Episode 650 - Sensei Samuel & Sempai Angel Diaz
Sensei Samuel and Sempai Angel Diaz are Martial Arts practitioners and instructors at Stratford Shotokan Karate.
One of the things that we try to drive home to our students is that, the training that you're embarking on, what you're enduring in that hour and a half class, is a reflection of life. So the same way that you're facing the struggle during the training, those are going to be reflection of the trials that we're going to face in life...
Sensei Samuel and Sempai Angel Diaz - Episode 650
It’s unusual in this podcast to feature guests that are siblings. What’s more unusual is that the older sibling learned Martial Arts before their father did. Sensei Samuel Diaz III, wanted to become a Ninja Turtle so he started at the tender age of 2. Sempai Angel Diaz, the younger sibling, trained much later inspired by his big brother and father. Together, they run the Stratford Shotokan Karate in Connecticut.
In this episode, Sensei Samuel and Sempai Angel Diaz tell their Martial Arts journey and how it strengthened their bond as brothers.
Show Notes
Checck out Sensei Samuel and Sempai Angel Diaz school at StratfordShotokan.com
Follow and subscribe to them on Social Media:
Instagram - @stratfordshotokankarate
Facebook - @stratfordshotokankarate
YouTube - @stratfordshotokankarate
Show Transcript
You can read the transcript below.
Jeremy Lesniak:
What's up everybody. Welcome, this is whistlekick Martial Arts Radio Episode 650. Today, I have two guests, siblings, Sensei Samuel Diaz III third, and Sensei Angel Diaz. And they're here to talk about, well, they're going to tell their stories. They're going to talk about family dynamics, training together to a whole bunch of other things. It's a fun episode. And it's actually one of the first interview episodes that we've ever done in video. So, if you're listening and you'd rather check it out in video, go ahead stop now. Because there's plenty to see in the video, facial expressions, the humor, this is a great episode. Now, if you're new to the show, thanks for watching. Thanks for coming by listening, supporting us. Because we're here on a mission. We're here to connect, educate and entertain the martial artists of the world, specifically, the traditional martial artists. I'm a passionate traditional martial artist myself. And that's why we do all the things that we do here at whistlekick. If you want to check out everything that we've got going on, please go to whistlekick.com one of the things you'll find over there is our store. And if you use the code, PODCAST15, that's going to get you 15% off every single thing we have in the store from great apparel, coffee mugs, protective equipment, training programs, there's a bunch of stuff there. So, check it out. Now we've also got whistlekickmartialartsradi.com, that's where you're going to find everything for this show.
We've done 650 episodes, they're all available for free, you can find me on your podcast player, and you can find them at our website. We also included the website, transcripts, photos, links, all kinds of good stuff over there, you can also sign up for our newsletter. Now, if the stuff that we do mean something to you and you want to support us tons of ways you can support us, but I'm going to give you just a couple one, you can leave a review, whether it's Apple podcasts or Google podcasts, Spotify, any place that you could leave a review for whistlekick Martial Arts Radio is greatly appreciated, too. You could tell someone about what we've got going on. How do we grow through word of mouth. The Friends of the show, sharing the show with other people has been the most significant way that we've grown over the years. And then three we have a Patreon, patreon.comwhistlekick. We bring you additional behind the scenes exclusive content for our Patreon. Contributors you can start as little as $2 a month and it goes up from there. we very rarely have people drop out of the Patreon which tells me we're doing the right thing with delivering value. But without further ado, let's talk to our guests some pie and Sensei Sam and Angel, Welcome to whistlekick Martial Arts Radio.
Samuel Diaz:
Thank you so much for having us this is this is exciting
Angel Diaz:
Yeah, thank you so much. It's a pleasure to be here.
Jeremy Lesniak:
It's been a while I haven't seen you guys in person, I felt like there was like a two-year span didn't matter where I turn if there was a tournament, if the whistlekick team was there, if we had a booth just you guys were there. Honestly, Angel, I feel like I met you first but I don't even remember when that happened, I think just somehow, we skip the part where we didn't know each other and then just you were there and we were all friends.
Angel Diaz:
Yeah, no, we definitely so I remember when it was the opener. It was 2017 when I met you, pull me right after the end of the tournament and the first thing you said was “Who are you?”.
Jeremy Lesniak:
That sounds like something I would do. Yeah, it does.
Angel Diaz:
So, we met there and then just ever since then our paths have crossed just throughout the years.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Awesome. Yeah, well you guys are doing some cool stuff, some big stuff and the audience whether they're watching or they're listening right now. You know, maybe they skipped ahead of the intro so they don't know what I set up in the intro but this is different. We're doing a Monday show with two people we haven't, I think we've done like maybe two of those ever. So, this is kind of special and I mean let's get it out of the way you're related.
Samuel Diaz:
As closely as possible. This is Sam speaking now. For people that are that are on audio. Oh, but yeah, brothers’ 11 years apart and we just pushing each other. Again, as we've gotten older the gap has gotten smaller. So to say yeah, of how this how this works out in relationship and stuff which is great. It's a blessing.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Right on, right on. So, let's roll it back. Let's you know, we think of this in a lot of different ways. You know, the first episode of your TV shows your origin story of your comic book, whatever it is, you know, he was doing a little shimmy. He's getting excited to talk about this. So, if with an 11-year gap, I'm going to guess that your martial arts initiation wasn't at the same time so how happened.
Samuel Diaz:
Well, well for myself, I started training when I was two and a half so this is again for listeners, I popped in now. This is Sam speaking. I started training at two and a half. And it all really has I wanted to be a ninja turtle. You know what it's like the typical story that most kids that age have, they want to be some kind of superhero. But it was ironic. It was interesting because it was night at that time. It was 1988 and there weren't many martial arts schools that were taking children at two and a half years old. You know, that was uncommon. So, my mother actually was the blessing because my father wanted me to do it. Please like oh, he's still too young, but I was like, he doesn't stop talking about it. We're going to find a place and she ended up finding a school in in the projects and for quantix projects in which for Connecticut, that the instructor was Matty and he would and he said, you know, let's see if he pays attention.
Like basically and from there you know, it's just, I fell right in wanting to do everything the bigger kids were doing. Did it at a slower pace, obviously on the side with a pseudo instructor. His name is Ishmael Herrera who he ended up becoming my big brother, we're still we're tight like this. He's family now. He at one point in time, he was helping instructed dojo here when my father had prostate cancer and had to take some time off. He came in to help me but yeah, it went from there. That's how it all started. And everything just kind of snowballed. And from training with Matty Malisi, he gave me that that intro to showdown karate, and he also had a background in Gojuryu . So, it was a nice foundation that he gave me. And then from there I went on to train on wish Shihanl Bennett out of the Bronx, New York. He welcomed my father. Welcome to me in because through me starting karate, I nagged my dad.
Jeremy Lesniak:
And okay yeah, I thought I heard something. Oh, after you were training?
Samuel Diaz:
Dad’s definitely probably a year later, roughly a year or two later on. He started up. It was funny because he makes a joke now. He doesn't want people to know that like I technically started first. Bob has this picture of him with a white bow and we would agree bow after promotion like you don't nice funny things but it definitely became a family affair and it snowballed from there when we started training with Shihan Bennett in the Bronx, New York. And then you know, when angel came along, at two, three years old, I was trying to start him up. And then what age did you actually start with?
