How to Train for MMA at Home

While there’s no replacement for training with professionals and sparring partners in a studio, there are certainly steps you can take to start conditioning your body to train. Why can’t you train solo all the way to the octagon? Fighting is mostly technique and muscle memory. While you can try to learn from videos, you need feedback on proper form from professionals who can identify your weak points. There is no replacement for this professional feedback or for time in the ring against capable opponents.

However, you can definitely start conditioning yourself for training now. Maybe you can’t afford training at a professional MMA studio, or don’t have access to one. Don’t let that stop you from engaging your desire to start MMA training. We’ll teach you how to train for MMA with these MMA exercises and conditioning techniques that cover the spectrum of how people train outside the ring. These tips will get you far in prepping for fight time.

Things you can do at home

Work on physical training that conditions your body to battle through fatigue. This will improve the speed of your punches and footwork, and increases your stability and balance. MMA strength training is about volume and variety. When you train, you will get the most benefit out of your efforts to keep going when your body doesn’t want to.  Let’s take a look at some activities that will help you when it comes time to train and spar.

• Work on your sprawling and other groundwork. You can do so with various solo groundwork drills, such as those for Jiu-Jitsu, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and wrestling. There are many variations, and instructions are easy to find.
• Do high-rep body weight exercises. All sorts of variations of push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups, and squats are good examples. Do as many as you can until your body can’t take it (without hurting yourself). This will help with your conditioning. 
• Plyometric and isometric exercises and holds. Plyometrics will improve cardio, explosiveness, and speed. Isometric exercise will improve stability and muscle endurance, and can often help break strength plateaus. Ensure you do isometric exercises at beginning, mid, and end of a muscle’s range of motion.
• Do tons of stretching and yoga. That’s right. Yoga. There’s no better form of exercise for overall balance, flexibility, and joint health. The kind of stability you’ll get from a serious yoga practice can’t be beat, and the intense stretching actually invigorates joints with new fluid, improving elasticity and recovery time.
• Try working in some gymnastic body weight exercises. Many gymnastic moves mimic moves done in the ring, especially Jiu Jitsu. In addition to programming your body to move correctly, you’ll improve balance, coordination, strength, and flexibility. Examples of helpful exercises include planches and 90 degree pushups.
• Go on long distance runs and run intervals on stairs and hills. Remember, endurance is a big part of fight-readiness. You need to be able to exert continuously and still perform. Throw in the odd plyometric pushup set and other body weight exercises between intervals or right after long-distance runs. 
• Do some shadow boxing drills to increase punch speed. Various drills should be easy to find online. We recommend this Youtube video. Precise, perfect form is not important when shadow boxing, and you can work on basic footwork, coordination, and speed without injury/joint stress.
• Do lots of core strengthening exercises. Think you’ve done enough? Do more. This doesn’t just mean abs, gym rats. Your core includes lower back, abs, waist, and hips. Look up MMA core strength exercises, and do them religiously. This article will get you started with a solid routine.
• Finally, lift weights as you likely already do, but be sure to incorporate sets of explosive lifts.

All these activities will improve your physical condition for when it comes time to train. If you want to extend your efforts to include more but still can’t find or afford a gym, there are other options to consider. Try to find a boxing, wrestling, Jiu Jitsu or other martial arts club for free/cheap sparring and tips from people with more experience. Let them know that you’re looking for feedback and don’t mind their constructive criticism. If money is the issue, try reaching out to gyms that may be interested in trading for labor. You can likely find one that needs help cleaning up the studio and/or working the front desk and phones.