There is one common thread amongst all MMA fights. If one fighter gases, he usually gets beat up pretty bad from that point on. My experience says there is no feeling worse than being man handled by a professional MMA fighter. As a strength coach, I like to actively train with the fighters I work with. Well I used to. As long as I live, I will never forget the feeling of working out and wrestling for the first time with Lew Polley, Jesse Taylor, Thierry Sokoudjou, Dan Henderson, and Tarec Saffiedine. My first time working at Quest as a strength coach had me learning a lot about wrestling. I took part in an "easy session" and at the end of the15 minute warm-up, I got teamed up with Hendo. I was tired, he was just starting. At 20 minutes I had been tossed more than 20 times, and had tapped to his clinch. There was more. Next stop was Sokoudjou. At 21 minutes into practice, my "friend" tossed me about three feet with the fastest hip toss Id ever seen. I laid on the mat in a pool of sweat, needed a minute to love life again. While I took some deep breaths Sokoudjou skipped. We got a new partner ever five minutes. I was everyones "break". It went on like this for 39 more minutes, one beating to another. Single leg takedown drills, wrestling for top position. I never once threatened anyone for position. I did however, threaten to throw up on Jesse. I think back to that practice every time I train in the gym. I realize that no matter how physically fit I get, its a whole different world to be on a mat and working with pros. The sport of MMA is unbelievably physically demanding. To this day, four years later, I have not been able to mirror the intensity. There is one solid trick to try to get as close as possible. Disrupt your breathing. If you have never played sports with a mouth guard then you have missed out on something special. However, the athletes I work with in MMA are using a brand new guard by SISU and its a game changer. The athletes can actually breath, talk, and drink while its in. Putting in a mouth guard while you run is the most basic way to change your breathing, and raise the intensity. If you jump to YouTube, you can see some of my videos where I train with the "Training Mask". The goal is not to create high altitude training, the goal is to make it tough to get a full deep breath. That forces your intercostal muscles, and diaphragm to work harder. Its the same situation as having a 200 + lbs MMA superstar on your chest, or with their arms digging into your ribs. When that happens, you cant get a full breath. When you do your sprint training, try putting in a mouth guard or incorporating a training mask device. That was the focus for me this week. Tuesday and Thursday I did my cardio sessions with a SISU mouth guard, and they went like this. 10 minutes to warm up on the treadmill, adjust to the mouth guard. - 8 x 20 second on 10 second rest sprints on the treadmill. 10 on incline, and fast as safely possible- 8 x 30 second on 30 seconds of rest bike sprints- Then back to the treadmill- 4 x 30 second of back peddling 15 seconds of rest. Incline at 6 and as fast as safely possible- Then a 5 minutes jog without a mouth guard, and then 5 minutes to cool down Takes roughly 30 minutes to get it all done. It feels terrible while its going on, but the recover and energy burst from finishing will be a huge boost to your entire day. I said it before in this article, you cant boo any athlete until you try the basics of the training. Most pros can do this type of cardio with their eyes closed. They gas out because there is nothing that can prepare them for the entire event, and the intensity of being in a real life fight. 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On the day after Billy Horschel posted his 12th straight round in the 60s, won his second straight tournament against a world-class field and picked up an additional $10 million bonus as the FedEx Cup champion, Watson was kicking back in his seat at a Kansas City Royals game. SOCHI, Russia -- The amazing ride for Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse didnt end at the Sanki Sliding Center. Canadas Olympic bobsled champions received one of the Games highest honours, chosen to carry Canadas flag into Sundays closing ceremony. "Wow. Its truly an honour to represent what our Canadian athletes are all about," Moyse said. "If we look back to the Canadian teams performance back in Vancouver (in 2010) we can see that a new culture of winning has truly emerged. "The fight that Kaillie and I demonstrated here reflects the fight of all of our Canadian athletes. We are strong. We are winter. We have the strength of a nation behind us. We were raised on ice and in snow. "And as we said in our note to the Canadian hockey team, we also fight to the bitter end." Only twice before has Canada had two people share flag duties: pairs figure skaters Jamie Sale and David Pelletier in 2002, and rowers Marnie McBean and Kathleen Heddle in 1996. Womens hockey star Hayley Wickenheiser carried the flag into the opening ceremony in Sochi. Humphries, from Calgary, and Moyse, from Summerside, P.E.I., displayed steely nerves in their come-from-behind victory. The Canada 1 sled had a gap of 11-100ths of a second to close entering the final run. Moyse delivered with a strong push at the start, then Humphries took over from there. In the end the USA-1 sled came up short on its final run, giving Canada the win by a tenth of a second. "We were able to show the world that were fierce, were proud, were determined, were not going to settle for anything less than being the very best, and were going to do it in our own way," Humphries said. "Heather and I in our race. . . neither of us gave up and we knew we had a nation behind us, pushing us, and not giving up either, and that gave us the strength to really go all in and never let up." Humphries and Moyse were underdogs when they won at the Vancouver Games four years ago but were favourites this time around. The Canadians had at least silver locked up after their final run at the Sanki Sliding Center, and then had a nervous two-minute wait in the finish area while Americans Elana Meyers and Lauryn Williams completed their run. The pressure seemed to get to the Americans, who came up one-10tth of a second short with a wobbly run, meaning Canadas women were golden once again.dddddddddddd Humphries and Moyse received the flag news very early Sunday morning. Theyd been at the bobsled track late watching the Canadian men race. When the 28-year-old Humphries got the call from Canadian chef de mission Steve Podborski, she thought shed pocket-dialled him. "He was like No, I called you," Humphries said. "To get that phone call to be told that you get to walk into a ceremonies with your countrymen behind you, your teammates, your family, and to know that youve been chosen as one to represent. . . goes beyond just words." As the women pointed out, they represent Canada almost from coast to coast. After the Vancouver Games, there were references about the two being meat and potatoes -- Alberta beef and P.E.I. potatoes. "That steak and potatoes, that gold-medal meal," Humphries said. "We tie in everywhere from coast to coast, and its not just (an honour) to represent our country, but to represent the athletes who are here, the best of the best who already represent our country so well." Podborski said the bobsledders embody the values the Canadian Olympic team set for the Sochi Games -- stoked, proud, inspired, fierce and unstoppable. "By defending their Olympic championship in a four-run come-from-behind battle that was clinched in literally the last few seconds, the last few metres," he said. The Canadian Olympic Committee had "an embarrassment of riches," to choose from as well, he added. Among other likely candidates: womens and mens curling champions Jennifer Jones and Brad Jacobs, moguls champion Alex Bilodeau, and sisters Justine and Chloe Dufour-Lapointe sisters, gold and silver medallists in womens moguls. Hours before they were to march into Fisht Olympic stadium, Humphries was hoping to control her nerves while Moyse was worried about crying. "Im so nervous and so excited for it and I was not even close to this nervous competing by any means," Humphries said, laughing. "For me the nerves will probably be to try to get through it without sobbing," Moyse added. "Its an extremely emotional feeling, so if I get through it without crying, that will be a huge step." ' ' '