MMA has rose in popularity over the past few years, and after watching WARRIOR I was inspired to write an article which talks about weight training and its relevance to mixed martial arts. Mixed martial arts is not just about punching and kicking bags all day and going over submission drills, you need real and functional strength! Weight training can enhance your performance and allows you to develop a strong, agile body perfectly built for fighting.
The first thing we need to look at is compound movements. These work together to help develop functional strength and power which allows you to be able to hit harder, improve your grappling and burst out of submissions with sheer strength.
List of Compound Essentials
Squats: Squats are a great exercise, arguably one of the most important in any physical activity. Developing a strong squat will lead to powerful glutes and solid legs. This provides you with an unyielding stance, and since most of the power comes from your legs and hips, your opponents will notice a difference.
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| Shogun never forgets his squats! |
Deadlifts: The deadlift is a great exercise which strengthens the lower back, core and legs. It lends itself to developing a strong waist as well as working your grip strength. With the deadlift you will be able to lift opponants from the mat easier to slam them down with terrifying force, and hold them in submissions until they tap.
Clean and Press: This is one of my favourite exercises; it works your entire body as you lift the weight from the floor and push it over your head. This develops scary amounts of power and explosive upper body strength
Dips: Dips are my favourite exercise for triceps, using a basic parallel bar you can add weight via a weight belt to tax your muscles even more. Don’t forget that triceps are one of the muscles used to extend your arm in a punch!
Chin-ups: Chins are one of the best exercises for developing a powerful back. Once you can do 10, increase the weight by holding a DB between your legs or using a weighted belt. Heavy chin-ups also work the biceps and can lead to larger arm muscles compared to using curls alone.
Compound exercises tax the stabilizer muscles, this adds together to increase your core strength which would not be achieved through isolation exercises alone. Here are a few more honourable mentions which you should have in your routine to dominate the octagon.
Bench Press: A classic exercise that helps to shield your rib cage and develops punching power. Personally I find greater power when I train unilaterally with dumbbells.
Shoulder push press: Grab a dumbbell and push it over your head with a bit of leg drive, this works similiarly to the clean and press but isolates the shoulders more. If you are going heavy on the clean and press then you don’t need to focus too much on increasing your shoulder press.
Barbell Curls: Curls for the girls, but biceps have their place in MMA, they are essential for grappling as the biceps are a source of pulling power in your arms.
Bent over DB row: These are great for developing a powerful back and read deltoids, they work well with chin-ups and are one of the few exercises which you can use “cheating form” to still yield an increase in power.
Mixed martial arts required your whole body to be strong and in great condition. Leaving any part of your body under developed can hinder your performance! As well as strength you also need to focus on flexibility and strengthening your tendons to reduce the risk of injury, improve your grapple and to be able to defend yourself against submission techniques which attack the joints.
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