Are you drinking enough water? If you answered no, you are not alone as more than half of North Americans are not getting the amount of water they need in a day. If you suffer from headaches, constipation, tiredness, muscle cramps, dull, dry skin, or if your urine is a dark yellow colour, this is a sign that you are not drinking enough. 

Water is pretty boring. It is colourless and tasteless with no caloric value, but it is the most important element of your diet because it is involved in every function in the body. 

The average recommendation for water per day is 2 litres for women and 3 litres for men. This number will change depending on the climate and if you are exercising. Right now I am on an island in Sicily for the summer (I know, poor me right?!) and the temperature here is above 30 degrees celsius every day so I am trying to focus on drinking more to replace what I have lost in sweat. I do this by having one litre of lemon water as soon as I wake up and bring a water bottle with me wherever I go. We have also put up a heavy bag here and when we workout, I make sure that I am drinking an additional litre of fluid after we finish exercising.

When training you need to be in an optimal state of hydration for both your endurance and performance. During exercise, you lose electrolytes which are made up of sodium and potassium. Sodium maintains the fluid in our body, keeping it hydrated while helping muscles to relax. Potassium has a similar function and also aids in the storage of carbohydrates to fuel the muscles. If you sweat a lot during a workout, or train for long periods of time, it is a good idea to add electrolytes to your drink (plus they make your water taste so good!). Sport drinks are what people gravitate to because they contain carbohydrates and electrolytes needed for hydration and energy, but I find that they have a lot of unnecessary ingredients and colouring. Instead, I like electrolyte tablets (I am using them in Italy right now). You can get them at any health food store and most grocery stores and you can throw them in your gym bag to use whenever you need them. Nuun hydration is a great brand and has a variety of flavours as well as specific tablets for sports, immune support, and some with added caffeine. My favourite is Strawberry Lemonade.

Another great drink is coconut water. It is a natural source of electrolytes and what many Muay Thai fighters drink in Thailand because of the extremely hot temperatures. You can also make your own sport drink by using a few simple ingredients.

Maple-Lemon Electrolyte Water Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 cups water, filtered
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice, from about 1/2 lemon
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup, grade B
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients in a glass and stir until the salt is dissolved.

If you want to up your hydration and improve your performance try the following recommendations:

• ensure you are well hydrated before you exercise - this means drinking water throughout the day
• replace 80% of the sweat lost during exercise 
• drink fluids that have electrolytes if exercise is high intensity, more than 1.5 hours, or in hot a hot climate
• drink at least ½  a litre immediately after exercise
• add fruit juice, electrolytes, or BCAA’s to make your water taste good and to add carbohydrates, sodium and potassium
• continue to drink fluid after exercise until at least 1 litre is consumed

The most important thing to remember is to drink before you feel thirsty and ensure that most of what you drink in a day is water.

Man do I hate it when people make the excuse of “being too old” to start something.  I guess at some point you can become too old, but more often than not this phrase gets thrown around unwarranted.  I started training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) 4 years ago at the mature age of 33.  I am now 37 and do not for a minute regret starting in my 30s.  My BJJ journey is primarily about personal development and becoming better than my yesterday self, therefore the age that I start at is of little concern to me.  I do not compete for fame, glory, or medals.  I compete because competition presents me with adversity and challenges, inevitably forcing me to become the best that I can be.  

Whether it’s BJJ or muay thai, before you  tell yourself lies such as, “it’s too late to start,”  give it some real thought.  Maybe it’s just your perspective that needs to change.

Here are my top 5 favorite BJJ videos.  I hope they inspire you like they did me:

1. ROLL:  Jiu Jitsu in SoCal

They call California the new Mecca of Brazilian jiu-jitsu. I was lucky enough to have travelled to California in 2019 and trained at 3 different schools (a couple of which are mentioned in this documentary).  The crew of Eat Films travels to Southern California to give us a glimpse into the lives of some of the best gyms and practioners of the sport.

