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Other/Mixed Combat Sport Strong

Other strength modalities (e.g., Clubs), mixed strength modalities (e.g., combined kettlebell and barbell), other goals (flexibility)

LoneRider

Level 6 Valued Member
Inspired by @offwidth and his thread Mountain Strong, and via discussion with @BJJ Shawn I elected to start a strength and conditioning thread for those of us involved in combat sports of all kinds. Part of me wondered why something like this didn't exist before given Hardstyle KB methods were meant for the training hard living sorts from the outset.

Below is a Juggernaut Training Systems video for BJJ athletes. It's more barbell oriented (I'm a fan of the KBSF program myself) but it is a neat look at the strength component of BJJ:



Welcome aboard all MMA types, Jiujiteiro, Nak Muay, Sambists, Karatekas and martial artists of all stripes...
 
TBH I think exercise selection is one of the least important part of S&C for combat sports. The main criteria:

1) Start with exercises that are time-tested (regardless of equipment used)
2) Eliminate ones that aren't a good fit for the individual based on injury history, their technical proficiency at it, or other limitations
3) Use any reasonable program / overload scheme while also factoring in demands of their sport

For example I just finished an 7-week online coaching program where all but one of the participants were high-level BJJ, judo, and/or wrestling, and all made great progress and loved the results. There were absolutely zero "sport specific" exercises ... we just focused on bench press, deadlift, TGU, swings, chin ups, and the Rogue echo bike (replaced with a different cardio machine if that wasn't available).
 
Great idea fora thread @LoneRider .
I've been back on A+A recently and feel great in sparring.
I'm still making progess with the 44 kg on KB-SF swing protocol but am about to switch to KB-SF LCCJ protocol for a bit having just finished a Victorious I cycle and pressing the 36 kg for first time.
Two days of Knock 'Em Dead and two days of Plan A. Hope it's not too much. KED is the main dish so will adjust LCCJ around it.
Already missing the 44 kg swings... :)
 
The ladder scheme in Right of Passage is the single best program I've ever used for building strength and mass; Aleks Salkin's 9 Minute Challenge is the single best program I've ever used for BJJ and Judo.

At one time I was planning to spend the future alternating blocks of each.

HOWEVER, I'm also recently coming to the conclusion that getting strong with light weights might be the most beneficial thing for me. This article by Marty Gallagher made me feel a lot better about the direction I was taking my training:

Making Light Barbells and Dumbbells Heavy | RAW with Marty Gallagher
 
At one time we had a small database of SF members that among other things listed what ‘martial arts’ they participated in. Maybe not all of these would be considered Combat Sports, and certainly the physical and training requirements differ greatly, but there was quite a diverse list:

Aikido
Boxing
BJJ
Escrima
Ju-Jitsu
Judo
Jeet Kune Do
Krav Maga
Kendo
Fencing
HEMA
Iaido
Karate (various ryu)
Kickboxing
Kenjutsu (various ryu)
Muay Thai
Taekwondo
Hapkido
Wing Chung
Wrestling
Tai-Chi
 
Has anyone found a good knee brace for martial arts? Not sleeves, but something with a little more support. My knee is acting up bad at the moment and my current braces all fail. I have several, but they generally have two problems:

1. They can’t have any hard plastic or metal in order to be used in competition. Finding a heavy duty brace that doesn’t have any has been hard to find.

2. There’s a lot of material at the back of the knee, so when I bend my knee it all bunches up and is really uncomfortable.

What have any of you found that you like?
 
offwidth said:
At one time we had a small database of SF members that among other things listed what ‘martial arts’ they participated in. Maybe not all of these would be considered Combat Sports, and certainly the physical and training requirements differ greatly, but there was quite a diverse list:

Aikido
Boxing
BJJ
Escrima
Ju-Jitsu
Judo
Jeet Kune Do
Krav Maga
Kendo
Fencing
HEMA
Iaido
Karate (various ryu)
Kickboxing
Kenjutsu (various ryu)
Muay Thai
Taekwondo
Hapkido
Wing Chung
Wrestling
Tai-Chi
Click to expand...
Good Lord, that was years ago. Like 6 years ago! BJJ and Judo still, and still not very good.
 
BJJ Shawn said:
Has anyone found a good knee brace for martial arts? Not sleeves, but something with a little more support. My knee is acting up bad at the moment and my current braces all fail. I have several, but they generally have two problems:

1. They can’t have any hard plastic or metal in order to be used in competition. Finding a heavy duty brace that doesn’t have any has been hard to find.

2. There’s a lot of material at the back of the knee, so when I bend my knee it all bunches up and is really uncomfortable.

What have any of you found that you like?
Click to expand...
For BJJ I use the ace with metal hinges. I wear them under my rash guard clothing so as not to nick anyone. They work well for me and I have needed both of mine replaced for years,
 
Tony Gracia said:
TBH I think exercise selection is one of the least important part of S&C for combat sports. The main criteria:

1) Start with exercises that are time-tested (regardless of equipment used)
2) Eliminate ones that aren't a good fit for the individual based on injury history, their technical proficiency at it, or other limitations
3) Use any reasonable program / overload scheme while also factoring in demands of their sport

For example I just finished an 7-week online coaching program where all but one of the participants were high-level BJJ, judo, and/or wrestling, and all made great progress and loved the results. There were absolutely zero "sport specific" exercises ... we just focused on bench press, deadlift, TGU, swings, chin ups, and the Rogue echo bike (replaced with a different cardio machine if that wasn't available).
Click to expand...
Without question those are three matters to consider. I'll always fall back on the Getup, Swing, and Goblet Squat in my own case, and the Bench, Squat (Front or Back), and Deadlift.

