Last week, I had a question about one of the kata we were practicing, about how all of the techniques broke down in making it a whole. I was wondering, why I, as the attacker would feign a kick to keep my balance when it didn't seem like my body would want to respond that way to the strike from the defender.
Keith showed me why it was so, masterfully toning it down by using an open handed strike to my arm. I was able to understand after that. I saw, and felt, how with enough force, my body would want to do that. In this instance, pain was a good teacher. The pain was part of the feedback I needed to understand the technique. Also, it let me know that that was the only one I wanted coming in with that much force behind it.
Obviously, I'm not advocating full-force training, as it would be dangerous and end up doing more harm than good. sometimes, though, there needs to be enough force behind a technique that we can feel it. Sometimes you have to feel it to truly understand how a technique should go, in a perfect situation. Once you have that understanding of the technique, then you can begin playing with the ways it might go.
Either way, you need to develop good ukemi and not cheat your training partner. Don't be afraid of the discomfort from training, as there will always be some, and know that through it, you can develop.
Also, you should be in tune with your body. The discomfort you get back from your conditioning is a good indicator of where you are currently. I know, as I mentioned a couple posts ago, that my conditioning is not where it once was, and I am dealing with the associated soreness from working back to that. That's normal, it is when that it crosses over to pain that you need to listen to your body.
Pain can also teach you when you need to slow down. "Don't be a hero." This is where you need to know yourself in your own training. You can't walk the Lonely Path if you are too broken to keep walking.
Happy Training!
No comments:
Post a Comment