You know the drill. You’ve either heard it a million times from others and are probably guilty yourself. Every year right around this time, it usually starts with something like this:

“THIS YEAR, I’m for SURE going to….. get in the best shape of my life, workout/train 5 days a week, lose 10 pounds, add 50 pounds to all my lifts…”

Blah blah blah.

All being said while sitting on the couch eating yesterday’s leftover cake and texting a girls (or guys, for the females out there) about your plans for this New Years Eve rampage.

By the way, the definition of insanity is continuously doing the same thing over and over while expecting a different result….

It’s easy to get temporarily motivated for something, but for one reason or another the motivation fades away as soon as we have to DO something, and CONTINUE do something; or a shorter version: CHANGE.

To be blunt, New Years resolutions are a joke. They are for the majority of people out there who have no discipline to follow through with any of their other goals throughout the year and fool themselves into thinking that somehow the 366th day possesses some magical power that will change them into actually following through this time.

The reality of the situation is this: If you want to REALLY, I mean REALLY make 2011 the year where you really achieve your health, fitness, strength, conditioning and mixed martial arts goals, you’re going to change your habits.

Habits, as might know, are not something you can change overnight. Habits take time, hard work, and continuous conscious effort. The key word here is conscious, because in order to make or break a habit you have to be aware of your choices enough of the time to actually make disciplined ones (rather then just react, as most of us do).

If you’ve been eating a bowl of Fruit Loop’s and chocolate milk every morning religiously for the past 10 years, it’s going to take some mental work to change this habit, and not just relying on the New Years false sense of motivation to give you the discipline you need to really carry through.

As I mentioned above, a new habit requires change. You want to improve your strength and conditioning for MMA dramatically this year? You want to move up a belt in Brazilian Jujistu? Or maybe actually have six pack abs? Fight in the UFC? You have to make some serious changes.

How do you change in order to reach your health and fitness goals in 2011 and beyond?

Start with these 3 steps:

1) First and foremost, know what you want. Changing requires hard work and doing things that’s not inherently fun.

In other words, you simply won’t change and finish what you started unless you REALLY want it. Everyone has wishes, but it’s the people who can identify and intensify what they really desire who actually achieve these.

2)  New information. If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always got.

The obvious solution? You need to start learning from people who have the results you want. If you’re  reading this, chances are you want to improve your strength and conditioning and/or overall fitness for MMA. One of the best places to start is a with a program designed by an expert specifically for this.

If you’ve been “doing your own thing” for a while and not happy with your results, it’s quite simply because, with all due respect, you have no idea what the Hell you are doing and probably just running in circles (in some cases literally).

For reviews of the best MMA strength and conditioning workouts, check these out here.

3) A new environment. What do I mean by environment? The people whom you most associate with, the things you listen to, thing things you watch, the things you read (plus 5 points for reading this blog!), and the places you hang out.

Birds of a feather flock together, so if you want to really improve your strength and conditioning with MMA, start hanging around, listening, watching and reading things, people, and places that have to do with strength and conditioning for MMA.

People ultimately, whether they want to or not, become a product of their environment at least to some degree. Change (or create) your environment that’s conducive to your goals and you’ll be at a HUGE advantage in actually achieving them.

Don’t be another victim to the millions of other “New Years Resolutions” that everyone is “committing” to, only to be gone with the wind one week later with the mystical aura of the New Year gone.

Don’t wait for some magical day or outside force to get you off your chair and start making moves. Start today, right now, and begin applying the three steps above.

If you HAVE to have a New Years resolution, here is what I what suggest:

To become a finisher, in a world full of starters.

Train hard, train smart, fellow fighters and fans,

Derek Manuel
MMA Training Workouts

When it comes strength and conditioning for MMA, I would be completely remiss without ever covering the topic of diet and nutrition.

If you train but neglect your diet and nutrition, it’s actually better for you that DON’T TRAIN AT ALL.

Why? Because after a strength and/or conditioning workout, your body then relies on two components to repair: rest and nutrients. Without the proper nutrients to restore muscle tissue, you’re really just wasting your time.

So what’s a good diet and nutrition plan MMA fighters should follow?

If you’re looking to cut weight safely and effectively, maintain balanced energy for your training throughout the day, build lean muscle, burn fat, or all of the above, then you gotta check out Jonathan Stamey’s blog post series on The MMA Diet.

Check out his first blog post here on The MMA Diet: Intro & Pre-Breakfast

If you’re just winging your meals, waking up every morning and not eating immediately upon rising, and just plain not taking your diet seriously, you need to read this post NOW.

Stamey has years experience in MMA (with an emphasis on boxing) and physical fitness, and all you have to do is just take one look at his physique to know he know’s what he’s talking about.

Check out his physique and his exact eating stragety on how he gets and maintains it here:

====> The MMA Diet: Intro & Pre-Breakfast <=====

Train hard, train smart fellow fighters and fans, I hope this helps

Derek Manuel
MMA Training Workouts