Facing Your Fears - Via Ferrata Xtreme

Let me begin with this simple fact: I am scared of heights.

I can be impulsive and overconfident and sometimes people have misinterpreted this as being 'fearless'. I'm not fearless. I like to think that most of my fears are rational and that I don't usually let fear get in the way. 'Fearless' as a concept makes me think 'stupid' because fear is  a natural instinct for self preservation. It's a natural trait.

A few weeks before my fight I had been socialising a lot less. I avoided people because socialising often involves food or drink. The upcoming fight is also a common topic of conversation, you get pretty sick of it. In the few weeks before a fight you just want to crack on with your training, socialise very little and keep your mind peaceful.

I'd been avoiding my friends, to a certain degree, so when Danny (one of my oldest friends) asked me if I wanted to do the Via Ferrata Xtreme I agreed without really looking into it. My understanding was that it was a hike in the lake districts with some climbing. I've been climbing with Danny once a week for the past year (minus the time I was in New Zealand). I think it's a great form of exercise that compliments my other training. We usually do indoor bouldering, it's a great calisthenic workout that is unparalleled when it comes to improving grip strength and core stability. We've been outdoor bouldering together once and we've also been outdoor climbing together once. To my understanding bouldering is like climbing but without the safety gear (and not as high).

Once my fight was out of the way I didn't think about Via Ferrata Xtreme very much. I knew it was booked but I never read up on it and I didn't even know what day we had it booked for. A couple of days before Danny reminded me. We'd booked the 9am slot which meant we had to set off at around 6am. I was so under prepared that I woke my dad up to borrow some waterproofs, some thermals and some gloves. I set off wearing heavy duty hiking boots, thermal pants, joggers, a thermal top, a walking top, an outdoor jacket and gloves. 

Danny drove, our other friend had dropped out due to flu. I remarked that I didn't know that was an option. The night before all I could think about was making up a decent excuse to avoid going. But it's an experience, and what's the point in life if we avoid every opportunity to try something new and a bit scary?

We arrived at Honister Slate mine at around 8:30am. Randomly it was about 1km down the road from where I had been at fight camp a few weeks earlier. There was only a few cars there so I thought the tour might have been pretty small. The sun was also beaming down and I felt a little over dressed.

We signed in and our group started to materialise. When they arrived we went out to an equipment shed where we were given a harness and a helmet. Here was my first embarrassment of the day. The helmets were in two sizes. Grey ones were small and orange ones were regular size. Now, I know I've got a small head. But the only people on this tour with the grey helmets were me, a nine or ten year old girl and a small bald man. the other 18 all (apparently) had 'normal' sized heads.

We put our kit on and headed out of the shed into a bus. There was a track up to the mine, the bus took us along. At one point it looked like the driver wasn't paying attention and I saw a few people (including myself) panic as he veered right, off the track. There was another road that we couldn't see. I thought we were driving off the edge of the cliff. As if I wasn't nervous enough.

We got out and headed through a mine shaft. Our guide told us to watch our heads as it was low and not very well lit. I kept my head real low. Danny was in front of me and I heard him bash his head pretty hard. Luckily he had his helmet on (but I bet it still hurt).

We congregated at the top of the climb to go through the safety instructions. The instructions were uncomfortable basic. "You have two clips on your harness, attach them to the safety cable. Move them over one at a time, off you go." They did ask if anyone was scared of heights and I, alone, raised my hand. It made me really question why I was there. He asked who wanted to go first; the little girl, one of my fellow grey helmet wearers, volunteered.

The initial climb was a fairly sturdy looking, wide, steel ladder. But it was a downwards climb and we were already pretty high up. I watched everyone go, they posed for photos with no hands and big smiles. I was really nervous by this point. I set off last, I didn't dare do a non-handed pose. I attached my clips with shaking hands. I realised my boots weren't exactly ideal. They were clumsy for this type of climb.

I definitely expected more hiking. The route was pretty much continuous. After the initial ladder, which was shorter than I expected. The route changed into steel ladder rungs attached into the cliff face. They didn't look sturdy or safe. You had to move the clips over fairly often, I was always very careful with these. I heard Danny say, "oops I was unclipped there" twice! The route went down then accross, the same ladder like rungs attached into the cliff face. I implored myself not to look down. Though everytime we had a bit of the route that felt 'safe' I'd take a look. We were very high. It was also a beautiful day. I was dressed for snow and the sun was beaming down.

