What’s the biggest hurdle martial artists face? Finding a good dojo? Making time to train? Perfecting techniques?
Nope.
The biggest stumbling block to today’s martial artist is other people. Specifically, the naysayer.
You know this guy. He’s the first one to say why an exercise, workout program or karate technique won’t work.
Some of the most common things heard by martial artists are:
I’d rather have a gun
Yeah? And if I was stranded on an island, I’d like a 5 star buffet, but in the meantime I should probably have some basic survival skills.
Most people don’t carry guns. If they do, do they know how to use it? Guns aren’t always accessible, while I’m never without my hands and feet.
Guns bring in a whole new level of legality. It’s also a lot easier to accidentally kill someone with a gun than with a kick.
The skills learned in a martial arts class avoid conflict as much as they teach you to overcome it. This becomes the most important aspect of training, since you never lose a fight you don’t enter.
Most people go their whole lives without getting into a fight. In the meantime, martial arts keeps you healthy, fit, and social.
MMA/Jiu-Jitsu/Muay Thai is better because…
These armchair ninjas watch UFC and read forums.While they’ve never taken a single class of any discipline, they love to tell you why your style sucks.
Take a look at any Youtube martial arts video, and you’ll see a strong of comments debunking the style in the video, no matter what style it is.
In reality, any style is better than no style, and anything that gets you training is the right style for you.
I’d better not mess with you!
This is probably the most common thing ever heard by martial artists when people find out what they practice.
For the last time, martial artists are the least likely to start a fight with you, and the most likely to help you out. These people have seen too many movies where people get their ass kicked for offending the Shaolin temple.
Conclusion
Your mom says: “If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”
I say: “If they don’t have anything nice to say, don’t hear them.”
