16. April 2010 by Todd Templeton.

First off, I have been away. The work/life balance I maintain sometimes inhibits my ability to provide my 2 cents as often as I would like to but hey…I try. Make no mistake, I have forced a way to find my way into the gym from time to time, which I found gives me an interesting perspective as I update my notes here.

They are brief, but bear with me..here I go.

Wait, in no specific order either…

Alright here I go for real:

- Dang ya’ll…Don got kinda good. I don’t remember when I left that Don can do a few of the things I saw him do just the other day. Now let me say that I have been gone for the lions share of the last 5 weeks and Don has been doin WORK! He somehow maintained a balance in his own time away and was able to come back and train well right away it seems. He was a different animal from when I rolled with him just 5 weeks ago!!! He went from a rough white belt to a technical, thinking jiu-jitsu player. That in 35 days folks.
- 35 days of hard work however does not always save you when we are talking about jiu-jitsu. Experience saved me from getting choked out by Don. I wasn’t scared…but I was well….concerned about how Don hoodwinked me into thinking I was safe…when I may have been..dare I say…in danger…..of getting choked by Don. But then I did a little of this..a little of that and Marvin captured how things ended for Don that day.
- Note to my boy John Rambo, I didn’t finish that triangle Don noted I hit. You got out. We continued and if you can find time off as a professional EMT bring your ass in so we can punch each other in the face more. Do it.
- Mervin’s pictures are as real as it gets.
- Don, if Mervin can make you look cool. He must be putting in work. Hahaha.
- The amateur scene at West Coast is HOT. Like for real hot. There is a new breed at West Coast. But there is always room for a crafty veteran. I know of one (at the very least) that is up for the challenge.
- There is no better cure of jet lag than getting punched in the face.
- I am going to fight in June.
- Having 3 boys makes things have perspective.
- Props to Frankie Edgar and can we please just get back to smashing people Mr. Silva.

Let’s see is there anything else worth blogging about…oh yeah there is one more thing. DON COMPETES FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS WEEKEND. He is ready, able and as all of you have seen…willing.

Don, my brother in arms, legs, and overall submissions. Good luck, god speed and defend the neck! Just remember, an ugly win is still a win. And with a face like yours, any win you get will be ugly.

Mervin, keep the camera close; it’s only a matter of time before you literally get that million dollar frame. For real. I hope it’s me doing something good!

As far as I go, I am in the rebuild stage, and I feel great. Stay tuned everyone.

I want to see updates on my warrior spirit challenge, ya’all must have forgotten! It’s summer time, let’s go!

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26. January 2010 by Todd Templeton.

Don, my new brother in arms, you are beginning to see results…in both your weight and your ability on the mats. People are beginning to take note; all people really want to see are results and sometimes they will go to extreme measures to get them. Is the fact that you are learning a combat sport anymore extreme than some of the crazy diets and fad exercise programs out there that hundreds of thousands of people are paying top dollar for? I don’t think so.

After reviewing some “high level” stats for the blog, we are getting something like 300 hits a day! Where are all you people? Let’s see some comments out there! We want to hear what you people think! What’s cool about the blog (my well written, concise posts would be a good example)…How about what should be better about the blog? What questions are out there? Throw them out there! We want all of you to let your voice be heard here!

I have an idea, and I am going to call it my “warrior spirit challenge”. This challenge is directed to all of you…and it is related to how are you channeling the interest/motivation you have in/from One Man’s Quest.

Are you taking the stairs instead of the elevator? Are you eating grilled chicken instead of fried? Are you thinking about getting that heavy bag for the garage? Freaking do it! Do you want to come in and see first hand what Don has gotten himself into? We can make that happen! How about lacing up those old Chuck Taylors and hitting the courts! (Don, leave the white socks with the 3 red stripes pulled up to your knees at home please).

Just do something, anything. That is important to everyone involved in this project…call it spreading the love. It’s how BJJ can save your life.

Ok moving on, I have a brief story to share. This last Saturday most of our team was down at the 2010 Gracie Nationals BJJ tournament (where our team medaled in a number of different age ranges, weights and skill levels, great job team!) so I was asked to cover the class. I did so (see Reignman gets technical) and after class I decided I was going to take a small run at Don.

Our little session started with an “accidental” head butt, and ended with Don blowing snot bubbles and looking semi-rabid with this whole frothing at the mouth going on. It was ok, he wasn’t permanently damaged. But I did call him later because I figured he would be in “needs a hug mode”…but he was fine…he was even talking about the plan for next week. Awesome.

Anyways, not only did Don practice all the things he has learned, under pressure, he executed almost all the defensive (and even some offensive) basics without thinking, only reacting. That’s an amazing thing to have programmed already and is probably the thing I am most impressed about so far.

Let’s keep this rolling, and love us or hate us, give us feedback!