 The route spanned some of the cliff face until we came to the tightrope. Being last, I watched everyone cross this thing, it was really f****** high. They were all laughing and playing around on it. Some of them hung upside down for photos. Me? I shuffled across it. Looking dead ahead. Arms locked into the guide ropes. Controlled breathing. I didn't look down once. It got really wobbly in the middle and, as Danny was in front of me I asked him if he was shaking it on purpose. He wasn't. I was so happy to be back on land at the end of it. I just laid there and hugged a rock for a few minutes.

The rest of it was more of the same, it was a long time to be climbing without much rest. The end bit was a rope ladder thing, I felt okay with it until I got to the top and thought it looked a bit frayed.

As I approached the top of the ladder I asked one of the group leaders if we were finished. She said: "yes, just a 10 min walk to the top then we climb back down". The last bit was a joke. I'd definitely been a source of amusement throughout the climb. We walked to the top and took in some beautiful views. Posed for photos and walked back down.

We got back, they had been taking photos all day and you could buy them on a USB back at the base. I asked how much they were and the guy said "it's £15, a bargain if you consider how many photos are on there, there's 140". Now, me and Danny know how much a USB costs. We also knew that the vast majority of the photos were of complete strangers. But it was a hell of an experience and despite the absolute rip off for the photos we went ahead and bought them.

Did I enjoy it? No. Would I do it again? No. Am I glad I did it? Hell yes.

I'd been having a really rough week and this trip took my mind off everything completely. It got me outdoors, it was a challenge both mentally and physically and it sorted my head out. Don't get me wrong, if heights didn't bother me I'd probably do it again. Sometimes you have to push yourself out of your comfort zone, it puts the petty problems in life into perspective and helps you get your head round things. Don't ignore fear if it's in the interest of self preservation, but ignore it if it's irrational. Try new things, meet new people, enjoy yourself.

The website for the climb can be found at: http://www.honister.com/via-ferrata/via-ferrata-xtreme/

Machine MMA 13 - My K1 Debut

 
I had to wait for the video to be released for this as I remember about 10 seconds of the fight. I remember certain things but in no particular order. Stepping in a ring always requires a great deal of cardio. Luckily this time I did enough training and my weight cut went well and I managed to secure the victory. In the days leading up to the fight my weight cut had made me feel drained and I was worried that on the day my power might be lacking.

I woke up on the morning, starving and dehydrated. I weighed myself and was happy to find that I'd managed to get down to 70.5kg. I only needed 71kg but I'd heard my opponent was underweight so I thought I'd leave it there so he wasn't worried about my weight. I turned up at PDKM gym at about 10am to meet with Lee and Ray before the weigh in. Due to some complications we were running a bit behind. I'd been told a few days prior that my opponent was weighing in on the night because he was comfortably below weight. I thought this was good news because after re-hydration I was looking to be around 73-74kg. We turned up late and my opponent had already been and weighed in. He actually weighed in at exactly 71kg (so I could have had some breakfast). I weighed in, in pink boxers with sunset nail varnish on the big toe on my right foot (my broken toe). I even got a compliment on it from Ian "The Machine" Freeman (who was running the event).

As soon as my weight was captured I set about eating a massive bar of Galaxy Caramel, a lucazade sport and a big bottle of water. The re-hydration and eating process began. I ate every 30 mins from weigh in to my fight. I spent the day going round the shops, eating and generally relaxing. The fight was always at the back of my mind but it wasn't really nerves or excitement. I felt ready. As the day went on I felt more and more alive.

I was slightly delayed on my way to the fight, I also needed to put fuel in my car. I took a strange route there ans was a bit worried I'd run out of petty. I turned up about 20 mins late but just in time for the pre fight talk. We got a run through the rules, had our medical checks and went into the changing room to get prepped. I was third on so there wasn't much waiting about. Neil wrapped my hands like an absolute pro, it was amazing to see him work, in fact all of my corner men were on point. I noticed I was yawning while I was getting my hands wrapped. I asked about it to Neil and he said it will be adrenaline. I'd noticed the same thing in previous fights but never really thought about it. I don't really feel nervous before stepping in. I think I've come to terms with the fact that I'll know I'll always do my best. If I lose then I'll work on my problems and come back stronger. I'd recommend this train of though before a fight because it really works for me.

Neil ran me through some pad work and I felt pretty sharp. My power had returned. I was probably more concerned with how looked. Making sure my hair was in place and my shorts didn't give me overhang (I probably ate too much cake on the day). I was suited and booted, feeling warm and confident when I got called in. There was a mistake on the fight before mine and they had to call the fighters back in to correct it. During the delay my opponent came out of his changing room. We noticed he wasn't wearing shin guards. I didn't mind if we used them or not, but it was supposed to be agreed before. In retrospect we wondered if it was a tactic to throw me off. With my walkout music playing I had Ian Freeman and Craig desperately trying to rip my shin guards off. Neil saw my opponent warming up in the corridor and said to me "kick him in the legs, he won't block them".