Though I've also been considering the Zercher Squat as a bit more 'SPP 1' for a Nak Muay, Jiujiteiro, Sambist or Judoka...Thoughts?
 
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BJJ Shawn said:
Has anyone found a good knee brace for martial arts? Not sleeves, but something with a little more support. My knee is acting up bad at the moment and my current braces all fail. I have several, but they generally have two problems:

1. They can’t have any hard plastic or metal in order to be used in competition. Finding a heavy duty brace that doesn’t have any has been hard to find.

2. There’s a lot of material at the back of the knee, so when I bend my knee it all bunches up and is really uncomfortable.

What have any of you found that you like?
Click to expand...
These are the best - they are quite expensive, but you get what you pay for. If you spend any time on YouTube you'll see many well known BJJ instructors wearing them (you'll have to watch no gi videos obviously). Some of them even have review videos of these on YouTube.

BAUERFEIND KNEE BRACES

I believe I have the "GenuTrain" but they have many models.

Update: HERE is a video on YouTube of Chewy reviewing that brace.
 
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LoneRider said:
Without question those are three matters to consider. I'll always fall back on the Getup, Swing, and Goblet Squat in my own case, and the Bench, Squat (Front or Back), and Deadlift.

Though I've also been considering the Zercher Squat as a bit more 'SPP 1' for a Nak Muay, Jiujiteiro, Sambist or Judoka...Thoughts?
Click to expand...

For the last six months I've been doing sandbag training (the strongman kind, with no handles), lifting it from the floor to my shoulders. I've been experimenting with how I lift it off the floor and my experiments make me think barbell Zerchers would probable be incredible for suplexing people right to the centre of the Earth.
 
LoneRider said:
Without question those are three matters to consider. I'll always fall back on the Getup, Swing, and Goblet Squat in my own case, and the Bench, Squat (Front or Back), and Deadlift.

Though I've also been considering the Zercher Squat as a bit more 'SPP 1' for a Nak Muay, Jiujiteiro, Sambist or Judoka...Thoughts?
Click to expand...
That is pretty much what I had alluded to earlier ... ZS are great, however when you grapple with someone who is strong there is absolutely no way you'll be able to tell if they got strong from back squats, front squats, Zerchers, or a mix of all of the above. I also doubt that YOU will "feel" stronger by switching from one to the other, assuming similar technical proficiency in both and ability to "push hard" in both.

I personally tend to do ZS for a few months, then switch to BS for a few months, and rotate back and forth between them. But that is just purely my personal preference and not necessarily advice for others.
 
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Tony Gracia said:
These are the best - they are quite expensive, but you get what you pay for. If you spend any time on YouTube you'll see many well known BJJ instructors wearing them (you'll have to watch no gi videos obviously). Some of them even have review videos of these on YouTube.

BAUERFEIND KNEE BRACES

I believe I have the "GenuTrain" but they have many models.

Update: HERE is a video on YouTube of Chewy reviewing that brace.
Click to expand...
Perfect, that's exactly what I was looking for, thank you!
 
Tony Gracia said:
That is pretty much what I had alluded to earlier ... ZS are great, however when you grapple with someone who is strong there is absolutely no way you'll be able to tell if they got strong from back squats, front squats, Zerchers, or a mix of all of the above. I also doubt that YOU will "feel" stronger by switching from one to the other, assuming similar technical proficiency in both and ability to "push hard" in both.

I personally tend to do ZS for a few months, then switch to BS for a few months, and rotate back and forth between them. But that is just purely my personal preference and not necessarily advice for others.
Click to expand...
Most of my squatting is front and back squats. I will add Zercher to the mix my next time I go back to the barbell.
 
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I reposted this article below in Mountain Strong, written by a former US Army Ranger, Iassen Donov, caught my attention in the context of a combat sports type. I've used two of the programs (Military Athlete and Mountain Athlete) in the past and their progenitor, Rob Shaul, remains one of my influences in strength and conditioning thinking:

sofrep.com

Physical Training in a Tier 1 unit

Discover how functional fitness, encompassing regimes like CrossFit, Gym Jones, Military Athlete, and Mountain Athlete, have revolutionized physical training in elite military units, emphasizing endurance, strength, and specific objectives.
sofrep.com sofrep.com

The part that jumped out at me was this one:

One of the lesser utilized fitness regimes at the Tier 1 level, but still done enough to warrant a mention! Brought to you by the same folks who bring you Military Athlete (specifically Rob Shaul), Mountain Athlete, as the name implies, is designed to create a faster and stronger mountaineer. For a unit at war in the unforgiving mountains of Afghanistan, this is a great program. Much of Mountain Athlete revolves around finger and hand strength, pulling strength, and endurance/stamina. (Emphasis Mine)
Click to expand...

That last sentence in the quote smacked of the requirements for a gi-based grappler in particular. In the context of endurance/stamina I break it into two different camps: Stamina is going the distance during the round, and endurance is multiple rounds in the free rolling part of class.

Shaul's initial vision statement in a 2008 article in the Alpinist Magazine (here) revolved around the training of pound for pound strong athletes and that provoked me to think of fighters as yet another weight constrained athlete with hybrid requirements.
 
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