Where To Draw the Line

[drop bear114 53]

One of the realizations I have made is that hobbies are a sign of privilege.

Some people dedicate themselves to board games like Chess and Go.

Some people dedicate themselves to hitting a ball back and forth like tennis and Ping Pong.

Some people dedicate themselves to weapons that we no longer use in modern society, such as those found in HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts) or Kenjutsu.

Despite all this, so many people have lifelong pursuits towards activities that do not solve world peace or world hunger. It doesn't explicitly make the world a better place.

Many humans are so well off that they can afford to do activities that are unrelated to survival.

There exist tribes where the word "exercise" does not exist in their language because physical activity is naturally woven into everyday life. The idea of dedicating a period of time to waste your energy by moving around is foreign to them. Yet humans are so well off that in most societies, the word "exercise" exists as a concept. But to hunters and gatherers, this is a foreign concept. In their life, running on a treadmill probably sounds like a waste of energy.

There are so many hobbies (not related to martial arts) where I think: "Wow! That seems like a waste of time." Yet, people do them.

 

[Fungus104 2]

I'm the old good looking one.

Indeed I sometimes get confused between the two of you

I got first confused by your confusion, but now I get it. It had nothing todo with those shrooms that evoked the sparrows.

I'm sure isshinryuronin is better looking, also I am just an intrigued beginner! where isshinryuronin is an experienced expert in comparasion.

A wild guess is that the origin of the confusion, is that I may often ask questions that can be considered not associated to the beginner, but it's because I'm miswired - can't help it. If a fist seems to be nothing more than just a fist, my brain tells me I am likely missing somthing. There is always something more behind everything, and it's where my focus is.

 

[Prince_Alarming114 144]

*sigh*
At least it's not a sheep joke...

 

[Marsha Larts]

Never had that experience. That's why I'm interested to hear your experience in more detail.

What attack did you do?

- A punch to the face,
- A kick to the groin?
- A sweep to the leg?
- A squeeze to the body?
- ...

It doesn't work like that.

The #1 rule of boxing; "Protect yourself at all times"

The #1 'rule' of taiji boxing (paraphrased): "If the opponent doesn't move, I don't move - if he moves a little, I move first"

I didn't need to be convinced. Taiji was something I wanted as soon as I felt it.

The first five training sessions were Horse Stance Chi Kung, and then more work got piled on for the next couple of weeks until I had enough to keep me busy for the next year. I'd had shin splints from training too hard as a kid, and the following morning after each of those Hose Stance training sessions had my whole body feeling like it was one big shin splint for the first couple of hours.

That solo work involves the examining and understanding the first rule of taiji boxing. Its internal method builds a different kind of body than the one I was used to.

 

[Anarax]

You've made some interesting points. I believe the reasons why someone starts training varies, but it's more dynamic than static. For those who started training early, they were probably intrigued by the more physical aspects of it(beating people up, breaking boards, etc), or forced by their parents to train. However, I believe that many of our reason(s) change as we continue to train and mature. The training becomes as mentally beneficial than it does physical. We learn life lessons through drilling, sparring and training with others. The spiritual aspects of growing through training setbacks and learning to overcome obstacles is another crucial benefit to training.

That's not to say you're incorrect in your assessment of impractical techniques being taught in TMA, but I believe that's more the failing of the teacher/system, rather than the spiritual/mental aspects diluting the combative application of the art. The spiritual and mental benefits of martial arts can be found in both TMA or combat arts(kickboxing, boxing, bjj, etc). It comes down to the individual instructor, not necessarily the style. Some of the most beneficial life advice I got was from my kickboxing instructor.

The teacher will draw line which will shape the training culture of their gym, the students will then decide if that culture is for them or not.