I agree that not questioning teachers or those who even get better results than us even to be limiting. I think learning from them is huge and obviously the Thais have a lot to offer... but just because someone is succeeding doesn't mean they are doing it the way that would be best for me or that they couldn't improve.

Thank you Richard, its feels nice when people agree... of course I don't really know if its true... what is true? :)

I do think that trained recovery is huge... The body learns by doing, by experience, as does the mind (our minds thoughts about what we are doing are also huge). Train to have a slow use of energy for 1 hour and that is what your body learns. Train to be fatigued and tired by training till fatigued and tired and your body learns to be fatigued and tired. At least that is my limited experience.
When tired we try harder, when we are tired and taught to push and try harder we do learn to keep going but we also learn to try harder... meaning we flex and strain and push what works best when relaxed. There is a line and a fighter does need to push... but always pushing teaches you to always push but also teaches you to always be tired and strain and use way more energy than is needed in my opinion.

Some interesting ideas are presented in "Invincible Athletes" (think that is the title... audio and workbook set on training around ayurvedic principles..

If an olympic athlete knew his event was to be at 2pm then it would serve performance well to train, if possible, at 2 pm... or at least once a week, say his competition day, to train as close to the performance as possible (say a 500 meter run - warm up, maybe some mental, prepare and then run 500 meters) the body and mind become conditioned to perform from training... not suggesting 10pm training the greatest idea all the time (if thats when fights would be) but the principles of teaching your body to do what, when and how you want it to in competition...

If you go to bed every day at 10pm you condition the body to wind down and prepare for rest atthat time. If you go to bed at 1am all the time you condition the body for that... routine and habit create body and mind responses to facilitate what it is use to...

Do a 15 min round and see how much less energy it takes than having the 1 or 2 min breaks... Obviously break time is huge for recovery... why not condition the body to use the recovery? Why not get the most out of it? Why not consciously and intentionally create a situation where the body learns to slow down and recover? What do you think a 10% increase in recovery would do to the next round. Maybe people are mentally fighting in the breaks... the brain takes something like 25% of our oxygen intake... thoughts and emotions take energy and release different chemicals and hormones. Fighting is stressful and stress uses loads of resources and energy... breaks should prepare for fighting, not be fighting in the mind... I feel a fighter should be easily able to turn it on and off and ultimately and ideally be able to be peaceful and relaxed while fighting... that is more of a master though I think all can move in that direction.. I don't think it is that crazy and I think it is much easier, with powerful results to move in that direction during down time, breaks, between rounds... between training sessions etc also...

I have seen many fighters in a zone hours before their fight. They think they need to prepare... training is finished... preparing for battle hours before is rest and recovery. mentally going over thing is great and powerful but not being zoned out in a fight state...

Similar principles when working the bag... you are alert and ready but when not hitting the body can be in a relaxed place of readiness... not tense and fighting when no fighting is happening (course ones mental state is a little different but on and off as need be or chosen to be instead of stress and tense on all the time)

Watch Jordan dribble up the court and take a shot... does he look stressed out?
Ali, Samart, Boom Boom Mancini... you can do your thing without trying so hard... of course if training is always pushing you to be stressed and tense and forcing it out then that likely all you will ever be able to do in the ring.

The Thais train relaxed for the most part in my opinion... i do think they over train but even in that (if they do) they still maintain a much greater relaxed state... sebai sebai, mai pen rai :)

I think between rounds etc is very under estimated and that time can be used to use the mental to change the body's chemical, hormonal and energy flows and to enter each round stronger than the last.