Half train or give it up?

[karatemom3]

I'm 61 years old [female] and trained continuously in martial arts for 24 years. Since last spring I have not

been able to train due to shoulder pain. I had rotator cuff repair, torn biceps tendon repair and bone shaving

a few years ago.

I now have arthritis and some small tears but nothing that can be repaired. I've done PT, acupuncture,

Vitamins/supplements etc. and seen a chiropractor. I can train at home for 15-20 minutes but have to stop

due to muscle fatigue and pain. I do warm up and stretch before I start.

I've tried going to class and doing what I can and stopping when my shoulders got too tired but I felt like I

was disrupting the class when I couldn't keep up and disrespectful bowing out of class.

How do you feel about students not taking the whole class? I am currently studying Shotokan Karate:

purple belt at this time.

 

[oftheherd1]

Have you asked your teacher and your doctor about this?

 

[Ironbear24]

That is very rough, I think some training is better than no training though. If you haven't already talk to your doctor about the problems you are having, they can probably help you.

 

[King Kobra]

If it's between half training or giving up...half train all the way.

As for the other things brought up there are rehab specialists who specialize in treating people in your age group and I'd consult with them and they will likely send you to get an mri on your shoulder. Sometimes there is internal scarring (especially in the shoulder girdle since it's an area of convergence) which can rub and get agitated and the scar tissue can grow and make use of the afflicted area get more painful and chronic so it's important to get cleared for rehab by someone qualified because it could just get worse...and then even cutting your steak could be painful and life without steak just isn't worth living . After some rehab you could see an exercise therapist and he'll get you back in action.

 

[drop bear]

Half train is cool. You are still giving back to the club.

I have come in injured and just watched.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

Seconding the idea of talking to your instructor or doctor. Your doctor can do a much better job of determining what is safe, and your instructor can either ale sure you practice that way in class, or redirect you to another school that takes your injuries into consideration.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

I'm 61 years old [female] and trained continuously in martial arts for 24 years.

If you have trained MA for 24 years, you don't need to go to class any more. You should be able to design a training program for yourself at home that can meet your situation.

After age of 60, your jumping ability will decrease. It will be difficult to do 30 jumping kicks with 20 years old students in class.

Just work out on your heavy bag can be good for your health if you are a striker.

 

[Tez3]

Half train is cool. You are still giving back to the club.

I have come in injured and just watched.

I've done that as well, it's surprisingly how much you can learn with just watching.

 

[Buka]

I'm going to ask you for a big favor, (beg you, even) one fighter to another, one person in their sixties to another.

Please try to find a good Tai-chi class. It will be so much cooler than you can even imagine. And how you'll feel training compared to how you feel training now....dollars to doughnuts.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

If it's between half training or giving up...half train all the way.

As for the other things brought up there are rehab specialists who specialize in treating people in your age group and I'd consult with them and they will likely send you to get an mri on your shoulder. Sometimes there is internal scarring (especially in the shoulder girdle since it's an area of convergence) which can rub and get agitated and the scar tissue can grow and make use of the afflicted area get more painful and chronic so it's important to get cleared for rehab by someone qualified because it could just get worse...and then even cutting your steak could be painful and life without steak just isn't worth living . After some rehab you could see an exercise therapist and he'll get you back in action.

This, and Buka's answer, are fantastic. And what Drop Bear said. I've had a few injuries in my day. I had knee surgery during my 6 months of black belt testing, and spent many classes sitting on the bench watching. I actually think I learned as much in those 3 weeks of watching as in any 6 months of training. And when I got back on the mats, I was limited. I had to stick to what I could reasonably do, and sometimes had to bow out of class if my knee was bothering me too much that day. I know it feels awkward, and you probably don't like having to single yourself out as you step out of training. In my opinion, those things are part of your training, too.

EDIT: Oh, and yeah, what he said about steak, too!

 

[marques]

It is inspiring watching people training at your age. I would like to have you as a partner, student or even in the assistance. Or training just a few minutes/class.

Just make sure your instructor is happy is with that (bowing out, watching...) and that you are not just increasing damage in yourself...

 

[Dong xiao hu]

I suffered a broken arm 5 years ago. I used Tai chi and bagua in addition to PT . Full range of motion restored in less than a month!

