Wednesday, June 27, 2007
By now, most sports fans are very familiar with the UFC and the sport of Mixed Martial Arts. In fact, the sport is rapidly growing to be more popular than boxing. The UFC Ultimate Fighting Championship) has become a household name in many countries around the world. The Cage Fury Fighting Championship is not as well known as the UFC, but they are doing a good job of drawing attention to themselves, because hardcore MMA fans across the globe are anxiously awaiting this weekends show, and the main even in particular. A topic that is often debated is whether or not a world-class boxer would be able to compete successfully in Mixed Martial Arts. Perhaps on Saturday, June 23rd 2007, we'll know at least how former world heavyweight boxing champion Ray Mercer performs in his MMA debut against an internet legend and brawler by the name of Kimbo Slice.
Ray Mercer has a very impressive boxing record, which includes a WBO World Heavyweight Championship, as well as an Olympic gold medal. During his boxing career, Ray Mercer has fought some of the best heavyweights of our generation, such as Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, Larry Holmes, and Wladimir Klitschko. Since retiring from professional boxing, "Merciless" Ray Mercer has decided he wants to try Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), the fastest growing sport in the world.
Mercer’s opponent will be another big name making his professional MMA debut. Kimbo Slice is a big, scary looking heavyweight who developed a cult following on the internet due to his famous bare knuckle brawl videos that are posted on various internet sites. Kimbo has appeared very impressive in these fights, but I'm not sure about the quality of his opponents. Nonetheless, Kimbo's power seems unquestionable. Also, in 2003, Kimbo Slice squared off against Sean Gannon, a MMA practicioner who later fought (and lost) in the UFC. Sean Gannon won his fight against Kimbo, leaving Kimbo laying on the ground unable to continue. However, most of Kimbo's opponents were not as skilled. If you watch his videos online, you will see overweight and untrained fighters that use names such as "Afro Puff" or "Big Mac" and inevitably they get punched out by Kimbo.
Both Ray Mercer and Kimbo Slice are primarily stand-up fighters, preferring to slug it out with their fists. Most MMA fans don't believe either of the fighters have any ground skills, but Kimbo has been seen working on his grappling with Bas Rutten, a MMA legend. Ideally, fans would like to see a slugfest, but I won't be surprised if Kimbo tries to take this fight to the ground, considering Ray Mercer is a former boxing world champion with fierce punching power.
Age could also be a determining factor in this match. Kimbo is 31 years old, and Ray Mercer is 46, but that extra experience could be in Mercer's favor. I definitely give the advantage to Ray Mercer if this turns out to be a stand-up battle. Ray Mercer hits like a truck and is known to have an iron chin. Kimbo should try to take this fight to the mat as quickly as he can, unless he just feels confident that he can take Mercer's punches. Also, Kimbo should not make the mistake of underestimating Ray Mercer on the ground, as he has supposedly been training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and also has some background in wrestling.
My heart wants Ray Mercer to win this fight, but if you're going to guess who will win you have to consider which fighter has more desire to win. Kimbo is young, and may still feel like he has something to prove, whereas Ray Mercer has been champion and already established himself in the fight sports world. In 2005 Ray Mercer fought a kickboxing match in K1 against Remy Bonjasky, and quit after being kicked upside the head. I may be wrong, but I'm still going to say Mercer wins this. Regardless of the outcome, I just hope it lives up to the hype and is a legitimate, outstanding fight.
Ray Mercer has a very impressive boxing record, which includes a WBO World Heavyweight Championship, as well as an Olympic gold medal. During his boxing career, Ray Mercer has fought some of the best heavyweights of our generation, such as Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, Larry Holmes, and Wladimir Klitschko. Since retiring from professional boxing, "Merciless" Ray Mercer has decided he wants to try Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), the fastest growing sport in the world.
Mercer’s opponent will be another big name making his professional MMA debut. Kimbo Slice is a big, scary looking heavyweight who developed a cult following on the internet due to his famous bare knuckle brawl videos that are posted on various internet sites. Kimbo has appeared very impressive in these fights, but I'm not sure about the quality of his opponents. Nonetheless, Kimbo's power seems unquestionable. Also, in 2003, Kimbo Slice squared off against Sean Gannon, a MMA practicioner who later fought (and lost) in the UFC. Sean Gannon won his fight against Kimbo, leaving Kimbo laying on the ground unable to continue. However, most of Kimbo's opponents were not as skilled. If you watch his videos online, you will see overweight and untrained fighters that use names such as "Afro Puff" or "Big Mac" and inevitably they get punched out by Kimbo.
