Training for Warriors DVD

: Training for Warriors DVD
By Jim Wendler




Let me first start off by saying that I’m a casual fan of MMA. I’m not a huge fan, but love watching the fights. In fact, if you are a man and are not at least a little interested in MMA or something similar, I’m willing to bet that you have Sarah McLaughlin on your I-Pod and have a host of multi-colored bumper stickers on your car advertising your political and social beliefs. Even if you don’t appreciate or understand the strategy, nothing beats a Saturday night of MMA Pay per View followed by a trip to a Gentleman’s Club. After watching some of the fights, I have concluded that MMA fighters are some of the best conditioned athletes that I have ever seen. Strong, fast, conditioned, agile and mentally tough. This video only reinforced this belief.

As many of you already know, the Parisi School has put out a large number of DVD’s, all of which are of high quality; both in production and in knowledge. There is the Parisi Warm up Method, the Deceleration Method, Agility Training, and the Combine Training Video. But the Training for Warriors DVD is by far the best one they’ve done. When combined with the Training for Warriors book, this is a hard combo to beat.

So what’s in the DVD? Everything you can imagine. Here is a sample workout from the DVD:

Over speed treadmill – 8.5 mph @ a 10% grade for 15-20 seconds
No rest to Clean and Jerk (starting from knees…it has to be seen) for 5 reps
Repeat two times
Over speed treadmill – 8.5 mph @ a 10% grade for 15-20 seconds
No rest to High Pulls (starting from knees) for 5 reps
Repeat two times
Over speed treadmill – 8.5 mph @ a 10% grade for 15-20 seconds
No rest to Dips and Bench press – 5 reps a piece
Repeat two times
Over speed treadmill – 8.5 mph @ a 10% grade for 15-20 seconds
No rest to pull-up/chin up combo – 3 reps a piece
Repeat two times
There is no rest other than walking back and forth between exercises.
Martin Rooney does a fabulous job of not only showing what they do but explaining why the do it. He goes over every portion of their training and it shows exactly what they do. This is done throughout the DVD so you are never left guessing. I am also impressed by Martin and his conditioning level. He is right there with some of the fighters and does a great job of coaching them and bringing up their level. I’m sure they do the same.

The DVD goes extensively into their warm up routine, which many of you have questions about and is also gone over in their Warm Up Method DVD. But this warm up is a little more intense and certainly something that many people can’t do, at least right away. I have done the Parisi Warm Up but these guys take it to another level. And it’s just their warm-up!

They also show various hurdle mobility drills, speed ladder drills and cone drills that can be used for warm-up or agility training for any athlete. I think this portion of the DVD can greatly benefit any coach of any sport. You can see how the drills are performed and how they are set up. Remember that these drills are not shown but actually done.

Martin also goes over bar complexes (a series of lifts done right after the other for conditioning), treadmill training (as was detailed above but with a several different twists), med ball circuits, upper body warm ups (involving bear crawls and med balls), sledgehammer training, and a lot of sled work, for both strength and recovery. All of these things can be used by all athletes, not just MMA fighters.

The strength training portion of the DVD goes over some of the different lifts that they use but they don’t go over the basics of squatting and benching. Most of the exercises that they do are ones that aren’t seen everyday but have a great purpose for fighters.

Perhaps the most impressive thing on the DVD is Kyra Gracie who easily performs pull-ups while holding on to a Gi. This is one of the most impressive things I have ever seen.

The DVD is a two disc set and covers 4 hours. This is well worth the money and I would highly recommend it for any coach of any sport. There is some great information on this DVD and Martin goes out of his way to not only talk about the physical aspects of training, but the mental portion of it, too. He constantly talks about raising your own expectations and bringing your level higher and higher. This is what makes you great.