How FightCamp Shapes Resilience with Coach PJ Shirdan | S5 E24

SPEAKER_05 0:00

In the midst of a really crazy season in my life, I stumbled upon the boxing team at West Virginia and I said, you know what, why not? Boxing makes you be present. I think you need to be in the present in the very moment because again, life or death sometimes does matter. When the things at life happen, you're able to adapt no matter what it is, no matter how hot it is, no matter how hard it is, no matter how unreasonable it is. It is tough sometimes to lace up the gloves. It is tough sometimes to get up after you've been knocked down, but that's part of the game. And every day we get 86,400 moments that we get to maximize and utilize. So today, if you have an opportunity to make progress, take it.

Voiceover 0:45

Welcome to Responder Resilience. Today we have a special guest, Coach PJ Sherdan from Fight Camp, an interactive at-home boxing and kickboxing training system that combines streaming workouts, punch cracking technology, and gym quality equipment. PJ will share insights on how boxing can build discipline and resilience, key qualities for first responders. And we're going to dive into the emotional and physical benefits of training, how boxing training contributes to overall physical fitness and preparedness. And don't miss your chance to win a free, complete fight camp system valued at $799. We'll have more details to come later in the show. Invite you to like and subscribe, YouTube Responder Resilience, Facebook, Responder TV, LinkedIn, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and go to our website responderTV.com for past episodes and guest information. This episode is made possible by the First Responder Center for Excellence. Discover more at FirstresponderCenter.org and connect with us on X, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube. There's a new app built by firefighters for firefighters, and it's called Crackle. Download the app now for free as a legacy member and get early access to exclusive content, tools, and updates as they drop. Get the free app at crackle.responderTV.com. We'll be right back to speak with Coach PJ after this. In this family, more of us die by our own hands and by the hazards of the job.

SPEAKER_04 2:09

In this family, up to a quarter of 911 telecommunicators have symptoms of post-traumatic stress. In this family, our mental health and wellness are in crisis, while responders are quietly suffering.

Voiceover 2:21

In this family, many struggle with job-related stress, burnout, moral injury, sleep disruptions, substance abuse, and relationship problems. In this family, we can help the helpers. With vital information and resources, resilience strategies, and success stories of overcoming the obstacles. In this family, welcome to Responder Resilience. We co-host retired Lieutenant David Dashinger, Dr. Stacey Raymond, and Bonnie Rimley, LCSW EMTV. For this special episode, we'd like to welcome Coach PJ Jordan. He began his uh career as Division I athlete at West Virginia University. He developed a passion for performance and resilience, and he transitioned from college collegiate sports to boxing, and he trained with NFL athletes, professional boxers, UFC icons, the legendary Mike Tyson, and that propelled him into elite fitness coaching. Most recently, Philip became the face of Sport Tech startup Fight Camp, revolutionizing home boxing workouts. His energy and expertise have inspired millions worldwide. Inside and beyond the ring, Phillip's mission is to elevate lives mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. Whether coaching athletes or empowering professionals, his approach is rooted in care and passion. Coach BJ, welcome to Respond to Resilience.

SPEAKER_05 3:50

Thank you so much for having me, David. It is a blessing and a privilege to be here with you.

Voiceover 3:55

I've had the absolute pleasure of uh training, doing the Fight Camp workouts, and um, you know, with you as a coach for quite a few of them. So uh we're gonna dive into this and uh hopefully we'll turn some people on to the great stuff Fight Camp is doing. I love it. So, terms of um your journey in in the world of uh sports and workout fitness, can you tell us a little bit about how you became a boxing coach? Like what drew you to boxing? Great question.

SPEAKER_05 4:24

Um Well, uh I it wasn't my first choice. I'll I'll say that first off. Um I spent most of my childhood wanting to play football and at least go to college for free and get a scholarship. So um that's what my focus was on uh growing up uh outside of Philadelphia, my senior minor high school is where I attended. Uh I was immersed in in football. I trained hard, I put myself in positions to play and to prevail and to earn scholarships. And that's what I wanted to do. I want to play football at the highest level. Um ended up taking a scholarship at West Virginia University, uh, where some of the best years of my life happened, but also some of the hardest and darkest days that I can look back on. Um in the midst of a really crazy season in my life, I stumbled upon the boxing team at West Virginia and Um I said, you know what, why not? Just try it. And walked in, worked out with the team. And within a couple of months, I had my first fight and I started to really enjoy boxing. And from there, um, you know, my whole life I had kind of been close to some really good coaches and some really good mentors of mine who helped me develop strength and speed and resilience, and they they left a lasting impact in my life. Um, and it kind of made me want to dive into coaching. Um, so with boxing, coaching was just something that sort of naturally happened. You know, there was a need for old you know, upperclassmen to sort of lead the youngers, and I just sort of volunteered in that role. Um, and but ironically, after college, it ended up being something that kind of led me to start training at gyms and start coaching uh with professional fighters, and that sort of led me down the road out here to California where uh boxing became not just a hobby and a passion of mine, something I did, you know, on the side, it ended up becoming a career for me. And I look back on it now, you know, over all over 15 years later. Uh boxing is still something that I'm passionate about, it's still something that I do. Uh, but more than that, uh it's helping human beings grow, get better, and make every day their best day ever.

