Youth and strength beat age and skill, or vice versa [Archive]

SLG

05-09-2016, 08:05 PM

Not sure the best place to post this.

Title should actually have been something like "Skill May Nullify Youth and Strength." Or, "Youth and Strength Equals Greater Skill." Or...

Having recently been getting back into rolling, I came across a good explanation of age/skill/strength/weight from some of the Gracie's. The basic idea is that every 10 years that an opponent is younger than you, is like them being a belt higher in skill than they actually are. Same with every 20 pounds that they are heavier than you. So, a guy who doesn't know what you know, but is 60 pounds heavier and 20 years younger, is at least the equivalent of a black belt. Higher, if he has some skill too.

I mention this because of something I read in another thread. All of us are getting older. None of our eyes, reflexes, strength, recovery time are getting better. As we age, there will be a change in performance. Sometimes you can stave it off with technology. Sometimes with more training. Sometimes with specific rules (for competitions). However, compared to what you could have done, had you been much younger/fitter/tons of training, you will fall short.

The people who actually get better at shooting as they age, compared to where they were when they were younger, weren't as good as they might have been when they were younger.

I mention this, not to be a downer, but to encourage you to look inside and figure out why you shoot. Is it to beat the guys at your local club? For self defense? For fun? To be a national champion?

If the answer is anything but fun and self defense, don't be surprised if you eventually stop training. When people train hard, and don't see great results, people quit. Human nature. Sure, they may redouble their efforts, but at some point, they have disappointed themselves too many times, so they distance themselves from that which disappoints.

Accept that aging is rarely performance enhancing. Find fun in shooting. Defending yourself doesn't take much shooting ability. Don't quit. Enjoy the trip. Help the newer people.

After some of the more serious discussions we've had lately (which are great), I thought this might be in order.

I read JAD's post below. Shooting is not fighting, and the age drop off is not the same. It will be different for everyone, so don't take what i said above to mean everyone over 30, or whatever. It may be more like 60, for all I know. I want to shoot till I'm 95 though, so that is my point of reference.

JAD

05-09-2016, 08:09 PM

I appreciate the line of thought. I am still waiting to get better as I get older.

I am on a spectrum of fun and self defense, or you could say I orient my fun in a general direction that might keep me from getting curb stopped.

I've been shooting for 22 years and I cannot imagine anything other than a Christmas morning feeling every time I step on a range.

voodoo_man

05-09-2016, 08:47 PM

I've never been old, though I am sure I'll get there one day, so I cannot speak with any experience in that realm.

What I can speak of is from a background of training and execution of skill sets after training landmarks.

I can only see myself getting better at a particular skill set and only losing competency if I neglect it. As long as I keep a "standard" in any particular skill set I will maintain competence to the level of that self-imposed standard. This will differ with everyone and it will evolve as you age.

The example I use is that in high school it would be nothing for me to run a low four minute mile, I would do it nearly every weekend in meets, especially in my junior/senior years. As I got older and my goals changed as did my training. I began to accept a five minute mile standard and changed my training accordingly because there were other things that were more important for my time. Then I moved up to a six minute mile, and eventually up to a ten minute mile after I messed up my foot chasing a homicide suspect. Now I run for cardio and as long as I am around the ten minute mile pace I am content as I am no longer actively trying to break myself for a low mile time.

Training tactics, combatives/martial arts, blade work and firearms competency is no different. We all accept a level of competency of skill sets and we do what we must to get to where we want to be. There are two caveats here though, first is that you have a finite amount of time you can spend on any particular skill set until others begin to lose competency from neglect - ie; when's the last time you sprinted 100m and do you think you could do that now? The other is that the older you get the more you have to worry about your physical ability, strength, eye sight, speed, mental function, etc. I have no doubt I'll be a better shooter in ten years than I am now, just as I am a better shooter now than I was ten years ago. If you ask me how good of a shooter I'll be at 60, my response will be "as good as my body allows me to be."

We have to figure out where our point of non-progression is, each of us will differ in this respect. Some guys run marathons at 60, some guys can't walk up a flight of steps. A lot of variables that need to be figured out and shooting is not excluded in this.

