Strength & Conditioning for BJJ
The most important thing in BJJ is time spent drilling and sparring. However, if you are planning on competing there are several other factors that matter. Two of the most important factors are strength and conditioning. Are you strong enough to get out of a heavier opponents mount? Do your arms give out when trying to do guillotines? What about your lungs? All of these issues can be addressed when you enroll in a strength and conditioning program.
In combat sports, you are usually matched with an opponent of equal weight and often, as the case with Brazilian Jiujitsu, equal skill or belt rank. Since this is true, it is a good idea to have every advantage over your opponent possible. If your technical ability and size are the same, then the opponent who did more and trained harder will usually win.
The great thing about our strength and conditioning classes is the variety of equipment. For example, when training with TRX bands you can make it as hard or easy as you want. You do this usually by moving closer or farther away from the anchor point. This saves a lot of time usually spent changing weights. Another great thing is the negative resistance training. Negative resistance concentrates on the lowering phase of the exercise. For example, when bench pressing, you would lower the weight very slowly then have assistance pushing it up. This type of training lends itself to great strength gains. It also focuses on stabilization muscles which greatly help your overall strength.
Your overall jujitsu game is by far the most important piece of the puzzle. The more you drill and train, the better you will be. However, if you are matched with an equally skilled and sized opponent, it is usually the stronger more conditioned athlete that wins. Make sure you are doing more than your opponents in all areas of your training. More drills, more rolling, more strength training and more cardio. This is the only way to ensure victory.
By Drew Ash, head Brazilian Jiu Jitsu instructor at Define Defense in Boulder, Colorado
Define Defense in Boulder, CO
- Modern Martial Arts
- Brazilian Jiu Jitsu & MMA
- Self Defense Classes & Workshops
- Personal Training
- Cross Training / TRX Classes
1805 11th Street Suite B
Boulder, CO 80302
(720) 340 6254
Info@DefineDefense.com
Cross Training: Our New Strength & Conditioning Program
Cross training is one of the best ways to get in shape while working pretty much all of your muscle groups. If done right, you can accomplish different goals by training in different ways. You will get stronger, faster and your cardio will improve. By fine tuning your cross training workout, you can also lose weight or gain muscle (or both).
The way we do cross training at Define Defense in our strength and conditioning classes is by working all muscle groups with short rests between different stations. By working all muscle groups, we end up burning many calories and we challenge all muscles, which makes them adapt and improve. We have different formulas we use in different classes but we always make sure our training methods have clear reasoning behind them and these are backed by our knowledge in physiology, anatomy etc. In our strength and conditioning classes, we also make sure everyone is working at their own level and they are training to reach the goal they want. That is why we like to call it personal training in a small group. After all, the same exercises and training will NEVER work the same for different people.
Our classes are a full hour training session, 6 times/week starting in January 2012 (depending on a membership or punch card, you choose whenever and how many times you want to attend!) As for now, we have 3 classes/week.
Cross training can be done in several ways as mentioned, however there are many brands that do it in a very irresponsible and dangerous manner. Safety always comes first but unfortunately some brands do not make this a priority.
A few experiences I have had (outside of Define Defense):
- 15 minute workouts that make you breathe hard, sweat and make you feel like passing out. These workouts may feel hard (and they are), but they will NOT do anything for you, except to deteriorate your body. You do not get any rest, you do too many exercises in a small time frame, something that occasionally can be beneficial for a trained athlete but not for the average person wanting to improve or live healthier. Since there is no rest, your muscles will not grow, ever... For cardio purposes it is not long enough either and pushing yourself that hard every workout is unhealthy, period. If a 15 minute workout would do what they claim it does, everybody would be a professional athlete. But it doesn't! Any trainer can push you that hard for 15 minutes but it's not a good thing.
- Making the clients do compound exercises without warmup and for too many reps. Compound exercises are fantastic for anabolic growth, burning calories and general strength and health. However, if you become fatigued, your form and technique will deteriorate, especially with technically challenging exercises. These need perfect form as they can be hazardous for your body. I have seen studios that made their clients do tens of these compound exercises at a time (with horrible form).
- Dirty, dirty and dirty to a point my lungs burned and my hands were black. OK this one is place determined but it's a big no-no!
- Having to sign a waiver that states they are not liable if you get hospitalized with Rhabdo. Really??? Sounds shady to me and with responsible training (even pushing limits), you should never experience this!
- Unqualified trainers: some brands are franchised which means that if you do a one day workshop, you are allowed to open a branch. Great isn't it? Not really... It takes years to master training others and being certified after one day is simply dangerous.
You would be surprised how much these kinds of situations happen or how many cross training studios build their businesses on these irresponsible strategies.
At Define Defense, we strive towards quality and responsible training for optimal results and the safety of our clients. That is why we are expanding our strength & conditioning program to 6 classes/week starting January, 2012!
