The IMPACT crisis (fear of being hit and how to overcome and deal with it.)

[Óscar Recio]

A few of my students and i were discussing about the fear of being hit by newbies and how when you are reaching some "high" level of practice you´ve got to deal with powerful striking techniques and body and mental reactions to striking and roll with the punch, kicks and so on. Stress.
That´s what i use to call "impact crisis";
The first time that you are being hitted on purpose during training, not as an accident.
I mean, not to be a SOB and a real B-st-rd but trying to hit your partner at high speed and power.
I´m not talking only about commitment, i always tell my students that even at low power and striking slowly they must be commited with the attack, no...not only about this subject. I´m talking about how to adress the training and feeling of being hit on purpose, just like on the street, and how to prepare or adress properly your training methodology to reach that level of stress and mental conditioning.
As you train to reach a level of "reality" on your training i think that realizing how body and mind react to an impact is a subject to take care really seriously. How do you adress your students to enter in this state of "reality"? for me is a subject to introduce slowly during your training; starting slowly at the beginner stage, always with commitment, and introducing and experiencing the subject progressively when you are improving your training and reaching or achieving the proper level of proficiency.
I´m not talking about "ok guys, let´s get kicked and punched for the experience". No, i´m not so crazy.
For me it´s a subject to understand and develope, it´s a really serious point to improve in my training, on my training schedule, over my methodology and perspective on how, when and which methods use, avoid or add to my training and study of MA.
Just my 2 cents.
Thank you.
Respectfully,
Óscar Recio :smilejapa
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[bruceb]

I don't think there is anything more frightening than letting fear take over, or control you. The lesson is to learn to make that fear work for you.

The healthy part about fear is that you are thinking about the many ways something could go wrong, cause pain and injury. The bad part about that is .... one cannot dwell on what might be but should concentrate on what is, right at that moment.

The moment is what is going on around you, not letting the body become damaged or injured by doing nothing, but protecting yourself or getting away from whatever might cause pain or be a danger. Learning the fight or flight instintive reflex.

All animals have it, and we humans are animals to one degree or another, so why not use it?

Some people never overcome this fear, but those who want to overcome fear do because they will themselves to overcome it, or at least use it in a better manner than quaking in their boots?

There are those people who are SOB's,and they take pleasure in hitting the less gifted fighters, or students, but with time, practice, and effort, their blows are merely glances, and your vision seems to become superhuman as their movements seem to slow. I have trained and had some pretty fast punches seem to slow down to a crawl. When I ask why my training partner is giving up, they say I am not leaving any openings for them to punch or kick anymore ... what a strange thing to say?

There are many, many drills to increase your speed, your perception, and your thought process to not overthink, which is the biggest problem for people who are afraid.

I am a believer of people training with their heart, their mind, and their spirit. If you really want to get better at protecting yourself, you will adapt and overcome.

Maybe another style of martial arts is more attuned to your mind, body and spirit? Did you ever think about that? Grappling with only a punch here and there? Take your pick, there are three or four pretty good arts that have manipulations without ever throwing a punch, but there is always room for a punch or a kick if you are so inclined.

Yep. Practice, until the speed of someone else is equal or less than your own perception, adapt and overcome if you have the heart, mind, and spirit.

Don't be stupid. You have only one life, and it is short enough as it is. Use your mind, your voice, your guile before you use your fists, but always be ready to have more than someone bargains for in your training, and with your practice. It couldn't hurt to be prepared.

I do believe ... the fear will be a motivator at this point .....

[Óscar Recio]

I agree totally with you, IN fact i understand a lot about what are you talking about; a girl at my Ju Jutsu class was doing a technique when, after a poor tai sabaki movement, the heel of her partner went straight to her nose (the ukemi was quite high and her movement was not good enough); her nose was broken. After, maybe, 2-3 weeks of reluctant actitude towards punches, kicks and related techniques that were focussed on aiming the head she became better and better; even after she went away of the tatami ´cos she wasn´t able to resist the stress and pressure in her mind; the fear of being hit again. Now, and i swear it, she´s damn good with punches and tai sabaki movement. She overcomed the fear.

There´s some people that don´t understand the feeling of being hit. Until your are being hit you can´t understand how your mind and body reacts, how to adress an incoming new punch, kick, grab or whatever...another human being trying to punch on purpose not only with one strike but with many new other attacks...
I know and i agree with a progressive method of approaching to reality; simply it´s a matter of how your mind react and how do you adress the sensation, frustration and psychological and physical feed-back that you are feeling at the moment of being hit.
I don´t want to my students to reach a levet that they can´t understand, control or just realize how it works or with wich purpose are training this particular subject.

A friend wrote:
"(...)It is another thing to teach student how to keep calm and stick to there art in the middle of an acual conflict. Thats not easy to teach at all. You really have to keep raising the level of realistic combat and situations in the dojo, this can get dangerous.(...) There are some people who just after years of training will just never loose the fear of being hit, I have seen it in 15 to 20 years practitioners-it is a sad thing to see(...)"

I know that some people are just "victims"...they don´t actually know that their mentality, attitude and mental and physical reactions collide to a point that "be a victim" is just a kind of reaction or true nature. Please, don´t get me wrong; there are people that follow a path in MA towards a spiritual view and experience, some others to just meet people and then learn something to keep them in good ph. condition (social reasons),etc...
EVERYTHING IS FINE, and it honores the people that do these things if they are honest with themselves and with the person responsible of his/her teaching.

Bruce,
Thank you so much for your most welcomed reply, i REALLY appreciate your words and comments. Thank you again :smilejapa :smilejapa :smilejapa

[Óscar Recio]

How to deal with adrenaline...a whole world to talk about...how do you accept the reality of being hit it´s, as you said bruce, a matter that one himself must adress, overcome fear is REALLY hard to do...but the only way to do it is face the fear...
Thanks again,
Óscar