The week ahead is full of potential. I’ve never been one to think in terms of limitations and with Muay Thai it became very clear from an early stage that like with any martial art it really is what you make it. Of course it’s important to understand your own strengths and weaknesses but like the late great Bruce Lee said..’ if you always put limits on everything you do..’ well you know the rest.

I trained a reasonable amount last week, and I’ve made sure I have been putting in enough work to keep things ticking over. Weight cutting is never really a huge issue for me and I’m confident I’ll be down to my fighting weight soon. At the moment I’m not 150% sure who I’m fighting only that I should be matched up.

Really it’s just about getting myself ready at present (it has been for the past couple of weeks but the last 2 or 3 are always the toughest )  and it’s good to have a goal to work towards. I have pretty much a full plate at present but boxing and fighting is where I’ve found the best parts of me so it’s always more than worth every second of my time.

Training was good last week, with focus on some simple combinations and some good sparring too. There’s been a lot of emphasis on cardio recently which always helps. Fridays lesson was good, working on stepping off the centre line and countering as well as fighting off the back foot. That’s one of the harder elements of Muay Thai for me and something I need to spend more time working on.

Countering seems to be coming along fairly well, and I’m realizing more and more than rushing in isn’t always the smartest way to fight. It’s good to be aggressive but it’s also just as important to wait for your moment rather than throwing everything at them bar the kitchen sink.

I spent some of last week sparring with guys a lot taller than me and although it’s always tough, I really feel I need to keep working on closing distance and working in fast combinations to keep pressure on opponents. Remembering not just to stand in front of them or back off after unloading whatever is needed and ‘resetting’ is always important, and I am going to try and improve overall flow. It’s there, but sometimes I fall into the trap of focusing on power a little too much.

I think if I continue to work on pressure fighting and improving my counters, working on fakes etc then I’ll develop into a much tougher fighter to deal with than I am at present. It feels that I’m changing myself and my mentality at present towards Muay Thai but I am hoping that it’s a step in the right direction. Like one of my trainers said the more you train or compete the more you develop a style, and I think mine as always is a work in progress. It’s not too shabby at present.

I understand fighting is going to start to get tougher  so I need to step my game up, and I know any doubts or limiting beliefs I have about myself are always countered easily the more work I put into training. Every training session holds potential to improve just like every competition holds the potential to be the best I can be. It comes down to what I’m prepared to give and luckily it’s just as much as it always was. I’ve never been a fan of small thinking. Have a good week and I’ll see you on that road.