“Long-term consistency trumps short-term intensity.” – Bruce Lee
It’s easy to go ‘gung-ho’ for a new, innovative fad or even a charismatic workout instructor — just to lose steam over time and burn out. For kids, it might be the intrigue of a new sport or activity that loses its novelty, making the ‘hard work’ a little harder to do.
When adults and kids genuinely enjoy what they do or have truly invested in the value of what they signed up for, the excitement lost in the newness of a new activity can be made up for in dedication, commitment, and perseverance. The passion that fueled your initial signing can get you through the tougher times — and the friends and family you make in your activity can carry you through the lulls in enthusiasm.
The same goes for Martial Arts! It’s exciting to start training on the mats, but some days can certainly be more difficult than others. This is especially true when the techniques become harder, the workouts more challenging, and the transition from novelty to dedication begins. It’s crucial that students stay consistent and persevere through those times.
You could be the strongest, biggest, or most talented fighter but without regular training and drilling, you’d lose out to your more consistent counterparts. The one thing that all successful athletes have in common is that of consistent training over the years.
Sometimes, it’s the parents that must step in and foster this perseverance in their children too. Because dedication doesn’t come naturally. It’s easy to ‘give up’ when things get tough, but those who stick to it not only become better Martial Artists — but also more skilled, tough adults.
Here are 5 Reasons Why Consistency Is So Important In Martial Arts and for Your Health:
1) Increase Fitness and Overall Health
Martial Arts requires a level of skill and dexterity, but even the best techniques can’t hold up to someone that has the fitness to endure. After all, you wouldn’t want to gas out halfway through a sparring session and tap out early due to exhaustion versus technique. Fortunately, fitness is something you can develop, even if you start off as a couch potato.
Think about it: the more time you spend in the gym, the more conditioned your body will be. All those hours of training and drilling will not only build up your stamina but also your flexibility, endurance, and strength. Hence, enabling you to maximize your performance.
2) Consistency breeds confidence
Martial Arts is a great way to bully-proof your kids. Part of the ‘bully proofing’ comes from children achieving their goals and learning that they can stick it out to the end, no matter what. The feeling of achievement that comes with persevering breeds confidence. Plus, knowing you can back up your words with real action from consistent training can give kids the extra ‘uumph’ to stand up to bullies.
For adults, it’s like everything else in life You’ll have to work hard in order to see results. Work out a training schedule that can fit well with your daily one, so that it will be easy to integrate your training into your life. Stay consistent in your attendance, and meet class requirements and techniques to continue to advance. Trust us, the more consistently you train, the more progress you’ll make as a martial artist and the closer you’ll get to your goals.
3) When you stay consistent, you’re inevitably going to reach your fitness goals
The one thing that consistency ensures in Martial Arts is that no matter where you start, you WILL inevitably reach your end-goal when it comes to fitness. For some, it can happen faster or easier than others; but consistency ensures your success.
One of the biggest things that will contribute to your progress as a martial artist is your understanding and execution of the various techniques. And as we all know by now, practice makes perfect. By consistently training and drilling, you’ll deepen your practice, and be able to make sense of all the techniques you learned in class. As a result, you’ll be able to apply them effectively when you’re sparring or fighting.
4) Because it improves your mental and emotional health
Martial Arts shows students that no matter what age, shape, or size — you’re able to find new ways to execute techniques and overcome an attacker.
Did you know that training consistently can help enhance your mood and improve your overall mental health? Whenever you engage in regular physical activity, your body releases endorphins, which make you feel great after your sweat session. So if you’re a stressed out individual, then you should definitely train martial arts on a regular basis. After all, you’ll be reducing your stress levels and feel great – not to mention, sculpting your body and getting fit as well!
5) Because it’s the best way to achieve success
Whether it’s on the mats, at work, in school, or in life in general, we’re pretty sure you want to be successful, right?
One way to achieve this is through Martial Arts training. At this point, you might be wondering how martial arts is even related to your success in life.
When you push yourself to train consistently, you’ll learn to persist and inevitably get much stronger – both physically and mentally. What’s more, you’ll be able to unleash your potential as you’ll inherit courage, discipline, confidence, humility, and a warrior spirit, from your training. These are all great traits that you’ll take along with you even when you aren’t on the mats.
There’s no doubt that martial arts offer plenty of benefits, so why not get the most out of your training by being consistent? Go on, you’ve got this!
Register your kids or yourself to try it out and see if Martial Arts and Tristar are a great fit for you! What have you got to lose?