Fighting Fatigued

This picture represents my point of view while sparring my students last night. Never had I been punched so many times in the face by them. Five times I took hits in the face. This is completely unheard of for me. This is the result of fighting fatigued.

Last night, I conducted an impromptu experiment. I completely tired myself out before teaching my class (1.5 hours training with my MMA coach, followed by 30 minutes of sparring with a skilled sparring partner that outweighs me by 40 lbs). I then sparred with each one of my students after their warm-up.

I had very little energy left by the time I started sparring my students. I was amazed to see how much this affected my ability to fight. My hands kept dipping in my guard. My attacks were clumsier. My accuracy and precision were inexistent. As a result, my students kept clocking me. I felt powerless against people I usually out-manoeuvre or at least hold my own against. My students were having a field day with me.

This serves as further reminder of the importance of conditioning. No matter how good your technique is, if you get tired, it all goes to pot.