I always check up on my hypnotherapy clients, and often get testimonials sent through. This one arrived this morning, and I thought it was really nice! It’s a nice perspective on how I like to work.
"I have been to a few therapists previously for a variety of issues and their approach was always to keep either me or my issues at arms length as if they were scratching the surface and providing me with a temporary fix to long term issues and they did have varying degrees of temporary success.
Gary's approach is totally different; it’s a lot more interactive. He encourages you to talk about your challenges and asks subtle but targeted questions enabling you to come up with the answer you didn’t even know you had. As opposed to being prescriptive and standoffish his approach is a lot more collaborative. The buzz word "empower" is very often over used but Gary empowered me to come to the right decisions and it has been a permanent fix.
I am aware my challenges will always be there in one form or another and Gary has given me the tools and empowered me with these skills to deal with these issues and if they do re-appear I am equipped to deal with them so they no longer impact my life."
I’ve been a bit quiet on the blog front, although this will be changing soon! My life has got very busy and there’s lots of exciting news coming, so that means lots of informative blog posts on their way!
Thursday, 21 October 2010
Tuesday, 14 September 2010
Motivation and Encouragement
A friend of mine just emailed me to say she was starting to do ‘BodyPump’ three times a week starting today, and asked if I had any advice or could give any encouragement. So I gave some quick advice, and think its relevant to most people starting to train, as well as those who already do.
Here it is:
“Find somewhere quiet, close your eyes, and see yourself how you will be in 6 months time if you stick on the training plan...notice every detail about yourself, your posture, your health, your skin, your expression, your clothes, your physique...everything...and notice the expression on your face...really make it REAL…add as much detail as possible…
And when you have made that image as real as you can, in as much detail as possible, then step 'inside' your body...see through your own eyes, hear with your own ears, and feel what it will feel like to have this body in 6 months time...really experience this body...notice what it would be like...and notice how good it feels...every part of it…and remember this feeling...
And then you know what you are working towards...what will be if you keep on track...and let that be your motivation to keep going consistently...and the harder and cleverer you work...the more you follow the instructions of your trainer...the more commitment you show...the quicker it will be...
What do you think of that?
Oh, here's another tip - during training, when working on an exercise, don't think of 'how many' or 'how long', just think 'technique' and work on each and every technique getting it perfect - your trainer will take charge of how you are training...
So get out there and enjoy it!!! And keep me posted with progress!!”
Here it is:
“Find somewhere quiet, close your eyes, and see yourself how you will be in 6 months time if you stick on the training plan...notice every detail about yourself, your posture, your health, your skin, your expression, your clothes, your physique...everything...and notice the expression on your face...really make it REAL…add as much detail as possible…
And when you have made that image as real as you can, in as much detail as possible, then step 'inside' your body...see through your own eyes, hear with your own ears, and feel what it will feel like to have this body in 6 months time...really experience this body...notice what it would be like...and notice how good it feels...every part of it…and remember this feeling...
And then you know what you are working towards...what will be if you keep on track...and let that be your motivation to keep going consistently...and the harder and cleverer you work...the more you follow the instructions of your trainer...the more commitment you show...the quicker it will be...
What do you think of that?
Oh, here's another tip - during training, when working on an exercise, don't think of 'how many' or 'how long', just think 'technique' and work on each and every technique getting it perfect - your trainer will take charge of how you are training...
So get out there and enjoy it!!! And keep me posted with progress!!”
Tuesday, 31 August 2010
Don’t Dream – Act!
Whether I am working in Hypnotherapy, Personal Training, Business Consultancy, and even when giving Seminars, I find a common theme keeps happening:
People focus on what they want, and not on the how and what they need to do in order to get what they want. And sometimes they don’t even get as far as knowing what they want – they remain stuck in what they don’t want.
For example, think about “I want a million pounds.” That’s a great want, a desirable want. And it is achievable, and many people dream it. And yet why do so many people not achieve it?