Voiceover 6:34

Yeah, I love the fact you went through the open door when you discovered that uh that opportunity to go to the boxing team in on the college level. And so that's brought you to today, which is um as a coach with Fight Camp. And uh what would you like people to know about it? Like to me, it's amazing, right? You would think if you want to train in boxing, you need to go to a boxing gym, have probably a lot of equipment, um, you know, have a a coach and carve out the time to do it. How does Fight Camp have a different approach to all that?

SPEAKER_05 7:06

Well, Fight Camp is a a really great solution for those that want to get in shape, are home, don't feel like they can go out to a gym. You know, there's a lot of um resistance sometimes about walking into a boxing gym or MMA gym. A lot of intimidation can happen. Um, there's they're not really marketed really great out into the world. So a lot of people have this perception that boxing gyms are dirty and rugged and tough. And a lot of them can be. But what flight does is that it allows people to train in the comforts of their home on their own time, whenever they want, whether it's four o'clock in the morning or five in the afternoon or you know, eleven. You can train anytime anywhere. Uh so with the flight system, you have the bag, you have the trackers, you have access to thousands of workouts with coaches uh with not only great performing performance on stage, but but every fighter's you know been a fighter. Every coach has been a fighter. So uh they speak from a place of experience. Um flight is just, I think it's the best. You know, there are other at-home systems where you can train and work on your fitness. Uh, but with flight, not only do you get in great shape, not only do you get to learn a skill or skills, uh, but you're able to kind of be a part of a community, which is a whole lot different. Um, so it does give you that boxing gym type of feel, uh, but just at home and safe, and you don't get punched in the face.

Voiceover 8:28

Hey firefighters, let's take a moment to talk about something important. There's a new app built by firefighters for firefighters, and it's not just another wellness tracker or generic resource hub. It's called Crackle. You've probably seen the magazine, but this is the next evolution. The app is about one thing helping firefighters not fail, not just on the job, but in life, in your health, your relationships, your mindset, and your longevity. That's why Crackle is designed to meet firefighters exactly where they are, with resources that make sense, are easy to use, and actually respect your time. You can download the app now for free as a legacy member. That means you get early access to exclusive content tools and updates as they drop. Use the QR code on the screen to download the Crackle app, or you can download it from the App Store or Google Play and stay in the fight, not just at work, but at home and in your own head too. Because your best days shouldn't be behind you, they should be ahead of you. I guess it's important to know because I didn't realize this, it's not just boxing workouts. There's other kinds of workouts uh you can choose from, and you can also stack workouts, um, not just do a boxing, but you could follow it with um ab work or something like that. So, coach, talk a little bit about kind of like the options, the different um, you know, the variety of stuff you can choose from in terms of fitness. Yes.

SPEAKER_05 9:52

Flight camp has a a a lot of workouts, I'll put it like that. All right, yeah. So there is uh different modalities, right? We have boxing, of course. Kickboxing is another one uh where you can actually have your kicks tracked. We do strength and conditioning as well as core and recovery and stretch and dynamic warm-up. So uh as you mentioned, David, stacking, yes, you can put a dynamic warm-up in the beginning of a boxing workout and then add abs at the end of it, and then do strength at the end of it or conditioning, or you can do them all. Um, it kind of is catered to you where you can kind of pick your own workout for that day and what your needs are. Um, all the workouts are unique, they're all different. You know, I've been here, you know, working and partnering with Fight Camp since like 2018, and I don't think I've ever taught the same workout, or uh it's thousands of workouts. So within each of those modalities, we do have different types of workouts. So in the boxing workouts, let's just say um there's workouts where you'll work your full body. There are workouts where you might do some plia metrics in there, like some squat jumps or some lunges or some uh plank punches, which are kind of unique to the fight camp system. There are other workouts where you'll do uh a switch stance, so you're working both Southpaw and Orthodox stances where you kind of have to work your brain fitness and your body fitness. Uh, there's things like uh burnout workouts where you're gonna be at a high level fast pace, basically doing sprints throughout the workout. Um and that you know has the same uh type of tone with kickboxing in our strength workouts, we have open and we have intermediate, so we have higher level workouts, a little lighter ones. We have five rounds, three rounds. There's so much variety in the fight camp app. Um, it kind of is hard to ever get bored. It's kind of hard to ever not find something that will work for you.

