She loves the vibe that MMA fighters have. The good thing is that she exudes the same vibe so naturally. Little wonder then that Ishika Thite is a national Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) champ.
Though she won her first MMA medal at 26, her journey began perhaps subconsciously as a child when her father started her training in Karate.
“I started training at the age of four with my father. As a teen, I used to wonder why I have to do it, my legs pained, I couldn’t play with friends because I was training. I would get annoyed with it,” shares Ishika. After she completed college and started working, Ishika trained in kickboxing and found herself drawn to MMA. “Martial Arts was all I have seen growing up and I realized in my mid 20’s that this is all I wanted to do,” smiles Ishika. “I took classes and trained myself in MMA. I won a medal and then one more. Those wins gave me the confidence I needed to jump into it full time,” says Ishika. There’s no looking back since!
MMA
MMA is a combination of various martial arts. It is a combination of striking and grappling. Striking includes karate, boxing, kickboxing, and Muay Thai and grappling includes jujitsu, wrestling and judo. I give my training 90 minutes in the morning and in the evening. For the rest of the day, I am training others.
Mental fitness
Fights are stressful. Given the nature of my work, and my training, I can’t keep up with friends. I train all the time, so the body gets sore in the week, no time for friends and hanging out and chilling, no social life.
I am a loner and decided I would get a cat. I got the most beautiful cat ever- Glory. She gave birth to four kittens and now I have five babies, all of who are responsible for keeping me mentally strong. I love spending time with my babies.
There is huge pressure to be better and better in this field too, like it is in the corporate world, I won’t deny it. I had a normal corporate life before I got into MMA, but this is way better.
My diet
I eat out once in a month. Rest of the time, I cook for myself everyday, and eat a meat based diet. My weakness is fried food which I can’t have so I use an air fryer. Unlike other people who have cheat meals, I have Tuesdays as cheat days where I eat the entire day.
If I am out of town for a few days, and obviously forced to eat out, I feel slower when I train. Cooking a good meal it is extremely satisfying, and something I love to do.
Respect your body
Often people say you can take pills to alter the dates of your period, but I let the body go through the normal process. I don’t take pills, even when I have fights on that day. I respect my body and love it so I won’t do that. I deal with cramps, just like other women do.
Dealing with a bad fight
Normally I show I am ok, but at night I keep watching the fight again and analyze my moves. I say I should have done this not that. By the time I am done analyzing, I am sure that I am going to do better next time.
For MMA aspirants
In India MMA is growing right now, it’s a good time to get into it. Starting with boxing and wrestling at a young age is beneficial, but that is possible only if parents are willing to support their kids. I would suggest getting into MMA at 16 or perhaps even 14 onwards by introducing them to martial arts. Do it seriously.
Do you have it in you?