The Way of the Fight
4.5/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
From the world’s most popular UFC fighter, Georges “Rush” St. Pierre, comes a startlingly honest portrait of a fighter’s journey, highlighting the lessons that propelled his rise from bullying victim to internationally celebrated athlete and champion.
There’s more to winning battles than fists and feet
For world-renowned professional fighter Georges St-Pierre, the greatest asset is not physical strength or athleticism—it’s a sense of purpose. From his beginnings as a small, mercilessly bullied child first discovering karate to his years as a struggling garbage collector who spent all his free time in the gym, his hard-fought rise in the sport of mixed martial arts, and his long, painful recovery from a career-threatening injury, Georges never lost sight of his ambition to become the greatest martial artist of all time. In The Way of the Fight, Georges for the first time reveals what propelled him not only to become a champion but to embrace obstacles as opportunities to build character.
The Way of the Fight is an inspirational look into the mindset of a master. To Georges, all life is competition, and there’s no more perfect metaphor for competition than the life of a fighter. He explains the value of discipline, risk and even fear, with the wisdom of one who knows that nothing is assured—his next fight could always be his last. Drawing inspiration from fighting legends, Eastern philosophy and a trusted inner circle, The Way of the Fight is a powerful, life-changing guide to living with purpose and finding the way to accomplish your loftiest goals.
Georges St-Pierre
Georges ""Rush"" St-Pierre, also known as ""GSP,"" is a Canadian professional mixed martial artist and world champion who holds black belts in both Kyokushin karate and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Recog-nized as one of the planet's best pound-for-pound MMA fighters and all-around athletes, as well as a three-time Canadian Athlete of the Year, GSP lives in Montreal and travels around the world to work with the best coaches and training partners in all disciplines.
Related to The Way of the Fight
Related ebooks
The Pact: A UFC Champion, a Boy with Cancer, and their Promise to Win the Ultimate Battle Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Why I Fight: The Belt Is Just an Accessory Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Atlas: From the Streets to the Ring: A Son's Struggle to Become a Man Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Say Uncle!: Catch-As-Catch-Can and the Roots of Mixed Martial Arts, Pro Wrestling, and Modern Grappling Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Uncaged: My Life as a Champion MMA Fighter Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How You Bear It: Triumph and Resilience in Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beast: Blood, Struggle, and Dreams at the Heart of Mixed Martial Arts Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Got Fight?: The 50 Zen Principles of Hand-to-Face Combat Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Muay Thai Unleashed: Learn Technique and Strategy from Thailand’s Warrior Elite Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Grappling Games: For Brazilian JiuJitsu (BJJ) and Submission Wrestling Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Total MMA: Inside Ultimate Fighting Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bareknuckle: Memoirs of the Undefeated Champion Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Is This Legal? Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsQuitters Never Win: My Life in UFC Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Borrowing the Master's Bicycle: and other essays on Brazilian jiu-jitsu Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Physical Chess: My Life in Catch-as-Catch-Can Wrestling Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Basics of Muay Thai Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tapmonster: Ideas about Grappling for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) and Submission Wrestling Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCounterpunch: Ali, Tyson, the Brown Bomber, and Other Stories of the Boxing Ring Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Complete Science of Wrestling Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMastering Muay Thai Kick-Boxing: MMA-Proven Techniques Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Sambo Encyclopedia: Comprehensive Throws, Holds, and Submission Techniques For All Grappling Styles Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boxing's Ten Commandments: Essential Training for the Sweet Science Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lazy Man's Guide to Grappling - (Brazilian jiu-jitsu, BJJ, Wrestling, etc.) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: The Ultimate Guide to Dominating Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Mixed Martial Arts Combat Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Jiu Jitsu Training Journal Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBoxer's Bible of Counterpunching: The Killer Response to Any Attack Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Boxing Like the Champs: Lessons from Boxing's Greatest Fighters Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Martial Arts For You
Tai Chi In 10 Weeks: A Beginner's Guide Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTao of Jeet Kune Do: New Expanded Edition Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Krav Maga: An Essential Guide to the Renowned Method--for Fitness and Self-Defense Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How To Think Like A Spy: Spy Secrets and Survival Techniques That Can Save You and Your Family Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hidden in Plain Sight: Esoteric Power Training within Japanese Martial Traditions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5U.S. Marine Close Combat Fighting Handbook Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bruce Lee Jeet Kune Do: Bruce Lee's Commentaries on the Martial Way Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Prepared: The 8 Secret Skills of an Ex-IDF Special Forces Operator That Will Keep You Safe - Basic Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Guide to Improvised Weaponry: How to Protect Yourself with WHATEVER You've Got Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fight Like a Physicist: The Incredible Science Behind Martial Arts Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mind Gym: An Athlete's Guide to Inner Excellence Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Bushido: The Samurai Code of Japan: With an Extensive Introduction and Notes by Alexander Bennett Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Shaolin Kung Fu: The Original Training Techniques of the Shaolin Lohan Masters Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Meditations on Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training and Real World Violence Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sun Tzu's The Art of War: Bilingual Edition Complete Chinese and English Text Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Fighter's Mind: Inside the Mental Game Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Path of Mastery: Lessons On Wing Chun and Life from Sifu Francis Fong Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The SAS Self-Defence Manual: Elite defence techniques for men and women Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Spotting Danger Before It Spots You: Build Situational Awareness To Stay Safe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Complete Krav Maga: The Ultimate Guide to Over 250 Self-Defense and Combative Techniques Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Bruce Lee: A Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bruce Lee's Fighting Method: The Complete Edition Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Scientific Self-Defence Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Instant Health: The Shaolin Qigong Workout For Longevity Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Tao of Wing Chun: The History and Principles of China's Most Explosive Martial Art Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTai Chi: A Beginner’s Guide Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5SEAL Survival Guide: A Navy SEAL's Secrets to Surviving Any Disaster Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of Five Rings (Illustrated Edition): With linked Table of Contents Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Reviews for The Way of the Fight
