get closer to a fight, I will decrease their volume & frequency of strength training, but will maintain &/or slightly increase their intensity. As a rule of thumb, I don’t believe that there is such a thing as a good exercise or a bad exercise. Rather, I look at exercise prescription from the perspective that one chooses a particular exercise at a particular time in the training cycle either appropriately or inappropriately. Furthermore, when choosing exercises, we must always evaluate whether the benefits of the exercise outweigh the risks.


CB: How can a fighter develop a stronger punch and kick?

AC:
Two main methods: By training the core in the transverse plane (all kicks and punches are a result or powerful ROTATION – they are not linear), and by training the ability for the antagonists to decelerate the limb. If you cannot safely decelerate a movement – your body will not allow you to accelerate the movement.

So training forced eccentric loading (lunges, landing from jumps, etc.) and strengthening the antagonists are keys. We also do a lot of release work (dropping and catching a DB at speed) that I picked up from Jay Schroeder’s work.


JD:
I find that a fighter can usually develop a stronger kick &/or punch if they improve their core strength. In particular, they usually need to improve their strength and stability in the transverse and frontal planes.

At my facility, I have a high speed-low inertia device that I will have my athletes perform exercises such as a Reverse Wood Chop, Resisted Hip Flexion, etc. By utilizing this apparatus, they can safely explode into the movement without having to deal with a flying weight stack. I also like to utilize medicine ball drills because they allow the athlete the ability to release the apparatus as well as force them to learn how to decelerate an object.


MR:
First off, I would say get a great coach and practice your technique. When I began training Muay Thai, I found out I was a 200 pound guy punching and kicking with the power of a 140 pound expert fighter. Even though I was more physically powerful than these guys that were much less strong, they just had impeccable technique. So first learn the technique inside and out.

After your technique is awesome, then build strength and speed in specific areas. The hips and legs are the most important for both powerful kicks and punches followed by the core. This is where we spend most of our time training, when the athletes are not focused on technique. We perform a lot of squats, deadlifts and single leg movements. Heavy bar lunge walks are a killer in this area.


CB: How do you improve a fighter’s fitness with intervals, cardio, sprints, and other creative methods? What works? What doesn’t work?

JD:
First of all, you need to look at the breakdown of the fight. How many rounds is the fight? How many minutes per round? Will there be an additional round in the event of a draw? How many fights will they have in a single night? Etc.

Once you have this information, you can determine the appropriate work to rest intervals for your fighter. Generally speaking, I will utilize many different methods of training (and tools) including the following:

• Sprints
• Hill Sprinting
• Stadium/Stair Sprinting
• Rowing
• Rope Skipping
• Sled Dragging
• Farmer’s Walk
• Super Yoke
• Circuit Training

Again, it really goes back to what they need and what energy system they are weak in. For example, do we need to improve the capacity of their Anaerobic Lactate System or do we need to improve the power of their Anaerobic Alactate System?


MR:
This is probably our most dreaded aspect to train. Our workouts have become legendary in the fight community. Over the years we have done sprint work, high speed treadmill work, stadium stairs, extended sled pulls, advanced weight circuits, kettlebells, sandbag lifts and drags, isometric sessions, obstacle courses, and many others.

At first, I tried to be too specific, working kicking, punching and ground work into the training. I have had better results (and less injuries) keeping them separate. My advice would be to leave the physical training and fight technique apart.

I have found that sprints mixed with Olympic lifts for my advanced athletes have been great. The 20-minute straight sled pulls are also a mental challenge. Overall, the key is to have everything mapped out, but add great variation to the training to keep the fighters excited and keep it interesting.


AC:
Interval sprints, sled dragging, circuits – anything that trains the fighter to tolerate maximal effort work and lactate build up will work. We use DB matrix work, combination lifts, complexes, bodyweight circuits, and speed ladder drills, all to take the heart rates through the roof and tolerate the lactate.

Ideally the more specific the energy system work the better, so doing bag work, pad and shield drills etc in an interval manner is usually a more effective tool than running or cycling.

Always have the fighters wear a mouthpiece when doing any endurance work – you’ll be wearing it in a fight and it does restrict air flow somewhat – so you have to prepare for that. It’s also important for fighters to learn to keep their mouths closed, and breathe through their nose as much as possible – an open jaw is a lot easier to break than a closed one!

One more thing that most trainers won’t think of is training muscular endurance and in particular isometric work. In a MMA match, submissions and defending submissions are often completely isometric.

What doesn’t work? Anything that is just aerobic in nature – anything that’s long slow distance type of work really doesn’t help. The sport is too fast and too intense.

CB: What are key factors for injury prevention in MMA fighters?

MR:
Make sure the athletes are not overtraining. These guys are still in the mindset of more is better. I have had to bring my athletes down from 3 different training sessions per day where they had nothing they were specifically working on to sometimes one a day and making sure they were getting the right rest and recovery.

Make sure that your athletes plan their workouts and know what they are trying to achieve each session. Just rolling or sparring is not enough. Instead of getting better, you just get beat up. By recording all past workouts and really knowing your fighters you will be able to monitor this and shut them down if you have to. The beating they take is unreal, you need to know when you are doing too much.

