Strength Training for Jiu-Jitsu Part 5: Conditioning and Extra Workouts

In the previous articles we covered all of the aspects that make up the strength training portion of the training program. We looked at an overview of the conjugate method and how I use it for the jiu-jitsu athletes I work with and took an in-depth look at the max effort, dynamic effort, and repeated effort methods. To round out the training we also need to address conditioning and extra workouts.

Conditioning brings up a lot of debate. There are some in the jiu-jitsu world who think all the conditioning you need comes from training jiu-jitsu and there are some that feel you need to do extensive amounts of cardio to develop your "gas tank" for the sport. I fall in the middle. Obviously training jiu-jitsu is essential for building your skill, but as you become more skilled, you also become more efficient. Greater efficiency leads to far less energy expenditure. As we become more skilled, our sparring sessions often become more technical and less physical. While our training sessions certainly count toward conditioning work, it is important that we include some dedicated aerobic and anaerobic training sessions off the mats as well.

Aerobic training is low to moderate intensity cardiovascular exercise where we can maintain a certain level of output for longer durations relying on oxygen to meet our energy demands. This is going to be roughly zone 2 to 3 type training that allows us to condition the aerobic energy system. Shooting for 2 to 3 sessions per week for 20-45 minutes is a great place to start. This exercise can be anything that allows us to maintain the appropriate heart rate ranges. Any cardiovascular machine, walking, rucking, cycling, jogging, swimming, etc. is all fair game provided we are staying in the heart rate range that allows us to condition the aerobic energy system.

Anaerobic training is higher intensity training where we switch from the aerobic to the anaerobic energy system and stop using oxygen to glycogen to meet our energy demands. Anaerobic training involves shorter duration, higher intensity bouts of exercise. Many forms of exercise fall into this category such as strength training, plyometrics, and sprinting. We tend to favor exercises like pushing and pulling heavy sleds and hill sprints when conditioning the anaerobic energy system. Initially you may not need to perform any anaerobic training as our "spazzy white belt" sparring sessions will often have our cardiovascular systems red lining! As you become more skilled, performing 1 to 2 anaerobic training sessions per week will be beneficial.

Muscular endurance is an often overlooked aspect of conditioning. While cardiovascular exercise can certainly give us a "bigger gas tank" and improve our ability to recover, we need to implement exercises to improve muscular endurance. Some favorites of ours are performing exercises for very high repetitions, or using static contractions, for specific muscles that need greater endurance capacity in jiu-jitsu.

In addition to the strength and conditioning work, you may find adding extra workouts to be beneficial. Extra workouts are short duration sessions that are very easy to recovery from. These sessions should not affect our strength and conditioning or jiu-jitsu training in a negative way. Extra workouts can be used to perform exercises for weak areas, to strengthen joints, and to address flexibility and mobility. These workouts can be looked at as helping to bullet-proof the body for jiu-jitsu. Some of my favorites are doing high rep single joint exercises with light weight or bands for areas susceptible to injury such as the neck, elbows, knees, and ankles. A full body joint mobility practice is a great idea, as well as implementing stretching exercises for areas that become tight due to the specific demands of jiu-jitsu such as the abdominals, hips, hamstrings, quads, and shoulders.

Remember, our goal with strength and conditioning is to tailor our program to our specific needs, or the needs of our athletes, with the goal of becoming stronger, better conditioned, and more resilient to injury. This program needs to be implemented in a way that ensures we are able to recover between sessions. We can only train that which we can recover from. If you are training a lot of jiu-jitsu, say 5 to 6  days per week, you may only be able to get away with 1 or 2 strength and conditioning sessions plus some low intensity aerobic work per week. If you are training less jiu-jitsu, say 2 to 4 days per week, you can devote a little more of your time to your strength and conditioning.

I hope you enjoyed this article series and if you have any specific questions about strength training for jiu-jitsu or would like to take it a step further and enroll in my online or in-person coaching program email me at scott@eptsgym.com or reach out through my social media pages.

