Training Programs

[R. Devane]

so, lets get to the meat of the issue - there have been threads about running and drills etc. so what about the whole lot. Stick up your training schedule or the one you are about to start:

I lift weights (as heavy as possible) 3 days per week. Cardio & Martial Arts 5 to 6 days per week. I prefer to train twice a day when possible. Sparring, Bagwork, Circuits, Running, (wrestling grizzly bears), stretching & abs. I hate training in front of an audience which is probably why I'm always asked about my training and I'm convinced that a lot of people think I don't train or that I must be retired from training!

The summer is on it's way and I know loads of you are re-doing your training programs so please share.

[Kiefer.c]

at the moment fitness is on the cards i'm gonna start back with weights in april but for now i'm more concentrated on circuits and sparring!i want to improve my endurance..what i'm trying to do at the moment is 2 hard circuits per week/running once a week and sparring as often as possible.i have a few goals this year i.e. achieve splits/compete/ improve tecnique etc..so i've loads to keep me busy.the team is a great buzz defintly the best training of the week..i'm so jealous of james from the kickin kids,he's just too flexable!!! ;D ;D ;D

[mikeym]

Yeah trying to push fitness at the moment as well. Hard to get a good run with the brutal weather (Hey its my excuse and Im sticking to it!) Still on a weight lifting buzz, try to get three heavy sessions in a week. Regular bag work, shadow boxing, shadow grappling, abs. Sparring between two/three times a week. Cant beat a good striking session on the focus pads. Sat team training is a top buzz. You learn so much so quickly!

[Deleted]

Its all gonna start hardcore soon. tipping away at the program the last couple of weeks but will get into serious buisness after the easter. lifting 2 times a week, fittness, lactic acid drills... jogging, sweat drills, flexibility, technical, sparring, team mai. anything extra is bonus material. EAT RIGHT, TRAIN HARD, REST PEACEFULLY, FEEL THE BURN. Training is addictive.

[philliptwyford]

Hi All,

This is my first entry so congrats and well done on the forum. Back in Jan I did the MMA Warrior course with Rob. Great experience and I would recommend to anyone interested in MMA. As part of the course I did weights twice a week and I saw my strength increase incredibly. Thanks to Rob I got great confidence to lift heavier weights. To mix things up and to increase intensity I am lifting twice a week on a full body routine in which I do 20 rep Squats and Deadlifts, 1 set to failure and then a bench press, bent row and clean and press for 3 sets of 6 to failure. For a new twist on intensity with cardio try 20 rep deadlifts and squats. I managed to get 70Kg on the squat and 75 on deadlift but man I feel it this AM. I finish off with crunches with 20Kg plate on chest and then hold the plank for a min of 2mins. Let me know what you think

[mikeym]

I think we now know not to mess with phil

[Deleted]

I think....... PAIN. Phil.. Keep that up and you'll explode with power . Mike... Good call. Stay clear of Phil, You'll need to get a sign soon..WARNING EXPLOSIVE MATERIAL.

[philliptwyford]

Hi Keith/Mike,

Explosive material, ye I like that. I think I will drop the count of Monte Fisto nick name and go with this ! Thanks for the feedback. A good book that gives a lot of info on this type of training is called Beyond Brawn by Stuart McRobert. You would get it at Amazon and well worth a read. ;D

[mikeym]

Cheers Phil, Was about to order Enter the Kettlebell by Pavel Tsatsouline so Ill take a look at that other one while im there. Speaking of which. Gives me an idea for a new thread!

[staunton100]

First ever post ha..
Question for rob, Rob u say ya lift weights 3 times per week as heavey as you can an do cardio 5 to 6 days per week (Sparring, Bagwork, Circuits, Running, (wrestling grizzly bears), stretching & abs.. would you only do this for a month or 2? or longer if so how does muscle fatigue not set in? or how do you not over train and brun out??

[R. Devane]

Hey Ciaran,
well, the secret is.........wait, I'm not telling you because you'd love to beat me up! You don't have to worry about getting burnt out because we don't see you at training enough! Welcome to the Forum.

[staunton100]

haha beat you up, come on man think we all no that will never happen haha.. an as for training man im kept busy.. just trying out a few diffrent martial art styles....

[R. Devane]

'Jack of all trades, master of none'! defo not telling you any of my secrets now!

How, is everyone's summer training going?

[staunton100]

hahaha...

