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Muay Thai Training - Motivation vs Discipline

Author: Trevor Mimano
Date Posted: May 29, 2009

So what comes first, the chicken or the egg or in terms of actual training: Motivation or Discipline?
Let's take a closer look:

Motivation: To provide with an incentive; move to action; impel.
Discipline: To bring to a state of order and obedience by training and control.

To break it down even further: Motivation is simply the WHY?? Motivation is all the salient and sometimes silent hidden reasons that get you up in the morning. That has you walk back into the gym, bruised, sore and in pain the day after a punishing training session. Motivation is what has you work your butt off day after day, week after week, and month after month.

It's the thing(s) that get you through the drills, the blood, sweat and the tears. It's what has you hold on when every fiber of your being reasonable and sanely want to let go, give in. Motivation is what drives you.

Let's take a deeper look at discipline.

Discipline is the willingness to do the things that you need to do to produce the results that you want to have. Period.

It's about taking the actions that are consistent with your objective. It's the structures and regiments that you have to put in place in reality (in time and space) and the measures with which you will measure and track your progress.

E.g. If your objective is to win a fight in 6 weeks, then the measures that you could put in place would be for example:

* Setting up a training programme with your coach that would focus on the aspects of your game that you need to improve E.g. Weight training, flexibility, combinations, counters, clinch work etc.

* Scheduling the dates and times for these activities.

* Establishing the benchmarks for tracking your progress and the most important step....STICKING TO IT. No kidding putting your butt on the line and do the things you set out to do.

So which comes first: Motivation or discipline, you guessed it...Motivation, the reasons WHY you're committing to something, if you don't have a strong enough reason, chances are you won't keep up or follow through on what you set out to do.

However, motivation without discipline counts for nothing. Just empty hopes, desires and wants that you'll never achieve because you don't have the wherewithal to knuckle down and go for broke, consistently and persistently.

A legend once said: "Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do."

About The Author

Faithfully,

Trevor Mimano http://realmuaythai.com/

Article Source: JKD Street Combat - online collection of Muay Thai articles.

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