All our martial arts clients have free access. Non members can also enjoy these great cross training classes by purchasing a punch card or getting a strength & conditioning membership. Our classes are 60 minute workouts with a lot of personal attention and cutting edge gym equipment (see our facility). We utilize back to basic exercises as well as the latest proven methods in the fitness world. We will push you and make you better, that's a promise. Besides your training, we also educate you about the reasons behind the training.
Our pricing structure:
- A 10 class punch card for $200
- A 12 month membership for $85/month (unlimited classes)
- A 6 month membership for $95/month (unlimited classes)
- A 3 month membership for $110/month (unlimited classes)
Stay tuned for our new schedule (starting January 2nd, 2012) and take advantage of the strength & conditioning classes!
By Sander Vanacker, owner of Define Defense Martial Arts & Training in Boulder, Colorado
MMA & BJJ Instructor Conor "Hurricane" Heun
Define Defense is proud to announce that Conor “Hurricane” Heun is our new Mixed Martial Arts & Brazilian Jiu Jitsu instructor. Conor is teaching the following Friday nights and will be teaching 2-4 times every week starting the end of February. The other MMA classes will be taught by instructor Sander Vanacker. NOTE: All MMA & BJJ classes will be 1.5 hour long!
Conor is a highly skilled and experienced professional MMA fighter who fought under the Strikeforce banner and who also has a brown belt in 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu under Eddie Bravo. He is known for his will power and mental strength as well as his work ethic and technique.
Our 1.5 hour classes will be a blend of MMA and MMA specific Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. As for now, Conor is teaching MMA skills step by step, therefore since a fight starts standing, we cover the standing skills first. In March, we will go over grappling from the bottom, followed by dominant top position etc.
Come train at Define Defense with our instructors Conor Heun and Sander Vanacker now! This month, we give FREE strength & conditioning classes along with our MMA memberships (12mo: $125, 6mo: $140, 3mo: $160), which gives you unlimited access to our 15 classes/week in TRX, Kettle Bell and Warrior Training.
Here is more info on Conor Heun:
PROFESSIONAL RECORD
9 - 5 - 0 (Win - Loss - Draw)
WINS
1 (T)KOs ( 12.5 %)
5 Submissions ( 62.5 %)
2 Decisions ( 25 %)
Follow on:
www.ConorHeun.com
www.Facebook.com/Conor.Heun
Twitter.com/ConorHeun
Unsatisfied and unwilling to give up on his goal of becoming champion, Conor enrolled at Div. III wrestling powerhouse, Ithaca College. Following a redshirt year on the sidelines, Heun notched 20 wins and qualified for the NCAA tournament. He failed to place. Faced with injuries and rising academic pressure, Heun would never again see the NCAA tournament.
After graduating with a BA in English Literature, Conor moved back to Boulder where he opened a silk screening business and became an assistant wrestling coach. Feeling like he was destined for bigger things, Conor moved to southern California where he took a job selling dental equipment. Looking for a way to stay fit, Conor began training at Eddie Bravo's 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu Academy. Encouraged by training partners Jason Chambers and Amir Rahnavardi, Conor stepped into the cage for the first time on May 12, 2006 winning his pro debut by rear naked choke.
Conor soon began training full time under the tutelage of Chris Reilly and Eddie Bravo at Legends MMA. His exciting and aggressive style soon caught the eye of Bas Rutten who recruited Conor to fight for the Los Angeles Anacondas in the International Fight League. After fighting in the IFL for one season, he moved on to fight for Elite XC and now is under contract with Strikeforce. Always one to bring the fight to his opponents, his never boring style continues to make him a star to watch as he battles for the belt.
Deals for new and current clients!
Sign up for our MMA program and get free unlimited fitness classes for the full duration of your membership!
*Starting March 1st 2013, the MMA and BJJ program will be combined into a single program (1.5 hour classes 6 times/week). Therefore, you will get MMA and BJJ instruction and get free fitness classes as well (all programs), all in 1 single membership!*
Refer a person and get up to a $40 credit!
*get $15 if your referral gets a punch card or a 3 month membership, $25 for a 6 month membership and $40 for a 12 month membership*
Starting March 1st, our MMA classes will offer both stand up striking, throws, takedowns, sweeps, clinching, as well as MMA specific grappling. Our classes will be at the same times but will be 1.5 hour long classes.
For our current members:
Our current MMA or BJJ members will receive free fitness classes starting March 1st for the remainder of their membership and throughout their next membership when they renew (before June 1st). This means you will get MMA, BJJ and strength & conditioning all for one single membership fee!
Members with a punch card will get 3 additional free classes to use after March 2nd.
All inclusive rates:
Our rates for MMA, BJJ & Fitness will be:
12mo: $125/month
6mo: $140/month
3mo: $160/month
As always, college students get 15% off and if you prepay, you receive a 10% discount.
MMA specific Brazilian Jiu Jitsu:
In our MMA classes we will purely focus on MMA specific techniques that are also great for self defense. We will not do sport Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, instead we will focus on MMA specific Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, which is much more effective in a Mixed Martial Arts situation or self defense situation.
Define Defense is also bringing in another instructor, along with owner and head instructor Sander.