Challenge

So I'm going nuts training in martial arts.

Why push so hard?

The fact is, I'm no spring chicken. I'll be fine in Karate. I already have some level of proficiency at it. There are tons of really old guys who excel at Karate very late in life. Like me, they started much younger.

In Jiu-Jitsu, I'm a brand-new beginner. The founder of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu trained well into his 90s, but he started when young. I'm starting very, very late. If I hadn't been involved in wrestling years ago, I probably wouldn't try.

I can learn a technique as fast or faster than the young students can, but will I ever be able to make it a part of what I do, or part of how I move? Can you imagine learning to ride a bike at the same time you plan on retiring? How hard would that be?

Martial arts involve knowledge, but also require that the techniques become a part of the practitioner. That will be my real challenge in my new martial art.

That, and the muscle pulls.