Circuit training is a great form of exercise to acquaint yourself with if you plan to compete in mixed martial arts. It allows you to work on strength and cardio at the same time. In addition to that, circuit training has the potential to burn an amazing amount of calories, so if you are looking to drop some weight these are the exercises for you.

What is Circuit training?

Circuit training is a form of conditioning in which you string together a number of exercises completing one after another without rest or with minimal rest. The exercises that you string together form what is called the circuit.

How to do it.

There is a huge amount of room for creativity when it comes to creating a circuit. You can vary the overall length of time, the time spent on each exercise, the time in between exercises, what exercises you use, how much weight you use (if you are using weights), etc.

Let’s take a look at some of the things to consider when creating a circuit training program to improve performance in MMA.

• Time length - This one is pretty easy. You will usually want to try to mimic the length of time you will spend fighting and resting during a mma fight. For example, if you have a 3 round fight with each round lasting 5 minutes with 1 minute rest in between, then you would want to create a circuit that uses those times. Of course there are instances that you may not want to do it exactly that way. For instance you may want to increase the intensity of the workout beyond what you will experience in the fight e.g. less rest and longer periods of activity.
• Exercises - Well, I’m a big fan of exercises that use large muscle groups, since that is usually what you use in a fight. Think pull ups, push ups, bent over rows, and squats. Not exercises that isolate one part of the body like one arm bicep curls, calf extensions and tricep extensions. Also try to make the exercises as sport specific as you can. For instance, rather than doing squats, grab a partner and practice shooting in for a double leg, then pick him all the way off the ground, then repeat. You can replace wind sprints with an intense round of kicking the thai pads. That being said, you can pretty much use any exercise you want in your circuit providing it is safe and will push you in the direction of your goal.
• How often? - This is not an easy question to answer because it will vary from person to person. But it’s definitely an important one to ask so that you can prevent over or under training. Here are some questions you can ask yourself to get a better idea of how often you should be trying to fit this into your routine.
  • Am I gearing up for a fight or just trying to maintain the fitness level I already have?
  • How intense is the other training I am currently doing?
  • Have I recently had a fight and need to recover?
  • How intense is the circuit I created?

  The answers to those questions will hopefully give you an idea of how often to implement circuit training into you conditioning program. Other than that, just make sure you listen to your coach, he is there to monitor your training and make sure you neither over nor under train.

No good article on circuit training would be complete without a demonstration. So I will turn it over to Randy “The Natural” Couture to give us a demo of a circuit.

Randy “The Natural” Couture Circuit Training

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Conclusion

In mixed martial arts we usually see the more conditioned athlete with his or her hand raised at the end of the fight. Rarely do we see it the other way around. This being the case, if we want to be in the winners spot it’s our job to show up in the best shape we can. Circuit training gives us a great opportunity to improve both strength and cardio so that we can take not one, but two steps closer to being the more conditioned of the two athletes that step into the ring.

If not, then you may want to consider making it one. Lets take a look at why MMA conditioning is so important.

Imagine yourself entering into a Mixed Martial Arts competition. You have been training in BJJ, Boxing, Muay Thai and Wrestling for years. You know every technique in the book. Your striking is crisp, your takedowns are unstoppable, and you have a scary ground game.

You step into the cage knowing that you have the skill to beat this guy. Then a question creeps in “Should I have spent more time on MMA conditioning?” Before you can think of an answer you hear the sound of the horn.The fight has begun. Right off the bat you land a few sharp jabs and then take your opponent down with such a fast single leg that he does not even have a chance to defend it. From the ground you work your magic. You are in control and feel like victory will be yours.

Things start to change when you notice that with each scramble you seem a little slower, a little less in control. You are starting to feel short of breath and soon enough the tables are turned on you. The other man gets up to his feet and the referee tells you to stand. You are now noticeably gassed and the guy you are fighting sees it.

He attacks aggressively and you are stuck defending because you don’t have the energy to mount an offence. Your arms feel heavy and are starting to drop bit by bit as the moments pass. He throws a left hook and your hand is down.

You wake up back stage with an answer to your question and a splitting headache.

O.K. I know we all like stories with happy endings, but that one really drives home the point. If you run out of gas in a fight, it does not matter how skillful in MMA you are, you are going to have a bad day.

How do we prevent that from happening? Through a well-rounded MMA conditioning program.

The program must develop…

• Aerobic capacity
• Anerobic capacity
• Strength
• Functional Strength
• Power
• Muscular Endurance

The main ways to develop these attributes is through…

• Running
• Sprinting
• Weight Lifting
• Functional Exercises
• Plyometrics

Where to start? The best place is where you are the weakest.

Do I gas out easily? Am I not exceptionally strong? These are the kind of questions to ask yourself so that you know where you should be spending the most time.

Remember that you are only as strong as your weakest link.

Not to say that you should neglect your strong areas. You should continue to work on them also.

So with a little thought you should be able to come up with a MMA conditioning program that will eliminate your weaknesses and bolster your strengths.

Remember, if you are in better shape than your opponent, even if he has an edge in technique and skill, the odds are greatly stacked in your favor. Because once he runs out of gas, his amazing technique will simply disappear.

Further Reading

If you would like to dive into this subject in depth, these two articles by Charles Staley on intelligent strength training and powerlifting are perfect.

A good diet will give you the fuel you need for your mma conditioning program, learn about it here.