Help with program

[xazaralix]

Hey Coach Sonnon,

I was wondering if you could advise me on how to set up a program. I'm
having a little trouble putting everything together. Right now, I do WW,
BB, and a GTB kinetic chain every morning. M-F, at night, I do Coach Davies MMA workout. I do skill work (solo) T, Th, and Saturday. I was wondering, how can I fit in the drills from fisticuffs, leg fencing, and shockability into my routine most efficiently? Also, I was wondering what are your thoughts on low horse stance training? I used to do it a couple of years ago when I took kung fu and I remembered it when you were talking about developing the gripping power of the feet. A lot of the effects of low horse seemed to be the same. I greatly appreciate your help and time. Thanks,

Azar

[bob_stra]

Hey, TTT !!

I want this one answered too ;-)

[Scott Sonnon]

Azar,

If your Warrior Wellness development progress, omit the basic to intermediate practice dependent upon your level of coordination. Basically, the advanced (to so-called elite) practice holds within it several redundancy protocols which preclude the necessity of performing basic and intermediate practice concurrently. IOW: if you can handle it, only do Warrior Wellness Advanced daily. This compresses your AM session sufficiently to add drills from Fisticuffs and Leg Fencing. Alternate days for variety.

You may either keep your Be Breathed session in the AM, or if time management demands, reschedule it to the PM conditioning session and change the protocol to match the physiological profile of your sport (MMA = burst-recover-burst.)

Shock-Ability requires a partner, and since it is practice rather than training, you may add it prior or subsequent to your sport / skill practice sessions.

I don't know your type of sport/skill work, but MMA is inherently athletic. If you add Shock-Ability, watch your energy levels very closely. If this happens, omit your PM conditioning session.

[Vbrown]

If I could add just a tad...

Low horse training has gotten a bad rap over the years because it's been taught as exercise rather than skill. The point of low horse and other similar stance work is to get you used to proper alignment to bear a load. It also primes all of you connective tissue to be strong at what would otherwise be an awkward position.

Obviously, you don't fight in a low horse, but you use it to absorb energy or to support a load (ex. fireman's carry) for a moment. When you are under stress and moving fast, it's important that you body will move where it needs to be to protect it's structure...like your lower back.

And a good bit of foot gripping is excellent too.

FWIW,

Vince

CST,A

[xazaralix]

Thank you very much, guys!!

Azar

[xazaralix]

Hey Coach Sonnon,

I was wondering if you could help me with one more thing. How should I add in the joint strength drills from the second GTB tape? Thanks again!

Azar

[Mike]

So, is Leg Fencing and Fisticuffs primarily solo work?

[Scott Sonnon]

Azar,

You should avoid continuing to add and add more into your program. What is your specific schedule, what are your specific goals, and in what time frame do you intend to achieve them?

Mike,

Volume 1 of Fisticuffs (Prime Your Bioenerg) and Volume 1 of Leg Fencing (TOP Tool Development) are solo work. The remainder of both courses require partners or opponents.

[xazaralix]

Hey Coach Sonnon,

I am planning to start MMA training in 3 months, hopefully. I want to get myself in good shape and just be as prepared as possible when I start. My schedule for M-F is this:

AM: WW, BB, FI or LF, and a GTB chain.

M, W, F, I do S and C work at night (w/ Clubbells in there, too). T and Th nights, I do cardio work and bagwork/shadowboxing.

Saturday morning, I do WW, BB, and some hard/soft chi kung. I sometimes also do FI and LF drills at night time, along with bagwork/shadowboxing.

Sunday morning, I just do WW and BB.

I've also been doing a lot of high volume work with Coc grippers.

I'm sorry if I sound all over the place. I've just been a little overwhelmed with all the info on the tapes. I haven't even gotten to the material on IOUF and Arthrokinetics yet :shock:

Thanks again,

Azar

[Scott Sonnon]

Azar,

You need to eliminate the non-essentials from your personal practice and training. This does not mean that what you remove is necessarily non-essential EVER, but rather non-essential towards achieving specific goals.

You're cocktail-ing. It is better to focus upon a few key goals to elicit an effective adaptation over a specific period of time. THEN you can move on to a set of different goals.

Less is more, amigo.

[JasonE]

Azar -

I'm curious to know what your previous martial arts / fighting background is. Are you starting from scratch or are you seasoned?

It sounds like you are planning to go from nothing to MMA, but I could be mistaken.

[xazaralix]

Hey Coach Sonnon,

I'll do what you say. Thanks again for your help!


Hey Jason,

I took kung fu from March of '98 to October, 2000. I then just practiced it on and off till about a year ago or so. Nothing since then. No fighting experience either, which is why I want to start MMA.

[JasonE]

I took kung fu from March of '98 to October, 2000. I then just practiced it on and off till about a year ago or so. Nothing since then. No fighting experience either, which is why I want to start MMA.

You will find lots of interesting, useful advice from experienced competitors and instructors on these forums. I strongly advise that you take a bit of time to check out the backgrounds and reps of instructors / trainers that you are thinking of learning MMA from. The quality ranges from world-class to mediocre to fraudulent... and I've seen too many frauds to take it likely.

MMA is no joke; I hope you are fortunate and find a top-quality instructor that fits your budget and schedule. :)

I took a month to start rebuilding my GPP after 6 months off and have just restarted my MMA training. By summer I hope to be competitive again. I look forward to reading about your progress, and you can see mine as well.

[xazaralix]

Hey Jason,

Thanks very much for the tips!! I was wondering if you had any tips on how to look for good MMA schools in Long Island? Thanks and good luck on your return to MMA :D

Azar

[JasonE]

Thanks very much for the tips!! I was wondering if you had any tips on how to look for good MMA schools in Long Island?

I don't know the Long Island / NYC / New Jersey area very well, but I hope this helps somewhat.

Renzo Gracie, an international competitor, has an academy or two in the area. In addition to being highly successful in competition, Renzo has trained many excellent fighters. His books "Mastering Jujitsu" and "Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: Theory and Technique" are definitely worth checking out if you plan on getting into MMA.

If training with them won't work out for some reason, ask who else they'd recommend you check. Most MMA schools keep tabs on the local competition, and most will steer you towards the best local alternatives rather than see you waste money on a fraud.

If nothing else, I suppose you could comb through the phone book and post on the Underground forums at MMA.TV for more suggestions.

Good luck, amigo!