In my experience people concentrate too much on what they want and not on the important parts – the ‘how’ and the ‘what’ that helps them actually achieve that want. Miss this out and you can want all you like, you’ll probably never achieve it. You’ll remain a dreamer.
So what do you actually want? And with that want, have you even worked out on the how and what you need to do in order to actually achieve it?
In Hypnotherapy clients come to me wanting the end to their depression, anxieties, phobias, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, performance issues amongst so much more – and the majority of the time they are focusing on what they don’t want. Some focus on what they do want. But very few actually focus on the all important journey to get to where they want.
Another example is within fighting. An example I often demonstrate during my fight seminars is how people tend to concentrate on what they don’t want rather than on what they need to do. For example, an ankle lock could be applied, and the fighter struggles like mad to escape, concentrating on the ‘want’ to escape. Yet their focus would be better directed by concentrating on what they need to do in order to actually escape. Its about focusing on what you need to do in order to achieve the want.
This is where I give assistance with coaching as part of my Hypnotherapy service. We work out where people are now, and where they want to be. The points ‘A’ and ‘B’. We work out the further direction for when they have achieved point B. Now we have the journey direction we work on the how and what they need to do to achieve point B and beyond. We remove limitations and add resources so that the client has a clear journey ahead of them. We add emotion to fuel the motivation. We look at the processes to make sure that they are congruent with whom that person is and to mitigate any adverse reactions in their wider ecology – how they live their life and the interactions within.
My good friend and mentor Tom Mullins was told me that you ‘vote with your feet’. Unless you take that first step, you’ll never achieve. So are you taking that first step, and gaining momentum, focusing on the ‘how’ and the ‘what’ that will achieve what you want?
People focus on what they want, and not on the how and what they need to do in order to get what they want. And sometimes they don’t even get as far as knowing what they want – they remain stuck in what they don’t want.
For example, think about “I want a million pounds.” That’s a great want, a desirable want. And it is achievable, and many people dream it. And yet why do so many people not achieve it?
In my experience people concentrate too much on what they want and not on the important parts – the ‘how’ and the ‘what’ that helps them actually achieve that want. Miss this out and you can want all you like, you’ll probably never achieve it. You’ll remain a dreamer.
So what do you actually want? And with that want, have you even worked out on the how and what you need to do in order to actually achieve it?
In Hypnotherapy clients come to me wanting the end to their depression, anxieties, phobias, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, performance issues amongst so much more – and the majority of the time they are focusing on what they don’t want. Some focus on what they do want. But very few actually focus on the all important journey to get to where they want.
Another example is within fighting. An example I often demonstrate during my fight seminars is how people tend to concentrate on what they don’t want rather than on what they need to do. For example, an ankle lock could be applied, and the fighter struggles like mad to escape, concentrating on the ‘want’ to escape. Yet their focus would be better directed by concentrating on what they need to do in order to actually escape. Its about focusing on what you need to do in order to achieve the want.
This is where I give assistance with coaching as part of my Hypnotherapy service. We work out where people are now, and where they want to be. The points ‘A’ and ‘B’. We work out the further direction for when they have achieved point B. Now we have the journey direction we work on the how and what they need to do to achieve point B and beyond. We remove limitations and add resources so that the client has a clear journey ahead of them. We add emotion to fuel the motivation. We look at the processes to make sure that they are congruent with whom that person is and to mitigate any adverse reactions in their wider ecology – how they live their life and the interactions within.
My good friend and mentor Tom Mullins was told me that you ‘vote with your feet’. Unless you take that first step, you’ll never achieve. So are you taking that first step, and gaining momentum, focusing on the ‘how’ and the ‘what’ that will achieve what you want?
Thursday, 26 August 2010
Hypnotic Focus
I’m currently working with a journalist, Mark Carling, on his latest epic journey – from being unfit and a non-fighter to taking his first professional MMA (cage fighting) bout, all within 12 weeks. A television programme ‘Unfit2Fight’ is being made documenting him every step of the way.
