Red Hawk Essentials #4
Should Fighters read more books? Early coffee shop days with Suga, PFL, and more
The X-Factor In Fighting
You can have all the talent in the world. But if you’re missing this one thing - you’ll never be the best in the world.
When I trained at Team Quest in Portland, Oregon, I lived with a guy named Robert Follis. If you don’t know who Robert is, He was the head coach of Team Quest and a former coach for Xtreme Couture.
Robert was such a smart guy. He has since passed away, but I’m grateful I got to spend some time with him. He imparted a lot of wisdom onto me that I still carry with me to this day.
Back then, I carried a fuck ton of guilt with me daily. I was raised a Jehovah’s Witness, and had just left the religion. So every day, I was in this constant state of cognitive dissonance. Not knowing if I was doing the right thing. But Robert also grew up a Jehovah’s Witness and he’s the one who helped me clear the fog and get clarity in my life.
He told me to do my own research.
Come to my own conclusions.
But I didn’t go to Team Quest to read books. I just wanted to focus on my fighting skills. Jiu-jitsu. Kickboxing. Wrestling. But Robert told me that’s only 10% of fighting.
As fighters, we spend so much fucking time sharpening these physical skills that we neglect our most important muscle.
Our mind.
I learned from Robert that fighting is 90% your mind. Understanding certain situations, reacting under pressure, and knowing how to react. And reading is a good way to train yourself for those scenarios.
So that’s when I started to pick up books and develop my reading habit.
Early Coffee Shop Days With Suga Sean
When most people look at Suga, they think he’s some wild skinny guy who just knocks people the fuck out. Someone who parties all the time, is high all day, and does whatever the fuck he wants.
What those people don’t know is that Sug is one of the most disciplined people I know. And he’s got a bulletproof mindset.
When I first met Sug, he was just like me when I was at Team Quest.
So when he started living with me, I started showing him all the things I learned from Robert Follis. I got him started on reading regularly, and started showing him books he should read.
So we made regular trips to the coffee shop to get some caffeine and reading in. Suga started reading books on athleticism, sports, and mindset. And that’s when he started to really develop a good mindset at an early age.
Obviously, I’m an advocate for reading for everyone. I definitely think fighters should do it more.
And I get it. A lot of us didn’t like school. Especially when they tried force you to read dumb books that don’t benefit your life at all.
But there’s so many books out there. Thousands of books based on your interests.
And I got this tip from Naval Ravikant, a well-known entrepreneur and investor. Contrary to what we were forced to do in school, you don’t need to read the whole book.
Look at the Table of Contents and choose a chapter you like. Bounce around chapters and highlight shit so you can re-read later on.
But the point is, don’t forget to workout your brain.
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Should PFL Champs Jump Ship To The UFC?
The pay in PFL is interesting.
If you’re able to fight your way into the playoffs, you’re gonna make some good money. From what I’ve heard, this is how the fight purse breaks down:
First round: $25,000 show, $25,000 win
Second round: $25,000 show, $25,000 win
Finals: $50,000 show, $850,000 win
But the guys in PFL aren’t pushovers. There are some tough motherfuckers. If you can fight your way through and win, you’ll make some serious fucking bread.
In some cases, you’d make more than you would in the UFC. Unless you become one of the big stars.
But if you’re at the top of the food chain in PFL, you’re also in a good spot for good exposure. And doors of opportunities will open for you to to make some good bread.
So what do you guys think? Should the PFL champs consider jumping ship to the UFC?
Or should they stay in their own lane and try to become repeat champs like Kayla?
Quick Hits From This Week
Love this because we’ve been talking a lot about discipline the past 2 weeks. And it’s because I want to hammer home how important it is for all the young people out there. If you don’t like where you are in life, do something about it. Bitching isn’t gonna make it better. You need to get better.
Discipline is how you get better and continue to get better.
Red Hawk Recap Ep. 65
Best thing to do before and after a big feast.
It was Thanksgiving week and I hope you enjoyed your time with the people around you and ate a ton of good food. Our nutritionist Dan Gardner popped in to give us tips on what we should do health-wise before a big feast. Firstly, don’t overdo it, but don’t cut back either. Enjoy the meal. The worst fucking feeling is having a bunch of good stuff in front of you and you can’t even touch it.