The simplest way you will know your fighters are overtraining is that they will tell you. If they complain of soreness, being banged up from previous sparring, being tired, or not up for the training, you need to back off. We also look at heart rate pre session with our guys and record everything.


AC:
Again the ability to decelerate a limb is paramount so training eccentrically, and training the antagonists is a key factor. FUNCTIONAL flexibility (my term – relating to range of motion WITH strength in the range) is important.


JD:
Make sure that your fighters perform strength training exercises in multiple planes of movement. They should also perform exercises at varying speeds of movement. In addition, make sure to incorporate exercises that target the following areas:

1) Rotator Cuff {especially the Teres Minor & Infraspinatus musculature)
2) Neck
3) Lower Back


CB: Describe the abdominal/core training component of MMA programs. Do fighters need to do thousands of repetitions?

AC:
We do as much core work on the feet as possible (barbell contact twists, cable work, chops and lifts, med ball rotations and throws) before going to the floor. Recently I’ve been experimenting with some of the kettlebell lifts with my fighters and have had excellent results.

I do use the Swiss ball quite a bit for core work (jackknifes and pikes in addition to crunches and twists) and we almost always use external loading, rarely exceeding ten reps per set. If you can do thousands of reps, the exercise is too easy for you. In fact if you can do more than 20 reps I’d suggest the exercise is too easy. We normally finish with prone vacuums and side planks for time.


JD:
I like the following exercises for increasing the strength and power of the Posterior Chain:

1. Reverse Hyperextensions
2. Glute-Ham Raises
3. Caber Toss with a Medicine Ball
4. Kettlebell Swings (Single Arm and Double Arm)
5. Good Mornings
6. Westside Style Cable Pull Through

I like the following exercises for increasing the strength and power of the Abdominals:

1) Swiss Ball Crunches with Medicine Ball Toss
2) Cable Wood Chops
3) Reverse Cable Wood Chops
4) Russian Twists
5) Turkish Get Ups with a Kettlebell
6) Kettlebell Windmills
7) Super Yoke
8) Asymmetrical Loaded Farmer’s Walk

I feel that for the most part, individuals should utilize fewer repetitions (less than 20 reps), higher intensities and with moderate to explosive tempos. In addition, I would also incorporate some muscular endurance work for the core--especially some isometric work. In particular, I would vary the length of the isometric holds by utilizing15, 30, 45 and 60 sec. holds at varying joint angles. As for training the muscular endurance capabilities of the core, I would employ many of the above exercises, but I would just increase the number of repetitions performed in a set.


MR:
The Core is of course, a key in my training. Not just for fighting, but any athletic endeavor. We do a ton of med ball work, reverse hypers, deadlifts, partner body weight lifts, and a lot of stability work. Most people just work tons of reps of only certain exercises, but not enough movements. We work in all planes of movement to make sure that we are developing complete fighters. The core training section in my book covers my favorite 15 core exercises for fighters. I challenge everyone to try the Alligator and the Hoover.

In jiu jitsu the hip movement is key. The core controls that movement on the ground. In addition to that, I do believe that endurance for the abs for MMA is important. If you have ever seen one fighter on his back taking kicks from a standing fighter, you know what I mean. Try to keep that isometric crunch up for a few minutes while a guy like Fedor is trying to smash your teeth out. It will get you hitting some extra ab work.


CB: What is the role of a dynamic warm-up in fighter preparation? Any exercises you insist fighters use before a workout?

JD:
I feel that a dynamic warm up is extremely vital to any athlete’s pre-training &/or pre-competition process; but, I think it is especially important for combat athletes. I like having them perform exercises like agility ladder drills, the dot drill sequence, body weight squats, walking lunges with a torso twist, etc.

In addition to a brief dynamic warm up, I will use a specific warm up prior to training. The specific warm up consists of the first two exercises such as Box Squats and Flat Barbell Bench Press with Chains. I will have the athlete perform several sets of each exercise before beginning the actual work sets. For instance, I will have them perform two reps of Box Squats with a load that is about 60% of their 1 RM followed by a 20-30 second rest. Then, they will perform 2 repetitions of Flat Barbell Bench Press with a load that is about 60% of their 1 RM followed by a 20-30 second rest. They will repeat this process two or three more times, but they will progressively increase the weight until their last warm up set is very close to their first working set.

If it pre-competition, then they will perform several drills such as Shadow Boxing, Focus Mitt work and some take down drills as a specific warm up for the fight.


MR:
My new book’s first chapter has 20 pages on the dynamic warm-up. There is another chapter strictly dedicated to pre fight warm-up as well. This is because I consider it to be the cornerstone of my program. Many of the fighters I work with like Ricardo Almeida and Rodrigo Gracie have adapted it into their academies and are experiencing tremendous success.

We go through the 37 exercises listed 3-4 times per week. Not only is it great for stability, strength, balance, coordination and flexibility, but anaerobic endurance as well. Just try blasting through all 37 exercises for 12 reps in 16 minutes like we do at 7am. It will wake you up.