Voiceover 11:40

Absolutely. And and the other piece that we touched on was that there's a high-tech aspect to this where your uh your punch strike count gets tracked, the power output gets tracked, you can um fight against a bot. I guess I haven't done this, but you can also um kind of be paired up with someone else who's uh fighting in real time. Is that how it works?

SPEAKER_05 12:02

Um, yeah. So I mean the technology's pretty cool. You can uh, you know, you have these little sensors that go into your gloves and they will actually track how many punches you throw. On boxing and kickboxing workouts, um, there's this thing called the leaderboard, which is everyone that's ever taken that workout basically stacked up against one another and ranked. And the way you get ranked higher up on the board is through output. Now, output is what Fight Camp describes, a cumulative score based on the number of punches you throw, how hard you throw them, and how fast they are. So you want to get that score up, you hit harder, you hit faster, and you'll see your output go through the roof. Now, yes, you can compete not only with other people all around the world and kind of go against them um and what their workout was. So it's already recorded, it'll basically overlay over the screen. But yes, you can also uh take versus mode where you'll have your stats on one side of the screen and someone else's on the other, where you can go against a bot and and work against someone that's an easy bot or a hard bot. Um, but one of my favorite aspects of fight camp, I think, is doing you versus you, where you can take your stats from the workout you might have done four months ago and then fight against yourself and essentially see how much improvement you've made over the time where uh using the technology you're able to get real-time data and then make improvements on the fly.

Voiceover 13:28

Cool stuff. I haven't tried a couple of those things, so I'm gonna have to dive in and and figure it out. I wanted to also mention that, and this is you know, seems like a basic kind of feature, but I love it. And that's you can kind of pick the music you want for the workout, right? There's like a whole playlist, different types of styles of music, and that's uh that's a game changer.

SPEAKER_05 13:47

Yeah, you're not just locked into uh hip hop or EDM or rock, you can kind of shuffle it how you want and pick. Um, you know, some people have used integrations with other uh streaming apps like Apple Music, Spotify. They might still have that availability, I'm not sure. Um, but you know, some people also don't like to listen to my dad jokes and hear me talk, and they'll turn the music down completely and play music on a different system. But um it's it's your workout, it's your way. I always like to tell people do what you need to do for you and where you're at right now.

Voiceover 14:17

Personally, I look forward to the dad jokes, so don't stop. Keep them keep them coming. I got you. I got you. So um, we'll talk a little bit more about the actual you know, fight camp itself and uh kind of reminder, we're gonna be doing a giveaway of a complete fight camp system. We'll have the details coming up on that in a little bit. Um, PJ, you mentioned the fight camp community. Can you talk a little bit more about that? I actually haven't dived too deep into that, but love to know more.

SPEAKER_05 14:44

Oh, yeah. The fight camp Facebook community is one of the highlights, I think, where people that take fight camp or even people I've seen on a community who are potential prospects to purchase fight camp kind of join in on this community where people share their stats, their stories, uh things they've been fighting through. You know, you can ask random questions. Um, a lot of the trainers are active on there as well and kind of give you guys encouragement, feedback. Um, sometimes we'll even ask questions on there, like we're gonna teach a workout this week. What type of one would you want? A combo buildup, a pure punching, a switch stance, knockout power, etc., etc. And so we can kind of ask people what they want. It's a really cool place where you get a little bit of everything motivation, encouragement, um, some you know, tech issues that people might have, some things that come up in the community. Um, it's a really good place where I I've I've seen a lot of relationships grown and built, um, and people kind of carry that for the rest of their days. And um, yeah, definitely advise getting into that Facebook community, man. Cool. All right, I will check it out.

Voiceover 15:54

So I'm gonna talk about the the giveaway. Hey, first responders, we have an incredible opportunity just for you. One lucky winner is gonna walk away with a free fight camp package valued at $799. Thanks to the amazing partnership between Fight Camp and Responder Resilience, you could kickstart your fitness journey in a whole new way. So, what's in the Fight Cam package? You get a freestanding boxing bag and ring, white fight cam boxing gloves, fight cam console with four trackers, fight cam quick wraps and the kickboxing ankle wraps, and a heart rate monitor. Fight camps trainers help you level up with fun, effective, motivating workouts, so don't miss your chance to win. Simply head over to respondertv.com, click on the fight cam tab at the top of the page, make sure to enter before June 21st, 2025. Get ready to transform your fitness routine, go to respondertv.com, enter by clicking on the fight camp tab at the top of the page. You must enter by June 21st, 2025. Good luck. Coach, um, someone who gets that package, what would they uh be looking forward to in terms of um equipment and the training experience?

