I thought we should get a thread started that would be geared towards anyone from the beginner to the advanced MMA enthusiast concerning all forms of conditioning and training. Also a basic FAQ should be included concerning basic questions concerning conditioning. If you want to form one go for it. I will start writing as I have time.

orite.. my first question is.. How do i increase strenth without increasing muscle mass?? Ive been a bodybuilding fan for years.. and my main goal was increase muscle mass and strenth didnt matter to me.. so if anyone can help out its appriciated..

handstand push-ups, pistols (one legged squats), and various types of pull-ups are a great start. you get the strenght and endurance strenght in a short time, fix your diet so you stay at around maintenance and you should be good.

Shin conditioning- Kick a Thai bag. That's it. If you can, kick it 500 times a day with each leg. Many people like to start of kicking light and end kicking at full force. Maybe use pads to deaden the nerves, but do NOT smack yourself in the shins with sticks or other hard objects. It will cause damage to your tibia (shin bone). Everyone has heard the stories of people kicking trees to condition their shins. They kicked banana trees which are like an enormous version of a household plant when it comes to texture. They're much softer and have more give to them, unlike say an oak tree. If you think you're going to condition your shins by kicking something hard like an oaktree, which also has hard, rough bark surrounding it, you're in for a visit to the hospital.

Fists/ wrists- These are extremely important to condition. It's very easy to split your knuckles or break your wrist when throwing a punch. Make sure that when your punch lands, your wrist is not bent AT ALL. Human hands weren't designed to be weapons. If they were, we'd have claws. Elbows and knees are much better to strike with as they have fewer nerves, few bones and they're very hard and durable. However, if you're going to fight, chances are you're going to punch, so the risk is inevitable.

Two very easy things to do are push ups on your knuckles and push ups on your fingertips. That will strengthen the knuckles and wrists to a degree. Nothing can condition your hands to the point that they're unbreakable, but every little bit helps. It also helps to punch a heavy bag bare knuckled. When doing this, be very careful. A heavy bag is soft and has give to it, but it's still very easy to break your wrist if you throw a punch the wrong way. Don't go all out or you can easily damage your wrists. Try to go light and build up power progressively. This should help get you adjusted to the impact your hands will see in a real fighting situation.

Gloves are an interesting item. They protect our hands (not to mention our opponents) and as a result, we often neglect hand and wrist conditioning. However, even if we were to condition ourselves as much as physically possible, it would still be possible to injure our wrists or hands when delivering a blow. Don't believe me? Watch the first few UFC's. Many fighters had to drop out of the tournament due to hand or wrist injuries.

When I have more time, I'll post information or articles on other forms of conditioning.

It is almost wrestling season, how can i drastically improve my cardio and endurance for wrestling……i need the best way to allow me to go all three rounds without being exausted by the end of it

The best training for that is to get 3 wrestlers and wrestle the first one for 5 minutes, then rest about 90 seconds, then wrestle the next guy for 5, rest 90 seconds, then the last guy and rest 90 seconds, then go back and wrestle the first guy. They will be fresh, but you will be completely exhausted. It will build endurance and technique at the same time. We do it a lot in Bjj.

for muscular endurance do full body circuit training with weights. heres a good one to follow.

squats - 12 reps (the weight for all these excercises should be heavy enough that the last rep is difficult, but not impossible)
bench - 12 reps
lat pulldown - 12 reps
military press - 12 reps
shrugs - 12 reps
leg extensions - 12 reps
bicep curls - 12 reps
leg curls - 12 reps
tricep pushdowns - 12 reps

Do these excercises back to back with less than 30 seconds rest between each. When you do it all the way through it is 1 circuit. Then rest for two minutes, then do the whole thing again. start out with about 3, then each week add 1 circuit. the more you can do the better. aim for around 6-8. Good luck!

You will always gain muscle mass while strength training. It just isnt gonna be bodybuilding type of mass or nearly as much.

it won't be a problem then

Can someone post/link me to a few articles to help me start training and dieting?

muscle mass is added when your muscle cells grow larger or more cells are grown.

the other way to increase strength is by utilizing your nervous system to recruit more muscle cells for one motion. u train this way by doing 1-2 rep maxes if i remember correctly. powerlifters use this method.

http://www.sandowplus.co.uk/Competit...s/lesson01.htm

It's Farmer Burns catch wrestling course.

