Stann: We badly overtrain in MMA
There appear to be a paradigm underway shift in the way fighters prepare, away from damage, and on Twitter, Brian Stann detailed why.
Brian Stann made a career of running towards impact. He started playing football as a youngster and was a linebacker for the Naval Academy. Stann was a captain in the Marine Corps, and earned a Silver Star for gallantry in action in Iraq. He won the WEC light heavyweight championship, and then had eleven fights in the UFC.
Brian Stann is as tough as they come, so when his recent call for kinder, gentler training carries great weight. Stann tweeted on the subject after spending time with the Atlanta Falcons.
Brian Stann @BrianStann
•Amazing how different NFL practices are now from when I played college ball. Great focus on athletes peaking and being healthy.
•I learned a great deal, and realized even more how badly we over-train in mma. We train way too much, especially head trauma from sparring
•looking at the science the Falcons track their players output each day, MMA fighters probably lose yrs of career due to training intensity
Chris Clifford @Big_Christy
do you still do striking?
Brian Stann @BrianStann
Yes, drills, bag work, low contact sparring rarely, very low contact if any to head
Rosco Roberts @RoscoRoberts1
Do you see a shift coming in MMA re emphasis on live sparring? Good luck v my Irish this weekend.
Brian Stann @BrianStann
Yes, already happening in smaller camps, Yair Rodriguez’s coaches told me he sparred 4x whole camp
John S. Nash @heynottheface
is there the money in MMA to do what NFL teams do with their players?
Brian Stann @BrianStann
I think so. I will get the price of software & monitors from Falcons at Sundays game
Mike Honcho @AtypicalChad
full sparring makes zero sense for fighters in a camp, but don’t the grinding natures of wrestling and BJJ demand hard training?
Brian Stann @BrianStann
looking at the science the Falcons track their players output each day, MMA fighters probably lose yrs of career due to training intensity
matt air @mattjair
any chance that’s different for different fighters? Some need heavy intensity stuff to really peak / feel ready for the octagon?
Brian Stann @BrianStann
Thats all psychological, no science to back up that style of training
Brian Stann @BrianStann
I say all these things about training having done all the bad practices of over training myself. What we believed was required. Young sport
Trainers from Thailand and Brazil have long implored American athletes to learn how to spar in a smoother, more technically oriented, less aggressive manner. Now a number of fighters including Stann and Jamie Varner have retired early citing the dangers of heavy contact sparring. Potential superstars likeCain Velasquez has spent about as much time out of the sport as in due to injury. There appear to be a paradigm underway shift in the way fighters prepare, away from damage.
In addition to his work as a color commentator in MMA and football, founded and runs Hire Heroes, a non-profit group offering job search and placement assistance to US military veterans. The group has a special focus on the two demographics statistically most likely to be unemployed: young veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as wounded or disabled veterans. In sum, Brian Stann has a vital voice in mixed martial arts. Ignore him at your peril.