You can't stop crazy.
by sklart on Feb 4, 2012 11:17 AM EST
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PrintIf you've been watching the Diaz vs. Condit Primetime, you've been treated to probably the best set of episodes they've put ever produced. Getting an inner look at Diaz's camp has been an eye opener for the casual and hardcore fans. While people write off Diaz as being crazy, the last 3 episodes have totally changed the way I see Diaz.
First of all, Diaz is the ultimate specimen built for this sport. Long and lean with cardio for days, he has a perfect balance of muscle mass and body fat. This can easily be attributed to his triathlon training in his "off-season". For anyone who saw episode 1 or 2, you saw workouts that would make normal men cry. I've trained for triathlons myself. I've been put through grueling workouts for minor league basketball teams. Nothing compares to what I watched Diaz do in those episodes.
It wasn't until the lastest episode that I truely began to relate to Diaz on a mental level. While watching episode 3, they cut to an short clip from Joe Schilling (current Interim WBC LHW Muay Thai champ) who paraphrased what I had been thinking up to that point...."You can't stop crazy."
Diaz obsesses about his opponent in a fashion that is almost OCD like. You can see it from the way he trains, all day, all night, never stopping. I am positive that Diaz has a some cognitive disorder that creates this obsession, because I get the exact same way about stuff like that, and was diagnosed with very minor OCD. He isn't crazy; he just appears that way because he can't get Condit out of his head. Think of a lion stuck in a cage with a piece of meat in front of him, pacing back and forth....that is what is going on inside the head of Diaz.
After watching this primetime series, I am even more confident that Diaz is going to stop Condit. My prediction? Diaz by whatever he wants in the championship rounds.
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I just know that this is likely going to be one of the best fights ever
The way these guys fight, the way they can both take punishment, and the way they are always looking for the finished as opposed to thinking about the decision…..it’s going to be a war.
"You got Floyd Mayweather making 25 million dollars...he can't stop the double leg." - Nick Diaz
I totally agree
I have a few friends who are interested in MMA, but not really fans yet. They are coming over to watch this card, as I told them that this is going to (hopefully) be a FOTY candidate.
"If you think, you're late. If you're late, you muscle. If you muscle, you get tired. If you tired, you die. When you die is when you tap..."
-Saulo Ribeiro
Yeah, I've got a friend coming over
My dad is missing it live, but is going to buy it and record it. My brother is going to take his girl out to watch it. This is a must-see.
"You got Floyd Mayweather making 25 million dollars...he can't stop the double leg." - Nick Diaz
by Chris Groves on Feb 4, 2012 12:32 PM EST up reply actions
question
Will your “special friend” be wearing pants, Chris? Or will this be a “no gi interpretation of in-ring action” type of sleepover? Just interested, bro.
I now have a signature statement. Behold!
Very classy
He’s one of my few friends that is actually an MMA fan.
"You got Floyd Mayweather making 25 million dollars...he can't stop the double leg." - Nick Diaz
Totally agree
I went from a kind of mild disapproval and dislike of Diaz to being a full-on fan over the course of the Primetime series. Not saying that I approve of his occasional lack of professionalism, but I certainly feel like I understand him a little better than I did before; he wants so desperately for people to understand him and why he does what he does, but is utterly incapable of portraying himself as he wants to be seen, which makes it even worse. He’s probably the most compelling personality in MMA right now.
Proud member of The Voices in Paul Harris' Head, BECW Season 2.
"By doubting we come to inquiry and by inquiry we perceive the truth." -- Abelard
As I've said before, I think Nick Diaz should be measured with a ruler that is different from the norm.
I, like you, used to kinda dislike the guy given his antics but along the way I started feeling for him after I figured out the dude pretty much fit overall patters of behavior I had been reading upon some while back…
Dude is obsessed with repeating stuff over and over again until it comes out correct, obsesses over getting press conferences ‘right’—once asking Ben Fowlkes to delete an interview and redo it all again, he is obsessed with whole foods, dissects triathlons and how they relate to martial arts (a strong personal interest of his), has issues looking strangers in the eye or relating with them on a personal level but when asked about things he likes he goes on long diatribes on the subject, sees social interaction as ‘work’ he has to get through, has issues with losing his cool and throwing ‘fits’ (he’s spoken sporadically about this before, too), is seen by plenty of folk as a childish, immature, unprofessional prick, etc.
