Running from Calculus
Last weekend we initiated the start of our Black Belt Fitness Assessment along with our usual recertifications.
Now let me preface this; there was warning. We explained the whole deal with the running requirement and calisthenic goals (like a modernized version of that annual dreaded fitness test in gym class from elementary school) months ahead of time. Some of them even attended my early AM prep runs, but summer took on the likes of a sauna and enthusiasm dwindled.
By the end of Saturday's run, I was left in shock that I hadn't keeled over from the 50 passing potential-to-kill glances from my 5 running ninjas.
These are talented kids. Their skills extend from Bruce Lee-esque jump kicks to commendable weapons skills, an in-depth understanding of stances and Master Marvil's eternally-reiterated (and for good reason) discussion of hip application, confident sparring combinations, and sit-up champions. They are soccer players, actors, academic warriors, skilled musicians, Boy Scouts, and all martial artists. Despite all of this abundant talent and skill, each one of them hated that run more than Gordon Ramsay despises an overcooked steak.
In theory, that run should be easy. 5 fit kids, just 10 laps around the park each...sounds like cake! But it took sideline coaching (aka me yelling at the top of my lungs across the field) and running partner parents to keep their torches lit until they dragged their sore feet through lap 10. The idea was manageable, but the task, without prep, was like conquering China's Great Wall in a pair of stilettos.
The next morning I added a mile to my usual, comfortable 4 mile run. I hate running. Those people that tell you they love to run, they lie like the rug on your bedroom floor. Even with an infallible playlist and headphones glued to my ears, my mind focuses only on how much I hate to run. The only part I like at all about about running is when I am done. I'd much prefer a 3 hour long kickboxing class...
But, since their are few endurance drills near as effective, I still do it. It's been years.
Why does a martial artist need to run?
I remember sitting through a painful Calculus class in college. Keep in mind I was a math tutor at the time. I was good at all those "math" musings, algebra, geometry, physics, etc, but they were about as amusing to me as a pile of dirt. My professor, head-to-toe quintessential math nut from her bottle cap glasses to her squeaky white running sneaks, looked out at all of us, heads tilted left and right with the weight of true boredom.
"You will never need to use this math"
Pencils lifted. Zombie eyes widened.
"Well, I mean you might if you're an engineer! That would be great! But the point of math is to make you a resilient and persistent problem solver." She continued on with her speech at 10:07 on that rainy Thursday morning that I would never forget. You must suffer, you must push yourself through it, and you must find that little glimmer of hope, whether at the resolution of a 3-page calc assignment or at the finish line, by yourself.
I still hate math.
I still hate running.
It never gets easier. There will always be sweat, sometimes tears (especially in calculus!), but I have to tell you, seeing mile 5 pass through that treadmill screen was something else. Do what you must to conquer what you haven't. The difference between good and exceptional is consistent, diligent, relentless effort.
PLUS cookies and coffee taste so much better when you've run after them for 5 miles!
See you at mile 6!
Psalm 128:2
Now let me preface this; there was warning. We explained the whole deal with the running requirement and calisthenic goals (like a modernized version of that annual dreaded fitness test in gym class from elementary school) months ahead of time. Some of them even attended my early AM prep runs, but summer took on the likes of a sauna and enthusiasm dwindled.
By the end of Saturday's run, I was left in shock that I hadn't keeled over from the 50 passing potential-to-kill glances from my 5 running ninjas.
These are talented kids. Their skills extend from Bruce Lee-esque jump kicks to commendable weapons skills, an in-depth understanding of stances and Master Marvil's eternally-reiterated (and for good reason) discussion of hip application, confident sparring combinations, and sit-up champions. They are soccer players, actors, academic warriors, skilled musicians, Boy Scouts, and all martial artists. Despite all of this abundant talent and skill, each one of them hated that run more than Gordon Ramsay despises an overcooked steak.
In theory, that run should be easy. 5 fit kids, just 10 laps around the park each...sounds like cake! But it took sideline coaching (aka me yelling at the top of my lungs across the field) and running partner parents to keep their torches lit until they dragged their sore feet through lap 10. The idea was manageable, but the task, without prep, was like conquering China's Great Wall in a pair of stilettos.
The next morning I added a mile to my usual, comfortable 4 mile run. I hate running. Those people that tell you they love to run, they lie like the rug on your bedroom floor. Even with an infallible playlist and headphones glued to my ears, my mind focuses only on how much I hate to run. The only part I like at all about about running is when I am done. I'd much prefer a 3 hour long kickboxing class...
But, since their are few endurance drills near as effective, I still do it. It's been years.
Why does a martial artist need to run?
I remember sitting through a painful Calculus class in college. Keep in mind I was a math tutor at the time. I was good at all those "math" musings, algebra, geometry, physics, etc, but they were about as amusing to me as a pile of dirt. My professor, head-to-toe quintessential math nut from her bottle cap glasses to her squeaky white running sneaks, looked out at all of us, heads tilted left and right with the weight of true boredom.
"You will never need to use this math"
Pencils lifted. Zombie eyes widened.
"Well, I mean you might if you're an engineer! That would be great! But the point of math is to make you a resilient and persistent problem solver." She continued on with her speech at 10:07 on that rainy Thursday morning that I would never forget. You must suffer, you must push yourself through it, and you must find that little glimmer of hope, whether at the resolution of a 3-page calc assignment or at the finish line, by yourself.
I still hate math.
I still hate running.
It never gets easier. There will always be sweat, sometimes tears (especially in calculus!), but I have to tell you, seeing mile 5 pass through that treadmill screen was something else. Do what you must to conquer what you haven't. The difference between good and exceptional is consistent, diligent, relentless effort.
PLUS cookies and coffee taste so much better when you've run after them for 5 miles!
See you at mile 6!
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