MMA lower-body power workouts

 MMA lower-body power workouts

Combatants are known for their super quick reflexes & strength. Footwork, movement, takedowns, kicks & even your punches power for all gets generated in your lower body. For performing your best, you must have adequate strength, mobility, stability & power in your lower body.

A smart MMA athlete knows that inadequate footwork & lack of lower-body strength will buy them major difficulties in the ring. A Lot of combatants aren’t aware of the best approach to lower-body training. Failure in conditioning their lower body increases the odds of injury. Stretching & strengthening your hamstrings isn’t enough for developing iron power that is essentially required for MMA. Athletes must focus on eccentric control by doing explosive kicks & shifting their body weight. Failure to train their hamstrings can cause painful strains, muscle tears, that can sideline and affect conditioning. A major focus of combat athletes are quads, glutes & hamstrings; they tend to overlook other muscles present within their hips & lower body. Which causes trouble & injury prevention. 

Another major aspect overlooked in lower-body training by combatants is ankle stability.

Anke stability is highly crucial for balance, & especially for the athletes who have already sustained ankle injury previously, there’s a high probability that they will experience it again. 

In combat sports, the body shifts quickly from one position to another thus ankle stability plays a great role in optimizing your performance.  

Performing lower body workouts in your weekly routine is important! Especially if you are training for MMA. Following lower-body power workouts will be beneficial for hiking up your game to the next level. Before we move further make sure you get yourself premium quality MMA gears it will help with training. 

The Workout

Power training is split into two major categories. Force-bias workouts. They involve more resistance & you can do them at a slower pace. The second one is velocity-bias exercises, they are more about speed & less about resistance. You must perform both with adequate recovery periods in between for gaining lower body strength. If you train both you must reduce the volume. Exercise in this regime has multiple variations you can start with easier on and progress slowly. You can also increase the number of reps depending upon your level. But make sure you rest adequately as you will be needing a proper recovery in between the sets.

1. Single leg dynamic Power workout 

It’s a velocity bias workout This workout works amazingly well for developing power and strength in your lower body. It’s significant for fighters to develop it as the majority of MMA moves involve switching from one foot to another. 

Start this workout by standing in front of the box by placing both of your feet firmly on the floor pointing straight ahead, open shoulder-distance apart. Then try lifting the chest while tucking in the chin. Then place one of your feet on the top of the box, closer to a side at an angle of 90 degrees & contract the glutes. Then drive your Arms at an angle of 90 degrees while driving your opposite leg. After that push off your foot forcefully up into the air while driving your opposite knee towards the chest, while propelling yourself off that box. Make sure you are at the full extension with your working leg being at the top of that movement & your arm drive staying in the opposite direction with your legs. Lastly, land on the box with the same foot & repeat.

1. Squat Jump Progression

It’s a velocity-bias power workout that targets your legs, with a prime focus on building your quads & glutes. Start this exercise by standing on your feet open hip-distance apart or wider, then place the hands at the back of your head. Hold the chest & head high, then pull the shoulders back & down, while keeping the spine stacked in the neutral position. After that, lower yourself into the squat till the thighs have become parallel to the floor. Then jump higher and land with the soft knees & lower yourself immediately into another squat for absorbing the impact. Take a break for a second or two, stand back & reset the body position, and repeat.

1. Lateral Bound Progression

It’s a velocity-bias power workout that trains major muscle groups in your legs in the direction. Start this workout by standing on the left leg, bending the knee slightly, then hopping a few feet to your right. Then land on the right leg with the soft knee & immediately hoping back at the left. Then continue hopping from one leg to another like an exaggerated movement of the speed skater. Make sure you maintain a consistent pace & intensity.

1. Towel Isometric Deadlift with Explosive Jump 

It’s a force-bias workout that builds power in the major muscle groups of your legs. It’s a good option for the people who don’t have full access to the weights & different equipment. Start this workout by standing at the center of the bath towel by planting both of your feet firmly on the floor, placing them hip-distance apart, in a parallel manner. Then squat for grasping the ends of a towel at either side, after that raise into the half-squat position with a good form till the towel is taut, keep both of your arms straight at the sides. Keep on pushing yourself upward with the legs against the resistance of the towel by applying maximal effort up to three or four seconds. Then finally, release that towel & explosively jump. Then rest on a towel and repeat. 

1. Weighted Squat Jump

This workout is a force-bias workout that targets your legs, by emphasizing your glutes. Start performing this workout in an athletic stance by lowering yourself quickly into the squat position. Then jump explosively as high as you possibly can. After that land with the soft knees, butt back & chest held up. Then lower yourself immediately into another squat & repeat. You can add weight for adding more challenge and resistance. 

1. Dumbbell Shoulder Squat

This workout is a force-bias workout. Start performing this workout by standing on your feet opened slightly wider than the hip distance. Then rest a dumbbell on your shoulder. Then drop your hips back & down like you’re reaching the glutes. Then bend your knees but make sure your heels stay planted on the ground. And your torso stays tall & strong with your chest opened & facing forward. Continue lowering your hips till your thighs become parallel to the floor. Then press both of your heels and come back to the starting position.