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!

The Importance of Private Lessons

As a boxing coach and personal trainer I thought I always understood the true importance of private lessons. That individualized, one-on-one time when you get to work with your coach or trainer on you and only you is sacred and priceless! Now please know I don't say this as some sort of pitch to get you to sign up for private lessons because that is not my intent. I understand that for a variety of reasons private lessons/training sessions aren't for everyone, and that's totally okay. My purpose in writing on this topic is to illustrate what I have realized in working one-on-one with my boxing coach, Bob Miller.

When people decide to train whether it be for general fitness purposes, to compete or get healthy you have many choices when it comes to embarking on this endeavor. You can join a large health club and use the equipment, you can attend group fitness classes, you can join a running group, you can join a training facility and train for a specific sport, you can work with a trainer in small groups or individually...and the list goes on! The beauty of training or exercise is it is not one size fits all and we have lots of options. As a trainer, I enjoy doing all of it...large group classes, small group training, and private lessons/training. And each type has a different purpose, feel, and intention. Each has its advantages and disadvantages depending on your goals, needs and budget. The key is to finding what works for you!

Now back to my point on illustrating the importance of private lessons. As an athlete and a boxer I recently realized how essential and important my individual work with my coach is. I have been competing frequently and work hard at getting in my roadwork, skills training, sparring, etc. I typically make time for all of it and feel proud that I have been able to continue my rigorous training, while also running the gym with my business partner and coach. Due to crazy schedules and gratefully a busy, thriving gym my coach and I hadn't had much time to get our private lessons in. The past two fights have been successful wins for me despite not having had as much individual training time with my coach as he and I would have liked.

So as I approach my upcoming fight, my coach and I have found more time to get our work in. And I have realized the priceless value in our training time together. This is where I not only tweak things, make adjustments, learn, improve and grow, but this is where my coach has time to connect with me and see where my head is at. This is where the mental game is prepared as well. My coach can sense my confidence level, where my head is at, my focus, my challenges and my strengths. This is always where I, the athlete, pull my confidence and strength from. Knowing that my coach has a watchful eye on me and where I am at gives me the confidence to trust him and myself. When your coach truly knows where you are at physically and mentally, you can go into competition with confidence! He's got your back, he knows what to say to you, how to get you focused and how to get you to do things that lead to wins! This is key! My motto is trust your coach and trust your training...if you don't have that you won't win!

My one-on-one time with my coach is priceless to me. It's time that is just focused on me! How often do you get that? Me time is so important for all of us whether or not we are competing. Each of my training sessions with my students I know my intention is to focus solely on them, their personal and physical growth and transformation. Whether I am teaching someone how to throw jab or pushing them to do one more push-up, it's about them and getting them to be their personal best. The connection you have with your coach/trainer is so important. It leads to success! If you have a coach or trainer you don't like, enjoy or trust you will never get what you want. You want enjoy your experience and you want invest in your training.

We all need a little me time! Whether you are learning to box or simply trying to get in shape we have our own process, we all learn differently, and we all have our own pace. And while group classes and training sessions are amazing and essential for camaraderie and motivation when it comes to truly changing and growing we need that individual time and connection with our coach/trainer. That person that has again a watchful eye on us, knows us better than we know ourselves, that can inspire us, push us, and make us be and do more! We need that time with our coach/trainer to take an honest inventory of where we are at and how to get where we want to be. So while you move forward on your path towards personal and physical change ask yourself what you need. Do you need a little me time? Do you need some in your corner? Do you want someone to keep you on track?

No matter what you prefer, be it large group classes, small training sessions, or individual lessons remember that to get where you want to be you must invest 100% in what you are doing! Stay focused! Be accountable and responsible! Get support! Train Hard! Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness has training sessions to fit every individuals goals and needs, its up to you to decide what you want to do to succeed!