SPEAKER_05 17:11

Uh well, I personally would say that they should be looking forward to getting in the best shape of their lives, having the opportunity to not only gain a skill, but to develop, gain muscle, lose weight, um, inspire that fighter within. It's gonna be a great time for them. I'm excited for whoever wins, it's going down.

Voiceover 17:32

Absolutely. Well, coach, I want to see what we can kind of bring to the first responder community as far as the benefits of boxing. And I'm I'm sure you have quite a few that you could share. Um, well, first, someone who's new to boxing, what are some of the key fundamentals they should focus on? Like if they whether they have an existing fitness routine or maybe they're just trying to, you know, get into shape for the first time.

SPEAKER_05 17:56

Well, I think uh again, I think there's a lot of approaches to how you can develop an athlete and specifically a fighter. Um my particular approach always starts with the foundation first, right? So stance, footwork, understanding the mechanics of a punch, those are I think the great foundations to kind of get set up and started. And that's something that Fight Cam does with the prospect path, where you'll be able to kind of go through step by step, place by place, how to go from having no experience at all to being able to look and move like a fighter. That's a great first step. So um I'm I'm really big on doubling down on where your stance is, how you're balanced through that movement, and then understanding the mechanics of the rotation with a punch. A lot of people think a punch is just like your arm extending out towards a target and coming back. What the punch is a full body movement. You do use just about every muscle when you throw a right punch. So kind of visualizing and understanding the mechanics, which are very similar to tennis or golf or baseball. Um, those are ways that I like to kind of help athletes get an understanding more of how we're rotating and turning and producing power through our movement. So um I would always say start start low, find a stance, get in the balance, figure out whether you're Southpaw or Orthodox and kind of uh just dive in. I think there's no better substitute than experience than just jumping in and figuring it out for yourself.

Voiceover 19:25

Great points. Um, you know, one of the things I thought about also is a lot of the traditional exercises we do are kind of, I don't know how you call it, sort of in physiological terms, but they're all done in one plane. Like if we're running, we're kind of just running forward, right? All our limbs are moving in the same direction. Um, same for cycling, and you probably say that for a bunch of others. Um I find boxing to be very like bilateral, but also you're moving side to side. You're uh, as you said, kind of pivoting, um, shifting your body weight from side to side. Can you speak a little bit about the physiological? Parts of that or the benefits of it? Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 20:03

When you box, you you will work in multiple planes, especially if you do it well, uh, where you will rotate, where you will go back, you will go side to side. Um, there's a lot of movement involved with fighting, especially with classes where you know, you train with me or you train with Flowmaster, you're gonna use your footwork a lot. So you're gonna be agile, you're gonna be quick on the feet, um, and basically getting ready for anything. So um I came back to that moment about punching is more than just throwing your arm. A lot of core rotation, a lot of hip, a lot of uh your legs are involved in the mechanics, which done properly, done over time, uh, can have tremendous health benefits and cannot only help you improve as an athlete, uh, but you'll see that output climb up and see your score go up higher in the leaderboard. Um, I personally love boxing. You know, I think it is one of the best workouts in the world. Um, you know, I I came back, I came from a you know heavily strength and conditioning focused background, especially with football. Um and, you know, after a couple ACL tears to my right leg having to kind of be sidelined, um, when I started boxing, I started to realize, oh, I can actually do more, I can be in greater shape through this particular modality than any of the other ones I've ever done. So um, I can't recommend boxing enough for people. And I definitely think um as you get into it and you get immersed into it, it has this it has this way about it that you just start to see it a little bit more. You might start just shadow boxing when you're in a grocery store, you might start watching fights, you might start attending fights just because it has that you know uniqueness to it. You know, there's off seasons in football and in basketball and soccer. There's no off-season for fighters. So it's one of those really cool sports that you get to see all year round. You can start it at any time, anywhere. Doesn't matter how old you are or how young you are. Um, I think boxing and kickboxing are for everyone.

SPEAKER_04 22:02

As firefighters and first responders, we're brilliant at the basics. We master the art of stretching the line and we excel at being there for those who need us most. Yet even the best of us can be caught off guard. We sometimes face unexpected challenges like injury, cancer, or post-traumatic stress symptoms. But you're not alone. The First Responder Center for Excellence is here to equip you with the tools and resources you need to stay informed and prepared. We help you focus on staying strong, safe, fit, and resilient. Optimize your performance with cutting-edge health levels and science information, from fitness to nutrition, medical evaluation to behavioral health, cancer awareness to cardiac health. We've got you covered. Remember, we're stronger together. Discover more at firstrespondercenter.org and connect with us on X, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube. The First Responder Center for Excellence. Equip yourself with Excellence for every call.

