6 Foundations of the Best Wrestling Training Program

Wrestling Training Program Principle #1- Use Multi-Joint Exercises

There are a number of reasons why utilizing multi-joint exercises in your wrestling training program will help to maximize your results.

1. Efficient- Multi-joint exercises are more efficient than single-joint, isolation exercises. When you perform a squat think about all the muscles you're using actively- quads, hamstrings, and glutes. Now think of all the muscles that are firing to help stabilize your body- calves, core, upper back, spinal erectors. It has been suggested by research that when you become efficient and well trained in the squat you can use upwards to 70% of the muscle in your body! Before we move on to another benefit of multi-joint exercises, let's first think about all the single-joint/isolation exercises you'd have to perform to work all the muscles I just listed. Without going into detail, I listed 7 groups of muscles involved, so even if you weren't to further break down the groups, you'd still have to perform 7 different exercises instead of simply just squatting.

2. Functional- Your body doesn't work in isolation. Think about all of the activities you do on the mat. Do things like leg attacks, lifting an opponent, riding an opponent, and standing up to get off the bottom resemble multi-joint movements like squats, lunges, deadlifts, chest presses, various types of pulls, etc. or do you perform those moves in isolation? Training your body the way it moves on the mat with the proper wrestling training program is going to carry over to increased ease of performing the things listed above (ever had problems finishing a takedown on a guy because you just didn't have the horsepower to suck it in and stand up with it?) and a decreased risk of injury while performing them (stronger muscles are more durable muscles).

3. Even Development- Imbalances that exist within muscles result in instabilities around the joints and will ultimately lead to injury if not properly addressed. Performing tons of single-joint movements is going to put you at a higher risk for developing these types of imbalances because you'll need to monitor a lot more. With multi-joint exercises all you need to remember is for every push you do (whether its lower or upper) be sure to do a pull. Basically you want to make sure you're working the opposite muscles with the same number of sets and reps (either on the same day or another day) to maintain balance within your body. By sticking to multi-joint exercises you'll make things exponentially easier on yourself in regards to making sure you have a well balanced wrestling training program.

To summarize, multi-joint exercises will not only save you time (which will enable you to spend more time perfecting your technique), but they will also carry over to an improved to a better performance on the mat than isolation exercises by making you more functionally strong and more evenly developed, and therefore more resistant to injury.

Wrestling Training Program Principle #2- Use Varied Training Methods

This is a super important principle for wrestling training programs because all too often people fall victim to one style of training. I'm seeing more and more "kettlebell guys" and "functional training guys" which is fine, but there's more to exercise than kettlebells and standing on a balance pad. Instead of being a certain type of exerciser, why not just be a results driven exerciser simply looking to achieve maximal performance on the mat?

Want to lose some fat to help you make weight easier? Yeah, kettlebells are a great way to get your metabolism cranking, but it's certainly not the only way to do so. Fast paced supersets with traditional, full body strength training movements like squats, overhead presses, chin-ups, and deadlifts are a great way to get you burning fat. Interval training on a treadmill or Airdyne bike will have you at an elevated metabolism for hours after you workout.

On the opposite side of the coin- are you looking to get stronger? I'm by no means the strongest person in the world, but I have some pretty decent lifts to my name. Look at some of the things I do to increase my squat, bench and deadlift- tire flipping, stone lifting and other strongman exercises, swings, cleans, presses, and other kettlebell movements, chin-ups, pushups, rows and other bodyweight exercises, I even use some Olympic lifting derivatives including DB snatches and push presses.

The point I'm trying to make is that committing yourself to only one style of weight training for wrestling is going to do nothing but lead to boredom with your program and limit the results you can achieve in your training. Everything has its place and learning the benefits and principles around each style of training is going to make you a more well rounded and better functioning wrestler.

Wrestling Training Program Principle #3- Make Frequent Changes

Making frequent changes in your wrestling training program will offer you a number of benefits. First, by making frequent changes you are going to be less likely to experience a plateau. Plateaus occur when your body adapts to the demands that you're putting on it. By following the same program with the same exercises, sets, reps, weights, rest times, etc. for a number of weeks, you'll eventually plateau and your body will reach a stagnant state where you won't be able to increase the number of sets, reps or weights no matter how hard you try.

Second, making frequent changes is going to better prevent boredom with the wrestling training program. By constantly changing exercises, the order in which you perform things, adding or subtracting sets and reps, and making other changes like those will keep you excited to get in the gym as you'll be encountering new challenges and new exercises. Too often I see the same cycle happen in gyms around my area, a person joins and starts doing their "routine." They do it for weeks and may experience some strength gains and fat loss but then start to slow down and plateau. They then either quit their program as they are unable to get any more results or they tell everyone that they are "maintaining." Don't let yourself fall victim to the "maintaining" curse and don't fall into a "routine." Make changes every 3-6 weeks and you'll see better results and have a better chance of sticking with your strength program.

Finally, making frequent changes to your wrestling training program will force you to become active in the field. Whether it's reading blogs like this one, picking up a magazine every couple of months, meeting with a trainer on a monthly basis to get a new program, or purchasing programs online; whatever it is, by making yourself change your program regularly you're going to commit yourself to becoming more knowledgeable about fitness, exercise, and nutrition and we all know the saying- knowledge is power!

Alright, there are my top three reasons as to why you should be making regular changes to your exercise program. More advanced lifters should look to make changes every 3-4 weeks, intermediate exercisers every 4-5 weeks, and beginner exercisers every 5-6 weeks.