Sent from my Z797C using Tapatalk

 

[Kickboxer101]

Well if you just give up you won't be learning anything or doing any exercise, you half train at least it's still something

 

[JowGaWolf]

I'm 61 years old [female] and trained continuously in martial arts for 24 years. Since last spring I have not

been able to train due to shoulder pain. I had rotator cuff repair, torn biceps tendon repair and bone shaving

a few years ago.

I now have arthritis and some small tears but nothing that can be repaired. I've done PT, acupuncture,

Vitamins/supplements etc. and seen a chiropractor. I can train at home for 15-20 minutes but have to stop

due to muscle fatigue and pain. I do warm up and stretch before I start.

I've tried going to class and doing what I can and stopping when my shoulders got too tired but I felt like I

was disrupting the class when I couldn't keep up and disrespectful bowing out of class.

How do you feel about students not taking the whole class? I am currently studying Shotokan Karate:

purple belt at this time.

You are a perfect example of someone who should train Tai Chi or a softer style of martial arts. By softer I mean that the movements are flowing and gentle in comparison to Karate.
The internal martial arts are good for keeping bones, tendons, and ligaments strong without the punishment. It also helps manage arthritis. You have a warriors body so you aren't going to be able to train with the intensity that you used to. When I say take Tai Chi, I mean the Tai Chi used for fighting and not the one that hippies do to become one with nature. That type of tai chi is often counter productive as it does not value structure of the body in a way that will give you the health benefits of tai chi. You'll still get a good work out, you'll still be learning how to kick butt, and it may help you to get back to some of the karate that you like doing.

 

[JowGaWolf]

I'm going to ask you for a big favor, (beg you, even) one fighter to another, one person in their sixties to another.

Please try to find a good Tai-chi class. It will be so much cooler than you can even imagine. And how you'll feel training compared to how you feel training now....dollars to doughnuts.

Just putting this out there for some addition info for those who may not be familiar with Tai Chi.
I've been reading a lot of medical reports and articles about mobility an many doctors recommend Tai Chi classes, not because "it's for old people" but because the exercises reverse or improves things like muscle strength, tendons, ligaments, and increases bone density, and all of this is accomplished by making gentle movements. Moving slow is more difficult than what people think.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

You don't have to train Taiji. You can just slow down your Karate training, keep your body relax and only tense at the end of your strike. IMO, all MA systems can be trained this way. This may be hard to do for kick, but it's easy to do for punch.

If you want to train just for "health", you can

- punch out slow with exhale, and
- pull back fast with inhale.

 

[MI_martialist]

I am confused...what is half training in this instance? Training is about giving 100% of what one has, so if you give 100% of what you have, you are all in and training all out. Training is supposed to be able to evolve as we do...injuries, age, etc...not one of us trains the way we did years ago, but we still train.

Do not give up because giving up is failure. Train, any way and every way you are able to.

Here is a perfect example...one of the guys in our group has back issues, and recently had back surgery. There was a significant validation / examination that needed to be done before his surgery that included many front break falls to varying degrees. So, it was about showing that one knows how to execute, so he was rigged up in a harness, and completed the falls with the assistance of someone using "wires". He trained 100% and it was fantastic!!

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

what is half training in this instance?

IMO, half training is you don't

- put 100% of your power into your punch and kick.
- drop as low as you should in your stance.
- move as fast as you should.
- jump as high (or as far) as you should.
- ...

When you are 70 years old, you will feel that you have difficulty to jump high. You change all your jumping kicks into non-jumping kick (such as to change a tornado kick into an outside crescent kick followed by an inside crescent kick). That's "half training".

 

[JowGaWolf]

You don't have to train Taiji. You can just slow down your Karate training, keep your body relax and only tense at the end of your strike. IMO, all MA systems can be trained this way. This may be hard to do for kick, but it's easy to do for punch.

If you want to train just for "health", you can

- punch out slow with exhale, and
- pull back fast with inhale.

It's not the same. Tai Chi is more than just slow movement. From the outside it looks like it's slow movement but their is a lot more going on.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Tai Chi is more than just slow movement. From the outside it looks like it's slow movement but their is a lot more going on.

Are you talking about coordinate your body movement with your breathing? Do you realize that in all Taiji form, there exist no "3 fast punches" combo? What do you think the reason may be?

The original Taiji system came from the long fist system. The Taiji form was designed differently from long fist. But if you can understand the difference, to train long fist as Taiji is easy to do.

If you train both long fist and Taiji, how do you do your "integration"?