New Student: when will you quit?

[pdg]

And watched too many movies.

Nah, movies are good.

I'm still working on jumping over a mountain though - it must be possible, I saw it on telly...

 

[AngryHobbit]

Nah, movies are good.

I'm still working on jumping over a mountain though - it must be possible, I saw it on telly...

No, wait, I want to do that whole "stepping on air as if it were stone" thingie from Bulletproof Monk.

 

[pdg]

No, wait, I want to do that whole "stepping on air as if it were stone" thingie from Bulletproof Monk.

All it takes is practice, inspirational music and guidance from a guy with a long white beard.

 

[Buka]

Interesting read. And as a person returning to martial arts after a long hiatus (35 years) here is my perspective.

It is true that most people quit. If everyone stuck with it, there would be tens of millions of grand masters in the world. I suspect the number of actual grand masters and masters is probably in the tens of thousands.

In the early 80s, I studied Tang Soo Do for exactly 3 years. Being raised by a single mother, I was bullied in middle school and not wanting to repeat that experience in high school, I signed up for Tang Soo Do just before Thanksgiving of my freshman year of high school, Looking back, Tang Soo Do was really important to me in those days. I transformed my body, losing 35 lbs in my first 8 or 10 months of training, and (eventually) changed my mindset.

I DID learn fairly early on that martial arts fighting isn't the same as street fighting. About 6 months into my training, I started to believe I had some good martial arts skills. My dojang produced some good tournament fighters, and I thought I was holding my own against them pretty well in sparring. (now I know they were just gong easy on me) I already was outpacing the guy I started with, who was losing interest after his first belt test and never even took his second test. (I guess he was a 3 or maybe 4 month quitter) And, I had just passed my second belt test and was wearing a fresh, new green belt. In the spring of my freshman year, I got into an argument with another kid in school. (stupid high school stuff). I had some false confidence and so instead of backing down when he challenged me to fight, I stood my ground. He hit me in the face, and the next thing I knew, the two of us were wrestling on the ground. I could hardly see anything. It was humiliating.

Some guys might have quit martial arts at that point. I didn't. I learned that I wasn't nearly as good as I thought I was. I wasn't as fit, and I wasn't as fast, and my technique was way too slow. I also learned that there is a difference between showy techniques and practical self defense. And I paid attention when we did self defense techniques in class and worked hard on those, just in case. I also stepped up my training from 2 times/week to 5 times/week as we went into the summer. Somehow, I feared that the school bullies would come after me after seeing my get my nose bloodied that spring. When I returned to school in the fall, a lot of kids and teachers hardly recognized me. Interestingly, I never got into another fight again. Not in high school, and not ever. Somehow, thanks to my training that summer, I changed my mindset, and never actually had to fight again.

Over the next 2 1/2 yearsI went on to move up the ranks up to Cho Dan Bo, or black belt candidate. And then I quit.

Why would I do such a thing? For one, the dojang expected more of me as a black belt candidate than just showing up to train 2 or 3 days a week. They expected more teaching of lower belts, which I didn't mind, but also more time commitment to demonstrations at shopping malls and community centers and other places, and tournaments, which was both a time and money commitment that as a high school kid looking to go to college in a few months, I didn't have. Especially since I also needed to find even more time to train for my black belt test. So 6 months after earning my black stripe on my red belt, I felt I was stagnating in my training, maybe even getting worse. Looking back, I probably should have figured out a way to continue training through the end of high school and into college, but at the time, I just walked away. So I was a 3 year quitter.

It is frustrating because at the time, I didn't appreciate what all that training did for me until years later. So over the years I have done lots of other activities to get some semblance of the conditioning I had in high school. Jogging, which I did on an off through my late teens into my mid 20s. Weight lifting, which I did for many years. Step aerobics. classic aerobics, Cardio kickboxing, body sculpting. Pilates, Yoga, Spinning, Bicycling. I tried all these things, and they all work, for awhile. Until they don't. The body adjusts, and what works to get you in condition eventually doesn't. Or it does, but you don't appreciate what a blessing physical fitness is until you stop training and get fat and out of shape.

So now, for the first time in 35 years, I am back to martial arts. A lot fatter than I was in high school, and moderate fit but hoping to get a lot fitter without injuring myself. (haven't given up on other things. Weights, yoga and cycling are still things that interest me, and are probably healthy ways to cross train).

