Martial arts brings many benefits to the lives of those who indulge in it.

Staying in shape, meeting great people, and living a stress free life are some of the multitude of benefits that training in martial arts can bring. 

Of course, learning the martial art and being able to defend on self is probably the biggest benefit.

Many who practice boxing, jiujitsu, muay thai, etc do it because of these reasons and as a complement to their other jobs. They see it as a hobby.

But what about those who want to test themselves further, and have the urge to compete. Who no longer just want to train for fun but to compete against other trained individuals ?

After all, there are few things that can compare with competing against someone who has been trained to knock you out or choke you out.

What are the steps needed to get there ?

Light heavyweight amateur boxer, Trevor Toledo,  gives his take.

“The most important thing is conditioning. When you’re training for fun , you can slack of here and there. Eat a slice of pizza or whatever but when you’re training with the goal to compete you have to be strict with yourself,” stated Toledo.

“I do a ton of ab conditioning exercises, run daily, and I watch my diet. You have to take your conditioning a whole new level. If you gas out in the fight, you’re done for. That’s not to forget the weight cutting part as well.”

“When you fight, you have to cut weight to make certain weight divisions. You do this so you’re not at a size disadvantage. Those who are not training to fight can ignore this, but this is huge if you do want to compete” stated Toledo.

“If you don’t make weight, the fight can be canceled, then all the hard work was for nothing.”

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Coach, Coach Nick has a similar answer.

“The most important thing if you want to compete, is to be consistent with your training. If you’re training as a hobby , then you can be more flexible with your schedule , but if you want to compete and be successful, you have to be disciplined,” stated Nick.

” If you tell us you want to compete, and you show consistency and improvement we are more than happy to help you win. We have great training partners here who can push you. It all depends on the person though and their work ethic.”

It is clear that martial arts training takes a more serious tone when the goal is to compete.

Optimal conditioning and consistency are two of the biggest things separating those who train as a hobby and aspiring fighters.

Like Coach Nick stated, it all depends on the individual and their work ethic.