Training to Box vs. Training to Fight

There is a big difference between fighting and boxing. A lot of people can fight, yet a lot less can actually box. Mastering the art of boxing is no easy task. Whether you are a recreational or competitive combat athlete you know that learning the intricacies and nuances of boxing is a time consuming, long journey.

And while boxing is much different than fighting, note that both take courage and strength. There are many combat athletes that get in the ring to test themselves and struggle to box, and again this does not discount what they do accomplish personally and physically by stepping in that ring.

When we first begin the process of learning to box, we mostly understand the fight aspect. We must punch, move forward, make contact with our opponent, we must learn to be aggressive, tough and also patient. The fight is very important and yet as we grow as combat athletes we must begin to understand boxing. It is an art. It is the sweet science. From the footwork, angles, and combinations to the style, intuitive adjustments and strategy. Boxing is never perfected though always practiced with the goal of achieving perfection.

So how does one train to box vs. train to fight? Well we train the fight over and over again in our conditioning workouts. We push our body beyond what we think is possible. We learn the basics and attempt to perfect them as we hit the bag. Our initial sparring sessions are typically about training to fight, getting in the ring and trying to put together our basics although we usually don't look like we are boxing at all. (and of course there are those select few that pick it up naturally and box much sooner than most)

I realized last week what it meant to train to box. In my most recent match I won and felt as if I was winning during the match. I was a bit more relaxed than in previous matches and I realized that I needed to find ways to strategically score points. That feeling of knowing I was winning made me recognize that I train to box not to fight. I want to become a better boxer. I don't simply train for one match or one tournament, I train with the goal of becoming the best boxer I can be. I want the speed, finesse, skill of those boxers I admire. I want to outbox my opponent.

The only way to become a better boxer is to box. And not just in sparring sessions. You need experience, ring experience. Sparring is our practice and it helps tremendously but at the end of the day nothing compares to real life competitive experience. We must do the thing that we want to improve on. We cannot duck competition and expect to become a better boxer. The mental piece of boxing and competing cannot be recreated outside of an actual match. You must go through the experience of prepping for a match, the pre-fight routine, stepping into the ring with an audience, boxing and standing in the middle of the ring at the end of the match waiting for your hand to be raised in order to improve as a boxer. This is because the experience of competition has an different impact on all of us and we need to go through that process in order to show us as a better boxer each time.

Training to box is an amazing experience. You go through your training camp, work with your team, have your crew supporting you in the corner, you compete, you win, you learn about yourself and you grow personally and physically. With each opportunity to compete I am proud to say that I have improved as a boxer and I looked forward to continued improvement. And to get better I must take matches, test myself and hone my skills with each opportunity.

For some boxers in training they have to deal with the unfortunate challenge that occurs in amateur boxing of not having opponents out there to compete against. This happens far too often in female amateur boxing. My sparring partner and friend has experienced this over and over again. She gets matched and the fighter doesn't show or pulls out, or we cannot find a match for her. This is a frustrating experience to a boxer in training who wants to grow and improve through testing themselves in competition. I admire her continued dedication to the sport as she continues to wait for the opportunity to compete. She knows that testing herself and putting all her training into action will make her a better boxer.

Boxers must deal with the ups and downs of training, the repetition, the steps forward and back and the demand of training on a daily basis all for the opportunity "dance under those lights" and find out what they are made of. To discover if they can box, not just fight, but box. At Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness, we don't just train our athletes to fight, we train them to box! We break boxing down and teach you from the ground up how to master this complex art. We give every athlete the opportunity to embrace the sport and become a boxer.

Finding Your Inner Warrior

What does it mean to find your inner Warrior?

Many of our blog posts up to this one illustrate what it takes to find your inner Warrior. We have explored momentum, overcoming hesitation, trusting your intuition, training hard, and much more. All of these concepts lead us to the point of finding our inner Warrior!

Coach Bob always says he never knows what he is gonna get out of a fighter at their first competition. No matter how hard you train and how great your sparring comes along during your training camp many times how you show up in competition is a surprise.

