Prepare the Mind in Martial Arts
The late famed martial artist and creator of the Jeet Kune Do style, Bruce Lee, once said, “The possession of anything begins in the mind.” Master Lee strongly advocated the importance of mental and spiritual training as equal to that of physical training. The martial arts are a craft of the mind as much as of the body. Having a well-centered mental state can only enhance an individual’s success in the martial arts as a sport and increase the effectiveness of his self-defense techniques.
Instructions
1. Do things for yourself, not for others. When you feel you have to impress others your focus is not centered, your true feelings are not at work and your true martial arts abilities cannot be expressed.
2. Train to expand yourself spiritually, mentally and physically. The true training comes from learning to train the emotions that result from our life experiences. The discipline of the mind is vital to becoming physically disciplined and skilled.
3. Train to better your life and all it has to offer. Every time we train, we teach ourselves overcome life’s day to day difficulties. To hurt people is easy, to understand life is hard.
4. Focus on developing intention and technique. The mind is the weapon, and it should control the body, not the other way around. If you have no control over your mind and spirit, you have no control over your body.
5. Be proactive, not reactive. Don’t think about what is going to happen, feel what is happening. He who looks can only see, he who feels can only better himself.
6. Study meditation techniques so that you can learn to concentrate. Concentration is mind conception, mind acceptance and mind application. Use these tools to train your mind to stay one step ahead of your opponent by anticipating his next move, processing it, and deciding your response in a split second.
7. Adopt the mindset when you train of thinking as if you or your loved one is about to die, otherwise your response is meaningless and futile. Training your mind to visualize real danger will naturally result in more power and accuracy in your moves.
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