Zingano Fight Camp

Just checking in!  I have been frantically writing and working on an upcoming project, which I hope to share within the next month or so.  Until then, I am training, finishing my very last class EVER and working on my dissertation, looking forward to the day when I can call myself "Dr. J" or something to that effect.  Last week, however, I took a break to train with some very important ladies in the world of WMMA.

Several weeks ago Cat Zingano announced her gym would be hosting a Women's Fight Camp for her and Randi Miller's preparation for the upcoming Invicta fights.  I jumped on the chance to train with Cat and other talented women and gained incredible experience in the process.

Randi, Shelley, L.A. and Cat

The first morning we trained submission wrestling and Muay Thai with Cat's husband, black belt Mauricio Zingano, and Kru Sakmongkol.  I got to roll with Randi and Cat, which was hilarious and humbling at the same time, and spar with Shelley, who recently competed in the Golden Gloves.

Later that day, we returned to the gym to work on Muay Thai with Kru Sakmongkol and who was there but my friend and first interviewee Sylvie! 

Sylvie, Cat and L.A.

Sylvie was hanging out with her folks in Boulder before heading out to Thailand to train for a full year!  Sylvie and I got to meet for the first time, which included sparring and working on clinch drills. 

L.A., Shelley, Kim, Kru, Randi, Cat and Sylvie

It was a great training session as you can see from my top knot, which indicates that I am too damn hot to have my hair anywhere near my neck.  Check out Sylvie's blog and follow her adventures as she trains in Thailand!  I am so excited for her.

http://sylviemuay.wordpress.com/

MMARising

At this point I think I should stop and note just amazing these women are.  I have watched Cat Zingano roll at several local grappling tournaments and she is strong, dynamic and aggressive!  I was slightly nervous about meeting her at the camp but she immediately impressed me as being kind, funny and encouraging.  She thanked me several times for coming to the camp, even though rolling with me was probably no different than grappling with a six-year-old.  Although Cat had to drop out of the upcoming Invicta fight, I cannot wait to see her compete in the future.

TheMat

I was also really impressed by Randi Miller.  An Olympic bronze medalist, Randi is a freaking American hero and is, like Cat, very encouraging and more than willing to share her expertise.  She is making her MMA debut at Invicta and it was going to be epic!  Also...doesn't she have the best smile?

L.A., Barb, Kim and Randi

The next two days consisted of more training although I did not get any pictures.  On the third day, Randi taught a wrestling class that was absolutely incredible!  I was super excited to work with 125lb MMA fighter Barb Honchak, who is gracious, kind and very strong.  I love wrestling and was thrilled to work with an Olympian.

Although I eventually had to cut out of the camp early (dissertation director was not happy with my lack of material for the week), I really enjoyed training at the Zingano gym and working with Cat, Randi, Barb and the rest of the girls.  Cat and I talked about how difficult it was for her to find female training partners which can be detrimental when preparing for a fight.  I hope that there will be more of these camps in the future.

Check out the Zingano MMA gyms in Brighton and Broomfield, Colorado, where both Cat and Randi train:

Zingano BJJ

Zingano Muay Thai

Also, the Invicta Fight Championships where Randi will make her MMA debut at the end of April

Invicta Fight Championships

Follow Cat on Facebook
Check out Randi's website