If those are not the traits of somebody with a neurological makeup other than the norm (Aspergers probably), I dunno what they are.
There’s a video of a girl on youtube, a running track athlete born with Aspergers, that describes her condition in her childhood as “being trapped” b/c she could not communicate with people b/c she didn’t know how—most of her other patterns of behavior are eerily similar to Nick’s. It is all pretty sad, in a way, but also pretty inspirational considering Diaz has made it all the way through here from an impoverished background, without any kind of help from behavior professionals to teach him techniques to better develop socially so that he can both make sense of himself and others, and has received most of his support structure from the martial arts community and his family.
The Internets: Where there are no girls and men become children.
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Draft #: 69--The magic number.
by Unabomberman on Feb 4, 2012 1:03 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Like I said elsewhere I work in a school assisting a kid with Aspergers.
Diaz definitely for the reasons you stated has a number of traits and behaviors that point to Aspergers. The focus and dedication he puts in things that interest him, the issues with social interaction, the permanent obsession with getting things right all point to it. If this is true, the fact that he made it to where he is from where he came from without any professional help is extremely impressive. I see everyday how tough it can be for a kid who knows what he has and beneficits from professional help and I can’t imagine how hard it would be without it.
BECW season 2 member of the Intellegent Northern English Picking Team.
Draft number: 72.
by Sweet Scientist on Feb 4, 2012 2:18 PM EST up reply actions
I'm not a psychologist or anything
But I have a cousin with Asperger’s whose behavior is a lot like Diaz’s; my dad is a special education specialist, and watching one brief Diaz interview left him pretty convinced that an autism-spectrum disorder was at work there.
Proud member of The Voices in Paul Harris' Head, BECW Season 2.
"By doubting we come to inquiry and by inquiry we perceive the truth." -- Abelard
by Patrick Wyman on Feb 4, 2012 2:37 PM EST up reply actions
Yeah.
It’s pretty remarkable how far he’s gotten, but not at all surprising that the dude has serious anxiety and defensive issues developed along the way, given that he’s gotten little to none special education to learn how to better interact with people in a matter that he feels is conductive to not driving himself nuts.
The Internets: Where there are no girls and men become children.
Proud Member of INEPT: 80% More IntellEgent than y'all, WANKERZ.
Draft #: 69--The magic number.
I can’t imagine that the special education in Stockton is particularly high-quality. Guy’s had a rough time of it, and despite his many foibles he could be a poster child for how martial arts can improve quality of life.
Proud member of The Voices in Paul Harris' Head, BECW Season 2.
"By doubting we come to inquiry and by inquiry we perceive the truth." -- Abelard
by Patrick Wyman on Feb 4, 2012 4:53 PM EST up reply actions
Very well put.
The fact that he can place himself into a routine that allows him to channel his impulses into something personally fulfilling and to have built himself into an elite level athlete that is also a productive member of society is a testament to both his strength of will and to the culture of martial arts, in general.
The Internets: Where there are no girls and men become children.
Proud Member of INEPT: 80% More IntellEgent than y'all, WANKERZ.
Draft #: 69--The magic number.
I'm telling you
He is OCD. I’m the exact same way as Diaz. If I am doing something, it has to be done a certain way or I will literally obsess over it. Find a new song I like? I’ll repeat it 30 times in one day until I have the lyrics perfect. Training a new move? Same deal. They way Diaz trains, its just so obvious to me that he is just obsessing over the little things
"If you think, you're late. If you're late, you muscle. If you muscle, you get tired. If you tired, you die. When you die is when you tap..."
-Saulo Ribeiro
These aren't mutually exclusive explanations
It’s entirely possible that he has both an autism-spectrum disorder and some obsessive-compulsive tendencies. I think the latter is pretty common (higher than normal rates of occurrence, at least) among fighters and martial arts enthusiasts, anyway: it’s all about repetition and practice, and who does that better than the obsessed (myself included)?