My walkout music was chosen because I only had two CDs in my car. Since the fight I only have one CD in my car. It was Immortal Technique and it gave off the right vibe, not my first choice but it was a good one. I walked to the cage and instantly forgot the detailed instructions Neil had given me before stepping into the cage. Luckily I felt relaxed so it doesn't look bad on the video. My CD did start skipping before I stepped in though, so that was a bit annoying.

I eyed up my opponent while we were given our instructions. He was in better shape than I expected. Slightly taller than me but I was a bit stockier. He was a lot younger than me, but that didn't necessarily give me an advantage on experience as he'd fought these rules before and I've only been training martial arts for around 3 years now and K1 rules for the last month or two.

When the order was given I came out aggressive. I'd rather put on a show and lose than fight a boring fight. I threw a kick or two before he connected with a beautiful right hand. He rocked me and showed some excellent skill with his hands. I fired back aggressively but his footwork was very good and he avoided nearly every attack, I even threw a jumping roundhouse that connected (barely).

Now, luckily, I have a strong chin. I knew this going in. It's probably why I don't usually protect my face. After the initial attack, in which he bust my nose and removed one of my contact lenses, I felt him starting to tire. I worked on his legs to stop his movement and I managed to connect with some good punches and body kicks. I felt very strong at the end of the first round. He was still firing back with good accuracy but the power was waning. I was trying for a finish at the end of the first but a groin shot from him and then from me slowed the pace.

Between rounds I felt confident, Neil gave me instructions that I can't remember now but I believe he told me to go high low (because in the video that's all I can hear him shouting). I came out strong in the second round, landing a good combination. And then... I tried a ridiculous spinning back fist. I'm not sure what I was thinking with that one. I was aggressive in the second round, growling like a dog with each strike. I was going for the finish the whole round. I caught a good toe-in liver kick that I thought hurt him. I felt him move with it (which is usually a good indication). He kept in though but he was getting tired, In my MMA debut I used the cage to keep standing a lot because of the exhaustion setting in. I could see him doing this, which made him a slightly easier target. I'd already landed some strong leg kicks but in my final flurry I threw one in and felt his leg give way (again a good indication). I hit the same spot again and he shook his hands to the ref. It was right at the end of the second round. He could have stayed in for the third but he probably knew I'd target the weak leg (and I would have).

I rarely look into the eyes of the people I'm fighting or sparring. To me the concept is interesting.In my MMA fight I remember my opponent landing a sweet combo to my face. I remember looking at him and thinking I don't really want to fight anymore. Maybe it was my imagination but I think he gave me the same look back. In this fight too I felt like we had a similar exchange of glances. Like once you're in there it's not about fighting (for me anyway). It's about putting on a show for the crowd. It's about not embarrassing yourself. I got my ass kicked in my MMA fight but I am still proud of it because I know I took it like a warrior. In this fight too, the end was a bit of an anti-climax, we went out and had a war. I know how it feels to have your leg disabled in a fight and it makes you a sitting duck. It's the whole point of leg kicks. I understand why he decided not to go on, it was the right choice. I was looking for a highlight reel knockout but I'm happy with the win.

After the fight ended Neil came right up to me and said "I told you about them leg kicks" I was on top of the world. I was genuinely concerned when I saw my opponent limping but thankfully it was just a sweet shot on the nerve and there is no damage.

I have massive respect for my opponent, he has some serious skill and I look forward to seeing his future fights. At his age he could well have a promising career ahead of him.

Our fight can be seen here : My Fight

Fight Prep - The Facts and Figures of Quick Weight Loss

So I explained the prep I did in my last blog, this one will serve as an add-on, to provide an understanding of the exact mechanics of quick weight loss. This plan helped me to drop 1 stone. Bear in mind that I was in pretty good shape when I started (around 12% body fat).