Voiceover 23:05

One of the cool things that we have in the world of uh mostly police and fire is a lot of uh localities will have a uh guns versus hoses uh boxing competition. And so I think that's a fantastic way either to get involved as a participant or at least to go, you know, watch, go and go check it out. Um, like you said, doing boxing training, I think, has elevated my interest in watching boxing, uh, professional boxing, because now I'm looking at it differently, right? I'm starting to look for nuances of like starting to see, you know, strategy and tactics. And um, so I I love that kind of added perspective. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_05 23:46

You get immersed in it. It's one of those things that it's hard to it's for me, it's really hard to watch boxing and not like get your brain focused in there and start to like move a little bit how they're moving, and then start to see the opportunities and like, oh, this is what I would do if I was there. So um it has that way to it, you know.

Voiceover 24:02

Let's talk a little bit about discipline and resilience. Um, one of the things that I think we value as first responders is you know, we need to be ready to, you know, go on full force uh any time of the day or night. We get awoken from a deep sleep and have to go from zero to a hundred rather quickly. How does training and boxing kind of help with discipline and resilience that are qualities that first responders really need on a daily basis?

SPEAKER_05 24:28

Great question, David. Um, well, I I like to go to the old adage if you stay ready, you don't have to get ready. And I think training should be a part of everyone's life, but specifically first responders. You sacrifice so much and you put yourself in harm's way, um, which takes a whole different level of of being strong mentally and physically. Boxing training is one of those things that I've learned over the years that it pushes you in a lot of ways, yes, physically, but mentally, it is tough sometimes to lace up the gloves. It is tough sometimes to get up after you've been knocked down. But that's part of the game, that's part of life. I think a lot of the modalities that Fight Camp specifically offers with boxing and strength and conditioning is that you you're never comfortable, you're always in a place of uncomfortability onto the next thing. You're always I'm always in my programming doing something different to give you a different view, to give you a different look, so that when the things that life happen, you're able to adapt no matter what it is, no matter how hot it is, no matter how hard it is, no matter how uh unreasonable it is, you're able to kind of just stay calm and cool and collected and fight forward. So that's what you you know, you mentioned some of the anecdotes and things that I say during my coaching, is because fitness is one part of it, right? But there's other things in life that we need to kind of always be ready for. So I like to use those coaching moments to not just tell you bring your elbow in, bring your arm tight, but to to to fight and to stay disciplined right here in this moment, you know, because a lot of times we come into a workout, we're thinking about other things, we're thinking about what's next, we're focused about last week's past, and that doesn't serve you in that moment. So I always try to use my voice and my reason to encourage people to stay present right now, to stay disciplined because this moment adds up to the future. And then when something comes up and you need to be ready, you're already there. Um, discipline is something that we we all need, but I think specifically first responders, I mean, y'all lead them by example. I mean, it's really it's easy to say, oh I'll yeah, I'll lay down my life for somebody I love, but then to actually be in a position to go do it. Um, you know, credit to you guys, honestly. It's a it's it's it's something incredible.

Voiceover 26:52

I love one thing that you say pretty much every workout. I take it as a positive affirmation when I hear it, and that's you didn't show up here today to remain the same. That's a powerful thing to say. Um, what what's behind that philosophy?

SPEAKER_05 27:06

I'm glad I'm glad you're you're picking up what I'm putting down, David. This is a huge encouragement. Um I say it in my workouts in person. I say it when I train people one-on-one or in group settings or on flight camp workouts, anywhere. Um when when people show up to train, the goal should always be to make improvements. The goal should be to come away better, not to just go through the motions, not to just hear a dad joke, not to just check something off the box, right? So um, and even the strongest of us can sometimes still go through the motions. So I use those moments in my voice to encourage someone to remember your why and allowing that to discipline you and the fuel you going forward. Motivation, it can it can be a short little burst, like uh like a good coffee in the morning, but eventually that caffeine's gonna wear off. Staying disciplined and uh honing in on why we showed up, why are we fighting, who are we fighting for, where are we going towards, can keep us, I think, driving a little more forward more efficiently. So I I say that all the time because I want people to get better when they train with me. I personally take take it to heart that I want you to have your best workout ever. I want you to go into this day having the best day ever. Um, but I can only want that so much for you. You have to be the one to do it. You have to be the one to show up for yourself and then show out. And, you know, it it really comes down to progress. Like there's a a huge myth in the world that you can either go you know forward and make improvements, you can stay the same, or you can make a little regression and go backwards. You're not ever gonna stay the same. You're either going forward or you're going backwards. That that that lie that we can be stagnant and be okay, it has harmed a lot of us. So I want to always encourage people when I have the opportunity for them to get better and to get better now. Tomorrow's workout is not guaranteed, but you have this moment right now, so let's use it to make progress and to get better. So that's a little bit of the heart behind uh what I say. I know I say it a lot shorter, you know, uh and maybe a little a little less nice, but yeah, the heart behind it is for you to get better and for you to do it on your own.