I’ve been fortunate enough to have been invited on the ride, and I am, amongst other things, helping him through my Sports Hypnosis. Through hypnosis I am helping Mark become the very best fighter he can be, providing a support structure to the physical and technical training, helping him train better, removing limitations, to improve faster, and focus on the tasks at hand. And the work is starting to pay off big time.
A great example of the effects of our working together happened on Tuesday during one of Mark’s training sessions. We’d done various bits of filming Mark training and then it was time for him to do a killer physical conditioning circuit at the end. I had the pleasure of watching this whilst sitting on a boxing ring apron with his personal trainer, and we were chatting about the effects the hypnosis was having on his preparation.
Halfway through the circuit Mark was doing an abdominal exercise and was pushing himself every step of the way. His face was screwed up in pain, he was ‘forcing’ himself through the pain barrier and I could feel the burning his abs were going through!
“Watch Mark”, I said, before issuing one clear voice command – “technique”. Mark’s face instantly softened, the pain seemed to disappear straight away, his technique got better, smoother, more effortless, better posture – it was as though he had a new lease of life, a massive change in his physiology. His whole focus changed. And he maintained that focus. His Personal Trainer remarked that he was amazed at the instant transformation.
And all this came from just one word.
Before the session I had anchored the word “technique” during hypnosis. The moment Mark now hears this ‘trigger’ word from his coach he enters the required state of mind that allows him to focus completely on the perfect execution of the technique. It is not about focusing on what he wants, but instead on what he needs to focus on to fulfil that want.
It was a perfect demonstration of the effects of a tiny part of my work with Mark via hypnosis. It was a clear and precise influence with tangible effects for all to see.
Next time we just need the cameras rolling while we do it!
I’ve been fortunate enough to have been invited on the ride, and I am, amongst other things, helping him through my Sports Hypnosis. Through hypnosis I am helping Mark become the very best fighter he can be, providing a support structure to the physical and technical training, helping him train better, removing limitations, to improve faster, and focus on the tasks at hand. And the work is starting to pay off big time.
A great example of the effects of our working together happened on Tuesday during one of Mark’s training sessions. We’d done various bits of filming Mark training and then it was time for him to do a killer physical conditioning circuit at the end. I had the pleasure of watching this whilst sitting on a boxing ring apron with his personal trainer, and we were chatting about the effects the hypnosis was having on his preparation.
Halfway through the circuit Mark was doing an abdominal exercise and was pushing himself every step of the way. His face was screwed up in pain, he was ‘forcing’ himself through the pain barrier and I could feel the burning his abs were going through!
“Watch Mark”, I said, before issuing one clear voice command – “technique”. Mark’s face instantly softened, the pain seemed to disappear straight away, his technique got better, smoother, more effortless, better posture – it was as though he had a new lease of life, a massive change in his physiology. His whole focus changed. And he maintained that focus. His Personal Trainer remarked that he was amazed at the instant transformation.
And all this came from just one word.
Before the session I had anchored the word “technique” during hypnosis. The moment Mark now hears this ‘trigger’ word from his coach he enters the required state of mind that allows him to focus completely on the perfect execution of the technique. It is not about focusing on what he wants, but instead on what he needs to focus on to fulfil that want.
It was a perfect demonstration of the effects of a tiny part of my work with Mark via hypnosis. It was a clear and precise influence with tangible effects for all to see.
Next time we just need the cameras rolling while we do it!
Tuesday, 10 August 2010
Value The Words You Use
The words we use, the way we say them, the syntax of how they are put together, and the representations of the metaphors and symbols we use within, all are representative of the thoughts in our heads. So if you want to get a better understanding of how someone is thinking then listen carefully to the language they use.
As my study moves deeper into cognitive linguistics the more I understand about language and communication, and exactly what is being communicated to me. Because when you look a little closer people tend to tell you far more than they may be aware of.
I will often take time to study a piece of communication to see exactly what message is being communicated. Here’s an example. Have a read of this extract which comes from a report issued to me by a Local Authority Planning Department, in respect to a proposed development for a small block of flats:
“The block plan does not show the proposed development in relation to properties on **** Avenue. However it appears that the proposed development will result in an overbearing impact to the occupiers of these dwellings.”
