I can’t be the only person at NAIT that is still jonesing after Edmonton’s first UFC event a couple weeks ago? I can’t be the only one fantasizing about walking to the octagon to your favourite Metallica song, minutes before pummelling some person for competition? Well, maybe not the last one but I know there are some people out there that have always wanted to try their hands at MMA training. This may not even be to compete. It may just be a way of doing something you enjoy to stay healthy or lose weight. Well if you’re one of those people, here are some health benefits to training MMA.
Health Benefits:
Total body workout: Now this isn’t like your normal workout. We aren’t just hitting the dumbbells here. You get a cardio and strength training workout, all in one. MMA is a high intensity workout that can benefit you greatly over time. Take that treadmill!
Co-ordination: MMA is sport that uses every facet of the body. When fighting an opponent, you will use a mixture of jabs, kicks, punches and other movements that all need to come together on a target nicely to do any damage (even if it’s just a punching bag). Using your body well, including judging things like timing and distance to deal and dodge blows, is hard when you don’t have co-ordination to start with. Now, imagine what you can achieve after training like that!
Flexibility: Grappling is a major part of MMA. When training your grappling skills, it may help you more with your passive flexibility. Active training, like stretching in general, can help you make sure you don’t pull muscles, sustain fractures or create any other mobility issues.
Happier you: As generic as it is to say staying active will make you feel better about yourself, it’s true. Imagine after a certain amount of time training MMA, you see your body changing, your eating habits change, you can move around life better and you just learned one of the most popular sports in the world.
If you would like to feel some of these health benefits, there are places in Edmonton that train in MMA. Kamikaze Punishment Foundation, Frank Lee’s Muay Thai Kickboxing, Edmonton MMA and UFC Gym are some. This is a sport where it doesn’t matter about your age, health or sex; it’s about doing something fun and reaping the rewards from that. I mean, why not let off some steam from all the book work or maybe you just want to punch some stuff after watching UFC 215.
– Tre Lopushinsky
– Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
