[legshot420]

Pride is a good thing when used in moderation. Compare yourself to guys who've been training as long as you and find the one that blows you off the water or at least has an advantage on you. You don't want to be the kid who's lagging behind, do you?

[Mat Hamm]

I think of my daughter. I promised her when I held her in my arms the night she was born that I would give her everything I never had. All the training and these fights are all leading towards a career in mma that will hopefully allow me to fulfill that promise.

[myrtle]

ok, whatching highlights and having routine will get you a bit but it will only get you so far.

The brain is really powerfull but it cant tell the diffrence between reality and thought, its the same input, you consciously know the diffrence but your subconscious dosent. The subconscious mind will pick up on your conscious thoughts and try to make them into reality, with this in mind controlling the subconscious and via that controlling your mood and actions is pretty easy.

If you really want motivation you need to implement it in your subconscious mind. The interesting thing is this is really easy, you could for example change your desktop ta a quote you like, you could hang some motivational posters, you could start telling other people the advice you wish to implement on yourself.

I have pretty recently developed several tools for this its easy and effective. I was suffering from depression from leaving thailand and experiencing the gruesome swedish winter for the first time in 3 years and having to work in a factory and live with a negative human being during last winter. If you read up on the subject you can to develop your personal tools for self improvement.

Just realising that you can control your subconcious through your thoughts will help alot, just eliminate negative thoughts and think what you want to become. If you start telling yourself that you are a hardworking dedicated person your subconcious will pick it up and make it reality.

[right hand lead]

watching fights gets me motivated. oh and the rocky theme song too

[Vector_X]

If you need an outside source for motivation it probably won't turn out so well for you. If you enjoy it you will go if not well then probably not and even if you do force yourself to go you probably won't be 100%

[myrtle]

Originally Posted by Vector_X

If you need an outside source for motivation it probably won't turn out so well for you. If you enjoy it you will go if not well then probably not and even if you do force yourself to go you probably won't be 100%

worst motivation i ever heard. there are some truth in your statement, "outside sorce of motivation" could be considerd peer pressure, the trainer demanding things from you or parents expectations, however this has nothing to do with motivation and selfimprovement.

Accarding to your argument one should never try to motivate oneself, some people have motivation naturally (not really but through their upbringing), but those who dosent need to develop that 'Can do, never give up attitude' if theres something bad about that please explain.

[Vector_X]

find a role model then . I mean there are the hokey things like "listen to music" or "watch someone else beat people". Give yourself a benchmark to hit and stick to it. I really don't know you though so it is hard to just give general motivation advice. I mean I dunno I train because I like it and if you are going to fight you need to push yourself to the max because there is a decent shot your opponent is going to do the same. So my motivation is if I don't get better I know the people around me will be and getting your ass kicked around in a ring isn't pleasant. I don't like playing the "if I just tried a little harder...game" so I make sure that I don't. If I didn't like Muay thai though I woudln't do it because god knows there are easier ways to get in great shape.

P.S. I honestly don't know if you can train the, "never give up. can do attitude." It seems like if you really want to do something you will and if you are on the fence or hesitant you will probably make excuses to not do it. I mean a dedicated friend can help push you because odds are peer pressure will give you a bit of an edge, but even then to put in 100% and break through a barrier you are just going to have to dig down and do it because you want to do it. Thing is I personally don't train with any of my core group of friends so I don't know for sure if this is accurate. Typically when I start something I finish it unless I have to move for work or something like that and it just becomes impossible because I dunno maybe it was how I was raised. I just don't know if you can really teach tenacity is what I'm trying to say unless it is just ground into you from the beginning.

[myrtle]

You seem to be very motivated and i have studied both sports psychology and ordanary psychology also i did 400 hours special physical education, so i actually know something im not just guessing.

Many of the things you say are true and i bet your post will motivate many people i used to have the greatest motivation and tenacity i have ever seen, i dident miss a training session in over a year i did 11 hours a week, i skipped school to train and went to school just to get food or go to PA i never thought i ever could loose the motivation but i did...i went down and i went down hard...drugs, depression, injury, self loathing i had it all.

I',m back now however my confidence has skyrocketed and i did a grapplingtourney yesterday where i pretty much crushed the competition (it was in intermediate level), i used visualisation and affirmation techniques throughout the tourney (and in my everyday life).

ok thats a bit about me, lets talk in general, if you look at your physical attributes you now you can change and improv them you can even mesure them pretty easily, however it always takes time. However if we choose to look at our mentality, and the psychological attributes the fact is you CAN change them, and not anly that you can change them within a heartbeat, what do you think happens to people who find god? people who suddenly realise some ultimate truths and start dedicating their lives to that truth? ever heard of anyone getting brainwashed? joining a sect?

It is foolish to think that you cannot change psychological attributes, not only can you do it but you can do it today. I know this because i was thaught this i can remember being thought it, and one of the reasons i got out of all the shit was rediscovering some old documents my former trainer wrote to motivate us.

If you want to reach your true potential in any aspect of your life you will have to do some sort of manipulation to your own psyche.

Last words, some people have a very negative thoughtstream and it affects them in every second od thier lives, its not easy for a person who is on the positive spectra to realise this (i know i dident before). ohh yeah a word of advice from my former trainer and mentor:

1) Look for the Truth
2) Beyond fighting lies the highest aspiration, to develop love, compasion and humility towards all beings.
3) We can all change and improve.
4 We can't fail unless we quit striving toward our goal. You are the only one who can say "I quit!" We are utterly relentless in the pursuit of our goals.
5) We always have a positive attitude and expect the best outcome from any situation. Always optimistic and thankful.
6) No limits; Using no way as a way, having no limitations as limitation.
7)the induvidual is always more importent then the style. This develops a self-empowering attitude.
8) We keep our ego in check. What we know about ourselves is more importent then what someone may think or say about us.
9) The secret to proficiency is consistent, correct practice over a long period of time.
10) We are polite and friendly to all people from a position of strenght until we are forced to act.
11) An attack executed with speed, style (efficient technique), and surprise is nearly impossible to defend against.

[ForeverFiending]

Going to local fights and watching people get KO'de always sticks with me when I don't feel like doing road work... lol

No, really though. Training is one of my favorite things to do and road work is a good time for me too. So it's not much of a problem for me...

Oh, and long time ago I thoroughly convinced myself that if I did not do conditioning exercises/ training or whatever, that I would lose my mind and life for me would go down hill because it's like my crack... and I seriously believe that. If I ever got too injured to train I'de cry like a baby and go into depression... no joke. So am I lucky? or cursed???? lol

I think routine helps get you addicted to the adrenaline... that eventually you build a tolerance too. I really feel like I've built a tolerance to adrenaline because if it's not intense enough I don't get satisfied. so again.. am I cursed? or blessed???

[Vector_X]

I completely get what you are saying and have had some psychology as well as an undergrad. You're right though people can go through tough times and it can happen to anyone. What I'm trying to say is that there must have been some incident that made you want to turn it around and that is what I'm trying to say someone needs. There has to come a certain time when you want to make the change and it sounds like you did. I have over come adversity through similar techniques and what I'm trying to say is that there isn't going to be some magical switch that will give motivation it is going to have to come from the inside that you want to make the change and get off your butt. Once you have made that decision then yes visualization and affirmation can push you that much higher, but that inital leap usually has to come from oneself and the pure want to succeed.