Introduction
Training camp for an MMA fight is one of the most delicate balancing acts in all of sports. Coaches must carefully monitor multiple conflicting demands to get the athlete into the cage on fight night in the best condition possible. During a typical fight camp, athletes often train multiple times per day while maintaining a consistent caloric deficit to make weight. Along with the overall increase in training volume, fighters will spar more, which can significantly affect the body. These factors create high levels of internal and external stress for the athlete. The competition schedule can also create significant logistical challenges. In a perfect world, a camp may last eight to 10 weeks, providing plenty of time to prepare. However, due to the nature of the sport and how athletes climb the ladder, athletes often accept fights on short notice, sometimes with as little as two weeks to prepare.
For the strength and conditioning coach, these demands require a shift in mindset regarding how to approach this type of training and manage it daily or weekly. All these unpredictable variables make planning far in advance difficult. Instead, the S&C coach should focus on managing fatigue, high-intensity, low-volume work, and energy-system-specific conditioning that complements the mat work the athlete already performs. This approach will help the athlete maintain strength, power, and tissue tolerance while the factors above threaten those qualities.
Managing Fatigue
Fatigue management may be the most important aspect of a strength and conditioning program during fight camp. During camp, an athlete’s time and energy are valuable, so squeezing the most out of each session becomes a top priority. However, fatigue management requires much more than writing a good training program. It requires an understanding of the sport, constant communication, flexibility, and the use of available resources.
Perhaps the biggest gap for most MMA athletes is that their training and support operate in silos. Unlike traditional field sports, an athlete’s team often does not work under a unified organization. Depending on the situation, the sport coach, strength coach, and dietitian may not even know each other. Even within the same MMA gym, athletes may have different strength coaches or dietitians. Some athletes also seek outside technical training for specific disciplines, such as BJJ or wrestling. All communication must then pass through the athlete, which can create real holes in the overall picture. As simple as it sounds, asking the right questions can help you get the most out of a training session. The questions I ask throughout the week and before training sessions often cover the weight cut, sparring volume, sleep, and recovery. If the athlete has a detailed weekly training schedule, ask for it so you can better structure the strength and conditioning work. Because the athlete will most likely train in some form at least six days per week, placing the S&C sessions in the right spots will create the best layout for the fighter. A general understanding of the sport will guide session placement by helping you identify which sessions will demand the most from the athlete. Below is an example of what an athlete’s schedule might look like during training camp.
Additionally, because MMA blends many disciplines, an athlete’s preferred style may affect the programming. I currently coach an athlete who strongly prefers wrestling and spends a lot of time in heavy collar ties. During a conversation, he explained that his training style and the pulling volume during S&C sessions caused his grip to fatigue quickly and take a while to recover. His feedback prompted me to reevaluate the program and adjust it to fit his training style.
A wearable that the athlete consistently uses provides another great resource. Wearable data can offer valuable insight into how an athlete responds to training through metrics such as resting heart rate, heart rate variability, sleep score, and training load. These metrics support the training flexibility I mentioned earlier. Communication can easily break down, and a sparring session may have a greater effect on the athlete’s system than expected. The ability to adjust individual sessions or shift training days altogether can help. For example, if an athlete shows a substantial drop in HRV for three to four consecutive days, I alter the session by changing the exercise or decreasing volume, intensity, or both. When a session has called for resisted sled sprints, I have switched to short, unresisted sprints or reactive broad jumps instead. This adjustment still allows the athlete to train power production without the added fatigue of an external load. I also use Bridge’s “% difficulty metric” parameter to prescribe intensity, which closely relates to RPE. I like this parameter because it does not tie athletes to a rep-max number, and perceived difficulty can change significantly from day to day.
