Mike Tyson Talks Training, Confidence, & Life With FightCamp

When it comes to boxing, who better to learn from than one of the best fighters of all time, Mike Tyson. The goal is to watch, listen, and learn, absorbing as much information as possible. Tyson has been through it all – from being the youngest heavyweight champ ever, to filing bankruptcy, to making millions a second time around. His life experiences helped shape him into the man he is today, and now he is passing along his knowledge to others.

FightCamp Co-Founder and Trainer Tommy Duquette recently sat down with “The Baddest Man on the Planet” to talk about everything -- life, boxing training, motivation, and goal setting.

Self Improvement: You vs. You

One of the best features of connected fitness and FightCamp is the idea of you vs. you and the promotion of self-improvement. You can take a certain workout, get a baseline score from the effort you put in, then, later on, try and beat that score. It challenges you to improve and get better over time, ultimately transforming into a better version of yourself. Tyson shares this same similar belief for always trying to improve.

On Becoming Better Than Your Old Self

“I think everyone does that when they train ... try to overcome their first achievement.”

“Perfection is so complex. That if you’re not good enough, you’re beneath it. And if you surpass it, you’re too high.”

On Becoming Better At Training and Life In General

“It's through repetition. You do it over and over, you can do it in your sleep, that helps you become better.”

Motivation and Determination

Everyone has some form of motivation that ultimately pushes them towards their goals, achievements, and milestones. Slowly over time, that motivation, which can be an external source of inspiration like a quotation, turns into inner determination and the internal drive to accomplish these set goals. For Mike, there were a lot of heroes he wanted to emulate, and eventually, that led him down his successful boxing career. Here are some inspirational quotations from Tyson that you can use as fuel for your life. “Confidence breeds success, success breeds confidence.”

On Achieving Success

“Greatness is when you make your delusions your reality.”

When Asked If He Is A Role Model

“My life is created with a bunch of thorns. You can look at me as an anti-hero, what not to do.”

Tracking Progress

As an elite boxer at the top of the heavyweight division, Mike Tyson always had to be tracking his training to be in peak physical condition heading into a fight. It goes back to the notion that, in order to get better than your old self, you have to track your progress to see where adjustments need to be made, goals need to be reset, and success needs to be celebrated. Here are some of Tyson’s thoughts on tracking progress.

On Being Mentally Strong

“When you become better, you push yourself more. You push yourself where sometimes you have to submit to yourself, you just have to push yourself.”

“Training with perseverance, the struggle, that’s what it's all about.”

On Egos

“That’s the good part of the ego, pushing yourself to your highest potential.”

On Daily Routines

“Once you win the morning, you win the day.”

Boxing Is Euphoric

One of the many reasons why lifelong runners love to run is the feeling of euphoria, more commonly referred to as a “runner’s high.” This is one of the main reasons Mike loved to run during his fight camps even though his legendary coach, Cus D’Amato, heavily frowned upon it. A boxing workout has a similar effect after a hard heart-pounding session on the heavy bag. Endorphins are released in the brain, giving you those feel-good vibes and rewarding you for a job well done. “It’s a great way to relieve tension, there’s nothing better than that.”

Training

Boxing training and fighting are great reflections of you as an individual. Tyson’s first quotation really resonates with the age-old adage, “how you do anything is how you do everything.” So, if you are going to be training and boxing, why not put in the full effort like you would in life?

“I always talk about my training, you always gotta be careful the way you fight your fights. The way you fight your fights will be the way you live your life.”

On Being Disciplined

“No great fighter is out of control.”

“Discipline is doing what you hate to do, but doing it like you love it.”

Goal Setting

All too often we find ourselves setting lofty goals to try and accomplish and in the end, we fall short and never meet them. For most people, Mike recommends just making it through the day. Setting expectations, but taking it one day at a time and making sure to utilize each day to its fullest will have you consistently reaching your goals.

On Dieting For Goals

“It's a moment in my life. That's not throwing your life away. It's just putting something aside to accomplish your goals.”

“In order for me to accomplish that goal, I have to become that character and believe that character that’s gonna exist and become him.”

On The Power of Confidence

“Confidence, when applied properly, will supersede genius.”

Wisdom For All Aspects of Life

During their full 45-minute conversation, Tyson shared some meaningful insights on all different aspects of life: training, dieting, motivation, goal setting, and everything in between. We hope some of his quotations will resonate with you as they did with us – some truly powerful words from a man who has been through it all.

Train Like Iron Mike

Take your workouts to the next level and train like a fighter with the at-home connected fitness solution used by world champion boxers Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather. FightCamp has everything you need to work out on your schedule, with premium boxing equipment and hundreds of on-demand strength, conditioning, kickboxing, boxing, core, and recovery classes led by real fighters. As Mike Tyson said - “FightCamp is the next level of training!”