FITNESS BY DESIGN Pete Holman

97 Lewis Lane
Physical Therapy and Personal Training Services LLC. Basalt Co. 81621
T: 970-948-2210
F: 970-927-1844
Email: pete@ripcorefx.com

Ultimate Strength and Conditioning for MMA

“Developing explosive power through Specialized Strength Training and Super-Stiffness of the core”

The MMA world has come light years since its inception in 1993 in my home town of Denver
Colorado. Skilled technicians like Royce Gracie, dismantled the field of bar room brawlers
and unidimensional fighters. The United States MMA community adjusted to the skilled prac-
titioners, like Royce Gracie, by developing unbelievable strength and conditioning. This is
what Gray Cook, a leader in strength and conditioning, refers to as the “under skilled per-
formance pyramid:” athletes who acquire optimal functional movement and performance, but
insufficient skill (2). The tide shifted back to skilled practitioners when Maurice Smith
knocked out Mark Coleman with a high round kick; the MMA community finally realized that
proficiency in Martial Arts required a precise combination of skill and conditioning.

Here lies the dilemma of all MMA competitors; how does one balance hours of skill training
in boxing, kicking, wrestling, and Jujitsu and still train the other aspects of the conditioning
paradigm: Specialized Strength and General Strength? Although this seems difficult it is not
insurmountable!

To clarify matters lets look at a simplified progression of how athletes typically have devel-
oped. First they train to acquire “general strength,” then “Specialized Strength,” and finally
“sport specific strength.” (see figure 1.) Most MMA athletes have engaged in general
strength training: squats, bench press, lat pulldowns, sit-ups, push-ups, etc. All MMA com-
petitors practice skill training: hitting and kicking the heavy bag, working hand mitts, “rolling,”
and sparring. However, very few MMA athletes engage in Specialized Strength and Func-
tional Training: They skip a step! By skipping a vital step in this progression, faulty move-
ment patterns develop which can decrease power and efficiency and lead to overuse inju-
ries: all reducing the chance of a fighter having a successful, long-lived career.

Sport Specific Strength

“skill, movement, speed, metabolic specificity”

Figure 1:
Specialized Strength/Functional Training Functional Strength
Athlete development paradigm “Olympic Lifts, RIP-COREFX Movements” and
Movement Training

General Strength Training

“Powerlifting: Squats, Bench Press, Dead Lifts”

First, lets define some important terms coming out of the Sports Medicine world. Functional
Training has to do with training the body in movement patterns and sequences seen in
sports and every day life. Functional Training is really a knowledge base which aids the
coach in designing programs that enable the athlete to accelerate and decelerate their bod-
ies in a variety of environments while maintaining their center of gravity. Functional training
often involves moving the body in multiple planes of motion, involves compound joint
movements (more than one joint,) progresses into stability limited environments (balance
training,) and is performed at speeds that approximate one’s sport. If we take a traditional
exercise, the bench press for instance, and evaluate it comparable to the above parameters,
we find it is a limited exercise and lacks functionality for MMA training. For instance, the
bench press is a unidirectional movement (occurs in one plane of motion,) involves only two
primary joints: the shoulder and the elbow, is performed in a stable environment (on a fixed
bench,) and is performed at slow speeds. Lets compare the bench press to the RIP-
COREFX rotatory squat press (see figure 2.)

Figure 2: Brendon Schaub MMA heavyweight, performing the RIP-COREFX rotational squat
press

1.) Beginning phase 2.) Intermediate phase 3.) Finishing phase

The rotatory squat press works the chest, shoulders and triceps musculature similar to the
bench press. However, because the athlete initiates the move with a squat, he uses multiple
joints: the ankle, knee, and hip in addition to the chest and shoulders. Additionally, the ath-
lete pushes, elevates and rotates incorporating a spiral movement pattern and multiple an-
gles of motion. Due to the asymmetrical loading pattern of the sport cord, (the tension
comes from one side of the body,) there is a huge balance challenge throughout all the core
stabilizers and rotators in the body. Finally, the exercise is performed at high rates of speed
which replicates “game speed” in MMA and facilitates eccentric motor control. The combina-
tion of compound joint motions, rotational instability, multiple angles of motion and velocity
training, force unbelievable amounts of motor unit recruitment. The recruitment of multiple
muscle fibers subsequently increases the metabolic demands of the exercise; forcing an in-
crease in the efficiency of the cardiovascular system. The rotatory squat press enhances
core stabilization, trains synergistic muscles to move efficiently to produce power, increases
endurance and stamina, and does it at speeds that closely resemble the dynamic sport of
MMA: This is the essence of “Functional Training.”

The previous paragraph highlights a paradigm shift in strength and conditioning. Tradition-
ally, Strength and Conditioning coaches have been entrenched in quantifying “strength,” us-
ing a set of designated lifts: bench press, squat, dead lift’s, etc. These lifts are valuable for
developing athletes in the “general strength” phase; they allow hypertrophy (increased size)
of muscle fibers, increased joint integrity and give athletes a base! However, athletes need
to take this “base,” and incorporate specific movement training which helps prepare them for
speed, power, and balance in their respective sports. As strength coaches, we have all wit-
nessed athletes that have possessed super-human strength who could not transfer that
strength to the field or who’s bodies began to break down.