Voiceover 29:30

Great. Absolutely love it. It's um, you know, we're all evolving, we're all kind of moving uh, you know, onward and upward is the is the intention, anyways.

SPEAKER_00 29:39

Introducing FDTs, the only gourmet tea crafted with first responders and their families in mind. Proudly firefighter and veteran-owned, our collection of gourmet organic teas is uniquely designed to honor those who are on the front lines to protect our communities. At FDT's, we believe in quality. That's why we source the freshest organic tea available, offering you the most popular flavors that not only excite your taste buds, but also bring comfort and relaxation to your daily life. Indulge in our specialty blends: classic Earl Grey, soothing chamomile, vibrant green tea with ginger root, decadent chocolate salty caramel black tea, and robust Irish breakfast. FDTs makes for a special and unique gift, perfect for any occasion or season. Taste the difference and show your appreciation for the rescuers in your life with FDTs. Available on FDTs.com and in our Etsy store, Fire Department Prince. Also available on Walmart.com as Fire Department Prince.

Voiceover 30:43

Coach, you mentioned earlier about presence, and I think that's a super important concept for first responders in particular. Um, we're in situations sometimes where we have to make really quick, very critical decisions, uh, sometimes life or death or having to do with you know pretty pretty heavy circumstances. How does boxing help you or anyone become more present and maybe more uh you know think more clearly more uh kind of in the moment?

SPEAKER_05 31:13

Great question again, David. Um personally, whenever I train, and and I've had this same conversation with a lot of my students, when you have a really tough combination that you're working on, or a really tough round coming up, uh, or a you know a footwork movement, something like that, most of the time, even you know, the most elite athlete kind of has to pause to think. You know, and the more experience you have, the less that pause is. But um, with boxing, most of the times, especially if I give someone a combination, like a one, two, three, two, five, three, two, slip, six, three, two, you you hear that you go, Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait, that's not just supernatural. My body doesn't just just do this all the time. I have to sit here in this moment and think, all right, it's a one and it's a two, then the three and the two. So as you box for the most part, um it it's it it has to be thought through, it has to be in this moment right now. I need to stay present here. Uh, I'm not gonna get this combination right if I'm so forward thinking about what happens next week or what events gonna come. I can't be in my best self and I can't improve here if I'm so distraught and thinking about this mistake I made three weeks ago that impacted this or this or this. Boxing makes you be present. I also think there's some other sports like you know, jujitsu is another one named swimming. I think you need to be in the present in the very moment because again, life or death sometimes does matter. Um, in boxing, specifically, if you are in a fight and you get distracted or you're looking over this way, there's a chance that you can get knocked out. Same thing in jujitsu, you can get choked out or swimming, you could drown and die. So you need to stay present in the moments. And I think that the more repetitions you go through, um, the more you're dialed in and staying present with your breath, um, with your rest, with your hydration, with your nutrition, the more tapped in we can be to be present. And then, of course, training like that, where I'm here, I'm in this moment, my eyes are here, my ear is here, my heart is here. When that when you train like that over time consistently, I think that starts to show up in your day-to-day, in your work, um, which is again something that I still wrestle with and struggle with every day. And I'm trying to get better at being present because wherever you are, that's where you are completely. So it's great to keep your mind there as well.

Voiceover 33:44

Yeah, I think you know, what you were talking about with say a more complicated uh combination that um, you know, first you have to sort of think through it, like figure it out how do I physically put these this combination of punches and moves together. Then what you're repeating it, not once, but several times, and then that repetition, what I'm finding is I get into this zen place of like, I'm not thinking about it anymore. Those the combination is starting to happen, it's starting to flow, and I'm in that flow state, which I love. I think that's one of the coolest things about doing this training. Like, um, talk a little bit more about that.

