3 Key Facts and a Question - Offseason

By Ben Peterson Consider three facts and a question that can make a difference in your life and wrestling career. The off season is a great time to get started on reaching our next goals and being prepared for the next season. Make a definite evaluation of the past season and then determine solid goals for the next one. The sooner goals and plans are made to continue training the longer the time you will have to work toward making a difference for your team next season. Think of the following key thoughts as you peruse your goals and progress through the off season even while participating in other sports and activities. 1. Steady, consistent, traditional tactics win matches and win in life. Things like strength, condition, and solid techniques are invaluable to a wrestler of every level. With all the weight rooms available surely you can set up a consistent lifting routine. And when you can't get to the weight room push-ups, pull-up, sit-ups, and bungee cords are always available and can help significantly. Schedule to work on strength three times per week. There is always space to run. The biggest hurdle is to get started. My recommendation to every person over 12 years old is to run one mile and five sprints three times per week. That steady pattern has helped many a young person grow into a confident, conditioned adult. Use wrestling camps and clinics to build solid techniques and positioning. Be sure not to just look for and be impressed with the "clinic moves." A basic task for many Americans from the beginning of our nation is consistent reading of the Scriptures. This will sharpen our minds, will, honesty and character. You will never go wrong spending regular time reading the Bible. And if you want a Wrestlers New Testament just let me know. I would love to give you one. 2. Life and wrestling need the ability to adjust, recover, and attack with variety and explosion. When you build the ability to stay in position and keep fighting to score, you also need to develop the ability to adjust, slowly at first, and then quicker. Steady condition to escape an opponent’s grip is a must. Then learn to move faster and faster for longer periods of time. You will begin to work series of moves and wrestling will become a lot of fun. Adding explosiveness (this is why you finish runs with sprints) gives you an ability to “punch” a technique instead of just moving through it. Be careful - be sure you know the position well before you add explosiveness or you may be going hard in the wrong direction. Steady, strong positioning with a punch can take weeks and months, and yes years, to develop fully. 3. Do not think you can get away with doing wrong. Remember, you started wrestling as an ordinary person and winning a few matches did not change that. We are not exempt from the consequences of bad decisions. We are not better than others because we are wrestlers or because we or our team has won. Work to avoid a big ego, arrogance, and exclusiveness. Wrestling, and a wrestling team, is a unique experience, but we all still live on the same earth. All of us are ordinary people working to do exceptional things. So remember, we are still ordinary people when we advance toward or reach our goals. Winning does not make us anything more than ordinary people who must continue to work hard, do right, and use the opportunities given to us. Question: In what areas of life must I succeed at all cost? Be careful of putting sports success at the top of your list of answers. My personal MUST list is as follows: My marriage to my wife, Jan. 36 years with her is more valuable to me than any Olympic awards.  Trust Jesus Christ alone for salvation for He gave His life to give me His righteousness. Honesty! It is hard to live without it. Be a loving example to my children and grandchildren. Wrestling is an important and worthwhile pursuit to invest in. But there are more important things in life. We learn and practice discipline, concentration, and determination in our wrestling and must learn to do the same in the really important matters. QUESTION OF THE DAY: In what areas of life are you determined to succeed at all costs? Today Ben & John run Camp of Champs Wrestling Camps where they run camps and weekend retreats, and are frequent guest speakers for numerous special events. Find out more, including how to order the book Road to Gold, the incredible journey of Ben and John Peterson to Olympic Gold at www.campofchamps.org