Short answer - use the time you have wisely and try to maximize your priorities in skill sets so that you do not waste time training something you do not need. This is also one of the reasons I do not compete, I do not have the time to burn bad reps and my life depends on me burning good reps. When I retire I may compete, but right now it would just be a misuse of my time.

BehindBlueI's

05-09-2016, 10:05 PM

I'm no expert. I'm not an old guy, but I'm at the stage where I can do about anything I used to do once...but I pay for it a lot more. I had to replace my stove today, and since my help flaked I unloaded the new one and loaded and unloaded the old (200 lb one) to take it to the appliance recycle. I used to dead lift 200 lbs as a warm up. Now I wrestle the damn thing in the truck and 20 minutes later I'm having muscle spasms down the left side of my back and my left arm. The same thing will happen in a serious fight. I can exert myself, but I've got to win quick and then be in a position to recover.

That said, I think the advantage old guys have in real life is decision making and experience. If you've been paying attention and survived this long, you see trouble coming earlier, you have more experience for intuitive decision making, and you've learned what does and doesn't work from your mistakes and those around you. I don't know how well that applies to MMA or the like, but I think it applies pretty well to real encounters. Think about driving. 40-50 year olds don't have the pure raw reflexes of a 20 year old. But, they see trouble on the road earlier and that more than outweighs the gap in pure reaction time. If you both know ahead of time what's going to happen and have time to formulate a plan and the like, that negates some of that. In a bar fight where The Youth is still posturing and The Aged either preemptively smokes him or just leaves because he's learned to brain think instead of testosterone think...well, you see where I'm going.

Wondering Beard

05-10-2016, 04:19 AM

Interestingly enough, the following John Farnam Quip arrived this morning (the beginning and middle parts really applies to this discussion)

“‘Courage’ isn't having the strength to go on. It is going on when all
strength has deserted you”

Napoléon Bonaparte

I talked with several prestigious golf instructors today, and we discussed
similarities between the Arts we teach and advance.

Many young golfers are able to produce acceptable drives via muscle alone.
In the same way, husky martial arts students are able to make techniques “
work” by muscling their way through. They can thus get the false
impression that they have mastered the technique, particularly when working with a
small, weak, or compliant sparring partner.

Tiger Woods experienced the highpoint of his professional golfing career
when he was a lanky, skinny, unassuming kid. As he “bulked-up” and became “
important,” his game declined, and never came back. Today’s top golf
professionals are anything but “muscle men.” They’ve learned to precisely
derive power and accuracy from technique, not brawn.

In the same way, many “accomplished” martial artists, who are accustomed
to demonstrating their acumen on weak, compliant students, are rudely
surprised when they try the same thing on strong, tough, experienced opponents
who have no compunction about calling their bluff!

That day, they are painfully confronted with the fact that they never
learned the technique correctly to begin with. Their knowledge and skill are
superficial. Their strength actually got in their way, because they relied
on it too routinely, and defaulted to it too soon. Strength invariably
masked the precision necessary for them to actually “see” and realize what
makes the move (that they never really learned) so effective.

In fighting with guns, unlike most other martial arts, we don’t “empower”
the bullet in any way. It goes the same speed, no matter how hard we
squeeze the grip of the weapon, nor how we hold our tongue! As in all other
martial arts, we have to carefully learn correct technique- for holding the
weapon, stance, using sights, and running triggers. None of it is
particularly strength-dependant, nor even strength related!

Like playing the piano, a moment to “learn,” a lifetime to perfect!

Morihei Ueshiba (1883-1969), founder of Akido, seldom described his Art as
something used to overpower or hurt an opponent. He described it as "...
The Way of harmonious spirit," or words to that effect.

As spiritual descendants of Ueshiba, and other martial arts icons through
the centuries, we modern Operators refine and advance our Art with the
intention of training ourselves and our students to be humble servants and
protectors of all that is good in the world. In so doing, we discover that raw
strength is seldom helpful. In physically correcting our unenlightened
opponents, as in playing golf, billiards, poker, et al, we learn to seek-out
and rely on the True Way, not so much on our own strength.

As Napoléon so correctly observed, when your strength is gone, the real “
you” that remains, the “you” that really is you, had better be sufficient
in every way necessary to produce victory!

