I remember when I first met one of my fighters and I asked him about how he was working out and he said, “I like to blast my chest, I’ll do bench press, then dumbbell press, then flys, then pushups.”
As I shook my head in disgust, I replied, “If your goal is to go on stage with a fake tan wearing red underwear, then you’re on the right path.”
If you train like a bodybuilder, you’ll look like a bodybuilder.
But if you’re interested in training to be athletic like a mixed-martial artist (and look the part), then pay attention to this final tip…
Tip #3 – Create a Program Based on Movements, not Muscles
If you train based on muscles, you do exercises for your chest, quads, hams, delts, lats, rhomboids, low back, calves, biceps, triceps, etc.
But if you train based on movements, you do exercises based on 7 fundamental patterns:
- Lunge
- Squat
- Bend/Deadlift
- Push
- Pull
- Twist
- Core stability
You will be using some of the same exercises, but the overall program design will be different.
Your goal is to have exercises from each of these patterns in your program.
From an efficiency point of view I recommend working out 3 days a week, alternating between 2 different workouts. For example:
Day 1
- Reverse lunge
- Dumbbell press on ball
- Woodchop
- Chinup
- Prone bridge
Day 2
- Barbell squat
- Pushups
- Stiff-leg deadlift
- 1-arm dumbbell row
- Side bridge
There you have every movement pattern in 10 exercises, split up into 2 workouts. This program I’d do for 4 weeks, then switch it up.
The thing is, you’re hitting every muscle in your body in the way that it was designed to be worked, instead of strapped into a chair straightening your legs out like a leg extension!
My upcoming MMA Ripped Fat Loss Program is based on movements, not muscles, and if you want to train for athleticism and leanness, I recommend you do the same.
The program launches in less than 10 days, and I’ve got some ultra-cool bonuses as part of the launch promo. If you’re considering picking up a copy, get it right when it launches to take advantage of the launch promo.
Stay lean,
Eric Wong, BSc, CSCS
MMA Performance Coach
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