You Can Train a martial art for 10 Years and Still Throw the Same Punch

How do we continue to adapt and learn throughout our martial arts journey

Introduction

Training in martial arts requires more than just showing up. Yes, if you skip training, you won't improve, but even if you're a dedicated student, just being consistent isn’t enough to guarantee progress.

In today's article we will explore how to truly transform your training to maximum your martial arts potential and how at Sanda Kickboxing Academy we can guide you through this journey.

The Illusion of Repetition

You can still throw the same punch after 10 years of hard training because you're not training with the right mindset. Showing up, repeating the same motions again and again or just training ‘harder’ and will not automatically lead to improvements.

Getting better takes deliberate practice in combination with consistency and hard work! Passive repetition will not magically improve your martial skills. .

Active Learning in Martial Arts

Active learning in martial arts requires constant feedback from a good coach, the awareness to self reflect and finding time in training to experiment through play and find what works for you in your martial arts.

Being an ‘empty cup’ or coachable is also incredibly important, this also means that you need to develop and trusting relationship with your coach, which can take time. Martial artists must always have an open mind, staying curious and asking questions of themselves and their coaches.

If you learn to take this approach you may not need to train as ‘hard’ to see improvements in your martial arts as the quality of your overall training will improve leading to greater gains over a shorter period.

The Need for Adaptation

We will inevitably change physically and mentally as we get older. This will lead to a change in our mobility, recovery, power, speed. This means we must shift our mentality as we age and adapt our training depending on what stage of life we find ourselves in.

Life can change a lot; we might face new stresses or responsibilities that we didn't have before. We must be ready to adapt our training so that we do not over tax ourselves and see improvement over the long term.

Building Longevity in Your Training Journey

At Sanda Kickboxing Academy we are dedicated to helping you train with longevity in mind. We have created a club were people can tell us if they are tired and not be expected to train as hard as their fellow students for that class. We recognise that life has its peaks and troughs and we are not super human and have lives outside of traning. One of our main goals is to help you reach your full potential as a martial artist, whether your an 18 year old athlete looking to become world champion or an 80 year old looking to practice Tai Chi as a gentle form of exercise we will be with you every step of the way.

Train harder not smarter

Final Thoughts

Remember that training hard for 10 years does not guarantee growth, training with intent over 10 years does. This combined with changing your training with the different stages of your life will help you to improve for the rest of your life. Keep evolving and your punch will too!