Week 1

Monday -
3km run then 1 hour in gym, HIIT  4x3 min rounds and 5 rounds on the bag - medium intensity.
Meal 1 - 100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
Meal 2 - 2x scrambled eggs with beans.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese .
Meal 4 -  100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
Another 4 rounds on the bag - high intensity
Meal 5 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 6 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters


Tuesday -
3km run then 1 hour in gym, HIIT  4x3 min rounds and 5 rounds on the bag - medium intensity.
Meal 1 - 100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
Meal 2 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 4 -  100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
1.5 hours training at PDKM

Meal 5 - 100g Chicken and Sweet potato and 20g low fat cheese.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Wednesday -  3km run then 1 hour in gym, HIIT 4x3 min rounds and 5 rounds on the bag - medium intensity.
Meal 1 - 100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
Meal 2 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 4 -  100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
1.5 hours training at PDKM
Meal 5 - 100g Chicken and Sweet potato and 20g low fat cheese.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Thursday -
5km run then 1 hour in gym, HIIT and 5 rounds on the bag - medium intensity.
Meal 1 - 100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
Meal 2 - 2x scrambled eggs with beans.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese .
Meal 4 -  100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
Another 4 rounds on the bag - high intensity
Meal 5 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 6 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Friday -
Meal 1 - 100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
Meal 2 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 4 -  100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
Training at PDKM - Metafit and 1 hour of pad work

Meal 5 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Saturday -
Meal 1 - 100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.
Training at PDKM - 1 hour of pad work and 1 hour of sparring - high intensity
Meal 2 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 4 -  100g of mixed fruit and yogurt with some honey.

Meal 5 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Meal 6 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Sunday  - Day off

Please note: These were my set meal plans. I did sometimes deviate, I ate snack food, drank some fizzy drinks, had sweets, chocolate etc. I tried to keep it clean but I ate more because the intensity of my training was high.


Week 2

Monday -
5km run then 1 hour in gym, HIIT  4x3 min rounds and 5 rounds on the bag - high intensity.
Meal 1 - 70g of mixed fruit and fat free yogurt.
Meal 2 - 2x scrambled eggs with chilli.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice.
Meal 4 -  70g of mixed fruit.
Another 4 rounds on the bag - high intensity
Meal 5 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 6 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Tuesday -
5km run then 1 hour in gym, HIIT  4x3 min rounds and 5 rounds on the bag - medium intensity.
Meal 1 - 50g of mixed fruit and yogurt.
Meal 2 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g.
Meal 4 -  70g of mixed fruit.
1.5 hours training at PDKM
Meal 5 - 100g Chicken and broccoli and cauliflower.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Wednesday -  5km run then 1 hour in gym, HIIT 4x3 min rounds and 5 rounds on the bag - medium intensity.
Meal 1 - 50g of mixed fruit and yogurt.
Meal 2 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 4 -  70g of mixed fruit.
1.5 hours training at PDKM
Meal 5 - 100g Chicken and mushrooms in chili with Sweet potato.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Thursday -
5km run then 1 hour in gym, HIIT and 5 rounds on the bag - medium intensity.
Meal 1 - 50g of mixed fruit and yogurt.
Meal 2 - 2x scrambled eggs.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice.
Meal 4 -  70g of mixed fruit.
Another 4 rounds on the bag - high intensity
Meal 5 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Meal 6 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Friday -
Meal 1 - 50g of mixed fruit and yogurt.
Meal 2 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g.
Meal 4 -  70g of mixed fruit.
Training at PDKM - Metafit and 1 hour of pad work
Meal 5 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Meal 6 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Saturday -
Meal 1 - 100g of mixed fruit and yogurt.
Training at PDKM - 1 hour of pad work and 1 hour of sparring - high intensity
Meal 2 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice and 10g low fat cheese.
Meal 4 -  70g of mixed fruit.
Meal 5 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Meal 6 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Sunday

Meal 1 - 2x scrambled eggs with chilli

Meal 2 - 50g tuna, 50g rice
Meal 3 - 50g tuna, 50g rice.
Meal 4 -  70g of mixed fruit.
Meal 5 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Meal 6 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters 

Please note, there was still some slight deviation from the plan. I'd still accept a piece of chocolate or a chip if someone else was eating. Tried to keep the foods I ate clean.

Week 3

Monday -
Meal 1 - 50g of pineapples - 100ml of pineapple juice.
5km run then 1 hour in gym, 4 rounds on the bag - low intensity.
Meal 2 - 2x scrambled eggs with chilli.
Meal 3 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Meal 4 -  30g of mixed berries (frozen).

