Blog Post 12 - It Never Goes Away

Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the ability to perform and execute despite its presence.

Training and competing in combat sports comes with a whole lot of baggage. Figuring out your training regimen, honing in your diet, balancing work and family, recovery and strength training, etc.

The list gets long quite fast. There are things a fighter can do to lighten the load.

Train consistently and mindfully to make progress and mitigate injuries.

Plan out meals in advance to save time and prevent over consumption of calories.

Schedule time with loved ones to nurture those bonds.

All of this is easier said than done.

Fear is yet another obstacle for a fighter. Fear of the unknown, fear of catastrophic injury, fear of looking foolish.

Fear can also manifest as doubt.

Doubt will ebb and flow throughout your entire competitive career, at times much more worrisome than normal, and sometimes not really a worry at all. With enough experience, the doubt and fears become more manageable. But, in truth, it never goes away.

Doubt will forever be an annoying dance partner, stepping on your feet, messing with your rhythm, and forcing you to second guess yourself.

Doubt is the voice in your head saying things like:

“What if I’m not good enough?”

“Did I train hard enough for this?”

“I don’t stand a chance, why am I even trying?”

“I suck, I should just quit.”

Doubt is there whether you’re a reigning world champion or an amateur making their debut. So knowing this, in order to perform at your best, your goal is not to eliminate your doubts but to execute despite their presence.

I love that scene in the first Creed movie where Rocky is telling Adonis to look in the mirror. Right there. That’s the guy ya gotta beat. Not the guy with you in the ring, but the guy staring back at you in the mirror. He’s gonna be the toughest opponent of all. Constantly doubting you, getting in the way, and making excuses.

“You see this guy here staring back at you. That’s your toughest opponent. Every time you get in the ring that’s who you’re going against. I believe that in boxing and I do believe that in life.”

We are often our own worst enemy when it comes to making progress in anything. As a high school teacher, I saw it in the high achieving students who couldn’t put pen to paper because they didn’t think anything they could say would ever be good enough. As a coach, I saw it in the kids who were obsessed with the state rankings and put their self worth into some number next to their name.

I say let the doubt come. It keeps you honest. Because when you ask yourself if you prepared enough, and you truly did, you can be satisfied with your answer.

Doubt can never be erased, but you can always make yourself more capable of dealing with it under pressure. Count yourself lucky that you ever get the privilege of knowing what it’s like to perform under such circumstances.