Train Wisely - - Chief Instructor's Blog December 2009

In the previous blog, I talked about training diligently. I want to also mention one must also train wisely. The instructors at the Club encourage everyone to train on their own as well as in class. We applaud the enthusiasm of students who really are motivated to learn and train as much as possible, but one can physically overtrain. When students physically overtrain, they tend to burnout quicker and faster and are more prone to injuries.

In order to know if you are overtraining you need to know the signs. The American Council on Exercise (ACE) [1], lists the physical signs of overtraining as:
- Decreased performance
- Loss of coordination
- Prolonged recovery
- Elevated morning heart rate
- Elevated resting blood pressure
- Headaches
- Loss of appetite
- Muscle soreness/tenderness
- Gastrointestinal disturbances
- Decreased ability to ward off infection
- Increased incidence of musculoskeletal injuries
- Disturbed sleep patterns

The American Council on Exercise (ACE) [1] as notes that the psychological and emotional signs of overtraining include depression, apathy, difficulty concentrating, emotional sensitivity and reduced self-esteem.

In martial arts, some of the aspects you may observe that might be signs of burnout include:
- Your skills plateau or actually decrease
- Promotion scores are smaller or plateau
- Rank changes (belt color changes) become more distant or far between. It is difficult to maintain your focus during these long periods of stagnation.
- For those that reach a higher rank and start coaching, they spend less time on their own training
- Mental attitude that there is nothing more to learn or can not improve anymore

If your physical body needs a rest, it does not mean you can not continue to train. As stated in the past blog and other blogs, becoming proficient in martial arts goes beyond just physically demonstrating the techniques.

To better grasp and understand the techniques or forms or applications, some suggestions to continue your study without physically exhausting your body include:
- Read the material on the Association website (http://www.hanmookwan.org/art_form_references.htm), write it down, listen intently to the details
- Talk through the details. For example, state out loud some key attributes of the techniques.
- Visualize yourself performing techniques, forms, self-defense, etc
- Watch videos of yourself going through basics, forms, and self defense and analyze yourself
- Talk and share with others the technique and ideas about the technique
- Come to class and observe other students and listen intently to the details and descriptions of the exercises, drills, etc

Regards,
Kelly

“If you use up your strength to excess in karate training, this will cause you to lose the energy in your lower abdomen and will be harmful to your body. Your face and eyes will turn red. Be careful to control your training.” ~ Anko Itosu (1830–1915), Okinawan Karate Master, from his letter 10 Precepts of Karate written in 1908

References
1. http://www.acefitness.org