Whether you hate him or love him, you have to admire the man's incredible rise to success. And when you see his ripped body after months of preparation for a fight, you just have to wonder how he does it.
We listened to a lot of interviews with Conor McGregor and some of his coaches to try and see if they reveal enough for us to put together a workout and diet routine.
This took a lot of research, but we think that we have a pretty good picture of what he goes through on a regular basis.
Conor McGregor’s Workout Routine
Unlike many other sporting disciplines, MMA is a skill that requires a unique approach to working out.
One thing we heard a lot from many MMA fighters is that they often have to spend hours on different stretching techniques.
Then there is some tough strength and core training before you even get into the martial arts.
So, we’ve broken it down a bit to show you what’s involved.
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Dynamic Stretching Routine
These are stretching moves where you move certain body parts to the limit before immediately releasing the tension.
Kind of like a pendulum. We spotted a few specific moves that Conor did while we were watching some training videos.
He would likely spend at least one minute on each of these before repeating them 3 to 5 times:
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Static Stretching Routine
This is the type of stretching where you push a body part to a comfortable pain threshold and then hold that position static.
This requires a bit of balance for some of the moves. And it’s something that MMA fighters definitely need to train to be able to make some of the insane jumps and kicks without falling over.
Each of these should be held for about 30 seconds, but not much longer to avoid risks of micro-tears in tendons and ligaments.
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Static stretching could also be combined with some Yoga moves.
General Flexibility
Along with the stretching exercises, Conor McGregor will also rely heavily on some movement conditioning to make his joints and range of motion more flexible [1].
Here are some great moves to do for 1 to 2 minutes each.
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Strength Training
This is one area that we didn’t find many details, but it does seem like he prefers high-intensity circuit training using a combination of bodyweight and free weights.
His focus needs to be on building up enough muscle power for his kicks and punches to become as powerful as possible.
Here are just a few things that would work his arms, chest, and legs.
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He’s likely to be doing a lot of very targeted isolation workouts with weights as well, as there are very specific areas that he would want to bulk up.
Core Workout
Core strength is vital to MMA fighters as it’s one of their main defenses against body blows [2]. All those kicks and punches will inevitably make some contact with the chest and stomach.
And fighters have to build up a shield of hard muscle to avoid becoming winded and quickly turning into a victim.
Here’s some info we’ve put together, and we’d suggest only doing three sets of about four or five of the workouts at a time.
- 30 Hanging Leg Raises
- 30 V-Ups
- 30 Seated In & Outs
- 30 Lying Leg Raises w/ Hip Thrust
- 30 Superman Hold
- 30 Second Hollow Hold
- 30 Hanging Knee Raises w/ Twist
- 60 Second Plank
- 30 Side Plank Each Side
- 30 Sit-Ups
Cardio Workout Routine
We’ve heard Conor McGregor’s fitness coach mention that he does 30 minutes of fasted cardio every morning. He does this in a type of circuit training approach:
- 30 Jump Ropes
- 20 Air Squats
- 30 Jump Ropes
- 20 Plank Shoulder Taps
- 30 Jump Ropes
- 20 Plank to Push-Ups
- 30 Jump Ropes
- 20 Sit-Ups
That’s gonna mean a lot of sweating first thing in the morning, so make sure you have plenty of water ready.
Mixed Martial Arts
This is one area that he seems to be a bit more secretive about.
A man named John Kavanagh is his head coach when it comes to fighting styles, and he’s obviously trained Conor exceptionally well.
“I am cocky in prediction. I am confident in preparation, but I am always humble in victory or defeat."
- Conor McGregor, UFC Champion
Different fighters have different styles, which makes this such an interesting sport to watch
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Conor McGregor’s Diet Plan
There’s one thing that stood out the most for us, having followed his Instagram posts at various stages of training.
He likes his protein and steaks.
Breakfast
Snack
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Lunch
Pre-Workout Snack
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Post-Workout Snack
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Dinner
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The amount of food he eats is heavily adapted depending on whether he is training for a fight or just going through his usual fitness maintenance phase.
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Would You Be Able For Such A Routine?
Everything we’ve learned about Conor McGregor’s routines shows why he's such a notorious fighter. Following this kind of extreme physical conditioning is certainly not easy.
But if you think that you could stick with it for a few months, then we’re pretty sure that you’ll end up in the best physical shape you’ve ever been.
And your strength and endurance should spike as well. But that will still leave you a long way from entering a professional UFC fight.
References:
- https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Example-of-the-importance-of-flexibility-in-combat-sports-Fighter-performing-a-front_fig1_232214628
- https://www.mensjournal.com/health-fitness/mma-body-creating-the-killer-core/
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