Wrestling Blogs - Mike Tamillow

Somebody should have told me I lost this week. I don’t think I would listen anyways. After losing midlands I just wasn’t that bothered. There is a general distaste for second place. People who take second place usually turn out even less satisfied than those who take third place. As far as I’m concerned, it would have been nicer to get a bigger award. That’s pretty much it.

So I guess what I’m writing this week has very little to do with wrestling. Or maybe it has everything to do with wrestling. Why? Why should anyone wrestle?

Forget wrestling actually. I don’t want to talk about wrestling right now. Why would I want to talk about wrestling, I just lost? I should probably sit down in a corner and think about what I’ve done.

Nah. Let’s talk about smiling. I love smiling; Sometimes I’ll just think some goofy thought and smile about it. A simple ‘no reason’ usually gets people off my case if they ask ‘what’s that goofy grin on your face for’. A lot of times I’ll mess with people, even when they don’t get my jokes, as long as I can keep smiling. It’s even more fun when I can get them to smile too.

There’s something called a self-fulfilling prophecy. I’m actually not talking about myself for once; I’m talking about an interaction similar to the subject of last week. The idea behind investing is that after investing a little, you find yourself with some success. Your life is better because of it, so you invest a little more. Before you know it you’re all in. There is a similar interaction in a self-fulfilling prophecy. Your coach sees ability in you, he says you’re the next Cael Sanderson and trains you for it, and because of this you improve by leaps and bounds. It’s a back and forth interplay that builds you into something you never could have seen yourself doing. It only takes a second for things to change. It only takes a smile.

One study on smiling shows simply smiling makes you happier and you’ll enjoy things more. A group of participants had to watch a T.V. show and each member either had to hold a pencil with his or her lips or teeth. Holding a pencil with your lips forces you to use the same muscles it takes to frown and holding a pencil with your teeth forces you to use the same muscles it takes to smile. The participants who held the pencil with their teeth preferred the show much more than those using their lips. This is the power of positive association. It only takes a smile to make someone happy and agreeable, and then the interaction is reciprocated, a self-fulfilling prophecy. This is why I say what I have to say has very little to do with wrestling. It is in your best interest to always find a reason to smile to find a reason to keep positive associations.

I’ve been wrestling for sixteen years now and I always hear about all the great things wrestling has to offer. You know… it teaches you discipline, hard work, commitment, ect., ect. That’s not why I wrestle, and if that’s why any little kid wrestles than I’d love to meet him. It’s about positive associations. Discipline, hard work, character have incredibly positive associations socially.

Noradrenaline is a neurotransmitter that is simultaneously active with adrenaline. In the movie A Season On The Mat: Iowa Wrestling Tom brands says “Hard work is a cure all”. Yes in a way it is. Noradrenaline or Norepinephrine is similar to dopamine, which makes you happy, and it can very much become addictive. It actually triggers the flight or fight response. Funny to say it also but this is one of the reasons why both J. Robinson and Ken Chertow’s camps do so well. They get kids high off of hard work, and for the most part it is a good thing. Dopamine is also left over after a workout, which is part of the reason why you might feel so good after a workout. You can actually solve your problems by working out, so the next time your wife or girlfriend wants to talk your problems out tell her you are going to work out. (Just kidding!).

Then there is also the implicit association of touch. If you don’t think there is something positive in physical touch than look at a nursing home, a masseuse, or a waitress. Studies show that waitresses who make some kind of contact generally get better tips. If you have read Tuesdays With Morrie, Morrie talks about the power of physical touch. Wrestling is entirely built upon physical touch, even if it involves trying to physically dominate another person it still has the implicit association of touch.

But then there are negative associations to. These seem to be almost entirely explicit, that is they are caused by our regulation and not the nature of the sport. First off, wrestling is in the winter. Winter sucks, plain and simple. Especially in Chicago, I really didn’t want to walk ten feet outside today. Next let’s take the wrestling room, low ceilings, overheated, it’s basically a dank pit, even nice ones. There is a general social sense of homophobia towards wrestling out of a lot of people who’ve never wrestled. Being owned in a match, beat up, and sore isn’t all that much fun either if you’re new to the sport. Throw in the filthy things people do to cut weight and the miserable looks on their faces as they do it without smiling, the skin diseases, and you’re struggling to prove to everyone ‘what’s so good about wrestling?’

There are more than enough positive associations. With a few optimistic words you can stay positive. The feeling that you’re building character and improving yourself in some way can keep you going when doubts creep in. All I can really say is keep smiling. Smile until you’re happy to be part of wrestling, and until wrestling makes you smile.

It was hard to be upset after losing midlands. Sure I wanted to win, no one wants to lose, and maybe I felt good from the Norepinephrine. I wrestled hard, I made a few mistakes, and my hand didn’t get raised. When I saw Herbert joking around and smiling after losing, honestly, I would have felt guilty trying to force a frown.