Both Ray Mercer and Kimbo Slice are primarily stand-up fighters, preferring to slug it out with their fists. Most MMA fans don't believe either of the fighters have any ground skills, but Kimbo has been seen working on his grappling with Bas Rutten, a MMA legend. Ideally, fans would like to see a slugfest, but I won't be surprised if Kimbo tries to take this fight to the ground, considering Ray Mercer is a former boxing world champion with fierce punching power.
Age could also be a determining factor in this match. Kimbo is 31 years old, and Ray Mercer is 46, but that extra experience could be in Mercer's favor. I definitely give the advantage to Ray Mercer if this turns out to be a stand-up battle. Ray Mercer hits like a truck and is known to have an iron chin. Kimbo should try to take this fight to the mat as quickly as he can, unless he just feels confident that he can take Mercer's punches. Also, Kimbo should not make the mistake of underestimating Ray Mercer on the ground, as he has supposedly been training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and also has some background in wrestling.
My heart wants Ray Mercer to win this fight, but if you're going to guess who will win you have to consider which fighter has more desire to win. Kimbo is young, and may still feel like he has something to prove, whereas Ray Mercer has been champion and already established himself in the fight sports world. In 2005 Ray Mercer fought a kickboxing match in K1 against Remy Bonjasky, and quit after being kicked upside the head. I may be wrong, but I'm still going to say Mercer wins this. Regardless of the outcome, I just hope it lives up to the hype and is a legitimate, outstanding fight.
General Tips
When you spar, how hard should you and your partner hit?
The short answer is – as hard as you want.
If you’re preparing for a full contact match, then at least part of your training will need to be full contact. Most martial artist don’t compete regularly in full contact though, and many of them don’t compete at all. For them, sparring full contact probably isn’t what they want to do . . . but then they miss the benefits of full contact training.
And what are those benefits? Well, hitting and kicking full power requires better conditioning, better set ups, more exact use of leverage, footwork and rotation and it conditions you to not freak out when you get hit.
On the other hand, you’re going to have injuries – jammed fingers and toes top my list. Also, getting hit hard in the head is sort of like getting x-rays: you should only get so many in a lifetime.
So how hard should you spar?
Here’s how I like to spar in my school. We wear head gear with a face guard, and a sturdy rib and chest protector. The rules are: VERY light contact with punches to the head (anything more than that seems to escalate), light kicks to the head. For some reason, they’re easier to control than punches, probably because the person is farther away and you don’t feel the pressure to back them off with power. Full contact punches and kicks to the body wherever it’s covered by the chest and rib protector – again, I use the most solid ones I can find. Full power (or close to it) leg kicks. They sting, but I’ve yet to see an injury from a thigh kick. Take downs are allowed, and the fight continues if it goes to the ground.
Following these rules, we’ve been able to have good matches, get a great workout, and improve timing, power, combinations, and both stand up and ground fighting.
Doesn’t all the gear get in the way? Of course it does. The face guard blocks vision, the chest guard is bulky and makes it difficult to do some moves.
You don’t have protective gear on the street, so why wear it in the School?
Huh?
Who said anything about the street? It’s a sport. If you want to get completely “realistic” in your training, why not just go at it with baseball bats, or guns? A sport is a sport. It has advantages and disadvantages when you try to apply it to anything other than the sport itself.
So, if you haven’t sparred the way I’ve just described, you might want to give it a try. I recommend that you only use a chest and rib protector that is so strong you can let your partner side kick you full power in the chest and you get knocked down but not injured or even bruised in the least.
Being able to hit that hard is fun. Knowing that nobody is going to get hurt keeps it fun.
The short answer is – as hard as you want.
If you’re preparing for a full contact match, then at least part of your training will need to be full contact. Most martial artist don’t compete regularly in full contact though, and many of them don’t compete at all. For them, sparring full contact probably isn’t what they want to do . . . but then they miss the benefits of full contact training.
And what are those benefits? Well, hitting and kicking full power requires better conditioning, better set ups, more exact use of leverage, footwork and rotation and it conditions you to not freak out when you get hit.
On the other hand, you’re going to have injuries – jammed fingers and toes top my list. Also, getting hit hard in the head is sort of like getting x-rays: you should only get so many in a lifetime.
So how hard should you spar?
Here’s how I like to spar in my school. We wear head gear with a face guard, and a sturdy rib and chest protector. The rules are: VERY light contact with punches to the head (anything more than that seems to escalate), light kicks to the head. For some reason, they’re easier to control than punches, probably because the person is farther away and you don’t feel the pressure to back them off with power. Full contact punches and kicks to the body wherever it’s covered by the chest and rib protector – again, I use the most solid ones I can find. Full power (or close to it) leg kicks. They sting, but I’ve yet to see an injury from a thigh kick. Take downs are allowed, and the fight continues if it goes to the ground.