Will you dig down deep and leave everything in the ring? Will you let the fear take over? Will you follow your coach's instruction? Will you choke? Will you keep moving forward? Will you find your inner Warrior and fight?

These questions are most often left unanswered until you compete for the first time and learn a little something about yourself. No doubt there is anxiety, nerves, fear or whatever you want to label it before your fight but it is what you do with those feelings that matters.

"The hero and the coward both feel the same thing, but the hero uses his fear, projects it onto his opponent, while the coward runs. It's the same thing, fear, but it's what you do with it that matters." ~Cus D'Amato

A Warrior fights. A Warrior faces his fear. A Warrior stays focused. A Warrior tests himself.

This weekend we had the pleasure of seeing a fighter be born. Our newest Warrior. As a coach you go into a fight uncertain about what you will get out of a first time fighter. You have more confidence in some of your fighters than others based on their skill level, fitness level, how the train, etc. Yet you still never know how they will handle the stress of competition. So when our guy stepped into that ring this weekend I wasn't sure how this thing was going to go. Would he step up? Would he fight? Would he follow Coach Bob's instruction? The uncertainty and lack of control is more nerve racking than competing myself.

What did our fighter do? He found his inner Warrior! He fought! He tried his hardest to execute the instruction he was given...he moved forward and didn't quit! I was so proud of him! I didn't care if he won or lost. And though he did lose, I learned something about him and he learned something about himself. He can do this! He can overcome nerves, anxiety and fear and compete. He can fight. He can stay focused. He can dig down deep when he is exhausted and leave it all in the ring without regret! This is priceless. When you discover that you can trust yourself to handle stress and overcome you find your inner strength. This builds self-trust, self confidence and pride. Win or lose...you test yourself, you do your best and you change! In and out of the ring you realize you have more power and strength inside you than you ever knew.

Coach Bob always says competing teaches you something about yourself. You learn what you do under pressure, you learn what you can handle, you discover your inner strength and confidence. It is an amazing thing to see a fighter find and experience this. I felt like a proud parent watching our fighter stand in that corner after the contest and realize on a deep level that he can do more than he ever thought he could. He tested himself and he found his inner Warrior!

That is what this is all about...growing as an athlete and a person! Achieving your personal best! Knowing that you have no regret, that you have given it your all and that is what matters! It takes courage and strength to test yourself in and out of the ring, but it is always worth it! I truly believe each of us has much more strength than we recognize or give ourselves credit for. That's why at Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness, we don't just develop fighters we develop Warriors! Individuals that challenge themselves, grow, improve, and change.

8 Keys to Success

I came across this brief video posted by one of our favorite trainers Ross Enamait. He recently posted this video on his blog and I thought it would be something useful to share with the Warrior Community.

This video outlines the 8 keys to success. And after watching the video and thinking about it I believe these same 8 keys to success out of the ring can apply in the ring as well. Please view this video and then continue reading.

8 keys to Success:

1. Passion

2. Work

3. Good

4. Focus

5. Push

6. Serve

7. Idea

8. Persist

Passion:

As the video states, to be successful you must love what you do. I have found this true in training, fighting, life and my career. I have always used passion as my guide. I choose do to things that align with my passion and stay away from those things that do not. Now I realize in life and training we must do things we don't always like or feel passionate about, yet when it comes down to it I can bet that even the things you dislike doing if aligned with your deeper passion are bearable and lead to success.

I love what I do professionally. I am grateful for the opportunity to co-own a boxing gym and training center. My passion for helping others, boxing and creating community is a driving force in my life and despite the challenges that accompanying being an entrepreneur, living my passion is worth every up and down.

Work:

In and out of the ring you must be willing to work hard. "We sweat in the gym, so we don't bleed in the ring." There is no substitute for hard work. Putting in the long hours, the extra rounds of training, and the late nights in the office the all pay off in the end. Nothing comes easy.