Angel Diaz:
So, this is Angel speaking. I started karate in 2002 to 2003 school year. So, I was in first grade, I was five years old. I started because I saw my brother. So, my dad and my brother used to go to the University of Bridgeport Wheeler Park and Rec. They had a wood gymnasium floor, it was a racquetball court, it will go in there. And because my mom would work later hours, they just had to bring me so my dad would just have me sit on the side and I watched them growing up. And then from there, my dad always... So, those incidents day for some reason, like the colder the weather is, the less he wants to be inside. So, he must rather train outside. And we live right next to a parking lot. So, he always trained in the parking lot, whether it was snowing raining, it was it could be the hottest day still has a hoodie on with Blizzard core. Although he's hardcore. So, with him, I saw both of them doing it, and then kind of like the same thing. And just I hit five years old. And I just I asked if I can do it, and my dad didn't even hesitate. I started with my dad, and my brother first before I went to Shihan Bennett. And that was he said he wanted me to be a little bit older before I came up. And then at eight years old, I went up to New York on a Monday night to see on Earl Bennett for the first time. And then ever since then, that became the family trip Monday, Wednesday, Sunday.
Jeremy Lesniak:
But how long was that drive?
Samuel Diaz:
It's about for us, it's about 45 minutes with no traffic, but depending. So, like when Angel was a baby, I was already training up there. So, on Fridays, my father would pick me up from school, hop in the car, like you know, take a quick nap on the drive up because you're going to train and then my mom will come up to pick me up with him as a baby, with Angel as a baby, come pick me up, and the ride home would be like an hour and a half double the time. Wow, crazy. So, to come in, she would be driving and I would sit in the back and you'd have the feed Angel, the baby makes the bottom feeder. But, you know, it was a blessing to have that much family investment into the martial arts. And nowadays, it's uncommon for somebody for a parent to say I'm going to drive in 45 minutes to go to karate. And yeah, people are picking their martial arts schools based off of convenience as it's the school that's at the end of the block, or it's on my way home from work. It's you know, it's that's not necessarily the quality of the school, unfortunately. And my parents, you know, Shihan Bennett, he's a monster, you know, he, everybody who's anybody came up with that blood and guts era of tournament karate knew him and man has a stroke without facing him or knew somebody who faced them or whatever. So, they definitely saw the value and kept us both going that.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Sure. You know, one of the things that we're kind of getting at as a bonus that I didn't really expect is this aspect of your father in there. So, you know Angel by the time you start really it. You said eight you know there's already home let me do let me do math. 16/17 years of training going on for you Sam before he gets going. Like that's, that's a lot like that's a commitment. We know you guys teach, you know, most people listening watching know, very few people are going to train that long. At all right? Like ever in their entire lives, you're going to see that they're not going to spend 17 years training. So, the fact that we've got, you jumped in, in a really weird aspect, you know, two and a half. Yeah, you know, who does that? Your father follows along, and he's sticking with it and sees so much value in it. That he's like, Alright, boys, we're driving, we're going to drive we're going to put what's that close to 10 hours a week into the car? Yeah, go get some quality instruction. Yeah. And you know, Andrew, now you're sticking with it. So maybe not a martial arts question. But a family dynamic question. What is it about your family that you guys are that all in on stuff? Is it just martial arts? Or if we were to look at other aspects of your family, would we say okay, like, they bring that same discipline, that same mindset over here or over here?
Samuel Diaz:
Yeah, I would say hands down, it's across the board. Our family is super unique in the fact that we are all very, very active. So, listen to us all being martial artists. We are also all musicians. So, my father, Angel, myself, and then my father and I play in a few different styles of bands, traveling for that, you know, an angel used to play with us also, before college and stuff so it, you know, and so the discipline that we picked up in the martial arts transcends into everything that we do. And then a deeper layer under that is that our family is so close knit. And we protect that energy a lot. You know, families go through stuff, everybody has their skeletons in the closet and whatever and you know, we have all went through things but those things you can allow it to make it make you or break you and it just always makes us stronger and stronger. And I do think that I mean, I think that the foundation of that is in the training that we have on the floor. A lot of times when I'm at the dojo and I'm speaking with our students, you might I don't know how well the mic is but you might hear some key eyes in the bathroom. Right now, classes boy, God, my father's teacher class.
And, um, and one of the things that we all try to drive home with our students is that the training that you are embarking on in the floor, what you're enduring, during that hour and a half class is a reflection of life. So, the same way that you're facing a struggle during this training because your muscles are giving up, you're shaking, you're pushing yourself beyond limits, those are all going to be reflections of the trials, tribulations that we're going to face in life. And the discipline that you instill in yourself and how you polish your character in those moments on the floor, are then going to support you later on when you're facing a really rough time at work or you're at school in college. Like there was one time I remember I went to for undergrad I went to Southern Connecticut State University and I was the captain of karate team there. And I got out of practice one day call my mom and I'm like crying because there was an economics class, I just couldn't matter how hard I studied I was still getting enough all the time. But you know, she had to remind me at that time like what would you do if you were trading just going to cry because stuff that you figure it out? And that's something that I think that's a staple for our family the foundation of our family. Angel, you agree?
Angel Diaz:
Oh yeah, I'm going to add a few more points that so I'm going to look at it more from so my brother gave me the karate side and I'll give you like the family side of it.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Do it.
Angel Diaz:
Do one thing I don't want to miss out on this component. So, you're saying all three of us but it's all four of us because I always say this. My mom is a black belt. She even like in my mom has done the cardio kickboxing classes. Like she still goes out on walks. Even with like his newborn baby. I called her the other day and I was like, “What do you do?” And she said, I'm going for a walk with the baby. And I'm like, okay, like if that's if you're able to do it cool. Mom if you need help, like just let me know. I'm a mom. A lot of times so like I remember a couple months ago, my mom sat down and I after we got done teaching class and I actually did the class. The adult class that day because I was able to... I came back and I told my mom I was like, man like if you haven't watched me train like in so long, like you know how did I do? And she was the first one to be like, isn't that blocked supposed to be like, and I was like, ”Okay, I was like what?” And she was like my mom's like get back on the floor like my mom.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Karate moms. Yeah, like I grew up with a karate mom. I understand.
Angel Diaz:
He does the she's always been the one to tell us like I kind of what I've seen you do that better. And I'm going to say like from that point like my mom, I always say it all the time. So as special as it is to have three black belt martial artists in our family with the fourth being my mom. My mom has the hardest job because at one point everyone's ego at like a family party will get into it and it's like man my dad started off. If I was 20 years younger, I'll take both like dead like I'm a grown man now you don't want that so my mom is the first one to be like everyone. Be quiet you guys don't want no problem. Right, mom love it. See also from a deeper layer so you talk about do even discipline everything on one thing my brother didn't touch on and I'm going to show it from our point of view but then we're going to sit talk about it from like a parent's side of it. We were not just doing karate we did baseball, soccer, basketball. I did bowl, soccer and then baseball and baseball for me and you know Samuel also attested.
It's like you know we were blessed enough that like the athletic ability we built through karate it carried us in our other sports sure it's not like we just did baseball from March to June. It's like March to June then we're on travel team. So, it's like from June to August they were playing football from August to November. Mind you like you know you like think about it. We're still fitting time in for karate time. Cool. And then still time for us to be a still be kids, right? Because we don't want to leave that aspect. I want to go out and hang out with friends. I want to go ride my bikes and then looking at it from the parents' side of it. You know driving through again with that discipline. Mom and Dad, they never once ever told us. No, you can't play baseball this year. It was heard that they always were like, like and it was always an angel. You're playing baseball this year. At one point wasn't even like if I wanted to. I could have said Well, I'm tired.