Following these rules, we’ve been able to have good matches, get a great workout, and improve timing, power, combinations, and both stand up and ground fighting.
Doesn’t all the gear get in the way? Of course it does. The face guard blocks vision, the chest guard is bulky and makes it difficult to do some moves.
You don’t have protective gear on the street, so why wear it in the School?
Huh?
Who said anything about the street? It’s a sport. If you want to get completely “realistic” in your training, why not just go at it with baseball bats, or guns? A sport is a sport. It has advantages and disadvantages when you try to apply it to anything other than the sport itself.
So, if you haven’t sparred the way I’ve just described, you might want to give it a try. I recommend that you only use a chest and rib protector that is so strong you can let your partner side kick you full power in the chest and you get knocked down but not injured or even bruised in the least.
Being able to hit that hard is fun. Knowing that nobody is going to get hurt keeps it fun.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Build Lean Muscle Mass
If you have ever for one second thought that becoming the next arnold is going to be a walk in the park|going to be just another stroll on the beach] and that you can simply walk into the gym, “go through the motions” and then go home, you are sadly wrong.
The reality is that if you want to experience any appreciable gains in muscle size and strength, You have to come ready and be set to train hard. This is one of the key factors separating those who make tny gains from those who make outstanding gains.
Most people just plain don’t train hard enough!
As soon as the exercise starts to get difficult their spotter jumps in and starts helping or they put the weight down altogether.
BIG mistake!
The gym is a battle field, and if you want to be victorious, you must be willing to endure the battle.
Your muscles grow because of an evolutionary, adaptive response to the environment. Intense weightlifting is perceived as a threat to your survival, and the body responds to this by increasing the size and strength of the muscles to battle against the threat. Therefore, in order to see the most dramatic response in size and strength, you must push your body as hard as you safely can.
This can be achieved by performing all sets in the gym to the point of concentric muscular failure…
Concentric Muscular Failure: The point at which no further positive repetitions can be performed despite your greatest efforts.
There are 2 main phases to every exercise that you perform: the concentric and the eccentric. The concentric is the “positive” portion of the exercise (such as the “pushing” movement of a bench press) and the eccentric is the “negative” portion of the exercise (the “lowering” movement of a bench press).
Your goal in the gym is to perform each exercise to the point where no further concentric repetitions can be executed using proper form despite your greatest efforts to do so.
This is very challenging and will require a lot of mental toughness on your part. I’m not going to sit here and tell you a bunch of lies by saying that training for muscle size is an easy thing. It’s not!
Anyone who tries to tell you that training to failure is easy is flat-out lying. But if you’re serious about changing your physique and seeing serious results, this is simply what needs to be done.
Training to concentric failure will place the greatest amount of stress on the musculature and will produce the most dramatic “artificial threat” possible.
Some say that training to lose is not necessary in order for muscle growth to Happen, and the truth is that they are absolutely rite. You could never train to failure and over time you would still see gains in muscle mass and strength. The only true requirement for muscle growth to occur is progression.
However, (and that’s a big however) if you’re like 99% of the population, then you want to experience those gains as quickly and efficiently as you possibly can. While training to failure isn’t necessary for growth to occur, it IS necessary if you want maximum growth to happen in the least period of time possible.
shed those lbs and finally see your abs after years dont be ashamed Click Here! For all the information to trim body fat
The reality is that if you want to experience any appreciable gains in muscle size and strength, You have to come ready and be set to train hard. This is one of the key factors separating those who make tny gains from those who make outstanding gains.
Most people just plain don’t train hard enough!
As soon as the exercise starts to get difficult their spotter jumps in and starts helping or they put the weight down altogether.
BIG mistake!
The gym is a battle field, and if you want to be victorious, you must be willing to endure the battle.
Your muscles grow because of an evolutionary, adaptive response to the environment. Intense weightlifting is perceived as a threat to your survival, and the body responds to this by increasing the size and strength of the muscles to battle against the threat. Therefore, in order to see the most dramatic response in size and strength, you must push your body as hard as you safely can.
This can be achieved by performing all sets in the gym to the point of concentric muscular failure…
Concentric Muscular Failure: The point at which no further positive repetitions can be performed despite your greatest efforts.
There are 2 main phases to every exercise that you perform: the concentric and the eccentric. The concentric is the “positive” portion of the exercise (such as the “pushing” movement of a bench press) and the eccentric is the “negative” portion of the exercise (the “lowering” movement of a bench press).