Meal 5 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Meal 6 - 100g white fish and broccoli.
Water intake - 1.5-2 liters

Tuesday -
5km run, 4 rounds on bag - low intensity
Meal 1 - 50g of pineapples - 100ml of pineapple juice.
Meal 2 - 100g tuna steak cauliflower and broccoli.
Meal 3 - 100g tuna steak cauliflower and broccoli.
Meal 4 -  30g of mixed berries (frozen).
1.5 hours training at PDKM
Meal 5 - 100g tuna steak cauliflower and broccoli..
Water intake - 2.5 liters

Wednesday -  5km run, 4 rounds on bag - low intensity
Meal 1 - 30g of pineapples.
Meal 2 - 2x boiled eggs.
Meal 3 - 100g tuna steak cauliflower and broccoli.
Meal 4 -  30g of mixed berries (frozen).
1.5 hours training at PDKM - low intensity
Meal 5 - 100g tuna steak cauliflower and broccoli..
Water intake - 2.5 liters

Thursday -
3km (bin bag) run, 3 rounds on bag - low intensity
Meal 1 - 30g of pineapples.
Meal 2 - 1 boiled egg.
Meal 3 - 1  boiled egg
Meal 4 - 2 frozen berries
Meal 5 -  Tuna steak and broccoli.
1 senna tablet
Water intake - 1 liter

Friday -
3km run, 3 rounds on bag - low intensity
Meal 1 - 1 banana.
Meal 2 - 1 boiled egg.
Meal 3 - 1 boiled egg.
Meal 4 -  3 frozen berries.

Meal 5 - 100g tuna steak and broccoli.

1 senna tablet
Water intake - 500ml

Saturday -
Weigh in.
Meal 1 - 300g of galaxy caramel.
Meal 2 - 100g chicken and 300g fruit salad
Meal 3 - 100g chocolate
Meal 4 - Jacket potato with cheese and lots of salt.

Meal 5 - 200g kinder bueno cake
Fight
Meal 6 - Pizza, Cheesy Chips, Cake and Chocolate.
Water intake - 1.5 liters + 300ml creatine + 1 liter of Lucazade

Sunday -

Chocolate.

This isn't a sustainable diet (especially the last part). But, it gives an insight into weight manipulation. The gradual depletion of carbs, small and regular meals, clean and simple foods can see rapid results. Even without the training the diet alone is enough to make a serious dent in body fat. The water amounts are more specific to weight cutting. The principles in the diet can be adapted to suit any weight loss plan.

Cutting Weight for a Fight- How to lose a stone in 3 weeks

My last fight was my third type of full contact competition I had taken part in. The fourth martial art I have competed in. All of these competitions have been within the last year. The difference this time? This was the first time I had prepared for a fight. I had cut weight before, but it was a desperate rush for a martial art I had only been taking classes in for a month or so. The other two I took at such short notice, I often say, for both fights I had one training session.

I had a good month to prepare for this one, I trained regularly. And hard. I kept my weight up until the week before the fight. Three weeks before my fight, after a couple of days away I weighed in at 78kg. Fully fed and hydrated I weighed in at 76kg two weeks before my fight. For my fight I had to weigh in at 70kg, with a 1kg leeway (because weigh in was the same day as the fight). The week before the fight I weighed in at 74kg, my diet became very strict, my training less intense. Three days before the fight I weighed in at 73kg. At the weigh in I was at 70.5kg.

I'm going to write the way I cut weight, I'm not saying it's ideal and it's definitely been a learning curve for me. On the day I felt real strong but there are definitely things I would change for next time. I've manipulated my weight plenty of times so I knew I could do it, though this was a harder cut for me, I was in pretty good shape before I started cutting so this made it slightly harder!

The first mistake I made was I worried about my weight. I had told a training partner my weight a couple of weeks out from the fight and he had seemed worried about my ability to make weight. This, in turn, worried me. I knew I could do it and I had a plan in my head. His doubt made me doubt myself. As a result I'd sometimes dehydrate a little to see progress in my weight loss when I should have been keeping very hydrated until the last couple of days. My goal for this fight was to maintain as much muscle mass as possible so I was the heavier and, hopefully, the stronger fighter on the night.



The next thing I'd say to avoid at all costs is dating someone so close to a fight. In fact socialising at all is a bit of an issue during a weight cut. It's the same for dieting. Everyone offers you food. Everyone tries to say 'this won't matter' or 'just take a day off from it'. It takes real dedication or, in my case, a little experience to not let this damage your cut. I'll offer an example, my parents were away and I'd been busy training. I had to go visit my grandma because I'd been so busy I hadn't seen her in a couple of weeks. I went out with her and my cousin and she was pretty keen on going to a carvery. This was 2 weeks out from my fight and I was concerned about my weight. I got the smallest plate size they did and loaded it with veg and turkey. I made the best out of a bad situation. When socialising it's a good idea to look out the healthiest meal you can choose. During a weight cut avoid socialising in a food environment but while dieting just made better decisions about what you order. Don't listen to people telling you to take a day off.

