I'm in a bad state with my martial arts training. I think I have just simply become lazy. Everytime training arrives, I get this bad feeling about it, and put it off. I know the martial arts spirit is alive inside me, I just need to find it again. Has anyone got any inspiriation or ANYTHING that can motivate me again? I was thinking of giving meditaion a try, to change my attitude towards training.
hey you are not alone, i too sometimes get this feeling, i ahve only just started meditation, and i find, it drives me LESS towards training and martial arts and more towards,calm and not seeking conflict. it seems i only get motivated when either in anger/in competition and/or conflict. im not sure how to get motivated into dedicated daily training, but it depends what you want your training to result in, i train for defence and ocasional competition so keeping in peak perfomance is not so much an issue as it would be if i was seeking to become an expert martial artist or winning competitor. do not force motivation to come, let it come, that spirit will never leave you. just take it easy, live a good life, when your martial arts are needed then it shall come. there is no point forcing anything unless there is true desire to do so. practice your art when you feel you want to,dont force it, spend some time reasearching the arts, i always find contemplating and reasearching martial arts histories, ones i practice and ones i do not, a great motivator but thats just me. films,music, watching others training and having a sense of awe, all great motivators. but you must always be happy and contented with yourself, train when you feel you wish too. the more you train the only real reward is, your less likely to get killed in a fight. make yourself happy just my random cofee fueled thouights that are incoherant. cheers Tommy
also before every training session, imadgine yourself pulling off the most flawless techniqw, obsess over a single technique, and in your lesson learn to master it, just steps at a time. perhgaops your lazyness is a fear of how much there is to learn, instead of simplying what there is.
Maybe have a word with your instructor about this and take a bit of a break from it. If you're bored with the class, forcing yourself to go won't help, it'll just make things worse and taking a break may revitalise your interest. We all get a bit burned out from time to time; I personally take a couple of weeks off from all training every four or five months to get some rest and heal up, and after the first week I can't wait to go back It could also be that your style or your class don't really "fit" you; it could be time to start looking at other clubs, or even looking into crosstraining. I've found crosstraining to be a great way of creating more interest in your other arts since I always find it interesting to see how they can work together
wow, yeah man its hard to stay motivated if you have no goal, do you have an ultimate goal you are trying to achive with your MA or is it just for fun?
Hey Master J, Anytime I feel tired or not motivated I go and watch athletes who are at the top of their game. It inspires me and helps me refocus. Go and watch an MA exhibition, a black belt class, attend a 'Fight Night' etc. It doesn't even have to be an MA you do. Good luck!
i got kinda burned out recently too. i kept forcing myself to go every day, and i'm pretty much back to normal now. just remember that everyone else is tired too, they would all rather stay home and chill or go out with friends or whatever instead. they still go though, so if they're going even though they feel the same as you do, and you're not, then that kind of makes you a pussy. what i'm basically trying to say is, don't be a pussy. i think that way during training too, which helps a lot. if we're working the bags or whatever and i'm slowing down and getting tired, i'll look around and see how everyone else is doing. if they're all going strong, i'll know i'm being a pussy and need to step it up. if they're slowing down too, i'll step it up anyway just to make them feel bad about themselves of course, this doesn't apply to you if you do pansy training. if that's the case, then i can't help you, because i wouldn't be very motivated in that situation either.
Skrom - What finely worded prose If you previously enjoyed your training get back into it. I find there are a bunch of slackers in our class that don't turn up for days, weeks, months due to sheer laziness or because they're sore. The longer you put it off the harder it will be to get back into it (if its good, tough training). Crosstraining as suggested could be a good idea but you should first look at why you no longer feel that excitement in your current MA.
You could for motivation to get back to class do. 01, Get a personal trainer. 02. Get other family members to join you. 03. Have a martial arts movie marathon. 04. Join an incrediblely expensive school so you are forced to go so as to at least get your monies worth. 06. Try jogging with an attack dog chasing you, until it dawns on you class would be better. 07. Properly most painful, but would definately would give motivation to get back to a martial arts class, would be to get mugged, but only as a drastic last resort. Just joking, personally doing classes with family helps, plus the "cost", so as to at least get monies worth.
Belive it or not, music helps me. There is this one song, that due to its energy, (and attachment to one of my favorite anime's), always gets me ready to train. I'm actually about to listen, stretch, and start, real soon!
the best thing you can do is ignore it and just make yourself go, chances are when you get there you'll be wondering why you felt that way in the first place, i get the feeling sometimes as well when i've had periods off of training, but i just make myself go.
Hi Master J, I got the same feeling this time. I don't know your situation, but sometime when you try to give the most of you you just get more confused . By exemple, i'm far from my main martial art (capoeira) for 4 month this summer because I got to work far from all school. I tried to pratice alone, just to don't lose the pace, keep the basic movement good...and more time go, less I want to continue. What I want to explain by this situation is, when you don't have a big goal, or you're not knowing where you go, motivation will flow every here and there...and will be lost. I don't know you're situation now, but for me, the lack of goals, a reason why i'm kicking myself out each morning to train, were my Waterloo... so think about it, even if you're goal isn't realistic, I don't care, for god sake go for it, who know, maybe you will get it. Hope it help a little
I found my training was a series of hills and valleys with respect to keeping my enthusiasm. I would go through extended periods when I felt I was making no progress and then something would click, maye a technique that I had been unable to perform properly or a part of a kata fell into place, and I would feel my enthusiasm grow. Be patient with yourself and practice even when you don't feel like it. It will pay off over the long term.
I was feeling the same way and thats what I did. I haven't been this excied and motivated in years. Not even while training for my BB exam. I'm having fun again. I doesn't feel like work or tedious anymore. There is nothing more liberating than putting on a whitebelt again. It has brought back that old childlike enthusiasm and reckless abandon to my training that I lost. Its a lot different starting a new art when you have trained in another compared to starting from scratch. Its a lot less confusing. Make a change. Do it. You won't be sorry.
Make sure you arrange to go to the pub afterwards. Whenever I feel like I can't be bothered to go training, I remember that at least I'm looking forward to the pub afterwards, and if I don't do the training, I won't have earned the pub!
moosey has definetly given the most desireable plan of action, but seriously mate take a break from it all and think to yourself why you started MA and what you wanted to acheive from it, this should give you all the motivation you need.
