A question came up recently: "What do you guys do in the days before your fight to get into the right headspace?" I've competed in wrestling for most of my life, and I think that prepared me pretty well for the mental side of competition. I've always been able to get relatively relaxed before competing. I'm not someone who needs to spend the entire day pacing around the room, psyching myself up for what's about to happen. But there is one question I've always asked myself bef

One of the things I think we sometimes lose sight of in MMA training is that the person standing across from you is the most important part of the equation. We spend a lot of time hitting bags, working pads, drilling combinations and practicing techniques. All of those things have value. I've used all of them for a very long time and I wouldn't want to coach without them. A heavy bag doesn't move away when you jab it. It doesn't parry your cross. It doesn't change levels when

One of the things I've noticed as I've spent more time coaching is that there is a point where learning another combination isn't necessarily what an athlete needs. Combinations are important. Especially for beginners. You need to learn how to throw a jab and recover your stance, how the cross follows the jab, how to put punches and kicks together, how to move after you attack, and how to maintain your balance while doing all of it. There is a lot of value in having someone s

I've been working fighter's corners since 2005. Over the years, I've had the opportunity to corner fighters in a lot of different situations, and I've learned that working the corner is a skill of its own. It might look simple from the outside. The fighter comes back to the corner, sits down, gets some water, and the coaches tell him what to do in the next round. In reality, you have about 60 seconds to help an exhausted athlete recover, process what just happened, and make t

Taking your first MMA fight is a big deal. You are going to do something you have never done before, against someone you have never fought, in an environment that is very different from your normal training. There is going to be adrenaline, nerves, an audience, officials, a time limit, a corner, and an opponent who is actively trying to impose their game on you. You can't eliminate all of the uncertainty. That's part of competition. What you can do is eliminate as many unnece

A lot of people approach sparring like it's a fight. You try to win. You try to make the other guy tap. You try to land more shots, take less damage, and prove that you're better than the person standing in front of you. And I understand why. Sparring is supposed to be competitive. That's part of what makes it fun. But if your goal every time you spar is to win, you're probably holding yourself back. The goal of sparring isn't to win. The goal of sparring is to get better. Th