yoga back health – Diego (Nightmare) Sanchez says the time is right to take down B.J. Penn – Yahoo! Canada News
January 25th, 2010 | 
Author:
Diego (Nightmare) Sanchez says the time is right to take down B.J. Penn – Yahoo! Canada News
Module body
Wed Dec 9, 7:28 PM
By Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
ADVERTISEMENT
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – He relaxes with yoga, meditates in a sensory deprivation tank, prays or pulls out an oxygen tank when he wants to relax after a workout.
But when it is time to fight, Diego (Nightmare) Sanchez’s eyes smoulder. He enters the arena, yelling “Yes” over and over again. And when the bell sounds, he rushes his opponent.
“It’s like going to battle, going to war,” Sanchez explains. “You better be ready.”
On Saturday night, in the biggest fight of his mixed martial arts career, Sanchez will see lightweight champion B.J. (The Prodigy) Penn waiting for him on the other side of the cage in the main event of UFC 107 at the FedExForum.
Sanchez (23-2) says the Hawaiian champion will find a street fighter from Albuquerque, N.M., in front of him, intent on taking away his championship belt.
“I go in with the mentality that ‘Oh it’s B.J. Penn, he’s got a knife in his pocket. I better take him out,”‘ Sanchez said Wednesday. “That’s the mentality that I have. I’m going to take him out, I’m going to finish him . . . before he takes me out.
“I flip the switch and when the switch flips, its just like that movie ‘Over the Top’ when he (Sylvester Stallone) turns his hat back,” he added. “There’s no looking back. I don’t see the crowd, I just see B.J. Penn and I see my cage. And I’m the king of this cage. It’s my territory.”
The 27-year-old Sanchez, who now calls San Diego home, is a breed apart. Before fights, he can be found in the Octagon, going through a series of stretches as if trying to be at one with the cage. At a media workout Wednesday, he bent himself into a number of pretzel-like positions as he limbered up.
On fight night, he is a man possessed.
“That’s his thing,” shrugged Penn. “I’m not here to criticize him or anything, but when I see that kind of stuff I don’t think of much of it. That’s him.
“He wants to portray himself as a crazy one, I think he’s just portraying himself as the weird one. We’re going to find out which guy’s more crazy when we get into the Octagon.”
Sanchez is definitely the spiritual one. His self-belief is rock-solid.
He goes to Tony Robbins’ seminars and has walked across hot coals three times.
“That experience taught me just the mind and the body can do anything, there are no limits,” he explained. “The only limits we have are the limits that we give ourselves. And that’s the mentality that I have going into this fight, that’s the mentality that I have with my career – the only person that can stop Diego Sanchez is Diego Sanchez, and right now I’m not going to stop myself.
“I’m ready for this. I’ve earned it and I really feel it’s my time.”
The 30-year-old Penn is a formidable opponent, one that has not lost as a lightweight in almost eight years. A masterful jiu-jitsu fighter, he has great takedown defence and has become a dangerous striker. The only men to beat Penn in his 15-fight UFC career are lightweight Jens Pulver (at UFC 35 in January 2002) and welterweight stars Georges St. Pierre (who did it twice) and Matt Hughes.
“He’s a very, very good fighter,” said Kenny Florian, who was submitted by Penn last time out at UFC 101. “To beat B.J. Penn, you’re going to have to be on your game, at the highest levels. One little mess-up and that’s it.”
“I speak very highly of Diego and B.J.,” said Clay Guida, who lost to Sanchez in his last fight. “B.J. fights in a whole different building. To me, I compare it to like Jimi Hendrix, they say he plays in a whole different building than other guitarists.
“He’s just a different animal at 155 (pounds) and Diego brings that warrior spirit, non-stop . . . I’m expecting it to be one of the best lightweight fights until I get in there and get to mix it up with either one.”
Sanchez came at Guida in June like a freight train when their fight started and threw more than 60 punches and knees in the first minute. Midway through the first round, he felled Guida with a left head kick.
But Guida rallied, scoring some success with takedowns before the bloody fight ended in a majority decision for Sanchez.
Talk to the five-foot-10 Sanchez and his eyes lock on you like lasers. His is a baby face, but look closely and you can see a thin horizontal scar above his left eye, betraying what he does for a living.
Like Sanchez, Penn (14-5-1) is a Gumby-like athlete whose flexibility has served his jiu-jitsu game well.
Sanchez credits his conditioning in part to a return to yoga, which he says helped saved his career after suffering a hip injury in 2003.
“I was a young fighter. I didn’t have money for insurance, didn’t have money for chiropractors, didn’t have money for anything. My health insurance was a bottle of ibuprofen. Thank God, I’ve evolved and I’ve been so blessed.”
Sanchez won Season 1 of “The Ultimate Fighter” as a middleweight (185 pounds), dropped down to welterweight (170) and eventually lightweight (155).
