problems with martial arts

Posted by: swordbreaker

problems with martial arts - 01/30/06 07:23 PM

hi guys, i'm picky about my martial arts. i dont want anything too fancy, and not too confusing so i chose aikido. but thats not the problem. In the past few years i have taken various martial arts.. listing in order: Wushu, Taekwondo/Hapkido, and the Ninjutsu. I quit all of them in less than one month (except hapkido i did for 1 and half months). The problem is that I quit too soon, even though i'm interested, my spark goes out when i take it. I dont know why, but for some reason its either the teaching style or the martial arts i dont like. what do you guys think? Any motivations to help push me along? Don't say "just quit " plz =P thanks
Posted by: able

Re: problems with martial arts - 01/30/06 10:21 PM

hi
I found that when I was in Goju the school fit me just right and I just kept going to black belt level, Now I am in Kenpo ( half way there) and sometimes I find myself comparing. What I did and still do is rather that take off in a burstis find a style I like and then go slowly as if I were going to do it for life. The goal is not the belt or rank. To me the goal is to study an art I respect and enjoy. Do some reading , books etc, to see what fits you. After you are educated. sign up and commit. You will find the committment makes the art.
Good Luck
Craig
Posted by: eyrie

Re: problems with martial arts - 01/30/06 10:39 PM

Nope, you're not picky... Your behaviour is pretty typical of the average wannabee martial arts student. They all get interested and all when they first join up, but after a while, they discover that it just doesn't happen overnite.

They realize quite early, that it actually takes hard work and self-discipline to turn up regularly to training and actually do the work required. Once they figure that out, the initial fire quickly fizzles out.

Then a couple of months or years later, they decide they want to come back to the martial arts. But given their previous "bad experience" which they attribute to "sub-standard" teaching, they join a different martial art for a while. And then the cycle repeats itself.

What else do you want me to say? That you are a lazy fool that wants instant abilities without putting in the effort to develop it? Well, you are. You have no staying power. You lack self-discipline. You will never amount to anything in life. You are a failure, before you even start. What you need to do is to pay me lots of $$$ to give you a regular kick in the a$$.

Because a fool and his money are soon parted.
Posted by: butterfly

Re: problems with martial arts - 01/30/06 11:27 PM

WOW! Sometimes I dig candor!
Posted by: Ed_Morris

Re: problems with martial arts - 01/31/06 12:30 AM

lol. daaaaamn.
Posted by: BrianS

Re: problems with martial arts - 01/31/06 02:30 AM

Quote:

Nope, you're not picky... Your behaviour is pretty typical of the average wannabee martial arts student. They all get interested and all when they first join up, but after a while, they discover that it just doesn't happen overnite.

They realize quite early, that it actually takes hard work and self-discipline to turn up regularly to training and actually do the work required. Once they figure that out, the initial fire quickly fizzles out.

Then a couple of months or years later, they decide they want to come back to the martial arts. But given their previous "bad experience" which they attribute to "sub-standard" teaching, they join a different martial art for a while. And then the cycle repeats itself.

What else do you want me to say? That you are a lazy fool that wants instant abilities without putting in the effort to develop it? Well, you are. You have no staying power. You lack self-discipline. You will never amount to anything in life. You are a failure, before you even start. What you need to do is to pay me lots of $$$ to give you a regular kick in the a$$.

Because a fool and his money are soon parted.



This is my favorite post ever,and it's so true!!
Posted by: Leonine

Re: problems with martial arts - 01/31/06 11:20 AM

That was a sweet post...but onto my answer; You really need to sit down and think about what it is you're looking for. Are you interested in martial arts because you like martial arts movies, because you want to "get fit", to defend yourself, your own enjoyment, etc, etc. You also have to ask yourself honestly if you have the patience for it, as it takes awhile and a lot of hard work to "get good", and you have to make peace with the fact that there is no mastering it. Whether or not you desire a black belt can be another problem, I've seen people quit because they just didn't get it as fast as they wanted.

From the sounds of it, it seems like you're looking for an art that appeals to you, but you're not particularily patient. You should really give a style at least like 6 months to see if you like it. In a month you'll be introduced to only the basics of what they offer.
Posted by: MattJ

Re: problems with martial arts - 01/31/06 02:39 PM

*stealthily swaps Eyrie's regular coffee for decaf*

Swordbreaker -

Eyrie's sentiments, while harsh, have a ring of truth to them. Few things in life are going to go easy for you. If you want to accomplish things, you must be willing to put in the work when necessary.

Many of the experienced practitioners here, while they enjoy practice, do not do it for "fun". It is more like a life style or an ongoing education. If you are struggling to find motivation to practice, you need to ask yourself "Why do I want to learn martial arts?"

If you are doing it to be cool or learn neat tricks, you will find yourself running out of inspiration quickly.
Posted by: eyrie

Re: problems with martial arts - 01/31/06 03:32 PM

Don't you dare switch my coffee! I like it black and strong!

Was I being harsh?

It's like driving along a highway (of life?) and falling asleep at the wheel. Occasionally, you run off the road into the shoulder. This is life's way of tapping you gently on the shoulder, saying "Hey, wake up".

So you wake up momentarily, and then sometime later, you start to fall asleep again... then WHAMMO! Head on collision...

Sometimes, it needs to be a severe shock to the system.
Posted by: oldman

Re: problems with martial arts - 01/31/06 04:06 PM

Quote:

i dont want anything too fancy, and not too confusing so i chose aikido.



Thats kind of like being in college and saying "I was looking for a class that would be fun and easy so I signed up for Quantum Mechanics".
Posted by: RockHard Huy

Re: problems with martial arts - 02/04/06 07:09 PM


( just wanted to use the gif )
Posted by: Prizewriter

Re: problems with martial arts - 02/05/06 06:48 AM

Have to agree with what has been said here.

Martial arts are like anything, you have to have a goals. You have to have something you want to achieve through doing them. You have to say "I want improve my fitness" or " I want to become compotent at self defense" or " I seek personal development" "I want to get my black belt at said art". Everyone needs a goal.

Too many people go to martial arts without this. They want everything done for them. They just don't want the answers, they want the questions too.

Figure out why you want to do martial arts. Be honest with yourself.
Posted by: Trefathell

Re: problems with martial arts - 02/05/06 12:00 PM

Quote:

hi guys, i'm picky about my martial arts. i dont want anything too fancy, and not too confusing so i chose aikido. but thats not the problem. In the past few years i have taken various martial arts.. listing in order: Wushu, Taekwondo/Hapkido, and the Ninjutsu. I quit all of them in less than one month (except hapkido i did for 1 and half months). The problem is that I quit too soon, even though i'm interested, my spark goes out when i take it. I dont know why, but for some reason its either the teaching style or the martial arts i dont like. what do you guys think? Any motivations to help push me along? Don't say "just quit " plz =P thanks



Swordbreaker, WHY do you want to do the martial arts?
Give me a profile, a bullet-pointed list of exactly what you are looking for and then perhaps people can give you the directions you need. You obviously have enough about yourself to post this as an enquiry.

Trefathell