Dating is a similar, but very different issue. I met a girl a while ago while I was in the final stages of a weight cut (dehydration etc). I asked her out and we went out to the pub and cinema the next night. Man, I was so thirsty the whole time. I felt the cold more and I felt a bit dozy. I managed to salvage some charm but I felt awful the whole time we were out. Luckily I did enough or a second date and the next time we went out I could eat and drink and I was in much better spirits. This time round I was more used to it. I would tell her not to worry about my diet, sometimes even trying a bite of whatever she was eating. Yeah, I was constantly starving, but it's not a process that lasts forever. You just have to mentally log the deviations from your diet plan and add a couple of extra meters on your run or a couple of extra rounds on the bag. Work it off.

So, aside from the deviations in the diet, which are sometimes unavoidable. I'll explain how I made weight for my fight. I wanted to maintain as much weight as I could, I did a little research but perhaps not enough to do it as efficiently as I would have liked. Three weeks out (at 78 kg) I started eating really clean. I do a sort of macro count to get the correct balance. I try to avoid processed foods, still eat plenty so it doesn't affect the training, which I'm doing twice a day hard out. I've also started running 3-5km every couple of days. Training for me is usually, a run, about 20 mins of HIIT then several rounds on the bag. As the fight gets closer I do less rounds on the bag. Then on the evening I go to train at PDKM for a couple of hours, usually pad work, sparring etc.

Two weeks out I'm at 76kg. Over the weekend I attended fight camp, I trained real hard for a couple of days, started with running a few miles through some hills and 2 and a half days of training. My food intake was higher because of the amount of training, but I was under the watchful eyes of Neil so I just ate a load of fruit. I maintained weight over the weekend but I was feeling in really rood shape for it. When I returned I started to lower my carb intake to around 130g a day. I only eat carbs before training or work (usually fruit) and I've also cut the fat to about 40g of good fat a day. Still training twice a day but this consists of running 3-5km and 4x2 min rounds on the bag, then training at PDKM on the night.

One week out and I'm at 74kg. Everyone seemed concerned about my weight but I knew I could lose a couple in water. In fact, on the Saturday, after sparring Neil for about 20 rounds I weighed myself and I came to about 71.8 (if I remember correctly) because of water loss. I started eating a lot of fish, broccoli and cauliflower. I cut my carbs to under 100g for the start of the week, by Thursday I'd dropped to 73kg.  Now, I read that carbs help you retain water, I stopped putting anything into my body that helped you retain water. I had been using hot chilli sauce on my food until now but the high salt count meant that I moved off to chilli flakes. I was sick of white fish so I treat myself to some tuna steaks. I cut carbs to under 50g a day for the last couple of days and cut my water intake to about 1 liter. On the Thursday (the fight was a Saturday) I was a bit concerned about my weight. I did a 3km run with a bin bag on to try sweat some more out. I got down to about 72.1kg.

To make the last bit I got some senna tablets. Let them clear me out a bit. The lack of food and water had clogged me up a bit and I also read that it's good for a fighter to clean their system out a bit. My diet on the Thursday and Friday consisted of 3 meals of tuna steak with 1 piece of cauliflower and 1 piece of broccoli, a small bowl of fruit for breakfast (approx 50g), 2 hard boiled eggs (at seperate times). The last couple of days were not so bad because my body had gone into ketosis. It kind of kills your appetite. When I was really hungry, or thirsty, or both I sucked on a frozen berry. I bought ice in case it got to a desperate stage, but it didn't. On the morning of my weigh in I was at 70.5kg. I could have drank or ate something then but I wanted to be as close to 70kg as I could.

I took a bar of galaxy caramel, a banana and a 4 pack of lucazade sport to the weigh in. I ate as much as I could as soon as it was done. I was surprised my opponent weighed in heavier than me because I thought he was going to be underweight(which is why I wanted to be closer to 70kg). My plan for the day was to eat every 30 mins until my fight, and take on as much water as I could without being bloated or uncomfortable. After a cut it's hard to eat. I made sure I ate a lot of sugary foods. I started with chocolate and a banana, with lucazade and water. 30 mins later I ate some chicken and some fruit. I also had some creatine because I though it would help with the dehydration. I sipped water and lucazade all day. I was with the girl I was seeing and I felt a bit like a needy child, demanding that she feed me every 30 mins. I had some chocolate during the gaps when I couldn't eat properly. I had a jacket potato with cheese and plenty of salt for my last meal. Then, just before I set out for my fight I ate some kinder bueno cake. I'm not sure there's any health benefit to a kinder bueno cake, but it was a good choice after a couple of weeks of controlled carbs. My body seemed to process it all well, I felt full of energy before my fight. I kind of needed to urinate but I thought it would give me a little more urgency once I was in the ring. I also had my hands taped and gloves on and Craig didn't seem too keen on aiming for me.