Strength & Conditioning Structure
With a crowded training schedule during camp, I have found the best results by programming two total-body sessions per week. I sometimes include a third optional day of low-level aerobic conditioning. This session fills two gaps. The first is active recovery that promotes blood flow and loosens the tissue. I prefer to put my athletes on a stationary bike or another low-impact machine. MMA culture loves “road work,” and this session can produce the desired outcome without adding more impact to the joints. The session can also help keep the weight-cut process moving without adding stress to the body. During the other two days, the main focus remains on higher-intensity, lower-volume work that gradually shifts over eight weeks. By focusing on higher-intensity nervous system work, the athlete can maintain strength and increase power without adding unnecessary mass during a weight cut. Kostikiadis et al. reported no gain in total mass during a four-week training block with three total-body sessions per week. During that time, athletes improved countermovement jump performance by 6% to 7%, sprint speed by approximately 3.5%, and upper- and lower-body strength by 16% to 20%. While this study used a three-times-per-week training block, my experience shows that two sessions per week can produce improvement.
Training Progression
During early camp, I prioritize heavier force and power development along with glycolytic conditioning. I like to program different loaded power movements, heavier lifts at 70% to 80% difficulty, and longer conditioning intervals. Below is an example of a training week I have used during an early phase of camp.
As camp progresses, the strength and conditioning priorities gradually shift. Technical training, sparring, and weight cutting begin to dominate the schedule. To avoid further fatigue, I progress the S&C program toward higher-velocity movements with less overall load. From a programming standpoint, I also reduce the overall eccentric load. For example, I pair a max-effort trap bar iso into the racks with a box jump. From a conditioning perspective, I begin shifting toward more sport-specific intervals. Del Vecchio et al. published valuable research that used time-motion analysis of MMA bouts to establish work-to-rest ratios. The researchers found that typical high-intensity efforts last approximately 6 to 14 seconds, with recovery or lower-intensity efforts lasting 15 to 36 seconds.
By the last two weeks, the athlete will have completed all the hard work. Coaches will typically place greater emphasis on fight strategy and the final push of the weight cut. Ruddock et al. discuss a 40% to 60% reduction in volume over the last 12 days of camp. I find this to be a great guideline for helping the athlete recover and peak for fight night. This stage of camp also requires clear communication. Week 7 features brief sessions that stimulate the nervous system. During fight week, I give the athlete the option to perform light aerobic work just to get the blood flowing. Fight week is typically jam-packed with traveling, cutting weight, weighing in, interviews, and more, so nontechnical training becomes a very low priority. Below is a figure I developed as an overall framework for the progression I use with athletes throughout camp.
Short-Notice Competition
A full camp is not always realistic. MMA creates a highly competitive environment, and stepping in late for a fight can benefit an athlete’s career. Within the past month, a UFC fighter accepted a fight on two days’ notice. When an athlete accepts a fight on short notice, no time remains to build up and progress as the athlete would during a typical camp. This aspect of the sport emphasizes the importance of maintaining a high level of GPP strength and endurance year-round.
When working within these time constraints, do not drastically increase volume in an attempt to speed up the development process. Because technical training will increase quickly, throwing too much at an athlete too fast can do more harm than good. In these situations, I prioritize a late-camp training style that emphasizes power development in the weight room and shorter alactic intervals.
Conclusion
The goal is to get the fighter into the cage in the best possible position to succeed. Many intangibles arise simultaneously during fight camp and can affect the athlete’s ability to perform. As the fighter’s strength and conditioning coach, you must understand your role and determine how to best set up the athlete for success. Focusing on high-intensity, low-volume work such as power, speed, and alactic conditioning allows the athlete to develop without interfering with technical work or adding unnecessary mass and fatigue. Constant communication gives you more insight into how to serve the athlete at any given moment. Constant communication also helps you use every available resource to guide the fighter through camp.
References
- Kostikiadis, I.N., Methenitis, S., Tsoukos, A., Veligekas, P., Terzis, G., & Bogdanis, G.C. (2018). The effect of short-term sport-specific strength and conditioning training on physical fitness of well-trained mixed martial arts athletes. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine, 17(3), 348–358.
- Del Vecchio, F.B., Hirata, S.M., & Franchini, E. (2011). A review of time-motion analysis and combat development in mixed martial arts matches at regional level tournaments. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 112(2), 639–648. https://doi.org/10.2466/05.25.PMS.112.2.639-648
- Ruddock, A., James, L., French, D., Rogerson, D., Driller, M., & Hembrough, D. (2021). High-intensity conditioning for combat athletes: Practical recommendations. Applied Sciences, 11(22), 10658. https://doi.org/10.3390/app112210658
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