I don't want it, was like my mom was just like okay I signed you up you start this. This complete and it wasn't even a question and my dad made it a point to tell us like you're not going to just sit around like we don't do that in this family and my you know my dad's a little old school. So, he's like you don't do them in this family brother like you got to make sure you work you got to it. My dad said like if you think you can't play basketball and do karate “What are you going to do?” we have a job and then you have a home where like my dad always was able to bring it back to just like what are you going to do, we have a job. What are you going to do? We have a family and a job. And then as we see like now the family in the job, I just got a job I'm able to sit here and say man, Thank God. My dad was able to really like instill these disciplines and because now I take it with me everywhere.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Totally.
Samuel Diaz:
Are we talking about the job thing and being able to balance before we have done with you? I was setting up the computer and I'm like oh so what do you have to do after this? Because I was like oh maybe we'll train, we'll get some rounds in because that's like randomly we will just do that sure of the normal schedule just by God Well, let's do it right now for 30 minutes because 30 minutes is like nothing out of your day so to say goes by super quick. I know I got to read some papers. And it like it reminded me like, man. Yeah, he's like working now you know, like, he's like my little brother but like, you got your grown man responsibilities that I like that. Oh, great. Those are great. Those papers do that work.
Angel Diaz:
So yeah, so those are just like those things. I think it just really shows when people see our family. The first thing everyone always says is, man, how do you get so much time to like, go and do all these activities that seem like you're always busy, but the real truth of the matter is it's like we do it as a family. So, to us, it we're not busy, we're actually with each other. We're family. So, for us, it's cool. It's our time to still you know, get away from the martial arts sense because sometimes we need a break that up, get back on, let's just have a good time. Let's go watch the band play. Let's just do it as a family. And that's really what makes us such a tight knit group. Absolutely.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Now you talked about you've talked about the good you've talked about the support. But Sam, you mentioned you use the word skeletons, you know, so you're open that you open that door a crack and I'm going to push it wider. I can't imagine that there haven't been challenges with a family that's this close that sounds like is probably pretty open with each other. And, you know, especially as you two were younger, that age gap. Yeah. How did that surface? You know, give us some of that. And how did you work through it?
Samuel Diaz:
Okay, well, some like the age gap. When we as I said earlier, the as Andrew and I have gotten older, the gap has gotten smaller, short, there's more that we can do together, obviously. But there was a point in time where your brothers and people are competitive. So, there was a little competitive stream between us even though there was a gate age gap. As we get closer, there is a little bit of a... Alright, well I want to try and talk the other person that's natural and that pushes you and that's what brothers do. And it is what it is. And we actually this past weekend, I competed at a tournament. Angel wasn't able to go because he plays, he saw me still playing sports and stuff like we both play softball, but he like plays like travel softball. It gets paid for crazy
Jeremy Lesniak:
I didn't even know that was a thing.
Samuel Diaz:
Exactly. I didn't, he told me about it. I was like yeah, whatever that I was like, oh, he really showed me to buddy. I was like, “Oh, you're actually getting paid to play softball is insane”. But um, but you know, I went to the tournament this past weekend. And when I got done with the tournament was a great event in Litchfield, Connecticut. It was our... I'm sorry, it was in New Milford, Connecticut thrown by Litchfield Tangsudo so it was massive Mr. And Mrs. Grant, and they both own the dojang there and they do a great event and I did pretty well at the tournament but I won grants for forms. One grants for weapons. I lost in overtime for fighting and immediately He's like, “Oh, well you know what happened and probably came out afterwards”. It made me feel some type of way and I had to go into you know, I thought I did pretty well that day like you but we had to talk through it. So to be able to do that last night that comes from other points in our lives where we had to we both might have been hard on each other or trying to one up and then we learned how to talk their way through maturity went into my you know, when my father myself him, everybody's together and my dad was 20 years younger, bla bla bla I'm mostly the quiet what at those stages I'm just like, whatever dad, whatever age you're like, you know, it's funny, but though the skeletons that we've all went through, we're able to joke like that because there's been a lot of things I myself, you know, I'm pretty transparent with Things that I've went through with everybody because everything happens for a reason. And I tried my best to use my experiences to help others to do better in their next stages in life.
So, myself, you know, I was married for three years and then went through a really rough divorce. And in that time, that was an experience that for the family as close knit as our foundation as we are as strong as our foundation is, you know, it shipped the ship a lot, because what marriage is an institution that that is, you know, that you're bringing someone into the circle, so to say, so my father talks about the circle, you bring someone in the circle, now there now there's a break in there. So how do we repair, you have to work through those things. And those are those skeletons that if somebody was to watch us, and they didn't, they didn't know, like my story, for example, they wouldn't ever have thought that they're always surprised, like, oh, wow, you went through. Because, you know, with the right support systems, you may be able to work through things and you overcome and become better than you were before. You're stronger than you were before. But that's a tribute to the family. And through going through things over the years. So that when you learn how to work through them, how to deal with them, and then how to adjust, adapt and overcome so that way in the long run, the family's better off, which is good, that's a blessing in itself. So, I'll give it to you for.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Give me the other give me a different perspective.
Angel Diaz:
So, for me, so we talked about the age gap, right? The age gap, to me didn't really mean anything until I took competing in karate more seriously.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Okay, when was that? How old were you?
Angel Diaz:
So, I was 14 years old. I did Tangsudo tournament in Connecticut.
Jeremy Lesniak:
White belts?
Angel Diaz:
No, no, no, no, sir. No, no, when I took it seriously, okay. I got the picture. This is his birthday, right? So definitely, absolutely. Take some notes here. But I was 13 going on 14 because my birthday is in October. So, I was already in high school freshmen. And I already did a few tournaments. Now this for people I don't know that he forced me to do tournaments. I was the first one that will give it a try. Let me know. And what are you going to do? Nothing. I just don't want to go. I just and then it got to the point where I was like, well, I'll just watch you. He was like, but you don't want to like no, no, I just do it. I get I have fun watching me. So, I would just go and watch him. But little did I know that me just saying I was going to go watch him was already gearing me towards that way. And what people and now this is where like, I really found my identity I was saying was I did this tournament cheese exchange to go on, I ended up getting third. And I told him the next like, the next day, hey, I want to go to that tournament in Hamden. And that tournament him there was not make state nationals. It was a biggie. You remember, it was a biggie. So, the right away was like, you want to do the tournament? I'm like, yeah, I'm going to do the tournament. And he was like, Okay, all right. And he didn't say nothing. He didn't like having me work extra hard. He just left me and just said, okay, like, you want to go to determine the tournament. I went, I ended up placing second in Kata. I placed a second and fighting, and then they had continuous and he looks at me. He says, All right. I was like, this guy asked me to do continuous. He's like, do you even say I'm going to do continuous and he was like, okay, and he just all he said to me was, listen, I just need you to just keep your hands up and just punch. I didn't know what continuous. He said, he just told me he goes think of like dojo sparring. But he got to see that day that like, I have a lot in me. So, I just went and I was like only, I think, a yellow belt at that time. And I was planting brown belts.
Jeremy Lesniak:
And he let you do it.
Angel Diaz:
Yeah, because it was open, right?
Samuel Diaz:
I used to love those continuous division. Then when they started making them open, right? I was like, “Man, it's getting dangerous”, because it'll get everybody throwing whatever they want.
