Some say that “repetition is the mother of mastery.” I know from my own experience that this statement is certainly accurate. There is an inherent difficulty in maintaining focus during repetitious arts training. Because progress occurs in very small increments, the more advanced a student becomes, the smaller the increments of progress. Over the course of their training, students will have trouble maintaining their commitment level because of this dilemma.
Unfortunately, there is no secret answer or “cure” for this problem. The reality of the situation is that martial arts training is just a lot of work, and it will never be anything else. Although we have a belt system to help us track our progress, earning a belt does not make the work less challenging. The important lesson is that the process is the progress – in other words – “let’s do that again!” The value of repetition as a training method is that, instead of being a means toward developing a skill, the ability to maintain focus during repetition becomes the skill. Being able to tolerate repetition then allows us to tolerate more still, and that translates into better skills over time.
The translation for the word “kung fu” is: skill acquired through hard work over time. Often, kung fu masters will train by copying traditional Chinese calligraphy for hours to develop their “kung fu.” So kung fu is not a martial art per se, but a concept: the best way to become skilled is to understand the value of hard work, not in terms of the exact result of the work, but in terms of the work itself. How does writing calligraphy make a kung fu punch better? maybe it doesn’t, but the ability to copy Chinese calligraphy for 3 solid hours without getting distracted or fatigued is the same ability required to develop fighting skills.
So whenever I have trouble getting a student to understand a movement, I usually solve the problem by saying “let’s do that again.” My kung fu master (the same one who copied calligraphy) would answer most of my questions with the phrase “you practicing more – making better.” Yes – he really talked like that. I used to get frustrated when he would not answer me, but tell me to practice when I had just practiced the technique for hours! Eventually, I began to understand that he did not see his role as sifu (Sensei in Japanese) as the expert who could answer my questions. He was there to teach me kung fu – how to develop skill through hard work over time. He was trying to tell me that if I just kept working on it, I would have the answer for myself (so why ask the question?) Once I understood, I stopped asking questions about technique.
I have now learned to respect the process of training as the most valuable part of the martial arts. I enjoy being skilled and feeling confident about my ability to defend myself and to teach. However, I value my ability to maintain discipline and motivation after 2 decades of repetition and difficult work above all other skills I posses. I try to pass this love for training on to my students, but it is difficult to help them see the “big picture.” We live in a culture that is so competitive, and moves at such a fast pace, that we have trouble being patient with ourselves. Lack of patience leads to a low tolerance for repetition and a propensity for distraction over concentration. Typically we say “let’s do that again” when we are enjoying leisure activities, not working hard. When we are working hard we can’t wait to get it over with.
One reason I love the martial arts so much is that it helps people connect to the part of themselves that enjoys hard work and desires a challenge. Every student has the ability and the capability to change themselves and their bodies through hard work over time. We just have to be willing to “do that again,” and again, and again.
