Charlie Sheen might think that "winning" is the be-all and end-all for leading a good life and maybe he is at least partially correct, but, the lessons learnt by taking a loss here and there can be much more useful in bettering yourself no matter the setting.

At the height of summer last year I spent a few weeks on the other side of France near Montpellier. I was fortunate enough to train during that time at Arte Suave, a grappling gym in the city run by Florent and Jean-Claude Luccioni. Getting to spar with both of them was a revelation. I learnt a lot by getting my ass handed to me in rapid succession. Grappling no-gi, Florent submitted me in approximately 15 secs via guillotine. I fared better against Jean-Claude, forcing him to attack me relentlessly for just under a minute before submitting me in similar fashion. I outweigh both of them by around 30kg (the boys fight at about 72kg, I fight at 102kg). Far from being frustrated or angry, once I got my breath back I was smiling from ear to ear. The lessons I learnt in those sessions were huge and pushed me to even greater heights.

A month ago, I had the fortune to present for that eclectic and wonderful group of people, The Globetrotters Club, alongside Alastair Humphreys. A double-bill of adventurous speaking for the club sounded pretty good to me. I pride myself on being a fairly relaxed but passionate speaker. Not the most polished performer but able to paint a nice picture of my expeditions and delivered with feeling. I went well over my allotted time (providing good joke material for Al), but it seemed to be enjoyed nonetheless. Al followed my somewhat chaotic performance. Bloody heck! It was like getting an ass whupping from Florent and Jean-Claude all over again! Al and I were not there for a verbal stoush but inevitably comparisons must be made. Al has a similarly relaxed style (very British but still pretty laid back) but his delivery is tight. No superfluous clutter, just what he wants to say and no more. It was a great presentation. Again, instead of being jealous or upset at this sort of pasting I was over the moon as I left the pub where we had gathered following the talks. I had seen what my talks could become, keeping my own style of course. I was stoked thinking of the possibilities.

Two pretty convincing beat downs, that over the course of the past months have helped me become a better person not just as a fighter or speaker, but as a whole. I ain't perfect but thanks to Al, Florent and Jean-Claude I am at least on the right path.

NB. Had I crushed Florent and Jean-Claude into the mat and made Al look like a bumbling fool of a speaker, just what would I have learnt?