I swear it aggresively angers me.

This is my 8th class in Jeninkan with Peter Steeves and im totally lost as to the terms that are being used,hell... i can barely do any of the moves they teach us right.Who gets pissed when you know something you did was wrong?I guess the whole transition of going from basketball to martial arts dont correlate where in basketball,flexibility of every muscle in the body dosent considerably play a role in overall performance.

























Or maybe im just overreacting.VENTS
:rolleyes:

maybe you should talk to your instructor privately if your getting frusterated or need a little 1-on-1 help.

Most instructors are pretty obliging when it comes to stuff like this.

Hello, Everyone has a begining. Everyone needs to start from day one, learning a new language is never easy. Learning the martials will not come in one day. God took seven days to create the earth. He was good.

Think of it like a tree. You have to grow first, as it begins to rise so will your knowledge. Every tree will grow differently. All the best had a begining. No one starts at the top, learning knowledge takes time and practice. Best of luck in your training.

It is the looking back from where you started,only then you will see the growth. Martial art is something you will have to look at as a life time of training. Like brushing teeth everyday. It becomes a part of your life. Success is always worth working hard for. To be successful is to practice and practice. There is no other way. ...........Aloha

I can understand where you are comming from. The first time I set foot into a kenpo class I was lost in the bow at the begining of the class.

My advice to you is this:

1) Speak with your instructor, explain the problem objectively, then discuss the best way to solve the problem.

2) Concentrate on one thing at a time. Once you have a good handle on that, then move on. Martial arts is not something you can pick up an hr at a time twice a week. Practice at home at first dont worry about accuracy of technique that will come later [sooner than you think], work on focusing your mind and body together first.

Just my thoughts

-Josh

PS: stick with it, dont get discouraged.

Well, Peter Steeves reads this forum, so he's likely to see this thread sooner or later.

Personally, yes I have experienced frustration and even anger with myself because I feel like I didn't perform as well as I should have. I've also found that this is really counterproductive. Frustration leads me to tense up, which leads me to overthink, which inhibits my reactions, which causes me to perform poorly, which makes me more frustrated. It's a vicious circle.

So, when I start feeling frustrated or overthinking, I just recognize and accept those feelings, and then try it again.

Also, when you know you did something wrong, its still a good learning experience for you and your training partner. Don't just freeze up. Keep moving smoothly at the same speed and try something from where you are now. Remember, our art is not about performing the same technique every time, but instead going with the moment and doing what is appropriate Now.

Don't be afraid to ask Uke to go slowly. Being fluid and correct in your movements is much more important than speed.

For terms, start a journal and braindump into it after class. Do some websearches on terms you don't understand. Don't get hung up on knowing them right away, but you should definitely review them outside of class.

Nobody expects you to be an expert anytime soon. This is an art with infinite depth, and if you devote your whole life to it you'll never run out of new things to learn.

Gambatte! (Do you know what that means yet? ;) )

"The only battle in the martial arts is to improve yourself." If you're making progress, good. If not, speak with the instructor and ask for advice!

I swear it aggresively angers me.

This is my 8th class in Jeninkan with Peter Steeves and im totally lost as to the terms that are being used,hell... i can barely do any of the moves they teach us right.Who gets pissed when you know something you did was wrong?I guess the whole transition of going from basketball to martial arts dont correlate where in basketball,flexibility of every muscle in the body dosent considerably play a role in overall performance.
Don't get discouraged. This is a whole new thing for you and alot of new material. When you learn something new your mind is processing but it hasn't become muscle memory yet. You're still learning even when you think you're not. Being able to recognize that you've done something wrong is a sign that you're learning. If you weren't learning you wouldn't be aware that you did something wrong. It will take time to train your body to respond the way you want it to. That's what training is all about. Everytime there's something new introduced I feel like I'll never learn it. But then comes a time when I can perform the technique or form without thinking about it and am amazed that I reached that point because I felt so lost about it at first.
IT'S ONLY YOUR 8TH CLASS MAN! :D
Don't give up. It all ends up coming together. :asian:

Don't get discouraged. This is a whole new thing for you and alot of new material. When you learn something new your mind is processing but it hasn't become muscle memory yet. You're still learning even when you think you're not. Being able to recognize that you've done something wrong is a sign that you're learning. If you weren't learning you wouldn't be aware that you did something wrong. It will take time to train your body to respond the way you want it to. That's what training is all about. Everytime there's something new introduced I feel like I'll never learn it. But then comes a time when I can perform the technique or form without thinking about it and am amazed that I reached that point because I felt so lost about it at first.
IT'S ONLY YOUR 8TH CLASS MAN! :D
Don't give up. It all ends up coming together. :asian:
Thanks for that!

and everybody else who responded

Well, Peter Steeves reads this forum, so he's likely to see this thread sooner or later.

