Speaking to Newstalk's Off The Ball last month, Pascal Collins, owner of the Celtic Warrior gym in Corduff - of which Conor McGregor is a regular visitor - spoke about the UFC featherweight champion's perfectionist streak.
Collins believed this trait to be something which sets the Dubliner apart from others - the desire to train smart and so minimise attrition to his body or - as John Kavanagh puts it 'upgrade the software without damaging the hardware'.
In an interview with IMMAF.org Kavanagh spoke about turning awway from the 'macho image' of going to war during training camps.
I like that our message is about training smart rather than training hard. That’s a side of the sport that I’m very interested in and I educate myself on. I’m talking about sparring less, sparring more sensibly and with lighter contact in the gym. Certainly when I began there was a sort of macho image about having wars in the gym, and that’s something we’ve tried to turn around. You’ve seen Conor talk about upgrading the software while keeping the hardware intact, and there’s videos of him with Ido Portal keeping the body healthy rather than lifting big weights and hitting each other hard.
During the build-up to McGregor's win at UFC 194, he was seen working out with his 'movement coach' Ido Portal. Kavanagh believes that given the inherent short career span of a fighter, it is vital to incorporate low impact coaching like this.
I can’t go on to Facebook without a sponsored ad popping up with some strength and condition place now offering ‘movement classes’ – that’s just worldwide now. I’m a huge Rickson Gracie fan. Anybody can watch Choke, it’s over twenty years old – an old documentary with Rickson Gracie getting ready for the All Japan Vale Tudo Open, and in it he’s doing all these drills that are very similar to the ones that Conor and Ido are doing. As the saying goes there’s nothing new under the sun, but it’s nice that someone with Conor’s platform is rejuvinating the message, again giving the message of looking after your body and keeping healthy. Your competitive peroid in martial arts or any sport is narrow enough, but the ability to move freely and pain free is a goal for anybody throughout their life.
Picture credit: Ramsey Cardy / SPORTSFILE
