mental toughness

[Duchman]

Can you train it? and how so?

[John Hopton]

I suspect that you can't train it in the sense of a pre planned programme..although I believe you may be able to acquire it through reflection on past experience and change of attitude.

Having said that you could probably borrow techniques and strategies from cognitive therapy to overcome self-defeating beliefs. The problem is that you'd have to know what those self defeating beliefs were before you could begin to work on them (hence my initial reply)

[Duchman]

Awesome thanks for the reply.

Lets say person 1, wants to fight.. has the skills.. But believes he isnt hard or good, cause his parents used to tell him he is shit. and abuse him etc.. Cause you use this to make him mentaly tough?

[jayman2606]

Awesome thanks for the reply.

Lets say person 1, wants to fight.. has the skills.. But believes he isnt hard or good, cause his parents used to tell him he is shit. and abuse him etc.. Cause you use this to make him mentaly tough?

It might be a case of shifting focus onto other more positively re-inforcing beliefs that are likely to make him believe he is able to succeed. Such as focusing on compliments made at the gym, by friends, etc. I don't how easy or difficult that is really you would have to look into it.

There is loads of CBT stuff but I haven't really read any of this.. I think Geoff Thompson would be a good source-books like FEAR and various others that he has done all from a martial arts perspective. Maybe Anthony Robbins as well but that is more general but very good.

[John Hopton]

It's not quite CBT but jayman's post got me thinking; Martin Seligman's book "Learned optimism" might be worth a look

[speedball]

wrestling tough by mike chapman is a great book on mental toughness

[ntf]

My only experience of cbt has been in relation to irrational beliefs, I think having the belief that you could get very badly hurt fighting in mma is quite rational and there's a load of evidence to back this up so I'm not sure how you'd challenge it?

[theedgemc]

you can change someines mental toughness, pshycology.

[John Hopton]

My only experience of cbt has been in relation to irrational beliefs, I think having the belief that you could get very badly hurt fighting in mma is quite rational and there's a load of evidence to back this up so I'm not sure how you'd challenge it?

You can also use it to address self defeating thoughts..."Like I would never be able to do an armbar from mount". Maybe not, but if you never even try it how would you know.

Or.....from personal experience(although I didn't need CBT to address the problem)......I can't do a forward roll because I'm too worried I'd get it wrong and break my neck. Not irrational as such but still a self defeating belief (for about 46 years as it happens)

[bean]

OT: wat tjappie in het Engels betekent duchman??

When I first started at the gym, I had quite a self defeating attitude I didn't really push myself at all. It was D who pushed me through alot and anybody who knows him, will know he won't let you give up, also took alot of inspiration from Ian and Andy and that changed my attitude a whole lot. I'll push through things I hate without complaint.