Angel Diaz:
So, what happened was a yellow belt, I go through, I had a fight a blue belt, I beat him. I fight a brown belt. I beat him. I find another Green Belt. I beat him I get a black belt and I got destroyed. And I was like crying. And he's over here. So, you did awesome. And I was like “I lost Dude, I'm so sorry”. But from there, I was like, wow, I want to go to this tournament. Now this is why I say I found my identity. This is where the gap came in. I said I just wanted to win a six-foot trophy because you got a six-foot opening. And I went we went to karate Tournament of Champions a team went there and I will never forget I was fighting, working my way through the division ended up playing a person that was smaller than me. And I'm hitting them super hard and he was like calm down a little and I told him in a fight no one's going to take this trophy away and I went back and I just kept fighting hard because I always felt like my thing. I would hit too hard and then I'll be too soft and then I would end up like losing because I'm like no, but I don't want to hurt anyone. So, I wanted to hurt I just wanted to win that bat. After that we came to the school and I'll never forget I was like you guys since the trophy. I got a six-foot token now. But then after that, I was like I started thinking about it and I didn't do the tournament for a couple months and I told myself men like you know, I think I can do exactly what he's doing.
Now this is where the skeletons in the closet comes from. At that time, my brother was really known as everyone knows for his weapons and his Kata. So, everyone thought I sucked at fighting. And for me it is still eats me to this day. If someone says like, oh, you're the kind of guy and for me, I'm like,” No, I'm just the martial artists” like I don't put me in a bracket. It gets me upset and I get mad when people do it to him. I say he's a triple threat. Like you guys, you can't put someone in one stage because you do that at too young of an age, you're going to brainwash the mind to think I'll ever be good at absolutely so for me, I made a such a point. Now I'm going to win every corner and every fighting division. And as I grew up, I heard people say you didn't do as bad today. And then that used to just fuel the fire, right? Then at that time, my brother saw was a little bit more serious on Wednesday nights went to Mike commerce school in East haven American parts. So, we went there, and my brother got to see it really come out that I was like, I didn't care how old you were, how tall you were, what belt you were, I'm going to hit you really hard. I'm going to try and be the best and it came down to 30 some nights they had to like break us apart.
Jeremy Lesniak:
We talked about that because that's one of the things I want to talk about today is I bet if we looked at it now and we look over the last few years there has been a healthy level of competitiveness that has helped each of you thrive you've pushed each other but I can't imagine it started there.
Samuel Diaz:
No, there was a point in time so I'll pick up where he just stopped out with going to court you know, I had started going there on my own and then started bringing him young. I would bring them sporadically on like when he had a break from school.
Jeremy Lesniak:
And how old were you at that point?
Samuel Diaz:
When I first started bringing...
Angel Diaz:
14? Yeah, I was fourteen.
Samuel Diaz:
Yeah, he was like 14 and this was like black belt men. Yeah. And I would just bring them on my command and coach you know, coaches like absolutely bring him down. I don't care. Yeah, whatever. As long as you know, he can hang and I'm like, Coach yeah, and he spars with me at the dojo. He's like, Alright, fine, you don't know, you guys want to do the traditional stuff. So, I'm sure he could take a hit and give me hit some fine. And so, I will bring him on break started his winter break, spring break. Then when he was going into college, that's when we started going more consistently, like all the time, especially that he ended up going to Southern and that competitiveness at first. Yeah, there had to be growth on both ends. I feel like for me specifically, there was a point in time where there was growth of my understanding that. Yeah, he's your little brother but he's going into a man so there has to be a balance in how you spar with him. You can't spar with him like he's the little kid because he's starting to get stronger. He's starting to hit but then when I would get hit my ego would flare up and then like but one thing that he tells people by try to tell them don't tell people rise is that I just I'll sweep everybody in anybody like I'm Shihan Bennett is known for sweeping and that was one of the biggest things that he instilled in me was like, I'm going to show you how to sweep from different angles and take anybody down. So, when he would do that, and my ego would flare then that's when it would start to sweep and boom and we would start like really going at it.
And there was one night in particular where coach’s wife, Mel was there watching and she saw us go at it that she got like, she cried, and she got scared and she's like, “No, you guys are brothers. Why are you doing that?” Oh, and it wasn't necessarily that we were angry at each other. It was just brotherly egos that start just doing this all the time butting heads, like to like two Rams that we got our, we have our horns locked in and we're just going at each other. And what happened over time was that there was a there's been a mutual respect of we don't have to go that hard with each other. But at the same time, we still understood how to push and how to hit how to give a hit to let the other person know that you were too close or you cut that angle wrong or you dropped your hands so yeah, my back, fist you and your forehead, but I'm not going to back tissue in your nose or whatever. And that those moments have really shaped what the relationship has become as training partners now. In like for example for me it was coming to coming off the heels of that divorce you know, I was getting ready for a tournament that I was supposed to go to in London and I was at my heaviest ever I was like 215 or something go but like I just like I was training but not really training. I was eating like crap and you know, doing a lot of bad stuff drinking alcohol, which is completely unlike your...
Jeremy Lesniak:
Morning, you’re processing. Yeah, we're grieving the moment.
Samuel Diaz:
Yeah. And when I was getting ready to go, He was telling me like, I was like, Man, I'm just going to fight heavyweight because I'm never going to drop weight and blah, blah, blah. He's like, what do you mean you have like eight weeks you could do it. And we started training together at a different level. At that point. He pushed me, he forced me to, he forced me to go to a tournament that I didn't want to do. He brought me to it was at Gauchos, in New York. He brought me to King of New York, and he's like, hey, I just told me like, that week, it was the tournament was like Saturday. And I like Monday, he's like, are registered for service. And I was like, “What do you mean”, he's like, is he in New York? I'm like, what are you doing, I'm not even really training. Now. We've had enough, just come on, let's go, you need to get out and do a tournament. But that broke the ice. And that got you in the rain got me moving, whatever. But those moments have laid that foundation down where the egos have been put aside. And we're able to train with each other, push each other. And at most tournaments, there's a lot of times when we're going to tournament, specifically the Battle of Atlanta. He was going out there, he's like, let's do as many divisions as possible. So, we did this double elimination, we did tag team sparring with each other. And then we did this double elimination division. And he's like, let's try to clean out the double elimination division. And it's just you and I, at the end, I was like, “Oh, alright”, so I was like, what's the double elimination? He's like, well, it's just 18. Plus, everybody's together. And I was like, Whoa, man, I'm like, twice the age of both of these people. Like, how am I going to be able to spar with them? Yeah, come on, let's do it. And sure enough, at the end, it ended up just being him and I.
Angel Diaz:
I just want to add on. Well, yeah, I always leave. So first off, I'm just saying, like, how we have those skeletons. So, I always say, and he knew about it. And I told them when I was young, that I started seeing at like, in my high school years, like how we were always going at each other. And my mom and my dad, and my mom, especially my dad, especially they always say that you guys are brothers, like, do make sure you're working with each other. And again, we're back to discipline. And that's, I think that's going to be the theme of this is that we're always going to go back like, how deeply rooted this discipline is our family. I used to always cry whenever we did that, because I'm like, man, like mom and dad, they're going to yell at me. Like, I'm always like the one who has started. And at one point, I just realized, like, man, like, there's a way we can, I can still be competitive, but doesn't have to be towards him. But I'm just going to chase the shadow. And I still say to this day, the shadow was he made it today, I saw him make it to the stage. I was there. When he went to his first time, he made it to stage. And he was in 201/ 2012, when he was in every single fighting grand weapon going to Casa Grande and every tournament, I was like, oh, I'm going to do that one day, then it started moving that way.
