If there is one thing Martial Arts teaches you, it’s this
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… I’m so new at training. A few weeks is…
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Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
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I’m so new at training. A few weeks is all. But I’ve already learned several things that have surprised me, and a lot of it about myself more than the training.
Background…I started female self defense training to help build confidence in day to day life. We did a bit of pad work too, so are now incorporating some boxing at the end properly.
Straight after is the JuJitsu class, in which I’m a brand newbie, and so at the first belt, which is red.
Three distinct classes but totally linked. All I’m new at.
The first thing you learn is how to see.
– As you learn the moves, so too do you learn to see patterns. There are patterns to every move, and oftimes it is a circular one. Moves are not jutting, separate motions, but instead are flowing, almost graceful curves that lead from each other using the opponent’s own body force against themselves. In this way a small, light, woman can be more dangerous than the large, bulky attacker she may be defending herself against.
The second thing learned is respect.
– Respect for your own strength. Of character and mind even more than body strength for, as mentioned above, physical strength is not as important as the knowledge to resist.
– Respect also for your teacher. Your Sensei. A good Sensei has no ego in the teaching. He/she is there for you. They have spent years mastering their craft, but teach openly so that you too can reach their level. This is completely alien to most jobs, as the strongest, (there’s that word again), survive and the weakest fall. Not so with teachers in the Martial Arts. They are pleased when you succeed and strive to help you reach that goal, no matter your skills.
Third thing learned is self discipline.
– This perhaps is the hardest thing to master. Anyone can learn moves with enough practise, but self discipline is perhaps the hardest lesson of all. I mentioned before that the moves are strangely graceful. I see that that is even more so with those who’ve embraced the arts as a huge part of their lives. They seem more patient, empathic, caring. They have lost that spark of anger that some of us show regularly. Not lost it…. It becomes quieter. More toned. Not anger lashing out, but contained, used, useful.
– Patience. Control. Understanding. Tolerance. All are those parts of self discipline we all need to master. Martial art training, done correctly, will help anyone learning the craft to achieve these things.
Finally, and for me the most humbling……. I learned not to screw around during training as you WILL break your big toe.
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