"Its the guy that's willing to die that's gonna win that inch...life's a game of inches"
~Al Pacino
What a massive kick in the balls I received 12 weeks ago! My life changed again massively, your probably thinking by me saying "kick in the balls" that it was bad. No, not the case, it was awesome! My 2nd daughter was born, Dana. Hence why I haven't blogged for, like, forever (or 12 weeks if your being picky, I like to exaggerate) I'm not gonna pap on about parenthood and being a Dad, that's not what my blog is about. Anyone who has kids knows its AWESOME and if you don't, It's AWESOME, there's the proof I wrote it down. Aside from being awesome its hard work, like anything worth doing.
I thought that i would carry on as usual training, smashing my nutrition getting ready for some more fights and plenty of competing this year. WRONG! Having 2, sapped my energy and time for my selfish stuff like pissing off out to go learn some new chokes, submissions and sparring with the guys. I had less motivation to train, less motivation to prep my food for work. My sleep was very poor, for obvious reasons, thus my stress levels and cortisol levels (that stuff makes you fat) were through the roof. You could say I fell off the wagon, not to the extent where I ate rubbish all the time. I banished those demons long ago, I just wasn't on point. All this coupled with a new role at work was taken its toll on my goal to be awesome.
But of course this was to be temporary, Dana began to settle and sleep so over the past few weeks my mojo has been returning but I have still been searching for some inspiration. "Life's this game of inches.." Al Pacino makes reference to this in Any Given Sunday in his heart pounding speech to his players. Never has truer word been spoken, however you want to interpret it. My time feeling like i'd been kicked in the balls where as my training and personal pursuits were concerned was just a mere inch in the distance that is my life, and I felt like I've fought for that inch. Just like my weight loss was an inch in the distance of my life, and I certainly fought for that inch. Pacino says that these "inches" are all around us. "You gotta be willing to fight and die to win that inch. Because when you add up all those inches that's gonna make the f#*#**** difference between winning and losing, between living and dying" So whatever your doing whatever small struggle or goal your trying to achieve treat it like one of those inches in the distance of your life. Fight for that inch, because if your not fighting to achieve things you are not truly living.
"Focus and fight for that inch."
I had to re assess my goals and chose some new ones for the near future, because my life has changed. I've decided to get back to basics, simply drop some more body fat and build some lean muscle. Holiday in October...beach body. Nothing else. I will return to training BJJ just not yet, that time at night is being dedicated to my family and children at the minute.
I was hit by some inspiration today by a group of people I am training who are embarking on a new chapter in their lives. They are fighting for one of those "inches" right now, they are working towards a goal that I have already achieved, inches that I have already fought for and won. Sometimes people in my position can forget that. I could see their confidence building today as my colleagues and I led them through the task at hand and I personally wanted them to unlock something inside of them, something that may seem small to other people, but from small acorns great oak trees grow and something as simple as harnessing that inner lion and manifesting it into some authority by way of their voice or actions in the face of adversity could save them in a moment of need and help them to develop. To fight for that inch. Yes, they know little and may have sounded like mice in the beginning but after they fought for that inch today they knew more and sounded like lions, now they have to fight for that next inch. For me to be part of that is truly a privilege, they got me going today and showed me that I had to fight for that inch for them and up my own game.
You can find inspiration anywhere, and there are inches to fight for everywhere.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STp1UtMrKR4
I have listened to this clip a million times, and always before a bout or comp :)
Fight for that inch.
