Thursday, January 21, 2010

So sorry for taking so long again to blog. I've been insanely busy with training and hustling to try and find funding for my upcoming tours to Turkey, Iran, and Belarus. So since the last time I blogged so much has been going on. I traveled to my alma mater Iowa State University to train for 10 days with Jake Varner and the Paulson twins. Besides the great training partners coach Kevin Jackson and Bobby Douglas was able to work with me and put us through some great workouts. Also that weekend was the ISU vs. Iowa dual meet. The greatest show on earth!! I'm not going to elaborate, b/c you can check out my link at the top right of the page to see my interview with Flowrestling.com and hear me talk all about it. From Ames, IA I traveled to Stillwater, OK home of the Oklahoma State Cowboys. We had a week long National team training camp there. With many of the top guys in the country making the trip for some intense training. I think we were able to get more than a DOZEN workouts in a matter of 5 or 6 days. Needless to say I was pretty sore and tired after that week. It was just what I needed though right before I head home for the holidays to rest and recover and enjoy time with friends and family. I like to end every blog with a motivational quote or something I've came across that has impacted me and/or inspired me.
I read this in a book I just finished and thought I would share:
G.K. Chesterton "On Courage"

The most dangerous man on earth is the man who has reckoned with is own death. All men die; few men ever really live. Sure, you can create a safe life for yourself....and end your days in a rest home babbling on about some forgotten misfortune. I'd rather go down swinging. Besides, the less we are trying to "save ourselves" the more effective a worrior we will be.
Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live take the form of readiness to die. You must seek your life in a spirit of furious indifference to it; you must desire LIFE like water and yet drink DEATH like wine.

P.S. I encourage everyone to please comment! Say anything you want! I love hearing everyones thoughts!! THANK YOU.....COME AGAIN!!!

Monday, September 21, 2009

Hey ya'll who actually do read my blog and are interested.... I'm back!!!  Its been quite sometimes since I've been able to blog.  Mostly because I didn't really have anything positive to talk about.  But now I do, there's a lot of new and exciting things going on in my life right now.  The biggest one is, that I have recently made the move to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO.  I moved on complex and I'm currently a full time resident athlete at the OTC.  I came to the realization that if I'm going to train to become the best then I need to be where the best train.  I have everything at my fingertips to help me to become the best here at the OTC:  Training partners, facilities, trainers, cafeteria, coaches, weight room and staff, recovery center and most of all people around me that want to help me to succeed and reach my goals!!!
So besides training, I'm currently trying to get settled into my new home and still working on getting sponsors and a job.  Most of my expenses are taken care of while living on complex, with room and board and my meals taken care of.  But I'm working on getting some supplemental income and sponsorships that will allow me to travel the world wrestling international competition. 
My first fund raising idea is in the mix as of now.  I have a good friend in Denver who has designed my own t-shirt that I will be selling very soon.  I am going to put up some pictures of the shirt layout.  By buying my shirt, you will be helping me to fund my future competitions here in the U.S. and overseas.  I think I will be selling them for $20.  I hope to get them printed on some quality shirts so that they're comfortable to wear around and to workout in.  If your interested in buying a shirt just let me know via email.   
I promise that I will be blogging again soon....  
When one door closes another opens. But often we look so long so regretfully upon the closed door that we fail to see the one that has opened for us.
Helen Keller

Monday, May 25, 2009

So in between my training here at the OTC....I took a trip to California to train for 6 days!!  I needed to get a mental break and little physical break from the training center.   Its good for me to switch my training up and do new and exciting things...to keep me fresh and hungry to train.  I love to try new things in my training.  Like running the incline (COG) at the OTC, flipping big 500lb. tires, swimming, treadmill sprint workouts,  yoga....etc.  
Cali gave me a chance to try some other types of training out.  I got invited out to train with Jason "Mayhem" Miller.  It was a great experience for me.  I got to travel all over the L.A. area going to different gyms and doing alot of different types of training.  We worked out twice a day while I was there.  I learned alot about the MMA world and how they train.  It was probably the most fun I had training in awhile.  Everything was new and exciting, I got to hit some bags, learn some submission holds, boxed, and spared.  One evening I did an intense run on the Hollywood Hills.  It was hard but it was all worth it when I got to the top and there was a beautiful view of Hollywood and L.A.  All in all it was a great experience and it was great for my training and it was exactly what I needed.  
As of right now I'm back at the OTC.  We had one last hard push last week.  This week were just taking it pretty easy, polishing up some techniques and watching video.  This week I'm just really focusing on feeling my best.....as its going already, my body is feeling better and better everyday as we ease off the training. 
 Check me out training in Cali with Jason "Mayhem" Miller and Renato "Babalu" Sorbral at allelbows.com  Part two
So much has happened since I last blogged.  I'm sorry its been so long since my last blog, but i've been really focused on my training and getting ready to make the World Team.  One thing I can say is that i've done everything possible to maximize my potential at the Trials.  Training has been going great, probably some of the best training of my life and career so far.  Since U.S. Nationals I've been training at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.   We had a national team training camp for 2 weeks to prepare us for trials.  Myself and the other top 3 guys at my weight 84kg were all in attendance, and I feel really good about how I performed against them.  We scrapped toe to toe for two whole weeks and pushed our bodies to the limit.  I took a little time off after nationals, but ever since then I've been training day in and day out most of the time twice a day, lifting, running, wrestling, drilling, watching video.  I've also been making full use of the recovery center here at the OTC, using the hot tub, cold tub,  and getting messages.  I chose the OTC as the place I knew I needed to be to get ready for the Trials because of all the perks like.... the coaching, the training partners, the food, the recovery center, the athletic trainers, the weight room and staff, the altitude training....and the main thing is that the FOCUS is on ME!!! That is exactly what I needed to prepare me for trials b/c I know in my heart and mind that I can win....and this could change my life forever.  

