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Breaking Our Limits
by Reed Walker
It never fails - I walk into my martial arts school with butterflies in my stomach every time, just knowing there are people there that could break me in half without breaking a sweat. I go there, and I strain - I mean hard. I'm not thin (22% BF), and I have asthma, so all the cardio we do (I practice Muay Thai) makes it all the more difficult. I pour sweat when I practice, and push my body to its limits and break them, setting new limits for myself - limits which I will eventually break as the pattern continues.
 Because I die when I step into the dojo, and I am reborn when I emerge. When I emerge, often covered in bruises and scrapes, always covered in sweat, I am reforged into a new man by the furnace that is martial arts. This incredible transformation happens every time I step into the dojo and give it everything I got.
It used to be because of self-defense - I've been in a lot of street fights before. It used to be something to do to occupy my spare time. But the truth is, it is one of the things in life I was meant to do. I am only a beginner - how far I go is inconsequential - but what matters is that I gain every time I push my limits, something that is true for anything we do in life. It does not matter to me if I ever become a skilled Thai Boxer - something I have romanticized so much in my own mind - but that I become a better person.
How does Muay Thai (any martial art) make me a better person? By itself, it does not. Knowing Muay Thai is not any different than knowing how to brush your teeth or change the oil in your car. The secret lies in the practice of it. Pushing yourself to the limit, in anything you do, is mental. The body serves the mind, not the other way around - remember that. When I push my body past its natural limit, it is by mental determination, as my body has already told me it wants to quit. How much farther I can push it is dependant on how dedicated I am. Of course, there are physical limitations, but you're more likely to hit the psychological limitations first.
If I can show myself I can push my limits in this one area of my life, who is to say I can not do it in any other?
This is the key to the development of myself as a better person. Not only am I more fit for taking Muay Thai, but every time I step into the dojo, I show myself time and time again I can surprise myself and break my limits. The specifics don't matter - it doesn't matter if you're taking Muay Thai, Tae Kwon Do, Kung-fu or any other martial art. What matters is that you break free of your own limits through sheer determination.
Don't settle for anything less than the best you can do.
* Article by Reed Walker.
* Back to This Issue's Frontpage
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