Reviews for The Fighter's Mind: Inside the Mental Game

The average rating for The Fighter's Mind: Inside the Mental Game based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2020-07-08 00:00:00 Gordon Celliers "At a certain point, if he's going to get to the top of the boxing profession, a fighter has to learn the difference between a truth and a lie. The lie is thinking that submission is an acceptable option. The truth is that if you give up, afterward you'll realize that any of those punches that you thought you couldn't deal with, or those rough moments you didn't think you would make it through, were just moments." Teddy Atlas, as quoted in "The Fighter's Mind." Atlas is a noted boxing trainer and commentator and, now, podcaster. A 3.5 star book, very close to four. Sam Sheridan is a man who's led an interesting life in the best sense of the word and who has dabbled in actual MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) fighting and has a keen interest in the world of the fighting arts, ranging from Brazilian jiu jitsu to boxing to Muay Thai fighting, amateur wrestling of various kinds, judo, karate, Krav Maga and many other methods of combat. Sheridan is a thoughtful man and, as a follow-up to his excellent book, "A Fighter's Heart," he wrote "The Fighter's Mind." In this latter book, Sheridan talks to various high-level competitors and trainers attempting to tease out the definable aspects of fighting's "mental game." This is a worthy ambition and a tough one. Almost all top-level competitors and trainers KNOW that a fighter's mental game is as much a part of his (or her) skill set as talent and conditioning. Indeed, there are many great boxers, for example, who box only in gyms and never in an actual boxing ring in front of a large audience. They may excel in the gym but freeze up at the thought of proving their worth in front of thousands of fans. This "mental game" is certainly not exclusive to the world of professional fighting. It is also important to rock climbers, mountain trekkers, football players, chess players, symphony musicians, Broadway actors--almost anyone engaging in a challenging activity. Books could be written (and probably have been) on the mental game needed to finish medical school, or law school, and many have been penned offering advice on writing books. But defining exactly WHAT this "mental game" is turns out to be extremely difficult. In my prolix review, I'm going to give some of the takeaways Sheridan learned from some of the fighting world's top athletes and trainers. A couple observations about Sheridan: 1. He interviews some big-name people like Dan Gable, probably the greatest amateur collegiate wrestler of the modern era, and also the top wrestling coach. He also interviews Freddie Roach, one of boxing's top trainers who has trained boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao for the last 20 years or so. 2. Sheridan has been around the fighting world. He had at least one MMA fight, has lived in Thailand for six months learning their brutal sport of Muay Thai, and has trained in various other fighting arts. Thus he is not in awe of the some of the big names he meets. He has much respect for each person he interviews, but is not afraid to offer occasional criticism and frank opinions. This strengthens the book and is worthy of note mainly because Sheridan is not a professional sportswriter/journalist. Mental game rule number 1: Don't go against your instincts. Sheridan's first encounter is with Dan Gable. Dan Gable is a name probably not known to a great many of you readers, out there in Goodreads Land, but he is, arguably, the best or possibly the 2nd best amateur wrestler to have ever grappled on the mat. Gable was an Iowa boy who wrestled for Iowa State University, a perennial contender for top wrestling school in the nation. Gable won every wrestling match he wrestled as an amateur, in high school and college--until his final match, when he was beating his opponent and would win his 3rd consecutive NCAA championship. At the time, Gable's win-loss record was 183-0. In the final minutes of his last collegiate match, however, Gable was becoming frustrated. He thought to himself, "I'm not a guy who wins on points. I'm a guy who pins/submits his opponents." Going for the pin, he made a crucial mistake and was defeated by a narrow margin. Mental Game #1 corollary: Don't let your ego defeat you! Gable never lost a match again, as he competed in Olympic Freestyle wrestling and won an Olympic gold medal. This is impressive enough but what is astonishing is that Gable wrestled 12 matches to win his gold medal, pinning 7 of his opponents and only allowing 4 points to be scored against him. I'm not sure how to stress just what an accomplishment Gable's wrestling career was. In Goodreads terms, it would be about the equivalent of a reader polishing off a thousand books every year for years, most of them hard books, and writing stupendous reviews on each one. Mental Game Rule #2: There is no such thing as training too much. This is a Gable axiom, though many athletes have said it. It may be debatable in some sports, like competing in ultra-marathons, but in the fighting arts, there is always something one can learn, always a need for hard physical training. The best fighters are always in shape. As the great Muhammed Ali once said: "The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses--behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights." Mental Game Rule Number 2: Always work on improving your weak points. This is one of those axioms that seems self-explanatory, yet it is commonly NOT put into practice by the second stringers of most professional sports. Truly great athletes are never satisfied with their performances. This rule comes from Freddie Roach, the great boxing trainer who helped turned Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao into a seven-division world champion. He is the only boxer in the history of professional boxing to hold world championships in seven weight classes. This is a feat that's not likely to be repeated and is just about on par with Dan Gable's amazing wrestling record. And it is unlikely that it would have been possible without the guidance of Freddie Roach, one of boxing's best trainers. When Freddie first became involved training Manny, Pacquiao had already won a world championship but he had also been knocked out with punches to the belly on three or four occasions. Sheridan writes of him: "Like any good boxing trainer--anybody who is good at making a living building fighters--he can look right through your exterior and see what's happening inside. Roach's training philosophy consists of hard work, and especially hard work to correct a fighter's weak spots, such as Pacquaio's formerly tender stomach. His goal is to make a fighter the best version of himself--the best his inborn talents will allow. Roach is of the "Mr. Miyagi" school of trainers; if you've fought as hard as you can and you lose, it is no dishonor. Sheridan then interviewed former World light-heavyweight champion Donnie LaLonde, a scrappy boxer with a powerful right hand who retired with a respectable 41-5-1 record, fighting such greats as Sugar Ray Leonard. LaLonde emphasized