When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.

Confucius.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Hey everyone, I've been meaning to post a blog since U.S. Nationals. Its taken me a week but I now finally have some down time to tell of my experience there. So, I last wrote when I was at the Olympic Center, which I believe was the best 10 days of training I've had in a long time, and it was exactly what i needed to prepare for U.S. Nationals. Not just the hard intense workouts but the 1 0n 1 coaching i got from Bill Zadick, Zeke Jones, and Brandon Slay. And I believe all my hard work and dedication that I've had throughout this season(traveling overseas, U.S. tournaments, many trips to the OTC, watching video) have all been beneficial to a good showing in Vegas. I'll post a link to the standings, for those of you that havent been able to follow up on me, I placed 4th at U.S. Nationals(even after they didnt want to seed me in the top 8). B/c i wasnt seeded in the top 8, i was forced to make weight and wrestle the first day of competion before I could wrestle on Saturday at the qualifying tournament. It was a long road but, after all is said and done, i'm glad I was faced with the challenge. I ended the tournament with 9 matches. I was challenged emotionally, mentally, and physically. After not being seeded, I was stunned and I knew it was going to be a long road ahead of me. And even after losing the first day I was discouraged. But I after I made it through to Saturday, I had a gut-check moment and thought....I could sit here and complain about having to wrestle the first day or I can go out there tomorrow and prove to them that I am the best and I can win this. Things didnt go exactly as planned, but I was pleased with 4th, especially after people doubted me and believed that I wasnt even top 8 in the U.S!!! Placing top 7 in Vegas, qualified me for the World Team Trials in Councel Bluff, IA May 30-31st. I was recently invited to the Olympic Training Center for national team training camp April 26th-May7th, so thats whats next for me right now. I will definetly have some down time there, so I will blog again soon. Dont forget to Join My Page!
"Goals: There is no telling what you can do when you get inspired by them. There is no telling what you can do when you believe in them. There is no telling what will happen when you act upon them." 

-- Jim Rohn

Saturday, March 28, 2009

I'm pretty excited about my new web page. I find myself checking it and wanting to add to it every  chance I get.  So since I'm here I guess i'll write alittle something.  So today I woke up at the OTC and did an individual drill session with ZEKE JONES Head Coach of USA Wrestling.  We got a quick warm up and worked a little on my par-terre, defense to gut, and transitions into my turns(Guts and Leg Laces).  I used that as my warm up heading into our morning lift session.  We did a really hard intense circuit type lift, since were getting pretty close nationals, there's no need to lift real heavy.  This was one of my favorite lifts I ever did.  Dont get me wrong it was hard as heck, but fun!!! We had 12 stations, 20 sec. on and 20 sec. off  for 6 min. and we did 3-6min. goes. Some of the lifts we did were....front raises with long heavy ropes as hard and as fast as possible,  Tire lifts and throw downs(with huge monster truck style tires), boat rows with a normal 45lb barbell, medicine ball lifts with 110-160lbs balls( similar to the Atlas Stones on World Stongest Man), we had a sledge hammer that we swung as hard as we could at a huge monster truck tire...etc.  It was crazy intense and hard, but I really enjoy switching things up like that, from the traditional weight room lifts.  Also I feel that these types of lifts are ideal for wrestlers, in general. We finished our morning up with a 2-10min. goes in the sauna with cold pludge in btw. We have the afternoon off, giving our bodies some rest going into our last two hard days before I begin to taper for U.S. Nationals.  So for the rest of the day I think a few of the guys and I out here are gonna go HIKING.  I mean we are in Colorado Springs and its beautiful out here!!! 
Happiness, I have discovered, is nearly always a rebound from hard work. -- David Grayson

Friday, March 27, 2009

HI EVERYONE, WELCOME TO MY PAGE!!! This is officially my first blog ever, so bear with me.  I actually got some help from Athlete Services here at the Olympic Training Center on how to create my own home-page to better market myself and reach out to my followers.  My page will get better and better as I learn to add to new things to it.  So currently I am in Colorado Springs, CO at the Olympic Training Center from March 23-31st.  I feel this is a very crucial time in my training, this is the last hard, intense push i'll have in my training before i start to taper my training in preparation for the U.S. NATIONALS in LAS, VEGAS April 7-11.  So when from Colorado I travel back to Norman, Oklahoma where I am currently living, coaching and training.  From there I travel to U.S. Nationals with hopes of qualifying for the World Team Trials.  The new freestyle rankings just came out and currently I am sitting at the 8th spot on the Olympic Ladder for freestyle 84KG.  This is very important heading into U.S. Nationals.  Because I'm the 8th seed I will sit out the first day of competition.  The top 8 guys from the preliminary bracket from the first day of competition will enter the qualifying bracket with the other top 8 guys in the country to see who qualifies for the World Team Trials to be held in Council Bluffs, IA  May 30-31st.  Well that just a glimpse of what's going on in my training and upcoming events. Please come back soon!! 
"It is the Inspiration of the Olympic games that drives people not only to compete but to improve, and to bring lasting spiritual and moral benefits to the athlete and inspiration to those lucky enough to witness the athletic dedication." HERB ELLIOTT