All Apologies for The Slog
Hi,
I want to extend my apologies to people who have been following the pages and accounts of Martial Paths for my absence over the last 3 months.
A few things have come up and had to be dealt with. Mainly, I basically tripled my training regimen over March and April to get ready for a grading for my 3rd degree black belt in Jiu-Jitsu at the end of April.
Dealing with Injury
Of course, with 2 weeks left before the test, I suffered a torn ACL, according to the MRI.
Then I had to decide between pushing through the injury and go for the grading and delaying everything by at least a year because of possible reconstructive knee surgery. I took the risk and did the grading.
Thank You
If I hadn’t memorized the Snow Tiger Jiu-Jitsu curriculum nearly a decade ago, I would not be a 3rd degree black belt in Jiu-Jitsu now and I want to thank Sensei Lynn Dafoe of Elite Martial Arts Centre and Sensei Robert Walther for showing me The Way on that Path.
https://www.facebook.com/Elite-Martial-Arts-Centre-105674256183333/
http://www.snowtigermartialarts.com/
Kid’s Initiative Program
Also, since April I’ve had to jam-pack lessons and accelerate testing for the Kid’s Initiative Program at the schools I teach in because of a few cancellations in February.
http://www.martialpaths.ca/kids-initiative-program/
Rain, Rain, Go Away
The rainy weather in South-Eastern Ontario is enough to test anyone’s cheerfulness. It’s now June and the grass has been growing unadulterated for weeks. I’m pretty sure I can hear it laughing at me in the middle of the night.
Embrace The Slog
So, really, the theme of this spring season has been “Slogging.”
But what can we do but buckle-down; pull-your-socks-up; furrow-your-brow and grin-and-bear-it?
Now, most of you will notice those are euphemisms for preparation and focus. I’m a big fan of the “slow-burn” version of preparation but I wasn’t always like that. I was one of those kids who left everything to the last minute and suffered the consequences for it.
“Slow-burn” preparation is a lot like investing money in a mutual fund where you sock a small amount of money away every month and letting it accumulate WITH INTEREST over a long span of years.
Small sacrifice now = pay-off down the road.
Just Keep Going; Take it for a Walk
Of course, intellectual preparation isn’t enough. You have to physically train, not just to stay in shape, but to push through an exponential number of repetitions to develop muscle memory to the point where you can take a technique; perform it AND use it in multiple ways, from multiple angles in multiple scenarios and circumstances.
http://www.martialpaths.ca/martial-arts-in-the-media/
That is the Slog of Martial Arts. Resistance to quitting is generated and the ability to simply push through difficult circumstances is a Martial Artists greatest asset.
Of course this does not stay in the Dojo. For you to truly get the benefits of your training, take it into your everyday life.
Excelsior!
Sensei Jim