What a great post. Thanks for sharing that, I really enjoyed it.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Nah, movies are good.

I'm still working on jumping over a mountain though - it must be possible, I saw it on telly...

You have to redefine "mountain". Then it gets easy.

 

[AngryHobbit]

All it takes is practice, inspirational music and guidance from a guy with a long white beard.

N-uh! I agree about practice and music, but sometimes, it takes guidance from the handsome Chow Yun-Fat in a gorgeous trench coat.

 

[AngryHobbit]

Jokes aside, there is something to be said about music at the dojo. I know some people consider it hokey, but there are certain portions of the practice where great music would really help. Strikes, for example. Or practicing kata.

Of course, I am extremely biased - I wrote my entire Master Thesis listening to Beethoven symphonies and Bach's Brandenburg concerti. And all my other fitness stuff involves music. I love E. S. Posthumus - "Nara" from "Unearthed" would be awesome for strike practice.

 

[Buka]

Jokes aside, there is something to be said about music at the dojo. I know some people consider it hokey, but there are certain portions of the practice where great music would really help. Strikes, for example. Or practicing kata.

Of course, I am extremely biased - I wrote my entire Master Thesis listening to Beethoven symphonies and Bach's Brandenburg concerti. And all my other fitness stuff involves music. I love E. S. Posthumus - "Nara" from "Unearthed" would be awesome for strike practice.

Years ago, I was between dojos. Our building was bought and we were out on the street six weeks later. Man, did that suck big time. Thrown out, no dojo, WTF? But that's life, so we trained every single day at the dojos of people we had become friends with. Different dojos, but we never missed a day of training. Turned out to be a wonderful and fun experience, then I opened my own dojo. Which certainly saved me gas money.

Anyway, one of the Kenpo dojos we went to would start with the bow in, and a slight stretch - then the music would go on. Hard pounding, upbeat music over beautiful speakers placed just so. We would warm up doing foot work and throwing techniques to the music, smiling, yelling, kiai-ing, whatever.. Then we would stretch and do class. I always thought, "damn, that was serious fun."

Did the same thing in my dojo after that. Students loved it. It invigorated them.

 

[AngryHobbit]

Years ago, I was between dojos. Our building was bought and we were out on the street six weeks later. Man, did that suck big time. Thrown out, no dojo, WTF? But that's life, so we trained every single day at the dojos of people we had become friends with. Different dojos, but we never missed a day of training. Turned out to be a wonderful and fun experience, then I opened my own dojo. Which certainly saved me gas money.

Anyway, one of the Kenpo dojos we went to would start with the bow in, and a slight stretch - then the music would go on. Hard pounding, upbeat music over beautiful speakers placed just so. We would warm up doing foot work and throwing techniques to the music, smiling, yelling, kiai-ing, whatever.. Then we would stretch and do class. I always thought, "damn, that was serious fun."

Did the same thing in my dojo after that. Students loved it. It invigorated them.

That sounds like fun! What sort of music did you use?

I like good instrumentals (like E. S. Posthumus and Escala), but it's also fun at the POUND class, where our instructor always plays something with an awesome beat - like "Uptown Funk" or "We will rock you".

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Years ago, I was between dojos. Our building was bought and we were out on the street six weeks later. Man, did that suck big time. Thrown out, no dojo, WTF? But that's life, so we trained every single day at the dojos of people we had become friends with. Different dojos, but we never missed a day of training. Turned out to be a wonderful and fun experience, then I opened my own dojo. Which certainly saved me gas money.

Anyway, one of the Kenpo dojos we went to would start with the bow in, and a slight stretch - then the music would go on. Hard pounding, upbeat music over beautiful speakers placed just so. We would warm up doing foot work and throwing techniques to the music, smiling, yelling, kiai-ing, whatever.. Then we would stretch and do class. I always thought, "damn, that was serious fun."

Did the same thing in my dojo after that. Students loved it. It invigorated them.

I've been toying with music lately. I use it often when training by myself - I seem to stay on my training, rather than getting into curriculum planning, when music is going. I trained mostly in formal, traditional dojos, but that doesn't really fit me and the way I teach. Problem is much of my music isn't SFW ("Foo your royal penis is clean" is a phrase that actually played as someone walked in when I was training alone), so I need to collect some appropriate music.