First read, and the meaning probably is quite straight forward.
Now read it again and look for a deeper meaning – what can you gleam from the words used, the order, the syntax. Because when I read it, it suggests to me that this is nothing but ‘fluff’ or ‘filler’, and that the person writing the report has not carried out her job properly.
Let’s break down the statement.
The first sentence sets the scene – it provides the information for the statement that follows. The second sentence provides the opinion of this person following consideration of the first sentence. The word ‘however’ links yet at the same time dismisses the first sentence, leading to the conclusions of the second.
If you look at the words used, in the first sentence, ‘does not show’ means that information is not there. Yet, then ‘it appears’. So the author has hallucinated something which is not there, and then goes on to state an opinion based on this hallucination. Without the required information how can they offer an opinion?
So I would question whether this person is actually doing their job, as it is clear to me that they are forming opinions without the true facts to support them. Or they are just providing 'fluff' and 'filler' to a report. And as this statement has a massive financial and business impact (via any planning decision on the proposed development) I would question whether this is acceptable.
I wonder if the author of the extract would have valued the words they used a little more if they had read this blog post first. Do you value the words that you use?
As my study moves deeper into cognitive linguistics the more I understand about language and communication, and exactly what is being communicated to me. Because when you look a little closer people tend to tell you far more than they may be aware of.
I will often take time to study a piece of communication to see exactly what message is being communicated. Here’s an example. Have a read of this extract which comes from a report issued to me by a Local Authority Planning Department, in respect to a proposed development for a small block of flats:
“The block plan does not show the proposed development in relation to properties on **** Avenue. However it appears that the proposed development will result in an overbearing impact to the occupiers of these dwellings.”
First read, and the meaning probably is quite straight forward.
Now read it again and look for a deeper meaning – what can you gleam from the words used, the order, the syntax. Because when I read it, it suggests to me that this is nothing but ‘fluff’ or ‘filler’, and that the person writing the report has not carried out her job properly.
Let’s break down the statement.
The first sentence sets the scene – it provides the information for the statement that follows. The second sentence provides the opinion of this person following consideration of the first sentence. The word ‘however’ links yet at the same time dismisses the first sentence, leading to the conclusions of the second.
If you look at the words used, in the first sentence, ‘does not show’ means that information is not there. Yet, then ‘it appears’. So the author has hallucinated something which is not there, and then goes on to state an opinion based on this hallucination. Without the required information how can they offer an opinion?
So I would question whether this person is actually doing their job, as it is clear to me that they are forming opinions without the true facts to support them. Or they are just providing 'fluff' and 'filler' to a report. And as this statement has a massive financial and business impact (via any planning decision on the proposed development) I would question whether this is acceptable.
I wonder if the author of the extract would have valued the words they used a little more if they had read this blog post first. Do you value the words that you use?
Tuesday, 3 August 2010
The Perfect Strike
Poor Rob, I didn’t mean for him to collapse on the floor. My knee (during sparring) came effortlessly into his abdomen forcing all the air out of his lungs giving him no option – his legs buckled and he dropped to the floor. As I remember him gasping for air down there, I also remember how easily and effectively the strike was made. And for that, I guess I can thank my studies of NLP.
Now, whereas I am certified to Master NLP Practitioner level, I would never call myself an ‘NLPer’, as I am far more than that. There are also some misguided views on what NLP is and isn’t by some of the public and also scarily by some NLP Practitioners! So sometimes it's best not to label yourself with what a few people may perceive as a limitation. But here I feel it is definitely relevant to give a quick explanation of what it is.
NLP stands for Neuro-Linguistic Programming, a field of work started by two academics who ‘modelled’ several of the top therapists of the time. The idea is that if they worked out how they used their bodies, their language, and how they think - then they could produce a ‘model’ of that person’s performance. And once you have a model, other people could follow that model to get similar responses.
On a really basic level this is exactly how we learn as a child – we observe, we replicate, we learn.