11 ratings2 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Not a pure autobiography in the usual sense of the word, in this book St. Pierre writes about scenes from his life and some of his formative influences. As he describes them, these are the Mother, Mentor, Master, Maven and Conscience, which correspond to chapters about his childhood with comments from his maman (Mother), and then chapters with his first real sensei, Kristof Midoux (Mentor), his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu teacher, John Danaher (Master), his coach, Firas Zahabi (Maven), and his friend, Rodolphe Beaulieu (Conscience). Ever the consummate professional, critics of St. Pierre's performance in the ring have complained that he lacks the killer instinct, saying that he plays it safe and doesn't take unnecessary risks. He wins, to be sure, but he doesn't finish opponents, or at least, he hasn't finished opponents since his 2009 fight against BJ Penn. After reading this book, I better understand why.St. Pierre is a master strategist, as well as a master tactician, and he understands how his opponents will fight. His objective is to get ahead on points so that his opponents are forced to take risks, while taking as few risks as possible himself. It is a successful strategy, and given the personal risk he faces every time he enters the octagon, (both physically, of getting badly hurt and financially, of losing purse money and endorsement contracts), who is to say that this approach is not sound? Not I. I think St. Pierre is one of the more intelligent fighters out there, and it's always a pleasure to watch him at work, disassembling an opponent's game plan and crippling their resolve and will to fight. You could see this most profoundly in the 2009 Penn fight, when Penn's corner literally threw in the towel, but you could also see it as recently as the 2013 Diaz fight, where Diaz stumbled through 5 rounds of a solid schooling in mixed martial arts at the hands of a master.More than a pure autobiography, this is a book of philosophy, in which St. Pierre explains his life philosophy as well as his fighting philosophy. A true polymath, St. Pierre incorporates many disparate elements from eastern teachings, history, geometry, anthropology and martial arts into his approach to life and work, and the combination is what makes him so special and so successful as a fighter. St. Pierre takes a much more analytical approach to life and work than most people, and certainly, most fighters. It is his continual drive to improve that makes him so successful, and also keeps him from the normal life that others enjoy. I got the very real sense of estrangement from St. Pierre as I read this book. He must keep an emotional distance from many others in his line of work, both because the profession is a demanding one requiring many hours of work each day, and because anyone who has enjoyed his level of success must be careful to limit access to his inner circle. The Japanese have a concept of masks - the public mask, that others see, and the private mask, that only few ever witness. With St. Pierre, his public mask is on almost all the time, and the glimpses of his private mask are tantalizingly few, granted only occasionally, and only to the privileged inner sanctum.It's a pity, really, because St. Pierre comes across as a very loyal, very intelligent, and very likable guy in this book, if tremendously driven. Almost obsessively driven, in fact. It would be interesting to get a glimpse behind the curtain, but it's unlikely that this will ever happen, at least so long as he is competing professionally in MMA. Too bad - he seems like the kind of person who would have some interesting things to say about history or physical anthropology.If you are hoping to understand what makes St. Pierre successful, this book will give you a bit of information that will cause you to re-watch his fights with a fresh eye. If you are hoping to understand what makes St. Pierre the man the way he is, this book will not give you much. The book is, after all, written for the public mask of GSP, the fighter and the brand, not Georges St. Pierre, the man.This book is as much about delivering on the GSP brand as all of his other very well-thought out marketing activities. As a person, St. Pierre understands that he is the product, and this book is intended to reinforce the brand rather than illuminate the person.Within these limitations, though, this was a surprisingly well written book, and a very enjoyable read. I suspect that not only followers of MMA would enjoy this book, but also scholars of philosophy, and anyone who wonders what it is that makes the truly successful succeed.A wonderful counterpoint to Sam Sheridan's The Fighter's Heart (Grove Press, ISBN 9780802143433) and The Fighter's Mind (Grove Press, ISBN 9780802145017), this book made me want to adopt some of St. Pierre's success strategies - - his visualization, and his goal setting, and his work ethic. As St. Pierre writes in his opening, every single morning takes root the night before. It makes me wonder what I can do tonight to make myself more successful tomorrow.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Part memoir and part personal philosophy and manifesto, this is a fast and interesting read from a driven athlete and champion. GSP's book focuses on what drives him and what allows him to succeed at such a level in MMA, especially focusing on the psychology and the philosophy around all of it. The book gets a slow start and feels almost like a self-help book as GSP introduces his thoughts on survival, fear, and health, but it quickly moves beyond those moments and goes quickly into his journey toward becoming a professional athlete. At its heart, the book is about personal dedication to one's passion and chosen path--and finding that path--and in that way, any reader might benefit from it. Oddly, I enjoyed this book far more than I expected to. I went into it hoping to learn a little about MMA (and I did), but while I was skeptical of the work (based on the beginning), I ended up really appreciating the dedication and belief behind the work and the lifestyle. As someone who's slowly making a move toward putting my own passion above all other concerns/priorities (but for family), I could relate to many of the discussions here, especially toward the end when GSP starts discussing the feelings of isolation he experiences before a fight, and the manner in which he has to be careful of the people he surrounds himself with. Simply, this is a fast read, and entertaining. It's also an interestingly formatted memoir, and a work that testifies to the fact that a journey is what most matters, far more than any end result.Overall, recommended.
1 person found this helpful