“People often say that this or that person has not yet ‘found himself.’
But, ‘self ‘is not something one ‘finds.’ It is something one creates.”

Thomas Szasz

MDS

05-10-2016, 04:58 AM

[...] look inside and figure out why you shoot. Is it to beat the guys at your local club? For self defense? For fun? To be a national champion?

If the answer is anything but fun and self defense, don't be surprised if you eventually stop training. When people train hard, and don't see great results, people quit. Human nature. Sure, they may redouble their efforts, but at some point, they have disappointed themselves too many times, so they distance themselves from that which disappoints.

It's worth thinking about. When I decided to become more serious about carrying a gun, I knew one of the things I needed to get better at was actually shooting it. I had a goal in my mind of a skill level that was reasonable for self-defense. But once I started practicing, I came to appreciate the subtleties of the craft and started exploring those subtleties at the range... and, long story short, even at my mediocre level I have become a much, much better shooter than I ever planned. If I did shooting "just" for self-defense, I'd hit the range once a year and be good. So why do I shoot? It's worth thinking about.

Shooting is such a great meditation for me. During a practice session, there's a lot to pay attention to, including awareness of all the details of what I'm doing so I can self-diagnose; but at the same time I have to focus on the one or two very simple things: sights and trigger. I need to relax and let it all happen, without reacting to explosions happing right in front of my face and next to me on the line; but then again I need to be vigilant for my technique, and for safe handling by myself and others.

I've got nothing "real" to gain from getting better at shooting. But the earnest attempt puts my head in a really good place. I stopped shooting for a while to spend more time outdoors and practice a few mountain skills. And while time in the woods is good for the soul in its own powerful way, I'm finding that simply exercising or improving a baseline of outdoor skills isn't as good at keeping me centered. Once I got a basic baseline of skill, being comfortable in the woods is easy and natural - I come away rested and content. In contrast, shooting is real work - there's a depth to the technical and mental subtleties that I have yet to plumb, and I come away no less content, but tired and already planning for the next bout. Reading this paragraph, it sounds wrong: trekking around the mountains is physically more demanding, yet I find it more restful? But it makes perfect sense in my mind because being in the woods is just that: being, while shooting is more about doing for me, about really working on my mental ability to focus-yet-relax, to be-serious-yet-have-fun...

Anyway, bottom line. Shooting, for me, is zazen. And in zazen, age and skill trumps youth and vigor any day.

Hambo

05-10-2016, 06:11 AM

I've never been old, though I am sure I'll get there one day

If you're lucky you will. Don't count on it so much that you put off anything important.

Back to SLG, I can see now how I muscled my way through a lot of things when I was younger. It's a wake up call though as to how I well I can defend myself now. As far as shooting goes I'm in the fun/defend category. My shooting interests are so varied that if I get bored by one thing I just do another for a while, but I can't imagine ever not shooting.

LittleLebowski

05-10-2016, 06:28 AM

I don't feel the years except when recovering from injuries. I'm more than a little frustrated with certain injuries right now, I am reassessing certain avenues of attack with fixing things wrong with my body.

LittleLebowski

05-10-2016, 06:29 AM

I've never been old, though I am sure I'll get there one day, so I cannot speak with any experience in that realm.

There's absolutely plenty of young bucks in LE and mil that would think of you as old and make you feel old during PT. Guaranteed.

KeeFus

05-10-2016, 06:52 AM

There's absolutely plenty of young bucks in LE and mil that would think of you as old and make you feel old during PT. Guaranteed.

Until we do our POPAT and the old guys like me (I'm 45) smoke them. I'm not in great shape either...but my mindset is different. Seriously, we took our POPAT January and you would be surprised at how many young bucks (under the age of 35) failed or barely passed. I broke my ankle on it...I was out 2 months and then passed it with a lot of time to spare. I had literally been back on the road for a couple weeks and hadn't really done any PT. Hell, one has been out of the academy less than a year and failed! This younger gen seems to get mind-fucked way too easy and it effects their performance.

