Video: Sean Sherk Training for Tyson Griffin
(Props: MMA Madness)
If you've ever wondered where Sean Sherk gets his endless gas tank, check out the agony he puts himself through at Minnesota's Athletic Performance Inc. Their infamous "Caveman Training" sessions push cardio and muscle endurance to the absolute limit, incorporating everything from steeply-inclined treadmill-running to what looks like double-dutch rope-swinging, which I guess isn't just for little girls and fairies anymore. Even the insanely conditioned Muscle Shark is sucking air and checking his watch before long. Sherk returns to action at UFC 90 (October 25th, Chicago) against Tyson Griffin, who has gone to a decision in his last five fights — which shouldn't be a problem for Sean.
Tags: MMA, Sean Sherk, training, Tyson Griffin, UFC, UFC 90
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Aptninja Says:
Also, when he walks out into the parking lot, there's a mean dog.
shitwhistle Says:
"If you’ve ever wondered where Sean Sherk gets his endless gas tank..."
I believe the correct answer would be steroids, right?
DROP DEAD JACK Says:
Sean Sherk is a god damn machine. I can say that I did Gas Mask PT when I was in the Army and that is NO JOKE.
BTW why is that band around his torso? Is that to put stress on his breathing?
Junie Browning Says:
The last thing the UFC needs is a couple boring wrestlers holding each other down for 15 minutes.
Old, Bald and Irish Says:
Geez...I'm tired just watching that vid!
Correct me if I'm wrong, but Sherk was doing those plate rounds with TWO 45 POUND PLATES?! So he was effortlessly breezing 90 pounds around his head?
But then again, Sherk is pretty short and that may have skewed my perspective. They may have been 25 pound plates...
Ouch! That hurts Says:
@ Drop Dead Jack
It's a heart rate monitor.
DROP DEAD JACK Says:
^^^hahahah.
rope swinger Says:
the "muscle shark" uses "caveman training".... and people think MMA is for meatballs and the sub-intelligent. hmmmmmm
DocMethod Says:
The band around his torso is part of his heart rate monitor.
it's Says:
the black belt is a device used in gay pr0n. sherk uses it as an aid to hold down and submit, via near naked fellatio, his opponents. also, it can accommodate a wide variety of accoutrements from anal beads to fake fists
Kevbo Says:
It is so amazing how other peoples levels can be about 20 times more than normal and Sherks was only double so everyone says shit about it. I bet he had those levels because of his conditioning. Experts were wrong about acid levels when Couture was demonstrating for testing purposes so the conclusion is that he is not human. Sherk is a naturally strong and gifted athlete. Science has not been perfected and very little is known about the true abilities of the human body. Forget all you haters and Sherk is a champ no matter how you want to spin it.
damn Says:
it looked like two 45lbs plates to me too. it seems unlikely, but if that's the case, damn girlfriend!!!
Old, Bald and Irish Says:
^^^
@ "it's"
DAMN! That really made me laugh...
...as a matter of fact, I think I LOL'd myself!
Anonymous Says:
wow. sean sherk is a tough dude. has he come out of the closet yet?
asian Says:
Ever seen a 44.5 trainer plate before? It's not 2 45s..
DROP DEAD JACK Says:
I like Sherk and I think he is in the same position as Rich Franklin...as in they both would be undisputed and dominant champions in their divisions if it were not for the ungodly fighters who sit at the top.
B Says:
I'd be gassed after that first 5 min jump rope.
yawn Says:
I must have missed the part where he works on jiu-jitsu, muay thai, boxing or wrestling. Oh wait, he worked on slamming a 70-lb. heavy bag, which should come in handy if he ever fights a swarm of midgets.
drkliter Says:
What does UBE stand for?
douchebaggery Says:
that workout ain't shit, he should try Jason Guida's "buffets of doom" training regime.
this is where Jason runs from casino to casino and grabs handfuls of food from the buffett, stuffs them into his cakehole, and then runs to the next casino with security right on his tail.
at every third casino, he shoves the pitboss and eats a banana to prevent the infamous taint cramp. Frank Mir still has nightmares of that image.
9 casinos in 3 hours 45 minutes is his record. beat that Sherk...I dare you
Truth Says:
Some of these Sherk haters need to kill themselves. Sherk is a absolute warrior with the biggest heart in the game. WAR SHERK.
JoseMonkey Says:
@drkliter: It's an upper body ergometer.
As a bonus, here's a video from some company that makes UBEs that has someone using it that is much easier on the eyes than Sherk: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ngB9Nld5Uw
Truth Says:
uhhh, when i said "WAR SHERK" I meant "WANK SHERK." Nevermind. My bad.