Personally, yes I have experienced frustration and even anger with myself because I feel like I didn't perform as well as I should have. I've also found that this is really counterproductive. Frustration leads me to tense up, which leads me to overthink, which inhibits my reactions, which causes me to perform poorly, which makes me more frustrated. It's a vicious circle.

So, when I start feeling frustrated or overthinking, I just recognize and accept those feelings, and then try it again.

Also, when you know you did something wrong, its still a good learning experience for you and your training partner. Don't just freeze up. Keep moving smoothly at the same speed and try something from where you are now. Remember, our art is not about performing the same technique every time, but instead going with the moment and doing what is appropriate Now.

Don't be afraid to ask Uke to go slowly. Being fluid and correct in your movements is much more important than speed.

For terms, start a journal and braindump into it after class. Do some websearches on terms you don't understand. Don't get hung up on knowing them right away, but you should definitely review them outside of class.

Nobody expects you to be an expert anytime soon. This is an art with infinite depth, and if you devote your whole life to it you'll never run out of new things to learn.

Gambatte! (Do you know what that means yet? ;) )

ahahaaa rutherford always saying gambatte! what that mean man?lol

ahahaaa rutherford always saying gambatte! what that mean man?lol

It means: Fight On! Keep Going! Don't Give Up!

A story. (http://www.kuidaosumi.com/TOwriting/w-gambattesan.html)

An article by Soke. (http://www.columbusninjutsuclub.com/articles/gambatte.html)

Google is your friend. :asian:

haha dope

Persist man!
You are worth it and so's the art!

All you gotta do is keep showing up, keep droppin sweat for it, pay attention the best you can and NEVER give up!! NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER..................
Never!

Years from now you'll look back and be amazed at how time flies and how far your instructor has brought you. Don't let jargon trip you up; they are important sure...but you'll soak it in over time.
Patience my young Jedi!!!

Your Brother
John

Hello, Everyone has a begining. Everyone needs to start from day one, learning a new language is never easy. Learning the martials will not come in one day.
That about says it all..I was already a "bouncer" that knew a few MA moves when I first stepped in a dojo..After a month I felt that I had 2 left feet and didn't know my right hand from my left hand..The worst was that after being victorius in a dozen altercations with some big dudes this little skinny Sensei was able to knock me on my ass at will..

The worst was that after being victorius in a dozen altercations with some big dudes this little skinny Sensei was able to knock me on my ass at will..
LOL - I think that it is a requirement to be a sensei - most people say it about theirs. Never met a Sensei that I didn't think could kill just about anyone. (But then again I have not had the misfortune of meeting any washed out sensei's)

Keep going! You are supposed to be frustrated to a certain extent-if it was easy everyone could do it. Consistency is key-you keep training and you'll get the gross motor skills down, more training and you'll be technically proficient, more training and you'll internalize it.

Good luck!!

Miles

Talk to the instructor and see what he can advise you. He can probably give you some private lessons or extra help.

I have to agree with those that suggest to speak with your instructor.

However, to get frustrated will only worsen your ability.

Think of it as a math problem that you can't solve.

The more frustrated you are towards it, the harder the solution/answer will come.

1) *Never* say that you "can't" do something. That statement contains no useful information for you or anone else, and puts you in a bad mood. Rather, you made a mistake trying the technique out. Identify the mistake if you can; if you can't ask someone else.

2) Try to make a *new* mistake every time. You will get around to improving everything. If you are not putting your weight into a punch, think of that instead of trying to incorporate that correction into the totality of the technique. If a new error comes up, add a correction for that in turn. A technique is a big bundle of skills. Learn all of them.

3) Try training it differently. Sometimes something as simple as changing your facing in the training area will work wonders. Conversely, don't get attached to one circumstance or another. Sometimes you might subconsciously be using cues that are not a part of the technique (such as where the school's mirros/bag/door is).

4) If your body does not seem to fit into the motion and no level of instruction seems to help (like, after a year), see your doctor. I'm serious. I'm considering orthotics because of alignment problems I first discovered in my Tai Chi class.

1) *Never* say that you "can't" do something. That statement contains no useful information for you or anone else, and puts you in a bad mood. Rather, you made a mistake trying the technique out. Identify the mistake if you can; if you can't ask someone else.

2) Try to make a *new* mistake every time. You will get around to improving everything. If you are not putting your weight into a punch, think of that instead of trying to incorporate that correction into the totality of the technique. If a new error comes up, add a correction for that in turn. A technique is a big bundle of skills. Learn all of them.