The modelling of these therapists also left behind a trail of highly effective techniques and patterns, originally basically ‘swiped’ from top fields of psychology, psychiatry, linguistics and physiology. These techniques are utilised by hypnotherapists such as me, life coaches, business and management consultants, politicians, marketers, advertisers, and sports persons – every walk of life.
Yet if you go back to base principles NLP is nothing more than a system of modelling.
And that is how I achieved this knee strike.
During my fight training I like to learn and develop, whilst reinforcing what I know, expanding knowledge, and aiming to leave a training session better than when I started. So when I spar people, and find they have an effective technique or application, I like to learn how they do it.
One of my training partners, Jesse, has a lovely technique he often uses during sparring. He has a ‘walk through knee’ which he uses to great effect. It is a simple technique – you just step forward and lift your knee into your opponent – yet he seems to make this more effective than most. So the last few weeks I’ve set out to model how he does this, so I can gain some of his effectiveness.
The first week I sparred him normally, and started to notice what positions and movements I made that allowed Jesse to use this knee. Every time he used this technique I ran the movie of this event back in my head, working out exactly what position I was in when he did it. How was I positioning myself for the knee?
In following weeks I developed this knowledge, using my sensory acuity to notice his position immediately prior to throwing the technique, every part of his posture, noting where his attention was – I now had the ‘trigger’ positions set in my head that allowed him to throw it.
Then I worked on noting the individual movements of the knee – everything from breathing to posture, to all the little micro-movements, the tension and relaxation, the acceleration, the focus and attention – all the way from before the technique to after the technique.
Again, I stored it as a movie, complete with added sounds and feelings, making it a sensory ‘recording’ of exactly how Jesse went about throwing the knee. I ran this many times in my head, using self-hypnosis and visualising the recording time and time again. I now had the base information from which to work.
And then I started to ‘mirror’ his movements, working on everything from posture down to the smallest micro-movement I could detect. In doing this I found a key element was the positioning of the feet – the angle, the weight distribution, and the contact points with the canvas. Following this mirroring I started to copy his exact movements, using my mind to fill in any gaps, or to make any adjustments for the fact that our bodies are physiologically different.
This last step was actually quite easy – I had practised already with a technique known as ‘deep trance identification’, or DTI. It sounds fancy, but it’s quite simple. I run the recording time and time again in my head of Jesse throwing the knee. And then I allow myself to become Jesse, kind of ‘possessing his body’ in the recording, seeing through his own eyes, hearing what he would hear, and feeling what he would feel. Think of it like Casper the Friendly Ghost going into someone else’s body. And then, experiencing this knee strike completely from Jesse’s perspective, I allowed Jesse to ‘morph’ into me, so I was running the recording with me totally experiencing the perfect knee strikes completely from my perspective, and totally immersed in the complete experience.
One of the best bits of our neurology is that our minds cannot determine between vividly imagined and reality – both are treated the same. And if you add in the kinaesthetic element, or actually throwing the knee as you are running the recording, you really strengthen the neurology – you are totally throwing the knee exactly how you want to.
So last Friday at sparring I tested my work. I did a round with Jesse, and did a last bit of fine tuning as I observed (and then felt!) a perfect knee strike from him. It was time to put my work into practice.
And Rob was my ‘victim’. I started the round as usual, got myself prepared mentally, and then allowed myself to become this recording I had worked on. The moment Rob fell into the perfect position according to my recording I instantly stepped forward and executed the perfect knee strike. It was so effortless, so easy, so perfect it kind of went in a whole lot further than I had intended. I had mixed emotions as I looked at Rob gasping for air like a fish out of water on the floor. One part of me was feeling bad and thinking ‘oh sh*t!’ for hurting a training partner even though I was never intending to – the other part of me was thinking ‘cool’ for how effective I had been in developing this knee!
The above is the bare bones of the process I used, there is far more detail that can be added, as I do when I’m working with my sports clients. Yet at the same time every reader who plays sport can use exactly the techniques listed above to help them improve any technical element of the game.
