Mike Tamillow works a 40-hour work week, strictly dedicated to wrestling.
His philosophy is that if you are going to train for an Olympic sport then it should not be part time.
"You can't physically wrestle 40 hours a week but you can get mental training, see the nutritionist, write in a journal, and stay motivated about wrestling," he said. "When you add it all up, it will be at least 40 hours of work."
Tamillow won the Big Ten title in 2007, but this accomplishment left him wanting more.
While attending college at Northwestern, he was not training in the full-time freestyle environment he knew would make a difference. In November 2008, Tamillow moved from Illinois to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs to be in an environment where he could achieve his international goals.
"I think this is the best place to train as far as freestyle goes," he said. "Colleges don't focus on winning an Olympic medal; they focus their training on the need to win a NCAA championship."
Since moving to the training center, Tamillow is on his way to achieving what he wants as he has had a successful run with international tournaments. He placed third in the Dave Schultz Memorial International in Colorado, second in the Dan Kolov International in Bulgaria, and most recently, placed third at the Takhti Cup in Iran.
"Iran was fun," Tamillow said. "They don't have any native English speakers so it was really difficult at times but I really enjoyed it."
Going into the 96 kg/211.5 lbs. bronze medal match against Hooman Sheida of Iran, Tamillow said he knew he was going to win.
"He didn't have a variety of attacks, but he was really strong and he hand fought really tough," he said. "I was really tired after it, but I was glad to get the win."
He said that the hardest thing for him so far has been the traveling. Tamillow spent most of February overseas, traveling to Bulgaria and Ukraine for competitions. He came back to the United States for a short time then flew back overseas to Iran.
"Traveling is really hard. Going overseas throws everything off. When you change environments, you have to reset your mind," he said. "Most guys want to go in, wrestle, then leave, but I am the opposite. I like to get used to the country for a little while."
One thing Tamillow does not lack is confidence. He said when he was younger that he was going to be an Olympic champion. Every now and then, he has to go back to that saying when he gets down.
"I am happy enough that I expect to get there, so when I do get there I will be like 'OK I should be here,'" Tamillow said. "I love winning in front of people and having people care about my wrestling so making it to the Olympics would be awesome."
U.S. National Freestyle Coach Zeke Jones said Tamillow can compete against the best in the nation and the world, but he just needs more international experience. Since Tamillow medaled in the overseas tournaments, he is showing good progress.
"He has become a real student of the freestyle game," Jones said. "I think he has transitioned form college style of wrestling to freestyle wrestling well. I think because he is in a full time freestyle program that is helping him make that transition quickly. He's really sharp and that helps him as a wrestler to be able to strategize and to think."
Through wrestling, Tamillow has learned lessons about life and how to stay focused to achieve anything he wants.
"Wrestling keeps me healthy and thinking," he said. "It is such a great sport for your mind. It is so engrained in my life, that a lot of hard lessons I had to learn, I learned through wrestling."
Tamillow believes the word wrestling is a contradiction because to him, wrestling is not a struggle. When you think of it as a struggle, then it becomes frustrating.
"If you give everything you have, focus, work on technique and get the win, then it's not a struggle. When you think of it as a struggle it gets frustrating," Tamillow said. "A struggle is not technical; it has pure frustration. Will power and frustration are two different things. If you know how to wrestle, then you are not struggling."
As he stays persistent to putting in his 40-plus hours a week dedicated to wrestling, Tamillow should continue to bring the medals home.
His philosophy is that if you are going to train for an Olympic sport then it should not be part time.
"You can't physically wrestle 40 hours a week but you can get mental training, see the nutritionist, write in a journal, and stay motivated about wrestling," he said. "When you add it all up, it will be at least 40 hours of work."
Tamillow won the Big Ten title in 2007, but this accomplishment left him wanting more.
While attending college at Northwestern, he was not training in the full-time freestyle environment he knew would make a difference. In November 2008, Tamillow moved from Illinois to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs to be in an environment where he could achieve his international goals.
"I think this is the best place to train as far as freestyle goes," he said. "Colleges don't focus on winning an Olympic medal; they focus their training on the need to win a NCAA championship."
Since moving to the training center, Tamillow is on his way to achieving what he wants as he has had a successful run with international tournaments. He placed third in the Dave Schultz Memorial International in Colorado, second in the Dan Kolov International in Bulgaria, and most recently, placed third at the Takhti Cup in Iran.
"Iran was fun," Tamillow said. "They don't have any native English speakers so it was really difficult at times but I really enjoyed it."
Going into the 96 kg/211.5 lbs. bronze medal match against Hooman Sheida of Iran, Tamillow said he knew he was going to win.
"He didn't have a variety of attacks, but he was really strong and he hand fought really tough," he said. "I was really tired after it, but I was glad to get the win."
He said that the hardest thing for him so far has been the traveling. Tamillow spent most of February overseas, traveling to Bulgaria and Ukraine for competitions. He came back to the United States for a short time then flew back overseas to Iran.
"Traveling is really hard. Going overseas throws everything off. When you change environments, you have to reset your mind," he said. "Most guys want to go in, wrestle, then leave, but I am the opposite. I like to get used to the country for a little while."
One thing Tamillow does not lack is confidence. He said when he was younger that he was going to be an Olympic champion. Every now and then, he has to go back to that saying when he gets down.
"I am happy enough that I expect to get there, so when I do get there I will be like 'OK I should be here,'" Tamillow said. "I love winning in front of people and having people care about my wrestling so making it to the Olympics would be awesome."
U.S. National Freestyle Coach Zeke Jones said Tamillow can compete against the best in the nation and the world, but he just needs more international experience. Since Tamillow medaled in the overseas tournaments, he is showing good progress.
"He has become a real student of the freestyle game," Jones said. "I think he has transitioned form college style of wrestling to freestyle wrestling well. I think because he is in a full time freestyle program that is helping him make that transition quickly. He's really sharp and that helps him as a wrestler to be able to strategize and to think."
Through wrestling, Tamillow has learned lessons about life and how to stay focused to achieve anything he wants.
"Wrestling keeps me healthy and thinking," he said. "It is such a great sport for your mind. It is so engrained in my life, that a lot of hard lessons I had to learn, I learned through wrestling."
Tamillow believes the word wrestling is a contradiction because to him, wrestling is not a struggle. When you think of it as a struggle, then it becomes frustrating.
"If you give everything you have, focus, work on technique and get the win, then it's not a struggle. When you think of it as a struggle it gets frustrating," Tamillow said. "A struggle is not technical; it has pure frustration. Will power and frustration are two different things. If you know how to wrestle, then you are not struggling."
As he stays persistent to putting in his 40-plus hours a week dedicated to wrestling, Tamillow should continue to bring the medals home.
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