He dropped yoga as he worked on other aspects of his game but has returned to it at the suggestion of strength and conditioning coach Steve Maxwell.
Sanchez says it has helped his body and mind.
“It has truly, truly brought me back. My balance is better, my conditioning, my breathing, my muscular conditioning, everything is better. Yoga truly, it doesn’t only work your body, it also works your energy system and the balancing of all kinds of crazy stuff inside out.”
It has also helped him deal with stress – the pressure to succeed.
“This is the pressure I put on myself because this is my dream and, I feel, my destiny. Over time, you learn how to use the pressure and the fear to motivate you. And then you take a negative and it becomes a positive.”
Sanchez insists the fight will come down to “Who wants it more when we get tired?” He says he will answer that question by finishing the champion.
The stars have aligned for him, says Sanchez.
“I believe it’s all in God’s hands. And I was never ready to be a champion – until now. Now I’m at my right weight class, now I’m ready as a striker . . . now I have evolved in all areas of the game and I’m prepared to win the belt and defend the belt.”
Sanchez also insists his motivation trumps that of Penn.
“B.J. says he’s doing it for fun. Well, I’m doing this for other reasons. I’m doing this to survive, I’m doing this for my livelihood, I’m fighting with my heart and my soul and my passion.”
Email Story
IM Story
Printable View
LATEST HEADLINES
Perfect redemption: Manning rallies Colts over Jets 30-17 to reach Super Bowl The Canadian Press
SCORECARD: The Canadian Press
Toronto Raptors beat defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers, 106-105 The Canadian Press
Bubba Watson’s double-bogey on 18 drops him into 4th-round tie at Hope Classic The Canadian Press
Duncan’s third-place result sends him to Vancouver; Serwa, Del Bosco win gold The Canadian Press
Sports News Archive
Haitian PM thanks Canada Canadian Press
“Basterds,” Bullock, Bridges big SAG winners Reuters
Hodes on Bernanke: Supporting Him ‘So Far’ ABC
It is a well known fact that Yoga is good for you, that it makes your joints more supple, increases muscle strength and is ideal for back pain sufferers. Or is it?
Many people, myself included, have tried some of the many yoga DVDs and books, hoping for some relief from back pain, only to discover that far from fixing the problem, yoga exacerbates it. Why should this be? Surely something that is purported to be so good for me should not be causing pain? I started to wonder if I was doing something wrong, not following instructions properly, and that somehow it was my fault. but have now discovered that yoga can indeed worsen certain back conditions. This was not the case, however, I was not doing anything wrong, the exercises were unsuitable and should really have come with a health warning.
Many reputable yoga teachers and practitioners of course, do issue a warning that unilateral movements can stress the sacroiliac joint. Poses such as the tree pose and warrior 3 where need you to balance on one leg are not recommended. Deep standing yoga poses also stress the sacroiliac joint. This is the joint that connects the spinal column with the pelvis. It is a joint that has little movement but can be affected by arthritis. Lower back pain is often caused by strain or inflammation of this joint and many yoga poses can either cause or exacerbate these problems.
A very popular yoga method – Ashtanga yoga – is practised by many of us who are too busy for the slower, more contemplative practises. It is vigorous and athletic and has a fast pace of movements and many yoga classes and DVDs now use the Ashtanga yoga method. I would strongly advise you to approach it with great care and stop immediately if you notice any pain or strain whilst doing the asanas. This was the method that hurt my back the most, with pain both in the waist and pelvic area.
The best sort of yoga is the more traditional gentle and slow yoga movements. These do not involve quick changes and you will find it easier to judge if the movements are doing you good or causing you pain before it is too late.
If you like the idea of yoga exercises and feel that they would suit you, then the best approach would be to do a very limited number of the easiest positions for a very short space of time – 5-10 minutes is preferable – then wait 24 hours to see how you feel. It is possible that you may have some minor muscle stiffness if you do not usually practice yoga, but it should not be anything more than this. Any pain or worsening of your back pain or any new pain means you should stop immediately. If yoga does not work for you then it doesn’t work – it is as simple as that. Find something else like Pilates or swimming. Do not feel that you are missing out, there is the perfect exercise regime out there somewhere for you.
Do I still practice yoga? The answer is no. I have found my own methods of back health and although friends sometimes urge me to give it another go, I always decline. I go caving and walking and riding too, but would not risk damaging my back again practicing yoga.
Yoga, in my opinion, is for people without any back problems. It can prevent injury, but it will not cure it.
If you love yoga and want to practise it, a very good site is http://www.yogacards.com. It has sound advice for back sufferers and gives free advice for beginners.
My own site http://www.simplebackrelief.co.uk has free back exercises that are both gentle and effective.
Mail this post