AC:
I don’t insist upon anything. But I educate my athletes well so they start to understand why we are doing certain things. Everything we do is developmental – we start warm-ups with slower movements and ranges of motion and work through until we are moving through maximum range at maximum speed. The whole point is to prepare for the session and the demands it is going to place on the body. I always like the hips and lower back to be well warmed up, but everything else will vary according to the planned workout.


CB: What’s the biggest myth in MMA fighter preparation?

MR:
I think the biggest myth is that many fighters out there think they can get ready in a few weeks for a fight. MMA is a rough gig. These guys may not know they are fighting or who they are fighting until a few weeks before the event. I have watched so many fighters come into fights out of shape as a result and lost.

Just like cramming for a test in school, cramming for a fight is not going to give you the best results. If you want to fight big time, you need to be training all year. If not, you should look for another way to punish yourself.


AC:
Probably the early morning long distance run and the weights will slow you down stuff that’s typical with ALL sports.

There’s also a misconception that because of the ‘street’ or ‘thug’ image that MMA has, that these fighters are not intelligent conditioned athletes. If most sport coaches had their athletes develop the conditioning levels of fighters – they’d be extremely happy.

I’d add also that because the martial arts are thousands of years old, people think that your training program should be too. Science has shown us better ways to train.


JD:
There are many myths in preparing a fighter for a mixed martial arts competition.

The first one that sticks out in my mind is that some people still believe that lifting weights will make you less flexible. The reality is that resistance training through the entire range of motion will actually increase an individual’s strength and stability throughout the entire range of motion.

On a side note: Increasing flexibility without a corresponding increase in the individual’s strength in the newly acquired ROM will actually promote joint instability and thereby increase the likelihood of injury.


CB: Let’s not forget about female athletes. What special considerations do you take into account when training females for MMA?

AC:
Females tend to have weaker posterior chains and in particular upper backs, and exhibit excessive thoracic curves and forward head posture (having breasts will offset COG and wearing high heels). So our corrective stage programs address this. They also tend to have short, tight hip flexors.

However, the training to correct these imbalances is the same as if they were male, and the other training remains the same. We also try to get a little more aggression out of females. Society has made this a negative trait for a woman but we try to encourage it.


JD:
Females tend to be more flexible than men, which often creates more instability around their joints. Also, because females have a greater “Q angle”, they tend to have a greater incidence of improper force distribution through their lower kinetic chain. Therefore, it is important to increase the strength and stability around their hip, knee and ankle joints.

Women tend to be weaker in their upper extremity due to a lack of loading which is usually the result of a fear of looking to muscular. As a result, they tend to have weak upper and lower backs as well, which once again can lead to lead to a greater incidence of injury due to improper force distribution through the Spine.


MR:
I just trained Celita Schutz for the last Olympics in judo, and I have to say that she changed the way that I thought about female combat athletes. Although she is a 3 time Olympian and one of the best judokas in the world, she proved that women can be incredibly strong, fast, technical and mentally tough with the proper training. I have also worked with jiu jitsu women that also used their flexibility to their advantage.

In terms of training, I often have to start more on the base because unlike many of their male counterparts, the females are not usually strength training. Common areas of weakness are the hips and low back. Once we have added this component though, I have been able to work a similar training regime with the girls. (Just less weight on certain activities, of course). Interestingly, Celita trained with many of the high level guys and topped them in a number of activities.


CB: Any final comments?

JD:
I just want to say thank you for allowing me the opportunity to be involved in this Q & A. It looks like I am going to be opening Peak Performance LA within the next 6 to 12 months so I’ll let you know. Also, my web site is www.peakperformancenyc.com.


MR:
Thanks for having me in for this interview. It was my pleasure to share some of the lessons my team and I have learned over the last few years. I hope the information helped some people out there to take their game to the next level. Please check out my new book at elitefts.com and let me know what you think.


AC:
Alwyn Cosgrove is the author of “Secrets of Martial Arts Conditioning” available from: www.alwyncosgrove.com.

[Donut62]

Brilliant interview. Great post.

[Evil Eye Gouger]

That's an excellent interview, I remember reading it on T-Nation.

Great to have it here.

BTW, could you expand on "neuromuscular activation"? Doesn't it simply mean activating the muscle, in other words, using it?

[Sonny]

I'm putting this in the conditioning sticky. Thanks Mick.

[Monger]

Originally Posted by Madmick

1) Dynamic Warm Up
2) Activation Drills
3) Strength Training
4) Energy System Training
5) Regeneration
6) Nutritional Guidance & Supplementation

This may be a dumb question but what exactly is he classifying as "Activation Drills"? That sounds more like part of a Dynamic Warm-Up to me.

[MikeMartial]

Great posts, Mick! Thanks

[SmashiusClay]

I seem to remember Thibadeau writing something very similar as a general workout plan for athletes to fit into a busy skill training schedule. I'll try and find it later.

[oyaji poi]

The Chris Thib Article was Bookmarked on my computer