A Question Regarding Training

[evenflow1121]

I feel I ve been on martial talk for some time and have made some really good friends, so I have decided to open a bit of myself up to you all. I have decided to quit my gym and go back to training. However, here are my biggest ordeals. First, there are no Kenpo Schools around the area I live that I would like to go to, second, I am looking for a school or art that not only relieves my physical stress but my mental stress as well. When I get home that last thing I like to do is bring my work with me, but my job is so stressful that I can not help but bring most if not all the aspects of my job home. This obviously causes a major problem in my life, not only for myself but for my girl friend as well. So how do you deal with mental stress, do you find the art you practice helps relieve you from the trials of everyday work, where you can simply come home and relax and not have to worry about the following day? Oh and yeah I have submitted resumes and am interviewing for a job in a different firm. Thanks in advance.

 

[Kwan Jang]

For our ancestors, when they faced a stressful situation, the adrenal stress reponse/fight or flight served them to either stay and fight that sabre-toothed tiger or run away (possibly pushing the other guy who did not make it back into the gene pool towards the predator to get a better head start). Today, when faced with a stressful situation, whether it's an irrate customer or difficult supervisor in your face, we are expected to smile and take it. The problem is that physiologically, we haven't changed that much and our bodies still have to deal with that internal "storm".

Any type of strenuous, intense physical training will help relieve the physical results of that stress build up. Any type of training that involves heavy/hard contact will enhance this effect even further. This can be (for the purposes you've asked about) just as effectively done on a pad or bag as on your training partners (even though you've inherited the tendency to replicate the actions of your ancestor on "poor old G'nort). For stress relief, style makes a lot less difference than intensity and contact. Also, even the opposite approach in Soft system slike Tai Chi Chuan have proven very effective as well.

 

[MJS]

I feel I ve been on martial talk for some time and have made some really good friends, so I have decided to open a bit of myself up to you all. I have decided to quit my gym and go back to training. However, here are my biggest ordeals. First, there are no Kenpo Schools around the area I live that I would like to go to, second, I am looking for a school or art that not only relieves my physical stress but my mental stress as well. When I get home that last thing I like to do is bring my work with me, but my job is so stressful that I can not help but bring most if not all the aspects of my job home. This obviously causes a major problem in my life, not only for myself but for my girl friend as well. So how do you deal with mental stress, do you find the art you practice helps relieve you from the trials of everyday work, where you can simply come home and relax and not have to worry about the following day? Oh and yeah I have submitted resumes and am interviewing for a job in a different firm. Thanks in advance.

As much as we don't want to bring our jobs home with us, I've always felt that its good to talk, rather than keep things in. I shouldn't be the focal point of the entire night, but like I said, its good to talk.

As for the schools, I'm not sure how close you are to these, but here are a few suggestions.

www.akki.com

www.chinesekaratefederation.com

http://www.lwkarate.com/

http://www.tracyskarate.com/

 

[jdinca]

Training definitely helps me with stress. I can remember a number of times that I walked into the school wound tight as a drum. Two hours later, I sit back and go "ahhhhh". It has pretty much done for me what SCUBA diving used to do. You're forced to focus on what you're doing at the time, so everything else gets put aside. Being forced to think about something other than what is stressing you out can be a good thing.

MJS is right, you need someone talk to. I used to bring my job home and yet I wouldn't talk about it. I know for a fact that it negatively impacted several relationships.

 

[Kacey]

Training has always helped me - both the physical exertion, and the need to set aside the concerns of the day to concentrate on what I was doing. I have also always had a sahbum and fellow students I could talk to before or after class, to help in that "setting aside" process. As with anything else, the choice of the correct MA for you may be based more on the feel of the class, the style of the instructor, etc., than on the MA itself.

From personal experience, if you want something that will truly reduce your stress, you might consider yoga, at least as an additional activity, if you can find a good class - it worked really well for me when I had the time to do both youga and TKD - my experience with it was in a very low-stress environment, with people who were quietly intent on improving themselves compared to themselves, not others, which lowered the stress level, and always ended with several minutes in pravasana (sp? - corpse pose, which isn't encouraging until you do it) in which you lay on your back in a dimmed room and consciously relax everything in response to the instructor's direction. It did wonders for my flexibility too.

Good luck finding the right fit for yourself!

 

[bluemtn]

Training really helps with me when I get stressed, even though I don't have job related stress anymore- thankfully! But, life does like to throw me a curve ball every once in awhile, and TKD really helps. Stress relief either comes in bag work, forms, self- defense, or all of the above. It also helps with getting "keyed- up" (not stress-related) and mental- boredom.

 

[still learning]

Hello, Have you tried JUDO? The physcial contacts gives you a great workout, and is a great martial art to learn!

Need newer skills and development in your training? JUDO will give this!

Ed parker kempo came from: Kajukenpo....which has JUDO.

This will help you improve your ground skills,throwing skills,takedowns skills,grappling skills and choking skills. MUST TRY IT to know this.......

Learning new skills and other martial arts...sometimes add a new renewal in learning more........

Stress sometimes come from bordom....excit yourself with? ....JUDO!

By the way the workouts...you will feel good when you get home! ......Aloha