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The surprising way one kid became ‘undefeatable’ from bottom

A wrestler shared this with me earlier this year….

I used to struggle with the better riders – getting turned my some of them, getting at least ridden by others.  Then, I did something about it and since then I’ve never been turned since.  In fact, I get out every time now.  


What made the biggest difference with this athlete?

Greco Roman Wrestling.

I know what you’re thinking – wha?

How can wrestling Greco possibly help you get so much better from bottom position?

Truth is, when you get into par terre (that’s bottom position in freestyle/greco), most of the time, you go flat to the mat.

How is it possible that flattening out and ‘stalling’ could ever help you in folkstyle wrestling?

Glad you asked (okay – I asked but still – )

In folkstyle wrestling (high school style), the main emphasis is on control.  No points are awarded to you unless you gain control or cause your opponent to lose control.

In freestyle and greco wrestling, the main emphasis is on back exposure…using about any means possible.  You don’t even have to be in control!  All you have to do is find a way to expose the opponent’s back.  Locking hands is legal (and so are many rough techniques – it tain’t for the squeamish).

Back to bottom position.

All the opponent has to do to score in freestyle/greco is tilt you past 180 degrees (as opposed to 90 degrees in folkstyle).  They can lock hands and roll you.  No two-count necessary!

It takes a lot of work to keep the opponent from turning you in freestyle/greco.  You learn to shift your hips quickly, use your body weight, use every muscle in your body and every ounce of weight and energy to fight – immediately – to stop the top wrestler's attacks.

even tougher…

In Greco, all the action is above the waist…including the defender’s action.  You can’t even post your leg to stop from being turned.

In fact, you can’t even hand-fight.

Greco is even harder to defend from par terre because the rules are so restrictive that you have very few options on bottom.

Your control over your body weight and use of leverage is more important than ever – and you must react exactly and precisely in a split second or you will get turned.

Hence – to win, you have to be trained exactly and precisely

learn a system of defense from par terre…and drill it consistently.

The kid referenced above has wrestled Freestyle/Greco from March – July for the past 3 years.  

The results are clear to see – he’s incredibly hard to turn…in fact, he’s nearly undefinable from bottom position.

He’s not alone.

Many wrestlers have done this and as a result of this training regimen…

and the focus on continually drilling core skills

have qualified for freestyle/greco nationals their very first year in my program.

This is your chance to give training a try

Next Tuesday we have special Bonus program called Counter Attacks.  Athletes in Small Group Training get in to it for free as one of the many benefits of training here.  Right now you can join us for $49 and while you’re here, find out if this is something you want to continue with.

Here’s how it works:

You join us for Tuesday’s Counter Attacks session – with no further commitment.  When you go to hold your spot, you will also have the option of joining us for the month, or even the entire season.  If you’re not sure – just do the one session and then decide in the next 48 hours if you want to join us for longer.

No Risk!

If just want to commit for Tuesday for now, then decide later if you want to join us for the month or season, you will be able to apply your $49 to the rest of the training.

Read more about it here

Randy

PS  If you hurry, you can also get in for Sunday (or use Sunday as your trial session and then join us for the month or season,  if you choose to).  Just sign up here and indicate you want to come Sunday instead.

The most exciting attack in wrestling

Yesterday’s message shocked some people because I was so blunt.  One longtime reader even said this:

“You are becoming salty in your old age.”

I take offense to that and here’s why:

I’ve always been salty.

And I’ve always had a great distaste for booooring wrestling.

You should too – it is sooooo…

  •     unnecessary….
  •     and easy to fix…
  •     and not nearly as much fun…

as relentlessly pursuing the opposition, pushing your adversary to his breaking point…

and attacking him mercilessly.

Now THAT’S fun!

A little more than a week from now, I am holding a special training where athletes get to learn the most exciting attack in wrestling.

Look – if you embrace boooring wrestling and athletes crawling around the mat on their hands and knees like babies…then don’t click on this link.

But if you’re like me and want to be entertained…

here’s the ticket.

Success is a Habit

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People was a bestseller nearly 30 years ago and it brings home an extremely important point:

Highly successful people develop a success model made up of habits that allow them to excel.

That model governs their lives.

Successful wrestlers….and coaches…do the same thing.

I want you to enjoy as much success as you possibly can while on the mat.  Its why my system of wrestling…and of training winning wrestlers – was based on my personal success model.

In order to excel at the highest possible level as fast as possible, successful people (wrestlers included) follow this simple formula:

  • determine what’s most important
  • learn how to do what’s most important
  • train, drill, and repeat what’s most important – as often as possible – until it is internalized in the brain and can be performed like 2nd nature.

If you’ve ever been in my room, you already recognize that my system  is built around this success model…and many highly driven athletes train here because they recognize the benefits of knowing exactly what to do..and being trained to do it in the heat of competition.

