Fight Week

Here I am, only four days away from my debut amateur MMA fight! On January 15^th, at Knockers Bar in Miami, I'll be taking on my first opponent. The holiday season changed up my schedule a little, but I've managed to stay on track and I feel ready to fight. I was given the green light to eat over the holidays, and although I was still training, I've been paying for it now by having to drop a few more pounds than I would have liked. For about two weeks I've been on a diet of limited carbs. I've managed to drop about 9 pounds in that time period, and I did have one or two cheat meals the first week of the diet. My schedule hasn't changed much, so here's a sample of my daily routine:

7 am: Eat a granola bar for breakfast and have a coffee.

7:30 – 9 am: Train on my own at the gym.

9 am – 11 am: Fighter Training Camp every other day, otherwise solo drills.

11: 30 am: Eat turkey with lettuce and tomato on a pita (I changed this up to chicken, ground beef, etc)

2:30 pm: Snack (grapes with honey, an apple, etc)

5:00 pm: Granola Bar if needed, coffee

5:30 -8:00 pm: Strength and Conditioning Class, Grappling, Boxing, or Muay Thai classes

8:30 pm: Protein shake with fruit

In between training I worked, and afterward I usually just passed out. Sundays were my only day off. Although it may seem monotonous, the drills varied day to day and time has managed to fly by. It also helps a great deal to have such a great support system at the gym. A few of the members here are almost as excited for my fight as I am! I even got my first sponsor- a neighborhood cigar shop decided to sponsor Tom and me for this fight. Even though it may seem like such a small thing, it feels incredible to know that someone has enough faith in you to choose you to represent their business.

Tomorrow is the start of my pre-fight recovery. I've been running about two hours total a day to drop weight and have been training hard, but now my body can have a chance to relax. I'll do some shadow boxing and light skill work over the next few days, but nothing intense. At this point, it's all about mental focus and making sure my body is healthy for Wednesday night. I feel great mentally; I'm excited but I feel very calm and focused. I'll do my best to hang onto this feeling and will try not to let the crazy rush of adrenaline take over. I know one thing for sure- I'm going to go into the cage and fight for all those workouts that left me gasping and squirming, for all those times I felt too sore to get out of bed, and for all those hours my trainers and training partners put into preparing me for this moment.

I fight, she falls.