Strength Training for Jiu-Jitsu Part 4: The Repeated Effort Method

The Repeated Effort (RE) Method is typically used for accessory exercises and sometimes for the main lift when de-loading. Following the primary Max Effort or Dynamic Effort exercise the accessory work is programmed to build muscle, strengthen weak points, and prevent muscular imbalances that may result from the sporting form. For instance, many jiu-jitsu athletes tend to have rounded shoulders and concave backs due to the postural requirement of many guard positions. Programming extra upper back, rear deltoid, and external rotator cuff exercises would be a good idea to counter the tension developed in the pecs and front deltoids as a result of those specific sport positions.

The RE Method will have you using submaximal weights for higher reps pushing the muscles to, or very close to, failure. This makes it easy to accumulate a lot of volume in the targeted muscles which is beneficial for increasing muscle mass and strengthening the weaker links in larger movements.

How many sets and reps will depend on different variables such as how conditioned the individual is currently and how fatigued the muscle is already from the primary movement. Also, if you are taking each set to complete failure, you will need fewer sets than if you are stopping a couple reps shy of failure. Generally speaking, we typically perform 2-6 sets of 6-12 reps for most of our accessory exercises. Sometimes we will push upwards of 15-25 reps or more depending on the movement and the goal of the movement. For joint integrity work we will often use very high reps, 30-50 or more, per set.

Unlike the max effort exercise which we tend to rotate on a weekly basis, the repeated effort accessory movements can be used for 2-4 weeks before cycling in new exercises provided you are able to continuously increase the volume without regressing.

I recommend trying to get the most out of the least when doing accessory exercises. If you are completely trashing yourself in the gym it will have a negative affect on your specific work on that mats. If you can fatigue the target muscle in 2 sets, performing 3 or 4 more sets will have a negative affect on your recovery while providing very little progress in strength or hypertrophy. Part of getting the most work out of the muscle you are targeting with the accessory exercise is to use a slow, controlled eccentric (lowering) phase of the lift and a more explosive, but controlled, concentric (lifting) phase. Just blasting through the reps with bad technique is not beneficial on any level.

Generally speaking we perform 2-5 accessory exercises after the main lift. Your goals will determine your exercise selection. Another factor would be competition prep. If you are not getting ready for a match or tournament you can spend more time in the gym, but as you get closer to a contest you will need to dial it back in the weight room to compensate for the extra sparring and drilling you will be doing to prepare.

Also, if you are completely fried and need to back off or de-load a bit, taking out the max effort or dynamic effort main lift and just performing the accessory work can be a great thing to do. If this is the case I would probably do fewer sets and stay away from failure. This will allow for the workout to stimulate recovery and would be a much better option than taking the entire day off.

There are many options for programming accessory work, but to sum it up, do as little as you need to in order to make progress and let your individual needs determine the exercises you program for the accessory / repeated effort work.

Strength Training for Jiu-Jitsu Part 3: The Dynamic Effort Method

The Dynamic Effort (DE) Method is often overlooked but is essential for all athletes. The DE Method is the lifting of submaximal weights with maximal force. For instance if you can squat 400lbs and were training with 200lbs, the goal is to move the 200lbs as if it's 400lbs. By training this way you will improve the rate of force production, i.e. how fast the muscle fibers produce force, for the muscles being trained. This will result in the athlete being more explosive.

Why does this matter for the jiu-jitsu athlete? While jiu-jitsu tends to emphasize aerobic capacity, muscular endurance, and static strength, improving power and speed strength will carry over to explosive shots, takedowns, throws, and hip activation during certain pin escapes.

While any lift can be trained with the DE Method, we typically use the squat, deadlift, and bench press.

For intensity we use a three week wave of 75, 80, and 85%. The load is made up of 50, 55, and 60% bar weight and 25% accommodating resistance, usually in the form of bands and/or chains attached to the bar. This is one of the many benefits of the Conjugate Method developed by the late Louie Simmons, owner of the Westside Barbell Club.

A note on accommodating resistance with chains and bands.

A deep dive into the use of chains and bands is beyond the scope of this article and I will address it more deeply in a future post. There is more information than you would ever need on this topic on the Westside Barbell blog as well as in the numerous books, videos, podcasts, and interviews they've produced over the years. 

In a nutshell, adding bands and chains to the bar prevents deceleration by making the lift lighter at the hardest point and heavier at the easiest point, thus allowing the athlete to produce more force. This is accomplished through the contrast in the load when using bands and chains.

