0:00 Nick, dude. You know what's crazy? I've been thinking about. So like when I started training with you, the way that you train was so kind, loving, technical, smart, everything that I am not used to. Like the MMA spot me and Bart went to, I would consider this like more traditional Japanese where like everyone thinks like martial arts is where you learn the honorable principles of a warrior. Right? Everyone ████ thinks. They think you go there to learn good character. You learn It's ████ ████ The real ████ fighters that produce the best ████ in like like the principles, we got a real taste of that and so like our sensei was like, "You better be going out there ████
0:50 people up. I I YOU BETTER NOT LOSE." DUDE, I remember like So this is how crazy he was. He's like, "You guys, if you have some issues you want to handle, like bring them to the gym and you guys could go full on full contact." >> That's smart. >> Yeah, but he goes, "No no Vietnamese." >> [laughter] >> Why? Wait, why though? >> He doesn't want to get his place shot up. You know like there's like code and he was like, "Vietnamese >> That's smart, though. >> give a ████ about code. So like he's like, "I want to keep my lease. >> Yeah. >> So anybody but Vietnamese." >> They got code. Win at all costs. >> Yeah, yeah, yeah. >> That's so funny how he just went immediately, "But no Vietnamese." >> No, but so this is Give it Give it an example of how crazy this guy is. So like if when we're training, if people are just like flow sparring or technical sparring, he'll break you break it up,
1:41 ████ one guy up and then ████ the other guy up. And then he goes, "If you guys don't go hard, I'm going to ████ you up again." >> Yep. >> So you all So everyone always has ████ injuries, bruises all the time. And then one time he comes and his whole fist was purple. And we're like, "Oh ████ sensei, what happened?" And so, his dad owns a a a little bar in Little Tokyo. And so, [snorts] at night, his dad takes all the glass bottles to go recycle. When he was taking the the glass bottles out, two like, I guess, big-ass homeless dudes were trying to jack his dad uh to to to take the glass bottles for money. So, he sees that, he jumps up and goes, "Boom!" He says he socks the guy in the face. When he pulled his hand out, all the guy's teeth fell out. The other homeless guy sees it and is like, "Oh, s███!" And just ████ books it. And then so, like, But he was always getting into trouble. He got a Yeah, he beat up
2:32 a cop. That was on the news. Like, he he jumped >> [laughter] >> I'll give you the details to that. So, basically, >> [laughter] >> when I heard this story, I was like, "It's it's the it's the cop's fault." So, like, they were at a bar. They They were at a bar, right? They're just They're just drinking and ████ And then, um like any ████ drunk argument, stupid ████ like, you know, you this happens at a bar, right? So, they get into a fight. The cop, who he didn't know was a cop, lost. And then, he does the whole coward ████ where after he gets his ass beat, he pulls out his badge, and he arrests his ass. And then so, he's like, "Oh, ████ you." And what he ended up He ended up doing is he sued and he won. And then I'm
3:23 like, "Good for you." Because it's some coward ████ man. Like, you can't pull out your badge >> Dope, though. That's dope. That gives me hope. That gives me hope for America, yo. >> But also, when you see him, too, like, you know a lot of fighters, just you just don't know that they can ████ fight, right? He's like 5'3". Like, he's you know, he's just like a regular He looks like a Japanese like math teacher. You know, like, you just don't think Yeah, he looks like a regular guy. Just um and I think because of that people might push him around. >> You know what his daytime job was? >> What? >> He was a gemologist. >> What is that? >> Like he rates sapphires and ████ >> [laughter] >> and diamonds. >> That's what he does. So he has one of those ████ glasses. >> Yeah, that was his daytime job but at night >> daytime job. >> night he wanted to ████ people up and he was just like a crazy mess.
