Stepping down but keeping 'real' skills

Hi All,

I currently do some kickboxing and BJJ, and compete in a couple of disciplines. But I'm 43 and have picked up a couple of injuries recently, so a desire to make sure I am still healthy as I get older (and frankly some domestic pressure ) mean that I can see a point where I need to do something differently.

I'd still like to keep some kind of martial arts training going, and retain some usable skills. My philosophy has been very much that pressure tested arts are the way to go in terms of developing effective skills, but those are where the wear and tear comes from.

Anybody else gone through this, and if so what do you do now?

Thanks

 

Aside from "train smarter not harder" (a lesson I wish i had told young me) have you considered a discipline like FMA? It builds on your pre-existing skills and adds a weaponry dimension but the pacing tends to be less "intense"

 

Anyone who does combat sports has to stop at some point. They aren't designed for longevity. Sure, there are some examples of people who have adapted and prolonged their training, but for most of us we have to adapt and slow down as we get on.

Sparring is essential for developing fighting ability and it is a perishable skill. That said, I honestly don't think you forget how to fight because you stop sparring. Sure you lose fitness and sharpness, but muscle memory stays with you a long time. Here is one example:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukn...bruised-and-bleeding-by-retired-boxer-72.html

I'm guessing that gent hadn't sparred in quite some time.

There is no reason you can't hang a punchbag at home (if you have room) and still do fitness work with kickboxing if you need to. Not the same as sparring, but I think that it will help keep you sufficiently sharp.

I also learned from BJJ that variable sparring is good. Slow rolling, positional sparring etc... you need good training partners though.

If you have friends from your kickboxing class and a bit of room at home, why not get them round for a sparring session that you set the rules to? Keep it playful, as the Gracies say.

 

You can always tailor the intensity too - Guro Dan still moves like water, but doesn't hard spar or mix it up anymore, but his skills remain intact

Here he is throwing on the pads with Silva

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-WHBvpb7xg"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-WHBvpb7xg[/ame]

 

Guru Dan is an outstanding example to any MA-ers who say "I am too old."

 

slow down sounds great, in order to keep longevity. i'm hoping i can continue doing bjj the rest of my life. i'm 44 now. granted there are going to be things out of my control, i'm sure. barring physical setbacks, it's my dream to be helio's age and to still be able to get on the mat. and who knows, with the amount of men and women that do bjj now, maybe someday ibjjf will add a "master 10" division.

 

Gio,

There is a very capable lady that I know from TaiJiQuan who also has done BJJ for something like 20 years - and she is 65. She does complain of the odd tweak on her elbow.

 

lol embra. i complain about the odd tweak almost every session.

 

As best as I understand, the trick is to start using your body - martially - more effectively as the years trot by. This means sometimes using a bit less - but more effectively through feeling, touch and position - as well as better non transmission of intent - rather than strength and power.

I have never tried BJJ, but I roll around more than anyone I know - even at 56, so I reckon I could give it a shot. Heck, last year I had a pop at Capoeira - though that almost killed me.

Some TaiJiQuan develops this quite a bit - but 95% of TaiJIQuan around is as martial as a marshmallow.

Sally goes into BJJ competitions sometimes (I do not think for a few years now) and does 3 BJJ sessions a week.

 

Train wisely accept your limitations ..

try to turn off that part of your brain that says you are still a 24 year old banging on the mats with all the other youngsters .

It takes longer to recover at this stage , oongoing injuries do limit ones repetoire after a while accept it , train slow and clever , watch how the older ones train in your classes ...

Keep on training ....

Smurf

 

I think it's a good idea to study how the body moves as the older anyone gets the more everything needs to be based on fundamental movement. The best information for this is often outside of martial arts and to be found in the most up to date physiological and sport physiological areas of science. When some of this stuff is known and studied it's easier to look at what some claim is a good way to move or will be useful in an emergency and go "no way Mr"....no matter who they are or their qualifications in martial arts.

Also real situations are mega intense and all out and anaerobic and chaotic so it would be good to not slow down....but go short duration, high intense ...not caring what you look like...repetative,solid basics. An ability to ,once you get hold...knee the living hell of someone ...or continuously strike someone until it's over ,....for example, would be better for real world than say, throwing half **** ,good looking jabs.....if a person wants to just do less trAining but keep it real of course.
A whole package of low intense plus high intense is great for a person training more. I'm not knocking low intense ,technical work in that situation.

 

I have most definitely learnt to live with my limitations - but I have developed a few tricks that no-one has explicitly 'shown me' e.g. if blocked when striking, swap hands immediately - to keep the trap on their arms with the other arm - thus no surrender of position, and use the original arm to swing down low very, very fast to 'tickle' their groin.

I am not sure where this type of stuff came from, but if I had stayed with 1 system and not studied fundamental movements, weight-changes, postures, alignment, co-ordination and timing; along with an open mind to techniques, principles, combination attacks/counters/defences, mobility/strategies/tactics and weaponry; I would pretty much be a decrepit pile of old bones.

For me, this comes out in TaiJiQuan more than anywhere else - in every application - armed or unarmed, boxing drills, pushing hands and neigong repetition, I always find some new aspect to think about. Other arts have it as well, but usually not quite so fundamentally.

 

Just wait for another 25 years before you are qualified to say, "I'm old". I ran my 1st marathon when I was 40.

If you think that you are not young enough to develop any new skill, or even if you can still develop new skill but you may not be young enough to test it, you will need to maintain your old skill as much as you can.

If you have training partner, you can always work on your partner drills. When you are along by yourself without training partner, you can always

- "enhance" your old skill by working on the heavy bag, dummy, and equipment.
- "polish" your old skill by training your solo drills as partner drills without partner.

Here is an example to use equipment training to "enhance" your old skill.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYNAw4t_gPw"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYNAw4t_gPw[/ame]

Here is an example to use solo drills (partner drills without partner) to "polish" your old skill .

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJlUYIhb458"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJlUYIhb458[/ame]

 

There are people around that don't rely on speed and power to defend yourself, probably not easy to find, since it is not mc dojo money maker, the ones I have met are not interested in making money, only passing on the arts, good luck.

 

I would not call strength training a skill, but body connection training would be a skill.

 

http://www.jiujitsubrotherhood.com/2013/11/8-tips-for-grappling-after-30/


A good relevant link found by an old student of mine !!

 

How much non martial arts strength and mobility training do you do?

 

Guru Dan STARTED Muay Thai at 43

 

Really so you think someone who is a full time martial artist, who can train how and when he likes with who he likes is a good example for someone who has a full time job which they have to fit there injuries and training around, who has to train at what ever gym is closest which normally means with a bunch of 20year olds looking to spar hard and getting ready for fights?
I admire the guy but to use him as an example for people In a totally different world to him seems silly
The reality is for the 99% of us who aren't Dan as we get older we cant do what we used to, physically we aren't in a position and often family and finance wise we aren't either. Cost to benefit analysis's change as you get older