Part 2: EGO!

In the last post we spoke about humility. It's only right that we discuss the opposite of being humble, and of course, that is the undying larger than life ego that some fighters carry around. Unfortunately, some fighters deem it necessary to maintain this "I'm kickass" attitude outside of the ring or cage. I believe that you have to hold your skills in high regard to be successful in combat sports but where does it stop? When does it start to affect the relationship with fans or family? A prime example came on national television when the egos of Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Sr. clashed on the behind the scenes documentary 24/7. What started as a small disagreement ended with a full fledge family arguement that the two have yet to recover from. This is of course unusual only because you seldom have two egos that big in the same room, let alone the same family. When you have egos like those two, who needs enemies?

One of the largest egos to ever enter the ring, and everyone surely knows, belongs to none other than,"the greatest of all time". That's right! None other than Muhammed Ali, who once claimed that he flipped the light switch and was in bed before it got dark, when explaining how fast he was. Other than his meaness to Joe Frazier it seemed that Ali would do more joke cracking and rhyming about his upcoming opponents, than egotistical s@%t talking. I had the opportunity to speak with Khalila Ali(Ali's former wife), who is a regular at the gym. She told me that Ali was very humble when in public and that he had sort of a cocky humbleness. As we know now, Ali has become an ambassador for Islam, the underprivileged, and this country as a whole. I'm not sure the other fighters that carry that cockiness around will ever evolve beyond the fighter mentality into the humanitarian world. Can Mayweather Jr. do that? Not likely!

What about the new cocky, the young and so far unbeatable, Jon "Bones" Jones. I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Jones. He is a nice guy but I didn't detect an ounce of humbleness. Although he may seem humble in some of the interviews, it is becoming more evident from things that I have heard from other fighters and seen for myself, he is becoming less humble with every victory. I don't think you should hide your feelings about how great you might be. All I contend is, there is a time and place for everything. Maybe taking a step back and realizing that some aren't as fortunate, blessed, or even in some cases, as lucky as you.
Know when to leave your ego at the door and remember that we all put on our pants one leg at a time. You'll want your fans to still be there when the flame starts to fizzle and at some point it undoubtedly will.

Being humble! Kindness or Weakness?

Wow guys, what a year. I want to thank all of my readers for following the blog and also sending me emails and comments. Now let's get down to business. Anyone that knows me also knows that I have a hard time accepting compliments. I just don't think of myself as better than someone else as a person because I was blessed in one way or another. I'm grateful to just be able to do things I love everyday, to see my family, or even just crack a joke. That being said, I only ask to be respected. Don't blow smoke up my butt or push me too far out of ignorance or rudeness. I am not weak and I don't take well to a%#holes. I am a regular guy so I can imagine how this can be amplified for those professional athletes in the public eye. I've had the pleasure of meeting quite a few pros from all different sports and I can only say that some are very humble and laid back and some are egotistical and rude. These meetings prompted a 2 part blog on humility and ego, so first lets talk being humble.<br> <br/> Because of who I am I never mistaken kindness for weakness. Case and point Kenny Florian. I had the pleasure of meeting him recently and he was very cool. I work also as a doorman at an upscale nightclub in Miami and "Ken Flo" happened to stop by. He at no point demanded any special treatment and at the end of the night went out of his way to stop by and take a pic. He is a big name in the fight world and he acted as if he was just another Joe on the street. Just so you know for those not familiar with him. Kenny Florian is a beast in the octogan and he will smash you if you happen to be on the other side of the cage from him. It was really cool to meet a big name with a humble attitude. I don't expect everyone to be or act the same but I will express on the ground level that people don't appreciate conceit. If you're blessed enough to live your dream and earn money and a living from that, you should feel honored to be recognized. People work their fingers to the bone and save money to order these expensive pay per views or go to see the fights live. Fighters should be humble when they meet fans because without them there is no big money, house, or car to brag about. Ego is next so stay tuned. </p> <br/> <div style='clear: both; text-align: center; font-size: xx-small;'>Published with Blogger-droid v2.0.2</div>