I walked into my fight at around 73-74kg. Admittedly some of it was cake weight, but I don't think I compromised my performance and I felt strong in there. There are some factors I'll think about for my next fight but overall I'm pretty happy.

Fight Camp - A Student's Perspective

I've just arrived home from Fight Camp organised by Neil Walton of PDKM and James Hobson KMDA. 3 nights in a great location and 2 and a half days of (fairly) intense training. The training was led by Neil Walton. I'm aching a little now and I've seized up a bit but I feel I have taken some lessons away and sharpened up my skills.

As always, I left things a little last minute. I only arranged a lift with Craig on the morning we were meant to set off. We had talked of sharing a ride earlier in the week but I hadn't got back to him and I'd had a really busy night the night before. I woke up at about 8am and sent him a text. I said I'll go with him if that was cool and asked what time he planned on setting off. I was a little surprised by his answer, he was setting off earlier than I had anticipated. I rushed to get ready. As a result, I didn't check the information provided and guessed what I needed. I packed my kit bag, all my clean training gear, a set of running shoes a hoodie and a jacket. Luckily that was all I needed.

On the way down there was torrential rain. I was a bit worried because I'd only packed 1 hoodie. I hadn't read the information pack so I didn't realise it was outdoor training. Luckily, as we got closer, the sun came out. We drove through some beautiful scenery that reminded me of my time in New Zealand. We eventually arrived at our destination.

The Glaramara is situated in a picturesque area near Keswick. It's surrounded on all sides by beautiful mountains. It is breathtaking. The building itself is pretty and modern. It's divided between modern refurbished rooms that are like a Premier Inn and smaller single rooms that resemble a youth hostel. I was in the latter. The room was very small with a single bed, a sink, a small desk and a wardrobe. It was simple, but that's all that I needed. I wasn't there for the room and it had everything I needed. The bathroom and showers were shared but I never had to queue for anything and, in fact, I rarely saw anyone else in there.

When we arrived we met in a small conference room, there was fresh fruit, sandwiches and cereal bars laid out. I should point out that I was two weeks out from a fight so I can't give a full evaluation of the food. I had made the mistake of telling Craig what weight I was at and I was under scrutiny with everything I ate. We were starving when we arrived so I ate plenty of fresh fruit. I ate a lot of fruit throughout my stay and it was very good quality. Over that weekend was probably the most fruit I've ever eaten. We all sat in the conference room while we received the information for the weekend. We got a copy of the itinerary and a 'Fight Camp' t-shirt. We were then given our room allocations and given some time to unpack and ready ourselves for an evening of training.

The training began with a short run, I'd approximate the distance at about a mile. It was a nice little track but the terrain was tough. It was uphill through a stream and up a steep incline then down a rough track and onto the road. It was a circuit but on the first night we just did it once. We arrived back in the Glaramara which had a large field to use as a training area. The first evening was a striking session. I train under Neil Walton at PDKM so I know how picky he is with striking. He even criticises me sometimes. And I'm excellent. We drilled the real basics, he was making everyone focus on generating power from the hips. I was a little tired but I'll take what he said to me as a compliment. He said, "I don't know what it is with you Matt, you sometimes have moments of brilliance, and other times you're just lazy, do you realise you're being lazy?". But all I heard was, 'moments of brilliance'.

After a couple of hours we finished for the night. We had about an hour to chill, chat, get showered then it was time for dinner. It was a set three course menu for dinner. You had three choices for each course. On the first night I had a tuna steak I would have gone with the beef but I was being careful because of the weight cut. The food was amazing. Mine was delicious but I was still jealous of the beef that was just perfect. I watched enviously as everyone else ate theirs. It was good, clean food. There was plenty, I never heard any complaints. Neil came over to me as we were finishing the main course and asked me what I had ordered for desert. I told him the fruit salad. He said, "Really? Aw, if you'd have said the cobbler I was going to take it off you". I had not realised it was prison rules. I had fruit for starters and desert every night. It was good, fresh and always a little different. A cheese board was a desert option too and it was a generous selection of cheeses, great portion sizes. I had to engage all my self control not to steal the left overs. I spent a lot of time thinking about food over the weekend just because of the great quality of it.

