Should Combat Athletes Bodybuild?

The short answer to this question begins with understanding the primary movement patterns of the sport in question. Nevertheless, before we delve into the answer, certain concerns, many relating to the inclusion of bodybuilding into combat sport preparation, should be addressed.  

Flexibility

The primary argument among athletes is that “bodybuilding will hinder flexibility.” While this is known to be a fallacy to many lifters, it remains an excuse to avert lifting amongst combat sport athletes. In truth, as long as full range of motion is used, flexibility, at the very least, is maintained.

Soreness

A far more real concern when considering bodybuilding for combat athletes is the soreness associated with higher repetitions. Higher amounts of repetitions are required to degrade a higher amount of contractile proteins and consequently higher levels of hypertrophy. Furthermore, other more advanced overload techniques than high repetitions should be approached with more caution.

Tempo-focused eccentrics are one of the more demanding techniques for muscle growth; consequently, the high degree of soreness with a more advanced technique such as this is great enough to inhibit short-term performance for the next practice. Anecdotally speaking, Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness (DOMS) is greater with forced reps and negatives when compared to simple, high volume. Higher repetitions are not the enemy.

Bodybuilding Programs!

Prime Movers

As indicated above, detecting the primary movement patterns of a sport is the initial means of structuring an appropriate bodybuilding-oriented workout. We can then analyze the major agonists (prime movers) and if they can endure programming aspects of bodybuilding.

We can identify upper-body pulling as a primary movement across many combat sports: Judo, Sambo, all forms of Wrestling (Greco-Roman, Freestyle, etc.), and Jiu-Jitsu. (Other main movement patterns with varying musculature exist within these sports, but for this article, the focus is placed on upper-body pulling and concomitant musculature). The ability to pull your opponent into yourself and vice versa, to effectively kill space between bodies is a precursor for a multitude of techniques that can secure a victory.

Consequently, we can conclude that those pulling motions are not unlike any row and pull-down variant. In this context, pulling is both vertical and horizontal, as you may have to break your opponent’s posture whilst on your back (vertical) and pull them to you as you remain on the feet (horizontal).

A strong squeezing action typically follows a pulling motion. An example of a pull succeeded by a squeeze is the arm-drag (literally dragging someone by their arm to pull them to you), followed immediately by a body-lock (enveloping their upper body with your arms resembling a powerful hug). Although hugging involves adduction, it is strengthened by scap retraction that relies on the lats and middle, and inferior traps. Due to their role in executing pulling and squeezing actions, it becomes clear that every combat sports athlete can benefit from hypertrophying the lats, upper back, and traps.

Applying bodybuilding principles to these prime movers yields multiple benefits. Primarily, hypertrophic methods increase force output. Hypertrophy work augments a muscle’s cross-sectional area (CSA). Muscles with larger CSA’s have been shown to generate higher forces. If two athletes’ technical abilities are equal, the stronger of the two will prevail. The parameters of bodybuilding volume also introduce a greater variance of repetitions into a workout per exercise than others methods. The more varied the repetitions, the more fibers are stimulated. Simply put, hypertrophied muscles equal stronger muscles.

Injury Prevention

The results of this method further reinforce the musculoskeletal system, as bones must grow and strengthen to support stronger and larger muscles. Injury prevention is one of the primary goals of weightlifting, and bodybuilding tenets support that. A common example of burgeoning a muscle’s size for longevity revolves around the knee joint. Whether it is the MCL, LCL, ACL, or PCL, the knee is in constant danger. One of the preventative measures is to grow the Vastus Medialis Oblique (VMO) in size to fix patellar tracking and limit the onset of patellofemoral syndrome.

If we are aware that certain muscles have to be hypertrophied more so than others to promote injury prevention, then we must apply bodybuilding dogma to as much relevant musculature as possible. Note that all muscle groups shouldn’t be exposed to a bodybuilding-structured workout. Examples include noticeable increases in hamstring size that may inhibit the completion of certain submissions, such as the triangle choke. Conversely, the traps and upper back muscles promote scap and shoulder health. They, along with the neck, help absorb shock that could otherwise cause a concussion. Lat development balances the overworked anterior upper-body musculature, placing the shoulder girdle in a far less compromised position. These posterior muscles warrant subjection to bodybuilding sessions.

Bearing the above in mind, in conjunction with horizontal and vertical pulling as our primary sporting movements to analyze for this article, a cogent choice of exercises should include rows, pulldowns, and banded scap-function-oriented movements.

Program Design

Having addressed the qualitative (exercise/lift) aspect of the program’s design, we can structure the quantitative (volume/ reps, and sets) facets and intensity (load/weight) concerns in ways that best stimulate growth and strength for the lats, traps, and upper back.

Duration of a movement affects quantitative considerations. This is highlighted in the “Quantitative” column of the table below. Row “A” within this column suggests reps between 5 and 12. (All sections correlate with one another alphabetically). These repetitions relate to scap retraction trained in the form of rowing movements; all listed in Row “A.” While we primarily want to strengthen the lats with rows and lower reps so that we may drag an opponent toward us with more force, we also want to improve the endurance of the muscle to do so throughout a 10-minute round; this is why up to 12 reps are included. Multiple sets are subsumed throughout the session in concert with lower rep ranges, so that heavier loads may be introduced over a greater period of overall time. In doing so, fibers, different than those firing at higher rep levels, are galvanized for a greater period of time

Rest intervals are kept to a maximum of 45-seconds for all exercises. Shortened rest intervals between high-repetition sets stimulate the release of powerful anabolic hormones like growth hormone and testosterone. Incorporating this element will promote muscle growth.

Table 1 uses these guiding principles to generate an easy-to-follow lat workout, and can be used to contrive sessions for all other muscle groups that meet the above criteria:

Table 1. Lat Workout

*May use any cable attachment

** The intensity of all sets is shown by “RM,” or “Repetition Maximum.” Going to failure requires the involved muscle to generate as much force possible in a fatigued state—something we must constantly do in combat sports. Additionally, it is during the final repetitions of a failure set when the highest amount of motor units are recruited. The Repeated-Effort Method has a higher impact on force production, as well. For purposes of this article, “RM,” will denote The Repeated-Effort Method.

Table 2 is a sample back workout I’ve done on the day before a sparring session.

Table 2. Back Workout Day Before Sparring

Header image credit: everyonensk © 123rf.com

Max Barnhart, MA, CSCS, has been involved in collegiate strength and conditioning at the NCAA Division I level for eight years. In addition to coaching, Max has been fortunate enough to publish two articles in NSCA publications and to conduct his master’s thesis on the reduction of the bilateral deficit and concomitant effects on extroversion and personality type. Max’s true passion is the optimization of student-athletes’ athletic and personal potential through strength training and through raising mental health awareness among such populations.