Intensity

The difference between training to train and training to fight can be summed up with one word--- intensity. With the New Year firmly in place fighters from gyms across the country (mine included) are preparing to fight. Among evenly paired fighters the difference between victory and defeat will be the intensity of their training. Anyone can train intensely...once in a while, but as fight time draws near it is imperative to work with intensity daily. Like deposits to a bank account add up so do the workouts where we ramp up the intensity. Upping the volume of work and condensing the time to fit round lengths increase intensity but so does having everyone in the gym scream at you while your training. Successful fighters can focus on the task while being put on display in front of a crowd. This is very different then training in the relative quiet of the gym and changes the intensity of your performance. The “hype” of the fight event can cause even good fighters to falter. Crowds, lights, cameras music and other trappings of the show can boost an adrenaline response that if not managed mentally and accounted for in training will cause even the most conditioned fighter to gas. Stars in the gym are not always the stars in the ring because they just were not prepared for the pressure of public performance.

This past weekend while teaching a self-defense seminar I was able to illustrate the difference in training intensity for the attendees. We were working on knife defense and while doing drills I had every one working with wooden training knives. All partners were working at the same time and as it was a very disciplined and focused group of individuals they were all training hard and relatively unaware of the others as they focused on the techniques. I then changed the intensity level by having the group stop and placed one pair in the middle and gave them a pair of shock knives. Shock knifes do just that… they shock people that are put in contact with the blade. Now the dynamics of the drill have been changed. The attention of the group and the reality of the pain made the previous work much less intense, even though they were all training hard, they were not training intense. When they stepped up to a competitive environment in front of the group with the negative reinforcement of being zapped ever present they were then training intensely and (while still below the intensity of a life or death edged weapon encounter) way better prepared to defend themselves.

Stay intense.

Danny Dring

“Life is tough but if you are tough with yourself, life will be your best friend.”

- Zig Ziglar