11 days to go until
“The Beginning”
I looked. I really did but there was little love in the cage on Wednesday night (7th April).
Although little talking, it was a noisy session…the sounds of regulated breathing, the sounds of bodies sprawling on the mat, running on the spot, letting out groans of pain, the sounds of exhaustion. And all the while abuse from the man they all respect…the coach.
I had to chuckle to myself. I always like to know what the aim of each session is, tonight Paul’s answer was simple, “I want them to feel like SHIT”…. he then turned away and shouted….”I’m not happy guys, I don’t like what I’m seeing. You’re gonna keep on doing this until I’m happy.”
Cardio lasted 30 mins and the rest periods were 1 min rounds of running on the spot… “get those fuckin’ knees higher”…you get my drift. While Paul dished out the abuse Pat offered encouragement – it was quite the good cop bad cop routine. By 8pm the whole
team was spurring each other on as Paul squeezed the last bits of effort out of everyone. I love the energy in these sessions…makes me want to jump in and join them.
Wednesday night was supposed to be a reality check and would be the final hard training session before the 18th. Anyone feeling comfortable needed to “wise up” – nothing compares to competing in the cage than actually getting in there!
After the cardio it was all about mma, from stand up to wrestling, hands up to ground & pound – the whole lot. The guys needed to formulate what their own personal game plans would be and Paul advised one by one – working on their strengths – being aware of their weaknesses.
I asked where did all the love go and Paul’s answer was, “Tonight it’s tough love!”. As the saying goes, “you’ve got to be cruel to be kind.” I’m sure the guys will thank Paul…eventually!
By Sue Finnegan
