So I’m three weeks away from my fight, I have this whole week and next week left of hard training and then the week after that is the week of my fight. Basically all I do that week is rest and recover and cut the last few pounds to make weight. Before I know it, it will be fight time.
This is my tenth pro fight and I’ve noticed something this camp that I noticed in every one of my other camps. Loneliness. Yeah that’s right, I get lonely. I know, I know, doesn’t sound very macho but it’s true.
And when I talk about being lonely I don’t mean in refraining from sex for a certain amount of time. Some fighters believe in that but I don’t. I mean lonely like really being lonely, it’s hard to explain but I’ll do my best to let you into my lonely world.
Here’s an example of how my day goes. I wake up a little bit before 6 a.m., I get up, brush my teeth and throw some gear on for a quick workout. Usually I’ll either go for a four mile run or hit up the elliptical to wake my body up and help remove some of the lactic acid from the previous day’s training.
Keep in mind that at this point everyone is usually still asleep at my house while I’m in the garage sweating. By the time I get done with my workout my girlfriend is getting ready for work.
I take this time to make myself breakfast; usually egg whites with avocados, spinach and a vegetable juice that Eric Triliegi has me make.
She usually leaves for work once I finish eating my breakfast. After breakfast I answer some emails and get my things ready for my next training session. And off I go, usually at 8:30 a.m. or 9 a.m. at the latest. So far, I’ve already worked out once and had breakfast, both by myself.
My next training session is always with one of my coaches, either Gil Martinez my boxing coach, Sim Go my grappling coach or Sean Spees my strength and conditioning coach.
This is the first time that I get to hang out with someone but it’s not for very long because it’s only for an hour and half or so. But not only that, 90% of our training session is them telling me what to do. It’s not like we’re sitting there playing Bridge or something.
After my workout I drive home and have lunch by myself once again. I got used to eating by myself. Once lunch is over I do my best to keep myself entertained.
Usually I watch some fights or a documentary on Netflix and then take a nap afterword. When I wake up it’s time to fuel my body for my next training session so that means another meal and you guessed it, by myself.
I hang out until it’s time for me to go to the gym for Pro Class which usually consists of sparring. And the crazy part is that even though I’m there with about 20 other guys I’m still a one man wolf pack.
During sparring it feels like it’s Me vs. Them. Yes we’re on the same team but their job is to beat me up and get me better. It’s hard to explain, I know they’re my friends but when you’re training for a fight you have to put your friendship on hold and get down to business.
Sparring usually lasts for an hour and a half and after sparring the last thing I want to do is hang out. My only concern is to recover for tomorrow’s workouts.
I head home and shower up before making dinner for the family. Now it’s time to hang out and have some quality family time. Well yes and no. We eat together but because I have to make sure I put the proper foods in my body that will help me perform for my next workout I can’t eat what they eat.
It sucks that the only time that I get to eat and hang out with someone is at dinner and usually I can’t eat what they eat. It’s worse when we have to go out for dinner. Try ordering a grilled chicken salad with no dressing, croutons or cheese at Buffalo Wild Wings and see if the waiter doesn’t give you a funny look.
So that’s how my day goes, three workouts, one of them by myself and the other two with my coaches and teammates. But like I said, when we workout we aren’t sitting there hanging out playing Bridge, it’s all about business. Get in, workout, and go home to recover for the next workout. Four to five meals and all of them by myself except for dinner.
-Uly
P.S. – You can follow me on Twitter @uselessgomez.
P.S.S. – Here’s some of my trainers that you should follow for more updates and training advice:
- @EricTriliegi for nutrition info
- @Mastermitter for striking
- @SimGo for grappling
“The Ulysses Gomez Experiment” is a weekly ProMMAnow.com blog series written by world top 10 ranked flyweight Ulysses Gomez as he prepares for his Aug. 5 fight at Tachi Palace Fights 10. “The Ulysses Gomez Experiment” is part of our ongoing series of exclusive content written by individuals involved in the mixed martial arts industry.