SPEAKER_05 34:20

Well, I mean, not all the time do we get into flow states, not uh all the right circumstances come into play. But as you mentioned it, David, I I do find myself every now and then and working with clients as well, one-on-one, it can happen. Um, it comes from repetitions, it comes from an abundance of time doing a certain craft. Um, but one thing for me, I think, with boxing, and this might even help you. Um, when I started, I was terrible. I don't think I was good at all. I won my first four fights by knockout, but like was I the best? No. So one thing that really helped me because I didn't uh I didn't I couldn't grasp all these combinations, and someone's yelling at me and telling them to me, and I just couldn't get it. And then I just started to say it back to myself. I started to uh use positive self-talk, but also telling my brain as I'm punching, all right, one, two, three, two, okay, uh my right's my one, it's two is three. I would just start saying it out loud. People would think I'm crazy. People would say this, why are you yelling so hard? Like I'm I want to get this down so that I can understand. So it was a helpful tool for me, and I always encourage people um, whatever you're doing, say it. Your brain's gonna function and your body's gonna react and move how you are telling it to. So it's okay to sound a little crazy if you want to get into a flow state. Sometimes it just requires us to again speak to what it is we want to do. Another aspect to I think getting into a flow state is controlling our breath. And you know, it's something that we all do passively, uh, but you know, it wasn't until a few years ago through some research um and then through some certifications, I started to understand that the breath is a little bigger than just an inhale and exhale. There's a lot of parts to it, and I think once you get to a training aspect where you're regimenting it a little bit, you're you're focusing in on your inhales, your exhales, your control during your rest, your control during your work that you can do far more than you ever thought you could. Um so again, I think a lot of that has to do with here and how you train yourself. So um I'm really big on trying to get into a flow state. It doesn't happen all the time, but uh when you're there, you know, people mention like a runner's high, it it can feel really good to just flow and move and you feel like you're invincible. So I don't tell people to always strive for that because you know it's a few and far between type of thing. Uh but just whenever you train, strive to do your best.

Voiceover 36:57

Great. Thanks for sharing that. And you know, I'm thinking firefighters, but any first responder, paramedics, um, police officers, a lot of motor skills that come into play, sometimes in rapid sequence and usually in highly you know stressful scenarios. So um again, I think having this training where you're you are moving quickly, you're you know, trying you're doing very coordinated um efforts that have a tangible result. And um, you know, I I found that for me it's starting to actually change my uh my reflexes. Like I'm um I'm I'm actually able to kind of react quicker um after doing the boxing training.

SPEAKER_05 37:37

Yeah, no, I love that. I think that that's really important, especially when timing, reaction, uh split thinking, well, you're gonna have to react. That's that's the name of the game, essentially. You know, if you're slow to moments like this, people's lives are at at stake. So um I'm a big fan of if you are aiming to do something, you should sort of train like that. Train as close as you can to that real life thing. Like if I'm training for a marathon, I mean I'm not just gonna ride my ride my bike all the time. If I am training to fight and to be in a ring, uh strength and conditioning is cool, but if I'm only lifting weights, I'm not really preparing myself for that. Um in in the realm of first responder life where you have to drop everything and move immediately. Um, I think training and you know modalities like boxing and kickboxing and strength and conditioning are vital and key. Um, I wouldn't recommend you know just riding a bike for just for you know, just to help you be the best that you can be. It might be great for an ex you know, an accessory type of exercise and something you do every now and then, but um, I highly would recommend first responders get involved with boxing, kickboxing, martial arts, anything like that where you're gonna have to train fast, go hard, and get better, and it'd be on you.

Voiceover 38:56

Uh, just want to remind everyone we're gonna be giving away a full fight camp package for our website. It's respondertv.com. Go to the tab at the top that says fight camp and you'll get to the contest form to submit to become uh eligible to win this fight camp package. Hey, first responders, we have an incredible opportunity just for you. One lucky winner is going to walk away with a free fight cam package valued at $799. Thanks to the amazing partnership between Fight Camp and Responder Resilience, you could kickstart your fitness journey in a whole new way. So, what's in the fight cam package? You get a freestanding boxing bag and ring, white fight cam boxing gloves, fight cam console with four trackers, fight cam quick wraps and the kickboxing angle wraps, and the heart rate monitor. Fight camps trainers help you level up with fun, effective, motivating workouts, so don't miss your chance to win. Simply head over to respondertv.com, click on the fight cam tab at the top of the page, make sure to enter before doing. 21st, 2025. Get ready to transform your fitness routine. Go to responderTV.com. Enter by clicking on the fight camp tab at the top of the page. You must enter by June 21st, 2025. Good luck. We got some good questions here that I'd love to run by you. Okay. When life gets hard, what's the question you ask yourself to keep going?

SPEAKER_05 40:30

When life gets hard, I think I come back to the why. I I come back to the why am I doing what I'm doing in this moment right now? Is this serving me and helping me go towards that goal and the why I got started? Or is this something that is not important? Um I think when life gets hard, which is all of everybody experiences some aspect of life being hard, um we're all going to get knocked down. It's not a matter of of if, it's a matter of when. And I think the more we understand our why and we have that driving us, the faster we can rise up onto our feet. You know, whether that why is is for personal reasons or for uh your faith or for your family, I think having that in the forefront of your brain um doesn't necessarily take away all the pain. It doesn't necessarily take away the hard work that you have to do, but I think it can realign your discipline immediately and get you back to where you need to go. So I ask my why all the time. Um, and I want to encourage everyone else to understand why they're doing what they're doing, why are they showing up to work, why are they showing up to this workout, why they're showing up uh for these extra things outside of all of that. And um, yeah, allow that to be at the forefront and maybe help shift and shape where you need to go.

