I’m a fan of the UFC; the fight between Couture and Silvia at UFC 68 still amazes me. I wanted to know what Couture does to stay in a dominating state at an age when others consider him “out of his league”. I found Couture’s top 10 tips that not only speak for UFC training, but for anything in life…

RANDY’S TOP 10 TRAINING HINTS

1. Use a calendar to periodize your training, include your peaking phases for competitions or goal deadlines.

2. “The human body is amazing.” It will adapt to a workload in 8 to 10 weeks. Use that as a guide to adjust training and keep your training moving forward.

3. Keep a training log: include workouts, diet, sleep, and anything else pertinent to your training.

4. Set daily, weekly, monthly and yearly goals. Write them down and share them with someone close to you.

5. After a competition (win or lose), or at a goal deadline (accomplished or not) evaluate your program and routine. Keep what works, eliminate what didn’t, and move forward.

6. Establish a warm up “ritual”. Think of your best performance, what did you do to warm up? Repeat that! It’s a living, evolving thing. Make changes accordingly until you can put yourself in the “zone” every time.

7. “Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” Find workout and drilling partners that challenge you or you’ll never improve your game!

8. Proper rest is just as important as time spent training hard. Listen to your body and let it recover.

9. Over-training is more a state of mind rather than [of] body. Altering your routine to keep it fresh helps avoid plateaus and stagnation.

10. Strive to get 1% better each day. It doesn’t sound like much, but adds up in a hurry!