Meet Gerry…

BODYTEC’s team member who packs a powerful punch and how EMS training has helped his MMA.

While most of Gerry’s professional and recreational sporting efforts revolved around soccer, he began to dive into the world of martial arts around the age of 18.

After seeking a sporting activity that pushed him to limits of his physical capacity, Gerry found this within various styles of martial arts. He initially trained in Kickboxing and Muay Thai, but quickly lost himself in other martial arts forms and formed his competitive training around MMA – Mixed Martial Arts. “The aspect of MMA I enjoy the most is overcoming my own boundaries – it’s the biggest challenge, but also the biggest reward,” explains Gerry.

Although there typically isn’t a sport that doesn’t come with injuries, competitive martial arts training, especially for the sport of Mixed Martial Arts, is almost inevitably linked to injuries. “Multiple training hours are spent on the mat with training partners and injuries lead to the painful reduction of this valuable time,” says Gerry. “This is where EMS training has had a great impact on my body, as the increased strength capacity of my core and stabilizing muscles, as well as the increased flexibility has often helped me to reduce the number of injuries I have had and further helped me to lower the training impact on my joints and ligaments.”

Gerry joined the BODYTEC team in March 2012, initially as a trainer, and has since developed the BODYTEC Trainer Academy over a period of 4 years. He now works as the Head of this academy in the BODYTEC Head Office. “Being part of the BODYTEC Training Academy has seen me conduct various research projects around EMS training, and introducing and educating about 250 different trainers, managers and franchise partners about best-practice methodologies in and around EMS training.”

Gerry has seen a host of benefits in pairing EMS training with his love of MMA. “EMS training has been a cornerstone of the development and maintenance of my speed and explosiveness. In a sporting competition, speed and explosiveness are crucial for the execution of striking and grappling maneuvers against the opponent,” he explains. “The fast-twitch muscle fibre recruitment of EMS training has been an effective training supplement for having the speed advantage in most of my fights.”

For those looking to get into the practice of MMA, Gerry advises that the contemplation about the right time and place for starting martial arts practice is already the first challenge to overcome. “Just going for the first training session is the most relevant aspect of starting the journey. Just overcome yourself and trust in thousands of years of accumulated technical and philosophical wisdom.”

Gerry is the Head of the BODYTEC Training Academy.

To book a trial session at your nearest branch, email info@bodytec.co.za.