Introduction: The power of recreation and the modern day martial artist
Being a Martial Art instructor is about understanding that the body we are training houses a mind, and a heart—faculties that may be in a much different state than what the body presents. Understanding the power of ‘recreation’ is key.
Intro
I once knew a martial artist who reached the pinnacle of their sport and became a world champion. He was locally revered because he was the first one from the area to achieve such a status. He had the career arc we all coveted: to be an established martial artist all levels: become the best locally, then nationally, then internationally. It was like the plotline of a video game! Once his fighting career was over, we all watched his transition to become a teacher. A lot of us wanting to open our own schools but didn’t have anywhere near his pedigree so we opted to best pause our plans to watch and learn from his path.
His school was everything we imagined someone of his stature to be: A state of the art school in the main hub of the city. It was beautiful. It had all the equipment and facilities meant to enable the most out of ones talent; the opposite of the bare bones gyms he came from. Most of us were glad we didn’t open our schools at that time; the combination of a beautiful gym and his pedigree as an athlete we didn’t see a path to be able to compete with it.
But as the saying goes, ‘only time will tell’. And over the 1st year, time did tell:
It became a haven for fighters. Besides being the most accomplished fighter, he was an equally (if not greater) teacher of concepts. Fighters of all levels and places flocked to train at his gym, many of which paid daily passes and didn’t hold regular memberships.
Recreational (non competitive students just doing general classes) had remorse. They paid regular monthly memberships (which were the highest in the city) yet didn’t get his best. He often delegated out his classes to younger instructors, and when he did teach seemed disinterested. He often felt bored; he knew so much about fighting and wanted to progress it that he often only came alive when teaching fighters: students who can put his knowledge on display and as a result further his journey of mastery as a coach. He didn’t feel like recreational students did that for him and as a results those students felt ignored, and didn’t feel much happiness or accomplishment at the end of classes. They felt they were busy, but unsure of the value of what they experienced.
The problem was that those recreational students were the ones keeping him in business.
He also held regular shows, showcasing his athletes and they were incredible. His athletes were the best in the city (and probably the country) and regularly displayed their superiority over everyone. You would think he’d put everyone out of business, but instead the opposite happened: everyone else’s schools did better.
How something looks on the outside is not always indicative of what it is like on the inside, day by day. Over the year, his recreational student population steadily declined. To them, they saw the face and leader of their school regularly putting his time and energy only to athletes and rarely teaching regular people. So, they simply left to seek instruction elsewhere because their passion for martial art was as strong as the athletes, it’s just that their life position didn’t allow them to be competitors and their ambitions lied elsewhere. But their passion was the same. And as a result sought for a different teacher.
This exodus of recreational students was economically painful. They served as the main revenue of the gym, not the athletes. People usually have time, or money—rarely both. Amateur athletes have loads of time, and scant amounts money. They spend much of their time training and less time working which means they rarely contribute to an operation financially. So when the coaches time and energy is mainly spent on athletes, they are essentially spending most of their time volunteering, instead of generating revenue.
This quickly angered his investors. It turned out that this wasn’t his school at all. it was partially his school. There were investors who believed that backing him with their capital would yield a profit. That given his name, abilities and skills would yield students and members to the gym and turn a profit for everyone. It’d was a thesis he pitched to the investors and a thesis they too believed in. And what started with bang, ended with a whimper: in just over a year, his school closed.
“And in just over a year, his gym closed’”
Recreation Matters.
Recreation" derives from Latin "recreatio" - restoration. It is the sacred art of renewal, where body and spirit are forged anew through purposeful rest and meaningful leisure. Unfortunately, our industry has made a separation between athletes and recreational students as ‘serious’ vs ‘non serious.’ This is imprecise. A recreational student is not a ‘casual’ student and therefore not to be taken seriously. ‘Recreatio’ the Latin word for ‘recreation’ means to ‘refresh one’s spirit through activity’. In my opinion, refreshing ourselves through movement is a serious matter. Given the work we all do, responsibilities we take on and struggle with, we all can use some refreshment to reengage in our own individual battles.
“The modern martial artist is one who understands the combat their students actually face on a day to day basis.”
A martial art instructor always seeks to prepare their students for conflict; physically, mentally, and emotionally. No matter your style, a martial artist uses their particular discipline as a vehicle to prepare one for combat. The modern martial artist is one who understands the combat their students actually face on a day to day basis.
The 4 conflicts
We all face 4 basic conflicts in our lives:
Us vs the environment (a situation we are placed in)
Us vs ourselves (our stressors and anxieties)
Us vs Person (conflict with another$
Us vs Person(s) (conflict with a group)
What is important to remember is that these conflicts often happen simultaneously and rarely end but rather morph and evolve over time.
The need for refreshment therefore is always in demand and you must know that everyone is battling something and to make your experience a solution to their daily strife.
I encourage instructors to separate sport and martial art. I encourage martial artists to not view these two terms as a hierarchy; that martial artists must become athletes or be held to athletic standards. Both are worth goals that stand alone. One who practices martial art recreationally, is simply doing so because of its refreshing qualities; perhaps they are a nurse at a high stress job. Or a police officer off for the week seeking to recharge themselves ahead of another weekly stint. Or maybe a father down on himself with little emotional support at home. These are critical community roles that Martial Art has the potential to provide significant assistance. It is in this view, that the Martial Art instructor is in service of recreational students. It is your main duty to present martial art in such a way that adds vitality to their lives.
Critical guiding questions
Knowing who you are is critical to behaving the right way in the moment of training. Misidentifying who you need to be for your students will always yield in misbehaviour.
Why did I start teaching?
Why did my students choose to learn from me?
What do I want my students to gain from my instruction?
Chapter takeaways:
Recreation, is to renew and refresh one self through an activity. A ‘recreational’ student therefore is not inferior to an athlete, they simply have different goals.
A modern martial artist understands that an athlete and recreational student is not a hierarchy, but rather separate streams. An athlete seeks to put their skills on display and be rewarded through competition, a recreational student wants to be energized because the instructor has an acute understanding of the life forces that drain our vitality on a day to day basis.
A good instructor must know who they need to be for their students, in order to react in the right ways.
The goal of this series is to fully prepare you for the main job at hand: owning a martial art school in service to the community. We will do so by exploring the 4 critical dimensions of the profession:
Philosophical framework
Communication skills
Physical proficiency
Business acumen
