Wrestling Tough – A Tough Guy’s Book Review

In a sport where your opponent is there to bend you to his will, being strong is a requirement that goes beyond the physical or mental. That’s all. The moves are all the same, they’re paired by weight class, and everyone’s looking at you two. In the book, hard fight, author Mike Chapman breaks down the very essence of the sport of wrestling while also giving readers a glimpse into the toolbox of every great fighter. Chapman doesn’t just use wrestlers, but also refers to other great athletes and coaches from a variety of sports and how these skills, traits, and habits help develop a winning mindset for the mat and for the rest of your life.

Wrestling has existed since the beginning of man, and is one of the purest sports to the characteristics of man and nature. Two people try to compete with each other and force their will on them and claim what is there. The Epic of Gilgamesh, It is listed as the oldest literary work in existence today. It is the story of a warrior king who fought for his land in an epic wrestling match against a wild man from the outskirts of his kingdom. The story of Gilgamesh and Enkidu’s battle for Uruk is over 4,000 years old. Uruk was believed to be in a land called Sumer, which many historians have cited as the location of the Garden of Eden, this is the place that God had expelled Adam and Eve from for disobeying him.

As long as there has been a man walking the earth, it would be safe to say there has been some form of wrestling. There are more than 50 variations of wrestling that are practiced today throughout the world in more than 150 countries. Wrestling is a sport that is spoken of in the Bible and was participated in all over the world, from villages to the Olympic Games, with more than 40 centuries of history to hold it together. The people who participate in it and the characteristics that are built by being involved in what may be the most demanding sport known to mankind also make it unique.

The basics of wrestling begin with simply choosing to wrestle. Both Abraham Lincoln and George Washington were known as fighters of considerable skill. Choosing wrestling is a difficult idea, but many educators promote the sport as an ideal way to instill the discipline and values ​​that will enable people to be successful in life. While you may choose to play some of the more popular sports like basketball, baseball, and soccer, wrestling demands something of you at every practice or event. Every time a person fights, they can expect to be pushed to the limit and want to quit, but the fight demands that you want to win more.

Understand that toughness and confidence building are critical attributes any fighter should strive for. Understanding toughness is the difference between giving up and winning in many cases. It is the process of knowing that something hurts you and knowing if that pain will prevent you from practicing, training and winning in competition. It’s overcoming setbacks and standing in front of an opponent and knowing they’re nothing special no matter the circumstances. Building confidence goes hand in hand with understanding toughness, as a fighter you have to build from the pain and torment of training. You have to feel the rigors a fighter would endure and understand that the pain today is to make him a successful champion when the whistle blows. Confidence built through physical preparation cannot be given to you with a game plan executed in a day, rather it is a daily plan that will let you know that no one could have trained harder.

Dan Gable is mentioned over and over again, unsurprisingly in a book about tough wrestling, as his fighting and training style was one of tenacity and honest destruction. His focus and dedication are what the legend was born from. This same intensity carried over to what is known as “Gable’s Boys” in the wrestling world, as he never picked what he would call the best wrestlers but wrestlers who matched his style. He then took the time to destroy those fighters to turn them back into a better mold, a mold of Gable who was confident that they could pressure their opponents to fight his way: Gable’s way.

Gable taught focus and determination to all of his athletes through preparation. However, this requires one thing from the participants, commitment and dedication to their goals. This was something many coaches have come to understand from watching successful athletes, but with wrestlers this can be spoon-fed a second killer at a time. Every takedown is the one that wins the match, every drill is that point or dire situation, the pin you need to win. These small goals lead to bigger goals: state titles; national titles; World Championships; and the Olympics. As he fights hard, it’s important that he gets in the mood before each practice before he can set the intensity level to go this far.

Bear Bryant was known as one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, winning 6 national titles. He also held the sport of wrestling in high regard, requiring all players to participate in wrestling during their spring training, to prepare them both physically and mentally. When it comes to preparation, fighting brings a person to the outer limits of themselves and face to face with giving up or pushing forward against a person.

Will, the will to win and wanting to win has to be ingrained in the mind of a fighter. The Brands brothers were known to have “will” to achieve their goals, writing affirmations and declaring what the future held. Several great fighters had the same belief that it was all a matter of wanting it so much that you brainwashed yourself, stating it over and over again. This is the mindset of a fighter, many great fighters like Bill Koll and Dan Gable were known for their intensity and brainwashing mentality that seemed to put them somewhere else.

Talent is nice, but giving him something extra is important, especially when your opponent is likely to work as hard as you did in the offseason and want him just as much. Talent without hard work will leave you drained and exhausted against an opponent who is committed to hard work and willing to outdo you. Hard work leads to the ability to rise to the occasion and bring a new level of intensity to the competition and your opponents. Also, with that extra effort, a fighter who has worked hard will have developed the mental toughness that can be constantly developed and improved. Those upgrades can be tied in with other skills and attributes that will only help create a better, more talented fighter.

The ability to pay the price of victory is paramount. John Smith and Dan Gable also did not commit to relationships as they pursued excellence in wrestling. Not hanging out with friends or just being so consumed by victory can weigh heavily on an athlete, and wrestling will challenge the mental gas tank. In practice, a fighter has to be willing to take himself to a higher level where he can let go of all the setbacks and life that happens. After pushing thoughts aside, you should be ready to be slammed into the mat over and over again or fight an opponent who is ready to push you into the mat. Wrestling is paying the price, and when you’ve paid that price, everything else in life is easy.

Wrestling is a mentality, a winning mentality. If you’re looking for a magic wand or the latest self-help craze, you won’t find it. If you’re looking to change everything about yourself and how you approach life as a whole, learn what it’s like to fight hard. Wrestling is a mindset that by applying hard work, success will follow. Fighting hard is about looking deep within yourself and being critical of what you do as an athlete, whether you are a competitive swimmer or wrestler, there is something in the fighting hard mindset that benefits you.

Building a can-do attitude. Developing a point of view that if you want it hard enough you will get it is good, but the ability to know that if you want it and work hard enough you will get it. Coaches such as Dan Gable, Pat Summit, John Wooden, Vince Lombardi and Bear Bryant all expressed the benefit of having a highly confident team that has been tested through physical preparation to the point of powerful confident mental acumen that leads to success. Presidents, statesmen, ancient kings and many more believed in the benefits of wrestling and its ability to create a mental vacuum that sucked out success. The values ​​and confidence generated from one of the most demanding sports humanity has ever participated in can only lead to better life skills and brighter futures.

Dan Gable once said, “Wrestling isn’t for everyone, but it should be.”