It was embarrassing the first time I tried to put my black belt on after a 10 year break. It had collected its fair share of dust and my waist had collected its fair share of padding. I had received my black belt in Taekwondo right before I left for college. Then, between classes and the college life, I let something that was an integral part of my life quickly fall by the wayside. After college, I joined the workforce as a chef and began working sixty hours a week. I felt like had zero time to pick up martial arts again.
Fast forward a few years to my thirtieth birthday where I found those years of working long hours and eating fatty foods had taken a toll on my body. I was overweight, sore all the time, and overall pretty miserable. It wasn’t until I passed by a martial arts studio about two minutes from my house that I decided it was time to try and pick it up again. This decision opened up a floodgate of fears and excuses that would be challenging to overcome.
Over the next few weeks, I came up with every excuse not to start back. I told myself I was too old, too overweight, not flexible enough, and that people would make fun of me. Somehow I was able to at least get myself through the doors of the studio and have a conversation with the instructor there. He invited me back to watch a class and have a private session with me so I could try it out and he could see what I remembered. In the end, I enjoyed the experience and decided to take the plunge.
The Biggest Obstacle of Returning to the Martial Arts
“Courage is not the absence of fear but the triumph over it.” –Nelson Mandela
Through personal experience and from conversations with other martial artists I’ve discovered that the one thing that prevents people from practicing martial arts, or getting back into it after a long break, is fear. This fear, however, is not typically very blatant, but disguised in the form of excuses. They allow their immediate fears to outweigh the long-term benefits of practicing traditional martial arts.
There is a broad spectrum of fears that a returning student faces. They range anywhere from physical fears associated with being out of shape, too old and getting hurt, to the mental fears of not remembering what you once knew and therefore what other students think. Unfortunately, there is not a ten-step process for resolving these fears and in the end, it all comes down to the individual making the decision to push past their own fears. There is, however, some steps you can take to help you overcome your fears and to make the transition back into the martial arts much easier.
Getting Started
“If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.” -Martin Luther King Jr.
The process for getting back into traditional martial arts ultimately comes down to the individual practitioner and will look differently for each person. There are some things that will help ease the process once the decision has been made to move forward. The first step is to start a consistent stretching routine. Flexibility is crucial for the martial artist and for your overall health. However, remember any time you start or add an exercise routine, including stretching, to your daily routine, make sure you start slowly and work your way up. Perhaps you have retained some flexibility during your time off but inevitably have regressed from where you were when you stopped. So, dust off some of those old stretches you remember or a quick Google search to give you some ideas to get started.
The next step is one that might take a little while but doesn’t need to be rushed: finding a school. Some people want to go back to the art they practiced before, while others may choose to expand their horizons and start over in a new art. Either way, finding the right school will make the transition back into martial arts easier. Not only do you want to find a school that fits your personal needs, you also should look for a school that understands how to help you ease back into the martial arts lifestyle slowly and safely. If an instructor expects you to jump in immediately where you left off, that may be a red flag to continue your search elsewhere.
It’s All About the Long Game
“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop” –Confucius
Once you’ve settled on a style and a school, the final step is to start to slowly work your way back into the routine. Know your limitations and take your time. It’s easy to want to push yourself and test your limits because you’re excited to be back in the studio. Your mind still remembers kicking above your head but your hamstrings do not, and an injury is the quickest way to derail your return.
Trying to do too much too quickly can also lead to frustration and burn out. While you want to be able to do all the techniques you could do before, your body and mind are just not ready yet, and it will take time for them to develop the muscle memory they had before. Admittedly, this can be frustrating, but it’s important to focus on where you’re going rather than where you’ve been. View this as an obstacle that you have to overcome that will make you better in the end.
In the end, getting back into martial arts is all about the long game. It’s easy to get ahead of yourself, but slow and steady will have a bigger payoff as you continue to grow in your field. Take your time, remember why you started, and enjoy the journey that can last a lifetime.
- The Matchup of Opposites: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles(1990) vs. Bloodsport - April 8, 2019
- Back in Black: A Guide to Returning to the Martial Arts - September 5, 2018
This article is well written and concise enough to be practical. The advice for getting back into martial arts can be a cross-over guide for anything that maybe it’s time to regain.