Why don't fighters train to be flexible like BJ penn?

[UFCBlackbelt]

Seriously, just a couple of minutes a workout to develop your flexibility. Flexibility is so underrated in MMA, you can avoid being pressed into bad positions off discomfort, your TDD improves, your submissions improve.

 

[Natural Order]

 

[GordonMMARamsey]

How do you know they dont?

 

[rear naked ankle pick]

Seriously, just a couple of minutes a workout to develop your flexibility. Flexibility is so underrated in MMA, you can avoid being pressed into bad positions off discomfort, your TDD improves, your submissions improve.

why don't you train to be taller?

 

[Garnet_StrongerThanYou]

You just reminded me to stretch today.

Thank you

 

[Kwic]

We should ask Conor why he opted for stiffness in the end instead of being flexible thanks to master Ido.

 

[Choco]

Yeah, and how they don't train for cardio, strength and technique...

Oh wait, they do...

 

[Hey Soos]

Because he has 7 losses and got knocked out by some random bum

 

[TempleoftheDog]

Unless their game actually involves more ground work, I don’t see the benefit. And though I’ve never done it, I imagine any really good bjj player probably has a high level of flexibility without actually training in doing the russian splits.

The crazy flexibility in this sport is on display in a lot of wmma. They get into crazy positions. But men and women aren’t built the same. And flexibility naturally deteriorates as you age, unless you specifically train it. Throughout all of my sporting experience the “hurdler’s stretch” was the closest I ever saw anybody do. And that was just a warm up stretching exercise we did to minimize injuries in games or practice. Most athletes do that.

 

[Dream Evil]

Stretching is like eating vegetables. Everyone should, nobody wants to.

 

[Elvis.]

I’m sure they do , but 99% of the people on earth can stretch as much as the want and never be as flexible as Bj

 

[FIghtxIQ]

Seriously, just a couple of minutes a workout to develop your flexibility. Flexibility is so underrated in MMA, you can avoid being pressed into bad positions off discomfort, your TDD improves, your submissions improve.

Same reasons why fighters also don't train footwork and movement.

 

[arrmike]

Flexibility without stability isn’t all that useful. The athlete who can use strength through a moderate range of motion is better off than the one who has incredible flexibility but little control.

someone like crocop had an incredible combo of flexibility and strength throughout the range of motion. Most humans will plateau before they achieve that.

 

[FIghtxIQ]

We should ask Conor why he opted for stiffness in the end instead of being flexible thanks to master Ido.

He got too focused on muscles. His whole training/fighting mentality switched up once he moved up in weight. Reason why he is always flexing in his pictures now. I think all the small muscles and skinny talk got to him from before. Like when he tried to flex on Floyd's bodyguards and they called him skinny. Plus the people commenting on invisible lats syndrome or whatever they used to say about Conor and his flexing/walking pose from before. Muscles don't equal fighting ability, he had the right mentality before.

 

[FIghtxIQ]

Yeah, and how they don't train for cardio, strength and technique...

Oh wait, they do...

Many don't train flexibility at all. It's not a part of their training at all. Basic stretches and warm-ups is not the same as training flexibility.

 

[FIghtxIQ]

Unless their game actually involves more ground work, I don’t see the benefit. And though I’ve never done it, I imagine any really good bjj player probably has a high level of flexibility without actually training in doing the russian splits.

The crazy flexibility in this sport is on display in a lot of wmma. They get into crazy positions. But men and women aren’t built the same. And flexibility naturally deteriorates as you age, unless you specifically train it. Throughout all of my sporting experience the “hurdler’s stretch” was the closest I ever saw anybody do. And that was just a warm up stretching exercise we did to minimize injuries in games or practice. Most athletes do that.

Lots of benefits actually. Especially with kicks. Better flexibility lets you kick higher. So even if you are shorter if you have better flexibility you can still land headkicks on fighters taller. Reason why you see some fighters never attempt head kicks is because of their flexibility issues. Grappling also benefits from greater flexibility. Some train it and others don't. Some see the benefits, and others don't. That's usually how it goes. People pick what they think is important and certain aspects get overlooked. Most train just technique, cardio, strength and conditioning because they think that is all that is important.

 

[FIghtxIQ]

Flexibility without stability isn’t all that useful. The athlete who can use strength through a moderate range of motion is better off than the one who has incredible flexibility but little control.

someone like crocop had an incredible combo of flexibility and strength throughout the range of motion. Most humans will plateau before they achieve that.

It's not about choosing one or the other. You train for both. You don't have to sacrifice strength or control to work on flexibility. People always have this idea when it comes to training. Like they can only pick one aspect and ignore the other. You can work both.

 

[TempleoftheDog]

Lots of benefits actually. Especially with kicks. Better flexibility lets you kick higher. So even if you are shorter if you have better flexibility you can still land headkicks on fighters taller. Reason why you see some fighters never attempt head kicks is because of their flexibility issues. Grappling also benefits from greater flexibility. Some train it and others don't. Some see the benefits, and others don't. That's usually how it goes. People pick what they think is important and certain aspects get overlooked. Most train just technique, cardio, strength and conditioning because they think that is all that is important.

Doesn’t all of that usually get covered by your regular training as a well rounded mma fighter? I honestly know for a fact you don’t have to “train flexibility” as a fighter in your 20s to kick somebody in the head. You don’t even have to leave the ground, because of the reach of our legs.

At that point in my life with my sporting background I could almost kick the average ceiling in a house. That is 8 feet in the air. And I could certainly hit any fixture hanging from a ceiling. Leaving the ground, of course.

 

[mb23100]

They can't even spell it...

 

[FIghtxIQ]

Doesn’t all of that usually get covered by your regular training as a well rounded mma fighter? I honestly know for a fact you don’t have to “train flexibility” as a fighter in your 20s to kick somebody in the head. You don’t even have to leave the ground, because of the reach of our legs.

At that point in my life with my sporting background I could almost kick the average ceiling in a house. That is 8 feet in the air. And I could certainly hit any fixture hanging from a ceiling. Leaving the ground, of course.

No it isn't. Flexibility is something fighters would have to train individually. It's not a part of any program for the most part. Reason why you don't see every single fighter throwing headkicks.