Now I have got the perfect ‘walk through knee’ I wonder what, and who, I will start to work on next…
Now, whereas I am certified to Master NLP Practitioner level, I would never call myself an ‘NLPer’, as I am far more than that. There are also some misguided views on what NLP is and isn’t by some of the public and also scarily by some NLP Practitioners! So sometimes it's best not to label yourself with what a few people may perceive as a limitation. But here I feel it is definitely relevant to give a quick explanation of what it is.
NLP stands for Neuro-Linguistic Programming, a field of work started by two academics who ‘modelled’ several of the top therapists of the time. The idea is that if they worked out how they used their bodies, their language, and how they think - then they could produce a ‘model’ of that person’s performance. And once you have a model, other people could follow that model to get similar responses.
On a really basic level this is exactly how we learn as a child – we observe, we replicate, we learn.
The modelling of these therapists also left behind a trail of highly effective techniques and patterns, originally basically ‘swiped’ from top fields of psychology, psychiatry, linguistics and physiology. These techniques are utilised by hypnotherapists such as me, life coaches, business and management consultants, politicians, marketers, advertisers, and sports persons – every walk of life.
Yet if you go back to base principles NLP is nothing more than a system of modelling.
And that is how I achieved this knee strike.
During my fight training I like to learn and develop, whilst reinforcing what I know, expanding knowledge, and aiming to leave a training session better than when I started. So when I spar people, and find they have an effective technique or application, I like to learn how they do it.
One of my training partners, Jesse, has a lovely technique he often uses during sparring. He has a ‘walk through knee’ which he uses to great effect. It is a simple technique – you just step forward and lift your knee into your opponent – yet he seems to make this more effective than most. So the last few weeks I’ve set out to model how he does this, so I can gain some of his effectiveness.
The first week I sparred him normally, and started to notice what positions and movements I made that allowed Jesse to use this knee. Every time he used this technique I ran the movie of this event back in my head, working out exactly what position I was in when he did it. How was I positioning myself for the knee?
In following weeks I developed this knowledge, using my sensory acuity to notice his position immediately prior to throwing the technique, every part of his posture, noting where his attention was – I now had the ‘trigger’ positions set in my head that allowed him to throw it.
Then I worked on noting the individual movements of the knee – everything from breathing to posture, to all the little micro-movements, the tension and relaxation, the acceleration, the focus and attention – all the way from before the technique to after the technique.
Again, I stored it as a movie, complete with added sounds and feelings, making it a sensory ‘recording’ of exactly how Jesse went about throwing the knee. I ran this many times in my head, using self-hypnosis and visualising the recording time and time again. I now had the base information from which to work.
And then I started to ‘mirror’ his movements, working on everything from posture down to the smallest micro-movement I could detect. In doing this I found a key element was the positioning of the feet – the angle, the weight distribution, and the contact points with the canvas. Following this mirroring I started to copy his exact movements, using my mind to fill in any gaps, or to make any adjustments for the fact that our bodies are physiologically different.
This last step was actually quite easy – I had practised already with a technique known as ‘deep trance identification’, or DTI. It sounds fancy, but it’s quite simple. I run the recording time and time again in my head of Jesse throwing the knee. And then I allow myself to become Jesse, kind of ‘possessing his body’ in the recording, seeing through his own eyes, hearing what he would hear, and feeling what he would feel. Think of it like Casper the Friendly Ghost going into someone else’s body. And then, experiencing this knee strike completely from Jesse’s perspective, I allowed Jesse to ‘morph’ into me, so I was running the recording with me totally experiencing the perfect knee strikes completely from my perspective, and totally immersed in the complete experience.
One of the best bits of our neurology is that our minds cannot determine between vividly imagined and reality – both are treated the same. And if you add in the kinaesthetic element, or actually throwing the knee as you are running the recording, you really strengthen the neurology – you are totally throwing the knee exactly how you want to.
So last Friday at sparring I tested my work. I did a round with Jesse, and did a last bit of fine tuning as I observed (and then felt!) a perfect knee strike from him. It was time to put my work into practice.
