Less than two weeks until Invicta Fighting Championships 1! I am very excited for my fight and for the entire Invicta card. I feel so blessed to be a part of this historic event! Training has been going great. Every morning, I wake up to the sound of the rooster crowing and start my day of training.

For cardio, I chase chickens and I do not stop until every one is caught. For strength, I lift stacks of hay over my head and do push presses for several sets. For boxing, I punch a large slab of beef hanging from the barn ceiling. I round out my day by greasing up a pig and working takedowns on him.

Because that’s what we do in the Midwest! HAHA, completely joking.

In all seriousness, I have had a great training camp for this fight. I started six and a half weeks ago so I would have an eight-week camp. This is the best I have ever had for any fight. I definitely feel I have improved as a fighter and I cannot wait to get in the cage and show my coaches, team, family, friends, fans, etc. my improvement.

I have been splitting up my training between my two gyms that are affiliated with each other, Vaghi Martial Arts and St. Charles MMA. I have also been very fortunate to have my friend, Barb Honchak (ranked #3 at 125lbs by Unified Rankings), come to town on some weekends to train with me. If you don’t know who Barb is, you should because she is a badass and on the rise to being ranked #1. It is always such a great opportunity to train with Barb because she pushes me so much and makes me a better fighter. It is nice to train with a female sometimes because all I ever train with is men due to the fact that I am the only female MMA fighter at my gym.

I have been very fortunate to be able to balance my fight career and law enforcement career throughout my training camp. If you missed my last blog, besides being a professional fighter I am also a full-time police officer. Work has been going great. During a stop, I had another “alleged” criminal run from me the other night. I would like to just take a moment to thank every criminal who has run from me during my training camp. The way I see it, every time someone runs from me and I get in a foot pursuit, it is just helping me get ready for my fight. Chasing someone is extra cardio/conditioning and add wearing a 25-pound belt around your waist and a bulletproof vest and there is your strength added to the extra workout. Then when I finally catch the “alleged” crooks who run, I get to work on my takedowns. So again, thank you to everyone who runs from me while I am on duty. You have helped prepare me for my fight. But please, after April 28th, can you stop running so I can sit back, relax and eat a donut? lol.

Also if you missed my last blog, something that I am passionate about (besides chasing bad guys) is rescuing animals. Last winter, I rescued 9 stray/feral cats that were living in a dumpster. I have teamed up with The Shannon Foundation (local animal rescue center) and we are in the process of making an indoor/outdoor cat shelter for the cats I rescued and to be able to save future stray cats that cannot be placed in a home due to them being feral. I am trying to raise money to be able to buy the materials to build the shelter. If interested in helping me to save these cats as well as future animals in need, I would appreciate any donation. To donate you can go here. Thank you!!

I would like to thank my coaches and teammates at St. Charles MMA and Vaghi Martial Arts and my strength and conditioning coach at Fitzmaurice Performance for always pushing me beyond my limits and always believing in me. I would also like to thank my manager, Brett Atchley, at Addison Sports Management and my sponsors: Tussle Fight Gear, Fight Chix, and Splitlip Fight Gear.

See everyone on the 28th!

-Smashley