Good:

To be successful in life, in your career or in the ring you must practice. You must be good at your craft. You cannot be successful at something you simply aren't good at. So just as the video states, "practice, practice, practice". In boxing this is key! You must practice, train your body to perform as it needs to in competition, and practice some more! You will never improve as a fighter or in any are of your life if you don't practice!

Focus:

I can't say enough about how important focus is. "Energy flows where attention goes" ~James Ray. If you focus is all over the place you will never get anywhere. You must focus on one thing at a time. Put your attention where it needs to be. Focus on your strengths AND your weaknesses.

Push:

This speaks to internal or self motivation. You must find it within to push yourself beyond what you think is possible. The mind can be limiting, it can hold you back, so you must consciously push yourself beyond doubts, fears, and hesitations. I always say you can do more than you think you can! So do it! Take risks, push and grow! Do this in every day life, at work, every training session and in competition.

Serve:

Whatever it is that you do, do it with the intend to serve. Serve the greater good. Improve your community, your family, your circle. Take honor in what you do. Respect it. Be grateful for the opportunity to be able to do what you do. See what you do as a privilege.

Idea:

We must have ideas. We must trust our intuition. In the ring we must listen, observe, and have ideas about our strategy and opportunities. In life we must do the same. When training you must be curious, hungry to learn, and you must make that connection between training and application. In life and fighting, we must problem solve, have ideas on how to get into something and get out.

Persist:

And yes of course persistence. Nothing was ever accomplished without persistence. We must take action, make mistakes, fail and keep moving forward. Nothing is flawless or without error, so learn from your mistakes and persist. We must not back down, back out or give up. We must persist even when times get tough. Again this is true of life and fighting.

As Ross said in his blog post about this video these are probably pretty obvious concepts. Sometimes we just need a little reminder of what is obvious. It's like a nudge saying, "hey just an FYI, here's what you need to be doing to get where you want to be!". So take note of those concepts that are easy for you practice or embrace and those that are more challenging. Choose to follow your passion, work hard, practice until so you're good at what you do, focus, push yourself, serve, create ideas and persist! In and out of the ring these 8 keys can lead to your success! Warrior is based on these 8 keys and encourages each student and fighter to follow these keys to success!

Don't Hesitate...Keep the Momentum Going!

When it comes to fighting, living and making change hesitation gets in our way when we need to go with momentum. We hesitate when we are in fear, when we are uncertain, when we don't trust and when we aren't committed to what we started. In the fight game, I began to understand the potential pitfall of hesitation in my last fight. I felt myself holding back as I went to attack, I had this delay in action. I wasn't committed to some of my attacks. I wasn't letting go and using the momentum of my attack. I paused. I realized that I must always finish what I start. I must follow through on my attack, I can't just leave it hanging. As a fighter (and a person), it is essential trust and take action.

When we hesitate, we are holding back. We can find ourselves hesitating when we fight, in life and when we are making changes. We pause. Maybe it's because we don't believe in ourselves or our abilities, maybe it's because we aren't committed to what we started, or maybe we don't trust ourselves, we are uncertain, or simply in fear. When we hesitate, we lose the momentum that will propel us forward and unfortunately it can cause us to move backwards. In a fight if we hesitate we may end up getting back into the corner as we face our opponents momentum. In life if we hesitate we may find ourselves in situations we were trying to avoid. We must trust ourselves and our intuition. We must commit to what we started. We must find the courage and strength within to move forward and take steps, attack and keep the momentum going.

Momentum is a wonderful thing! We are moving forward, we are in motion, taking action, making strides. Whether our action is perfect or not is of little importance. The key is to keep YOUR momentum going. Not to get swept up into the momentum of another or your opponent. Everything in my life that I have accomplished has been a product of keeping my momentum going. All my steps no matter how small kept me moving. I didn't hesitate to take steps, actions, risks. I trusted myself and had patience.