Your goal in the gym is to perform each exercise to the point where no further concentric repetitions can be executed using proper form despite your greatest efforts to do so.
This is very challenging and will require a lot of mental toughness on your part. I’m not going to sit here and tell you a bunch of lies by saying that training for muscle size is an easy thing. It’s not!
Anyone who tries to tell you that training to failure is easy is flat-out lying. But if you’re serious about changing your physique and seeing serious results, this is simply what needs to be done.
Training to concentric failure will place the greatest amount of stress on the musculature and will produce the most dramatic “artificial threat” possible.
Some say that training to lose is not necessary in order for muscle growth to Happen, and the truth is that they are absolutely rite. You could never train to failure and over time you would still see gains in muscle mass and strength. The only true requirement for muscle growth to occur is progression.
However, (and that’s a big however) if you’re like 99% of the population, then you want to experience those gains as quickly and efficiently as you possibly can. While training to failure isn’t necessary for growth to occur, it IS necessary if you want maximum growth to happen in the least period of time possible.
shed those lbs and finally see your abs after years dont be ashamed Click Here! For all the information to trim body fat
MMA Unleashed
Can Mixed Martial Arts Survive With Only One Big Show?
I could feel a movement in the force.
Seriously, I felt like Luke Skywalker detecting Darth Vader. Except this time it was Dana White buying Pride FC.
And to be fair and accurate, it was Dana White using the Fertitas Brothers money to buy the struggling Japanese promotion.
It has the underground MMA forums buzzing. Can MMA survive with only one big show?
It's amazing how a group of pimply-faced teenagers pretending to be adults on an anonymous chat forum can stir up so much testosterone. The arguements ranged from geo-political, to criminal (the Yakuza!), to the conspiratorial, to invoking the RICO act and jailing White for his crimes against humanity.
At the end of the day, there is truly only one threat to MMA.
Boredom.
If you watch reruns of Pride FC on Fight Network, or old K-1, or ancient UCC from Quebec, you get to peer into a time machine to the earlier days of this sport. I saw the Butterbean vs Gomi match the other day. The first time I saw it I laughed. You'd never see a 350 pounds man vs a 150 pound man in the UFC. Or would you?
But the novelty of the match wore off super quickly. And frankly I can't watch it again because I know how it ends. There is no dazzling displays of skill, technique or MMA wizardry.
There is a place for David vs. Goliath freakshow matches...but that place is rapidly shrinking.
What match do YOU want to see? Butterbean vs. Gomi or George St. Pierre vs. Matt Hughes Part two? I blew out a tonsil screaming for GSP in that match. And the promise of part three has me forking over the PPV dollars, guaranteed.
My message to Dana White is simple. You have been entrusted with a responsibility to this sport. You've looked like a genius so far. Just don't be boring.
Personally, I can't wait to see what mixed martial arts looks like by 2010!
I could feel a movement in the force.
Seriously, I felt like Luke Skywalker detecting Darth Vader. Except this time it was Dana White buying Pride FC.
And to be fair and accurate, it was Dana White using the Fertitas Brothers money to buy the struggling Japanese promotion.
It has the underground MMA forums buzzing. Can MMA survive with only one big show?
It's amazing how a group of pimply-faced teenagers pretending to be adults on an anonymous chat forum can stir up so much testosterone. The arguements ranged from geo-political, to criminal (the Yakuza!), to the conspiratorial, to invoking the RICO act and jailing White for his crimes against humanity.
At the end of the day, there is truly only one threat to MMA.
Boredom.
If you watch reruns of Pride FC on Fight Network, or old K-1, or ancient UCC from Quebec, you get to peer into a time machine to the earlier days of this sport. I saw the Butterbean vs Gomi match the other day. The first time I saw it I laughed. You'd never see a 350 pounds man vs a 150 pound man in the UFC. Or would you?
But the novelty of the match wore off super quickly. And frankly I can't watch it again because I know how it ends. There is no dazzling displays of skill, technique or MMA wizardry.
There is a place for David vs. Goliath freakshow matches...but that place is rapidly shrinking.
What match do YOU want to see? Butterbean vs. Gomi or George St. Pierre vs. Matt Hughes Part two? I blew out a tonsil screaming for GSP in that match. And the promise of part three has me forking over the PPV dollars, guaranteed.
My message to Dana White is simple. You have been entrusted with a responsibility to this sport. You've looked like a genius so far. Just don't be boring.
Personally, I can't wait to see what mixed martial arts looks like by 2010!
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