that, "You've got to do your thinking in the gym." This involves paying attention to what you do well and working to correct what you don't. LaLonde had some good trainers along the way who helped him with this process. He also emphasizes the positive side of being beaten, saying "great champions accept, internalize and understand defeat." A good fighter always learns from a defeat. The author then pays a visit to Mark DellaGrotte, owner of a famous Muay Thai gym in Somerville, Massachusetts and one of the first American fighters to journey to Thailand to learn the Muay Thai styles of fighting practiced in the Land of Smiles. Muay Thai is a brutal sport and in recent years it has become part of the skill set of most serious Mixed Martial Arts competitors. DellaGrote stresses the need for composure in the fight at all times regardless of the circumstances. Don't show emotion, he says, and never give up until the final bell. This goes hand-in-hand with the Asian concept of not losing face. A fighter who gives his or her all, even if suffering a one-sided loss, is respected. Mental Game Rule #2 Corollary: There is no dishonor in defeat if you've given your all in the fight. Sheridan then treks to South Florida to the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu gym operated by Robert Liberio. Liberio trains fighters in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) and his philosophy about competition is similar to retired boxer Donny LaLonde's. "Maturity is a big part of success in fighting, because it means you understand the game--that losing is part of the game." and also adds, "The key to doing well in competition is to accept" (that you can lose). Many professional fighters become proficient in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu--so much so that it has become part of any serious mixed martial artist's toolkit. Sam Sheridan sees its value in taking an opponent out of his game. A lot of fighters prefer striking (punching or kicking) and are more comfortable standing up. Practitioners of BJJ are just as comfortable fighting on the ground, and some of the best fighters are masters of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and can win easily against opponents who are not comfortable taking the fight to the mat. Mental Game Rule Number 3: Take your opponent out of his game. Sheridan next speaks with Josh Waitzkin, a former New York City chess prodigy and inspiration for the movie, "Searching for Bobby Fischer." Waitzkin was US Junior Chess Champion in 1993 and 1994 and achieved the title of International Master at age 16. He gave up competitive chess competition in 1999 and took up the martial art of Akido, becoming a world champion in 2004 in the Tai Chi "push hands" competition. He also earned a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and co-founded a Jiu Jitsu school in New York City. Waitzkin also attended Columbia University, majoring in philosophy, and is among the most philosophical of all the fighters Sam interviewed. Waitzkin puts tremendous emphasis on the mental game of competition, whether it involves a chess match or a martial arts match. Waitzkin emphasizes the need to let go of ego and pursue any competition in a spirit of humility. He also stresses the importance of being relaxed while also being ready to strike. It takes mental clarity to do this, Waitzkin asserts--warning that anxiety causes a loss of focus. I thought Waitzkin's interview was inspiring but would have been better had he pinned down what he meant by mental clarity and focus. I am also not so sure about anxiety. I've rarely known a professional fighter who wasn't a bit anxious before a fight, and most good fighters will admit to feeling fear before facing off with their opponent. Perhaps it is how you handle that fear and anxiety that matters most? Mental Game Rule #4: Strive for mental clarity--don't lose focus! Here's a real-life example of what happens when a fighter loses focus and lets fear and anxiety overcome him: And this example is especially strange given that the two fighters, Oliver McCall and Lennox Lewis, had fought earlier, with a much different outcome: Sheridan's final encounter is with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu coach Mark Danahar. There must be something about the study of philosophy that attracts these fighters because Danahar also holds graduate degrees in philosophy. He has trained many world champion fighters and is a 4th degree black belt in BJJ studying under Renzo Gracie--the Gracie's are considered the royal family of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and anyone who trains under a Gracie has the de facto respect of any serious martial artist. Danahar believes that fear and anger are the two most dangerous emotions for a fighter. He believes the fear lies more in the public humiliation of defeat than in fear of personal injury. Anger is especially toxic because it causes shallow breathing and muscle tension, both serving to tire a fighter out early. He notes that many experienced fighter will deliberately try and anger a foe precisely to induce these deleterious physical conditions. As a countermeasure, he trains his fighters to relax in the ring or octagon and try and maintain a relaxed pace. stay focused and not allow themselves to be distracted or easily rankled. This is a sound training philosophy. If you watch some of fighting's greatest champions, they usually appear quite at home in the fighting arena. Mental Game Rule Number 5: Fight fear and anxiety by relaxing as you work. Control the pace of the fight! The takeaways from 'The Fighter's Mind' are that the fighter's mental conditioning is equally important as his or her physical conditioning and fighting skills. In fact, the "mental game" seems to go hand-in-hand with the other two skill sets. Fighters and their trainers/coaches have many paths to get there, but all realize that to ignore the fighter's "mental game" is a sure ticket to a combatant's defeat.

Review # 2 was written on 2017-06-16 00:00:00 Lanea Campion A good book parts of which were excellent. Sam Sheridan used very much the same formula as he did in Fighters Heart. Talking to the leading trainers and fighters in different combat sports. The main problem for me was that there was not too much new information in the book from Fighters Heart. This book was more along the lines of what trainers are looking for while they are training their fighters. The thing is when you are talking tot he top trainers, talking about their top fighters, these guys already have IT. Now the trainer just has to fine tune them. There were great chapters like Kenny Florian's where he talks about his career and preparation for his fights and his attitude to wards wins and losses. To me this is what the whole book should been like. Unfortunately some of it (probably because of the subject matter), reads like a bit of a text book, but there are more great chapters then the dry ones. I would recommend Fighters Heart or everyone wanting to know about a fighters mindset, and need to fight. This book is a good add on and if you have not read the first book it would possible very good as a stand alone book. It just falls a little short of being great for me.