MMA (short for Mixed Martial Arts) is experiencing massive growth around the world.  The sport’s popularity has generated an increase in demand for MMA gyms.  Some fans and athletes in remote areas don’t have a gym nearby and are forced to start their own MMA home gym.  Creating your own home gym is fun and easy.  Here are some tips to help you get the most out of  your home training.

Equipment

  • Heavy Bag – If you could have just one piece of training equipment at home, this would be it.  You can use it to practice punches, high kicks, leg kicks, knees, elbows and other strikes.  Striking a heavy bag is both a resistance and cardio workout.
  • Dumb bells or kettle bells – Great for strength and conditioning drills.  You don’t need to put up massive weight like a body builder.  Smaller weights with more reps will help too.
  • Mat – Wrestling or martial arts mats can be expensive.  Check craigslist.com or local classifieds for used ones if you’re on a budget.
  • Timer – A good timer to help with sparring, shadow-boxing, and conditioning drills.  It’s good to train in 5 minutes rounds so you get a feel the length of time of an actual MMA competition round.

Instruction

  • DVDs can be a great way to pick up techniques.  Make sure they come from experienced MMA instructors or fighters.
  • Books are great because you can read them anywhere.  Train on your commute or on your couch.  Eddie Bravo puts out good books on jiu-jitsu.
  • Online MMA training is one of the best options for training at home.  YouTube has tons of free technique videos.  Quality online MMA training programs like DamageControlMMA.com offer a huge library of training videos and a forum for direct access to ask questions to professional instructors.  They charge a small monthly fee but will save a lot of money compared to the cost of a traditional MMA gym membership.