I think it’s pretty clear, the less times you get hit in the head the better. I don’t think anyone can argue that. But the debate over MMA training and how hard or not hard you should train continues.
The main issue seems to be with sparring. There are those who say that sparring really isn’t necessary once you get to a certain level, and then there are those who say sparring is the only way to get ready for a fight.
Former UFC fighter and current analyst Brian Stann recently took to Twitter and sent out a series of tweets about the issue, saying that after seeing how NFL teams practice he thinks it’s clear that MMA fighters overtrain a lot and take way to much head trauma.
Check it out!
Amazing how different NFL practices are now from when I played college ball. Great focus on athletes peaking and being healthy.
— Brian Stann (@BrianStann) October 8, 2015
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
— Brian Stann (@BrianStann) October 8, 2015
looking at the science the Falcons track their players “output” each day, MMA fighters probably lose yrs of career due to training intensity
— Brian Stann (@BrianStann) October 8, 2015
Yes, already happening in smaller camps, Yair Rodriguez’s coaches told me he sparred 4x whole camp https://t.co/qbKpfd3PmK
— Brian Stann (@BrianStann) October 8, 2015