And Rob was my ‘victim’. I started the round as usual, got myself prepared mentally, and then allowed myself to become this recording I had worked on. The moment Rob fell into the perfect position according to my recording I instantly stepped forward and executed the perfect knee strike. It was so effortless, so easy, so perfect it kind of went in a whole lot further than I had intended. I had mixed emotions as I looked at Rob gasping for air like a fish out of water on the floor. One part of me was feeling bad and thinking ‘oh sh*t!’ for hurting a training partner even though I was never intending to – the other part of me was thinking ‘cool’ for how effective I had been in developing this knee!
The above is the bare bones of the process I used, there is far more detail that can be added, as I do when I’m working with my sports clients. Yet at the same time every reader who plays sport can use exactly the techniques listed above to help them improve any technical element of the game.
Now I have got the perfect ‘walk through knee’ I wonder what, and who, I will start to work on next…
Tuesday, 27 July 2010
How Do You Knock Someone Out?
So how do you knock someone out? This is a very misunderstood subject especially in the fight world. If you ask a number of fighters how you knock someone out you will get a bevy of answers ranging from speed, brute strength, accuracy, timing, explosiveness, kinetic linking, penetration and follow through – and the list goes on.
And yet I’ve dropped someone to their knees with a couple of taps on their head. This doesn’t seem to fit in with the above list, doesn’t it?
In order to understand how to knock someone out I believe you must understand the knockout process – what is going on inside that person. Only then can you apply yourself effectively and achieve that knockout you desire.
There are two ways of knocking someone out – concussion, or by inducing the General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS, commonly and in my opinion incorrectly termed the fight or flight response.)
For concussion you need to literally rattle the brain around inside the skull, causing damage to the cell structure, resulting in shut down to protect itself. This is trauma within a fight at its most brutal. To effect this trauma on the brain you need to create movement in the head, allowing the brain therefore to crash and rub against the skull and the deviations in the internal surface of the brain, damaging cells, breaking neurology, creating bruising – not very nice!
This movement can be achieved two ways. The first would be sheer force of violent impact, displacing shocking and moving the head through pure force of impact. Here power development and the application of this behind a shot is paramount.
The next way would be through identifying the mechanical weaknesses in your opponent, in particular how the head sits on the neck. A hook to the side of the point of the chin could create a much greater twisting movement in an opponent’s head. Compare this to just hitting the side of the opponent’s head with a hook where his strong neck may absorb and prevent the required violent movement.
Concussive blows are accumulative – the more times you hit someone with power and create the violent movement in the head the more damage and the closer to a concussive knockout. Of course, this is the one element of our fight sports that no fighter should forget. If any of us get hit concussively in training or competition we must monitor ourselves and take precautions, including no alcohol or returning to impact too soon. If in doubt, any doubt, seek appropriate medical attention. Actually, if you take a concussive blow seek appropriate medical attention anyway – let’s play safe hey?
The next way to effect a knock out is by inducing the GAS. This response prepares for the freeze-flight-fight (fear-faint) response, which happens in that order. When we suffer a shock we freeze. If this doesn’t release the stress we know this response is not working, and we quickly move to flight directly away from the source of the stress. Again, if this doesn’t remove the stress we increase our response yet again, now to the fight response. If this doesn’t resolve the stress then we enter a state of fear, similar but different to the freeze. And when we come to the last of the body’s defences there’s nothing left to do but to shut down everything apart from our life support systems – we faint.
And it is possibly for the shock to be so great that we can almost instantaneously shoot through the responses to the faint response. This is what happens with a ‘flash knockdown’.
To induce the flash knockdown stress has to be induced, and rapidly increased. This is why the ‘shot we didn’t see’ can create the stress and therefore the reaction.
