Reigning ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Champion hasn바카라t spent this much time away from competition since he started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at the tender age of 4.
The 22-year-old is now preparing for his big return to action at , as he바카라s set to defend his gold against Canadian powerhouse in U.S. primetime on Friday, May 2.
Slated to go down at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, that matchup pits two of the planet바카라s top pound-for-pound grapplers against each other 바카라 and it will be Ruotolo바카라s first appearance since suffering a devastating knee injury last summer.
The American superstar recently spoke to about the injury, the recovery process, and the key lessons learned during his time away from ONE바카라s bright lights:
바카라It was the biggest injury I바카라ve had in jiu-jitsu. I바카라ve had some torn ligaments before in my knee, but nothing quite to the extent and the amount of damage I did this last time.
바카라I didn바카라t need to go with the surgery. I was super stoked. My body ended up healing after a couple months. And yeah, it바카라s just been getting my knee strong and getting it ready for competition over the past six months 바카라 longest time I바카라ve ever been out of competition and off the mats.
바카라It바카라s been quite a process getting it back, for sure. I바카라m just grateful to have another opportunity to be on the mat. I definitely took it for granted, just competing, even.바카라
For someone who바카라s spent a lifetime pushing his body to the limit, training and competing at the highest level available, being forced to the sidelines was anything but easy.
For the first two weeks after the injury, Ruotolo couldn바카라t do any of the things that typically highlight his days 바카라 surfing, grappling, MMA training 바카라 much less get out of the house for a walk.
But right from the start, he also made sure to keep in mind what a healthy knee should feel like:
바카라It sucks, you know, being couch-locked. It바카라s like there바카라s nothing to do. I was on Fortnite, just gaming and stuff. I had to get out of the house, figure it out, and then start walking. Get back to trusting my knee again.
바카라Right after it happened, I just took a mental picture of when my knee felt good, the way it felt when it was perfect. And so that way I바카라d be able to compare it to throughout the healing process, and I바카라m right back there to that point, so I바카라m happy.바카라
After receiving stem cell therapy and putting in some dedicated work in the weight room to strengthen the tendons around his knee, the American sensation is primed and ready to do what he does best.
During his time away, Ruotolo watched his twin brother, reigning ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Champion , rack up two more wins in his undefeated MMA career.
While Tye did enjoy playing the role of coach, it also fueled his own fire:
바카라I feel like the toughest part was watching [Kade] scrapping in MMA. It just made me really wanna scrap, too.
바카라But, also, it was nice just being able to be in the coach바카라s chair and not have to worry about competing. Usually, we compete on the same night, or I got something else to stress about, but I was there just fully in coach mode in the last six months. So that was kinda cool to be in that kind of chair. Obviously, whenever he fights, I wanna be scrapping right there with him, though.
바카라So, for sure, some love-hate feelings there. But I바카라m happy to be back.바카라
Ruotolo Paying More Attention To His Body And Mind
In his time on the injured list, Tye Ruotolo learned some valuable lessons.
First and foremost, the BJJ black belt came to realize that prevention is the key to avoiding injuries. Taking care of his body, he said, will keep him competing at an elite level for years to come:
바카라I noticed the more jiu-jitsu I do, the worse my body gets. Right? So it바카라s important to take care of your temple. I do my best to learn as much as I can about my body. That way, I keep my wheels rolling as long as I can. There바카라s a lot that goes into it.
바카라Jiu-jitsu is not good for your body, quite frankly. It바카라s good for your soul.바카라
Most notably, Ruotolo has made significant changes to how he fuels his body. He noticed that many of the unhealthy, inflammatory foods he typically ate only made his injury worse.
With that in mind, he adjusted his approach to eating. After all, food is one of the few things in his control when it comes to injury prevention and recovery:
바카라I learned that what you eat is super important. I was never super strict on my diet. In fact, I always had a pretty bad relationship with food, just with all the weight cuts. And the American diet isn바카라t set up to be the healthiest, so I definitely had my fair share of s*** food over the years.
바카라I noticed that when you have an injury like that, the inflammation and how much it affects your injury. So just the diet and taking it day by day. When you have an injury, you바카라re looking in the future and you바카라re worrying about how much time you바카라re gonna be out, and you바카라re worrying about everything in the future that you can바카라t control.
바카라But what you can control is the day to day. So I just made sure that I was doing what I could every day for myself, just checking in. And it바카라s important to have those mental checkups on yourself even every day.바카라
