Training to be a MMA fighter with Felix Erazo

To achieve success in any sport, a strict and disciplined training regime is crucial to excelling. But how you train and prepare your body widely varies depending on what your goal is. Competing in a MMA fight is one of the most physically demanding activities an athlete can endure, but few realize how much time and effort it takes to get ready for the cage.

To get an idea of what it takes to prepare and train to be a MMA fighter, I’ve recently spoken with Felix Erazo of Semper Fitness in Whippany. Felix is a NASM (National Academy of Sports Medicine) certified personal trainer, corrective exercise specialist and certified TRX Suspension trainer with more than ten years of experience in the health and fitness industry. A former Marine, Felix got his start in the world of training shortly after being honorably discharged. He currently conditions The Ultimate Fighter Season 12’s Andy Main out of AMA Fight Club as well as other top up-and-coming prospects.

His passion for health and fitness led him to kickboxing and grappling, where he furthered his knowledge of martial arts and combined it with his extensive training to purse his ambition of educating the public on what true fitness is, and enabling them to enhance their overall health and physical performance. Upon becoming certified in 2003, Felix has worked with an array of clients—from athletes looking to perform better in their specific sport, beginners looking to improve their health and fitness, and recently MMA fighters looking to have an edge over the competition.

Although over the years Felix’s client list has changed and his fitness empire has vastly grown, one thing that has remained the same since the start has been his core belief, ‘Don’t just look better…PERFORM BETTER.’

“Exposure to MMA completely changed my view of training,” said Felix. “Most people go to the gym and follow the old school, 1970’s methodology of training one body part per day. After the first week of doing MMA, I realized how de-conditioned I really was and it was a very humbling experience.”

From that point on Felix focused on educating himself on proper body mechanics and movement patterns in relation to MMA, and embraced what was out there and learned from the top people in MMA on what worked, and applied it to working out.

“It all comes down to functional strength, core strength, speed, agility and muscular endurance,” said Felix. “At the end of the day, stamina is king!”

MMA fighters may be one the most unappreciated group of athletes in the world, not garnering the same respect and prestige as professional boxers, baseball, and basketball or football players. And at the same time they participate in the most physically demanding competition available, one-on-one combat.

“People don’t understand the dynamics of what goes into MMA training,” said Felix. “I have the most respect for what these guys do, from twenty-one year olds like Andy Main to Randy Couture who is in his late forties. Their work effort is unrelenting and they always strive to be the best at what they do.”

As an avid MMA fan for many years, I have had the opportunity to watch some of the best fighters in the world perform at the ultimate stage, the UFC octagon. I wanted to know what it took to get there.

Felix stated that the prevention of overtraining is one of the most important aspects in training to be a MMA fighter. “A lot of fighters give 110% all the time, and it takes a toll on the body. Some fighters show up for a fight and they are spent after completing their training camp. It is very important to approach training in a scientific manner. You want to do just enough training to illicit a response; if you over train, you are taking the risk of getting injured.”

Felix went on to add, “Overtraining happens to the best guys out there. You get all pumped up, the adrenaline is flowing, and it’s hard to listen to your body. But when you have an ache or something doesn’t feel right, that’s your body trying to tell you to take it down a couple of notches. It’s especially hard for individuals who are very mentally strong and too disciplined listen their body, and that is where a good support system comes into play to keep you from going overboard.”

So how does MMA training differ from standardized weightlifting and cardio? In order to excel as a fighter you have to be quick, strong, and have great cardio, everything you can achieve by visiting your local gym, right? Felix showed me MMA training goes way beyond simply bench pressing and riding on a stationary bike.

“The difference is night and day; MMA requires high levels of stamina—punching, kicking, shooting in for takedowns, grappling, and being able to hold onto your opponent for long periods of time,” said Felix. “To achieve this, MMA fighters need to focus their emphasis on muscular endurance, and training more in the anaerobic, instead of the aerobic. Weightlifting and aerobic based cardio are more focused on the aesthetics of fitness. It is not a bad thing, but it is not functional for an MMA fighter. It may look good for the Jersey Shore, but it’s not going to help my fighters out in the octagon.”

Becoming a warrior in the cage doesn’t happen overnight. Fighters train for years to elevate to the top status of their game. To fight at the professional level takes hours of hard work and determination each day, and of course discipline inside and outside of the cage. Training to fight is a commitment and it takes a relentless dedication to always want to improve and never getting sucked into complacency. It would be futile for a fighter to strength and condition to the best of their ability but then to not take their diet and nutrition plan seriously. What a fighter does outside of the cage will ultimately affect their performance inside, which is why training MMA is a lifestyle, not simply an activity.

“Exercising and training is only 20% of the equation,” says Felix. “The other 80% is dieting. I am not a licensed nutritionist, and so I always recommend to my clients and fighters to speak to a professional about a specific meal plan or diet to follow. It is extremely important, and it goes hand-in-hand with training. You can’t have one without the other.”

Now for me personally, as someone who has been working out regularly for quite some time, I want instant gratification in seeing results, and even more so ongoing results. Naturally the more results I see, the more motivated I am to get back into the gym.

But from speaking to Felix, I learned that I was missing a key element in training—patience.

“Patience is by far the one of the most important factors to remember when it comes to training,” said Felix. “People want immediate results, its human nature. But patience is everything. You don’t want to rush from one stage to another, as it can lead to unwanted injuries, overtraining and a lack of skill acquisition. If people don’t learn a movement or exercise and absorb it, then it doesn’t become second nature and can impede their overall performance.”

Felix takes all of the above mentioned practices and incorporates them into a specific plan for each of the fighters he works with. By keying in on the specifics of what each fighter needs to work on and improve, he is able to put together routines that will enable them to excel.

“I have to approach training in a very scientific method for each fighter,” said Felix. It’s a complete process of focusing on muscular endurance and hypertrophy to help them develop size and strength, but also speed and agility. We work on acquiring skills through shooting in and ground and pound drills, and it is essential to develop the stamina so they will never burn out in a fight. By combining that methodology, you end up with a better product. We focus on dropping weight and keeping strength, improving flexibility, having a never-ending gas tank, and exceptional balance. My job is to condition them so that they are able to perform at their top level when they step into the cage.”

Felix has opened up my eyes to the world of training, and has helped me realize what fighters go through in order to be ready for each battle they step into. But simply talking or writing about what Felix puts the fighters through in preparing for a fight does not do any justice to the actual training. He is about achieving results for his clients, and the proof is in his work. If you want to see the end result of his strength and conditioning, check out an episode of The Ultimate Fighter 12 and watch for Jersey’s own Andy Main, proudly sponsored by Felix Erazo and Semper Fitness.

“Ultimately, when it comes to training, whether it is a soccer mom from Morris County to Andy Main and other guys from AMA, they are a reflection of me, and my name goes on that, so I have to put my best foot forward every single time.”

Think you have what it takes to train like a MMA fighter? If so, stop by Semper Fitness at 156 Algonquin Parkway in Whippany.