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David 講師のコラム

'There is no growth to be found in a life of comfort'

2017年11月3日

‘There is no growth to be found in a life of comfort’

So yesterday I wrote about how the future is unwritten, and you are the creator of your own destiny. This post was very popular, and I promised a second part to my story. Well here it is!

 

Thank you all for your support, and please feel free to message me or leave comments!

 

After managing to fix myself back to a comfortable level, I was very happy. I was now pain free and able to live without having any real affect from my injuries. But this was not enough! Anyone who knows me knows I like to take things far, and see what I am really capable of. Never settling for a life of ‘mundanity’ and boredom.

 

As a young child I always participated in martial arts. Judo and Taekwando were my main two sports, and I distinctively remember my parents coming to watch me at competitions. Shouting out from the stands and waving at me, as I was about to compete with another kid - I was so embarrassed!

 

Having quit martial arts for many years due to my pain, I realised I wanted to get back in to this, and this time I wanted to really discover myself. Why do judo when all you can do is throw? Why do Taekwando, when all you can do is kick?

 

‘The science of 8 limbs’ - Muay Thai / Thai boxing

 

I was always very much interested in ‘true’ competition, and what better way to find out what you are really capable of, than putting yourself in a situation in which you are incredibly scared! It is one thing to act all tough in front of your friends etc - but when you are faced with the threat of a real emergency, disaster, or the threat of pain - we often shrink away and become paralysed by fear.

 

I decided I wanted to discover this in myself and see how I would really act when faced with violence. Having been a very passive child, I had no interest in wanting to hurt anyone else, and certainly no interest in being hurt! But in my view - this was all the more reason for me to put myself out of my comfort zone, and grow as a human being.

 

I began learning the brutal art of ‘Muay Thai’ (Thai boxing), or ‘The science of 8 limbs’ as it is known - due to its use of fists and feet, but also knees and elbows! This is a brutal martial art, and unlike other Asian martial arts, there is no pretending you are very tough in class but never actually knowing it - in this sport you train to actually FIGHT in a ring, and test yourself.


 

 

I decided that even with my shoulders having ripped out before, and a fear of pain, I wanted to experience a real

fight in a ring. I dedicated myself to my training whilst family and friends said to me ‘why would you want to do this? You have just had two very serious surgeries. What if you injure yourself again? You won’t be able to work and will be damaged for life. You are not a violent person. This isn’t you’.

 

This is totally true, it was not me. Even the doctor who did the surgeries on me advised me to stay away from contact sports and instead just be happy that I could move my arms again. 

But that was not enough for me. It was all the more reason for me to try. If we stay within our comfort zones, we do not grow mentally or physically. If we always do what we know we are capable of doing, how do we know who we truly are? Pushing ourselves out of our comfort zone allows us to see how we respond when faced with real fear, and helps us to grow stronger from it. 

 

In my view - competing in Thai Boxing was inevitable. When I played football when I was younger, I trained hard but the real test came when I played matches with other teams. To train in a martial art is one thing, and whilst it is great for fitness and making friends, unless you are using it, how do you really know it works? My view is that unless we test ourselves we are under the illusion that what we have learnt will work, with no real interest in finding out for certain.

 

After nearly a year of dedicated training I was ready, and my fight finally came around. I had meditated on this day ever since it was booked, and had visualised exactly how it would go in my mind every morning and night. 

 

When I was in the ring I walked over to my opponent before we started, and we shook hands and gave each other a small hug and a smile. 

 

We did not hate each other. We did not have bad feelings towards each other. We did not want to hurt each other, or to be hurt ourselves. 

 

What we had was a desire to test ourselves, which we both admired in each other.

 

There would be no negative feelings towards each other before or after our bout, and we would fight to test our skills we had been learning and find out our weaknesses - both physically AND mentally. 

 

How the fight went is not important - but what was important was afterwards we went over and bowed to each other, raising each other’s hands in the air and looking out at the crowd around the ring. We had a mutual respect for each other, and thanked each other - for without an opponent to test our skills, we never find out who we truly are and what we are really capable of when faced with fear and the threat of pain.

 

I left the show that night with a swollen and bloody lip, dizzy and with a slight bump on my head. But other than that it was such a powerful and meaningful night I will never forget. Hearing the crowd cheering and knowing that although I was very scared, I would have to put my body on the line was a life changing experience.


 

Despite my injuries I had shown myself that I could not only use my arms for daily activities, but I could put myself in a situation where I would rely on them. I could train to a good level, and not be frozen with fear when faced with an opponent. 

 

If we stay within our comfort zones each day we will never grow. For example - if we want to be a better runner, by slowly running 1km each day we will never improve. 

If we don’t study hard to the point of ever pushing ourselves, we will never improve our learning. 

 

In my view the best things in life come from pushing ourselves beyond our comfort zones - travelling abroad, quitting a job to start a new career in a field we get meaning from, participating in a sport, diving to the bottom of the ocean, moving to a new city or country. All of these are examples of how we can get great enjoyment from life and truly feel alive - BUT - only if we push ourselves to the point of feeling initial discomfort and fear.

 

If we never come face to face with our fears, how can we ever over come them and grow as human beings. 

 

This is an essential part of our development and evolution in my view, and is something I will not only continue to do on my own journey, but something I will encourage others to do in their own lives.

 

‘There is no growth to be found in a life of comfort’


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I am a highly experienced professional English teacher, Yoga Instructor, Nutrition Consultant and Personal Trainer from London, UK. I recently left London to work and travel around Japan on a Working Holiday Visa with my girlfriend Ashley (who is also a teacher on Cafetalk : https://cafetalk.com/tutors/profile/?id=54542&lang=en ). We love sharing adventures travelling, teaching, exploring and understanding new cultures. We hope to speak with you soon!

Please check out my lessons if you are interested in learning real, authentic British English, or have an interest in Yoga, healthy eating or general health and fitness.

Feel free to send me a message if you have any questions, or if you would like to schedule a lesson at a time in which my schedule is not open. I will always do my best to accomodate every student.


本コラムは、講師個人の立場で掲載されたものです。
コラムに記載されている意見は、講師個人のものであり、カフェトークを代表する見解ではありません。

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