By: Seena Khonsari, MS, CSCS
As a Coach, I feel like I am Mr. Miyagi. Not because I am a Master of Karate, but because I teach fitness as a discipline. And as much as fast-fix fitness trends sell, I will never be one to sellout to my origins as a teacher.
My favorite part of the original Karate Kid is a scene where Daniel (student) has a conniption fit because he believes he hasn’t learned any Karate from Mr. Miyagi (Sensei) yet, despite having washed/waxed all the cars, sanding the deck, painting the fence, AND painting the house!
In Daniel’s undisciplined, young mind he’s wondering when he is going to learn how to punch, sweep, or perform a crane kick. Little does he know that his Sensei has kept true to practicing discipline by building Daniel’s foundation in the form of defense and a little good old fashioned hard work.
Our approach with fitness at The Gym in Lost Pines is one of discipline. You don’t get exposed to the punches, sweeps, and crane kicks until you can hold a plank, squat to proper depth, and manage to push/pull your own bodyweight first. Sure, it doesn’t stroke the ego-but it’s guaranteed to give you the quality of training and results you seek.
It takes discipline to achieve a level of fitness that you do not have to think too hard about. Your body moves better because you’ve naturally progressed through the lessons (i.e. Training Phases). You are stronger because you’ve been continually challenged in all movement patterns (including the ones you dislike). Your body composition has changed for the better because you’ve kept at it consistently (training age).
A little bit of discipline goes a long way, you just have to be willing to practice it. Hi-yah!
