The importance of toughness?

[Jared Traveler]

What value do you put as a martial arts on mental toughness?

What value do you put on doing hard things?

What activities related or unrelated to martial arts do you do to develop mental toughness? To test your grit? To increase or measure you ability to be comfortable being uncomfortable?

Is this important to being a well rounded martial artist?

Should this be learned on and off the mat?

 

[windwalker099]

What value do you put as a martial arts on mental toughness?

Resolve with out emotional attachment, how I would phrase it....🤔

Tested as needed according to focus of ones practice.

In many Asian martial disciplines, this is baked into the culture usually relating Buddhist or Daoist
principles / concepts stressing being present ie "no mind". acting as needed....

Interesting reading that speaks to this.

To speak in terms of your own martial art, when you first notice the sword that is moving to strike you,

if you think of meeting that sword just as it is, your mind will stop at the sword in just that position, your own movements will be undone, and you will be cut down by your opponent. This is what stopping means.

 

[Jared Traveler]

In many Asian martial disciplines, this is baked into the culture usually relating Buddist or Daoist principles or concepts stressing being present ie "no mind". acting as needed....

Great point. I study Muay Thai in Thailand and most people don't understand how Buddhistic it is to have your face smashed by an elbow, but to maintain your composure anyway.

 

[skribs]

I think developing toughness is a natural part of martial arts training. Whether it's the toughness of being defeated in sparring and competition in more sport-focused arts, or the toughness of perfecting your technique and improving your attitude in more traditional arts, it's always there.

However, I think a lot of people gate-keep based on toughness when you start martial arts. This is something I feel is more common in the sport arts. It's something I was guilty of when I first started teaching Taekwondo. There was a post on r/bjj from someone who works in a job where he's expected to be presentable. He had just started BJJ, and had a few bruises on his face, which was making meetings awkward. Half of the comments were something along the lines of, "If you can't handle a couple of bruises, you're too soft, go do something else you ninny."

I think this is absolutely the wrong attitude. We should be encouraging people to start martial arts to help build that toughness. For many people, it's the reason they want to learn martial arts is to build confidence. For kids, that might be why their parents put them in.

When I first started teaching, I was really hard on new white belts. This was more about their attitude and etiquette than about mental toughness, but the two were related. I would go drill-sergeant mode on 7-year-old white belts, and then they would leave class crying. My Master pulled me into his office and explained to me that white belts are not just white belts in technique, but also in attitude, and I need to treat them appropriately. In this case, "appropriate" means teaching them the etiquette and respect instead of just punishing them and being stern with them for relatively innocent breaches.

I think the same is true of mental toughness. We shouldn't try and weed out those who are not mentally tough. Instead, we should treat mental toughness as a skill to develop, and help those folks build that confidence.

 

[windwalker099]

Great point. I study Muay Thai in Thailand and most people don't understand how Buddhistic it is to have your face smashed by an elbow, but to maintain your composure anyway.

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Lived, worked in Thailand for a little while...

Lots of things going on there related to Buddhistic beliefs and principles.

Funny story....

guy is in front of the local judge for shooting someone.

Judge: why did you shoot this person
guy: because we were testing one of the ritual tattoos

As some may know, tattoos, spirit houses play an important factor in Thai Society

Judge: and you shot him
guy: yes to test it,,,,But he had "sex" the night before
guy: Any fool knows it won't work if you do this. 😂

The Thais that I met, also respected CMA although as noted it never seemed
to do well in the Thai rings 🤔

 

[drop bear]

 

[Jared Traveler]

Cool video. I think the idea of you don't need to be tough, just "trained or untrained" works until it doesn't. It works to prepare for the knows, but it breaks down when you experience some of the acute or chronic unknowns. Physical and mental toughness certainly have their place in importance.

 

[Holmejr]

Do you think toughness can be cultured or are some just born with it or can it be taught in childhood. I’m actually not sure how tough I am. I’ve never been in a life or death situation. My metabolism does seem to slow down under what I would consider minor stress situations that I’ve encountered and I’ve defended myself in a couple, what I would consider minor altercations. I’ve been in the martial arts for about 4O years and have taken part in law enforcement and special forces training, so I would hope that I could effectively defend myself in a potentially life threatening situation. Toughness, well, maybe.

 

[drop bear]

Cool video. I think the idea of you don't need to be tough, just "trained or untrained" works until it doesn't. It works to prepare for the knows, but it breaks down when you experience some of the acute or chronic unknowns. Physical and mental toughness certainly have their place in importance.

Unless you have trained for that.

 

[Jared Traveler]

Unless you have trained for that.

Sure. But a truly prepared combative mindset can adjust outside of what it trained to mitigate. In those moments you find out how important mental flexibility, and adaptability is to survival. This is where martial artists break down often, because many things can only truly be experienced during life and death critical incidents.

 

[Jared Traveler]

Do you think toughness can be cultured or are some just born with it or can it be taught in childhood. I’m actually not sure how tough I am. I’ve never been in a life or death situation. My metabolism does seem to slow down under what I would consider minor stress situations that I’ve encountered and I’ve defended myself in a couple, what I would consider minor altercations. I’ve been in the martial arts for about 4O years and have taken part in law enforcement and special forces training, so I would hope that I could effectively defend myself in a potentially life threatening situation. Toughness, well, maybe.

I think childhood, world view, culture and I bias towards risk all come into play. I do think it can be learned, or rather developed.

 

[windwalker099]

I think childhood, world view, culture and I bias towards risk all come into play. I do think it can be learned, or rather developed.

Would disagree,,,,

In the military there is a saying "leaders are made not born"
Not really true in my experience. (ret E-7)

People can be exposed to situations that will allow them to understand their own limitations, perhaps allowing them to develop mitigation methods in a benign setting, or maybe not, 🤔 depending on level of interaction, expected outcomes.

Soldiers die, or be seriously injured depending on level of training from the training itself were any type of failure is not an option.

In the US Army, all high end combat MOS's / courses / are designed to expose weakness, weed out those unable to adjust or over come them.

Ends up developing what is already there, and weeding out what is not there to be developed...

This does not mean that one can not come to an understanding of ones self
different paths.

Just serve tea 🙂

 

[Darren]

What value do you put as a martial arts on mental toughness?

What value do you put on doing hard things?

What activities related or unrelated to martial arts do you do to develop mental toughness? To test your grit? To increase or measure you ability to be comfortable being uncomfortable?

Is this important to being a well rounded martial artist?

Should this be learned on and off the mat?

To live life equates to mental toughness!!

 

[Darren]

Is there anybody here familiar with Taoism?

 

[windwalker099]

Is there anybody here familiar with Taoism?

are we talking Daoism 🤔

 

[Darren]

are we talking Daoism 🤔

Is it the same? I just looked up Taoism even found it spelled that way.

 

[Darren]

Is it the same? I just looked up Taoism even found it spelled that way.

Taoism - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[windwalker099]

Taoism - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

its the same,,,did you have a question 🙂

 

[Darren]

its the same,,,did you have a question 🙂

Want to study it, please!

 

[Oily Dragon]

Want to study it, please!

Do you like to read? Only asking because it's pretty deep stuff.