If you guys trained Brazilian Jiu Jitsu or Muay Thai with me you would undoubtedly have seen me taking notes, reading books, and asking an ungodly amount of questions.. Of course I take notes in class and save the reading and questions for after. I’m a nerd.. Scratch that I mean I’m a student of the game. Not only do I train 5 to 6 days a week I study whenever I’m not on the mat. It takes some discipline but I assure you it pays off.
Granted I am on the mat pretty often, so I do get a lot of training in, but if it wasn’t for the books I’ve read I would only be training a fraction of the time. A great section to look at in the book store, if you’re looking to improve your performance, believe it or not is the business section. You will find everything you will possibly need to know about how to succeed. And yes it still applies to combat sports. Other than reading about performance pick up a book on goal setting, it’ll turn your game upside down. In a good way.
Between you and I, sometimes staying motivated can be difficult especially when no one from the gym is around, the best way for me to stay motivated is to read the crazy stories about Dan Gables training sessions, or Cael Sanderson’s undefeated NCAA DIV 1 record 151 – 0, or even Michael Phelps path to 8 gold’s, and Lance Armstrong’s struggles to the top. Not only do their stories keep me motivated they allow me to see what it takes to be a world class athlete, the best of the best.
Moving on to videos… No not an instructional video, those will if you’re a beginner mess with your head so I’d advise just listening to your coach. But watching videos of the best in the world won’t do you any harm, as long as you know your limits. As much as I love watching the Mendes brothers wreck shop on people that style doesn’t fit my body style. So my advice is to watch the best in the world that have the same A) Body Style B) Weight or C) Game. You can pick up small details on certain moves from any black belt but you should try to use the same game as the black belts who are a lot like you physically. Break the videos down and study them…Don’t be afraid to rewind over and over and over again.
In class you hear it all the time, and you see it all the time (if you’re at the right school), TAKE NOTES!!! Everyone who advances up the ranks took notes. Even Bj Penn talks about filling out notebook after notebook. Even use a camera to record. You can’t remember everything, it’s impossible.
I guess I’m saying be a student, it’s not all muscle out there on the mat.
