Introducing HGG's Combat Athletes

Over the past 18 months HGG has had a huge interest from elite teams, coaches and athletes across a wide range sports.

In particular, the combat sports industry has really taken to the HGG range, with the Tib Bar and ISOTIB becoming staples in many fight gyms across the world.

Combat athletes place a huge load on their feet, ankles and knees during deceleration, direction change, and the preload phase prior to jumping or striking. 

Combine insufficient strength and mobility to the awkward, compromised positions limbs are subject to during grappling, and these areas are hot spots for pain and injury.

Keeping the feet, ankles, shins and knees in optimal condition and avoiding injury is critical for the longevity of an athletes career. 

Up until now, the tibialis anterior (shin muscles) and ankles have been quite difficult areas of the body to target, but with the help of the Tib Bar and ISOTIB there is now a simple, easy solution to bulletproofing these areas.

Check out some of the combat athletes using HGG equipment below.

George St - Pierre

George St-Pierre is arguably one of the greatest fighters in MMA history. He was a two-division champion in the UFC, having won titles in the welterweight and middleweight divisions.

He retired as the reigning Welterweight Champion in December 2013, having held the record for most wins in title bouts and the second longest combined title streak in UFC history (2,204 days) while defending his title nine consecutive times.

GSP began using the Tib Bar and ISOTIB at the beginning of 2022 as part of his strength training.

 Chris Weidman

Chris Weidman is a former UFC Middleweight Champion.  In 2013, Weidman came to worldwide prominence by defeating Anderson Silva to win the UFC Middleweight Championship. Weidman retained the title for two and a half years, defending it three times.

He began using the ISOTIB in November to rehabilitate his leg after a devastating break after throwing a kick against Uriah Hall at UFC 261.

Tyler Jeffrey Dillashaw competed in the UFC where he is a former two-time UFC Bantamweight Champion.

Dillashaw competed on the 2011 Ultimate Fighter season and in 2014, he won the UFC Bantamweight Championship by dethroning Renan Barão, who was on a 32-fight unbeaten streak.

Dillashaw began using the ISOTIB in August 2022 ahead of his title fight.

Tyson Pedro is an Australian mixed martial artist who competes in the Light heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

He began using the ISOTIB in 2022 ahead of his fight against Ike Villanueva, winning the fight by TKO in the first round

Neiman Gracie

Neiman Gracie is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner. He is a two-time Pan-American champion and won a medal at the 2013 black belt World No-Gi Championship before transitioning to MMA and competing in the Welterweight division of Bellator MMA.

Neiman is a 4th generation member of the Gracie Family of Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and great grandson of Carlos Gracie, the founder of Gracie jiu-jitsu.

He was an early adopter of the Tib Bar, using the Tib Bar in 2021 to strengthen his knees and help recover from an MCL tear.

Harrison Garside  is an Australian boxer who competed in the men's lightweight event at the 2020 Summer Olympics where he won the bronze medal. This was the first time in over 30 years that an Australian has won a medal in boxing at the Olympics.

In 2015, Harry won his first of six Australian National Championships. In 2018 he competed at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games where he won the gold medal in the men's 60kg division.

As of 2021, Garside had won seven Australian national boxing championships.

He began using the Tib Bar in 2021 to compliment his strength training.

Adrian Pang is a 5x Australian MMA champion, 2x Asia Pacific Champion, Former Legend Title Holder, ONE FC fighter, and the head coach of his own gym Integrated MMA.

Pang has been using the ISOTIB since 2021 to strengthen his ankles and knees, and protect himself against calf kicks.

The ISOTIB is now a staple in his gym and is used by all of his students.

Watch Adrian speak about the ISOTIB here.

Conclusion

More MMA and combat athletes from around the world are realizing the importance of strengthening their shins, ankles and knees, and have begun incorporating tools like the Tib Bar and ISOTIB into their training programs.

Whether you're a seasoned pro or new to the sport, performing at your best and being able to train injury and pain free is absolutely crucial.

If you want to read more about the ISOTIB click here.
If you want to read more about the Tib Bar click here.