So, I told myself I have in order to get to his level, I got to win these tournaments. And I want them as under belts, and I said, “Okay, now I got to do it again as a black belt. And then it got to the point like now for me, it's like, well, I want to make it to the stage as many times as he did, right”, then it's like, I want to, I got one of my divisions as many times as he did that. Now my biggest thing is I want to be the one that's going to win like that NASCAR overall for us. And now I always say it's for us, because when I see him win, I'm the first one to be like, “Oh, he did it”. There we go. Like often divorce. It was his first time winning a NASCAR overall 30 Plus, and I was the one who was the loudest in the room saying like, “Oh, he's back”. Like, if you guys thought he was gone, this man is back like I am leaving the brother that I am. I was like, you should be afraid you should.
Jeremy Lesniak:
I can see you doing that.
Angel Diaz:
I can totally see that. Everyone knew like everyone; some people knew what happens. They knew like I'm doing it because I'm just like, oh, he's there. Like now I got my brother back. Like, let's get rocking and rolling. And what I want to say off of just everything he was saying was on top of us seen the growth. The tournament I registered him for was where I got to see the growth on my end, because I realized like, this is at a time more than any, that he needs me to be that supporter that backbone, he needs me there. And if I got to find different ways to show him like you're still this amazing person. Like you can still do these things. And with the tournament it really was just to show him like you still got it like this is built. I like I make the nickname he's vino, like the wine gets better with age. So, I say that because at that battle of Atlanta, he won't say this but if we were matched with each other the second fight of the bracket. I fought and then I had to fight him the next round so I looked at him and I was there I'm going to bow to you. And he goes, well no without you about you get to the first place match up so I told him now, this goes back to support and what were the growth we have right I could have said yeah, bow to me. I'm going to go to first I looked at him. His eyes and the ring and I said, “No, yesterday I told you, you're going to get to the first-place match, I'm going to lose and I'm going to work my way back up to you. I'll beat them and get back to you and I'm about to you again. You're going to win this so he looked at me. He goes, okay if you think so. He ended up winning his next match guess the first place. I had to work my I didn't have not one break. I had a fight seven, back-to-back to back-to-back. And I'm saying like, I'm sitting there. He they're like, give me like a minute. And he's like, “Alright, take the full minute”. I drink a Gary. Alright, let's go. He's an angel. But like, No, no, dude, I'm hot right now. We have to just keep going. So, we work our way back up. And at the end, I bowed out to him. And I told him when I bought out, I said, you can do it. You're still the best fighter? I know. So, like, I know, you can do it. So, when he talked about, I came down hard on him from the tournament. It's always because I'm like, Sam, but you're like the best fighter? I know. Like I know you can pull it out of you.
Jeremy Lesniak:
What I'm hearing, you talked about that tournament, that New York tournament, and a little bit of what you're talking about there with battle Atlanta, is this interesting transition from a very obvious separation, you know, older brother, younger brother to something that's a lot closer to peers. Yeah. And now, and I knew we would get there at some point in the journey. But what we're hearing now is, now you have mutual support, and balanced, sustainable support. And, you know, Sammy kind of mentioned it that, you know, fighting at a high level is kind of a young man's game, and not that you're, I mean, you're younger than I am. But you see a lot of, you know, it's a lot of 18-to-25-year Olds in those divisions that are really successful. Because it takes a lot out of you. Yeah, absolutely. But what I'm wondering, because you have that age gap, which now in my mind is become an asset, because you have to train with a much younger guy. And Angel, you're getting the experience. Yeah. of your older brother. How far can you guys take this? It's like this is interesting. Best of Both. But you're on the same team.
Angel Diaz:
So, I'm here because I'm going to set it up for you. I got. So, I say this to everyone. When they are, when they end up like looking at us train, I tell everybody, right? We have the best. And I say that because I have the hardest and best puncher that I know that I've been in the ring with that I can see. But I tell him all the time, you'll never find anyone that's going to kick like, and I tell him that with confidence. Because that sounds like Sam, like I've worked so hard on kicking. And then because of you, you've made my hands, something that people when they forget, I can punch and then they're like, “Whoa, like, you can do both things”. Like, again, we talked about day every wants to say, oh, you're a kicker. I'm now getting put in a category that people who like Blue Angel can like 360 you can back this up, or you can kick, it all depends. So, it's set up, like that's our asset. Our asset is that and then let's pile on top of it. I have the best weapons in forms guy that I know I've ever seen. So, where it's at the end of the day, there's no stone left unturned here.
Samuel Diaz:
Yeah, we own in terms of like the training that you were saying. Angels sometimes like we have different methods to our training.
Jeremy Lesniak:
He's like, Angel just fell off camera, I just want you to know that. He literally fell off camera with laughter. He's going to be good.
Samuel Diaz:
I've always hated to run. But then I found something that was keeping me young to be able to try and keep up with him was going on long run. So, like there was one day, I put up a post and he texted me he's like, what's your problem? And I'm like, what do you mean, I get back from a run. I'm trying to cool down. He's like, why are you going to run 15 miles? Are you crazy? And I'm like, “No, because it keeps my joints lubricated”. Or whatever I said to him, and he's like, you should come with these. I listen, I don't run more than three miles, anything after three miles doesn't matter. And I was like, what do you mean? Oh, no, I studied the science blah, blah, blah. When it comes to training, the way that you talk about my father, the hoodie. That's hot. That's me. I inherited that from him. And I'm like, oh, it's 95 degrees. It's the perfect time to run with a hoodie. And sweatpants and like three shirts underneath. But I do that to try and stay young with him. Because when I go with him to spar with Bailey and Brandon's and Romanies and all the all the young guys that are coming out right now that have been around but are starting to flourish from this northeast area. It's like I in order for me and my age to try and keep up with them to the best of my abilities, which is still not keeping up with them. That to the way He's able to do or they're able to do with each other I need to I need to run these 15 miles I have to do some sprints I have to do all this non martial arts training to be able to perform in martial arts you know and um and go the whole mindset of being able to do everything and not being placed in a category that was something that I've drilled into him when he was younger because you know, before we even started the podcast and now you know, we were having our offline conversations. And one of the things that we all touched on was that balance of life and it came in into this podcast the balance of working all day running a karate squad mate and then trying to also find time to train that that becomes tough.
But the biggest piece when you're trying to stay competitive at an elite level, there's to some there's a mindset where you have to focus on one thing if you really want to be truly great at it, and there that does hold some weight. I feel but it also it depends on your work ethic and how far are you willing to push yourself and drive because you look at the Kevin Thompson's those are people I look up to, you know, my Shihan, Shani or Bennett, you know, these guys were doing it all. Bill Beason was out there, sweeping everybody. Every time I try and find an old tape or whatever, I'm trying to study him, because they were they were doing kata, they were still doing chromatic and they were winning and being elite at everything in well into older ages as well. And there's you know, even though the sparring right now has become a lot faster paced sparring, and it's a different type of fight than what I came up doing and what it used to be. If certain elements, I tell people and like I feel like there's a little less karate in it, and it's more leaning on the athleticism side and cutting angles, understanding those aspects of it, but you're certainly always hitting with the cleanest karate technique. But even though you touched first, you got to a point, whatever, that's what the game is now, but the way that it's transitioning at that faster pace that cross training is essential, and being able to train with younger people and have the balance of the two. So, when I started up the dojo when we went so our dojo that we have is Shotokan, Karate, and I have two points that when we started it that I wanted to make was like one, this is never going to be Samuel Diaz karate, that we are going to pass on a traditional martial art to the best of our abilities, the way that it was taught to us. We're not going to customize it to whatever we want. So, Strafford is the town that we're from that we get to dojo is located, so strapped for show to come in the style for any people that are non-martial artists that are listening or watching this podcast show that kind of the style of martial arts that we that we teach that we train it.