Published with Blogger-droid v2.0.2

"If you ain't tappin', you ain't learnin'"

In view of last weeks brutal submissions of Machida and Noguiera, I think we should discuss tapping. I know competition is different than training, however, I don't know if not tapping is an expression of ego, determination, pride, strength or stupidity. It may be a little of them all and possibly some other attributes. All I know is that I would rather tap in a couple fights, learn from it and improve for my next fight, than not tap and risk a possible career ending injury or not be able to make money for months while recovering. I might even have to agree with "Rampage" Jackson when he says, "man I don't trust anybody", in reference to tapping during a fight. It's true, Rousimar Palhares, Bas Rutten, and now Jon Jones, who let Machida fall like a sack of potatoes as he walked away never looking back to see if his opponent was even alive or Frank Mir, who snapped Tim Silvia's and Nogueira's arms respectively, don't care if you don't tap. There are guys in this sport that will put you to sleep and break you in half or worse if given the chance. The risk is all up to you!

Now, that being said there are a couple guys out there that bend like rubber. Ben Henderson and Dan Hardy have defied the odds when defending submissions or at least hanging on until released from the grip of their respective opponents. When you see arms rotate in positions they shouldn't be in and then seconds later those same arms are throwing punches, it leaves you shaking your head.

All I can say are the words that were repeated to me over and over again. Train hard, learn how to be comfortable in awkward positions, and last but not least, "if you ain't tappin', you ain't learnin'".

The following are some videos from the Nitro tourney a couple years back. Enjoy!

She doesn't have to get it, she's your mom!

Hello all, hope you guys are well and enjoying the holidays. I myself am working like a dog. So lets get right down to it. Your mom may enjoy watching violent sports, such as football or hockey, but she will never be completely ok with you getting punched in the face or kicked in the ribs. I believe my mothers words went something like this after finding out about me fighting, "why the hell are you doing that?", followed by a "you're gonna end up like Ali". Now I know that sounds a little rough, however, that's simply how deep a mother loves her kid, even if he's grown. I place the blame entirely on her for putting me in Taekwondo at a young age, even though that was completely my idea. I never got it out of my system. Martial arts is strange like that, once you do it for any length of time, it stays with you forever.
Anyway, mom has since lightened up and become super supportive of me fighting and just generally being involved in something I love and am passionate about. So no, I don't know if she'll ever fully understand why I do what I do but she respects it and me for sticking to it. Don't expect for people to "get it", especially your mom. As long as you are real about honing your skills in and out of the cage/ring/mat it will shine through and you'll receive plenty of support. All that being said, I'm happy to introduce my mom in Bruce Buffers voice as my new editor: And in this corner writing out of St. Louis, Missouri, carrying a record of 40 and 0, the marauder of the midwest, my moooooom Kathy "The Letter Killer" Jooooooooohnsoooooon.!!!!

Just a little footwork

The Plateau

Plateau-The level reached in training at which one levels out. The "I don't feel like I'm getting any better" stage. This is usually accompanied by boredom and lack of motivation.

For those that have reached this place in their training, I understand your frustration. I too have felt the woes of leveling out. I don't know of any easy way to get out of this phase. I don't know if it's like in basketball, when you hit a dry spell, you just keep shooting til you make one or like in baseball, you swing yourself out of your rut. Of course, in both of those sports like many others, you sometimes need to make changes in order to step up to the next level or at least start performing well again.

Plateaus need to be treated like living in a city way too long. At some point you (the human body) needs a change of scenery. A change in training or at least training habits can force the body to have to adapt in order to keep up with the new training. This should bring some noticeable results in a hurry. Your level of skill depends entirely on your evolution in training. Don't get stuck doing the same training with the same people if nothing new has been introduced. Once you've reached a certain point you must change, adapt, and just plain evolve.

Published with Blogger-droid v2.0.1

Pads with my buddy Max