Re: Is fitness the ultimate key?
Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2016 10:42 pm
Who would not want to be a little more fitter? By its very definition it is about having more of a good characteristic regardless of whether it relates to physical (run, mobility, lift weight, ...), mental (memory, problem solving, ...) or emotional (calm, energetic, in tune with others, ...). If not, why?
In martial arts it is key? In sports fitness it is vital. In urban self defense not as much but it does not hurt to have more of it.
Why in sports vs urban self defense? Because most real fights dont tend to last long. People pour everything into it when they believe they are in real danger. Oxygen burns quickly and systems go into overload. It's been proven that peoples perception of time slows down. Here it's about being aware of how to remove the danger and end the threat quickly. This relies heavily on applying the right tactics/moves at the right time.
In a sports situation its not the same. A few minutes where you have ref who will stop things or a buddy who will hold back if you concede means it's just a game. In sparring I usually dont care about messing around, trying out things, making mistakes on purpose to learn especially when I have another 5-10 other sparring partners to get through. Here fitness is key and if you have a good base level of it then time passes pretty quickly between rounds. Even in tournaments things just happen fast.
But what is more important than fitness is what enables it. This is awareness, understanding and discipline. Awareness & understanding leads to the right choice of where to apply focus and discipline to improve on fitness and coordination. Without the coordination (of the bows), without the repetition to take it to a "song" habit of motion, without connection from the hand to the core and similarly to the legs then it's not ima. Then without taking all this and knowing how to apply it for the right level of efficiency against another human being in a competitive situation it is also not ima - its just another type of yoga or a health dance.
In martial arts it is key? In sports fitness it is vital. In urban self defense not as much but it does not hurt to have more of it.
Why in sports vs urban self defense? Because most real fights dont tend to last long. People pour everything into it when they believe they are in real danger. Oxygen burns quickly and systems go into overload. It's been proven that peoples perception of time slows down. Here it's about being aware of how to remove the danger and end the threat quickly. This relies heavily on applying the right tactics/moves at the right time.
In a sports situation its not the same. A few minutes where you have ref who will stop things or a buddy who will hold back if you concede means it's just a game. In sparring I usually dont care about messing around, trying out things, making mistakes on purpose to learn especially when I have another 5-10 other sparring partners to get through. Here fitness is key and if you have a good base level of it then time passes pretty quickly between rounds. Even in tournaments things just happen fast.
But what is more important than fitness is what enables it. This is awareness, understanding and discipline. Awareness & understanding leads to the right choice of where to apply focus and discipline to improve on fitness and coordination. Without the coordination (of the bows), without the repetition to take it to a "song" habit of motion, without connection from the hand to the core and similarly to the legs then it's not ima. Then without taking all this and knowing how to apply it for the right level of efficiency against another human being in a competitive situation it is also not ima - its just another type of yoga or a health dance.