The Meaning of Milestones

I have always set goals in my life and actively set out to achieve each one of them. My hard work has consistently paid off as I have successfully accomplished what I set out to do in all areas of my life. My journey to achieve my goals has not come without detours, challenges and bumps in the road. I have been tested and temporarily derailed at times, yet my sense of determination has lead me to move beyond roadblocks and continue my path forward towards my goal. My goals in life have centered around this particular vision I have of what I believe I am meant to do, my purpose and who I see myself as. I have created this vision of myself and my life and never thought in a million years competing as an amateur boxer would be part of this plan.

The funny thing about life is it hands you opportunities just when you are ready for them or when you need to learn something more about yourself. As you have heard me say before life never gives you more than you can handle. On my journey as an amateur boxer this could not be more true. Each step of the way, with each training session, sparring session, and competition life has given me a little bit more of a test. With each step came anxiety, some fear, doubt, excitement, unknown and potential. I have gone through this journey with the mindset of wanting to test myself and simply wanting to become a better boxer. Win or lose I want to know that I am doing my best and coming closer to my potential.

Each step is a milestone. There is your first step into a boxing gym, then your first training session, to be followed by your first sparring session, next your first intense/competition sparring session and then your first fight. You train and train, working hard and you make progress...then at each milestone you experience two things. You experience pride for reaching the milestone and you simultaneously experience regression. Those couple steps back from the progress you have made. This is part of the process in life and in the ring. We move forward making progress and then we are tested and take steps back. But this is okay and to be expected. We find out here what we are made of and what we need to work on.

The meaning of milestones become very evident to me during my recent first experience competing at the Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament. Prior to the tournament I had a record of 4-0. I had gotten over my first fight jitters, competing in the unknown of private shows, my first stoppage and more. I had made many strides forward and back. I never would have thought that tournament fighting would have been such a milestone. I have been in front of crowds, dealt with the pressure I put on myself, and performed, but this was different. I was actually competing for a championship. It felt almost like my first fight all over again. It's crazy what adrenaline can do to you!

It was almost surreal. A year prior I would have never imagined competing let alone competing in the Chicago Golden Gloves! And here I am getting ready to step into the ring to win the championship in my division. Looking back now I understand my anxiety...it was yet another first. And when we are doing something for the first time and stepping out of our comfort zone we come up against fear, nerves, excitement, apprehension, anticipation, doubt and more. We have to go through firsts to become our best. We have to go through these milestones, these uncomfortable experiences to truly realize our potential.

Competing in this tournament was definitely a milestone in my life. It showed me I can do this. I can box, I can compete, I can move beyond my fear and anxiety and do things that make me uncomfortable. I can overcome and I can succeed. And though I am more than proud of myself for competing and winning, the most important thing that comes to me is what I learned about myself. With each milestone I grow as a person and a boxer. Despite the fact that I must say the championship fight was not my best performance, I now realize even more clearly the mental piece of the game. I realize the impact of firsts and milestones. I realize how progress is made. Fighting and life play by the same rules much of the time. As we move forward we must at times step back.

Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness is proud to announce that Coach Jess took home the victory! She is the 2010 132lbs Female Senior Novice Chicago Golden Gloves Champion! We are very proud of her and grateful to all our supporters! This was a big step for her and as you read above a milestone. She will be the first to tell you competing truly tests you and you grow more than you ever imagined you could!

Discipline vs. Willpower

The difference between discipline and willpower first came to my awareness when I began studying Intuitive Eating (a anti-diet philosophy). The area of dieting runs rampant with the word willpower. In commercials, print ads, and conversation regarding diets and weight loss we hear the importance of willpower preached over and over again. The problem with willpower can be found in its definition. According to Intuitive Eating authors Elyse Resch and Evelyn Tribole, "Willpower can be defined as an attempt to counter natural desires and replace them with proscriptive rules." Using this definition it's easy to see how willpower can only take us so far because at some point our natural desires will supersede what we are telling ourselves we should do. Willpower can even induce rebellion, it has a connotation of being unpleasant.

