2025 Training Log Part 15

On the stereo today- Temple of the Dog.

Last week I had to have a small medical procedure. So here’s my training log.

Monday

I did nothing.

Tuesday

I did nothing.

Wednesday

I did nothing.

Thursday

I did nothing.

Friday

I did nothing.

Saturday

I did nothing.

Training Thoughts of the Week

I thought about nothing.

Non-Training Thoughts of the Week

I got to the end of the week and was essentially like a different person. I had no energy, no oomph. They say things like “You need to rest”. No, I don’t! I need to train! Resting is rusting. By Saturday evening, I was in foul form. I worked the mats at the Dublin International Open and watched about 500 matches, which only made it worse! I was jealous! “Look at those assholes!”, I thought, “Competing and enjoying themselves! How dare they mock me like this!”

I’ve had discussions with people in my job about compulsions. Do we train because we love it or because we are compelled to in some way? I’ve definitely seen training- cycling, running, gym, Jiu Jitsu- as an unhealthy compulsion. I’ve seen guys running when they have the flu. I’ve seen lads and girls having to go to A&E from exhaustion. Me, I kept training with a staph infection that developed into cellulitis when I was an MMA fighter. It was only when they were cutting my leg open to relieve pressure, and telling me they might have to cut away muscle that I realised how stupid I had been.

Now when I hear people say “Jiu Jitsu is my LIFE!”, I say no, stop. Jiu Jitsu should help your life, not be your life. It should give you the discipline to study, work, or create. It should relieve your stress to make you more capable. It should create pressure situations to help you be more resilient in work or school. It should make you a calmer, better person.

Do I have a compulsion? I’ve given that a lot of thought, and when I’ve had an enforced absence from the mats or even the weight room, I do feel more edgy, less patient, I’m quicker to say something sharp. I think I’m fundamentally less “happy”, whatever that means. But I don’t think that means I’ve a compulsion to train, the “dopamine addiction” that people speak about. I think it’s just that I miss my release. I miss the contest. I miss the craic. I miss the positional fights and the little battles for dominance that training does.

Jiu Jitsu has made me a better person, and continues to do so. I’m not alone.

See you on the mat!

Barry