Voiceover 41:53

So important. Um, I think a lot of times I found in First Responder World where we do the job for decades sometimes, and you know, we came into it with a very clear mission and purpose and drive. And sometimes over time we lose a little bit of sight of what that why is. So uh thank you for putting the spotlight on that. Okay, another question I have for you is um, and we love talking about resilience on this show. So um what's a moment in your life that changed everything that didn't feel big at the time?

SPEAKER_05 42:26

Um, moving, you know, moving my life from from the east coast to the west coast was um to me at the time, and I'll say, I mean, most people think if you take a cross-country move, it's not the biggest deal. Uh, but for me, uh, as a young 20-something year old, it it it just felt like the next season. It felt like this is the next thing that I want to do. I know I was leaving the land of my mother and father, and I was taking a leap of faith and just trusting God in this. But uh looking back on it, I kind of went into leaving everything and starting new really flippantly and just kind of just went with the flow about it. However, looking back on it 10 years from now, it was one of the most important things I've ever done: leaving comfort, leaving family, leaving what I knew to embark on a journey on my own. Um, when I came to California back in 2015, um I came with nothing. I I literally came with uh maybe the clothes in my back. I did have a car, I got to sleep on my sister's couch. Um, I had you know a church family and I had a job at UFC Gym, but that was it. And I had no idea what I was doing. I knew I just wanted more, and I knew I wanted to step into purpose. And you know, now looking back on it, you know, I've been able to make a pretty decent living. I've been able to, you know, uh find community and find friends that I know will last a lifetime here. Um I found a wife, I found a beautiful bride who I I love and adore, and we now have two beautiful kids and have made a home out of this great state. But at the time, uh I didn't think any of this was gonna be here. I didn't think I would ever work for a company like Fight Camp or start my own companies or again be a dad. And looking back on it, it was that small little leap of faith just to just to go that I think was been one of the greatest impacts in my life and my family's lives ever.

Voiceover 44:30

You know, it's impactful here, and uh all of us need to kind of remind ourselves that we have to sometimes proceed and go out of the comfort zone uh with just some faith to you know give us give us the inspiration to move forward. So uh it's very powerful. I appreciate that. Thanks for having us. Yeah, absolutely. You're welcome. Uh let's just finish with this question. What lasting message do you have for our listeners about the intersection of boxing, mental health, and let's put in the demanding role of first responders? How do we kind of sum it all up?

SPEAKER_05 45:06

First responders are our first for a reason. They you, right? Let's just let's call it what it is, you lay down your life. You put yourself in uncomfortable positions every day to ensure the safety and health and the betterment of others around you is a very selfless role in itself. But how do you pour from an empty cup? You can't. So as we talk about boxing, as we talk about mental resilience, as we talk about life, um I want to encourage you to pour into yourself. You have to, whether that's rest, whether it's training, whether it's uh an activity that you enjoy, you need to do it for you. But also, again, in that selfless act, you need to pour into yourself so that you can continue to pour out into others. And I think that's why I emphasize training so much. We don't have a guarantee that next week or tomorrow's workout will be here. But we do have these moments today. And every day we get 86,400 moments that we get to maximize and utilize. So today, if you have an opportunity to make progress, take it. Why would you not? If you have an opportunity to be better than you were from the day before, even if it's 1%, take it and don't look back. My encouragement to you is to live life with no excuses, to make no regrets, and to maximize every single day to the best of your abilities. Make these movements matter, make these moments count because they do, and because you do. And uh yeah, hit that back hard.

Voiceover 46:59

Okay, yeah. Yeah, that was that was great. That was liquid goal. And I think you hit on something that is critical, and that's um, you know, first responders are really good at taking care of others, but not necessarily so good at taking care of ourselves. And that cup can tend to get empty um rather quickly. So so important to fill it, and thank you for putting the light on that because um it's something that we all need to talk about and think about. Well, coach, it has been an absolute pleasure speaking with you and to kind of meet you and have a conversation. I just want to appreciate you for all that you're doing to help people kind of become their you know the best version of themselves. So um, thank you for coming on and being with us today.

SPEAKER_05 47:38

Thank you so much for the opportunity. Truly appreciate you and really hope you had the best day ever, man.

Voiceover 47:44

Thank you. Thank you. Remember to like and subscribe, YouTube responder resilience, Facebook, responder TV, LinkedIn, Apple Podcasts, Spotify. Please go to our website, respondertv.com for past episodes and guest information. Till next time, stay safe, be kind to yourself. Take care of the video, and then we'll see if you want to see what we're gonna do.