But when we passed one, when we started the dojo, I really wanted to make sure that the understanding that there's three facets to your training, you have your Kihan, your Kata, your convincing, but then you also are going to have your Kabudo. You'll have your weapons, but we always practice everything, we will never just focus on one, because we don't want to be a true martial artist. So, that was something that when he was younger, and then he started getting serious about his tournaments, I was like, you're always going to do kata, I'll be flexible. And if you want to do a weapon at a tournament, fine, you don't want to do it. Okay, well, you will always do kata, and you will always do man say, we are never going to do one or the other, you will always do both. And I tried to lead by example with that as well. And pass that on to our students here. Sure. Angel’s athletic ability. When I saw him young training, there was one time he was he was testing for purple belt. And he was on break from school and I said, listen, I had just gotten back from special training on to the organization that I that I've gotten my done right through, which is Chicago to America. I just got back from special training with them, which is a training camp like four days. And you know, we don't talk too much about that those four-day training camp. He's coming back on break, and I said, you're going to test this week, he said, Oh, okay. And I'm like, well, what, what day is it. I'm like, it's the whole week, every day, I have something planned for you. And he hadn't trained for a week with me just privately outside a regular class just to attain his purple belt.
But in that training, I saw elements in him that I was like, you know what, I'm going to take what I'm seeing on the circuit and the areas that I know that I lacked in, and let me try to develop him in those areas. So that way, when we have our dojo, the dojo is flourishing. As a team, we're able to offer the best to all of our students into our community, which is now what is finally coming into play of in flourishing, myself flourishing. Now the dojo offers so much more. We're no longer a dojo that are we never really work but we're not a dojo, somebody's like, oh, if you want to learn really good powders or weapons, just go there. No, they're like, well, if you want to train at a dojo, that's legit. That's the only one to go to if you're in that area, we've had the same way that Angel and I and my father, we were going 45 minutes an hour to go train with our Shihan in the Bronx, New York. We've had students Specifically Frank Moses, because he just came and visited us last week that Frank lived in the Bronx and was driving down to us to come straight, nice, you know it that that reversal of life coming full circle, but it's because of the product that you're trying to offer the training that you're trying to give, and you truly have to lead with your heart and be the example for others, if you really want to offer a pure product to your students, you know.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Sure. So, let's play out a hypothetical. You know, if the family dynamic continues to get passed down, you know, your kiddo there, they start training at some point, right? So, let's not talk about, you know, 2/3/4 years old, let's talk about 10/12/15/18 years old, you know, for each of you, what would you hope is going on, right, because you've both benefited from the other significantly, I think, you know, we're all on the same page there. And, you know, we're not getting the aspect of your father coming in here. But, you know, you've benefited from him not just in life, but as martial artists, I'm sure he would say the same. So now, you know, hopefully, at some point in the future, we're adding another Diaz into the family into the family trade, maybe starts competing. If you could sketch it out, you know, as a filmmaker, as an author, what would you hope that did? For this family trade of? Karate in all the various ways? You want to start?
Angel Diaz:
Yeah, sir. So, what I hope is started is, especially, you know, we get to see especially like, it's always about seeing it like now, like, he has his son, like, I have a nephew. So now, like, everything I do, is so imperative that he gets the right look, and he gets to see, you know, the story gets told the right way to him, I would really want for him to just see if we're going to even sit in a competition standpoint, in any standpoint, whether it's in the ring, it's outside the ring, it's at the competition stage, or it's just you walking down the street, you're always doing that right thing. And I say that really because I'm everyone that kind of knows and the seminars I've done this year that the other interviews, I've always said this, it's always about making sure we're more than just a kick and a punch. And I'm sure you've seen me at the circuits. I always, you've never once seen me push the kid away. Say like, “Oh, I can't talk today like almost be ready to fight like they're, I know the next bracket up and I'm having a conversation”. How are you doing? Like all this take a picture together with my head, you're on with everything on an angel come in and fight. Okay, I got you. And I'll actually tell me, give me one second, and then I'll just go with a win or lose, I always come back to the conversation and pick up steam it. And for me, that's just always been such an important part. So, I would really want as a competent like, as root talking about it, just what I hope it plays out on the main things for me on my end, as like the uncle, I'm making sure, you're doing the right thing in and outside of the competition floor. But then also, we push this a lot, he doesn't have to do a tournament, he doesn't have to step in to go and say, like, why me I have to go and compete. That's that he doesn't have to work perfectly. I am would you be just as happy as you training in the dojo floor, give me your 100% no matter what it looks like, I know you're giving me 100%. But then I know outside, you're doing everything you're supposed to be doing. And you're not only just doing the right thing, but you're also impacting others the same way that I was able to impact you. And that's what I look for.
Samuel Diaz:
So, outside of the karate stuff. You know, like I said before, that our family has always been very involved in the community. And I myself, I work for Southwest Community Health Center. I'm their chief strategy officer there. So, I'm always looking for elements of where are there gaps in care, and the health equities for our community and disparities, and how can we bridge that and what can we do? And that carries into the dojo and that same mindset carries forward. So, in terms of my son that so for those that don't know, my son, his name is Samuel D as before, so when we're talking, when you're asking this question about carrying on and adding to the family, it's like he's carrying on a name.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Make shoes to fill and when you do that.
Samuel Diaz:
It's like I just I want to more pay homage to my father and grandfather and you know what that is, and there's not many fourths around anymore. No, I think I showed kind of cool and unique in a way even though it's not unique, it is unique when someone sees or hears it. But having him like Angel said, do the right thing, impact the community use the martial arts that he learned for good. And the elements from the karate that he learned, whether it's the discipline, the respect, but everything, you know, being able to afford to have the fortitude, mental fortitude, to overcome things, facing adversity, whatever it is, to carry that and help to instill those skills and other people, even if it's not through training. So that'll be then by leading by example. And then if we were to circle back to competition, if he did want to compete, because I was more of the element of your question, he didn't want to compete. I think that, hopefully, he'll be the one that kind of pulls it all together. Because my foundation, my background is more on the traditional element, Angel’s foundation background was more with the sport karate is where I started him with that type of sparring, even though he was traditional, and how we train, I put more sport karate elements into learning style. Hopefully, hopefully, Sam will be the one that bridges it together, where he can go to a traditional tournament, do his thing, he goes to sport karate tournament, do this thing, going to a kickboxing match, do this thing, whatever it is, because he'll have both of us being able to kind of like, answer questions, give him strategies, train him in ways. And then also, you know, doing the weapons that Qatar has Kihan everything will be able to pull it all together, which will be really nice, because we all you know, we all need that, that example to follow. And as the generations go on, as long as the example stays strong, that next generation is going to be even stronger, which now when you go down three, four lines, because by the time Sam's 14/15, Angel might have a child himself. So, now the clan is building.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Build an army. Yeah, there's an army going on here.