Why is every one neglecting the beauty of strength I can beat alot of guys more technical than me just because I over power them and my endurance is outstanding, sometimes that is all u need

185lbs bench 325 shoulder press 235 squat 350 curl 150

You just answered your own question, your endurance is outstanding. Strength AND stamina is lethal in wrestling and MA. All the strength in the world wont help you against someone just as strong or more adapt at using leverage than you if you've got no gas in the tank.

Ooh… I never realized this section was here! Woohoo!

I just moved to Missouri (north Kansas City Area) and have always loved the MMA fights. Now that I have the time & $$, I'd love to participate in entry level MMA training.

Does anyone know of a reputable place to train near KC?

Thanks!

http://onthemat.com/school_database....y&state=KANSAS

Thanks for the link. Looks like I have 2 to choose from.

How often can you do fist pushups, and how many should you do at a time? 3 times a week? Everyday?

When you are grappling someone and you get tired, it is 100% technique. As my coach says "when you are tired is when it counts, if your technique is strong enough you should not be giving up position even when you are tired." But than again what does he know he only trained under this guy called "Royce Gracie" for a decade! =-) I am 220 and technique>endurance>willpower>strength.

something to ALWAYS be aware of in very close contact sports,
for the protection of your club, and fellow fighters.

>>> http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showpo...21&postcount=1

Herpes Gladiatorum (AKA: Mat or Wrestlers [body]herpes)

Deadlifts help ALOT in bjj. They work your hamstrings ( Stifflegged ones) so your guard is a lot tighter and they strengthen your lower back like no other so that you can keep your posture when defending. Not to mention, deadlifts use more muscles than anyother exercise and is probably the single most beneficial exercise ever. DO THEM!

hey man thanks for the info

what about squats though?

I am going to start training some BJJ/Muay Thai in a few weeks and want to know how you guys organize your week. I lift 3x a week and don't want to change that so how does something like this look…

Sunday- Weights (Max effort upper body)
Monday - BJJ Class
Tues.- Weights (ME Lower)
Wed. - BJJ
Thrus.- Weights (Dynamic/Rep Upper Body)
Friday - Muay Thai
Saturday- Rest

It seems like my recovery may be effected by training everyday after lifting with Sat being my only day to rest… what do you guys think? How does your week look with weight training and mma training. Please help me out guys, thanks!

Strength doesn't always equate to size (especially if you're not eating for it). Check out some of the powerlifting threads geared for strength. Focus on bodyweight exercises for functional strength. Adding days of supersets and dropsets will help with muscle endurance and keep the size down. Curcuit these through out the week and change the routine in monthly cycles. Ultimate Grappling mag has had some real good articles about this very thing for the last few months (last one had Dana White on the cover).

being a already bigger guy, what MMA might be better for me? since im seeing bjj is for smaller guys so they can handle bigger guys

what makes you think bjj is just for little guys?? most mma fighters do bjj because its proven to be one of the most effective ways of defending yourself on the floor. just watch the heavy weights in the ufc there not excatly small now are they.

Mbro it just depends on how serious you want to be as a fighter. weights help but the best thing to do is train as much as you can

I'm stopping bodybuilding and training for martial arts completely.. I'll have classes every other day(2 times a day mostly) and I'll be running varsity track and lifting weights(not bodybuilding, for strength) so I have 2 questions:

1) Will I be over training a lot?
2) Will I just be losing fat and be ripped or will I lose fat and gain a lot of muscle mass along with it?

well paul that seems like a lot.. id take it easy on lifting weights (still do it!) but i wouldnt go full blown, balls to the wall.. id go take a few supps. such as creatine (for quicker recovery time, to prevent over training) and for the second question how much conditioning do you actually do in your MA class? if its a moderate amount plus track youll lower your body fat and put on some lean muscle. just watch that diet

Hai there