Former UFC champ Miesha Tate shares tips, advice for fighters in a social distancing world

Fighters around the world are being faced with big challenges.

With the outbreak of coronavirus in the U.S. and many parts of the world, training for MMA has become difficult given the contact it requires. Many grappling and MMA gyms are closed in the U.S. since they classify as non-essential establishments. And with recommended social distancing stay-at-home orders from many state and local governments, even strength and conditioning work can be an issue for many fighters who don’t have the space or equipment at home.

Former UFC champion and current ONE Championship vice president Miesha Tate said she knows times are difficult for many, including fighters who are looking to progress in their careers despite the circumstances.

“It’s no longer possible for fighters to train, grapple – and that’s a pretty common theme across the world,” Tate told MMA Junkie Radio. “My advice would be to take the time to mentally train yourself. I’m a big believer in looking at how you want your career to go in your mind. I call it an act of meditation. It’s something I did a lot when I was a fighter. I would envision fights – winning, obviously. But I would envision everything.

“I would envision getting a takedown and my opponent getting back up and having to work for another takedown. I would envision adversity, and that’s something I really recommend to any fighter. Don’t just envision yourself winning. I mean, focus on that because that’s the goal. But if you mentally prepare yourself to win, and if you get in some trouble, you might not mentally be prepared for that. I think all likelihood the reality is that you might get in some trouble while you’re in a fight. It’s pretty likely, so envision.”

Apart from the mental aspect, which is known to play a huge role in combat sports, Tate thinks there are ways to address physical challenges, even at home.

“There’s still a lot you can do to stay in shape inside four walls,” Tate said. “There are people who are in jail and prison who stay in excellent shape, so you being quarantined a few weeks should not be an excuse to not stay in shape.

“There are wonderful things like burpees, pushups, situps and different kinds of body weight exercises you can do. So take the time to better yourself. You can view this as a negative, and it sucks, and you can cry about it and be upset. Or you can look at it as you have a lot of time to look at ways to better yourself, and there’s benefit from that. So those are my tips for fighters who are at home. There’s still a lot that can be done.”