An old friend

Ross enamit is one of the smartest, baddest men alive. In the exercise arena, the fighting arena, and the arena between your ears(as it relates to the mental aspect of competing in anything that involves physicality). With the competitive exercise season coming up, I thought you folks would find the following beneficial(courtesy of rosstraining.com):

Chael Sonnen shares similar insight as he discusses the significance of acknowledgement. You cannot deal with fear or doubt if you pretend that it doesn’t exist. The only way to successfully deal with these mental roadblocks is by acknowledging their presence.

The presence of fear or doubt does not mean that you lack courage. It does not mean that you are weak. It simply shows that you are human. You feel what everyone has felt at some point. Even a brutal knockout puncher like Mike Tyson once doubted himself. Fortunately, he was surrounded by trainers who understood pre-fight anxiety. They recognized its existence and were able to guide their young fighter above and beyond it. Chael Sonnen has shared similar wisdom with Uriah Hall. Such wisdom can be absolutely critical to the development of a fighter.

Countless youngsters have walked away from the sport because of doubt. Its presence has made many fighters believe that something was wrong with them. For example, pay attention to the 40 second mark within the video above. It is at that point Uriah discusses the opinion of onlookers verse the opinion of himself. Friends, training partners, and competitors only see the external side of a fighter. They may recognize his speed, power, and tenacity. They will often compliment a fighter on these attributes.

Fighters welcome such praise, but when they are alone at night, they may have entirely different opinions about themselves. They don’t see what others see. A fighter’s vision of himself is often blurred or distorted. While onlookers focus on the positive, the fighter harps on the negative. Many young fighters have no idea how much talent they possess. Doubt can be a difficult obstacle to overcome when pursuing one’s true potential.

As a result, it is important for fighters to work with an experienced trainer. The trainer must recognize fear and doubt so he can guide his fighter through these early struggles. He must also realize that fear and doubt are not conquered in one day. The life of a fighter is often similar to a roller coaster ride. There are ups and downs along the journey. Many fighters will doubt themselves all the way until the first bell sounds. They may even question why they are involved in the sport. Yet as soon as they begin fighting, the mental roadblocks are sent to hibernate. As soon as the fight is over, they want to fight again. In a matter of minutes, the fighter has gone from the bottom of the roller coaster to the top.

Unfortunately, reaching the top of the roller coaster doesn’t mean that you won’t eventually come down. The same feelings of doubt or fear may reappear before your next fight, and then the next fight after that, and so on. The goal however is that with each fight, the athlete becomes more accustomed to dealing with these mental barriers. He recognizes their existence and knows that there is light at the end of the tunnel. He’s overcome these obstacles before. The more experience you gain, the more you are able to handle the mental side of fighting.

Experience is essential. There is no substitute for it. The only way for a fighter to develop is by fighting. Training at the gym is not enough. Competitive experience is worth its weight in gold. Each fight is another chance for the fighter to mentally mature. Self-doubt gradually diminishes, but if it does rear its ugly head, the fighter is experienced enough to deal with it. He’s been there before. He’s overcome that long and lonely walk to the ring. He knows what is waiting on the other side.

Fear no longer paralyzes him, it instead propels him.