Angel Diaz:
The best thing also, something I just realized, right now, as we said this, the best thing about the fact that we were just saying like by that time, hopefully I'll be having a kid by then, is that now we can teach his son, teach my son or daughter? How to use that gap as a positive and never. Yes, we can say like, we've done it, like your uncle is 11 years older than me. It's very, like, and I noticed, you know, it's always going to be stories like how, like, how did you guys make this work? Did you ever see him do this? Did you ever see him do that? So now we can like kind of guide them? And then and still certain things early that we wish we could have done if we would have known at that time?
Samuel Diaz:
Yeah, we had to learn to experience. Yeah.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Nice. Here's the question. This one just came to me a little a little different. And I want you to think about it. I'm going to I want you to answer at the same time. So, let's imagine that that we had a chunk of money or a car some fun on the line, the two of you had to spar. And you got the opportunity to limit what the other person was going to do. So, like Angel, you get to hold Sam to only one offensive technique. Sam, you get to hold Angel, the one offensive I would assume you know, either one of his worst or one that you're really good at defending against. So, think for a moment what that would be. And let me know when you're ready, and then I'll count you down and you can you can let us know because this would be a really interesting match to watch. And I'm mostly excited to see the look on each other's each of your faces when you when you answer that's what I'm looking forward. That's the whole reason we're doing.
Samuel Diaz:
Like, I can't I have an idea of what he's going to say for me.
Angel Diaz:
I got mine. Oh, you said let me write.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Like the one like it's when you pick up a brand-new video, like fighting game, you know, grab somebody doesn't know how to play. And they figure out they're like, I got this one move. Yeah, got one thing happening. What's the one that you would want him to use? Because you know, it gives you an advantage.
Angel Diaz:
Okay, gotcha. I know mine. I'm sorry. You got it. It has to be you wanted to give a one-word response.
Jeremy Lesniak:
I mean, if it's a multi word technique, okay. Okay, are you ready? You got it? Yep. Okay. All right. So, I'll count 3,2,1 and then you guys go alright. 321...
Samuel Diaz:
Bag reverse punch, the left side forward, sideways.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Super specific. Left side forward. Angel, you said backfist.
Angel Diaz:
Yeah, but now that he said that back this left side board.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Okay. Why? Yeah, no, I like know what, neither of those sound-like terrible techniques.
Samuel Diaz:
But there's a reason.
Jeremy Lesniak:
I'm sure there is.
Angel Diaz:
He's taking the one technique. But I only throw out of desperation and I'll be the one technique that he never throws. No matter how much I yell at him.
Samuel Diaz:
And you know the root of both of them will the reason why I picked it and the reason why I don't throw it distancing. Yeah, reverse punch left side forward he fights writing more often than lefty and his distancing we're still adjusting to the distancing because we've been adjusting fighting styles and leg placement from leg spacing within himself and then like facing towards the opponent so because he right now it's still like we're figuring that out. I know that if he has a left side forward the distancing is going to be off because different perspective because used to have a right side and for me, my eye my left side forward I gauge you all day with a reverse punch with my right hand, no matter where you're at, but you asked me to blitz or something with my left half. Yeah, but have you asked me to blitz my right hand. I'll hit you all day and get with the back face.
Angel Diaz:
So yeah, so what we ended up doing was we ended up focusing on one body part and that's because we know with this specific body part it's just not going to come out and that's exactly why as soon as he said it, I thought that I was like okay, well he's not going to be able to sleep ability as a third is one technique I'm going to go with his left hand backfist that is the one that will give me a heart attack as I coach him at a tournament. Yeah, maybe go crazy. At some point everyone will hear this. I'll be like let's hear back this. Alright, right there. Okay right there then I will just have fun and then I can't honestly, it's like my way of like I just saw.
Jeremy Lesniak:
I've had that experience on the sideline as well. It's like you're just ignoring everything I say I'm just going to clap though.
Samuel Diaz:
Yeah, we were in Florida earlier this year in February I think right yeah, we went out and visited Murphy Gonzalez was in Murphy's turning right. Yeah, we're not visiting Murphy Gonzalez, which is awesome like if anybody wants to like get some rounds in fighting molding Florida tournaments, Florida is awesome fighters out there and everything's like double elimination. Oh cool. It's very fighting focused, you have your forms and your weapons people but they are very fighting focused out there which was a great experience. I was fighting in my division and same things like yelling at me to do stuff. I'm not doing it or he's like cut this angle. Why are you standing near no move backwards forever. And I don't know where I decided to throw the guy was coming for some reason. I thought it was a great idea to like, have my left side forward fake angle with my back leg with my right leg, then do a spinning kick a spinning hook kick into a blitz because I want it to blitz with my right hand but I can't do that if my left side forward. So, I'll position myself my right shoot the Blitz somehow is scored and Cam Dawson's on the sideline is what he's saying.
Angel Diaz:
He looked at me, he goes that was nice. Y'all practice that and I looked at him I go honestly; I have no idea what he's doing right now.
Samuel Diaz:
It was all because he's like oh just have fun and I'll just like figure. It'll just happen whatever happens who cares you know, because it was like a way to avoid having to blitz with my left hand.
Angel Diaz:
Here and then after that we get done and I was like, “so, what did you do there” and he explained all that to me and I go Sam, all that thinking and if you want to just Blitz through your left side, we could have skipped the whole entire thing. Like literally could have skipped the whole process but it's fine. I got you. Yeah, so that was a good question. That was a good question. I've never had anyone asked me that question before that was awesome.
Jeremy Lesniak:
That's my goal. My goal is to give you something that's a little bit different you know you guys. Awesome. Thank you. Well, let's wind it down here and typically at the end of the show, you know, I say hey, you know give folks some final words but I know that you guys are ready to go with that stuff. So, I want to find a way to put it together so how about this. I want you to answer for each other. Kind of again, we'll take a play off what we just did. So, where I'm working through this, I'm thinking because you guys are challenging me here right and I knew bringing the two of you on would be would be a little challenging.
Angel Diaz:
Perfect for everyone that's listening. This is awesome. You're getting this like raw right?
Jeremy Lesniak:
I mean; this is probably uncut. Who knows how much cutting we're going to do? You know each other really well. Yeah. You know each other really. I mean, obviously, you know, when the looks on your faces, but with the techniques and just getting so specific, I mean, you know each other so this is really challenging for me because I don't like where I was going with that. So, I'm just going to roll it back to the original thing, which is, you know, what are your final words? That I don't think there's a way that we can make this better. So, we'll just, you can't improve on your fundamentals. So, we're going to leave this as the fundamental to end on. We've been through a lot. Tonight, we've talked about a lot of really interesting stuff, different stuff you've described and experience in the martial arts, very few people have experienced, they're never going to write without that close knit family structure without the brother without the age gap, right? It turns out really different. And that's why I'm glad we were able to have you on what elements of that people are not going to be able to experience? Would you want them to think about, you know, think about what you've taken from each other, what you've learned why you're better, how you're better who you are today, because of the other and your family as a whole. And knowing that most people listening and watching are not going to have an experience. It's even close in those ways. What might you encourage them to think about such that they can take some of it such that they can learn from what you've experienced? And then we can send them off? I know this, this took a this took a deep turn. Yeah, but I have faith.
