Integrity- Why it is essential

Do I really need to have integrity?

The definition of integrity according to Webster's Dictionary is, 'a rigid adherence to a code of behavior.' There are though many ways to look at a persons integrity. A person with integrity possesses many qualities. Three of these qualities are honesty, the ability to follow a moral code, and loyalty to yourself and your beliefs.

I would add that to have integrity means being your word. Let me clarify. If a person possesses integrity, it means that they do what they say they will do and when they said it would be done. If ultimately, all we have as humans is our word, then our relation to keeping our word is of primordial importance. If I tell someone I will meet them on Monday at 3pm, then it is a matter of integrity that I keep that appointment. This is not to say that something may occur to hinder my making that appointment. Life does happen, and many times things we do not for see can make it difficult for us to keep our word. What do we do when this occurs? We stay in communication and restore our integrity, in this particular case, if I know I wont make my 3pm meet, I call the person in question and tell them I cant make the meeting and reschedule for a time that works for both of us.

I have come to discover that without integrity as the foundation, you cannot endeavor towards or aspire to great things. Integrity is the lynch pin upon which every great undertaking depends on.

The state of integrity runs across many different spheres and disciplines. You can find the mention of integrity in ethics, philosophy,law, science, and mathematics. While it may exist in all of these areas, if it is lacking in your life then you will be constrained to living a life in which your word has very little, if any value.

Strive to have integrity in everything you do, whether great or small.

strong spirit-strong mind-strong body

Sensei Orlando

Courtesy in Martial Arts and Life

When restraint and courtesy are added to strength, the latter becomes irresistible- Mohandas Gandhi

What is courtesy and why is it necessary?

The dictionary definition of courtesy is: excellence of manners or social conduct; polite behavior. Within the context of the martial arts courtesy plays an integral role in our journey through our respective paths. Courtesy dictates how we interact with each other, inside and out of the dojo. Intertwined with courtesy is respect, for ourselves and for others.

When we bow to each other, we are not being subservient, but rather we are extending courtesy to our fellow students. When we train, and train hard, we never forget that the rules of courtesy dictate that we place others before ourselves. This translates as being aware of your fellow students well being, state of mind, and overall energy in the class. It also means being concious of the rank of the seniors and extend them the courtesy their rank dictates, just as it will be shown to you when you achieve the same rank.

Real courtesy carries with it the implication of modesty and sincerity as well as mere politeness. It permits equals to show mutual respect while simultaneously accepting that each of us, in one way or another, is subject to a higher authority. Children should always be courteous to their parents and elders, students to teachers, employees to employers, etc., and those who hold positions of authority must demonstrate that they are deserving of respect by being courteous to those over whom they have authority.

Courtesy is demonstrated throughout the martial arts world when we greet each other through the sincere act of bowing. Yet, there are many other ways that courtesy is demonstrated in the martial arts and your life. Being polite and showing good manners, saying nice things to people you go to school with, meet during the day in the community or live with, are just a few ways you can show courtesy.

One of the most important ways to show courtesy in your life is through tact, which means not using , insults or ridicule to embarrass or hurt others. This may seem difficult when you may be hurt or embarrassed by the treatment of others, but it is important that you act with courtesy and tact regardless of how others behave towards you. By remaining above the negative behavior of others you will be building your self-esteem and others will value your integrity.

Show courtesy by being kind and considerate of others and expressing gratitude for the things people do for you, no matter how "insignificant" it may seem. Remember to say “thank you” when a person is kind to you. Remember that you create a better space in the world, by being generous and giving others credit for the kind things they do and letting them know you consider them valuable in your life.

strong spirit-strong mind-strong body

Sensei Orlando

Train like its your last day

There is a concept in martial arts called ren ma. Loosely translated it means: To cultivate and achieve perfection through tempered training. When going into more detail the definition exceeds the adage of "practice makes perfect"

The classic saying - "Practice makes perfect" may seem similar in meaning to what ren ma is about however, ren ma has a much deeper connotation, particularly to those who are serious about their training, development and achievement. ren ma reminds us that to achieve perfection in martial sciences or any biomechanical endeavor requires extremely diligent and never ending tempering, polishing, and refinement.

Kata embodies the idea of ren ma, or "always polishing" – with diligent practice, the moves of the kata become further refined and perfected. The attention to detail that is necessary to perfect a kata cultivates self discipline.

Why should we strive to continually polish?

To quote one of the founding fathers of karate: "The ultimate aim of the art of karate lies not in victory or defeat, but in the perfection of the characters of its participants." — Gichin Funakoshi, founder of Shotokan Karate-Do.

Ren ma goes beyond practice and speaks to the attitude we must possess when training. Train like its your last day, means that in each training opportunity, in and out of the dojo, you give it your all, holding nothing back and keeping nothing in reserve. Every technique is real, every moment is life and death.

When you train like this, you cultivate the character and spirit to overcome any moment of adversity. This translates directly into every facet of life outside of the dojo. When you are constantly polishing, tempering your character, no matter what life may throw at you, you will be able to withstand it because you have done the work, and prepared yourself.

Sensei Orlando

strong spirit-strong mind-strong body

The Discipline of Repetition

Why do we practice? More importantly why do we practice so often? In an earlier post I discussed diligent practice(see http://martialways.blogspot.com/2009/03/diligent-practice.html) Today I want to discuss why we have to do so many of the same techniques over and over and why this cultivates discipline. Webster defines discipline as: training that corrects, molds, or perfects the mental faculties or moral character. When we execute techniques over and over we are forging a certain type of character in ourselves. We live in a society that gets easily bored and our attention spans have been shortened considerably. In a society where everything has to happen "yesterday", the practice of martial arts forces you to take the slow track to excellence. You cannot earn a black belt overnight or even in a year. On average it takes 4-5 years for a first degree black belt depending on where you study. In order to achieve this you must have discipline. In order to pursue any endeavor with excellence, it requires discipline. I'm sure Tiger Woods still practices his swing even though he is a champion. If you look at any person who is in the elite of their respective fields, you will see one common theme- discipline.

