A couple of years ago, good cardio wasn’t essential to winning in mixed martial arts… Simply because the fighters back then wasn’t as skilled. So, back then, it was much easier to use your skills to override the other guys cardio.
Today, everything has changed. The fighters are more skilled and a lot of the “tricks” and techniques simply doesn’t work anymore. So, if you’re into MMA then good cardio is what will make or break you.
This is also true when we’re talking about your training sessions. If you aren’t in good shape, then you’ll be more focused on your breathing and your overall tiredness, than on the techniques you’re about to learn.
This is a viscous circle…
You see, when you are too tired to perfect your techniques, then you won’t improve… and the main reason to have good technique is save your energy so you can last longer…
Compare this to a guy who has perfected his punching to a point where he’ll knock out his opponent with 1 punch, How much energy do you think he’ll need to win?
Now, what about another guy, who cannot hit anything at all… he may hit his target 1 out of 10 times. How much cardio does he need?
This is just an example, but it illustrates my point here:
Good Cardio = Better Technique = More Wins
Bad Cardio = Bad Technique = Less Wins
So, how can you improve your cardio?
Improving your cardio isn’t that difficult… The hard part is to balance your time between technique and cardio.
There are many good programs out there, which are specifically designed for improving your cardio in regards to MMA training.
You can either buy such a guide or ask your trainer what he’d recommend…