Renzo for President Says:
drkliter- I think UBE stands for Upper Body Exercise...just a guess though.
Where in the vid does it show he steps out to shoot up?
Honestly that workout looks like a complete smoker, from watching that and assuming that all his workouts are of that caliber it's no wonder the guy has a never ending gas tank. I wonder what would happen if "Big Sloppy Country" would look and fight like if he trained like this.
Me Says:
@Yawn, I was thinking the same thing, w/ sarcasm. Hope the same for you too. If not then just know that he works out twice a day, like most fighters. One for str/cond and 1 for tech.
I am a bit surprised that it's only a 70lb bag though. Figured he would be trying to get closer to those life size dummies to throw around, maybe near his weight class. That would be as ridiculous as him using 2 45lb plates I guess.
Harry Balzonya Says:
Good cardio is crucial!
'Anonymous' says: "wow. sean sherk is a tough dude. has he come out of the closet yet?"
-So you can't wait to be with him. Good for you, you frugat.
Alex Says:
I don't get it. I can think of three people off the top of my head who use caveman training:
Sean Sherk - defeated by fatty Penn
Jeff Monson - defeated by fatty Sylvia
Kaitlin Young - defeated by fatty Carano. Well she's not fat, but she still missed weight.
What's so good about caveman training?
- Says:
Round 5
Roidrage
ADW Says:
Sean Sherk needs to work less on his cardio and more on BJJ and boxing. He spends all of this time lifting weights and then can't finish fights. BJ Penn doesn't anywhere newar the conditioning of Sherk but we all saw how that fight turned out. What's the point of being a Gym rat like sherk when you just get KTFO'd
LukeTheDuke Says:
Im training to be a personal trainer and theyve been putting us through circuits like that. actually were slotted to do the caveman training soon. cant wait!
E Says:
@ Kevbo: Increased training actually leads to a reduction in steroid levels. Moreover that the "legal limit" was set to twice the highest recorded levels of that particular steroid which was recorded in a female athlete (males had considerably lower levels). I'm not saying that he did or didn't do steroids (the only thing I can say with any certainty is that the CSAC is a joke), what I am saying is that your argument is wrong.
@ Alex: Caveman training = increased cardio. Sherk lost to Penn because of talent, and Sherk's one decided advantage was actually his cardio. Monson lost to Sylvia because of talent; though one could also make the argument that it was due to the size disparity, which is due to genetics. Young lost to Carano because of talent, specifically Muay Thai pedigree; Gina has excellent Muay Thai and has been training this for quite a while and Young has decent kickboxing/MT and has been training that for a significantly shorter period of time. Additionally, Gina was bigger and stronger than Kaitlin, but the onus for that is mostly on EXC and their BS women's weight classes (or hell, most of their weight classes in general).
So yes, these people have not benefited from the caveman training in those fights, but I'd argue that this training didn't hinder them or occupy some significant amount of training time that would have clearly been better spent elsewhere. And hell, it's also possible that without this training all of the aforementioned fights would have been over earlier (i.e. the same people still losing, just earlier).
@ ADW: As I said above, BJ is more talented than Sherk, plain and simple. Sherk could have replace all of his conditioning with BJJ training over the past few years and not be as good as Penn in that aspect of fighting. And actually, Sherk's boxing is about as good as BJ's, from a technical aspect. There are two glaring differences, however:
1. Sherk has T-rex arms
2. BJ has serious power in his punches
Sherk can't simply grow longer arms or suddenly cease to be a tall midget. And though you can increase your punching power through refining your technique, there are limits.
What this means is you shouldn't dismiss Sherk's training methods as foolhardy simply because he was trounced by one of the most naturally gifted fighters in the sport.
NICK DIAZ Says:
That aint shit...me and my homies use one of those gas masks everyday.
209 Bitches!!!!
sherkoff Says:
Damn it some one beat me to T-REX arms..
LukeTheDuke Says:
UBE upper body ergometer
screw sherk Says:
man, Sherk is a damn doper. Fuck this guy. Why the hell do people give him any credit after he got caught roiding.
Anonymous Says:
screw sherk and all you other fucking haters are dumb as fuck, sherk did not do steroids. his levels were very low they werent even 2x the amount that the human body produces of that substance naturally. If you take that particular steroid your levels are much higher than what he tested poistive for. it is fact that people who train at a high intensity with weights and cardio, and eat high protein diets have increased levels of the particular substance.