Maybe we should take a survey on which color leotard Don should wear to Grapplers quest! I say leopard print! It would fit your home décor Don!

Posted in Notes from Todd | 1 Comment »

12. January 2010 by Todd Templeton.

So, Don has now had some mat time and a small taste of what it is going to take to become a skilled BJJ practitioner. He has a minor injury, and he has been tempted by pizza and Mexican food. He has had life get in the way of training (damn cable guy) and he still seems energetic. Awesome.

Now, on to a little feedback.

Efficiency, patience and fitness needs to improve. Efficiency and patience go hand in hand.

Basic skills are coming together well.

I would encourage Don to really start to get to know his teammates/training partners. Start to learn what each one of them can offer you on this road. It’s a cliché but its true…you are only as good as your training partners.

Don’t keep official track of “wins” or “losses”. Now when I say “official” I mean it’s ok to think about end results in your head…but think of the wins and losses on a much more granular scale…think about positions lost…think about how much energy was exerted because of poor execution…those kinds of things. This will help you on your learning curve.

On that note, getting to know your training partners is a beautiful thing. You will learn how diverse of a crowd is attracted to this sport. You will learn that West Coast is a truly a living organism and that when used correctly can grow into something wonderful.

And remember, you don’t have to do all this in one night…start small…establish goals that are attainable…make initial changes into habit…then set new goals.

And last but not least….when playing basketball….get back on defense. And your shot selection needs to improve. When in doubt just give me back the rock and watch the magic unfold! And please stop calling me the “White Kobe”.

Posted in Notes from Todd | 2 Comments »

7. January 2010 by Todd Templeton.

This is a calling, a calling to those who want to make change. Large or small they start with a choice. Don has chosen, and the choice he has made will not be easy. Trust me, I know first hand.

Let me introduce myself. My name is Todd Templeton. I am a 34 year old father of 3 boys that works a full time job for a major health insurance company in Ventura County. About 4 years ago I decided to learn the art of Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu while juggling parenthood and a career and believe me, I have never looked back.

Now, after a 5-0 amateur MMA career, and after making my professional MMA debut in October 2009 (unfortunately with less than stellar results but whatever, it changes nothing) I have been presented with an opportunity to share. And share I will.

In the coming months those of you that read this blog will see the trials and tribulations, the successes and the failures, the blood, the sweat and the tears that goes into making the CHOICE to learn and compete in a combat sport and institute real change.

Make no mistake; BJJ is a combat sport….. there may be blood… there will be tears and you can bet your ass there will be sweat.

When I started my journey 4 short years ago I was 190lbs of chocolate chip cookie dough…now I am a professional MMA fighter at 145lbs.

How does one accomplish something like that? You may be saying to yourself that a 45lbs weight loss has got to be unusual results (you know like the fine print in the weight watchers commercials says “results may vary”). I admit it, it was unusual results….but what was it that made me special….what miracle was it that kept me going and triggered such change?

The answer is simple. Absolutely nothing more than choices. Choices that were very difficult to see and comprehend sometimes but over time were made easy because I found something I love.

Soon you will begin to see the kinds of choices Don will be presented with. They start with things like dragging his beaten, broken and sore body out of bed, backing away from the pop tarts and Mc-Ribs, hitting the weights instead of the bottle, coming to classes, getting the proper amount of rest vs. staying up all night….and the best thing about it is all of this will be documented for public consumption. We are all going to be witness.

What Don is doing takes courage, if he loses focus or desire, everyone will see….and that is pressure. What captivates me most about this project is that I believe that Don is taking this challenge on for all the right reasons. If someone takes on this kind of challenge and doesn’t really want to succeed, they won’t, plain and simple. If I got that vibe from Don, I wouldn’t be a part of this project. I mean that.
If you want to compete in BJJ (and that is the choice Don has made), that is one thing this sport does well, it naturally filters out the pretenders. That may sound harsh but it’s the truth.

This also means that this blog may not always be sugar and spice and everything nice. There may come a time where one of the key players in this project has very candid things to say. The readers of this blog may not always agree with what is being said, heck Don might not either…but tough crap. Coaching isn’t easy, and I know that at West Coast, we expect nothing but the best…and that is what we plan on bringing out in Don. The best. Period.

I promise I will always strive to be upbeat, positive and goal oriented when providing feedback….but be prepared to see me go a little Bobby Knight if I see Don slipping.

Coach Brian, Coach Martha, Coach Mervin and I all want to see Don succeed. We know he isn’t special (I mean let’s face it, those of you that know Don know he isn’t very athletic, he’s out of shape, he’s ugly and he’s old) but that doesn’t mean that his goals are unattainable. It’s just going to take some work. Don knows this and he is all in. Are you?

Now let’s get to work. And stay tuned. This is just the beginning.

Posted in Notes from Todd | 3 Comments »