3) Try training it differently. Sometimes something as simple as changing your facing in the training area will work wonders. Conversely, don't get attached to one circumstance or another. Sometimes you might subconsciously be using cues that are not a part of the technique (such as where the school's mirros/bag/door is).

4) If your body does not seem to fit into the motion and no level of instruction seems to help (like, after a year), see your doctor. I'm serious. I'm considering orthotics because of alignment problems I first discovered in my Tai Chi class.
1.) You can say you "can't" do something, but only have many attempts and per #4.

2.) Per #1 and #4, you will not get around to improving "everything".

3.) Hmmn, if you cannot improve using comfortable "cues", becoming dis-oriented may not help either.

4.) Perhaps a year may be too late for someone else that may have bodily disability (ies).

1.) You can say you "can't" do something, but only have many attempts and per #4.
If it is physically impossible to do something, then it will become apparent in time. "Can't" is still a useless statement. It's more accurate to say "(This physical circumstance) is preventing me from doing the technique."

Coherent self-criticism is absolutely vital to improving. If you make an accurate self-criticism, it immediately suggests an alternative, even if the alternative is, "(This limitation) provents me from doing (this technique), but I *can* do (another technique)."

2.) Per #1 and #4, you will not get around to improving "everything".
Sure you will. Even though techniques are bundles of skills, improving one does improve others. You'll never be perfect, is all.

3.) Hmmn, if you cannot improve using comfortable "cues", becoming dis-oriented may not help either.
Changing training circumstances forces you to focus on the technique itself, and not the conditions around doing it. Those cues are bad things, even if they are comfortable; we want to minimize their influence.

4.) Perhaps a year may be too late for someone else that may have bodily disability (ies).
A year is a long time, but if you can find out sooner, it won't be something you mistake for lack of training. It will generally involve pain. I wanted to close a loophole that would allow certain people to complain that their body is too "different" for a technique they could do if they put in the effort.

I swear it aggresively angers me.

This is my 8th class in Jeninkan with Peter Steeves and im totally lost as to the terms that are being used,hell... i can barely do any of the moves they teach us right.Who gets pissed when you know something you did was wrong?


That is part of the training! I think we all have been there and it still happens from time to time. See it as growth. Soon, what you find difficult or nearly impossible will become second nature and there will be something else even more confusing and difficult to take it's place. It is the nature of training.

Best regards,
David

If it is physically impossible to do something, then it will become apparent in time. "Can't" is still a useless statement. It's more accurate to say "(This physical circumstance) is preventing me from doing the technique."

Coherent self-criticism is absolutely vital to improving. If you make an accurate self-criticism, it immediately suggests an alternative, even if the alternative is, "(This limitation) provents me from doing (this technique), but I *can* do (another technique)."


Sure you will. Even though techniques are bundles of skills, improving one does improve others. You'll never be perfect, is all.


Changing training circumstances forces you to focus on the technique itself, and not the conditions around doing it. Those cues are bad things, even if they are comfortable; we want to minimize their influence.


A year is a long time, but if you can find out sooner, it won't be something you mistake for lack of training. It will generally involve pain. I wanted to close a loophole that would allow certain people to complain that their body is too "different" for a technique they could do if they put in the effort.
Cant cant cant..cant always do what anyone else does....it what makes us individuals.

Cant be a 10th dan Soke...cant cant cant

Cant cant cant..cant always do what anyone else does....it what makes us individuals.

Cant be a 10th dan Soke...cant cant cant
Very true! We all are NOT equal! I can't do back flips, but wish I could. However, it really doesn't have any impact on my training or my life. There are many alternatives. Don't sweat the small stuff.

If studying martial arts were easy everyone would do it! It's totally normal for you to feel a bit like a dork when you try anything new. I got roped into doing some swing dancing and man o man was that a sight to see. All these people swinging and bopping all around and I'm stepping on the instructor's toes. I felt like I had two left feet and I wanted to run, actually *giggle* I thought about sweeping him! LOL The thing is, I stuck it out that night and it got a little more comfy to do and I promised I'd give it a few more lessons, and don't tell anyone, but after the work was done it started to become fun! You are doing something your body isn't familiar with and time and practice is all you need. Stick with it because it is worthwhile and you'll be so glad you did! :)

Practice is always the way to improvement. But when one can't do something, no matter why or what, they still can't. (Won't can also be used)

I know how you feel . When I started training in modern arnis I had a heck of a time . I'm a natural lefty & I was trying to learn mostly everything with my right hand . The same goes for my sayoc training . It got to the point were I thought I was just never going to get it . I was defeated even before I entered class . I stayed focused & worked hard & that frustration eventually went away . I have alot of great instructors & training partners to thank for that :asian: . Stay focused , stay relaxed & train hard . You will be fine . Have fun ! Some day you will look back & laugh .

Good luck
Frank