This post is all about do what I say, not what I do.
I was listening to a podcast interview with a chiropractor (sorry, forgot his name, but it's not super relevant to this post) who is a fan of Tony Robbins (the self help 'guru,' and I don't mean that to be disparaging). He met Tony in an elevator before a seminar and asked what he could do to get the most out of it, and Tony said (I'm paraphrasing) he needed to go "all in." Basically, completely immerse himself in the content for the duration - do every exercise, take every suggestion, fully commit to the program for those three days without reservations.
We probably all understand this notion in terms of martial arts training. Going all in with your training means taking every class, stretching and practicing on your off days, eating sensibly, getting enough sleep, maybe doing extra conditioning or strength training sessions on your own time. And if you aren't the person who does that, I'm sure you know people who do - the most gung ho, most enthusiastic practitioners. Usually, they're young enough not to have outside responsibilities, or beginners. But some people maintain that level of training for longer.
For people who aren't always "all in," they often go all in for certain periods of time. Think of the months leading up to a big tournament or black belt promotion. Fear and the desire to perform often lead us to work extra hard in those times. In the 3 months before my shodan test I think I trained 12-14 hours a week.
The thing is, karate is a lifetime discipline, but most people can't go all in for a lifetime.
Maybe right now you're thinking of counterexamples - people who train maniacally for their entire lives. That's fantastic for them. If someone has a lifestyle that lets them do that, and is able to maintain that level of enthusiasm, that's great. For them. But for most of us regular people with jobs, relationships, kids, fluctuating health and injury status, and fluctuating life circumstances, going all in all the time is just not possible.
And here's the thing: we celebrate the people who train extra hard, never miss a class, are in great shape all the time, never fall off the wagon. (We should celebrate that, I'm not against it).
What's the problem with that? Where's the issue?
The problem, as I see it, is when we think that "all in" is the only way to train (or the only way to progress), and that's simply not true.
I figured out my personal definition of "all in." When I train 5+ hours a week spread out over at least 4 workouts (that combines actual classes with supplementary workouts) I feel like I'm really going all in. I've done more, that's not an upper limit, but that's the time commitment that makes me feel like I'm really dedicated to training.
Over and over again, in my own life, when I've found myself unable to get those 5+ hours a week in, for whatever reason, I get extremely discouraged. I feel like a hypocrite wearing a black belt to class. I feel that I don't deserve respect that is given to me by others in the training hall. I feel as though I've betrayed my art, my teachers, and my style (Seido Karate).
And it's very, very hard for me to get over those feelings - to the point where I stop training altogether. If I can't go "all in," then I go "all out." Meaning I stop training, or at least stop going to classes.
While I started training 30 years ago, I've only trained consistently for 10-12 years out of that time (not 10-12 years straight; I mean spread out over many stretches with breaks in between). I'm only a third degree black belt.
And I guarantee this - if every time I couldn't fully commit to training, I had, instead of stopping altogether, put in 1-2 hours a week of training, I would be a much, much stronger karateka than I am now.
I'm not saying I'd be as good as another person who trained "all in" for 30 years. I'm simply saying that if I had put in 1-2 hours a week for those approximately 18 years when I didn't train, I would have accumulated another thousand hours of training time. And I'm sure my training would have been more efficient - once you learn a kata, if you do it every week or two you never forget it, while trust me after you take two years off you have to relearn it almost from scratch.
Summary: Don't be afraid of backing off from training; be afraid of not training! You don't have to attend every class, train every day, or be the hardest worker around in order to make progress and improve your karate. Don't feel bad for taking it easy when you have to. "All in" training is great, but "half in" is much, much better than "all out." And if you have stretches of time where things are a little easier, where your kids are a little older and not as needy, when your job is going okay, your marriage is okay, and you have a little extra time and energy, train all in! Enjoy it.