Objects in motion stay in motion! This is true in the ring and in life. I have seen this proven true time and time again. In fact, just recently one of my sparring partners discovered the power of momentum. She discovered her ability to commit to her attack and it was transformative to watch her reach this point. She stopped hesitating and her sparring abilities enhanced! She began to use her own momentum and moved forward.

So where do you hesitate? Where do you hold back? Do you have things in your life that you have left unfinished? Do you hesitate in the ring? Do you allow your opponents momentum to push you back? Answering these questions and understanding where you hesitate will give you the awareness to begin taking action and gaining momentum towards success! At Warrior, we train tough, smart, skillful, successful fighters. We also help people change their lives. The ability to transform internally and externally through fight training is incredible. You see people's "stuff" in the ring and with training and coaching you see them overcome, transform and become the best they can be!

Making Progress, Testing Yourself

A funny thing happens when you compete as a combat athlete...you take big steps forward during your training and then you compete and you take a step back. Some say this is just how it goes, some say its the nerves, ring rust, a lack of ring vision, while some say its a lack of confidence that cause this regression of skill during competition. Well whatever it is, it exists and its frustrating, but it's part of the process.

You make strides forward in your strength, conditioning, endurance and skill throughout your training camp and then you are tested in competition and your performance never seems up to par. Now obviously the more you compete and test yourself the better you get and the more often you can perform at your peak. But in the beginning of your fight career this is a common occurrence I am told and I have experienced this.

It's almost as if this happens on purpose so that you can understand and learn more than you could in training. The hands on experience, exposure to competition stress and accompanying mistakes heighten our understanding of the sport and what we need to work on. Mistakes happen so we can learn and improve which is why it is key not to beat yourself up when you make them. You must acknowledge all your improvement, recognize your mistakes and be realistic with yourself.

We must be patient with ourselves as we train and compete. We must trust that we will develop a sense of ring vision and comfort that we lack early on. We must develop our mental game, improve our ability to relax and trust that our training will carry us through to success.

You never know where you truly are until you test yourself. I train HARD in training camp which is why I'm called "the machine", but in the comfort of my gym, my camp, my routine I know I am tough physically and mentally. Yet I never truly know where I am conditioning wise, skill wise, etc until I test myself in competition. This is one of the reasons I fight. I want to be real with myself, I want to test myself, I want to be the best me, I want to access all of my potential, I always want to be progressing. None of this can happen if I don't test myself, embrace the two steps forward, one step back flow of progress and take risks. Being the best I can be and the best fighter I can be, is all about stepping out of my comfort zone.

Now combat sports aren't for everyone, and competing isn't for everyone either. Many enjoy the training of combat sports and identify as recreational boxers, they test themselves physically in workouts and this training supports them in testing themselves in other areas of their lives. Others enjoy the test of competition and find that it transforms them personally as well. Whether you are a recreational student or competitive fighter the idea of making progress in any area of your life comes with task of testing yourself. So don't fool yourself into thinking you are making progress until you have truly tested yourself. This reality check, step out of your comfort zone, and risk will make all the difference in your physical, personal and professional transformation. It's eye opening, growth producing and clarifying. It keeps you realistic, honest and progressing. No matter how challenging, nauseating or nerve racking an opportunity to test yourself can feel, the more you can find it deep within you to take advantage of the opportunity the more you will grow, change, transform and progress.

Warrior Fighting Sports & Fitness prides itself on giving recreational and competitive students the opportunity to test themselves and progress in & out of the ring!

The Importance of Recovery: Listen to Your Body!

Recovery is an often neglected piece of training. And it's ironically one of THE MOST important parts of training. Training stimulates growth and recovery creates growth. So if we train and train and train and train (you get the idea) and never properly & effectively recover you are doing your body and performance a HUGE disservice. You must recover physically, mentally and emotionally in order to perform at your peak. And one of the keys to recover is listening to your body. This seemingly simple task eludes many of us. And those of us that are proficient at listening to our body's may not always honor what our body is telling us.