Samuel Diaz:
A great question. I'm coming to someone who's trying to figure out how to put it. Yeah, it's okay, a thought but I just want to figure out how to bring it together. I think maybe one of there's a lot of things to take. But I think maybe one of the things that if we're relating specifically to martial arts, but the knowledge can carry into other aspects of anyone's life, I think probably could be applicable to anything is that when you're working through things, with someone who you care about age, time, even the root of whatever it is that you need to work through with them, doesn't matter because the bond that you're going to create and strengthen will trump. Whatever an issue was. And the reason I'm saying that this could transcend is because that's something that like, as you know, we spoke to you about what the growth has been like for us in martial arts and a moment in time where we would go at each other. So now that being like, how can we take that energy to help each other both be better going through life experiences where you need somebody?
And that person saying, like, no, I believe in you, even though you don't believe in yourself right now, I believe in you and what I still see in you even though you can't see it in yourself right now, and I'm going to do what I need to do to bring that out of you. So, now you can see it come to fruition once again, or come to fruition at a level that you'd even think was possible, which is more so how it is for me, I didn't get to touch him after he said it. But you know, there's elements to where I'm at now that I'm like, man, if anything, like I say it all the time right now with Debbie who's you know, my person, my fiancé, I say it all the time of like, you know, if only I could have been the way that I am now 10 years ago, in terms of training in terms of lamp sky would have been the limit.
I've could have reached all these different levels, which is like you wouldn't you would never have been able to been that be that person because we didn't go through the things that you've went through 10 years ago, you didn't have you had 10 years ago, I didn't have the relationship that we have 10 years ago, it had to grow into this. So again, no matter what it is that you're going through, if you have an issue with your significant other, your brother, your sister, your parents, your cousin's taking the time to be transparent with each other, be vulnerable, and work through those issues. No matter how uncomfortable it may be at that moment in time is going to help to bring that relationship to a level that you could never have even imagined and develop a love and a bond that you couldn't have imagined could be possible. Because it could, it can only come through going through fire. That's the only way it could come.
Jeremy Lesniak:
So, it's well said, thank you.
Angel Diaz:
Yeah, off of that, and I definitely agree. And so, and I'm going to say it's more like the younger siblings on, especially when it's, you know, it's kind of hard to see the road, really, and I'm going to say, it's going to sound so cliche, but trust the process that is happening between you and that significant other within your family with your sibling, cousin, whatever that may be trust that process. And I say that because we all need to sometimes take a step back, and kind of understand that like, as much as we may want to win, and we want it to be about us. And it's our time, right, you need to kind of look at it and just see like, what is the best for both of us. And you putting that into perspective and always leading with that type of attitude, you're going to get to where you want to go. But that's where the pure satisfaction from that bond that you build comes from. Because now you get to see the person that you're with the person that you care about that you hold and the true value of succeeding and where they want to succeed. And that's where that growth and maturity comes in that we both may not have the same goal on this specific topic. But you have your goal, and I have my goal, I want to help you reach yours, and you want to help me reach mine.
So, what is it going to take, is it going to have to be those transparent conversations is it going to have to be that like, we always talk about it all the time, our communication is always going to improve, whether that's between tournaments, training systems are just in our everyday life, that communication, that bond you build on, that's going to really set the groundwork, and then you're going to be able to take a step back, see the bigger picture and realize, you know, I don't just want to do this on my own side of things, I want to really do this with that person that I care about. Because now that I do that with the person I care about, I'm definitely able to now put that into perspective and we both end up being a great team but on top of that, it's just being great together. And the team doesn't always mean about you know, trying to win the tournaments and the titles the team is just... Did you have a good outcome I had a great outcome and I know for us and just saying it again like when we travel to tournaments, it's always about that we make that tournament and experience we get about the championships, we won the money, all that extra stuff, it just makes it a bonus. But for me, especially like going to the tournaments and traveling, it's just like what crazy trip can we have this time that we get to come home and tell everyone about and then that's our memory, and you get to hold on to those memories. And you know, when it's all said and done down the line, that's what we're always going to hold on to.
Samuel Diaz:
Yeah, that was something that on when Angel, wants to compete heavy in college, and I was always like, the tournaments aren't going anywhere focus on school now but I can go to ads like one and we're focused on school, I will go to 8k or whatever and I will feel bad because I was like I know he wants to come but focus on school because aka soon as 50th year, I am not going anywhere next year, it's going to be there and it'll be there year after. But when he started breaking out and like getting out there to compete, the first thing I told him was like, you know, no matter where you go, make sure you're making a memory because at the end of the day, whether you won you lost in 10/15 years, that aren't even going to matter. Nobody's really going to care. But the memory that you had is really all care. And it took me a long time to learn that when I was first starting to compete. Personally, I had this like really cutthroat attitude. It's me versus everybody. And like, you know, my instructor our dojo is very hardcore, like you go in here and you could feel the pressure you feel like when it was Fight Night, there is no friends. It's like we are here and somebody is getting hurt. And it was a dojo, you know, really hardcore old school dojo, then that carried that mindset in and there were many years that like when I think back now. I'm like, man, I lost years in competing in terms of memories. Because I isolated myself, I felt that I have to be this cutthroat to represent and Connecticut, New York, and you were not. It doesn't have to be like that you get in the ring handle business. But when you're outside of the ring, be personable build your brand, be that person that angels saying that he is now when he's outside of the ring, and there's a little kid that wants to talk it that be that person because that's the person that makes a bigger impact than the guy who won.
Unfortunately, sometimes we get so fixated on that winning that you're not being the best role model when you win and that parent that's on the sideline, they may be like he's a great athlete plays a crappy person. And that is that really who you want your kid looking up to? No, that's not that's not who I would want my kid looking up to. That's not who I want it to be. And when I realized I needed to shift, I never wanted him to be that person. And he's done a great job. You know, I'm super proud of all the work and I tell people all the time, he's the hardest working guy I know. Because this dude's always training, he had time for it. Also, when he just started working for us the school is you got a lot of free time. But other people his age, choose other ways to spend that time. And he's like, not got to go to gym train, not have to go to the dojo have to work. Sam, can we work on this? Can we do that? Even if it's like, can you just hold this pad so I could work this angle. And then as I'm watching, I'll say, try this, move your leg that way instead. And we figure it out together. But that comes from somebody who's dedicated somebody who really wants it and is hungry and trusting the process. As he said, it is a big part of that game, you know, and that's in anything that you do not just martial arts trust, the process of growth in your career in school, eventually falls into place. As long as you keep chipping away at it, it will fall into place.
Jeremy Lesniak:
Now for the outro, I absolutely loved this conversation had a blast. I have the utmost respect for these two gentlemen and I bet you could tell I think the world of both of them. And so having them on to talk about what it's like supporting challenging growing in a sibling family dynamic as well as just their individual stories, you know. I'm glad we were able to bring it to you and I'm glad that they were willing to do this video because I think it went so much better with it. Now if you want to check out the show notes, go to whistlekickmartialartsradio.com check out everything we've got going there. And just as an added bonus if you haven't tuned out so we hide this stuff so people listen to the intros and the outros. We've got a special bit that came out of our prerecorded session that I really liked actually was Andrew's idea. So, we're going to drop that in on the end. So, make sure you listen the next couple minutes. If you want to support us, I said it at the top you can buy something PODCAST15, you can check out the Patreon, patreon.com/whistlekick. You can tell people about what we've got going on. You can leave a review. You can also buy a book on Amazon check out our training programs at whistlekickprograms.com, there's a ton of stuff. If it's something that you think might be beneficial to us. We are appreciative. So, thank you to all of you who have done that. That's all I've got. So, until next time, train hard, smile, stick around and have a great day.