Take It To The Grave

[tallgeese]

Arguably, overtraining contributed to his death.

It's great to be passionate about training and work hard. Just realize martial arts can put a lot of wear and tear on your body, and it has to last the rest of your life.

In my 20's and 30's I overdid it with kicking, and was prone to back pain. Eventually I wised up. In my 40's, it was MMA, and we wailed on each other. One day I wondered, are we still going to be doing this on our 50's?

Now I'm in my 50's, and dialed back the training before I got hurt. Some of my old (but younger than me!) buddies weren't so lucky. I know guys who've had to get knees surgery, had pins put in bones, etc.

So train smart, don't beat yourself up!

This is where we all need to be at. Yes, train till its game over or you determine that your path has changed. It will enrich your life, it will help keep you as fit as you can be at a given age.

But, understand that physical capability limits exist for all of us at a given age and commitment level. Things don't work the same and certainly take more time to recover. Trying to roll at 45 line I did at 30 would sideline me quick, for extended time. Adjust, adapt. Keep training. Again, be smart.

[OneKickWonder]

Arguably, overtraining contributed to his death.

It's great to be passionate about training and work hard. Just realize martial arts can put a lot of wear and tear on your body, and it has to last the rest of your life.

In my 20's and 30's I overdid it with kicking, and was prone to back pain. Eventually I wised up. In my 40's, it was MMA, and we wailed on each other. One day I wondered, are we still going to be doing this on our 50's?

Now I'm in my 50's, and dialed back the training before I got hurt. Some of my old (but younger than me!) buddies weren't so lucky. I know guys who've had to get knees surgery, had pins put in bones, etc.

So train smart, don't beat yourself up!

Excellent post.

Lucky for me I've realised this now in my early 40s. I've sustained as few long term injuries, at least one of which is permanent, before realising it, but thankfully I'm not too broken.

I have friends who are less fortunate. Good friends that have life changing permanent injury as a direct result of training hard for too long and without enough recovery time.

Thing is, for those of us in our 40s or older, it is really the luck of the draw. We grew up in an era of stupid sayings like 'no pain no gain' or 'pain is weakness leaving the body' or 'what doesn't kill you makes you stronger'. Sayings that nowadays are widely recognised as utterly ridiculous. Those that got away with it and realised in time are just lucky.

The younger generations have no such excuse. Sports science has become a real thing and basic understanding of how cartilage works, tendinitis vs tendinosis etc, nutrition, recovery cycles etc are all fairly common knowledge nowadays. Yet you still see daft young fools over training for short term gains.

It's a tricky one because of course you still have to push the boundaries in order to progress. But you have to balance that with the long term. I think this is one if the reasons why I prefer traditional martial arts to competition oriented styles. In the case of the former, typically consideration for old age is built in, whereas in the latter it's all about being the best you can be right now, with no regard for the long haul. That's not a criticism. Living for the now is a good thing. But if you want to also live for the future then you have to look after yourself.

[XtremeTrainer]

pain is weakness leaving the body'

In the long run perhaps, but when you're experiencing it I would say its more like "pain is weakness entering the body"

[OneKickWonder]

In the long run perhaps, but when you're experiencing it I would say its more like "pain is weakness entering the body"

I prefer the more accurate but less inspiring versions of the old says.

No pain no gain - no pain, reduced likelihood of chronic injury.

Pain is weakness leaving the body - pain is a survival mechanism that teaches us to avoid injury.

What doesn't kill us makes us stronger - what doesn't kill us might leave us with permanent debilitating injury, or might not, but is unlikely to make us stronger any more than good diet and safe training.

[sensei8]

I might train up to my dying breath, but I might not be teaching up to that point!!!!

Why not? You learn the most from teaching.

Physical limitations are starting to get in the way!!