Heatrick Heavy Hitters – Muay Thai Performance Don Heatrick

Why can't you fight how you spar in training? Why are you so stiff, clumsy, and fatigued?

The key to understanding your first fight performance is to recognise the undeniable influence of your psychology on your physiology!

Yerkes-Dodson anyone?

In this episode, we discuss the tipping point between the optimal amount of stress to achieve your best and dropping over the cliff edge into the shadow of your real capability...

Robbing you of your movement, mobility, fitness, technique and fight IQ!

And if you're new to competition, this tipping point is far more easily exceeded – and to be expected!!

Here's just what to expect from your first fight(s) and how to swing your mindset toward a better outcome, quickly.



TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Yerkes-Dodson Anyone?
00:15 Optimal ANS Arousal – More Isn't Better
01:02 The Cost Of Being Over Aroused
01:36 For Your First Fight It's Expected!
02:23 Should You Change Your Training?
02:56 How Your Personality Affects Performance
03:51 How Good or Bad Valence Affects Performance
05:34 Fear And Excitement – Same Brain Cocktail!
06:22 Fight Experience Matters



Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2024/05/17/understanding-your-first-fight-performance-both-before-and-after/

Are you a fighter training around injury? Should you be resting up or smashing on regardless?

I've pushed on when I shouldn't have, and needlessly backed off too. There are lessons to learn here.

Injury is part of any athlete's journey. But for fighters, managing injury well can separate you from the competition...

In this episode:

00:00 Two Types of Injury
00:48 Testing It Out To See
01:48 How To Train Even When Injured

Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2024/05/10/fighter-training-through-injury-right-or-wrong/

Even for fighters, running efficiency matters! Wasted running effort hurts more than just your running time…

Injuries will catch up with you sooner or later. And don’t assume your running technique is good – even if you’re fast, and you don’t currently have injuries.

I did, and I was wrong!

Although combat sports athletes don’t need optimal running mechanics like say, track athletes, or even field sports athletes might do, fighters must run well enough.

Well enough, not to sabotage fitness testing (like the 12-minute Cooper Run for example)…

And well enough not to cause excessive wear and tear – creating issues such as shin splints, tendinitis, meniscus damage, IT Band syndrome, etc.

In this episode, I share a very quick and simple running efficiency check, and fix. We’ll cover:

00:00 Running Efficiency
00:41 Combat Sport Athletes & Running Mechanics
01:32 Over Striding Is Killing Your Speed
02:46 Correcting Your Running Cadence
03:33 You Think You Run Well
04:53 Using A Metronome App
05:30 1-2 Weeks Practicing
05:57 Running On Ice Analogy

Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2024/05/03/fighter-running-efficiency-a-simple-check-and-fix/

The secret to training fighter endurance is to plug the gaps in fighting fitness typically left behind by regular bag work, pad work, and sparring practice.

Don't do more of the same, develop what's missing.

For most fighters, that means targeting GENERAL ENERGY PRODUCTION – the heart and lungs – rather than LOCAL ENERGY UTILISATION at the muscles themselves.

And this emphasis shifts as you get closer to your fight, or toward the end of your training phase if you're not competing.

Join me in this episode as I explain this transition and offer two extreme examples:

00:00 Fighter Energy Systems

00:38 Supplemental Local Muscular Endurance?

01:09 Progressing 3x Cardio Sessions Each Week

01:39 Cardio Session Examples

02:23 The Right Cardio At The Right Time

Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2024/04/26/fighting-fitness-how-to-plan-fighter-endurance-training/

Fighter performance testing …It’s cool to see how you measure up… But, if you don’t use the results to personalise your training, then don’t bother testing!

Progressing beyond the previous two episodes (weaponising your Anaerobic Threshold), let’s shine a light on how the 12 minute Cooper Run can plug into a battery of performance testing for fighters, and what you can do with the results.

In this episode:

00:00 Going beyond a 12-min Cooper Run
00:39 Baseline testing and identifying limiting factors
01:04 The best time for performance testing
01:37 Using the results to personalise your training
02:43 Balancing “adequate” with “Superpowers”

Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2024/04/19/performance-testing-for-fighters-beyond-the-cooper-run/

When it comes to heart rate training, your maximum heart rate is far less important than knowing your anaerobic threshold heart rate.

Most of the time, I don’t care what a fighter’s max heart rate is. But it’s vital I know their anaerobic threshold heart rate…

Was that a hard training session?  Your heart will tell you – if you know what you’re doing!

Testing for, and training based on your anaerobic threshold heart rate (your maximal sustainable pace) is the secret to knowing if your Muay Thai or cardio conditioning session was easy, moderate, or high intensity.

Training at a pace above your anaerobic threshold is high intensity, at this pace is moderate, and below it is easy.

In this video I discuss how to test your anaerobic threshold and how to use this information both in your training and to win fights!

This is boosting your fight IQ by weaponising your energy systems conditioning.

Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2024/04/05/fighter-heart-rate-training-weaponise-anaerobic-threshold-part-1/