With chains they are attached to the bar with a strap or lighter loading chain so that the entire chain de-loads at the bottom of the lift, where the athlete is in the most mechanically disadvantageous position. The chains gradually re-load as the athlete moves to a more mechanically advantageous position as they lock out the movement. When using straight weight the athlete naturally slows down as they improve mechanical leverage as the weight begins to "feel lighter". The contrast in the load is what forces the athlete to continue accelerating through the top of the lift as it gets progressively heavier. For example, if an athlete has a 400lb squat they will train at 200lbs (50%) in week 1, 220lbs (55%) in week 2, and 240lbs (60%) in week 3. 100lbs of chain (25% of their max) will be added to the bar each week. So in week 1 the athlete will start with a total of 300lbs on the bar in bar weight and added chain weight. As they descend in the squat, the chain will start piling up on the floor so that when they are in the bottom of the lift the weight is 200lbs, then as they ascend to the lockout the 100lb of chain gradually re-loads making the weight 300lbs at lockout.

With bands there is a similar contrast as chains, but bands perform a little differently. Bands are active while chains are passive. Bands must be attached so there is tension in both the bottom and top of the lift. As the athlete lowers the bar the band tension reduces due to band shrinkage. Then as the athlete lifts the bar the band tension gradually increases as the band stretches to the lockout of the lift. Where bands differ from chains is they actively pull the bar down which causes they athlete to lower the bar faster. This is referred to as overspeed eccentrics. Eccentric refers to the lowering phase of a lift while concentric refers to the lifting phase of a lift. Overspeed eccentrics will create more kinetic energy on the way down, which will allow the athlete to produce more force on the way up. This will make the athlete more explosive. I always see a big improvement in my athlete's vertical jumps after training this way. Percentages will be the same as when using chains, but can be a little difficult to calculate since band tension is more variable than the chain weight. Don't overthink it. Just make sure you have tension in the bottom and top of the lift, and that it is close to 25% give or take, and you will be fine. 

In the squat, bands should be single choked around a 4x4 base at a minimum. On our Monolift, with a 4x4 base, we found the following band tension ranges at a lockout around 4'-5': light bands (purple) - 75 to 95lbs, average bands (green) - 115 to 145lbs, and strong bands (blue) - 165 to 215lbs. In the deadlift we attach bands to the band pegs of our 4'x8' deadlift platform. Most athletes will use a single single stretched band or a combination of bands. We found the following tensions on our platform at lockout for pairs of bands: mini bands (red) - 70lbs, monster minis (black) - 90lbs, light bands (purple) - 150lbs, average bands (green) - 210lbs, and strong bands (blue) - 290lbs. For benching, we double minis under our power rack base which gives us roughly 70-80lbs of tension at lockout. For a weaker bench micro-mini bands, which give about 30-40lbs of tension at lockout, can be used.

We typically decrease the training volume each week as the intensity goes up. Here are the common 3-week waves we use at my gym:

Dynamic Effort Squat / Deadlift Cycle

Squat (we use either the box squat or free squat as well as various specialty bars)

• Week 1: 50% bar weight plus 25% accommodating resistance x 2 reps / 12 sets
• Week 2: 55% bar weight plus 25% accommodating resistance x 2 reps / 10 sets
• Week 3: 60% bar weight plus 25% accommodating resistance x 2 reps / 8 sets

Deadlift (conventional or sumo)

• Week 1: 50% bar weight plus 25% accommodating resistance x 1-2 reps / 8 sets
• Week 2: 55% bar weight plus 25% accommodating resistance x 1-2 reps / 6 sets
• Week 3: 60% bar weight plus 25% accommodating resistance x 1-2 reps / 4 sets

Dynamic Effort Bench Press Cycle

• Week 1: 40% bar weight plus 25% accommodating resistance x 3 reps / 8-9 sets
• Week 2: 45% bar weight plus 25% accommodating resistance x 3 reps / 8-9 sets
• Week 3: 50% bar weight plus 25% accommodating resistance x 3 reps / 8-9 sets

These cycles are pretty standard from the information that I've learned from Louie Simmons, both in person and through his educational materials. If you follow Westside than you've seen over the years they've pushed their dynamic effort work to 5 sets x 5 reps in the squat and deadlift and increased the number of sets on dynamic effort bench work dramatically as well. Speaking of bench, I've found better results in lowering the training percentages some. Ultimately you have to experiment and find what works for you and as a general rule of the thumb, if the bar speed is not fast and explosive on every rep of every set, you may need to lower the weight some.

