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      in Boxing

      Inside Anthony Joshua’s new ‘mental training’ plan after losing to Usyk

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      TWO time world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has said he is now taking a more ‘mental approach’ to training after losing to Oleksandr Usyk.The 32-year-old said he is increasingly focusing on the mental aspects of his boxing training.
      Anthony Joshua has revealed the way he is tackling training in the lead up to 2022Credit: Getty
      Speaking at an Under Armour panel, Joshua said he was turning to ‘uplifting activities’ to help put him in the right headspace.
      “I’m not happy with what happened in my previous fight. You have to be angry at losing and it’s not acceptable,” he says.
      “My losses should be put in my highlights reel really, as that’s the stuff that shapes you, it’s always on my mind.
      “I don’t take losses well, I fight the best consistently, and I try to overcome obstacles.”
      Joshua’s next fight is set for April 2022 and after September’s loss, he’s taking on a new approach.
      Mental health is key to all of us, and can make a real impact for any athlete; it’s something Watford-born Joshua puts a lot of emphasis on.
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      The Sun previously launched its You’re Not Alone campaign, to remind anyone facing a tough time that there is hope and support available.
      Joshua says mental recovery is really important for him and explains that keeping his mental health in good condition helps him feel strong and perform at his best.
      Keeping an eye on his social media usage is a crucial step in managing his mental health.
      “It’s all about the environment I create around myself and the information I let in,” says Joshua.
      “It’s too much of an effort to block out social media. If you like it, jump on it, but when you’re on it, control what you let into your life.
      “If you use it, it’s fine, get the positives out of it.
      “You have to fill your life with motivation, because life is hard. 
      “I’ve been at the bottom so I need to see things that are uplifting.” 
      Anthony Joshua’s top tips for training outside this winterChilly training doesn’t just have to involve sub-zero temperatures and sprinting in the snow.
      “It’s important to just get outside and just get some sunshine,” says Joshua.
      “Just going for a walk and getting some sunlight is great; it’s so important to be outside.”
      If you’re anxious about cold weather workouts, start slow and build up your cold weather tolerance.
      “Lots of little things impact us,” says Joshua.
      “You need small targets. Small little steps will take you a long way.
      “Cold training is good because it helps you learn how to deal with stress. 
      “It helps you become a better person, no matter what environment you are in.”

      Another way he keeps his mental health topped up is with a chilly daily ritual.
      While many influencers and athletes like to post photos of themselves luxuriously lounging in hot places like Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Joshua much prefers the cold, and Joshua likes to take a cold shower first thing.
      It’s a shock to the system, and a boost for his mental health.
      “A cold shower is one of the first things I do in the morning,” he says.
      “It’s all about being uncomfortable. 
      “Each day presents me with millions of obstacles and I just feel like if I can get through a 30 second cold shower, then I can deal with 10 minutes of stress.”
      LET’S GET PHYSICAL
      Joshua, an Under Armour ambassador, takes his cold shower philosophy into the training ring too. 
      Icy weather training might be something he struggles with, but he says: “It’s that mental blockage that you need to overcome.”
      He remembers his trainer telling him to go for a run outdoors, in freezing temperatures. 
      “I knew I had to go outside. The spartans and the vikings would always be outside, but I’m a new school guy.
      “My coach showed me a video of someone running in the snow, so I knew what I had to do.
      “I had to overcome my thoughts and I felt alive when I came back from that run.”
      Training at low temperatures can be hugely beneficial for your physical and mental health, if you can get yourself out the door.
      “Being in a warm environment relaxes you, you shut down,” says Joshua.
      “The cold signals to your brain and the rest of your body that you need to wake up.
      “It’s all about being switched on and that’s what cold weather training does for your mind and body.”
      Eddie Hearn says Anthony Joshua step-aside talks axed and will now fight Usyk as planned More

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      in Soccer

      England legend Sir Geoff Hurst, 79, fitted with pacemaker after being diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat

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      ENGLAND football legend Sir Geoff Hurst has told how a heart scare during a stroll in the park led to him being fitted with a pacemaker.Hurst, 79, turned to doctors after his pulse rocketed to 200 beats per minute.
      Sir Geoff said: ‘I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat, which is not life threatening’Credit: The Sun
      After being assessed by specialists he was given emergency surgery to have the pacemaker fitted two weeks ago.
      Last night Sir Geoff — who scored a hat-trick in England’s 4-2 1966 World Cup Final victory over West Germany at Wembley — said: “Life is a lottery.
      “Look at my colleagues from the World Cup team. Sadly, some of them have had one issue or another and have passed away during this awful time.
      “I have just had a pacemaker fitted. I had a mild stroke a couple of years ago and had tests after that. I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat, which is not life threatening.
      “When you tell people you have a pacemaker they think ‘oh Christ’, but for me it is not quite like that.
      “I wasn’t feeling bad beforehand but it prevents the irregularities and possibly falling over and damaging myself or driving a car and running somebody over.

