As fighters, we are all fighting what we call the greatest battles of our lives. For many, it could be a single fight that shatters champion status, or it could simply be their first fight.
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I was depressed and had severe anger issues. My health was also complete garbage. I gained weight and started having pain in random parts of my body. My therapist suggested I do boxing or some kind of martial arts to get my body moving. After my therapy session, I went to Title Boxing and signed up for a one-year membership.
I didn't think I could ever become a boxer, but the fact that he hit that punching bag eight times in three minutes was the most satisfying thing I've ever done in my life. I forgot everything and felt like a champ after every session. When the experts said it was safe to travel outdoors, I continued my boxing training.I was invited to join an outdoor boxing group and fought someone for the first time since my brief karate days in middle school. It was an experience. I wasn't doing cardio. accelerated. I was beaten by everyone. All right, I'll save the rest of the story for another day. I get to the point.
Martial arts taught me community, discipline and perseverance. I was lucky that every boxing he gym I went to welcomed me with open arms. Also, every training his partner willingly taught me how to satisfy my ego without beating me. Since I started this journey, I have never met a bastard who intentionally tried to hurt me. It is humbling to learn from someone who started this journey years ago but is still ten years younger than you, or someone who started their journey around the same time as you and has progressed faster than you. I'm still learning from these people, and their journey inspires me to try harder, even if I'm dreading the one hour a day cardio I was trying to do.
The change for me was when I started my martial arts journey. What I learned at the gym has influenced other areas of my life. Since then, I have left a toxic workplace, built a new career aligned with my values, supported freedom, and started an accelerated software development training program.
I learned to take risks, make mistakes, and control what I could control. I lost money on the stock market. I have been in a situation where I was fired at work. I've also been knocked down and slapped in the face countless times for forgetting the most basic thing - keep your hands in the air. All right. learn. You absorb all the teachings like a sponge and you get better.