CWG 2022: If I Am Training Right, I Become My Own Psychologist, Says Vinesh Phogat After Winning Gold

A drastic change in training regimen and the extra push that her family gave enabled Vinesh Phogat to turn the tide after a forgettable last 12 months during which she "hit rock bottom mentally". A premature exit from the Tokyo Olympics, where she went in as the top seed, injury issues and run-ins with the wrestling federation pushed her into an abyss.

The 27-year-old's existing training methods were not yielding results. She had to go back to the drawing board.

After undergoing an elbow surgery in September, Vinesh only wanted to get her training right.

"If my training is going right, I feel fine mentally as well," she said after easing to a 53kg gold at the Commonwealth Games on Saturday.

"Only I know what I have done to win this medal. It feels a lot more special considering what I have gone through over the past 12 months," said Vinesh who is now a three-time CWG gold medallist.

Vinesh, who had to really dig deep to win the trials to make the CWG squad, was struggling for sparring partners in her category. The women were not strong enough so she decided to train with the U-15 boys.

"She was not getting the required training earlier, now she is. That is the difference according to me," said national coach Jitender Yadav on Vinesh's victorious comeback.

The star wrestler herself got emotional while talking about her struggles since the Tokyo Olympics.

"I had lost my confidence, I feel I have found it now. It happens with all the athletes at some point. Only I know what pains I have taken to be here. I had hit rock bottom mentally, I was not able to digest what was going wrong with me." She is also not very particular about her diet but her family ensured she was fed pretty well.

"I can feel mentally fine only when my