      “I have got to see a specialist in four to six weeks just to recap.
      “But I’m doing OK with it.”
      Sir Geoff is now one of only three of the original World Cup squad still alive.
      The recent deaths of 1966 team-mates Jimmy Greaves and Roger Hunt have made the former West Ham striker take stock of life.
      And since having the pacemaker fitted he has been focussed on getting back to full fitness.
      He said: “I did exercise every day — walking and twenty minutes of Joe Wicks. And I have stuck with that routine.
      “It was enough and kept my weight slightly lower than it was beforehand.
      “I have a watch and a chest strap which monitors your heart rate.
      “Walking up a normal slope in the park it is between 90 and 95. But my watch occasionally showed 200. I had to stop going to the gym because of Covid.
      HEART MONITOR
      “When they re-opened, you got all the stories about having to wipe down equipment after use and I thought ‘I am not doing that’.
      “I quite enjoy the different Joe Wicks programmes. I have stopped doing it while I am bedding the pacemaker in.
      “I can then decide with the specialist if I can go back to normal. I’ve spoken to people who’ve had them. They say their lives went back to normal, although my life wasn’t anywhere near abnormal.
      “But the biggest issue is the driving. If you have a blackout when you are driving that can be very serious.
      “That in itself persuaded me, without really feeling bad at all apart from the watch issue, to decide to have one fitted, and I did a couple of weeks ago.”
      Hurst has written a book called Eighty At Eighty in which he names his top 80 inspirational sports stars to mark his landmark birthday on December 8.
      Apart from Sir Geoff, the only other members of the 1966 World Cup squad still alive are Sir Bobby Charlton, 84, and George Cohen, 82.
      Midfielder Nobby Stiles, 78, and defender Jack Charlton 85, both died last year after long battles with dementia.
      Goalkeeper Gordon Banks, who was 81, died in 2019 — as did England’s other World Cup Final goalscorer Martin Peters, who was 76.
      Sir Geoff said: ‘When you tell people you have a pacemaker they think ‘oh Christ’, but for me it is not quite like that’ – pictured with the Duchess of CornwallCredit: PA
      Geoff Hurst makes history netting England’s fourth goal against West Germany in the 1966 World Cup final
      World Cup winners Geoff Hurst with captain Bobby Moore
      Hurst has written a book called Eighty At Eighty in which he names his top 80 inspirational sports stars to mark his landmark birthday on December 8
      West Ham unveil statue of Bobby Moore, Martin Peters and Geoff Hurst and intern Peters’ ashes at London Stadium More

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      in Boxing

      Tyson Fury fears end of boxing career as training keeps mental health demons at bay

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      BOXING champ Tyson Fury fears his boxing career coming to an end because training keeps his mental health demons at bay.The heavyweight also praised wife Paris as the only person who could “snap him out of it” when his problems hit.
      Tyson Fury fears his boxing career coming to an end because training keeps his mental health demons at bayCredit: Getty
      Dad-of-six Tyson, 33, said: “I don’t know what’s going to happen if I somehow get injured where I can’t train or whatever.
      “I fear those days.
      “I really am scared of what might be around the corner because I know, no matter what I’ve got,  it can all be taken away from me by mental health problems.
      “I believe you can never get over mental health, never.
      “But you can learn to maintain it.
      “If I don’t train for two or three days I dip.”
      Bipolar Tyson has suffered with depression and alcohol and drug problems but credits Paris, 31, with keeping him together.
      Speaking at a Wow Hydrate function before his world title fight victory over Deontay Wilder, he said: “She almost knows when I’m not well and she will say, ‘Come back to us in the living’. And it sort of snaps me out of it.”

