Issue 058
January 2010
By Paul McVeigh.
The perfect world
As a strength coach, I was told of a perfect utopian world where three times a week you can do all the foam rolling, activation, Olympic lifting, reactive training, strength training, stretching, rehab and prehab that you feel is part of a well thought-out and balanced program.
Then reality kicked me in the face and I quickly came to the conclusion that my perfectly designed strength and conditioning programs were often totally impractical.
The average guy who trains MMA probably has a 9–5 job, a partner, family, and other commitments competing for their time. Yet, through a monumental effort of will, they still manage to train three or four times a week. When I initially told these guys to find time during the week to add in six hours of energy-sapping strength training, I was often accused of busting their balls.
A compromise was needed. If I were to cut out everything but the most effective parts of the workout, all I really needed was an extra 30 minutes after a skill session, three times a week.
Bang for your buck exercises
With time-strapped guys (i.e. almost everyone) the key is finding which components of the program have the biggest effect on athletic performance. Unarguably, within the sport of mixed martial arts, the fastest way to get a technically proficient athlete better is to make them much stronger.
So how do we go about doing that, and which exercises and protocols will be most effective? Are bicep preacher curls as effective as a deadlift for athletic performance? A good rule to stick with is to use those exercises that bring about the most muscle involvement. From our example above, the preacher curl involves the bicep brachii, brachialis, and, at a push, brachioradialis and pronator teres. The deadlift, on the other hand, involves pretty much everything and helps to build obscene levels of useful hip and lower-back strength.
Okay, so the deadlift is in; what else are we going to use? The squat is often called the king of exercises, and who would not want the improved strength in virtually every leg muscle as well as in the lower back and abdominals? Explosive triple extension of the hips, knees and ankles is pretty useful when trying to throw someone, so let us add in a hang clean. Chin-ups are great for pulling power and shoulder health so they are in. Single leg strength is useful in MMA, particularly when defending the single leg takedown, so a Bulgarian split squat would be a useful addition. Last and by all means least let’s add the bench press.
In between sets we could add in low-intensity filler movements. Instead of simply sitting around during rest periods we could get something productive done. These filler exercises could involve some sort of prehab movements, core training, or anything else that could be useful to your athletic performance.
The program
So we have six exercises paired with filler exercises, and three sessions lasting 30 minutes each. The basic plan could look a bit like this:
MON
- Deadlift paired with ab wheel roll out
- Bench press paired with a side plank
WED
- Hang clean paired with resistance band anti-rotation
- Bulgarian split squat paired with ab wheel roll out
FRI
- Squat paired with side plank
- Chin-up paired with band anti-rotation
As for the sets and rep scheme to this program, to do eight sets of high-volume bench pressing would be counter productive to our desire to keep the workouts under 30 minutes. Three sets seem to fit the criteria well, and as our desire is to develop strength the lower rep ranges should be our target.
WEEK 1–3
Sets 3 Reps 8
WEEK 4
Deload week, same sets and reps maintained, but weight lifted is reduced
WEEK 5–7
Sets 3 Reps 5
WEEK 8
Deload week, same sets and reps maintained, but weight lifted is reduced
WEEK 9–11
Sets 3 Reps 3
WEEK 12
Deload week, same sets and reps maintained, but weight lifted is reduced
As with all generic programs several assumptions have to be made. I am assuming that you have knowledge and skill in performing these movements, and that you have no medical or movement problems that make the exercises unsafe. It does not take huge, lengthy workouts to become a better athlete. Being consistent and working hard are your keys to success.
Paul McVeigh is a sports scientist, professional fighter, Cage Warriors champion and is ranked the number one bantamweight fighter in Europe. He fights out of the Dinky Ninjas Fight Team in Glasgow, Scotland.
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