4:13 >> He's around diamonds all day. He needs something masculine. >> cuz I remember we went we would go to practice one time and I just see folded blankets and pillows in the corner. I'm like, "Yo, what happened, Sensei?" He goes, "Going through a divorce right now." So he's sleeping at the Dojo. And then he would end up having his cats there. So while I'm training my eyes are all ████ and like dry like this and stuff, you know, cuz his cats are crawling all over the It was just like I was a mess. But he was a good fighter. Good fighter. >> Can't get it together sometimes. >> But the thing is a lot of the places I've been to cuz I've only done like Japanese style martial arts. Like that's normal. >> Well, the the the Sensei is going through a divorce and sleeping at the studio? >> No, but them being like scary. >> Yeah. >> Like hard. >> They have they have to be. >> better. >> That makes sense. Yeah, that that that makes sense. >> Well, there's like you could be more technical. You could be whatever. For him it's like harder is always better.
5:05 >> Yeah, he so his background is he he did this thing called the Sabaki Challenge. Like it's not that popular but it's still around. But it's like at the time you didn't have UFC that was like that was like it was around but it was still new. >> Sabaki Challenge. >> Sabaki. It's like what they >> call Kudo now. >> Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. >> but it was like it's like predates Kudo though. >> It's like bare knuckle, right? It's like open hand. You can kick him in the head, punch him in the head. >> But you have a headgear. >> Oh, sick. >> Yeah, I think it's full Yeah, it's full MMA rules with headgear and um I think once you get to the ground you have about It's kind of like Judo where you have like Yeah, like 10 seconds to make something happen. But people get arm barred and ████ cuz they'll like rip them. >> Yeah, so he had a really good fight record. And when I think about it, he reminds me of those dudes that are like really stellar athlete or like, you know, they're they're good like
5:55 fighters, technical guys. But maybe not [laughter] the best um coaches and teachers. >> Well, sometimes the most talented fighters or most talented athletes in general, they don't make the best coaches cuz they a lot of the sometimes the gifts that they have are God-given. And the people that have to struggle, they have to figure out how to do it the way they do it. And they're just better at teaching that, you know? >> Oh, absolutely cuz it's more relatable. >> Yeah, yeah, the ████ anomaly doesn't know how to teach the novice. >> Yeah. >> So, when you get a guy who's like really is just naturally really good at fighting, sometimes like they just >> They might have a gem to drop by just existing. >> Yeah. >> Like a tip, you know? >> But but there's no way. No, the best teachers are the ones who are actually the best beginners. The ones who who kind of suck so they know every step of another student's journey. >> Yeah, he had no patience for beginners, dude.
6:45 >> Same cuz I suck. >> [laughter] >> But he had a his fight record was like two losses, 20 wins. It was like some wow, like he's impressive. >> What do you What do you think he's up to nowadays? Cuz like I always think about those kind of like teachers and those sensei guys and you end up like man, what >> The The last I heard, which is like over 5 years ago, is he sells cars at Honda. >> Sick. >> People don't know. People don't even know he could just ████ you up. >> Yeah. >> Buy the car. Buy the car. >> [laughter] >> I don't mean to be like too zoom out, but like is that like a success story, you know? Like the best case scenario for him? >> I I guess like cuz obviously it's not about >> Cuz I think he does it for the love of the game though, right? It's like I think that's one thing about a lot of martial arts teachers is like you have to learn how to make it a business if you want to do it for the rest of your life.
