This summer I have been on a reading spree and it really has helped me to understand how to level Martial Artists think and train.
The first book that I read was The Fighters Mind by Sam Sheridan in this book Sheridan interviews high level competitors and attempts to find what they do that makes them the best of what they do. He interviews trainers Freddie Roach and Mark Delalagrotte to see how they train their fighters.
Also in the book he interviews Chess and Tai Chi Champion Josh Waitzkin on mindset and how chess helped him become a Tai Chi Champion in Push Hands. Waitzkin also wrote a book that Sheridan references The Art of Learning that I read this summer. One of the things that I really found interesting in the book was that Sheridan had two different Chess coaches as he was on his way to becoming a Chess Champion and these two different coaches had two completely different styles of playing and coaching chess. Not only was Waitzkin a very high level Chess player he also became a very high level coach.
The last book that I read on performance is a book that I will probably go back to many times Talent is Overated by Geoff Colvin. For those of you that have read Outliers by Malcom Gladwell, Talent is Overated is Outliers on steriods. While I have enjoyed the other two books Talent is Overated was by far the best read on performance and how to take your game to another level. The thing that made this book so good is that it dispels the myth of God given talent and breaks down what separates the best from everyone else.
What is the secret you ask? Practice… Not just practice but purposeful practice. On this video clip Ajarn Greg Nelson is talking about purposeful practice.I can tell you that we @ Synergy Martial Arts have put this concept into our training and it has made a huge difference. I highly recommend that you read all three of these books but first watch this video clip.
It has been a while since I have posted. July was a really busy month for me but I am back and have an awesome 4 part Ajarn Greg Nelson (http://www.mmaacombatzone.com) interview that Dick Harrell (http://www.dick-harrell.com) did in July 2010. For those of you who have not visited our site before Ajarn Greg Nelson has had a huge impact on us here at Synergy Martial Arts. So enough of my rambling here is the first part of the interview.
In this video Sensei Erik Paulson (www.erikpaulson.com) talks about respect and tradition in Martial Arts and MMA. I have trained in Martial Arts since 1992 and even though I trained in a style (Jeet Kune Do) that is very non traditional we placed a large emphasis on respect not only for Sijo Bruce Lee but for our fellow students as well.
One of the major knocks on MMA is that the fighters lack the respect and discipline that Martial Artists develope. I have personally seen this when training fighters and also in seminars. The reason for this I feel is the competitiveness of MMA and if you fight you need to establish your dominance right away. Trainers like Sensei Erik Paulson and Kru Greg Nelson teach this due to their Martial Arts backgrounds, also fighters like Lyoto Machida, Georges St Pierre show a high level of respect to their opponents.
Kru Greg Nelson has a saying that we use @ Synergy Martial Arts ” Practice with your partner not on your partner”. Being a good training partner is very important to the developement of your school, this is both for the Instructor and the student. If there is a high level of respect for one another this causes to seek to help out fellow students. When this happens the skill level of the school increases it is a win/win situation for everyone.
Watch this video and ask yourself how can you be a better training partner.
I got this DVD series for Christmas a couple of years ago, I cannot tell you how many times I have watched it. When I got it I was just beginning to really examine drills and training methods to help us improve our clinch game. We got that and so much more out of the series.
Here are highlights of some of the things that we got from Volume 1
Training tips from legendary trainers Erik Paulson, Greg Nelson, and former UFC Champ Sean Sherk
Basic training drills that helped us to improve our kicking
Training methods to help us improve our knees and how to use them
Strategies to help us improve our understanding of setups for transitions between striking, clinching and throwing
And one of the coolest things is that CSW included a training manual of all the material from the series
Here is a video clip of Volume 1
You can purchase the DVD series @ www.erikpaulson.com I highly recommend this series like all of Erik Paulson’s training material it is well worth the cost.
I would like to draw your attention to a Martial Arts Instructor who I have an alot of respect for Kru Greg Nelson.
If you do not know who Kru Greg Nelson ( http://www.mmaacombatzone.com) you really should take a look @ his material it is amazing!!!
But his Martial Arts accomplishments are nothing compared to him being a two-time cancer survivor!!! I cannot imagine having cancer even once but twice is amazing!!! He credits Martial Arts and the conditioning he has done with helping him get through chemo and cancer.
In this video he discusses the people that have influenced him in Martial Arts. One of the really cool things about Kru Greg is his humility and his balanced view on not only himself but training Martial Arts as well. In the world of big ego MMA Kru Greg is on top of the food chain as a trainer and coach he has maintained a very humble attitude.. He currently is coaching UFC Heavyweight Champ Brock Lesner as well as top MMA fighters like Sean Sherk.
So for those of you who have read my opinion on part 1 you know that I have an immense amount of respect for Ajarn Chai and his training methods. Even though his is a “Muay Thai” Instructor I believe that Ajarn is the BEST Instructor in the world for teaching focus mitt holding.
In this clip he talks about why holding is very important to get the most out of your partner. Watch the way he holds for the jab so your opponent can’t get into a tie up postion. Also the way that he holds for single punches and for combos.
The reason that I say this is when you look @ his students and the way that they hold & teach the mitts they are amazing. Here is a short list of some of Ajarn Chai’s students.
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