Do we need discipline? Not really. We can all "get by" even when we aren't disciplined. We can make ends meet, train every so often, and cruise through life. The question is do you want to excel? If your answer is yes, then you need discipline. If you want to achieve great things and impact others and the world, you need discipline. It means doing things over and over. It means not getting bored easily, but understanding that each time you do that same technique, practice that speech, have that conversation, you are getting better and moving closer to mastery.

On whatever path we choose to embark upon, mastery should be our goal. Take the first step today and discipline yourself each day to keep taking those steps.

strong spirit-strong mind-strong body

Sensei Orlando

No Pain-No Gain?

This is a saying that is heard often in gyms and other types of training halls. I would like to say that its quite inaccurate. If you are experiencing pain, its very unlikely you will continue training to make gains. Pain at its very basic level is your body signalling that there is something wrong or that it has suffered some type of trauma. The distinction I want to make here is that there is a marked difference between pain and discomfort. In addition every persons pain threshold is different.

When we are referring to making gains (i.e. growing stronger, moving more weight, being more flexible, adding muscle, greater cardiovascular capacity) there will be times when we will experience discomfort. The body being the amazing adaptive machine that it is, requires us to stress and push it if we want to make significant gains in certain areas. What we may consider to be pain may only be discomfort. When I train students, I always tell them, pain usually stops you in your tracks, while discomfort, allows you to work through it.

This is not to say that you cant train while in pain, and certain situations may require you to work through the pain. These occurrences however are not the norm and you should listen to your body if you are in pain.

Discomfort on the other hand should never stop us. If we let it, we will find ourselves making excuses at every turn because we are no longer in what we may consider our "comfort zone". This not only applies to training, but to life. You will never have any gains as long as you remain in your comfort zone. In order to grow you have to stretch yourself, try new things and be willing to risk the comfort.

Any new endeavor will have moments of discomfort, that is when you are growing. Any training regimen contains moments of discomfort, if you are not willing to work through them you will not see the gains on the other side.

Ultimately the decision is ours to make. Are we willing to be uncomfortable in order to grow and make gains in every part of our lives, or will we strive to remain in our comfort zones- comfortably stagnant?

Sensei Orlando

strong spirit-strong mind-strong body

Circular vs Linear

Life is a circle. The fastest way between two points is a straight line. I'm sure all of us have heard one or both of these sayings. In martial arts many styles are defined by the way you attack or defend. Aikido for example is considered a circular art, redirecting attacks and using an opponents energy against them. Karate, and styles like it are linear going directly to the opponent in the fastest way possible. Many times in life we encounter situations that may be resolved with a linear approach, but require us to be circular. Sometimes it seems that being circular, taking the longer route, is less efficient.

While I'm all in favor for direct approaches there have been many times in my life where I have had to take the longer path because it was required of me or because there were things I needed to learn. Let me apply this to being fit. Many of us, on day one of our workout routine are excited to begin, we start with the knowledge that it will take some time to get to our goals. After some time though, about a month to three months we get disenchanted with the circular path of being fit. We want a direct path, maybe even resorting to drastic measures like fasting or trying whatever product is the fad now to get you the body you want in just a few short weeks. What we don't realize is that in this case the circular path is the most direct path.

In life sometimes the path of taking shortcuts can turn out to be longer in the end. We pride ourselves in being in a society that is overwhelmingly fast. We have fast food, fast service, and everything must occur yesterday.

I encourage you to slow down and appreciate those things that take longer to achieve, when we focus on the journey and not just the goals we find that its the journey that makes it all worthwhile, even while achieving our goals.

Sensei Orlando
strong spirit-strong mind-strong body

The Power of Intention- Mind Over Body

The subject of the power of intention has received much attention as of late. I would like to suggest that this is not a "new " trend, but something that has existed as long as humans have been on this planet.
It was brought to my attention many years ago that everything you can see, touch or feel was once an idea in someones head. Obviously this points to man made objects not nature. That being the case its quite a profound thought if you take a moment to ponder it. Where ever you are if you look around you will see things that were in some one's head. If you are sitting on a chair while you do this, the very chair you are sitting on was once an idea. The ramifications of this thought process is that we exist within a world of ideas, some in a gestational stage and some fully developed and still some evolving and ever changing. How is this applicable to how you train? If you have goals as something to strive for(being fit , stronger, ripped, more flexible, whatever the case may be) the goals that are attained are the end result, and the genesis of these results have to be your thoughts, your ideas.

Everything we do begins and ends in our heads. Sometimes we may talk much but do little. We can be full of great ideas but if they are not acted upon, they remain ideas. I also believe that if you sit on a great idea for too long, it occurs to someone else who will act on it and then you can be one of those people who can say " I had that same idea!" The only difference being that you chose not to act on the idea you had.
One example that I deal with on regular basis is in my own training. I have found that if I quit in my head, my intention being that one more set is too much or I'm too tired or its too early (fill in the excuse) what occurs is that my body follows suit and shuts down. The power of intention is so powerful that whatever you give voice to (even in your head) comes to pass in your life. This means that the thoughts we have need to be empowering ones, thoughts and ideas that further us along our goals in our lives.

May all your thoughts be powerful and full of greatness!

Sensei Orlando
strong spirit-strong mind-strong body