For DE squats we use box squats most of the time as pausing on the box makes the list a static overcome by dynamic movement by eliminating the stretch reflex that occurs during a free squat. That being said free squats can be used as well. In addition we use a variety of specialty bars such as the cambered bar, safety squat bar, and buffalo bar. Belt squats are used for variety or when the athlete is dealing with shoulder or back pain that makes loading a bar on the upper back difficult.

DE deadlifts can be done with either a conventional or sumo stance. In addition, deficit deadlifts and rack pulls can be used as well for variety and addressing weak points.

DE bench work is usually done with a regular power bar with three different grips, close, medium, and wide. Additionally specialty bars such as the swiss bar and football bar can be used. We use variations such as the floor press and pin press as well.

If you are just beginning a conjugate training program keep it simple and stick to the basic box squat, bench press, and deadlift for a while before incorporating variations into the training plan. I feel this is one of the biggest reasons people fail with the conjugate method, they overlook the basics and start using too many variations too early.

Regardless of the exercise variation you choose to use, make sure you are basing the training percentages off of a 1 rep max, or estimated max, in that specific variation. Basing training percentages for a safety squat bar box squat off a free squat with a power bar will result in inaccurate training loads that will likely be too heavy, and using a safety bar box squat max to calculate training loads for a free squat will result in training loads that will likely be too light.

In conclusion the dynamic effort method is about improving an athlete's ability to produce force. The bar speed must be fast on every rep of every set. Stick with the basic movements for a few training cycles before incorporating variation into your training program. Training percentages are just a guideline, when in doubt decrease the training load and move faster!

Strength Training for Jiu-Jitsu Part 2: The Max Effort Method

The Max Effort (ME) Method is the most effective method for increasing strength. The ME Method consists of lifting very heavy weights, 90% of a 1RM or greater, for low repetitions, 1-3 reps typically. This is true high intensity training as intensity refers to the weight used in relation to a 1RM. The greater the percentage of the 1RM the higher the intensity.

The ME Method increases strength by improving both intermuscular coordination, the coordination within different muscles and groups of muscles, and intramuscular coordination, the interaction between the nervous system and the muscles which defines the number of muscle fibers that can be controlled by the nervous system within a muscle.

The major drawback to using the ME Method is that it can be extremely stressful to the nervous system. The downside for jiu-jitsu athletes would be if you are constantly frying the nervous system in the weight-room, it will begin to have a negative performance on your martial arts training by negatively affecting your recovery. Thus, I believe the ME Method should be used less frequently and should be substituted with the Submaximal Effort (SE) Method. The SE Method is the lifting of submaximal weights without going to failure. While the ME Method exposes the athlete to loads at 90% or greater, the SE Method allows the athlete to make progressive strength gains by lifting loads in the 75-85% range. 

For the jiu-jitsu athlete I recommend using the ME method mostly on the compound lower body lifts, such as squat and deadlift variations, and only occasionally on the upper lifts. The shoulder and elbow joints already take on a huge amount of stress for most grapplers, so I've found that heavy pressing movements done frequently further exacerbate those joint issues.

While it is common to work up to a 1RM on ME lifts, I've found that 3RM and 5RM loads are often better for jiu-jitsu athletes. Often we only perform 1RMs once monthly and use 3RM and 5RM loads the other workouts. 

Another factor to consider when using the ME Method is accommodation. If you continually attempt to lift heavier and heavier loads in the same movement, your progress will stall and eventually regress. You can avoid this by switching exercises on a weekly basis. This is one of the unique points of the Conjugate Method. Instead of sticking to a classical squat, deadlift, and bench press, variations of these movements that are close to the classical lift are introduced and rotated through the training plan. At different levels of preparedness certain exercises will be beneficial and certain ones will not. You must experiment and find which work best for you.