Recovery gives your mind and body the time to rejuvenated, recharge, rebuild and repair. It gives you the fuel, calmness and strength you need to endure athletic challenges and succeed. You cannot expect to train effectively without giving yourself ample recovery! If you do not recover you WILL overtrain!

I recently experienced a lack of recover and some overtraining. I realized I was constantly tired, felt lethargic, my mood was low, my energy was low, I felt like I was getting sick and I wasn't enjoying my training. All signs that I was missing something...RECOVERY! Again recovery is 3 fold: physical, mental and emotional. After experiencing this I finally realized what was going on. My body was trying to tell me something...it needed recovery! I just wasn't listening and it got louder and louder as I got more fatigued, more "out of it" and less excited about training. When you don't listen to you body it simply amps up what its trying to tell you until you listen.

So what did I do to recover? I started paying attention! Paying attention is key! What was my body telling me...what did I need physically, mentally and emotionally? As I asked myself these questions it all became clear. I discovered I needed to make sleep and rest a priority, so I made a point to work on getting to bed earlier and getting a better training/rest routine. I discovered my water intake was way too low, so I upped my water intake and added vitamin C to my water because I felt my immune system was down due to the intensity of my training. I discovered I needed something other than training to occasionally focus on, so I started reading more. These and a couple other little things put together over only a few short days made a dramatic impact on my overall well-being. I felt more alert, stronger, excited, and focused. I had been neglecting my needs and my body was not having it!

With all this said learning to listen to and honor what your body needs is not easy task. You must decide you are important enough to take of your needs. You must make yourself and your health a priority. You must want to succeed in the ring (or whatever your sport is) enough to give you body exactly what it needs vs what you want (as needs and wants can conflict with each other). This is such an important part of training that often gets neglected and needs much more of your attention. Coach Bob and I are here to help you understand and incorporate recovery into your training program. Our goal at Warrior is to help you train as effectively as possible and guide you towards success in and out of the ring.

New Year Resolution Time!

Ah yes its that time...new year resolution time! Whether you sit down to truly contemplate the year and set goals or simply decide to make a change the difference between manifesting those goals and not depends on a few simple things. It's easy to just say, "This year I'm going to ____!" and never make strides to achieving what you wanted to achieve. Getting focused, organized and taking control of what you desire are keys to your success!

"Energy flows where attention goes." ~James Arthur Ray

When you set goals for 2010 remember this quote above because where you decide to focus your attention will dictate what you achieve. What you focus on expands! So focus on positives, opportunities, etc you get more of that or focus on negatives, lack, etc and guess what you get more of it! You must be specific with what you want and why you want it! It must align with your values. Internal conflict, confusion, etc keeps us stuck and stagnant, so I invite you to spend some time figuring out specifically what you want and devising a plan.

Here are some tips to manifesting your 2010 resolutions:

1. Figure out what you want! Decide what the top 3 areas of your life are that you need/want to make changes in.

2. Work with a partner or group of friends to brainstorm, and explore possibilities. Sometimes the best way to figure out what you want and what direction to go is to talk with those who know you best.

3. Prioritize your goals.

4. Write down your goals! Just saying them aloud does not keep you focused. Write them down somewhere you can look at them daily! Put them in your phone, on your desktop, anywhere you can be reminded of them daily.

5. Steps! Make small steps EVERY DAY towards your goals. This is key to keeping the ball rolling.

6. Surround yourself with things, people, environments, etc that align with your goals. This is all about getting focused. Let's say your general goal is to improve your fitness level, but you choose to surround yourself with negative, unhealthy people, you spend your time at places that promote unhealthy habits, and you focus your attention on how your goal isn't being achieved fast enough...guess what?! The result of this type of focus is getting more of what you say you don't want.