LittleLebowski

05-10-2016, 07:26 AM

Until we do our POPAT and the old guys like me (I'm 45) smoke them. I'm not in great shape either...but my mindset is different. Seriously, we took our POPAT January and you would be surprised at how many young bucks (under the age of 35) failed or barely passed. I broke my ankle on it...I was out 2 months and then passed it with a lot of time to spare. I had literally been back on the road for a couple weeks and hadn't really done any PT. Hell, one has been out of the academy less than a year and failed! This younger gen seems to get mind-fucked way too easy and it effects their performance.

Perhaps things have changed since I was wearing a uniform but the young bucks I dealt with kept me on my toes.

LSP552

05-10-2016, 07:39 AM

Age matters, strength matters, speed matters, knowledge matters, mindset matters, and willingness matters. How much weight each component has depends on the individual and circumstances.

At 60, my strength and speed are not what they once were. However, the bigger factor working against me now is eyesight that limits a sharp front sight. In fact, the only front sights I can see are Trij HDs and Ameriglo ProGlos. And they aren't clear, just a visible red ball to stick in a blurry notch. My personal shooting goals now are defense and pleasure, and I'm still effective at any normal defensive range. Shooting plates at 50 yards without corrective range glasses isn't as much fun as it once was, except to entertain a shooting buddy....

I'm still willing, have relative experience and knowledge. But I had these at 45, and was MUCH more well rounded in ability. I have learned to accept that good enough, really is.

Robinson

05-10-2016, 07:45 AM

Interesting discussion. Even though I've been a user of firearms my whole life, I only started to become interested in proper technique within the past 8-10 years or so. I have a lot more years of training and experience in martial arts than in shooting.

I guess I probably peaked in my late 30s - early 40s when it comes to a combination of speed, skill and strength. My strength actually increased from there all the way into my 50s because I started to focus more on strength training during those years. At this point I'm definitely not as fast as younger practitioners, but I feel my experience does provide an advantage. I train in a style of Okinawan karate that emphasizes both hard and soft techniques, in which strength is important along with proper technique. The power of various techniques comes partially from body dynamics and proper execution, but actual strength training and muscle development helps a lot.

At this point in my life I know that my speed and reflexes are starting to diminish just as the aches and pains increase -- but I feel I can use my experience to help younger / less senior people more fully utilize their speed and youthfulness by virtue of experience.

GJM

05-10-2016, 08:03 AM

I have a great internal medicine doc, and he once said to me "worry about the things that you can control, and don't worry about the things that you can not control." If all goes well, we will all suffer age related changes as we age. The goal is to minimize those age related changes we can control, through lifestyle choices like eating a healthy diet, not smoking, maintaining a good weight, exercising, having friends, etc.

Fortunately, shooting has a significant thinking component. That is the reason our men's and women's USPSA champions, for example, are not teenagers or even typically 20 something year olds. On demand performance is a lot easier when you have control of your physical and mental game.

For many of us, vision changes are the single most difficult thing to deal with handguns. With a long gun, between red dot and variable scope, vision is not too big an issue. Visual acuity with the handgun does effect many mature shooters, and I am hoping in the very near term we have red dot sights for the Timmie gun that rival what Aimpoint has given us with the long gun. At that point, I think the old guys will be kicking ass for many years.

voodoo_man

05-10-2016, 08:14 AM

There's absolutely plenty of young bucks in LE and mil that would think of you as old and make you feel old during PT. Guaranteed.

Totally agree, however in the grand scheme of things I am not that old even though I've BTDT, there is still more time to go than has went for me.

It's all relative, man.

SLG

05-10-2016, 09:44 AM

Cheap Shot

05-10-2016, 11:34 AM

I'm not sure I explained myself very well.

My only real point was that we need to enjoy shooting for shooting's sake. No one continues to dominate past a certain point, where ever that point is. If winning is your motivation, you will eventually not win anymore. If strict self defense is your motivation, the skill needed for that (vis a vis the gun) is pretty low, and not often exercised by most, so it is hard to keep training for just that.

Accept that you will not always be able to do what you can now or what you once did, and find a reason to continue shooting. I want to shoot for my entire life. I can't let my ego be tied that strongly to it. Nor my vision, strength etc.