For ME lower body exercises I've always favored variations of the deadlift, good morning, and squat for the jiu-jitsu athletes and fighters I've trained over the years. Some of the favorites include:

• sumo deadlift
• conventional deadlifts in the power rack off pins where the weights are 2.5", 4.5", and 6.5" off the floor
• sumo and conventional deficit deadlift standing on 2" or 4" mats
• block deadlifts pulling from 2", 5", or 8" blocks
• good mornings with the safety squat bar or buffalo bar
• good mornings suspended from straps and starting at the bottom of the movement
• low box squats with the safety squat bar
• Zercher squats
• belt squats

Here is what a typical 4-week max effort lower body cycle looks like:

• Week 1: deficit deadlift standing on 2" mats work up to a 5RM
• Week 2: low box squat with the safety squat bar working up to a 3RM
• Week 3: good morning with the buffalo bar working up to a 5 rep set keeping 1-2 reps in the tank
• Week 4: sumo deadlift working up to a 1RM

After the main lift we will move on to accessory work as needed by the individual for the lower body muscles such as the hamstrings, quads, calves / shins, lower back, and abs.

As I mentioned previously we tend to stay away from the ME Method for upper body lifts in favor of the SE Method. Our favorite upper body lifts for the ME / SE workout are:

• standing overhead press
• close grip bench press
• Z-press (pressing overhead from the power rack pins while sitting on the floor)
• floor presses
• close grip incline bench press
• pin press

Here is what a typical 4-week submaximal effort / maximal effort upper body cycle looks like:

• Week 1: floor press work up to a 3 sets x 3 reps keeping a rep or two in the tank on each set
• Week 2: standing overhead press work up to 2 sets x 5 reps keeping a rep or two in the tank on each set
• Week 3: close grip bench press work up to a 1, 3, or 5RM
• Week 4: Z-press work up to 2 sets x 6-8 reps keeping a rep or two in the tank on each set 

After the main lift we will move on to accessory work as needed by the individual for the upper body muscles such as the triceps, shoulders, lats / upper body, biceps, neck, and grip.

It is extremely important to keep track of the weights and reps you do on the ME and SE exercises you perform in your training cycle and try to break them by 5lbs every time they come back around in your subsequent training cycles to ensure continued strength gains. 5lbs does not seem like a lot, but to quote Louie Simmons, "What's 5lbs? 5lbs a month is 60lbs in a year and you'll pay me for that kind of progress!"

In the next article we will look at the dynamic effort method.

Strength Training for Jiu-Jitsu Part 1: An Overview of the Conjugate Method

Strength training and conditioning for jiu-jitsu needs to cover many different physical abilities as the sport requires many different physical abilities. A jiu-jitsu athlete must have high levels of aerobic and anaerobic conditioning, excellent mobility and flexibility, and have access to all velocities of strength from extremely fast velocities (explosive power and speed strength), to slow velocities (strength speed and absolute strength), to extremely slow and zero velocity (quasi-isometric and isometric strength).

What is the best way for a jiu-jitsu athlete to develop these abilities? The conjugate method as developed and popularized by the late Louie Simmons. Essentially, the conjugate method is a system of rotating special strengths exercises to keep an athlete at an extremely high level of preparedness year-round. It allows for the concurrent development of multiple physical abilities on a weekly basis, avoiding the need to implement linear training blocks where an athlete focuses on one specific physical ability for a certain period of weeks before moving on to another ultimately leading up to peaking for a competition.

In a linear training system an athlete will likely focus on muscle hypertrophy for a period of 2-4 weeks, then move on to a strength block for a period of 4-6 weeks, then move on to a power block for 2-4 weeks then move into a peaking phase before the competition.

In the conjugate method and athlete works multiple physical abilities in a weekly training cycle and constantly works to raise those abilities. This allows them to always be at or above 90% so that they are always at a 3-4 week peak and taper phase from a competition. This is great for jiu-jitsu athletes as they typically compete multiple times per year.

Conjugate periodization utilizes three methods. The maximal effort method, the dynamic effort method, and the repeated effort method. There is a fourth method we utilize as well called the submaximal effort method.

The maximal effort (ME) method is the lifting of very heavy weights at or above 90% of a 1-rep max. This method improves absolute strength by training the nervous system to recruit the most motor units in the muscles doing the work. This method makes the athlete very strong, but is very stressful on the nervous system.

