bethefittest Interview Jinh Yu Frey

Jinh Yu Frey talks her Knockout of the year, training, diet and what’s next for the undefeated MMA champion with Bethefittest

A ferocious knockout acclaimed by many to be knockout of the year with over two million hits on youtube, Jinh Yu Frey speaks with Bethefittest about her victory, how she trains and what she eats. The current undefeated Atomweight champion is someone to definitely watch out for in 2014.

So how did you get into women’s MMA and have you always been into fighting?
No, my very first amateur cage fight was the first actual fight iv’e ever been in in my life, Iv’e never been in a fight before or hit anyone as hard as i could before. I got into MMA by just going to a local gym and they started an MMA programme so i joined the class, i started training with a girl there who asked me to stay behind and help her for kickboxing or juijitsu, and after 4 or 5 months after being there every night i thought i can do this.

So when is your next fight?
Iv’e had some pretty big offers after the knockout and through the video going viral but I broke my hand during the fight so i’m out for a few months so i’m just focusing on regaining to full recovery.

So before you turned pro, how long was you fighting amateur fights?
I was fighting for around 4 years but i only had like 6 fights, they were really spaced out because it was hard to find opponents in my weight class because promotions wouldn’t want to fly amateurs too far, my friend went pro and told me that people would fly you everywhere so that way I would get more fights.

How long do you normally train to get ready for a fight?
I try and stay in pretty good shape all the time, but like about 4 weeks before a fight i really start sharpening up my skills and with these title fights there like twenty five minutes, it gets me time to get my cardio to where i need to be.

What’s Jinh Yu Frey’s style of fighting?
When i first started i really loved just striking but after i lost my first amateur fight via submission i really started working on ground based wrestling and jiu jitsu.

Whats your background, where are you from?
My father is Korean and my mother caucasion but she was adopted so im not one hundred percent really sure, she has like beach blonde hair and green eyes.

What do you do in your spare time other than training and time in the gym?
I work full time, i have a degree in nuclear medicine and during the day i work in a cancer centre, i actually just started graduate school so i’m a full time graduate student and a full time worker.

How do you keep everything prioritized with training, studying and work?
With my work i can cut back on my hours if i need to and with school i only need to take one class at a time but its at an accelerated pace, if i have any free time at work ill get my books and read any material. Then i can train in the evenings.

How often do you train in the week?
When i’m not fighting i go 4 times a week

What workouts do you normally do?
I’ll go to the classes at my jiu jitsu gym and do like 40min of rolling and technique work but then i will also do wrestling or situatioonal drills in the cage, alot of time there’s fights about to happen so im always helping them get ready in the cage and do rounds with them.

Do you do any strength and conditioning?
I don’t, it’s just because i don’t have time at the moment to do it and i also don’t particularly like lifting weights.

Who are your favourite fighters at the moment?
I think Miriam Nakamoto is probably one of the baddest women on the planet and im happy she made the transition to MMA, Masato is one of my favourites but he’s retired now, i really like this new guy Conor Mcgregor, he’s an Irish boy and i’m diggin him.

How hard do you find to get your weight down before a fight from 113 to 105?
My husband is going to school for a nutrition degree so he takes care of this, i always eat healthy so i always try and keep lean, so i don’t have alot to lose but i do extra cardio and really cutting out dairy products and cheese which are high in fat and cutting down portions too.

Have you ever lifted weights before doing any strength work?
My last amateur fight i started doing crossfit in the morning and then done specific training in the evening, and it just burned me out. By the time i got to the fight, i had a really poor performance and lost the fight by split decision, my body was just exhausted. So now with the time i have, i don’t have time to devote to lifting weights.

How do you prepare yourself for five minute round for championship fights?
I used to always train three minutes rounds but if i’m training for five fives, i’ll train seven or eight rounds of sparring or seven or eight rounds of wrestling or grappling just so i know what that exhausted feeling feels like.

What would you like to improve in your game?
There’s always room for improvement and there’s things always to learn but at the moment i don’t think there is one area i really need working on, i feel like i’m getting to become a well rounded fighter but like i said there’s always room for improvement.

A Jinh Yu Frey Typical Daily Diet?
I don’t eat processed foods and I try to stick organic and as close to raw as I can. Mornings I do usually eat oats with chia and hemp seed and honey. After that it’s lots of legumes, nuts, and vegetables. I really don’t eat much meat. Mostly vegetables and quinoa, especially during a fight camp.

Jinh Yu Frey’s Training Week Split

When I’m tired I take a day off, when I’m not I keep going. I run 2-3 times a week and do 1 sparring workout a week.

Check out the full interview and her brutal knockout below:JINH YU FREY FACEBOOK – https://www.facebook.com/littleroo1two
JINH YU FREY TWITTER – https://twitter.com/littleroo1two

Author – Tyrone Brennand, Personal trainer Fulham