Lets briefly discuss core strength, Specialized Movement Training and explosiveness as it
applies to MMA training. Core strength is the ability of the muscles of the core, including the
abdominals, low back and hips to stabilize the spine and pelvis. Stability in the spine and
pelvis accomplishes two things: 1.) it prevents “energy leaks:” which occur when all the en-
ergy generated to perform a certain task or movement does not go specifically into the task
or movement (2), and 2.) it reduces repetitive flexion/extension and rotational stress on the
spine. Simply put, a strong core improves your power and decreases your risk of injury!
Dr. Stuart McGill, a leading spine mechanics researcher out of Canada, has proposed that
we need to develop a “super-stiffness,” in the core musculature prior to movement (1.) This
super-stiffness allows us to protect the spine while developing power from the hips. The abil-
ity to hold our spine in neutral allows us to deliver power from the lower kinetic chain to the
upper kinetic chain, through the core: think about a right cross punch originating from the
right rear foot! A great exercise to practice engaging the core and locking the spine is called
a “plank:” (see figure 3.) Typically planking is done on the floor; however, with the RIP-
COREFX the athlete can take the plank and put it in an upright position with an asymmetri-
cal load, challenging the core musculature in multiple planes of motion: (figure 4.) One of the
benefits of the RIP-COREFX is it highlights any weakness found in the Kinetic Chain, espe-
cially the core. Once highlighted, the athlete can progress from: easy to complex RIP-CORE
motions, low to high tensions loads, and slow to fast movement speeds.

Figure 3: plank

Figure 4: RIP-CORE
Plank

Shane Carwin: UFC

Heavyweight contender

Specialized Strength Training refers to the four pillars of human movement: pushing, pull-
ing, change in elevation and rotation. We have all engaged in training these four pillars in
the gym; however, usually people perform one pillar at a time: i.e., bench press for pushing,
pull-up’s for pulling, squats for elevation changes, and rotational crunches for rotation. Spe-
cialized strength and movement training integrates the pillars challenging the neurological
systems of the body to produce smooth, coordinated, complex, total body movements.
 Figure 5: Knee Strike Figure 6: Horizontal Strike

Brendon Schaub: MMA Elliot Marshall: UFC

Heavyweight Fighter Light Heavyweight contender

Bruce Lee said it best: “The outstanding characteristic of the expert athlete is his ease of
movement, even during maximal effort” (3). Every movement using the RIP-COREFX ad-
dresses specific movement training; reinforcing coordinated patterns and ease of movement
under load.

This leads into the final attribute: explosiveness. One simple formula to remember is F = M
x A(squared): where F=force, M=mass and A=acceleration (4). Because most fighters are
capped at a specific weight, the only way to increase our force is through increased speed.
How do we develop speed? Developing and training the neurological system to be fluid,co-
ordinated and quick to respond is what leads to speed! Response time, coordinated firing
patterns, and training at speeds with external resistance load is the best way to develop ex-
plosiveness (see figure’s 5 and 6.) The RIP-COREFX is one of the only devices that allows
us to train at high rates of speed in multiple planes of motion without a partner.

In summary, the RIP-COREFX bridges the gap between the general strength phase of ath-
letic development and the sport specific strength phase. By addressing core strength, spe-
cific movement training and explosiveness; the RIP-COREFX is extremely efficient and ver-
satile in developing movement patterns for MMA fighters. Remember, power, evasiveness
and stamina relate to economy and fluidity of motion, not just brut strength. Injury prevention
is also extremely important to MMA practitioners. By engaging in RIP-CORE exercises and
“locking” the spine, we not only increase power and efficiency, but we reduce repetitive
stress to the spine. By performing functional exercises at high speeds with total body re-
cruitment, we get the best “bang for our buck!” As Bruce Lee said in his Tao of Jeet Kune
Do: “It’s not daily increase but daily decrease that is important: hack away the unessentials”
RIP-CORE MMA training can effectively improve your performance and conditioning in as
little as three 15 minute workouts per week! For more information goto: www.ripcorefx.com

References
1.) Low Back Disorders: Evidenced-Based Prevention
and Rehabilitation: Second Edition. Stuart McGill, Hu-
man Kinetics, copyright 2007

2.) Athletic Body in Balance: Optimal movement skills

and conditioning for performance: Gray Cook, Human
Kinetics, copyright 2003

3.) Tao of Jeet Kune Do. Bruce Lee, Black Belt Com-
munications LLC., copyright 1975
4.) Physics: Second Edition. Cutnell and Johnson. Von
Hoffman Press, Inc. copyright 1992
Pete Holman is a Physical Therapist, Certified
Strength and Conditioning Specialist and US Na-
tional TaeKwon-Do champion. Pete specializes in
biomechanics and movement training at Aspen
Sports Medicine and has trained professional
athletes from the NFL, UFC, Olympic snowboard-
ing and ski teams, and numerous X-Games ath-
letes. contact pete@ripcorefx.com