2. Jiu-Jitsu VS the World

A great documentary about what makes Brazilian jiu-jitsu great.  BJJ is not just a sport or martial art, it's a lifestyle.  Grab some popcorn and enjoy.

3. Jiu Jitsu Black Belt Exam

Peter undergoes testing for his black belt.  A rigorous process that will push him physically and mentally.  Will he succeed?

4. Pure Roling | Jiu Jitsu Explained

A collection of rolls, narrated by Roy Dean.  I have watched this video over 4 times throughout the years and still learn something new each time.  It is beautifully put together with great music and camera work.  The narration and slow motion cuts really helped me learn.

5. Grappling God - Marcelo Garcia Highlight

The Michael Jordan of BJJ.  If you don't know him then watch this!

Food for thought:  A little step forward each day adds up to BIG gains over the course of a year, 2 years, 5 years.  It is better to make little forward strides while staying consistent over the long haul rather than go apesh** in your training for a short period then take an extended break. 

Short term gains are for chumps and you aren’t a chump.  Always play the long game on the mats, in the ring, or in life.

Oss, Sawadeekhrap

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 You can reach high level at any skill in just 5 years.  Watch below:

Most of the time we are so focused on fitness goals that we forget about how important exercise is for our mental and emotional wellness. With the stressful pace of everyday life and now a world pandemic, it is so important that we find strategies to support our mental health. Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act and determines how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Physical activity is a very important way to maintain this balance. Getting sweaty at least five times a week has been proven to boost mood, improve brain function, improve sleep, reduce cortisol, and help manage anxiety and stress.

For a long time, the main purpose of my going to the gym was to be physically fit. Now, I realize that activities which challenge me such as training for a half marathon and participating in Tough Mudders, inspires self-discipline and helps me build a strong mindset which I carry into my everyday life. This is why I love training in Muay Thai as Martial arts is known to promote physical and mental control. Each week, when I show up at Legacy, I love that my body is getting stronger and my kicks more powerful, but I also find that when I am in need of a break, or want to give up on something that seems impossible to master, I have the mental focus to help me dig deeper to find that extra push.

Remember, going to the gym is not always about having a six pack. The social benefits of working out with other people is a great recipe for maintaining mental wellness. Being part of a team or club provides you with a sense of community that is working towards a common goal. This mix of exercise and social activity will surely boost your mood when you are feeling down.

If you are not one to join a big box gym or don’t have enough time to workout, remember that any kind of physical activity is healthy for your body and mind. Find something you like to do or have wanted to try and schedule it into your calendar to find time for your own well-being. 

You get hit once, twice, maybe a third...! You are thinking, “My opponent sure is landing a lot on me and that last one hurt!” Mentally breaking is nothing but just the loss of concentration of the task at hand.  If you can remain in the moment and stay focused,  you will never break.  Some call this mental toughness.  I call it mental concentration. Like anything else, you can improve your concentration through practice.  

If you have been mentally broken in training or sparring, you  know the feeling I am talking about.  Don’t be so quick to label yourself as mentally weak! The trick to unwavering concentration and focus (mental toughness) is to accept and let all negative situations or feelings flow right through you as they enter your mind.  Once you bring your attention to the pain or dwell on the strikes that the opponent is landing on you, discouragement can start to show its ugly face.  Have you ever seen a fight where a fighter who has clearly lost remains  convinced that he had won immediately after the judge’s decision?  The fighter, despite losing on the  scorecards, was never emotionally and mentally affected by anything his opponent did therefore he may have “felt” like he had won.  Sometimes you win, but you feel like you have lost.  Other times you lose, but feel like you have won.  It is all mental.

In 1963 a Vietnamese Buddhist monk by the name of Thích Quang Duc burned himself alive on the streets of Saigon to make a public statement about equality.  The unbelievable part of this story is that Thích Quang Duc burned to his death while not showing any sign of pain or discomfort.  The monk was in a deep state of concentration that transcended the physical.  

Ask yourself; how can I use this knowledge to make myself mentally tougher?

“If you can’t get into the mind of your opponent, you cannot break him nor his will.” -Frank