I know, it sounds crazy! But before you call me a kook, hear me out for a minute while I tell my story.
Last week, I was training with a couple of students and while I was rolling with one of them (who I’ll call Grappler X), I was putting a lot of 3PP discomfort on him from the top positions.
The entire time I was doing the pressure game, he was smiling and cracking little jokes about having me in trouble and telling me how what I was trying to do wasn’t working.
One of the guys on the sidelines said to him, "This probably isn’t a good time for you to be cracking jokes.’
Grappler X replied, "Hey, I’m just like Spiderman. He cracks jokes EVEN when he’s getting his azz kicked!"
Of course, I laughed because I thought it was funny and remembered all the times I read ol’ Spidey talking about how fat the Kingpin was before, during, and after their fights.
But then I got to thinking about what the joke-cracking did for Spidey and it occurred to me that the jokes did three things
1. It hid how he really felt about his situation from his opponent
2. It kept his attitude positive when he was in deep chit
3. He always joked his opponents on an area where he knew it would get to them mentally (e.g. the fat jokes with the Kingpin)
And the more I thought about it, I realized that Spidey was actually using mental mindset tactics against his opponents!
Imagine that… Spidey was an OG ahead of his time!
That doesn’t mean that you should make fun of your partner’s weight or their speech disorder while training, but if you can hide how much trouble you’re in, keep your attitude positive while being smashed, or poke fun at one of their positions (e.g. your guard sucks), that would be along the lines of something Spidey would say.
So, as I finished rolling with my joke-cracking student, I realized that he was way ahead of many of his teammates because he had the ability to mentally endure and escape 95% of all tough situations he would encounter on the mat. Once he gets the technique to go with it, he’ll be a wrecking machine.
So, the next time you’re in a tight spot and just about ready to quit, think of something ol’ Spidey would say and see how both you and your opponent responds to it. I think you’ll be surprised at how well it works for you.
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Paul M. Greenhill, “The Wise Grappler”, is the creator of The Wise Grappler System and author of The Wise Grappler Ezine, a weekly ezine that provides grappling and mental mindset training tips for the older (over 35) and non-traditional/non-competitive martial artists. To learn more about “The Wise Grappler” and to sign up for more FREE tips like these, visit his site at www.thewisegrappler.com or contact The Wise Grappler.
December 11, 2008 at 9:42 am |
A great point. I remember reading Arnold Schwarzenegger quoting that he often made jokes next to his opponents on the Mr Olympia line up stage. When they thought about them and laughed they where unable to pose correctly. At this point, Arnold would show his incredible physique and compared to his opponents who where laughing and unable to pose, would look more impressive.
December 11, 2008 at 2:14 pm |
good story. it’s amazing the little mental games that athletes used against one another to gain an edge over their competitors, especially those things that seem so trivial like making them laugh at the wrong moment.
paul