Now I am not trying to bash the idea of willpower. I am all for "where there is a will there's a way." We do need the "will" to accomplish what we set out to accomplish. Yet we must realize that our will to accomplish must align with our deep values. In Intuitive Eating they point out why willpower does not work with diets. Diets tell us certain foods are forbidden and bad, and we need willpower to avoid those foods. Yet if deep down we don't, rightfully so, believe a food is bad we will eventually "given in" to temptation. It is much easier for us to follow what we deeply believe in rather than that which seems counter to our values. (check out the book Intuitive Eating p. 51 for more explanation)

So what makes discipline different from willpower?

In the athlete's world we hear much more talk about discipline than willpower. Athletes are said to have discipline or lack it. And having discipline is part of what leads to success and makes champions. Now with that said athletes sometimes have to do things that don't align with natural desires and have to do things that are rigid and rule bound. They must have a level of willpower to overcome pain, discomfort, etc. And while this is true possessing discipline again is what creates champions.

The author's of Intuitive Eating refer to the work of Stephen Covey when explaining the concept of discipline. Covey's work explains that "if you are a disciple to your own deep values that have an overriding purpose, it's likely that you'll have the will to carry them out." (Intuitive Eating, p. 51). It is much easier to do what you set out to do when it aligns with your own values. This requires that you begin to take a look at what your values are, what you believe in and what gives you purpose.

An athlete can only will him/herself to train hours a day if doing so aligned with a deeper belief. I find this true for myself. I have trained for recreational purposes and competitively for many years and have been asked how I do it. How do I train daily without fail even when I don't want to? I value strength, self-reliance, health, preparedness, respect, accountability, and being my personal best. Training daily is part of living those values. I gain the will to carry out my daily training because of the level of importance those values have for me.

This is different for every athlete and every individual. Some athletes and individuals do not easily will themselves to do what they are even paid to do. While other athletes, who are talented champions, would not think of not following their training programs. In life and in sport the more we can focus on our values or behaviors will most likely come more easily. When we act in a way that does not align with our values we will feel conflict and even at time unhappiness.

So whether you are training for competition or health, ask yourself why? What do you value? Are you following those values? Or are you just trying to use willpower to get yourself to do something you don't deeply believe?

Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness is a training facility designed to lead you on a path to success in and out of the ring. Our students and coaches are here to help you discover what more about yourself than you thought you could. You will discover what you value and how to challenge yourself to get what you want out of life.

Skill is King in the Ring!

"Conditioning drills will only benefit those fighters who master the fundamentals. Boxing is a sport that relies on skill and strategy. Conditioning drills will help you perform at your best, but you need skill to apply your conditioning." ~Ross Enmait

Many fighters can easily get caught up in training hard all the time, focusing too much attention on conditioning and spending too little time on skill development. We want to do the fun stuff, the stuff that makes us sweaty and sore, the stuff that comes easy to us. And while conditioning is a huge part of a fighters training, we cannot neglect skill development. It's can be the boring stuff that if practiced separates the boxers from the scrubs.

We need and must rely on our basics, the fundamentals. Without our fundamentals, all the conditioning in the world won't win a fight. We must be patient and give attention to our skill development daily. A fighter will stand in front of a full length mirror everyday and attempt to perfect his jab, improve his pivoting, and work on his weaknesses. A fighter knows that it's his skill in the ring is what will win the fight.

Many new students come to the gym wanting to be fighters and have no clue what that means or entails. At Warrior, it is a journey that starts from the ground up. If you want to fight, you must practice your basics, you must focus on your skill in conditioning workouts and you must give 100%. We start all students with stance and systemitcally progress them through basic punches and beyond. We do not move on with a student until they can do each skill correctly. We must not move students through this too quickly because if that cannot throw a jab correctly chances are their cross won't come out the way it needs to. Each punch and body movement builds on each other. Therefore if we speed through mastering the basics, we will train bad habits and lack what is needed to box.

