# How much pain can you take?



## jake_us9 (Mar 9, 2007)

Hi all,
Im new here. great forum!

Ive been practicing for 20 over years and I have come to believe that pain and injuries, and the ability to endure them may be a big factor in deciding the outcome of a fight/match? anyone agree? most of the time, the emphasis it seems is to focus on one's skills/abilities/technical proficiency etc. 
but the fact and reality of fighting remains - however good one is, if one does not have a high pain threshold, one will succumb quickly at the first sign of pain/injury/blood. so the question is, how does one handle pain? 
is there a mental/physical training to withstand pain? how would you react to, say, a broken nose, teeth, a kick to the groin/ribs, a broken arm(amber)?

The question is, will you/should one carry on fighting despite a bloodied face or simply surrender?


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## chris_&#3617;&#3623;&#3618;&#3652;&#3607;&#3618; (Mar 9, 2007)

jake_us9 said:


> Hi all,
> so the question is, how does one handle pain?
> is there a mental/physical training to withstand pain? how would you react to, say, a broken nose, teeth, a kick to the groin/ribs, a broken arm(amber)?
> 
> The question is, will you/should one carry on fighting despite a bloodied face or simply surrender?


 

hi, first of all wecome to MT!

i can take a lot of pain, i just tell myself that i can take the pain and to focus and it just works (for me), i am very strong willed so i dont feel that pain is something i should worry about, i believe this is the way all martial artists should think.

and i think that giving from a broken arm from an armbar is of course something to give up about. but a small cut above the eyerow with blood coming out isnt, but thats just me, i personaly wouldnt just give up from a cut, it really does depend on the serousness of the injury.


just my 0.002,

chris


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## Marginal (Mar 9, 2007)

jake_us9 said:


> Hi all,
> Im new here. great forum!
> 
> Ive been practicing for 20 over years and I have come to believe that pain and injuries, and the ability to endure them may be a big factor in deciding the outcome of a fight/match?


 
Seems to me it's usually a side-effect of conditioning.


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## redfang (Mar 9, 2007)

I take your post to mean that mental toughness is at least as important physical ability. I definitely agree with that.  Now, adrenaline is going to reduce some of the immediate pain of injury. I think it's fear, of injury and just in general that causes some people to quit. Sometimes, one can just psyche one's self out, convincing themselves that they can't do it, that they can't win etc. These are more detrimental than actual pain.

In fact, for us lucky masochists, pain can be something of a rush.


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## zDom (Mar 9, 2007)

Thanks to adrenaline and endorphins, pain is probably not going to be an issue with most fighters (er... until AFTER the fight )

Injury is indeed the concern, which is why it is so important for coaches to keep an eye on their athletes and for physicians to be ringside.

A fighter can probably fight after a dislocated elbow from a armbar, but shouldn't. The are much better off tapping out and coming back to fight another day that rehab'ing a serious injury like that.


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## Tez3 (Mar 9, 2007)

I have a high pain threshold and have had two kids! The pain in fighting the lesser of the two!
Agree with redfangs comment on masochists though, we love it lol.


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## Touch Of Death (Mar 9, 2007)

I was married for five years:ultracool 
Sean


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## Kenpojujitsu3 (Mar 9, 2007)

Touch Of Death said:


> I was married for five years:ultracool
> Sean


 
I go to youtube and type "kenpo"


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## bushidomartialarts (Mar 9, 2007)

i've sort of made it a goal to never find out.

i tend to fight with the attitude of avoiding as much pain as possible.

in training, my threshold for pain is far enough past my threshold for injury that i've never really pushed the bar.


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## Touch Of Death (Mar 9, 2007)

bushidomartialarts said:


> i've sort of made it a goal to never find out.
> 
> i tend to fight with the attitude of avoiding as much pain as possible.
> 
> in training, my threshold for pain is far enough past my threshold for injury that i've never really pushed the bar.


Speaking of which the graci Jiu jitsu stuff doesn't include leg locks because your leg is broken or torn long before the pain sets in.
Sean


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## Eternal Beginner (Mar 9, 2007)

Touch Of Death said:


> Speaking of which the graci Jiu jitsu stuff doesn't include leg locks because your leg is broken or torn long before the pain sets in.
> Sean


GJJ does include leg locks, or have I misunderstood you?


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## zDom (Mar 9, 2007)

Touch Of Death said:


> Speaking of which the graci Jiu jitsu stuff doesn't include leg locks because your leg is broken or torn long before the pain sets in.
> Sean




In hapkido training, we advise "tapping out" on elbow locks when you feel the elbow is at the limit of its range of motion instead of when the pain gets too much (as we do in wristlocks).

The reason being, if you wait until you think it hurts too much on the elbow, you may already be receiving damage, kind of like the above comment about leg locks.


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## DavidCC (Mar 9, 2007)

ever applied hydrogen peroxide to a cut on your "sensitive area"?  nothing anyone can do with their hands or feet will equal that pain.  It induced an out-of-body experience.  Or at least an "I want out of this body" experience.


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## MA-Caver (Mar 9, 2007)

I'm like Maj. Frank Burns of M*A*S*H: "...I pass out with a paper-cut, a hemmroid puts me into a coma..." 

I've had my appendix burst and weathered that fairly well. Gone through two severe sinus infections... though I thought I'd go insane. 
Been stabbed in the gut and managed to keep fighting. 
It all depends upon what's going on. If it's a fight for my life then yeah, I'm probably gonna get over the pain real quick long enough to get out of whatever trouble I'm currently in. 

But I'll say this much ... no man... I mean NO MAN will EVER have the pain thresh-hold of a woman... period. Don't believe it? 
As Kirstie Allie said in the movie "Look Who's Talking" to John Travolta...(in reference to the pain of childbirth) "...oh yeah? try squeezing something the size of a melon out a hole the size of a lemon..." 

That said it all man!


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## jimmy9183 (Mar 9, 2007)

A lot of it is technique, too. Sure at first you take punches squarely across your nose. Your nose breaks, and you learn to better angle your face so punches slide off. The first time you get nailed in the ribs you probably werent breathing right. It hurts and later bruises. Later you learn to exhale while being hit. Your techniques, stances, and posture change as you get more comfortable fighting; as does your understanding of your art. So how do you deal with pain? You adapt. 

Is there mental/physical training to withstand pain?
An interesting study found that pain tolerance is also cultural. Certain cultures have developed higher pain tolerances than others. I discover a very interesting site winyourmmafight.com. It gives a Blueprint That Reveals The 3 Keys To Successful Training, Diet And Preparation For Victory In An MMA Fight!


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## tellner (Mar 10, 2007)

One of the big reasons I do martial arts is to avoid having to learn the answer to that question.

It's kind of like tattooing body piercing. Friends ask me if I'd like to get it done. The answer is "I spend lots of time and money learning how to keep people from sticking sharp pieces of metal into my body. Why would I want to pay someone to do it?" :shrug:


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## Eternal Beginner (Mar 10, 2007)

It is amazing how much adrenaline shields you.  I rolled in a tournament last year with a broken wrist.  Didn't realise how bad it was until my final match when I couldn't grip at all with it and had to use my head to complete a submission.

Like  Tez3 mentioned earlier, having kids is far more painful than fighting and women keep on doing it!:angel:   I would rather break a bone again or have another concussion than give birth again!!!  As off topic as that may seem, it just shows that when you have to, and adrenaline is helping, you can withstand a lot of pain without giving up.


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