There are no shortcuts – there’s only one way to accomplish this.
the fat kid in the mirror

My Good friend and karate expert Kelly shared this story with me recently:

You grow up fat, then you train and become enormously fit. Everyone tells you that you look amazing but when you look in the mirror, you still see the fat kid. Until you see the fit kid, you will always fight the same emotions. It is hard to evolve sometimes – but athletes have to if they want to get to the top.

Have you ever advanced farther than you thought possible, only to arrive and get this nagging thought:

I don’t belong here.

I have.  When I was in high school and just emerging as a competitive wrestler, I’d get to the finals of a tournament (surprising many, including my coach)…

and sure enough, those feelings started to creep up and smother me.

That’s the fat kid in the mirror syndrome that Kelly refers to.  No matter the level of success, there’s that nagging feeling again, ready to squeeze every ounce of confidence and self-esteem right out of your body.

Once you learn to shove those thoughts out of your mind and replace them with this: I DO belong AND I’m going to take it to this guy…

you will finally bust through those invisible ceilings and win a whole bunch more (surprising many, but not yourself – because you will expect to win).

Next week at our special advanced training, Winning the position war, you will learn how to win from many different positions…and be trained to do so.

Even better…

It will no longer matter who your opponent is.

You will also learn how to build confidence, look in the mirror and see a champion!

It starts by doing this:

  • learning how to get the most out of practice.
  • simple tricks that speed up your learning of new technique
  • build confidence by pushing past tired
  • train yourself to wrestle with confidence (starting today in the practice room)
  • learn to use quick phrases to get your mind on to winning and off negative thoughts.

Here’s your chance…

Look in the mirror and see the fit kid

Randy

PS  This shuts down Friday…or earlier.  I can’t guarantee it will still be open by then because the room is already mostly full. 

7 deadly sins that will shred your season faster than a rabid weasel in a chicken coop

My wife worked for years at an historic farm and she told me about the time a rabid weasel found its way into the chicken coop.

Loud ruckus and feathers flying everywhere!  The commotion was almost unbearable (imagine how the chickens felt).

This week I'll be discussing 7 deadly sins of wrestling.  Today, we look at one deadly sin that will shred your season faster than that weasel did those poor hapless chickens.

Downed by Funk

To listen to some, wrestling has changed dramatically.  You've gotta be able to funk wrestle in order to win, they say.

They are wrong.  Funk is no more prevalent than it was years ago (and its just as easy to counter).

In fact, one of the nation's best high school wrestling coaches, 13X state champion coach Daryl Weber, laments this attitude…doesn't buy into it…and doesn't even bother much with it (yet still wins his state tournament every year).

Know why?

Because he, like all top wrestling coaches (not just the armchair coaches) knows that matches are won at the highest levels, predominantly, by executing a top level, fundamentally sound system.

However….wrestlers (and parents….and even some coaches) agonize over this.  If you've ever been in a close match against a beatable opponent, and all of a sudden they pull out yee olde funkaroo

well, its a devastating way to lose. 

What's worse, you will hear the screams and cheers of your victorious adversaries' fans ringing in your ears for years to come.

That's why wrestlers want to know how to counter the funk.

Nobody wants to lose that way….nor should they. 

There's no reason for it – Funk is not that hard to counter.

From my 30+ years of training athletes, I've seen tons of funk moves, often hailed as the second coming.

Hence…

I knoweth of what I speaketh.

Its not difficult.  There's one key thing you do…every time – that beats almost every funk move in existence.  And next week, I'll be showing my Small Group athletes the keys to beating funk moves….and silencing the crowd.

Yesterday, small group athletes learned how to beat the top front headlock guys…every time.  Couple main keys to shutting them down in less than 2 seconds, but most of the wrestling world misses it and gets tormented with it as a result.  We'll be speed drilling it again next week.

They also learned the very best method to score with front headlock…much more so than head in the hole.

Tonight, the youth wrestlers learn these valuable lessons that will allow them to dominate their opponent for years to come from this crucial position.

Here's your chance to join us next week

Randy

PS  Tomorrow's message is called 7 deadly sins that will stink up your season faster than a cow turd in the commissary.  To get this message in your inbox, go here.

My frightful nightmare

There I was, in the semifinals, feeling confident…

when all of a sudden, my best friend and teammate told me who my next opponent was…

Jim “Grim Reaper” Leghorn…the most feared leg rider in the entire valley!

About 6 foot tall with a menacing snarl and a bloody fang for a tooth (the only one in his head), he was a gruesome nightmarish ogre of a teenager that struck fear in the hearts of the helpless kids who were unfortunate enough to cross his path!

And here he stood before me, fists clenched, snarling and growling every step of the way!

Right now I was wishing I’d have brought the magic potion, carried my silver stake and eaten my garlic bread!

Alas I was unarmed (and unprepared).  As he approached, I ran…and ran very fast.  Unfortunately he was faster and was catching up to me at an alarming speed.

Just as he reached for me I heard a loud blood-curdling SCREAM!

I quickly recognized it as my own.

Then I woke up in a cold sweat in the fetal position.

That was my nightmare…