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Last Login: 3/13/2008 1:10:38 PM
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| | When I started aikido last fall, I got to talking to a friend of mine about it. I told him how often I was attending classes and he was a bit surprised. He told me that he had another friend that also studied aikido for a period (at another dojo), attending four times a week or so. He told me that after a while, his friend encountered a saturation point and hit burn-out. We didn't go into details, but he said his friend just couldn't maintain the pace for an extended period. This is totally understandable and happens frequently. I've seen it in other martial arts as well as with physical training, sports, and just about anything that involves learning. This burn-out gets more pronounced when you add physical reinforcement to what is being learned. Even if you only train twice a week, make sure you're not overextending yourself. Any type of training takes emotional commitment, or you will get little out of it. That emotional commitment is difficult to maintain. The difficulty can (and probably will) increase over time, so keep your eye on it. Once burn-out starts to happen, your training can go from an enjoyable experience to an agonizing labor. You may very well get to feeling like you aren't learning anything and you are getting frustrated. The end result of which will be one of two things: You will not want to show up anymore, or you will bring your frustrations out on the mat which shows disrespect to the dojo, senseis and fellow students. We are fortunate to have a dojo environment(s) that are positive and encouraging. Never think that is only due to others, although they do influence it. It has to do with you and the spirit you bring in. You may think you are only a minor component to classes, but that isn't the case. Your presence adds to the spirit of the dojo, and to a greater degree than you think. What gave me the urge to bring this up? I suppose so that I could offer up some information that might help those who have chosen to study aikido, and maybe save themselves hitting a wall of frustration. I don't want anyone to suffer by this problem. Burn-out sneaks up on you every time unless you watching out for it. Most people don't realize what is happening until they are very unhappy and are trying to figure out why. In some cases, they incorrectly assess that they have hit a plateau (another training obstacle). I believe plateauing and burn-out are different problems, although they can be very similar in nature. Have any of you ever experienced the saturation point, or burn-out? |
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Last Login: 8/27/2008 12:13:41 AM
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| My observation is burnout is not "if?", it's "when?". I believe it is a critical part of every student's development in any art, where they are forced to decide on their priorities and passions. It is a period of brutal honesty and reckoning. The decision is always "Right"; there is never a wrong decision from this situation.
In fact, I believe it is so critical, that if someone hasn't encountered it by very late in their studies, then I suspect there are deep-rooted concerns that need to be addressed with that individual.
When it happened to me (twice), the first time I fooled myself because of ego: "I'm an aikidoist, I am in control, no problem." But my heart wasn't in it. The second time, I knew the path I had to take: what does my heart feel? My body? Am I willing to sacrifice other activities for this one? I don't think anyone will disagree that my second decision seems to have stuck. 
I don't believe in saturation; like we've heard, fill up the cup, then dump it out. Saturation is an excuse to avoid facing the real issue: someone just simply doesn't like what they're doing, or, they cannot continue. Folks who TRULY want to continue, will do so, and will look hard for new facts and nuggets of knowledge. Folks who don't want to, well, they're not "bad", they're just making the decision best for them, and I respect that more than someone forcing him-/herself to stay in the game. But getting to a point where they feel they cannot take any more knowledge, to me, is an inaccurate excuse.
Your points are good reminders for senior students. As an aside, if anyone is concerned s/he is coming into this phase, bring it up with your instructors. We will do what we can to help.
*Phil
Enso Aikido Dojo
Burnsville, MN
"Q: If you're rolling along the ocean on a jet ski and the wheels fall off, do you still have enough pancakes to cover a doghouse?
A: Purple, because ice cream has no bones." |
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Forum Member
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Last Login: 8/3/2007 11:52:37 AM
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| | Interesting subject Tristin. I haven't felt like I've hit a point where I've ever felt I've had too much Aikido. I am most certainly one of the people that hits plateaus or walls though. I have gone through several periods where I have felt like I couldn't do anything and that my Aikido was crap. I've cried many times in frustration. But I have never considered giving up. Aikido is in my heart, and in my soul. Giving it up would be giving up a piece of who I am. More often than not, I feel better leaving class then I felt going in. Aikido has gotten me through some rough times. I guess it is when you hit these "plateaus" that you find out what the true caliber of your being is. Will you quit or fight through it? It is a defining moment of whether or not you are a serious student. It may take 1 or 2 or 3 years to figure out if you are a serious student or not. I do have to say that the plateaus and walls that I hit, suck really bad. BUT I always come out of them with a better understanding of a piece of Aikido and myself. I do have to say that it is good to take some time off every once and a while. Doing 5 days a week or so can burn a person out physically and I have found that it refreshes me to take class off sometimes (even though I feel bad that i'm missing it!). And I will often slow down or take a rest after a big test. 
 Faeth "Be content with what you have. Rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you." |
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Last Login: 4/4/2008 2:42:57 PM
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| I have found in my experience that when I develop a rhythm in my training that things go smoothly. When life throws me a curve ball or balls, then that rhythm is disrupted and I have viewed it as a plateau or feel like its too much. The thing I had to realize is that its not Aikido (or any other activity) but me being affected by life.
We can't be in control of our surroundings or things that effect us. But, we can strive to be in control of ourselves, hence the analogy of Aikido. Blending. Many times (in our day to day life) we feel out of control because we never really have control, we can only blend. Then it's easier to put things in perspective.
But, Phil and my other senior students know, I need to take a break once in awhile. If you can't put aside the pressures of the outside world when you walk on the mat, you will have a divided mind and spirit and may well feel overwhelmed by Aikido (or any other activity).
*Mike
"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion." -Dalai Lama
"If I begin to play with power too casually, it may begin all too casually to play with me." -Nietszche |
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