Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      Tech. Sgt. Franklin Mosley, 633rd Security Forces flight chief and combatives course instructor, braces for a punch during a sparring session with Valentina Shevchenko, an Ultimate Fighting Championship Muay Thai specialist, at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., Dec. 9, 2016. Shevchenko visited JBLE as part of a morale tour and used her free time between events to train for an upcoming match. Although she is new to the UFC with a record of 2-1, she has a professional kickboxing record in Kyrgyzstan of 58-2. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Nick Wilson)Airmen, civilians gain resilience through MMA
                        
                        
                        Tech. Sgt. Franklin Mosley, the 633rd Security Forces flight chief and a combatives course instructor, braces for a punch during a sparring session with Valentina Shevchenko, an Ultimate Fighting Championship muay thai specialist, at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., Dec. 9, 2016. Shevchenko visited as part of a morale tour and used her free time between events to train for an upcoming match. Although she is new to the UFC with a record of 2-1, she has a professional kickboxing record in Kyrgyzstan of 58-2. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Nick Wilson)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        Senior Airman Jexsira Watts, 633rd Security Forces Squadron response force leader, applies a triangle choke on Tony Molette, 633rd SFS law enforcement officer, with assistance from Lorenz Larkin, a professional Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial artist, during a combatives course at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., Dec. 8, 2016. Larkin’s appearance was part of a distinguished visitor tour where military members and dependents had an opportunity to meet and get autographs from Shevchenko, other UFC fighters and radio hosts throughout the week. During the tour the UFC athletes spoke with service members about similarities between the UFC and the U.S. Armed Forces. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Nick Wilson)Airmen, civilians gain resilience through MMA
                        
                        
                        Senior Airman Jexsira Watts, a 633rd Security Forces Squadron response force leader, applies a triangle choke on Tony Molette, a 633rd SFS law enforcement officer, with assistance from Lorenz Larkin, a professional Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial artist, during a combatives course at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., Dec. 8, 2016. Larkin’s appearance was part of a distinguished visitor tour where military members and dependents had an opportunity to meet and get autographs from UFC fighters and radio hosts. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Nick Wilson)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        Valentina Shevchenko, Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial artist, spars with U.S. Army Sgt. Dale Addy, 128th Aviation Brigade, at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., Dec. 9, 2016. Shevchenko not only trained with service members, but also visited U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force units throughout the week as part of a military appreciation visit. She is also a professional kickboxer from Kyrgyzstan, who began her professional career when she was 12 years old, when she knocked out a 22-year-old opponent, earning the nickname “Bullet.” (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Nick Wilson)Airmen, civilians gain resilience through MMA
                        
                        
                        Valentina Shevchenko,an  Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial artist, spars with Army Sgt. Dale Addy, of the 128th Aviation Brigade, at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., Dec. 9, 2016. Shevchenko not only trained with service members, but also visited Army and Air Force units throughout the week as part of a military appreciation visit. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Nick Wilson)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res
        


        Ben Rothwell, Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial artist, speaks to Airmen about mental toughness and how the mental toughness required to be a UFC fighter is similar to the mental toughness required to go to war during a morale visit at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., Dec. 9, 2016. During the base tour, Rothwell told service members about how MMA not only changed his life, but made him become more resilient as he trained adult and adolescent students in his gym. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Nick Wilson)Airmen, civilians gain resilience through MMA
                        
                        
                        Ben Rothwell, an Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial artist, speaks to Airmen about how mental toughness required to be a UFC fighter is similar to the mental toughness required to go to war during a visit to Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., Dec. 9, 2016. During the visit, Rothwell told service members about how MMA not only changed his life, but made him become more resilient as he trained adult and adolescent students in his gym. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Nick Wilson)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Airmen, civilians gain resilience through MMAPublished Dec. 19, 2016
                    