7:35 But you do it for the love of the game. You do it cuz you you love to do it. >> He was definitely passionate. >> And a guy who like working a daytime, like a like a gym guy. I don't know what gemologist? >> still has to go at night to open up his dojo. >> Seven days a week. >> And then to run a school like that in the evening, no wonder his marriage went to ████ you know? >> Yeah. >> you just can't It's It's a after hours after work hours type of thing. >> He was nuts, but I think he was a great mentor for the type of men that existed at the time. For the for the type of youth. >> But there's some guys that need that kind of coach though. There's some guys that will never be tough and they just need to learn how to be tough no matter what. Like And I think there is value to that. Like when you get a guy who's like overly technical or worried about doing the wrong thing all the time, they need a coach who's going to yell at them and
8:25 say, "Just ████ do it hard." Or I'll sock you, you know? >> You know what sucks [snorts] though? I feel like he toughed it out of me. >> Yeah? >> I think he made it so like tough, it it took and it burned me out. >> Yeah. >> So anytime like >> It's got to do with to now, right? >> Anytime it gets too intense, it reminds me of that and I'm like, "Oh, that's the part of it I don't like." I like the skills and then like the going back and forth, but like once I start getting to the I'm going to kill you, I hate that feeling and then that makes me but then now my coach yell at me like, "How come you don't want to kill them?" And I'm like, "I don't know. I just don't like that feeling." >> Yeah, and I think that's probably a good thing that you don't have that. >> Really? >> Yeah, 100%. >> supposed to like learn how to channel it. >> You're supposed to learn how to control it but not like like lose control of it, you know? >> So here's the here's the diabolical
9:15 part, right? What's What makes the better not lesson for humanity, what makes the better like student that's training in that moment, right? It's like the art of fighting without fighting. It's like you learn all this ████ to to better oneself, but it's really in self-discipline. Well, no, versus like the guy who's like, "Hey, I'm teaching you this stuff so you're a weapon. Go ████ use the weapon. If you don't use the weapon, you're you're going to lose the weapon. You're like who what makes that actually stronger and better? >> I think you've got to boil it down to one thing cuz you can make your argument on either side. I think it really comes down to the mental side, the mental toughness aspect. I think that's what people will get the most out of martial arts from day one to day 1 million, right? Like I think you go in there and experience it even if you can't handle it and you ████ leave eventually, I think that's a good thing. But like overall it's good a good
10:05 thing cuz you you understand that like this is hard. You may not be ready for that challenge yet, but you >> And it's not for everybody. Yeah. >> Yeah, you experience it. I think that's what's important is like you have to experience that like this sucks. I suck. I'm a beginner. You have to I think that's a big part of it. Um >> Cuz cuz I'll take >> to make you mentally tough cuz like if we were to take all the skills away, whether you're, you know, physically strong or technically strong, whatever, the thing that could probably get you the furthest is probably just mental toughness and that can extend in every aspect of life outside of just fighting, you know? And I think that's the thing about martial arts that people need to think about is like people do it to kind of take themselves It's it's a intentional mindfulness practice. Like that's what martial arts is at the end of the day to like its bare minimum. It's it's just like tai chi. Yeah, obviously it's not the same, but it's like it's mindfulness. It's you putting
10:55 the effort and you doing it. There's nothing else that can replace that. And I think that's what people need to remember. >> Cuz I have objectively different answers depending on the student who asks the same question. >> But if we were to take that out of a vacuum cuz the right answer is it depends. You have to know where they're at and take them and lead them along the way. But if you were to take that all out and you just answer objectively in a vacuum, you would say anything to make them mentally stronger is probably better. If you had if you had one thing to do for them. Also, mine's very XY scale in terms of their like ability and potential or skill. Right? If somebody asks the same way all every student of mine asks the same question like you know trying to like figure out how to be a professional dancer or some ████ I have a completely different answer depending on their skill. So if they're like in the bottom 90th percentile which is most people
11:45 I'm genuinely like dude just ████ follow what you love. That's going to be the thing that keeps you going the longest. It's going to get you the farthest. You're going to dive deeper without question. Just follow the thing that you're into. Don't worry about like the in order to become a professional blah blah blah. When I actually run into a student of mine that's like ████ good that's when I don't give them inspiration and hope. That's when I start ripping apart everything that they're doing and why they don't deserve it and if they actually wanted this is why the people who do have it deserve it. Hit him with the whiplash. >> Yeah. >> Because that's the whole thing. If you're not willing to do crazy things you're not you're not going to get the crazy status or the crazy recognition that you desire. >> Cuz the kid who's really talented the last thing he needs to hear is how great he is. >> Yeah. >> He needs to tell him like hey this needs to work this needs to work. >> 100% so >> So if you're hopeless and you hear Anthony giving you praise and saying just follow what you love just know you'll never make it in anything.
12:36 >> He's not wrong. >> Wait that's what Anthony said to me last week dude. [laughter] He said I could follow any dream I want. >> It's cuz what you're following isn't working. >> [laughter]
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