Meet Dan DeWelt

The following link is the Hall of Fame page for Dan DeWelt. I still can't believe he is 64 years old....

www.scottishmasters.org/hofdandewelt.html

I HATE RULES....and LIMITATIONS

I study and train constantly, I am just never satisfied with anything I do in any endeavor. Something that aggravates me to no end is people who adhere to the rules and limitations of self proclaimed know it alls. I read the newest and latest training information as soon as it comes out, just so I can learn more. Not so much for the sake of learning but to see what I can do to make my body and mind more efficient in every capacity. Something that I have realized in the last year is that the human body can do so much more than I ever previously thought. I once believed that you couldn't train hard multiple times in a day without dying after a few days. I finally decided to throw out the "rules" of training that I had heard and read about over the years and decided to push myself past my perceived limitations. For a while now I have been training 4 times a day minimum and in some cases five times for five days a week. Some people would say that is extreme over training. I have found out that experience is the best and most harsh teacher.

No one knows your body like you do. No one can push you to your potential and beyond except you.... The main thing that I have done is listen to my body and train accordingly, if I find myself not mentally into a session then I change it up, if I feel that my performance on the mat is regressing then I change things. Some days you feel like you can lift the world and some days you feel like the world fell on you....

Don't ever believe you are average or mediocre...

One of our own...

Yesterday I received a call from our Dragon Spirit "Doc" Matt and he informed me that he tore his achillies tendon yesterday while playing flag football. He is doing well and will be having it repaired as soon as possible. He is a great athlete and warrior and I am sure he will come back stronger than ever. My thoughts and prayers are with him.

Yet another great workout...

I woke up this morning feeling much better than I had since Friday. I honestly wasn't feeling very energized for my workout due to my being sick the last 3 days. I got to the gym and began warming up when Dan walked in (the 64 year old Athlete). The second I noticed him I was ready to throw some weight around. His excitement for training and energy just fill the air, he has an inspiring presence. We talked between sets as usual each telling training stories and such.... when it was time to lift again we stopped then resumed the conversation directly after the set. I hit several new personal bests today just because of Dan's energy.

I remembered another one of my favorite quotes today as I was training and talking to Dan...

"Complacency is the root of mediocrity".... Mediocrity happens because we become complacent in one or more facets of our life. Honestly I had become pretty complacent in regards to my weight training. Until Josh Elmer began training with me I had not pushed myself as hard as I should have in the gym for quite some time. Then with the opening of the Powerhouse gym I gained even more motivation, to top it off I meet Dan Dewelt my first day training at the new gym and I train harder than I have ever trained before.

A guess my point to this rant is that whatever your motivations are do your best to not become complacent in your current training or abilities, always push to reach "The Next Level"...

Complacency can sneak up on you....it did me...

The infamous 5x5min rounds....

On Friday March 21st Josh came to try the early morning 5 round workout. I must admit that I am impressed by his eagerness to complete all rounds at all cost. Right at the end of the 3rd grueling round he had to use every ounce of will power to not decorate the mat with his pre-workout drink. Thankfully he made it out the door right after the round was over. He did press on and did complete all 5 rounds. Good job Josh....

Tire Flips

Dragon Spirit's own Josh "The Beast" Elmer flipping the 250 pound tire.

An Athlete at any age...

Just finished my first official workout at the Power House gym....man did I feel like a toys r us kid in that place. It was hard for me not to do every exercise I could think of. As soon as I got there I began warming up with 80 pound dumbbell snatches and an older gentleman approached me and asked me if I was preparing for the Scottish Games....I replied "no sir I am a fighter and a MMA Coach", he said the reason he asked that is because he has very rarely ever seen anyone do that particular exercise. Which I have never seen anyone outside the internet do the exercise either. After talking for a while I learned that he is a 3 time National Scottish Games Champion and he is 64 YEARS OLD!!!! He is not huge by bodybuilding standards but he has the "power" look, he is dense and thick, he was moving some big poundages too on every exercise he did. He was very down to earth and just loves to compete as an athlete, he doesn't even care if he wins money or wins the competitions.... he loves the entirety of his sport. It was an honor to meet this 64 year old athlete and just reaffirmed my drive to work hard and never place limitations on my self. He even gave me tips on making my dumbbell snatch much better...

Always on my mind....

You know...there is a quote that is constantly in my head and has been firmly beat into me over the years. I am not sure who originally said it but whoever it was, was a genius.

Here it is...

For what level of mediocrity will you settle for?

That goes through my mind everyday, all day long. Although no one has ever accused me of being average or mediocre at anything I do it still pushes me and drives me on a daily and sometimes minute by minute basis. I hate the term average or mediocre...hell... I hate the term "good".... Most people think it is great to be called "good" at something. There is another quote that comes to mind which states "The good is the enemy of the best"...have no clue who wrote it but it is a good one as well. I honestly do not think that I am "good", "great", or the best at anything. I will not be solidified by such terms, I have an insatiable desire to improve in every aspect of the martial arts and life in general. I can never be to fast, strong, technical, or agile enough. There is no such thing as enough in my world..(so I think anyway).

Last week I was humbled by a 10 year old girl who is in Mr. Gilberts Junior Kenpo class. She is also an amazing gymnast as well. She may be tiny but her core strength and pound for pound strength out does most people I have ever met or trained with. I did her 5min abdominal routine with her and of course was pathetic in my performance. I loved the fact that I could not do what she was capable of doing, which may sound strange to some. I am a firm believer the you can never be "humbled" enough...notice I didn't say humiliated. It was refreshing to see someone, correction.... an ATHLETE at her age to have that kind of core strength. Some may argue that she doesn't weigh very much or that gymnastics is way different than MMA....who cares...strength is strength especially when it is displayed under complete control. I respect and admire elite athletes in every sport...those that shatter the boundaries of the good and the best, who seek that ever elusive perfection knowing they will never fully obtain it but never stop trying to grab onto it with both hands regardless of what others "believe".

So the next time you hear the "lazy" voice in your head screaming and begging you to stop, remember to ask yourself "For what level of mediocrity will you settle for".....

The 9pm class after a grueling training session. I have a great group of warriors that give me their all and more in class.

Fantastic job guys..... just wait till Thursday.....insert evil sadistic laugh....

Its Official

Last night our very own Josh "the Beast" Elmer made the cardio room of the Power House Gym a hard core training domain. I am pretty sure he threw up everything but his shoes....

Last nights 7pm training session was Ruthless as usual....great job guys.

9PM Class

For all of you that were at class on March 6th....excellent job. Everyone did at least three 5min rounds of positional grappling, and that isn't easy to do by any means.

DSMA Videos

Dragons Spirit Martial Arts student Matt demonstrating the ever popular med ball slam.

Brocks Next Opponent

According to Sherdog.com, Coleman and Lesnar will square off at UFC 87 on Aug. 9, which will take place in Minneapolis, Minn.