Martial Artists are not, as a category, renowned for their laziness. It takes a certain degree of gumption to show up at the dojo several nights a week when you might otherwise be watching TV or reading a book. We spend those hours in varying degrees of exertion: punching bags, throwing opponents, and engaging in other activities that usually leave us gasping and sweating by the end of the evening. Some superficial observers might think Tai Chi is an exception to the laziness rule, as its slow motion movements looks less engaging than a slow walk. Those observers have probably never trained Tai Chi the traditional way, in which you're not even allowed to begin training until you’ve spent an hour standing with your knees bent and your arms held horizontally in front of you. Five minutes of that was enough to give me a very healthy respect for anybody who can pull it off.
So yes, we Martial Arts tend to prize ourselves on being
energetic. The most active and energetic
students are praised. The lazy ones are considered the bad apples, and ordered
to shape up or ship out.
Is it time for us to reconsider this situation just a little
bit?
Being energetic is a fine thing, of course. But it’s useful to reflect that it’s an
attribute to be used, not a virtue to bask in.
And it’s essential to remember that the best technique is the one that
the laziest person can use.
I’m older now, and my flexibility isn’t quite what it once was. I’m less enamored of head kicks than I was when I was younger. Does this reflect an evolution of my thinking to a wiser perspective? Or is it just sour grapes that I can no longer pull off this wicked cool move?
The biggest challenge in kicking somebody in the head is the time it takes to move your foot from the ground to the five or six feet in the air where the opponent’s head is perched. For sake of argument, let’s allow that it is possible for a martial artist to train him or herself to have sufficient speed to execute this kick faster than the average opponent is likely to be able to react. I’m not saying this is an easy attribute to train, but let’s call it possible and leave it at that.
- Kick their opponent in the head with a reasonable chance of success
- Kick their opponent in the knee with a much higher chance of success
Because remember, however fast you’ve trained yourself to
kick somebody in the head, you can raise your foot to knee level if a third to
a fifth of that time. If you head kick
is reliable, your knee kick will be unstoppable.
So. Even if the
ultimate plan is to kick your opponent in the head, wouldn’t it be better if
they had a broken knee to start off with?
They’ll be limping around, not able to move effectively, and quite
possibly their head will be much lower than it was originally as they lean down
to grasp their leg in pain.
In other words, it’s not a question of whether or
not a head kick is feasible. Maybe it
is, maybe it’s not, but you’ll always be that much faster when attacking a
lower target. Why choose a somewhat
efficient technique when you can choose a highly efficient one? Why be energetic when you can be lazy?
This principle extends far beyond kicking targets. In our dojo we spend a lot of time throwing
our opponents. The hardest students to
train are the ones that are naturally strong, because they find that for
most of their opponents, they can simply lift them up and toss them down. Well and good as long as you’re fresh and
your opponents are not much larger than anybody in the dojo. But what about when you’re not? However effective you may be at throwing
somebody energetically, you’ll be much better if you learn to throw them with
very little energy. If you want to then
use additional energy to supplement your efficient technique, that’s fine, but don’t make it the cornerstone of what you do.
So while working out in your dojo, remember that while it’s
good to emulate the strong and energetic students, it can be useful to study
and emulate the weak and lazy ones as well.
Watch them especially when they spar or grapple. If they make something work, it’s because
they’ve found a very efficient way of doing it.
Something that will work well for you when you’re out of breath and can
barely lift your arms or legs.
Your next encounter may well depend upon it.
Your next encounter may well depend upon it.