Wasting Time

Do you ever get the feeling that you are wasting your time with your chosen martial art? That feeling that you are not getting any better and what's the point?
Due to health or fitness or mindset reasons

discuss

 

Go try a different art

(depends on the timespan you are talking about. Sometimes there are "plateaus" where you get nowhere but maybe feel worse. They pass)

 

If you just spar/wrestle 15 rounds daily, you should not care about what style that you are training.

 

No

 

I find times like this are like classes where I feel clueless and just don't get it. I've since discovered that's when I'm really learning, when its all good and you Get everything you are just repeating stuff you already know.

If you keep going, you'll see a huge leap forward very soon.

 

I shall keep it up, I want to get better, sometimes one has to realise his limitations.

 

I tend to blame myself if I'm not getting any better. Most systems should be able to improve your current self, so I look inward in times of doubt.

 

Yep, I hear ya.

 

Have you considered cross training?

 

Get yourself to Tristar for a bit of inspiration. My teachers been up there on the weekends, not sure if its open mat or not but there is some good training going on.

 

Every once in a while I get annoyed, discouraged, disheartened, and you know what I do? I toss myself back in the class and keep on training because I know this is going to happen and I know it won't last.

 

I have studied arts over the years and questioned the effectiveness of techniques or thought there is a more economical way of achieving the same goal that is why I have studied quite a few arts over the years, dont get me wrong, I have enjoyed the experience of different styles but over the last 10 years have found styles which suit me better due to age and physical limitations due to bad joints etc and have moulded me in the martial artist which I now am if that makes sense.

 

I think you have something there Oldtimer, serious thunking required. I have tried traditional forms of martial arts and as much as I enjoy watching them I do not really enjoy doing them. quandary!

 

Hey slick,

When you're in it for the long haul, you'll have got used to some platues. And motivation can come and go in like waves. But there will come times when platues last longer than you've been used to. There may be other contributory factors and sometimes these may cause you to fall back a bit from where you were eg. injury, or heavy work or family/relationship commitments etc.

Cross training and integrating can really help or give new impetus to a tma cirriculum, but I think there comes a stage for everybody where improvement gains offer a diminishing return. But these small improvements or changes can still make a real difference.

A lot of times now I'm quite happy to seek to maintain a certain level, as generally speaking I'm fairly happy and comfortable with where I've got to in MA. There's still stuff I want to do and improve. Eg. It's been ages since a did a good run of bjj classes for example and I know I've regressed from where I was and want to get that level and sharpness back. (not that I was any great shakes at it).

When mentally we don't chase improvements but treat them like a nice bonus, things may get easier.

For many of us this stuff is a hobby, so it will be difficult to maintain a high standard over the long haul. The trick is not let it bother you too much. the big thing is to enjoy your training, if that's not happening then that's where you need to change things up. first and foremost do stuff you enjoy doing and that jive with your outlook and goals. I seem to recall you were going to try some MT, I don't know how that went, but maybe give sub grappling a go eg. bjj. try new stuff if you feel other things getting a bit stale for you.

Good luck finding your groove.

 

I've been at this over 20 years now. I have the occasional off day. Sometimes progress seems to crawl. But when I look around the only person to blame is myself. Keep working, shake things up, change your regimen.

 

Adversity, difficulty, doubt, self doubt, etc etc... these are all good things, without them you have no obstacles to overcome and develop yourself.

 

That's not much to go on, honestly. There's a lot of stuff under the surface of that statement, and it's hard to know how to proceed without examining it a bit more. It could be that this is just one of those plateaus you need to work through. It could be that you need to consider crosstraining or even switching styles or schools wholesale. It could even be that martial arts have become something you feel you ought to love more than you actually do (which would be fine too).

At various times, I've found myself questioning each of these possibilities. And sometimes the solution is to reevaluate what you actually want from practicing. I started fretting about not being a combat monster. That there were tougher guys out there than me. And you know what? There are. Plenty of them. And that's never going to change. Between my age, my family, my non-competitive demeanour, and various other factors, I'm simply never going to be that great a fighter. So, I could frustrate myself with my inability and/or disinclination to embrace BJJ or RBSD. Or I could come to terms with the fact that I'm simply more interested in being a hobbyist, practicing when I can out of interest in the culture and technique.

I'm not going to be Jason Bourne. And that's fine. I'm happier training according to what I want to do versus what I thought I ought to do.


Stuart

 

Here are some possibilities that you can do if you don't feel the motivation to keep training:

1) Teach or train with someone who a lower level than you.

-This could help you understand aspects of something that you thought you knew but explaining it out loud makes you really think about what you are doing.

2) Train with someone with a higher lever than you

-They can teach you things or practice with you things you already know but give you some depth and application to what you already know.

3) DO THE SPLITS!

-It's something to do in the mean time.

4) Don't do one thing for too long

-This is something that I learned when I was in Orchestra (wtf? talking about a sissy art here? BASH TIME!)

-If you are not feeling that you are just not achieving something at one point, do something else completely to get your mind off it for a small bit and you can do something that is related to your art or just something that isn't related at all

---I am not saying to just quit your art and do something else. Do something that can take your mind off of it for a little while and then come back to it with a new clean mind. And I don't mean take your mind off of it for a few days but that is up to you. You should always practice some aspect of your art every day.

Here's my weird example (a small portrait of my life):
So, when I get frustrate with studying and can't retain any knowledge, I'll do any one of these things:
-Karate Katas
-Violin or Viola playing around
-League of Legends (1 game)
-Take a Walk
-Work (I can go to work any time but I don't know how you do that for yourself)
-Clean the house
-Punching bag

And if I get frustrated with any of those things, I can do something else. But of course it all depends of what you can and can't do. I'm just giving an example. Don't know if any of this can work out for anyone else. But after you have cleared your mind of previous frustrations, go back to what was frustrating you and look at it with a clean mind.

 

wow, so many replies. Thankyou one and all. my instructor is an ex world champion kickboxer, he is a fantastic teacher who knows when to push and when to ease off etc. I am improving slowly but will I ever be that good or am I just kidding myself? I love mauy thai, my hips do not. do I continue to improve slightly but know I will never be able to achieve what I wand due to shonky hips? Maybe I am expecting too much from myself and that is frustrating me and in turn putting doubt in my mind. I am not just going to up and quit, the instruction I am receiving is first class. more stretching eh

 

Is there something medically wrong with your hip joints? Or you just not so flexible yet?