Probably the most feared occurrence for any martial artist is suffering an injury that will prevent training for any length of time. As I find myself currently nursing a back injury, I’ve had time to reflect on several things. Can we turn an injury into an opportunity for growth? Does training have to completely stop while we nurse ourselves back to health?
An opportunity for growth
An injury provides an opportunity to grow as a person and as a martial artist.
1. What can I do differently to insure I don’t get injured the same way again?
My current injury is a back sprain caused by working out without a proper warm up. I also exerted myself too much in my workout instead of slowly building up to the high paced sprints I was doing when the injury occurred.
2. What am I really training for?
As a white belt, the thought of missing training meant more time before my next promotion (or so I thought). As a blue belt, promotions don’t come by as often, but a small part of me still craves the recognition that comes with a promotion. Martial arts is ultimately not a race to the black belt, in its healthiest form martial arts is a lifestyle
3. How am I taking care of my body outside of training?
If I want to stay in shape I need to not only train, but also eat healthy. Injuries mean less working out, and it also means watching what I eat so that I don’t gain weight during my recovery. Being injured has caused me to re-evaluate my eating habits, and cut out more of the bad stuff.
Does training stop during an injury?
I attended a seminar by world champ Gianni Grippo earlier this year. After the seminar he made time for some Q and A and one of the questions posed to him was whether he ever took any time off. He said no, not really, he pretty much trains all year round. If and when he gets injured he suggested looking for other ways to train. I remember him saying, “if all you can do is pull ups, then do pull ups.”
Because my injury is only in my lower back, I’ve found that I’m able to do pull ups without any pain, and hanging on a bar (or tree branch in my case) actually feels good for my back as it gives it a nice stretch. I have also been able to do push-ups without any problem. And so despite not hitting the mats in over a week I have been doing pull-ups and push-ups regularly.
I have also had more time to study jiu jitsu videos; YouTube is overflowing with good quality videos by some of the world’s best jiu jitsu practitioners. I have at least four techniques I’m eager to drill as soon as I hit the mat again. I’ve also been watching tournament matches and even mma fights to not only pick up techniques but to look for any flaws that I see.
So, despite injuries being a super bummer, they offer a special chance for reflection and maybe even improvement.
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