Recently I met a young man named Matt Hirsch who is a professional fighter. He is a professional ultimate fighter. At our first meeting I suggested to him that I could show him some things that would help his core strength and also his striking ability. He thought that it would be a good idea so we've been meeting twice per week to work out together.

We met yesterday and both of us started by going through pieces of the Intermediate Combat Endurance Training workout together. We went through about 25 minutes at a pretty good clip and Matt impressed me with his strength and endurance. After our Combat work we went to work on his boxing skills. He has very good hand and foot work. I was impressed.

Let me draw a picture of Matt for you. He is a former state champion high school wrestler who also went on to the Olympic trials. This was pretty incredible in that he didn't really have a coach at the time and made it as far as he did by working with other wrestlers and having the guts and willingness to work. He stands 6 feet tall and weighs a rock solid 230 pounds. It is his desire to move up to 240 pounds and grind with the big guys. In addition to being a strong, highly conditioned athlete Matt impresses with his cat like quickness and a willingness to follow instruction and learn.

I asked him about his training regimen and he mentioned that he lifts weights and does quite a bit of sprint training. Even though he is in very good shape he mentioned to me that he was very excited after our first conversation because he knew that he needed work on his core strength in order to become the fighter that he wants to be. In addition to the training that he does Matt also owns his own wood floor installation business.

I mentioned to you earlier that he is a young man. I guess he is young when compared to my 50 years but he must be considered older when looking at other ultimate fighters. He is 34 years old. His goal is to fight on the national stage very soon. He has had two professional fights and won both. The last fight he was paired against a pro fighter who had a 35 win 5 loss professional record and Matt won. He has a vision and a determination to get where he wants to go. Sometimes preparation and belief in oneself can win out over experience and normal thinking. After all, what great things were ever produced by people who think only average thoughts?

I'll keep you posted on Matt's progress. He is scheduled to fight again in April with the possibility of a fight or two before then. Keep an eye on this guy. He's got big plans for himself.

Here's to thinking big,

Fred Nicklaus