Proud member of The Voices in Paul Harris' Head, BECW Season 2.
"By doubting we come to inquiry and by inquiry we perceive the truth." -- Abelard
by Patrick Wyman on Feb 4, 2012 2:33 PM EST up reply actions
Diaz does have a perfect body for MMA
but it has more to do with the type of muscle he has rather than his composition.
His training would make anyone a cardio superstar but he clearly has a huge % of slow twitch muscle, which is genetically determined.
"I'm ready for fight. If I'm win, no win. I don't know. But, I'm ready for fight. This is my working[shrugs shoulders]" - Anderson Silva
"You'll get Lil Wayne in woman pants and like it!" - Krimson
yes and no.
A lot of it has to do with his diet intake and the types of exercise routines he does.
What is genetically determined are the propensities of his organism to build those slow-twitch muscle fibers more so than fast-twitch. But if he did GSP-style training, he would be more muscly, not up to Georges’s level probably, but his body composition and performance in the cage would be much, much different.
The Internets: Where there are no girls and men become children.
Proud Member of INEPT: 80% More IntellEgent than y'all, WANKERZ.
Draft #: 69--The magic number.
Not to be rude
But duh.
"I'm ready for fight. If I'm win, no win. I don't know. But, I'm ready for fight. This is my working[shrugs shoulders]" - Anderson Silva
"You'll get Lil Wayne in woman pants and like it!" - Krimson
That is to say damn near every fighter is extremely lean because of training and diet.
I clearly mentioned that his training is a huge part of it of why he is so good.
The second part is literally what I was saying, just a little wrong. The ratio of slow twitch to fast twitch in the human body is genetically predetermined.
I’m a professional trainer. I went to school for it, have several certifications and a couple ears of experience. Not too mention, I’ve dedicated a huge part of my personal time and energy to fitness and health.
"I'm ready for fight. If I'm win, no win. I don't know. But, I'm ready for fight. This is my working[shrugs shoulders]" - Anderson Silva
"You'll get Lil Wayne in woman pants and like it!" - Krimson
To be fair, that is not exactly how this came across:
His training would make anyone a cardio superstar but he clearly has a huge % of slow twitch muscle, which is genetically determined.
I felt as if I had to add to what you were saying, given that you didn’t specifically mention his diet (or maybe I’m just dense and I need specificity every now and then to understand stuff—you make your own mind in that). Maybe you didn’t feel like it, maybe you just wrote too fast or whatever, but that’s how it came across—and I didn’t mention ratios.
I’m not knocking on your expertise, or anything. There’s no need to vaunt your IRL credentials to me, I’ll believe you.
Just take it eaaaaaasy.
The Internets: Where there are no girls and men become children.
Proud Member of INEPT: 80% More IntellEgent than y'all, WANKERZ.
Draft #: 69--The magic number.
Yeah
I usually post while I’m doing two or three things so I just condensed everything as simply as possible.
Not trying to be a dick. I just take a lot of pride in my knowledge about the body. Its pretty much my passion in life.
I apologized if I came across cross. I getting snappy when I’m hungry.
"I'm ready for fight. If I'm win, no win. I don't know. But, I'm ready for fight. This is my working[shrugs shoulders]" - Anderson Silva
"You'll get Lil Wayne in woman pants and like it!" - Krimson
No need to apologize.
I do try to pay attention when I get corrected on something, believe it or not, so thanks.
:)
The Internets: Where there are no girls and men become children.
Proud Member of INEPT: 80% More IntellEgent than y'all, WANKERZ.
Draft #: 69--The magic number.
:)
"I don't want to sound cocky, but I do hold myself in high regard."
by spectaa on Feb 5, 2012 4:18 AM EST reply actions 2 recs
Ghost sighting?
"I'm ready for fight. If I'm win, no win. I don't know. But, I'm ready for fight. This is my working[shrugs shoulders]" - Anderson Silva
"You'll get Lil Wayne in woman pants and like it!" - Krimson
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