 

[Buka]

That sounds like fun! What sort of music did you use?

I like good instrumentals (like E. S. Posthumus and Escala), but it's also fun at the POUND class, where our instructor always plays something with an awesome beat - like "Uptown Funk" or "We will rock you".

Lol. We used to use We Will Rock You [Bohemian Rhapsody] all the time. As well as Eye of the Tiger, several songs from the movie Beverly Hills Cop, Street Fighting Man by The Stones, Sun City my favorite warm up song - when the students warmed up to that they knew one seriously, nasty hard workout was coming - In and Around the Lake by whoever sang that, some Grand Funk, some others I can't remember that the students brought in.

As for Uptown Funk....oh, man, I wish that had been around back in the day. When I hear that song now, I can't stand still, find it physically impossible. Even if I had a gun to my head, I'm either warming up or dancing, death be damned.

Just got called in to work on my day off. Going to get my stuff together right now [it's only a half shift] and I'm going to put on Uptown Funk right now. And dance and jab my way right into my damn uniform. Don't believe me just watch! Hey, hey, hey!

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Lol. We used to use We Will Rock You [Bohemian Rhapsody] all the time. As well as Eye of the Tiger, several songs from the movie Beverly Hills Cop, Street Fighting Man by The Stones, Sun City my favorite warm up song - when the students warmed up to that they knew one seriously, nasty hard workout was coming - In and Around the Lake by whoever sang that, some Grand Funk, some others I can't remember that the students brought in.

As for Uptown Funk....oh, man, I wish that had been around back in the day. When I hear that song now, I can't stand still, find it physically impossible. Even if I had a gun to my head, I'm either warming up or dancing, death be damned.

Just got called in to work on my day off. Going to get my stuff together right now [it's only a half shift] and I'm going to put on Uptown Funk right now. And dance and jab my way right into my damn uniform. Don't believe me just watch! Hey, hey, hey!

That song is infectious. I think I have it on 4 different playlists.

 

[AngryHobbit]

Lol. We used to use We Will Rock You [Bohemian Rhapsody] all the time. As well as Eye of the Tiger, several songs from the movie Beverly Hills Cop, Street Fighting Man by The Stones, Sun City my favorite warm up song - when the students warmed up to that they knew one seriously, nasty hard workout was coming - In and Around the Lake by whoever sang that, some Grand Funk, some others I can't remember that the students brought in.

As for Uptown Funk....oh, man, I wish that had been around back in the day. When I hear that song now, I can't stand still, find it physically impossible. Even if I had a gun to my head, I'm either warming up or dancing, death be damned.

Just got called in to work on my day off. Going to get my stuff together right now [it's only a half shift] and I'm going to put on Uptown Funk right now. And dance and jab my way right into my damn uniform. Don't believe me just watch! Hey, hey, hey!

We've done Uptown Funk both in zumba and in POUND, and it's fun both ways. Good times!

 

[Michele123]

I would have frowned at the idea of music before. I’ve always taken MA seriously and the idea of music during MA seemed disrespectful somehow. BUT last week, during warm-ups and agility exercises our instructor had a lot of really upbeat stuff playing. It was great! Actually, I felt like we were part of some MA training montage in a movie. It really pumped up the energy!

The music was turned off once we got into working on actual techniques and stuff, which is good. I think it would be hard to focus on things if music were blasting then.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[_Simon_]

Yeah same Michele, I never was a fan of putting music on while training.... until one I did XD. It's really quite fun actually, maybe only during kihon and kumite drills, but can't seem to keep it on for kata... kata is something precious to me that I like to have quiet for haha. And have been known to train to Spem in Alium (a choral piece) when it came on shuffle on my iPod, it was divine

 

[mrt2]

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Yeah same Michele, I never was a fan of putting music on while training.... until one I did XD. It's really quite fun actually, maybe only during kihon and kumite drills, but can't seem to keep it on for kata... kata is something precious to me that I like to have quiet for haha. And have been known to train to Spem in Alium (a choral piece) when it came on shuffle on my iPod, it was divine

My problem with music during kata is that I start following the rhythm of the music, rather than the flow of the movements.

 

[Buka]

Love it for warm ups, would never have it on in class.

 

[kravmaga1]

Thanks for sharing this valuable information.

 

[kunetao]

I will quit Tomorrow...
but today I practice