I’ve been studying the field of martial arts for well over 10 years and I have always had a passion for understanding just what makes the best that way. Just what makes the best the best? Why is Bruce Lee still considered the best martial artist ever and more importantly how can we still learn from him? What is it that great martial artists have that other artists don’t, and more importantly how can I apply this to learning martial arts?
Recently, I began to research a field called NLP (Neuro Linguistics Programming) and I was blown away by this cutting edge mind technology and how I could apply it. Soon I started asking the questions I mentioned earlier through the eyes of NLP and incredibly the answers started falling right into my lap. With this new mental tool to study the arts I began to realize why for example Bruce Lee chose the movements he did. Also realizing one of the tricks he used in movies vs. an actual martial arts event. This tool also spoke volumes on how Stephen Lopez won two straight gold Taekwondo medals in the 2000 and 2004 Olympics and to be quite honestly why he didn’t in 2008. But more on that later…
Along with these great questions I began to focus on the everyday martial artist. This encompassed the martial artists more on my level which made it much easier to study. What I found is that anyone can apply these techniques to their study of the martial arts! I also learned there are also thing called mental triggers or anchors that will immediately put you in the zone where you feel you can do anything. When I did this technique for the first time I really don’t even remember doing my form. I just remember after it was done standing their and my instructor looking shocked and telling me that it was the best form I had ever done!
So, after that I knew there was something to this NLP martial arts connection.
When I started learning this and getting answers to these and many other questions I became even more intrigued. This started to become such a passion that I started blurting this stuff out to my friends and they were blown away with this research! They coudn’t believe these answers were so apparent but until it was explained to them never noticed it. Although I get a large amount of satisfaction from doing this type of research and understanding it for myself, my friend said I should let other people in on this. So, I have started my first draft of this material and I do have to say that it is pretty good. But, I am a perfectionist sometimes almost to a fault so I would like some feedback on it. If you would be interested please let me know by sending a quick not to this email address nlp@themmazone.net. I would be happy to send you a copy in exchange for your feedback. I am only looking for about 6 people to review this so please let me know ASAP.
Thanks
Tony
nlp@themmazone.net
The MMA Zone
PS. Please only serious martial artist who are motivated to drastically improve their martial arts skill reply!
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May 25th, 2009 at 12:57 am
Hey Tony my name is Antonio :D I am a certified hypnotist, eventually to become a hypnotherapist. After watching a Bruce Lee special it freaking dawned on me…who better to model that the legend himself. I don’t want to model him to improve fighting skills, but to learn how to adapt some of his principles (‘be like water’, ‘absorb what is useful’, etc.). I’m talking to someone else that is interested in embarking on this journey as well. Would you want to help us try to pick apart his model. I’m going to get a copy of Tao of JKD and hopefully Striking Thoughts. What would be really helpful are a ton of videos of him talking (interviews and so forth) and observing his eye accessing cues. Also I have been trying to find a martial artist that would want to improve their skills via hypnosis. If you are interested I would be happy to hypnotize you as much as you want for free (I do all of my sessions via skype).
Also
p.s. if you think about it, Lee was a MASTER hypnotist and nlp’r. His control of time distortion was freaking phenomenal, as well as pain control.
Antonio
May 25th, 2009 at 1:10 am
Hows the book/material coming along. I would love to review it if you don’t mind.
Antonio
July 14th, 2009 at 7:27 pm
Tony,
As an active MMA fighter and coach, I have a keen interest in any mental tools that will help me and my students win! I have also spent some time studying NLP and find it very useful in the sport and in life in general.
I am continuing my study in this area and welcome any discussion from other martial artists on their findings and applications. This is the next area for major progression I think in the martial arts.
Morgan
July 14th, 2009 at 8:25 pm
Thanks for the comments Antonio,
In studying this and getting the material in order that has been some unbelievable discoveries. I will get this information together and get it to you.
Thanks,
thacker
July 14th, 2009 at 8:33 pm
Hey Thanks Morgan!
I agree with you I think sport is such a great window to study the mind since it has such a small life span like the fruit flyes scientists use in the lab. They use fruit flyes because they have such a short life span (2 months) so they can go through many generations within a relatively short period. So, with sports we have a very short period until the results can be seen. Did they hypno, meditation, visualization work? Were you at your peak in this specific sport event? So, in using sports to help us study human performance gives us a pass or fail on what works and what doesn’t. Hope this makes sense.
Thanks,
thacker