Back to the BJJ start of this, Helio Gracie was not going to tap out a 35 year old fighter when he was 95, regardless of his superior knowledge and mat time. No cunning or skill would make up for that difference. He could however still enjoy rolling, and would likely have done pretty well in many defensive scenarios. How many 95 years olds can say any of that? How many 65 years olds? I want to be that active and still enjoy life and shooting when I'm 95.

Much wisdom here.

Been struggling with my ego. I need to get past it.

GardoneVT

05-10-2016, 11:39 AM

I'm not sure I explained myself very well.

My only real point was that we need to enjoy shooting for shooting's sake. No one continues to dominate past a certain point, where ever that point is. If winning is your motivation, you will eventually not win anymore. If strict self defense is your motivation, the skill needed for that (vis a vis the gun) is pretty low, and not often exercised by most, so it is hard to keep training for just that.

Accept that you will not always be able to do what you can now or what you once did, and find a reason to continue shooting. I want to shoot for my entire life. I can't let my ego be tied that strongly to it. Nor my vision, strength etc.

Back to the BJJ start of this, Helio Gracie was not going to tap out a 35 year old fighter when he was 95, regardless of his superior knowledge and mat time. No cunning or skill would make up for that difference. He could however still enjoy rolling, and would likely have done pretty well in many defensive scenarios. How many 95 years olds can say any of that? How many 65 years olds? I want to be that active and still enjoy life and shooting when I'm 95.

To build on this -as a young guy (still in my 20's) , one thing is abundantly clear;

No matter how hard I work, or the size of my muscles, or how "dangerous" I perceive myself-there's always someone younger , faster, and more dangerous out there. Always a bigger fish, as it were.

The personal outlook I have is to be a better man then I was in the past. The rest is in the purview of chance and probability.

DocGKR

05-10-2016, 12:20 PM

SLG--Well said!

LSP552

05-10-2016, 12:22 PM

No matter how hard I work, or the size of my muscles, or how "dangerous" I perceive myself-there's always someone younger , faster, and more dangerous out there.

And an old guy who will cheat....:)

GJM

05-10-2016, 12:45 PM

If your ego is tied up in winning a national championship, you have terrible odds and have set yourself up for likely failure, since for every winner there are thousands of losers. I shoot against my own expectations. Other shooters at a match are merely markers as to how my progress is coming, but I take no pleasure in beating others. I agree with SLG that continued progress is an important component of motivating yourself to keep putting in the effort to get better. When you hit a wall, I have found it is usually the mental game though, not the physical game, that needs to get adjusted.

Wondering Beard

05-10-2016, 03:23 PM

I have found it is usually the mental game though, not the physical game, that needs to get adjusted.

Yup

Dagga Boy

05-10-2016, 04:47 PM

And an old guy who will cheat....:)

And, will likely cheat at a level most have not even fathomed at how treacherously evil some of us have found ourselves capable......which likely came from cases of "almost" losing to younger, faster, and stronger opponents.

11B10

05-10-2016, 06:58 PM

To build on this -as a young guy (still in my 20's) , one thing is abundantly clear;

No matter how hard I work, or the size of my muscles, or how "dangerous" I perceive myself-there's always someone younger , faster, and more dangerous out there. Always a bigger fish, as it were.

The personal outlook I have is to be a better man then I was in the past. The rest is in the purview of chance and probability.

Now you're talking, young man!

11B10

05-10-2016, 07:03 PM

Totally agree, however in the grand scheme of things I am not that old even though I've BTDT, there is still more time to go than has went for me.

It's all relative, man.

I pray you are right. Truth is - only God really knows.

spelingmastir

05-10-2016, 07:55 PM

I'm not sure I explained myself very well.

My only real point was that we need to enjoy shooting for shooting's sake. No one continues to dominate past a certain point, where ever that point is. If winning is your motivation, you will eventually not win anymore. If strict self defense is your motivation, the skill needed for that (vis a vis the gun) is pretty low, and not often exercised by most, so it is hard to keep training for just that.

Accept that you will not always be able to do what you can now or what you once did, and find a reason to continue shooting. I want to shoot for my entire life. I can't let my ego be tied that strongly to it. Nor my vision, strength etc.