The dynamic effort (DE) method is the lifting of submaximal weights with maximal speed. Essentially we are lifting lighter weights as fast as possible while maintaining good form and technique. Jumps and throws are sometimes incorporated as well and the dynamic effort method improves the muscles rate of force production, or how fast the athlete can recruit the motor units of the muscles doing the work. This method makes the athlete fast and powerful. Accommodating resistance (AR), usually in the form of attaching bands to the barbell for various lifts, is typically used as well. We will look at the specifics in a future article, but AR dramatically enhances an athlete's ability to produce force.

The repeated effort (RE) method is the lifting of submaximal weights so that the last repetitions of the set bring the athlete to, or very close to, failure. This method is great for muscle hypertrophy (making the muscles bigger) as well as isolating and strengthening weak muscles.

The submaximal effort (SE) method is lifting of submaximal weights without approaching failure. This is a good option for building strength without stressing the nervous system to the same degree as the ME method.

In addition to these methods for developing strength, aerobic and anaerobic conditioning and flexibility and mobility drills are implemented weekly as well.

We will break down the specifics of each method in their own future articles and talk about developing the training plan as well. This is where individualization is absolutely necessary as different individuals are at different levels of preparedness. A high level competitor in their mid-20s will have far different training needs than a recreational competitor in their mid-40s.

To help you visualize what a weekly training schedule utilizing the conjugate method looks like, I will close this article with my current training plan.

Sunday

11:00am - maximal or submaximal effort lower body, repeated effort accessory exercises for the lower body

Monday

6:30am - jiu-jitsu class

8:00am - aerobic or anaerobic conditioning

Tuesday

9:00am - maximal or submaximal effort upper body, repeated effort accessory exercises for the upper body

Wednesday

6:30am - jiu-jitsu class

8:00am - aerobic or anaerobic conditioning

Thursday

10am - dynamic effort lower and upper body, repeated effort exercises for lower and upper body 

Friday

2:30pm - aerobic or anaerobic conditioning

6pm - jiu-jitsu class

Saturday 

Off

I usually perform specific exercises for the neck, grip and core on my three main lifting days, or as extra workouts on non-lifting days as those exercises are easy to recover from. In addition I do some sort of mobility and/or flexibility almost daily. I find that planning my strength training on days I don't train jiu-jitsu is best for recovery purposes. 

Keep in mind, this is my current training program which reflects my level of preparedness and ability to recovery, and your individual needs may be much different from mine.

We will get into the specifics of conjugate training for jiu-jitsu in upcoming articles and until then train hard, but train smart!

Strength Training for BJJ: The Z-Press.

I use a lot of variety with pressing exercises for the jiu-jitsu athletes I work with, and the Z-Press is one of the staples.

While I think trying to mimic actual sporting patterns in the gym is a mistake, using exercises that strengthen muscles the way we use them is sport is important.

The Z-Press is a great way to strengthen upper body pressing muscles while simultaneously strengthening the trunk musculature the way it may be used in seated guard positions. 

Set a barbell on power rack pins below your chin, sit on the floor with the legs in front of the body, and press the bar off the pins to the overhead locked out position.

This static overcome by dynamic exercise builds tremendous strength from the bottom position due to the stretch shortening cycle being eliminated as the bar must rest fully on the pins every rep.

We will usually use the submaximal effort method performing around 75-85% of a 1 rep max for 3-5 sets x 3-5 reps or the repeated effort method by performing 3-4 sets x 8-15 reps for strength and muscular endurance/hypertrophy respectively. 

Developing Explosive Power for the MMA Fighter.

Jumping is one of the best ways to develop explosive power in the hips and legs for MMA fighters, and all athletes really.

For my athletes I like to have them build up to 40 jumps twice per week.

We perform all manners of jumps: box jumps, vertical jumps, broad jumps, jumps from the knees, single leg/double leg, bodyweight-only, using external resistance, etc.

Since MMA fighters required powerful hips and legs, one of our favorite variations is the kneeling broad jump combo demonstrated here by MMA fighter David Toranzo.

The athlete starts in the kneeling position, jumps to the feet, then immediately performs a broad jump.

We look for a very short amortization phase when transitioning from the kneeling jump to the broad jump.

This is a great variation for fighters since it is a horizontal jump and closing distance is a crucial aspect in the sport of mixed martial arts.

Start with 20 total reps and build to 40 total reps, in any set and rep scheme that you prefer, twice per week.