An important New Years resolution

I am doing this publicly so it makes it harder to fail. The last thing I want is random people giving me crap for breaking my resolution for next year, so this should help push me when I want to give up. Here we go.

I am giving up soda. Ta-da! Now, you might not think that is a big deal, but trust me, it is. I am a diet Coke/diet Pepsi addict. That first sip of the cold nectar in the morning is like heroin to a junkie. I need to stop, so I am preparing myself mentally for the awful fight. I have almost quit a couple of times, but I keep backsliding like a smoker. This time, it WILL be different. I have a plan over the first 4 weeks of weaning myself off with a really good schedule. By February 1, I will no longer have to have that sweet chemical taste to function.

Wish me luck, I am going to need it!

pay it forward

I am always amazed when I read great thinkers and scientists talk about deep things. I love to try to figure things out that deal with the macro (i.e. "the universe"). But, on the whole, those things have only a small impact on my life. With the things I feel are neccesary to do, I don't have a lot of freedom to try to "fix" the world. However, I can do one thing on a regular basis that I feel makes some kind of contribution. That is the idea of paying it forward.

I am blessed. I have a great wife, fantastic kids, loving family, loyal and trusted friends. I make a decent living and I have some fredom to pursue the hobby (martial arts) that I love. So, wherever I can, I try to do some good for no reward. Sometimes it is bigger, sometimes it is smaller, but it is always something I try to hold in my heart.

For example, buying a nice dress for a teenage girl who otherwise would not have one because her parents can't afford it. Or, donating money to a charity. Or donating turkeys to poor people for the holidays. These are obvious ones, but there are others as well. Letting a person trying to merge into traffic. You don't think that is the same? Then you have obviously never driven rush hour in Phoenix. Plus it is something that can be done all the time. How about making sure you show the guy you are sparring with what he is doing wrong so he doesn't keep getting punched with a counter cross? Or on the mat, showing your partner how to counter the arm drag you keep nailing him with. These might be little things, but if everyone did them all the time, the cumulative result would be amazing.

Anyway, that is my holiday mesage. I hope everyone out there has a great Christmas . Yes, I know that is not a PC thing to say. So sue me. Merry Christmas and God bless us everyone.

Performance coaching

Performance coaching. What does it mean? Simply put, it is a way of coaching so that anyone, regardless of level, improves their performance. It will be an incredibly important concept in the months and years to come. It is a giant leap forward and away from "technique" based teaching. I have been trying desperately to integrate it into my own coaching, but it is not simple. It requires a great deal of work and preparation. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to see it done properly this past weekend. I participated in a seminar conducted by Adam Singer that was miles beyond a typical seminar session. He took a diverse group of people, with all kinds of different experiences and games, and, if the feedback from the people I talked to is any indication, ALL of them walked away with elevated games. And that includes stand up striking, clinch, and ground.

He started off with shadowboxing and then light contact sparring. Once he understood the room, he was off. Everything he showed had immediate application and was done in a way that everyone could grasp, even if they could not quite perform it to the highest level. He went through a progression that integrated all the ranges while tweaking the details within the ranges. At all times, even when we were doing some kind of isolation drill, he always kept us focused on the totality of MMA. And, it was also cutting edge stuff, such as ways of getting off the ground back to stand up striking, including clever ways of using a wall or brace. His coaching intelligence also came out when he smoothly found ways of working in wrestling even when the knowledge base for wrestling in the room was low. He still kept everyone going with the right stuff. I don't think anyone ever got left behind. And, he finished up the final 45 minutes with an open Q & A that tied it all together and made sure everybody was comfortable with the material.

In short, it was an amazing experience. Adam is truly a gifted and hardworking coach. If you ever get the chance to find out firsthand, DO IT! You will not regret it.

Congrats to my buddy Adam!

I was in L.A. this past weekend hanging out with my buddies Jerry Wetzel and Adam Singer. It was a fantastic time involving great training, even better companionship, terrific food, and a fun party. Probably the highlight, besides discussing the scientific properties of helium, was watching Adam get his long deserved brown belt in BJJ. For those who don't know, that is an awesome achievment. Probably less then 3% of all the people who start BJJ stick it out to get as high as brown.

Way to go, man!!!!!!!