      Champ Tyson praised wife Paris as the only person who could ‘snap him out of it’ when his problems hit
      Tyson said: ‘I really am scared of what might be around the corner because I know, no matter what I’ve got,  it can all be taken away from me by mental health problems’Credit: Getty
      Tyson Fury admits to Frank Bruno that he keeps depression at bay with training but wishes he’d seen a doctor 10 years earlier More

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      in Soccer

      England’s Euro 2020 squad will be offered therapy developed for soldiers with PTSD

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      ENGLAND’S Euro 2020 squad will be offered “mind therapy” treatment developed by scientists to help soldiers with PTSD to prepare for the finals.The players will spend the next week at stunning Rockcliffe Hall in Co Durham as they play friendlies against Austria and Romania.
      Gareth Southgate’s squad will have access to amazing facilities and supportCredit: Getty
      The FA has booked all 61 bedrooms at the five-star resort, which is nestled in 375 acres of quiet countryside.
      The squad will be able to enjoy some rest and relaxation in the hotel’s 50,000sq ft spa facility, which is among the largest in the country
      And stars including Marcus Rashford, Harry Kane and Phil Foden will also be able to use a “Mind Therapy Room” to get them into the right frame of mind ahead of the team’s first group stage game against Croatia on June 13.
      The stars will lie on a vibrating dentist’s chair-style sound wave bed which was invented by American scientists to help war veterans suffering with PTSD.
      Players will be invited to put headphones on and a face mask placed over their eyes before soft music is played to them, along with a series of beeps.
      The 30-minute treatment is said to help move brainwaves from the alpha state, which is a state of relaxation, to the slower delta waves, which we experience when we are asleep.
      A source said: “The players have had a long, hard season and have very little time off. So it’s only right that they get to spend some downtime in a beautiful hotel.
      “The spa is huge and regarded as one of the best in the country and the golf course is top notch too.
      “Some of the players could benefit from some mind therapy treatments to help clear their minds and relax them and help them sleep properly so their bodies can mend.”
      Earlier this week England boss Gareth Southgate revealed that Wags and families will be banned from the team hotel for the duration of the tournament, which starts on June 11.
      He said: “We’re not going to be able to let people in. There’s a clear edict from Uefa on what the bubbles need to look like to be as secure as we can make them.
      “It’s never going to be 100 per cent fail safe but we’ve got to comply with as much as we can.
      Stars including Marcus Rashford will be able to use a ‘Mind Therapy Room’ to get them into the right frame of mind ahead of the team’s first group game against CroatiaCredit: PA
      A source said: ‘Some of the players could benefit from some mind therapy treatments to help clear their minds and relax them’ – pictured Harry KaneCredit: PA

      “We’re hoping that we might at some point be able to let the players have a little bit of time at home.
      “But that’s constantly being assessed. It’d be a preference for us if we can.”England begin their Euro 2020 campaign underway against Croatia on June 13 at Wembley.
      The Three Lions then face Scotland on June 18 before concluding their Group D fixtures with a match against Czech Republic on June 22.
      Gareth Southgate to ditch iconic waistcoat for Euro 2020 after England boss stole show with outfit at Russia World Cup More

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      in Soccer

      Sausage maker dress goalkeeper as giant cheese grater to fight prostate cancer

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      GOALIE Johnny Coombs is shredding this season — but it’s all for the grater good.
      His non-league side Bedale AFC are wearing kit sponsored by sausage maker Heck Food, which is raising cash to fight prostate cancer.

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      Keeper Johnny Coombs and his non-league side Bedale AFC are wearing kit sponsored by sausage maker Heck Food, which is raising cash to fight prostate cancerCredit: GARY MORRISROE
      The firm will be dressing Johnny, 39, as a giant cheese grater to promote its new range of “Veg with Edge” bangers.
      His team-mates will wear a carrot-print kit.
      The North Yorks team wore a sausage kit in 2017 voted worst ever by fans.
      In 2018 it was hot dogs and 2019 it was bangers and mash.

      Heck’s co-founder Andrew Keeble said: “We’ve had some fun along the way.
      “What started as an innocuous sausage kit a few years ago has snowballed into this massive, almost unstoppable force that shows no sign of letting up.

      “Every time we think that’s it, we get another idea for a new kit and away we go again.
      “However, there is a very serious side to all of this because Heck and Bedale AFC continue to raise awareness and funds for prostate cancer.”

      The disease kills 11,000 men a year, one every 45 minutes.

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      Heck’s co-founder said the firm and Bedale AFC will ‘continue to raise awareness and funds for prostate cancer’Credit: GARY MORRISROE

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      Heck Food will be dressing Johnny as a giant cheese grater to promote its new range of ‘Veg with Edge’ sausagesCredit: GARY MORRISROE

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      The North Yorks team wore a sausage kit in 2017 which was voted the worst ever by footie fansCredit: North News and Pictures

      Jimmy Tarbuck talks candidly about his prostate cancer diagnosis on Good Morning Britain
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