DO any of u other martial artists have this problem?

Question

This is kind of a two part question I guess. kinda random questions.

Lately when I go to school after a sparring session I become very anti-social and angry I guess stuck in the fighter mentality, and other days when I dont spar before class I am the most talkative make people laugh invite them out to lunch ect. everyone thinks im krazy and multi personalited now. But I just cant get out of the fighting mentality if I spar , do any of you experience that , or have any tips on how to deal with it?

Also I was wondering , I used to really like ball sports , basketball baseball ect. but ever since I started competing in mixed martial arts , I cant stand ball sports and don't see the sense in them. Are any of you like that?

Answer 1

I feel very calm after a hard training or sparring session. Stresses of life don't get to me as easily and I feel relaxed. If I had a bad day in sparring, that alone will stress me a bit but it doesn't spill over into my other personal activities. Sorry I can't help with your problem, but I think some other people had great answers!

Answer 2

concntrate before trining, but after training its time to chill out.  just like you dont take your work home with you you shouldnt take your training home with you, the only thing you should take is confidence

Answer 3

I've talked about this a few times: it's a concept Hatsumi-sensei has discussed in some of his books that he refers to as a Martial Sickness. It will pass and it's something you should go through on the way to moving on to become a better martial artist. Realize that the "fight mentality" is your ego lashing out at those around you. This is the greatest enemy you'll ever know, and when you can be rid of him you will be free to explore the real strengths of martial arts. It's only in letting go of the ego that you can understand what the martial artists of Japan mean when referring to budo as well.

I used to love ball sports when I was a kid, but years of neglect in that department and age and aching joints from basketball make them uninteresting to me. I know the feeling quite well.

Answer 4

Whenever a person thinks he is 'bad'..there is always one

just a little "badder" right around the corner...you'll run into him

sooner rather than later...you will have your split personality

rejoined then...it has worked for all I have ever known to have

this problem.

Answer 5

i can relate to your question... its just that whenever i catch myself acting like that i change right away... and about the ball sports i can only say one thing.. BALLS wrestlers have them.. other sports play with them!

Answer 6

i have a problem with the latter...i still love to watch and play ball sports, but for some reason just not the same as i used to...they seem a little arbitrary in certain ways ever since i started martial arts...

Answer 7

Ah ha. You may be developing the gun fighter syndrome. You can be too focused on the outcome of your competitions. You no longer do this for the enjoyment but rather to feed your ego. This may sound harsh and I do not mean it to be. You need to have an attitude adjustment. Perhaps the Dojo you are in promotes this attitude in you. If it does you need to find another place to train before it starts to ruin your relationships and you find you have no friends other than the Dojo.

Sometimes runners get addicted to running and only feel happy or fulfilled after a race. They can only focus on the next race and have no other relationships. You need to be a whole person with other interest and relationships.

I love my art yet I realize it is my art that enhances my other interest and loves.

Next time you spar try to focus on the sparing it self and not on win or lose. You may even spar better and have more energy. If you lose you will probably feel better about it and not hang on to the loss.

Good luck

Answer 8

mmmmm I love sparring.  I am usually happy and relaxed after.  I know that if I do not do well then I will feel angry and uneasy.  That has happened,..once.  It sounds like you have no need for the ball sports, typical with Martial Arts training.  It's all I think about,..well almost. (smile)

Good luck and have fun!

Answer 9

i am very relaxed when i fight because i'm confident! you shouldn have to have a fight mood! it should just happen

Answer 10

I have been going to Karate for 8 years now and i have noticed the same thing with me. when you spar your mind gets in the groove of "gotta focus. gotta keep my head in it.cant let anybody distract me." to brake out of this i go and do something that makes your mind open up a bit. or do something relaxes you. or maybe you just gotta warn people before you spar and say hey i have Martial Arts today. you know how i am afterwords its not you its that i just cant get out of that mind set. don't take it personal. different people have different ways. try some of these and see if they work.

Answer 11

Question 1:  I have never had this problem, even when I was a beginner I could always switch it on and off.  Even after a competition I just revert back to my happy cheerful self.  However when I am sparring, if I spar against someone who is equal or more skilled than me, I turn it on.  If the person is less skilled than myself I turn into coach mode and help the person as best as I can.

Question 2: I used to plat a lot of footy (soccer), however it was playing havoc with my kickboxing career due to all the injuries I used to sustain.  Now all I do is combat sports and I hardly ever get injured!  I still follow the toon (Newcastle utd) though, fan till I die!

Answer 12

Luckily I don't have that problem. Me in the ring and me outside is super different it's like I have a switch in my head that says nice and aggressive  lol. I think you should try to meditate after fights and clam down & relax.

Answer 13

If you actually trained a style that had kata I would say run through a few kata's slowly with breathing to winde down from a sparring session. this helps get your mind re-oriented toward it's normal state and allows you to come down easier off of the addreneline high you experiance when you train fighting.

I would imagine that any thing that you can do without a lot of consous thought would be good. Maybe even 10 minutes of meditation, and I mean meditation where you just breathe and relax and let your mind wander where it wants to.

I am sure that everybody experiances this because everybody gets that adrenaline high once in a while.

Answer 14

You are tapping into the dark side of the force (LOL).  Ok, seriously, you are.  But, this is a phase.  How you handle this phase is key.

What is your philosophy?  Me, I found that by turning to my religion I got the balance I needed.  That's all I'll say about that.  You know how some folks get when you mention Jesus.

Basically, you are doing a lot of hard/masculine/yang things and not enough soft/feminine/ying things.  MMA is very hard, so, if you don't have a soft personality by nature, MMA will make you more agressive.  Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing, it's all in how you use your newfound strength.

You may need to switch dojos.  Or, you may need to switch within yourself and make an effort to leave the fighting in the fight club.   Step back and honestly ask what martial philosophy are they teaching you.  If they are not encouraging you to be punch drunk, then you are sneaking off and sipping the wine of violence on your own.  

Find a trusted parent, mentor, priest, rabbi, or counselor and talk about this issue.  The great thing about this problem is that you realize it is a problem.  To me, that shows you are half-way to beating it.