After dinner we sat outside talking and laughing. It was a great bunch of people. I had an early night but everyone went to bed pretty early. We knew it would be a heavy one the next day. Unfortunately, the only complaint we had about the hotel happened that night. It was somebody's anniversary so there was a bunch of old folks singing until nearly midnight. I know that Craig wasn't far off going and telling them off but I thought, it's Saturday night, let them have some fun.

I had a great nights sleep and woke up at 7:30 ready to train. I got a shower and met with the others for breakfast. There was fresh fruit, cereal, yogurt and cooked breakfasts available. We needed a pretty big breakfast because we'd need the energy but I mainly had fruit and yogurt. We started the day with the same run. Only this time we had to do it three times. Neil told the group that they had to try and beat me round the track. I immediately sprinted off but Craig set off with me, then got ahead, and I lost him on the first lap. I still came in second but I felt sick and had a banging headache. The track was tough to do three times. Neil stood on the hardest part, a steep hill, and took photos of us all struggling. He also shouted some encouragement.

When everyone had arrived back we got into another striking session. I already noticed a difference with everyone. We took the drills slowly and Neil carefully checked everyone's technique. Me and Craig sometimes advanced the techniques slightly but the drills were useful for all levels of striking. The difference in the striking was already noticeable. I was impressed with the improvement. The focus of this session was generating power, moving on the triangle and defensive maneuvers. It was a good, fast paced session that ended with some tough drills. By the end we were happy to go for lunch. Lunch consisted of a buffet. Soup, sandwiches and fruit. I stuck with the fruit, I even stole some for later. The weekend turned me into a bit of a fruit thief and I often took a couple of pieces for throughout the day.

After lunch we went back for a ground fighting session. It reminded me of when you're at school after lunch where you're a bit groggy and tired. We plugged through, the focus of this session was a flow drill which we would build on the next day too. We went through entry for a take down with a simple take down and some basic ground positions. Some of the others hadn't done much ground work so we went through it slowly and got the technique right. Me and Craig did some of our own stuff too but everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy the session.

We stopped for a brief brake before the sparring session. I ate a load of my stolen fruit to stop me from flagging too much. It was getting late in the day and everyone was starting to get a little tired. The sparring session consisted of some sparring drills, attacking high and low, changing the angles, piecing combinations together and reacting to attacks. Some of the people training were very new to sparring and I know it can be intimidating to some. Me and Craig were hoping to really exchange with some of the others but it was done in a more controlled and technical manner. I went through drills with some of the others and you could see it was taking a bit of getting used to.

We finished for the evening, showered, ate, chatted and chilled for the evening. I had another early night. The next day was more of the same. We had breakfast, did the same run. Neil was considering letting us off but some of the guys were keen to do it again (I wasn't one of them). So another three laps, I paced myself a little better so I wasn't feeling as ill after, but this time I came in about 4th (I hate running). On the plus side: The weather was glorious. Me and Craig broke my rules of taking your shirt off in public etiquette and topped up our tan throughout the day.

I more than made up for my poor effort on the run in the striking session. My technique was looking sharp. I also looked around the group and saw vast improvements. Neil is excellent at teaching proper technique for striking and it was evident from that session. I was impressed with everyone's progression. The pace was really good too and we picked it up a little towards the end, it really got everyone working hard and you could see the movements were becoming part of their muscle memory.

We broke for lunch and, again, I stole a load of fruit. We came back to a grappling session which developed from the day before. The flow drill actually got a little complex and there were some really cool techniques in there. Everyone had built on their base from the day before and there was some really impressive techniques getting done very well. The other thing I noticed is how much everyone was enjoying it. The atmosphere was really good. Good technique and good fun. It was a great session.

After another break we had another sparring session. Again, we started with drills. I looked about and, again, I saw a huge improvement. We had a few light sparring rounds and I was really impressed with how the others were piecing together their combinations. I can be awkward to fight but they were doing excellent. I was astonished at the improvement. Credit has to go to them for picking it up so quickly and to Neil for drilling it into them.

That night we stayed up a little later, everyone had a few beers (except me). After Craig had a few he bought me a Mars bar. I didn't dare eat it in front of Neil. At about 11 I excused myself, went to my room and ate that Mars bar without shame. It was good.

All in all the weekend was great. I'd definitely do it again and I'd definitely recommend it to others. It's basically a few days away in a beautiful, remote area. Where you can concentrate on your training with like-minded people. The improvements were clearly evident. Also, the food was amazing. I'd probably go back just for the food. But the training was awesome too!