                    By Staff Sgt. Nick Wilson
                    
                    
                    Air Combat Command Public Affairs
            **JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. (AFNS) --**As an Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter gets his hands wrapped and steps into the cage for battle, a cold chill runs down his spine; he’s nervous about the challenge ahead.
Comparable to UFC fighters preparing for combat, Airmen may get a similar feeling whether preparing for upcoming deployments or hurdling through peaks and valleys throughout their careers.
One way Airmen can remain strong during possible feelings of stress or anxiety is through the Comprehensive Airman Fitness program, which encompasses a variety of targeted activities and resilience skills. The program’s goal is to build and sustain a resilient Air Force community that fosters mental, physical, social and spiritual fitness.
With mixed martial arts, Airmen can use all four domains of CAF to not only learn to fight, but also remain resilient through rough times, according to Tech. Sgt. Franklin Mosley, a 633rd Security Forces flight chief and combatives course instructor.
“MMA and combatives training is like therapy for me,” Mosley said. “Let’s say, for instance, I’m having a bad day. Jiujitsu, martial arts or combatives lets me get it off my chest. Rolling with the Airmen or even guys I train with outside of the military, allows me to be inside my own temple, so to speak.”
Mosley said using martial arts for therapy also helps remain mentally fit.
“There are no worries; there’s no judgement,” Mosley said. “It’s just me battling it out with my partner. And then when we’re done that’s still my partner – my brother or sister.”
Ben Rothwell, an American mixed martial artist, ranked No. 5 in the UFC, said when he has to fight his friends in the ring, it’s all business. Similar to how security forces Airmen clash head to head when they train with combatives, the bond between friends remains the same whether on or off the mat.
“Mental fitness and physical fitness go hand in hand,” Rothwell said. “When UFC fighters and Airmen train for combatives or to stay in shape, they don’t realize that what they’re doing is also mental training.”
Rothwell said the difference between a win and a loss, whether in an Airman’s career or in a UFC fighter’s career in the octagon, depends on a person’s state of mind.
“I have 10 losses in my career,” Rothwell said. “Those losses have made me who I am; those losses are why I’ve become mentally tough.”
There is a delicate mental balance one has to find between being aggressive and being calm, Rothwell said.
“From my experience as a gym owner and a manager, I’ve watched people grow over the years,” Rothwell said. “I’ve watched 350-pound men lose 70 pounds and gain confidence and happiness. I’ve also seen kids who were getting bullied in school with lousy grades come back through martial arts to  stand up to those bullies, get straight A’s and find real success in life.”
Seeing how people grow through resilience in martial arts also helped Rothwell and Mosley grow spiritually.
“When you talk about spiritual resiliency, one of the things that (is) very factual is how people are able to build through moments of meditation or solitude – into a more centeredness of being,” said Chaplain (Maj.) Ismael Rodriguez, a 325th Fighter Wing chaplain stationed at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. “What martial arts teaches is that centeredness of being. It’s that underlying factor of spiritual resiliency which helps the person not only to fortify himself, but also enables the mental capacity to get stronger, and therefore, the physical capacity to get stronger.”
As Rothwell and Mosley grew stronger over the years, they had an increased desire to share information with others, which in turn builds connections and the social pillar of fitness, Mosley said.
“These are the types of people I’m spending hours on end training with,” Mosley said. “But at the same time, we’re honing techniques and building relationships. We’re also willing to help each other out, even if it’s outside of training or a personal or family issue.”
Even though UFC fighters, Airmen and martial artists are training for different types of battles, they still communicate with their training partners and coaches, who they may also view as family, Mosley said.
“You are still going to have a relationship whether you are asking for help on a personal issue or having that go-to person to ask for help on a technique,” Mosley said.
According to Mosley and Rothwell, combatives training offers more than just self-defense and physical exercise because the lessons learned can be incorporated into any aspect of life.
“MMA changed and saved my life because the sport allowed me to give back and watch people’s lives change,” Rothwell said. “I see it more in MMA than any other sport, and I think it’s a very powerful and incredible thing.”*(Editor’s note: This is part one of a two-part series on similarities between how mixed martial arts can make both Airmen and professional mixed martial arts athletes become more resilient.)*resilience 



CAF 



MMA 



JB Langley-Eustis 



ACC Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                SecAF, CSAF, CMSAF begin Indo-Pacific trip focused on ACE
                    
                    DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fightInnovation
                F-16s arrive to be modified for autonomous testing
                    
                    AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalistsMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil