MMA Under Attack!

I was going to write on another completely
different topic today, but I had a great
discussion with a colleague today. It was
a topic that gets me going, sport-specific
training!

My friend had sent me a link to the training
of a famous UFC fighter. This fighter was doing
a lot of "sport-specific" movements by punching
with heavy hands, bands, and just hitting a
bag over and over again until he was exhausted.
There were some other interesting "sport-specific"
movements that he was performing in a giant
circuit nonstop, you could tell he was exhausted!

I believe MMA is going to go through the same
challenges football, baseball, and basketball
have struggled with for years. These sports
have been dealing with coaches that thought
they were doing "sport-specific" training because
they were replicating movements in the gym.
What a mistake that is!!!

A few years ago I got to hear Dr. Michael Yessis
speak at a conference. For those that don't know,
Dr. Yessis is one of the most well known biomechanist
in this country and has spent considerable time
in the former Soviet Union.

Dr. Yessis spoke at length how in the US sport-specific
training is sorely misunderstood. The Russians
were masters at true sport-specific training. Here
were a few points he brought up that really
reinforce what a disservice many coaches are doing
for their athletes.

1. Athletes need to go through a long period of
general training before they perform specific
exercises for their sport.

2. Coaches need to be aware of muscle actions
occurring, are they eccentric, isometric, concentric,
stretch-shortening cycle, etc. Sporting movement
is far more complicated than just moving through
the motions.

3. Coaches need to determine at what angles these
actions occur as to carefully replicate the sporting
movement. Failure to adhere to this concept can
ruin performance because it creates faulty movement
patterns in the athlete.

Hmmm, makes sense when you think about it. In our
modern age I would say very few athletes need to
get too specific, practicing their sport is often
good enough.

In addition, MMA athletes have the challenge of
not using their strength and conditioning sessions
as fatigue training sessions. Many of these athletes
are beaten up, injured, and trying to recover from
their mat work. The last thing they need to do is
be destroyed in the gym. One needs to pay very close
attention to the recovery and performance of the
athlete both during their sports training and gym
training.

Being a good coach is more than making someone
tired. The same can be said for a trainer working
with people that want to become more fit. I want
to demand more out of our profession and the work
we are doing whether it is with athletes, fitness
enthusiasts, or ourselves!