Pick your battle. If you have a big meal coming up, snack throughout the day or feast at night. If you do both, that’s when you run into trouble.
Weight lift. Ideally, one hour before the big feast. But that’s not always possible so doing any weight lifting is beneficial. That’s because your body goes into a repair mode for 24-36 hours after a lifting session. This means you start to burn calories and your body uses a lot of glucose as energy for repair. You won’t get the same metabolic state by running on the treadmill.
Living with your partner.
I’ve been in my relationship for 13 years, and a lot of people want to know how Mariah and I continue to keep it fresh and not boring. The first tip by Mariah is to create safety and eroticism. Go out on date nights. Dress up nice and see how other people get all horned up and try to hit on your partner. This gives you a reminder that you got a real winner on your hands. And try different shit in the bedroom, that’s a good way to spice things up.
Be grateful for the little things. Thank your partner for all the small shit like doing the dishes. It really builds an attitude and habit of being grateful for each other.
Give each other space and do your own things. I think this is the one of the main reasons why Mariah and I have been so successful with our relationship. We have our own passions. She’s got her horses and barrel racing. I’ve got my students at my academy and the fighters I work with.
Things I’m grateful for.
It’s hard for me to be ungrateful because I’ve been hurt so many fucking times in my life. I’m grateful every day that I can see, hear, taste, smell, and feel. I’m grateful I have all my limbs. I think as long as you have your health, you got a lot to be grateful for.
Being grateful is also helpful when you’re in situations out of your control. For example, one of my happiest places is after a hard training session. The feeling of accomplishment I get after pushing myself past my limits with all my muscle fibers screaming at me to stop. But as guys know, my fucking shoulder is busted up right now. And I haven’t been able to train in a long time. That gives me two options.
I can bitch about it or accept it. Instead, I’ve put my energy into other things like YouTube, my students, businesses, etc. Amor Fati. It’s the concept of accepting what happens to you and loving it. That’s what real fucking stoicism is.
Where I see myself in 10 years.
It’s hard to look that far ahead. The trajectory of your life can change in a year and you won’t see it coming. So here’s what I hope for myself in 10 years. I hope to still be consistent with my good habits. At least I know if I’m disciplined, I won’t end up in a shitty spot.
I believe anyone with discipline will get somewhere in life. No way, they stay a fucking loser the whole time. If you feel like you’re a loser, here’s the hard truth. You need to blame yourself. Once you recognize that, you can figure out how to get better.
TimboSugarShow Ep. 214
Holland vs. Thompson card this weekend.
This is a stacked fight night card. A lot of our buddies are fighting like Jonathan Pearce, Eryck Anders, Scott Holtzman, and Bryan Barbarena. Looking forward to watching Tai in action again. It should be a good show. The main event is a coin toss, but Sug feels like Holland has the edge.
Artem Lobov suing Conor McGregor.
This is a crazy situation considering these two guys were BFFs at one point. From an article I read, apparently it was Artem who brought the whiskey idea to Conor and did the initial work for it. Now he wants 5% of the deal with Proper No. Twelve. Does he deserve it? Let me know down in the comments.
Sterling vs. Cejudo thoughts.
Definitely not the money fight. Sug vs. Aljo is the pay-per-view to make, but I guess UFC brass wants the champ to fight. And it sounds like this is a done deal on social media. I gotta re-watch Henry’s and Aljo’s last fights. It’s hard to say who wins the grappling. Aljo is a big dude for bantamweight. But Henry is also an Olympic gold medalist. Who are you guys picking for this matchup?
Would Sug take a late notice fight? Let’s say either of these guys get injured and they need a replacement. Sug says it depends on how far out. I’d say we need at least 10 weeks for a five rounder. It’s a tough call. But either way, Suga versus either one of these guys will be a massive fight.
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That does it for this week’s Red Hawk Essentials. If you’re enjoying these, leave me a like and comment. If you got a buddy who might enjoy these, send it over.
I appreciate your readership. Enjoy the rest of your week, go fucking get it.
Talk next week.
Tim
Appreciate these, as you say your injury has led to growth in other areas. Problems are opportunities in disguise brother 🤙
Insightful as fuck brotha