Back to the BJJ start of this, Helio Gracie was not going to tap out a 35 year old fighter when he was 95, regardless of his superior knowledge and mat time. No cunning or skill would make up for that difference. He could however still enjoy rolling, and would likely have done pretty well in many defensive scenarios. How many 95 years olds can say any of that? How many 65 years olds? I want to be that active and still enjoy life and shooting when I'm 95.

I participate in bjj and shooting for the same reasons: I enjoy them both as "arts" and believe they are both valuable and sustainable ways to defend yourself. While certain elements may deteriorate with age, solid technique will still help both skill sets remain viable for a long time. I hope to practice both until I die. You can't say that for many activities.

Kimura

05-10-2016, 09:03 PM

I'm not sure I explained myself very well.

My only real point was that we need to enjoy shooting for shooting's sake. No one continues to dominate past a certain point, where ever that point is. If winning is your motivation, you will eventually not win anymore. If strict self defense is your motivation, the skill needed for that (vis a vis the gun) is pretty low, and not often exercised by most, so it is hard to keep training for just that.

Accept that you will not always be able to do what you can now or what you once did, and find a reason to continue shooting. I want to shoot for my entire life. I can't let my ego be tied that strongly to it. Nor my vision, strength etc.

Back to the BJJ start of this, Helio Gracie was not going to tap out a 35 year old fighter when he was 95, regardless of his superior knowledge and mat time. No cunning or skill would make up for that difference. He could however still enjoy rolling, and would likely have done pretty well in many defensive scenarios. How many 95 years olds can say any of that? How many 65 years olds? I want to be that active and still enjoy life and shooting when I'm 95.

Exactly. It's really a good time. You've done the fighting, which is probably what set you on the path to begin with. Now you get to go back and work on the things your weren't really good at to begin with meaning you get to experience learning for the sake of learning. You get to do it for pure enjoyment and you still get something out of it, but you're goal has changed and you're no longer in a hurry. Now it's a life long learning experience that you can really let yourself enjoy, if that makes any sense.

lwt16

05-11-2016, 07:46 AM

If all goes well, we will all suffer age related changes as we age. The goal is to minimize those age related changes we can control, through lifestyle choices like eating a healthy diet, not smoking, maintaining a good weight, exercising, having friends, etc.

This is key.

As I approach 47, I have noticed my eyesight starting to degrade. After having 20/15 vision all those years, I took it for granted that I would be able to see pistol sights clearly for life. I've been shooting since the age of six so a good sight picture is second nature to me.

Twenty years of LE has taught me to stay in decent shape. There was a time when I was in horrible shape and after being told by my GP that I was headed towards diabetes, I got off the couch and did something about it. I was able to lose 40 pounds and maintained a workout regimen for the past seven years.

Being in decent shape helped my shooting tremendously, particularly when attending classes involving shooting on the move. I can't fight the eyesight degradation but I can fight laziness and weight gain. I can strength train, I can do cardio, etc.

So for me, it balances out nicely and affords me to maintain my skills at an acceptable level in my eyes. Others consider me advanced but I am always seeking to improve. Cutting a tenth off here, extending the range there, faster reloads, faster draws.......

I don't see that ever changing. My toughest critic is me.

05-11-2016, 08:09 AM

My only real point was that we need to enjoy shooting for shooting's sake.

This is where I am now.

A shooting buddy has started shooting rim fire rifle at long range and having fun. He has recently had a heart bypass and both knees replaced. He needs his shoulders done and can't shoot handgun well anymore. He says this has added years to his shooting.

Malamute

05-11-2016, 11:21 AM

My only real point was that we need to enjoy shooting for shooting's sake... If strict self defense is your motivation, the skill needed for that (vis a vis the gun) is pretty low, and not often exercised by most, so it is hard to keep training for just that.

Accept that you will not always be able to do what you can now or what you once did, and find a reason to continue shooting. I want to shoot for my entire life. I can't let my ego be tied that strongly to it. Nor my vision, strength etc.

I want to be that active and still enjoy life and shooting when I'm 95.

Good post.

This is where I am now.