This many times slow, tedious process of mastering the basics is again what sets a fighter apart from the rest of a team. The one who stays after class to practice his jab because it just didn't look right during the workout. The student who comes in early and practices jump rope every day before class because she knows mastering it will help her timing and agility. The guy who stands in front of that mirror practicing body rotation round after round while others sit around talking. Skill is king in the ring! Set yourself apart from the rest and take the time to practice daily! And remember that in your conditioning workouts at that heavy bag you must throw each punch with the goal of perfection. If you train slop in the gym, you will get slop in the ring. And no matter how great of shape you are in, if you're skills aren't there don't plan on winning.

Whether you train with us at Warrior or any other gym, remember take the time to develop your fundamentals, don't rush it...it will pay off in the end! If you do train at Warrior and you want to fight neglecting skills practice is not an option. If you are a new student, a prospect or a fighter on the team remember...

"Conditioning drills will only benefit those fighters who master the fundamentals. Boxing is a sport that relies on skill and strategy. Conditioning drills will help you perform at your best, but you need skill to apply your conditioning." ~Ross Enmait

Trust Your Path

In the ring and in life, I believe we all have a path we are meant to travel. Sometimes we don't know where that path will lead us and sometimes we do. Sometimes we fight where we are headed while other times we embrace it. Sometimes we have a hard time believing we are on the right path and comprehending why we are on this path. Each choice we make in life and in the ring leads us to a destination whether it be final or not. We never truly know where we will inevitably land, yet we always must have a vision of where we want to be.

If you would have told me a year again I would be fighting, I would have told you you're crazy! I had no clue that life was going to take me on a path that led to owning a boxing gym and competing. But what I did know is I had a vision and I knew what I wanted. And life seemed to be putting things in place that led me to where I am today.

Now of course there are always bumps in the road, challenges and obstacles to overcome, but that is part of the path. You must approach every situation as part of a bigger plan. Each bump, challenge, obstacle, success and opportunity is designed to keep you moving forward on the path that is best for you and will guide you to achieving your best.

Even when there are times of uncertainty, doubt, or confusion you must trust the path you are on and that is it guiding you towards your greatness. Your personal greatness does not have to be anything grand, it is just you being or doing what you are meant to be or do. There is a reason, though sometimes you won't know what it is, for why you are on the path you are on.

All of this become very clear to me at my last fight. I was nervous and excited yet not particularly as fired up as I would have wanted to be. I knew this was something I was meant to do in spite of whatever emotions or thoughts were running through my mind. I kept reminding myself that night as I waited hours before my fight, "you are never given more than you can handle" and "you are right where you are suppose to be". I redirected my energy and thoughts to those beliefs instead of focusing on winning or losing. This helped me throughout my fight and to my victory. And though I must say it was not my best fight, I knew I was doing what I came to do and wasn't going to give up. I followed my path. I tested myself and overcame fear to succeed at something I would have never imagined myself doing. I left that ring with pride and the realization that boxing is part of my path. And I must trust those around me that tell me so. Whether I am boxing to win a championship or to simply to test myself and grow personally I know boxing is something that is on my path to change my life. And to deny myself the opportunity to risk and trust is to deny the path set out before which leads to my vision.

You don't always get to choose exactly how you will get to where you are going but you must trust you are meant to get there. I love knowing that I can handle anything that comes my way, and part of my revived trust in that quality comes from testing myself in the ring.

To win in the ring you must trust! You must trust yourself, your coach and your training. You must trust your strengths and your abilities. You must trust that taking risks is what it's all about. You must trust that the path to victory comes with obstacles and instruction. You must trust your ability to score those points when you see openings.

To win in life you must all the same things you must trust to win in the ring! Life and fighting are both dances. In dancing there is no final destination just a vision accomplished through following a path. So be mindful of the path you are on. What is that path telling you? Are you thriving? Are you complacent? What are you learning from this path you are on? Is it part of your bigger plan or vision? Why are you on this path? Do you trust that you are right where you need to be? There are lessons to be learned at each step, be open to them so they can propel you forward.

At Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness, our goal is to help you stay on a path towards personal success. Our coaches are invested in your personal and physical growth. We know what it takes to succeed and pride ourselves on providing all our of students with the tools and support to achieve their personal best!

Overcoming Doubt

When we are taking on a new challenge, task or embarking on a competition many times we experience doubt. We may spontaneously find our mind silently questioning our abilities, knowledge, training, preparation, etc. This doubt ebbs and flows. Sometimes it is a fleeting thought easily overcome by distraction or replacing it with a reality check. Sometimes the doubt is intense, constant and draining. Whether it is quiet or loud, doubt will be there. A large part of the transformation that occurs within individuals who compete is the discovery that they an endure the mental and emotional stress and accomplish more than they ever thought possible.

Doubt is a form of fear. It is a thought. Depending on the day, our mood, who you are surrounding ourselves with can dictate how much power we give this thought and accompanying feelings. We must remember that because doubt is a form of fear, it is simply reminding us that we are embarking on uncharted territory that we are stepping out of our comfort zone. This fear would prefer we stay "safe" and not push ourselves beyond our self-imposed limitations. Fear wants us to choose not to risk but to stay small and comfortable. It is up to us to choose to sit with the feelings and thoughts of doubt and move forward regardless of our discomfort.

We must decide to trust ourselves, our training and our coach. We must focus on being better in that moment then we were before. And although it seems crazy because of course we want to win, we must shift to focusing on simply performing our best no matter the outcome! When we are at our best and performing at our best, win or lose, we can step back from our contest without regret and with pride! With each challenge, risk, contest and competition we get better and this is what we strive for...improvement and progress! We will never be perfect, we must understand this and focus on getting better each time.

To overcome any doubts we have to...

1. Not worry about what others think about us

2. Focus on performance improvement

3. Trust yourself, your training, your coach

4. Acknowledge & accept your thoughts and feelings for what they are

5. Don't compare yourself to others

6. Accept that mistakes are part of the process and help you grow

7. Believe that you can do more than you give yourself credit for

8. Surround yourself with positive people

9. Reflect on times you have had doubt and done what you thought you could not do

10. Remember doubt comes from fear and the unknown...it wants to keep you small...you want to grow!

Overcoming doubt is part of competing as an athlete and a part of growing as an individual. Whether its in the ring or in life, we will at some point encounter doubt and its accompanying feelings. We have choices to make when we experience doubt. We can choose to believe and give into the doubt or we can choose to accept and overcome it. Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness provides its recreational and competitive students with the opportunity to challenge themselves, experience fear and doubt and grow. The coaches at Warrior encourage every individual in the gym to push beyond their self-imposed limitations and access their personal and physical potential. So whether you have aspirations of competing or want to achieve a personal goal Warrior is here to support you and guide you towards success.

Mental Recovery in Training

Most of us understand and value the importance of recovery in our training routine. We train hard some days and bring down the intensity on other days. We take a full day or 2 off of training each week. It is critical to our performance that we implement recovery in our physical training. We must submit ourselves to stress and recovery in order to perform at our peak and improve our toughness.

The importance of recovery in the physical aspect of our training also holds true in the mental aspect of our training. As we train for competition physically it is important that we also train mentally and it is equally important that we recover mentally. If we only increase our mental stress during our training camp and never integrate mental recovery we will not go into battle 100% peaked.

This area of training stress & recovery often gets overlooked. We simply keep training hard, focusing, practicing and concentrating without implementing mental recovery. We may start to experience poor concentration, chronic mental fatigue, negative thinking and much more if we do not make time for mental recovery. Just as when we overtrain our bodies and end up feeling chronic fatigue, experiencing injuries and sleeping problems, we can overtrain our minds.

We cannot just focus on one thing for extended periods of time without negative consequences. We needs breaks, periods of rest and recovery. Putting our minds and bodies through stress is essential to developing toughness and performing at our peak. Stress is energy expenditure, it provides us with a challenge. Recovery is our energy recapture, it provides us with growth. We must break down muscles in physical training and build them back up in recovery and the same holds true for the mental piece of training.