Wrestling Training Program Principle #4- Track Results

There are a number of benefits from tracking the results of your wrestling training program both from a motivational perspective as well as a performance perspective.

First, from a motivational perspective, tracking your results enables you to see where you were at different times during your strength training and where you're currently at. On days when you're not feeling particularly strong, fast, or in shape, looking back on where you were months, and even weeks ago will help keep you motivated as you're able to see the progressions you've made with your training program. I know as a wrestler staying motivated is usually not difficult, but looking back at how far you've come from time to time, especially in regards to your weight training, can be particularly motivating, especially during rough times.

Second, tracking your results will enable you to set better long term and short term strength training goals which will help to improve your performance from week to week. Knowing the weights you were training with the previous week will give you something to look to improve on the next week. Similarly, knowing the progressions you've made over a training block (however long it was) will give you a better idea of what to expect during your next training block. Setting realistic and attainable strength training goals are two big keys to keeping you motivated and knowing about what to expect out of a training program will give you the knowledge for which to better identify your weight training for wrestling goals.

Tracking the results of your wrestling training program offers a third benefit as well. It forces you to be more active in your program. Instead of just haphazardly selecting exercises to work a muscle, you're forced to think "how will implementing x exercise over the next 4 weeks help me attain my goal of y." For example, how will utilizing a dumbbell bench press for 4-5 sets of 5-6 reps help carryover to an increase in 10lbs in your bench press in the next 4 weeks? Instead of just throwing them into your program and hoping for the best, you can look back and see where you may or may not have used dumbbell bench presses before and can see how your bench press was affected. If you bench went up when you were using them in your weight training program, there's a very good chance that they have a positive effect on your bench press.

Being able to look back at your results is going to benefit you in a number of ways and will lead to further progress towards your long term strength training for wrestling goals. All it takes is a little notebook, a pen, and a few seconds during your workout to write your numbers down.

Wrestling Training Program Design Principle #5- Prioritize Importance

Prioritizing the importance of certain exercises or certain aspects of your training program for wrestling is another important component of successful program design in regards to training for wrestling. There are two situations where prioritizing the importance of certain exercises/quality development should be taken into account.

First, you should always be sure to prioritize the strength training exercises that are going to most benefit you within a single training session. For example, if strengthening your legs is the primary focus of your training program and you're on a weight training for wrestling plan that has you lifting twice a week for two full-body workouts, then make sure you're squatting, deadlifting, lunging, etc. first when you are at your most fresh and energized state. Fatiguing yourself before with lots of upper body strength training and core work will do nothing but slow your progress toward your primary focus(es).

Second, you should always prioritize the importance of your strength training in regards to your overall development. For instance, when planning your weight training and wrestling practice cycle for a certain season or period of time be sure to identify the days and workouts that you know are going to be most crucial to your development. If you're planning on moving up a weight class, than identifying days when you're going to be at or near 100% and prioritizing your weight training is going to help you to maximize your physical development.

Haphazardly selecting exercises and focuses of your strength training sessions and simply throwing them into a training program is not going to help you to maximize your potential and reach your highest goals. Becoming aware of how everything is working together in your weight training for wrestling program and prioritizing the components that are most crucial to develop will help you to progress faster than you ever thought possible.

Wrestling Training Program Principle #6- Be Audible Ready

I stole this from Dave Tate of EliteFTS.com and have used it for years ever since I first heard him speak on it. Being audible ready basically means that you need to be ready to make changes to your weight training on the fly. No matter how much thought and preparation go into your strength training for wrestling program and planning for a peak for certain workouts, matches or tournaments, the fact is that oftentimes things don't go as planned. From a strength training perspective, on days that you feel great, you need to be ready to make changes to your weight training plan and take advantage of those times. If your warmup sets are feeling really good or you're wrestling really well, plan on working up heavy that day or doing a few extra live goes than what may have been schedule. Just be sure to make adjustments to your upcoming workouts as needed because there's a good chance you'll be more fatigued than originally planned for.

On the opposite side of the coin, on days when you may have been planning for a hard weight training session or wrestling practice and you just can't seem to be clicking, back off and get some rest. Pushing yourself on days like this will lead to further burnout/overtraining and put you at higher risk of injury. Listening to your body and understanding that no matter how much thought and preparation goes into a training block, you still cannot account for how you will respond and recover from certain training sessions and knowing how to make the right adjustments on the fly is going to lead to an increase in your preparation and performance.

In a nutshell, seizing the opportunity on days and workouts that you feel great and backing off on days you don't feel up to par and making the necessary adjustments to your overall training plan both for strength training and wrestling and will do nothing but benefit you in the long run.

Here is a sample week of a 3 day a week in season program I used with a wrestler to help him win his second NYSPHSAA Championship, third High School National Championship, and most recently a D1 National Championship as a True Freshman.

Lower Training Workout

SSB Box Squat (5x3)

#2 Pin Pull (4x5)

Superset- Hack Squat (4x8) and Pulldown Abs (4x15)

Superset- DB RDL (4x10) and Grappler (4x12)

Upper Training Workout

Floor Press (5x4)

Towel Chinup (5x2ea side)

Superset- DB Incline Press (4x8) and Cable Row (4x10)

Superset- Single Arm DB Overhead (3x10) and Face Pull (3x12)

Full Body Training Workout

Superset- Lunge (4x8) and Good Morning (4x8)