“I hear he’s really tough!”

“Yeah, he’s the defending District and Regional Champ.”

“Man, look at the way that guy’s built!”

“I don’t know if I could beat him.”

These are words that I heard teammates and wrestlers I coached utter. In wrestling circles, we call it becoming “psyched out.” It’s being intimidated by an opponent’s reputation, record, or robust physique. If I wasn’t careful, I’d succumb to the same type of thinking from time to time, when I competed. Worry, fear, and dread are hardly conducive to winning a hard fought battle. What’s the antidote? Smart training!

When I was training harder than anyone else in the room, not willing to yield even one point, and doing the extra things to win off-season and in-season, I felt invincible. During the season, I’d get an extra workout in every day and do additional wind sprints at the end of practice. For extra conditioning, I’d also skip rope after my match, while I watched the rest of my teammates compete. During the off-season, I’d wrestle in tournaments throughout the state and in national tournaments, run, skip rope, lift weights, and practice every opportunity I could get. I also did mental training and watched my nutrition closely.

I recognized the need for good sleep, hydration, and some down time to recover. Hard training is required to win. And rest and recovery are also essential to a peak performance. My optimism and confidence were born out of all the training I did day in and day out. It was also due to avoiding toxins – junk food, alcohol, tobacco, and illicit substances. I also sought to avoid worry and negativity.  I did everything I knew to do to put myself in a position to win.

What does this have to do with Coronavirus, COVID-19? It is related to our mindset and daily choices as we face this new powerful, even deadly, and largely unknown threat.  When I went into a match, regardless of an opponent’s record, reputation, or physique, I determined to respect my opponent. I did not want to over-estimate them and certainly not to under-estimate them. Respect! I could step out on that mat confidently, but never wanted to be cocky or intimidated. I understood one wrong move, one lapse in concentration, one half-hearted move, could land me on

my back and pinned! I was a team leader and set the pace. It was up to me be a role model, establish the standard of how to win.

We must address COVID-19 with the utmost of respect, for our sakes and the others in our community, our teammates. We owe to all of them, especially the most vulnerable, the weakest members of the team. It is very disheartening to hear of the Spring Break revelers in Florida. These young men and women openly and brashly, in some cases defiantly, disregarded sound medical advice and current governmental warnings and stipulations to contain coronavirus and limit its spread.

This cavalier attitude is akin to under-estimating a powerful and unknown opponent who can easily put you on your back. This is sheer foolishness. Likewise, cowering in fear, hoarding, wringing our hands, listening to reports of defeats (new cases and deaths due to COVID-19) incessantly, instead of celebrating with those who have triumphed over this disease, over-estimates this novel threat, a foe that we must treat with the utmost of respect. This is being psyched out by this new and largely unknown opponent.

We must remain vigilant, not let our guards down, and do all that we can reasonably and appropriately do to protect ourselves from coronavirus and to help protect our families, our communities, and our Nation.

It’s important we train smart, get some exercise every day, eat a nutritious diet, stay well hydrated, avoid toxins like junk food, tobacco, and excessive alcohol. Get adequate sleep, take time to pray, meditate/quiet our hearts and minds, give thanks, and acknowledge our blessings. Do the things that feed our souls, share our love with our family and friends, and care for those most vulnerable in our society. Let’s not cower in fear. Let’s not be reckless or lackadaisical. Let’s not be psyched out by the Coronavirus!