7. Support, Accountability, Community! You need support from others when you hit bumps in the road, you need a boost, or you need someone to keep you accountable. Reach out to others and create a circle of support, motivation, and accountability for when things are going great and when you need a little help.

Do all these things and I promise you will accomplish all you set out to in 2010! And remember as long as you are making strides forward, don't focus on rigid time lines and put unnecessary pressure on yourself. If I always set hard and fast rules and time lines for my goals I would not leave windows for life's unexpected surprises that take guide me towards my passion and purpose. There is a fine line between giving yourself a break and letting yourself off the hook!

To some of you this blog might seem to new agey and airy fairy...and well maybe it is, but I know that when I have done the things above I have manifested more than I ever could have imagined! For those of you who don't know my story about growing my business, let me take a moment to share with you how doing these simple things changed my life!

Before being co-owner of Warrior with Coach Bob Miller I was operating my much smaller business called ConceptFIT which focused on empowering women with fitness, life coaching and support services. I was actually doing pretty well and my company was just in its infancy. While running ConceptFIT, I was also teaching group fitness classes at a local park district, working with personal training clients 30 miles from my home & business and working part time as a psychotherapist. Needless to say my attention was ALL OVER THE PLACE. I was busy, surviving and doing okay but I wasn't growing or thriving. I realized the one thing I needed was focus!

I worked with my life coaching on goals and prioritizing. I came up with a list of 6 things that where important to me, that needed my attention and ranked them. The number one thing being a feeling of security (financial primarily). I then did an exercise to figure what of my business offerings would most strongly impact my number goal and it was focusing on the boxing classes. This would increase my revenue and directly impact my feeling of security. So I made the conscious choice to immerse myself in everything related to boxing and improving my classes. Effortlessly, without thought boxing was all around me. I ironically would always catch Rocky movies on TV and watch them, I was seeking out ways to improve my own training and learn more about the sport. I began doing more researching on boxing gyms, women only boxing programs, started searching for a new potential spaces to run my business. I had focus!

Then one day in my search for spaces for my expanding business I came across an industrial park with units for lease. I called the property manager and had a conversation with him about what I was looking to do. I told him I was opening a women only boxing/personal training studio. His response, "Hey we have a guy in one of our units who runs a boxing gym, competitive though...". My response, "What? Who?". For some reason he didn't remember the name of the business. So I got in my car went back to the industrial park and found the boxing gym he was talking about. They where closed so I peeked through the windows...wow a fully equipped gym with no one using the space during the day. I thought to myself I should call the owner and meet with him, maybe explore partnering ideas. I put the thought on the back burner but it was still on my mind. One day at work (my psychotherapy job) I was searching the Internet and looking at this gym's website I thought I should really email him about training me (as I was looking to get some boxing training for myself). I sat there for a second and thought about what I might say in this email. Then I called my home office to check my voicemail to see if I had messages, and you will never believe what happened next! I had a message from Coach Bob Miller the owner of this gym. He found me, my website, and wanted to meet about working together! Um...omg are you kidding me?! I called him, we talked for a brief moment and scheduled to meet the next day. The next day we met at this gym, talked for hours and decided to partner. Now a lot of people thought I was crazy, I barely knew this guy and now I was going to partner with him! HELL YEAH I AM! Things like this don't happen everyday and what did I have to lose? Nothing. I trusted myself and started working with him. I always dreamed of owning my own training center and now I do. I truly believe had I not gotten focused, made steps daily toward my goals, prioritized and trusted it would come I would not be where I am today! A gym owner!

Prior to getting focused my life and my attention was too cluttered...I had too much on my plate...there was no room for things to manifest and come into my life. So whether you believe in things like the Law of Attraction or not is up to you...but I can tell you focusing your attention on what you want is key!

Join Warrior this year to get the focus you need to achieve more than you ever thought possible!