[philliptwyford]

Yo Rob,

After 8 weeks on a dose of 20 rep squats and deadlifts I made some great gainsand I am now just on the 15st mark now. Just now working on a rep range of 5 reps for 3 sets for the squats, deadlift and other major compounds . Yesterday I beat my best on the deadlift which I did with you on the warrior course. Managed 3 sets of 5 with 105Kg in plates. I think you defo got me over the fear of going heavy so ta v much.

Hoping to get 110 now on Thursday. have you any tips on the bench press. Stuck on 3 sets of 3 with 70kg but everything else I feel strong. It could be my technique so should I arch back slight and pull elbows in a bit like a powerlifter?

Cheers
Philli Vanilli

[R. Devane]

Hey Phil,

I think we'll have to open both doors to get you into the studio! If you pull your elbows in while benching, you are going to engage your triceps and not your chest - point your elbows out and get someone to spot. I would try to use strict technique but if you you are getting stuck then you can arch a little to rerack the bar. When doing heavy bench, you need to be agressive. I'll give you a few face slaps before you lift to get you going if you like! Don't test the weight to see how heavy it is. Explode into the lift. and breath loads. Remember, you don't have to increase weight by 10kg's each time - there are 1.25 kg plates there and they are a great way to sneak up 2.5kg without your muscles noticing. Do that 4 times and you're up 10kg on your bench.

Go on the Phil! Horse it up!

[philliptwyford]

Nice one Rob and ta re the 1.25 plates did not realise they were there.

Cheers
Philip

[Pete]

Had chat with Rob and he suggested that i post this to forum, so here it is. Maby some1 can get some help from this to their training.
And when training this much (or is much, i dont know how u guys train ) its very important eat correctly and get enough calories
And "listen" ur body, that u wont slip to overtrained state (http://martialartsinc.proboards104.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=51)

Mon: stretching
Tue: kb
wed: kb&sparring
Thu: kb&mma
Fri: mma
sat: jogging, 45m-60mins
Sun: MMA sparring


After competion i will include weights to my training prog and leave few mma trainings or have to leave cos those are just temporary before competition.
then my prog will be about:


Mon: stretching
Tue: kb
wed: kb&sparring
Thu: kb&mma
Fri: Weights
sat: jogging/walking,45m-60mins
Sun: Weights


I have divided my weight program to 2 and 2 different workouts for day 1 and 2, and keeping everything as simple as its possible and
keeping workouts short, max 40mins+warmup

/ = first week/second week

Day 1

bench/narrow bench
Chin-ups
shoulder press/ incline bench
bicep curl/ incline curl
lateral raises/ lr lever

Day 2

squat/deathlift
bent over row/frontsquat
lying row/ seated row
abs/knee raises
seated calf raise/Standing calf raise

Starting from low and keep increasing weights as often as possible,
In big moves sets are 3-5*5-8 and for smaller muscles 3-5*8-12

[philliptwyford]

Hi there Pete,

Spot on re the diet. Lifting is only part of it, diet is also crucial. However rest is crucial also and having days off I personally belive is vital. I can only speak from personal experience but when I trained 7 days a week I was burned out in two weeks.
It does depend on what your goal is though. If you are looking for specific fitness etc rather than muscle building than this maybe fine but I would still feel that if you are training intensely as I know the MAI training is 7 days is too much.

Re the weights I am not sure what your goal is. Do you want power/strength or larger muscles? For power what works for me is 3 sets of 5 just working bench, squats, bent row, deadlift and power clean/press as a full body routine twice a week. I find that in the MMA I am working my body as a unit and by training with weights full body twice a week my power has doubled. I don't train biceps or triceps as these get worked from rows (biceps) and bench and presses(triceps).

Something that may help is something called periodisation where by you work a routine for set number of weeks and then change it to focus on another goal. For example strenght train for 4/5 weeks than muscle build for 5 weeks with reps of 8-12 and then 5 weeks of endurance where you go as high as 20 reps.

Best of luck with the training.

Cheers
Phillip

[Pete]

Hey Phil.

About that gym its for moustly strenght and bit muscles. I have found that whole body 2 times per week works best for me during the years when i was doing only weights. And imo u really need own sets for biceps and triceps. Not getting enough exertion from bench and rows and for body balance its better to do those aswell.
That is basic core what im using for gym. making changes during the run(amount of sets reps if needed).
And saw that ur post to rob about bench, Triceps training is essential if u wanna get u bench up.

And how im counting i have 2 days off there Not counting easy jogging and streching training what wears my body. easy jog and streching just helps recovering.

And just dont see any advantage in periodisation, when training on my level. Just doing all these just for fun Dont care about how many reps im getting with what kilos, just trying keep everything progressive. If starting to get stuck badly on weights. just making necessary changes to my program.

-Pentti k.