Light heavyweight, here we come!
One of the things I like about where I do my fitness and martial arts training, is that as well as what we do there, is that there is a lot of variety. Yes you might do the same specific things from time to time and there are some regular classics like pushups and situps etc. But, there is generally always something new just to throw you a curve ball. Consequently, while I have been there I have tried doing things that I would not have otherwise and certainly not thought I would have been capable of doing.
For example, a week or two back, I climbed up a rope from floor to ceiling. First time ever and definitely a big achievement for me. I even went back and did it a few times just to prove to myself that it wasn't a fluke. This week I did some 1 handed chin ups. Got the shock of my life when I could do it. Again there were several trips back to the chin up bar during the session, so along with my surprise came the satisfaction that it was something that I was genuinely capable of doing. No need to make a big deal about it at the time as there were plenty of people there attempting the same thing and cheering on those who were successful and encouraging those who were busting a gut alongside. There's nothing like that genuine sense of encouragement you get even as an individual, part of a group of individuals striving for the same goals. A good indicator of a healthy supportive culture.
This leads me back to a topic I wrote on a few weeks back in my post "The Good Training Partner". I am pleased to report that this important aspect of martial arts training is something that I am continuing to work on developing in myself. The ability to know when to give and take in training situations. When to soak up knowledge and when to contribute to the development of others, even if that means just being a body to practice on.
To that end, I found a great video recently by a famous martial artist name Ryron Gracie. I really like the concept of keeping things playful when you are practicing. Putting yourself in bad positions for the betterment of your training partner. Letting them try out more dominant positions and learn how to execute finishing moves, or even trying to help to discover them. The added benefit for you of course is that you are preparing yourself for defending those tougher situations that no one really likes to be in. That in of itself can put you one step ahead of your opposition in situations that are real or just in competition. The main point that I enjoy is helping others to help themselves. It's an added bonus that you develop at the same time.
A few weeks back, I was watching one of the guys I train with practice grappling (called 'rolling') with someone else. He is more experienced and his fitness was winning out in the situation over above anything else. I saw several opportunities where he could have ended the friendly competition with a choke, but, he didn't. When I asked him quietly afterwards why he didn't take the opportunity when it presented he replied 'I just like to see where things go'. The implication being that there was no ego involved, no need to win or prove any points. He was there to learn and at the same time be an instrument of learning. I too learned a lot that night from that one simple expression and the underlying attitude it represented.
Below is the video that I mentioned. It's worth a look and gives some very useful insights on the topic of being a good training partner.
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