Off Season for Fighters

Fighters love to fight. It’s a fact.

They have something hard wired into their brain that makes them step in the ring, cage or on the mat. They NEED to do it, they can’t function in life if they don’t have the sense of competition, camaraderie and achievement that only a fighter knows about. However all this punishment leads them to do stupid things like take fights at the last minute and fight often without adequate rest in between fights. This is partly a coaches fault and partly the fighters. It is my opinion that the further that you move up the ladder of a sport the LESS fights they should take. For example I think a Pro MMA fighter should have a MAXIMUM of 3 fights a year. Any more and you are pretty much never out of camp.

 I believe that all sensibly trained fighters should have a good off season between fights to get better and recover for the next fight. The purpose of this article is to give you an idea of what things to be aiming and watching for from a nutritional standpoint. I must say that this is a brief overview and every single fighter is different. If anyone has any questions then please contact me or speak to your coach, they know you, I don’t.

So what is an off season and what are we looking for during it? An off season is a chunk of time (2-3 months) where a fighter aims to improve their technique, conditioning and strength. So during this time you will be focusing on weaknesses in your game and improving how strong and fast you are. At this point I would like to give just one piece of advice to every single fighter, GET STRONGER. Nothing will transfer to all areas of your ability than getting stronger. Trust me. With this in mind I’m going to cover off a few nutritional basics that will aid in your recovery and therefore growth. Before I get into the main points of nutrition, here are a few things that you should be looking to improve over all. Again, please speak to a strength and conditioning coach about the best plan for you. Ok, so here is the list;

• Strength. Good bench marks are 1.5 x BW (body weight) bench, 2 x BW squat and 2.5 x BW deadlift.
• Speed and explosive power. Sprints, jumps, throws etc
• Flexibility and mobility. Please stretch and foam roll people, pretty please...
• Cardio. Not long runs but being able to perform at a higher intensity for longer at your sport.

Ok, so nutrition. For most this is the area that is a mind field and I get that I really do. Every single article you read suggests something different. Intermittent fasting, fasting, carb back loading, low fat, high fat, low carb, the list is endless. I will always say that I don’t subscribe to one single way of doing things. Your body is an adaptive machine so everything works but nothing works forever. It is knowing when and what to use and knowing what works for an individual that makes the difference.  With this in mind here are a few points that I would start the average fighter off on. Again, this is a starting point so please adjust to fit your current body type and goals (or speak to your coach or someone who know what they are talking about.

The idea of the nutrition of an off season is to give your body the ability to recover and grow. Because of this it will need a slight excess of food so that it can do this. This is not an excuse for all you can eat buffets and pizza every night. When it comes to weight gain no more than 20 pounds for a pro fighter (or one that has a day before weigh in) and 10 pounds for everyone else. This way you can still build a good base of muscle but can be a fight camp away from being in shape. A little note about fight weight as some people always wonder what they will fight at. At a Pro level, having a lean lower back and abs are a good base to start!

As we are trying to promote muscle growth without to much fat gain, keeping protein high (a minimum of 1.25g per pound of body weight) and keeping carbs slightly limited but more importantly, timed to certain parts of the day. Carbs have gotten a lot of attention over the last few years and a pretty bad rap. Everyone is suggesting different things. If you haven’t tried one of gazillion methods out there, then I advise taking in 0.75g per pound of body weight and adjusting them from there. I like fighters to have about 30 – 40% of their carbs at breakfast and the rest around their training (before, during, after). People are either taking in to many carbs or not enough. I would err on the side of caution though, it’s always more fun to add in more carbs than take them out. The rest of your plan should focus on good healthy fats that will aid in joint health, hormone production, organ and immune support, fat loss and a load of other goodies (hint, get a good quality fish oil). Don’t fear fat.

With any plan it is the adjustments that are made along the way that will determine its success. Add or lose a pound? Getting faster or slower? Can’t sleep, shit, have sex as much? These are all factors that can be addressed through changes and adjustments in diet. The body is not a static entity, what works one week might not work the next. Factors such as recovery, stress levels and many other things are all factors that can and do, affect training. Making good sound judgements on this data is vital to improving a plan.

So how are going to measure progress while in our off season? The first point of call should be your coach. Tell them what you are doing and the goals you are trying to achieve. This way they can keep you on the right track. Nutrition wise we are focusing on good, clean gains. Changing our bodies composition (better muscle to fat ratio) should always be the goal. Remember, this isn’t body building and we aren’t bulking. We want to add muscle that will be beneficial to us in competition but we don’t want to get sloppy and stray to far from our fighting weight. It is possible to get stronger without adding weight but to be honest, most could do with a few more pounds of muscle. This is why your coach is important, while you think that you are getting ‘swole’, they will know if your performance is declining or improving. If it is improving great. If not, make adjustments so that it is.

Now you have read about a few things that can make a great off season so what next? As stated, discuss it with your coach and someone who knows nutrition. I would personally set up a mini trial with a few goals in mind (improved lifts, better muscle – fat ratio etc) for about 8-12 weeks and give it a go. See what works for you and see what doesn’t. Remember the idea is to improve yourself as a fighter, if it’s not working don’t do it. However if this is something that you love (you’re reading this so I know it is) why not take some time to be better? Train and eat smart and great results can only follow.

Thanks for reading,

Mike