Stress is much easier to induce in a novice or intermediate fighter than at the higher echelons of our sports. With the novice and intermediate fighters in training I often set up what I term the ‘limbic loop’ (the limbic system creates the GAS), inducing stress gradually, hitting once to increase stress and the freeze, then again to get them to move away with flight, once more for fight and reading their physiology to instantly hit them as they respond again inducing fear, then tapping them on their head to induce the knockdown, usually a drop to the knee.
Sometimes, as its training, the stress doesn’t quite reach the fear as I keep the contact light, instead sometimes trapping my partners in a never ending limbic loop of rotation through freeze-flight-fight.
So that’s how you induce a knockout. Either by concussion or by inducing the GAS. Hopefully now you’ll be better placed to get the knockouts you desire – and I’ll have to watch out for you in sparring and competition! I'll better blog on evasion and defence pretty soon...
And yet I’ve dropped someone to their knees with a couple of taps on their head. This doesn’t seem to fit in with the above list, doesn’t it?
In order to understand how to knock someone out I believe you must understand the knockout process – what is going on inside that person. Only then can you apply yourself effectively and achieve that knockout you desire.
There are two ways of knocking someone out – concussion, or by inducing the General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS, commonly and in my opinion incorrectly termed the fight or flight response.)
For concussion you need to literally rattle the brain around inside the skull, causing damage to the cell structure, resulting in shut down to protect itself. This is trauma within a fight at its most brutal. To effect this trauma on the brain you need to create movement in the head, allowing the brain therefore to crash and rub against the skull and the deviations in the internal surface of the brain, damaging cells, breaking neurology, creating bruising – not very nice!
This movement can be achieved two ways. The first would be sheer force of violent impact, displacing shocking and moving the head through pure force of impact. Here power development and the application of this behind a shot is paramount.
The next way would be through identifying the mechanical weaknesses in your opponent, in particular how the head sits on the neck. A hook to the side of the point of the chin could create a much greater twisting movement in an opponent’s head. Compare this to just hitting the side of the opponent’s head with a hook where his strong neck may absorb and prevent the required violent movement.
Concussive blows are accumulative – the more times you hit someone with power and create the violent movement in the head the more damage and the closer to a concussive knockout. Of course, this is the one element of our fight sports that no fighter should forget. If any of us get hit concussively in training or competition we must monitor ourselves and take precautions, including no alcohol or returning to impact too soon. If in doubt, any doubt, seek appropriate medical attention. Actually, if you take a concussive blow seek appropriate medical attention anyway – let’s play safe hey?
The next way to effect a knock out is by inducing the GAS. This response prepares for the freeze-flight-fight (fear-faint) response, which happens in that order. When we suffer a shock we freeze. If this doesn’t release the stress we know this response is not working, and we quickly move to flight directly away from the source of the stress. Again, if this doesn’t remove the stress we increase our response yet again, now to the fight response. If this doesn’t resolve the stress then we enter a state of fear, similar but different to the freeze. And when we come to the last of the body’s defences there’s nothing left to do but to shut down everything apart from our life support systems – we faint.
And it is possibly for the shock to be so great that we can almost instantaneously shoot through the responses to the faint response. This is what happens with a ‘flash knockdown’.
To induce the flash knockdown stress has to be induced, and rapidly increased. This is why the ‘shot we didn’t see’ can create the stress and therefore the reaction.
Stress is much easier to induce in a novice or intermediate fighter than at the higher echelons of our sports. With the novice and intermediate fighters in training I often set up what I term the ‘limbic loop’ (the limbic system creates the GAS), inducing stress gradually, hitting once to increase stress and the freeze, then again to get them to move away with flight, once more for fight and reading their physiology to instantly hit them as they respond again inducing fear, then tapping them on their head to induce the knockdown, usually a drop to the knee.
Sometimes, as its training, the stress doesn’t quite reach the fear as I keep the contact light, instead sometimes trapping my partners in a never ending limbic loop of rotation through freeze-flight-fight.
So that’s how you induce a knockout. Either by concussion or by inducing the GAS. Hopefully now you’ll be better placed to get the knockouts you desire – and I’ll have to watch out for you in sparring and competition! I'll better blog on evasion and defence pretty soon...
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