A shooting buddy has started shooting rim fire rifle at long range and having fun. He has recently had a heart bypass and both knees replaced. He needs his shoulders done and can't shoot handgun well anymore. He says this has added years to his shooting.

I have some different goals now than in the past. Long range rimfire is one, and great fun. Long range rifle is what I enjoy most with AR's, and since an injury, an AR is whats most comfortable to shoot. None of it has been formal, or very precise, just what I enjoy the most with regular grade stuff. I may be able to upgrade the rifle and ammo at some point, which will add satisfaction to it. A newer interest is in acquiring one of the new Winchester 1873's, and getting back to shooting stuff in the air. Would like to be able to do multiples with a lever action.

mmc45414

05-13-2016, 05:32 AM

I think there is a ying/yang. I am shooting better than I ever have, I think because I have more trigger time, and mentally I am calmer, but there are some things my eyes just aint gonna do anymore.

I think a benefit on the mental side is that these days I also have the gear I “think” I needed. When I was young (like in my profile pic) I always felt like I was competing against guys that had the financial wherewithal to have superior gear (back then the gas in the truck to get to the match was taken into consideration…) and seemed to try and force my speed and performance to compensate. Turns out when you calm down and not give a shit you can focus on things that matter. Backing away mostly from matches and doing more informal peer group practice and competition probably also helped.

But my eyes are gonna be sixty in a few years, and there is just no way around that. I am lucky in the fact that I have had surgery for cataracts in both eyes, and it is really awesome. Synthetic lenses that I had setup for mono vision (read with my left, drive with my right), and I specifically asked for a little less than perfect distance correction in my right eye so I would be better able to see pistol sights. This has also helped my cross dominance a bit.

I had been setting up all my pistols with the 10-8 plain .140 rear and the (IMO phenomenal) HiViz over molded green front. It seems as if HiViz abandoned the over molded sights for the M&P for an interchangeable lite pipe that you can flick loose with a fingernail so I went looking for an alternative. Tried one of the Ameriglo big square green things and I am really pleased with it. But gee, then I was all concerned about the front being a square post and the rear being a rounded notch and was just not sure how that was going to work out. Then while dry practicing in the basement I had a moment of clarity, my eyes have no idea what the bottom of that notch is shaped like… :)

GAP

05-17-2016, 09:31 PM

Nothing has opened up my eyes like competing in MMA.

10+ years ago I looked in a phone book for a local BJJ academy to join because I wanted to learn how to defend myself. I was smallish, but athletic, and willing to learn. I went 4-5 times per week, started a powerlifting routine and off I went. At my peak I walked around 6'1 195lbs. Deadlifting over 500 lbs. I won just about every BJJ tournament I entered, but now I wanted more. It wasn't good enough, now I wanted to dominate MMA.

I messed around a little with Muay Thai but gravitated towards boxing. I started training with the boxing team and got my ass kicked all over again. But, it didn't take long before I was keeping up with the best pure boxer in the place.

I had my first MMA fight.. Nervous as hell, saw the guy and asked myself, "what the hell am I doing!?" The fight lasted all of 42 seconds.. I won by rear naked choke in the first round. The next 5-6 fights came easily to me, working my way up the local ranks.

Eventually you run into dudes who are YOU but 10 years younger, 6" taller and are a hungry lion looking to prove a point.

Every.. Single.. fight in the pros was hard. You lose, you get your face stitched up. You win, you get your face stitched up. I lost the love to train. I made it a job. I wanted return on my investment.

I know even now, years later I can compete and still do well. But why? What do I have left to prove? My focus has gone from dominate the world to, "be good in various walks of life." Be well rounded, a good husband and have plenty of life skills to teach your future children.

Oddly enough, I'd do it all over again. I feel like I've gained more positives from it than the negative of no longer competing. I am confident, strong, respectful and compassionate because of my training.

My new (last 2 years or so) love is firearms shooting/training. This is the fun and exciting time for me. Every range session I improve, I haven't come close to my plateau yet and it's exciting! I've thought about IDPA and such, but it'll lead me down the same path and I'm having way too much damn fun doing my own thing to ruin it.

Age and skill or youth and strength? It depends on how extreme the AGE or STRENGTH is on either side of the coin. :)