BATTLING ROPE TRAINING FOR MMA

 

Written by Jon Celis on Wednesday, 16 March 2011.  

Battling ropes…where did they come from? What the hell do you do with them? Who uses them? Heavy ropes aren’t your double dutch jump rope, kiddy exercises. Many of you have seen them but don’t really know what they are or what to do with them; let me break it down for ya...

The pioneer of Battling Rope training starts with Mr. John Brookfield. John Brookfield is a pioneer of strongman training. While people were at the gym maxing out on bicep curls, Mr. Brookfield was busy ripping full decks of cards in half with his bare hands! 60 decks in 60 seconds to be precise! Holy S$!T!

He was always on the prowl looking for creative, unconventional ways to build superior strength and stamina. Included in his list of unconventional techniques are self-hauling semi trucks, bending 520 nails into a U-shape in 42 minutes, and 302 snatches in 10 minutes using a 24kg kettlebell. Mr. Brookfield is a total machine when it comes to being creative with strength training, which is why he is the “Godfather” when it comes to the infamous Battling Rope training!

He realized that battling ropes are a tool that he needed to add to his beast like performance and he started to spread his results to the world. Anyone looking to take their training program and results to the next level needs to incorporate ropes.

MMA is the top sport where your conditioning levels determine your performance, and more often than not, your fate. If your conditioning is subpar, it will definitely show and you will most likely lose (and get the crap kicked out of you). When it comes to conditioning, you must replicate the movement patterns of a fight, use appropriate energy systems, and control the speed of exercise complexes.

The sport of MMA is versatile and 3-dimensional. It is impossible to use conventional training (bicep curls, 3 sets of 10) and have it translate into peak performance. When was the last time you witnessed a fight where both fighters were in an upright fixed position throwing linear punches like a pair of Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots? As a fighter, using conventional training isn’t practical!

One of the best alternatives is Battling Rope training. Battling Ropes build explosiveness and core strength. You have to constantly power your way through pounding your arms, trunk, and core in a variety of different motions. It’s strength, power, and the ultimate form of conditioning tied into a single package (with a rope no less)!

As a fighter, you have to build incredible grip, forearm, core, and shoulder strength. Yes, you need much more than that to win, but when you look at the dynamics of MMA fights, you will notice how the pushing, push offs, grappling, and punches can be enhanced through the use of Battling Ropes.

Needless to say, anyone can see incredible benefits by using Battling Ropes. Burn more fat, enhance muscle tone, and efficiently condition your body better than any gym machine or Pilates exercise could. You will sweat like no other in a fraction of the regular time spent at the gym. Explosive sagittal, frontal, and transverse exercises performed with Battling Ropes will blow you off your seat. It’s damn exhausting but fun as hell.

JUMPING SLAMS

SINGLE ROPE TORNADOS

SINGLE ROPE ZIG ZAGS

Here are some great unconventional Battling Ropes drills to follow. You don’t have to be an MMA fighter to do this, but if you are then do it! If you love the sport or just want a leaner and tighter body then you should try these metabolic conditioning drills. I hope you are ready… because this may sting a bit:

Workout 1	Workout 2	Workout 3
A1: Ground and Pound Rope Slams     3-5 x 45-60 sec A2: Ripple Effect Waves     3-5 x 45-60 sec A3: Heavy Jumping Jax     3-5 x 45-60 sec	A1: Alternate Slams to Flying Knee    3-5x 45-60 sec A2: Hop to Hop Slams    3-5x 45-60 sec A3: Sprawls to Forward OH Jumps    3-5x 45-60 sec	A1: Single Rope 360    3-5x45-60 sec A2: Single Rope Tornadoes    3-5x45-60 sec A3: Single Rope Lifted Zig- Zags    3-5x45-60 sec
This is a completely metabolic workout that starts off with power and transitions to upper body conditioning and core activation.	Very metabolic, beginning with a combination of upper body focus and core explosion followed by hip conditioning.	Extremely metabolic, single rope drills allow you to increase speed and work output! Total body focus and strength and conditioning.

Fighter or not, these rope drills will make you feel like you did five rounds in the octagon. From a fighters’ perspective, these rope drills are perfect for emulating the specific energy and stimulation needed to perform and conquer. Battling Rope training will whip you into shape and take your conditioning to crazy levels.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

JON CELIS

Jon Celis is an elite fitness professional who specializes in real world fat loss. His degree in Kinesiology and reputable certifications has led to his success in becoming one of the newest yet profound trainers in Southern California.

www.AbsoluTraining.com