So what are mental stress & recovery?

According to a book I highly recommend "The New Toughness Training For Sports" by James Loehr the following are considered mental stress:

• Focusing
• Mental practicing, thinking
• Visualizing, imaging
• Analyzing
• Rehearsing tactics & strategies
• Problem solving
• Concentrating

And the following are what Loehr considers mental recovery:

• Mind wandering
• Feelings of mental relief
• Increased calmness
• Brain activity slowing down
• Increased sense of slowing down mentally
• Increase fantasy
• Increase spontaneous imagery
• Decrease focus
• Increase creativity

The key to training our mental recovery is making time for it during appropriate times. The last thing we want is our mind wandering during competition. We need to make sure and build mental recovery into our training. We need to take time to cross train, watch funny movies, and participate in activities unrelated to our sport. For a boxer you might take a bike ride or play a game of basketball. For a tennis player you might choose to go play golf. No matter what you choose to do be sure to make time for mental recovery...you need to recharge your batteries, allow your mind time to rest & relax and give yourself free time to rebuild mentally. If we are constantly thinking, talking and engaging in our sport we will prolong the stress cycle and risk poor performance in battle.

As I gear up for the 2010 Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament, this is a concept I am very aware of. Fighting, as with all sports, is more mental than anything, so if I don't make time for mental recovery I run the risk of not performing at my peak. I must train my mind and body by submitting them both to stress & discomfort and I must also train my recovery. I must use my time between rounds to recovery and regroup, I must use my time between training sessions to relax and unwind. Going into battle with a balanced level of stress & recovery will lead to performing at my best!

So when you think about your training routine be sure to integrate recovery both mental and physical. You want to avoid being out of balance. You don't want to expend loads more stress than your recapture and you also don't want to spend loads more time in recovery than in stress. The coaches at Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness understand this delicate and critical balance. They will work with you to put you on a path towards peak performance. Whether you are recreational or competitive introducing stress & recovery into all areas of your life is key to success and happiness.

It Takes a Community

In most of my writing about change, fighting, and personal growth I mention the importance of support. You know how much I value and place significance of having positive people in your corner. And when it comes to competing this couldn't be more true! A fighter or any athlete for that matter is not developed solo, it takes a community.

Fighters, athletes and anyone working on making change, growing and pushing past limitations needs a community to succeed. There are some many different types of supportive people you need to be your best. You need your cheering crowd! Those people that come out to support you as you compete, take risks and go for it! You need their positive, supportive energy behind you to push you forward. They sometimes know you can do it more than you do! These people scream your name, have your back, have confidence in you, and want nothing but the best for you.

Then you need the coach, mentor, or guide. The personal that has your best interest at heart. The one that many times has been where you have been. The person that knows you better than you know yourself. You need that person that will put you on the right path, give you direction, training, and their expertise. You must trust this person, their knowledge and their intentions. This person will keep you moving forward, push you beyond what you thought you could do (even if you kick & scream), and tell you the honest truth.

You need a partner. Someone who is going down the same path with you...teammates! These people are experiencing in the moment what you are. They can relate. They want to help you succeed. The are in your shoes. You can talk with them, work with them, sweat with them, and grow together. They provide support, motivation and camaraderie.

We need people. We need support. We need relationships in order to grow, succeed and be our best.

If you have ever watched a pro fight you see the community. Before the fight and after the fight, the boxer is not in the ring alone. He has his whole crew, his support team! He could not fight without them. Fighter's fight alone in the squared ring, yet they need the community to make them a fighter. They need people in their corner that are working for them, that are on their side.

This is true outside of the ring too. You can't make change without a community of support. Whether you are trying to lose weight, make a job change, recover from an addiction, or make any sort of change you need people in your corner. Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness prides itself on helping individuals make significant change in their lives and be their best by providing every student with a community of support!