Someone reminded me the other day that by practicing the kinds of concepts I do, this in now way prepares you for a fight. And they were right it doesn’t. But engaging in fights all the time is a sure way to get injured or simply worn out. And then you’ll just be frustrated that you let yourself be manipulated by someone else into a fight or contest that cost you in the long run.
If you have to defend yourself, do so, but be under no illusion about the consequences. Many soldiers come back from war with post traumatic stress. Constant exposure to the chaos did not make them stronger, it weathered them. Sure they learned some important lessons, but going out there again wouldn’t do them any good. And whilst a fight or contest is not the same as war, long exposure under similar tension, which can seem quite alluring, can have terrible effects if you’re not careful. In the words of Lord Acton “Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” What this means is that often when people go after titles or prestige get so carried away that it, that it overwhelms them or destroys them.
Certain biological stresses can be beneficial to health. For example, everybody knows that exercise increases fitness. Exercise stresses the muscles so they grow back stronger, it enhances the immune system, and oxygenates all the body parts, etc., But when these stresses become chronic, or you are physically weak, stress becomes counterproductive. Similarly, martial arts sparring can whip you into shape by forcing you to fight back under fire, making you tougher and less fearful. And you can do it in a controlled environment without the risk of killing someone. But you can end up exposing yourself to danger and learning very little from it just to prove how tough you are.
Lots of people enjoy fighting each other and get a buzz from it. Their goal isn’t to learn anything, but instead to get something out of their system. Sometimes they strut around in the gym like peacocks. For some of them, training has become an addiction that they have given themselves over to, rather than a method of self development. This is all considered perfectly normal, but for me getting something out of your system like aggression shouldn’t be a goal in itself. In my view you want to channel your energies into something worthwhile. You then walk away from the session feeling bigger and more intelligent, rather than exhausted and lacking enthusiasm.
When I used to do Taekwondo competitions the sparring was so intense that you had no choice but to fight for your survival every week. I did all this because I though I would learn something. I learned that once you take something on which initially seems intimidating, you eventually learn that this initial fear is just the beginning of something. A transient state rather than an enduring one. Don’t get me wrong, you don’t engage in sparring and then lose all fear or sense of danger. You just learn that this is the natural state of things when taking on difficulty. This lesson can then be applied to great tasks than just fighting other individuals.
Often people will try to draw you into battles you can’t gain from just to prove themselves against someone they sense is superior. This is all quite normal. There’s a sense of hierarchy in all people, so by practicing intelligently, just developing your own power is often enough to put people of picking on you. They will sense that they’ll come off looking stupid and will target someone who is easy prey. There is simply no point in responding in kind to an insult or act of aggression which can land you in a fight if it can be helped. Why lower yourself to the pettiness which is clearly so self destructive to others and let that take up vital time in your day.
It is often the case that individuals go out and pit themselves against anyone and everyone to prove how tough they are. They overcome all resistance and adversity and it can be quite empowering in a sense. But in doing so they often realise all of a sudden that this is no longer very important. That’s why I don’t bother with sparring anymore or trying to prove myself to others. There is too much to lose and nothing to gain. This is what self protection is all about for me: keeping out the counterproductive influence of others around you.
In reality, a serious fight or sparring session can be crippling and the wear and tear puts the even the strongest fighters out of action. If it’s insight you’re looking for it’s an invaluable experience but not one I would recommend repeating again and again. You don’t notice straight away but the kinds of sparring many fighters engage in simply wears them out over time. Don’t think you’re any different. And what do these past champions they have to how for it? A claim to some former glory and no enduring motivation or energy. And when that happens, if you’re not interested in any higher goal then your training has come to an end. That might be alright for some but in that case leave it to them.
In my opinion, if you want training to have a higher meaning your motivations must be aimed towards goals completely disinterested to personal victories or losses. This is something we often learn the hard way, and really there is no other way. The biggest victories aren’t won in the gym, there are much more important priorities such as life circumstances and adversity to overcome. Any self defence system which doesn’t symbolically help you with this, as well as providing you with some useful exercises and skills of course, is a waste of time.
To me, there is absolutely no point in winning a medal or a belt, if it costs you vital time, energy, and your own body. If you simply have to go and do this, then at least be aware of what’s really involved. Say you win a medal and then have to have knee surgery from overtraining, it will be very difficult to come back and keep up the training load that you have invested in. In this way, many athletes become useless to the training academy they represent, and which they considered their family. Just going though the mechanical drills that are so popular can lead to overtraining and accumulation of injury. And despite all the welfare policies and “athlete centred coaching”, etc., there is simply no way that this can lead to any lasting success. Situations like this have led many in the martial arts industry to such bitterness that they have given up training all together.
By all means learn from hard experience, but the real science of training is not constant physical struggle. In my opinion, you’re better off harnessing those forces which underlie physical performance and exploiting those intelligently. There is plenty to fight back against, just make sure you’re directing your efforts in the right places. This is why I recommend Steve Morris, whose training methods are intuitive, conscious of injury prevention, and the most effective. For example, Steve talks about exploiting our innate defence mechanisms and faculties, such as the startle response, and repurposing them for our own ends. Steve suggests many exercises on how to do this which give instant results1. You get a sense that he’s revealed something you knew all along.
Even going though the mechanical drills that are so popular can lead to overtraining and accumulation of injury.
References
See Steve Morris morrisnoholdsbarred.com
