Henry Cejudo Breaks Down The 5 Senses Every Fighter Should Have
Whether you train in mixed martial arts or you are just a fan, you either know or can at least imagine all that goes into a fight. All of the training and hard preparation work, the strict diets, the mentality, the physical consequences; so much hard work.
This becomes a lifestyle for fighters. And in this lifestyle you begin to develop senses. This hard work and training allows you to see and sense things differently in a fight that most normal people would not be able to pick up on. It is important to be aware of these senses so you can be present with them, and focus on using them in the most advantageous way possible.
Each fighter may describe and experience these senses slightly differently. In the video below, Henry Cejudo breaks down his interpretation and experience with the 5 senses of a fighter, check it out!
The Senses
Henry states that as a fighter he has been asked many times what he thinks about when he goes into a fight. He begins to explain that because he has such extensive experience in professional combat situations, it is not so much that he is thinking anything, but that it is engraved in him. What that has given him is the 5 senses of a fighter.
The 5 senses are as follows:
- Attack
- Counter-attack
- Anticipate
- Feel
- Take Risks
Henry refers to these senses as “gifts”. While fighting you are going to use all of these senses, but there are going to be one or two of them that you are great at. When you have the awareness of these senses, you are able to hone in on the ones you are great at and really start to maximize your skill.
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Attack
The attacking sense is on the offensive side. It is a gift that allows you to go out and be dominant and attack. When watching a fight it is usually easy to see who excels in this category. You can tell right away who wants to be the one to initiate attacks and who is playing a more defensive game. Obviously everyone who fights has to use this sense, but if this is one of the areas you excel in then it is going to force your opponent to act more defensively if you use it properly.
Counter-attack
Henry describes this as the gift of attacking the attacker. As previously stated, it is easy to see early on in the fight who the attacker is and it often makes their opponent fight more on the defensive side. The counter-attack sense is what gives that fighter the ability to switch the script and start attacking more than defending.
Anticipate
The gift to anticipate that certain people have usually occurs right before the counter attack. This is the ability to read your opponent and perfect your timing. As your opponent is attacking, you need to anticipate the right moment to launch your counter-attack. When you watch great fighters, as soon as their opponent gives the flick of their hand or shoulder, they are able to anticipate the attack and launch their counter before their opponent even knows what is happening.
Feel
This sense is something that Henry believes is one of his strong suits. The feel sense can be something physical, or it can be understanding the competition. Understanding range, distance, and the fight in general. Really feeling and being aware of everything that is going on around you; both in and out of your physical body.
Take Risks
The last sense and according to Henry probably the most important one is to take risks. Henry clarifies that the reason he does not call these calculated risks is because if you call them calculated risks then you are thinking about them too much and you won’t take them. Risks being calculated assumes that you are weighing whether they are worth it or not. In a fight, you really don’t have time to do all that considering. This does not mean you should just go out and start acting wild, but you can’t always expect a big reward without taking some risk.
In all of Henry’s wrestling matches and MMA fights, these are the 5 things he considers. If you look at his record, it is safe to assume that they work. The overall lesson of the senses is awareness and action. Being aware of everything around you and being able to take the right action at the right time.
About Henry Cejudo
Henry Cejudo is a retired professional mixed martial artist and freestyle wrestler. His wrestling career was inspired by his brother who won multiple state championships in high school, and Henry followed directly in his footsteps. Following his high school career, he excelled in freestyle wrestling for the United States Olympic Team. Henry also has a list of professional MMA achievements, such as former UFC Flyweight and Bantamweight Champion. Following his retirement, Henry’s professional MMA record stands at 16-2.
About Henry’s Instructional
Henry has devoted this entire instructional to the 5 senses of striking. Included you will find lessons and techniques such as drills to understand your biomechanics, safe zone and fight zone, cage work, ground and pound and control, and so much more.
Along with technique, proper fighter mentality and awareness is key. Take notes from multi-division UFC Champion Henry Cejudo, and skip no steps when making sure you are prepared to fight. Check out his instructional here!