And Knowing Is Half The Battle

At Young Forest Martial Arts, our objective is to define what a Warrior is, and how to become one. A Warrior is simply someone who conquers their self through constant hard work and effort (kung fu). By conquering self, we mean over coming obstacles and limitations we set on ourselves. We set physical limitations on ourselves for a variety of reasons; we convince ourselves we don’t have time, we don’t have what it takes because we’re too old or out of shape, we like the idea but feel like we don’t have enough energy—just to name a few. Sometimes, it’s a matter of fear of failure. These limitations are set mentally. To overcome physical limitations, we must first conquer ourselves mentally. And that begins with educating the mind with new knowledge and awareness. We must first identify our goals, or things we’d like to do or achieve. Then, using the mind to control the body, we must set in motion methods to achieving our goals and objectives; constantly fueling our minds with more knowledge and experience gained from our endeavors. And as we gain more knowledge and awareness—i.e. strengthening the mind—we are able to push our bodies past the physical limitations we had previously set for ourselves; reaching new heights and potential.

At Young Forest Martial Arts, we start educating the mind right away with life skills—skills needed to overcome personal limitations. Then we challenge the mind (an thus develop life skills) by immediately challenging the body physically. As students of all ages move through our martial arts system, we are constantly challenging the mind and body with deeper conceptual knowledge, constantly pushing students past any preconceived ideas of mind and body limitations.

True martial arts should be trained with the intent of becoming a Warrior—one who is constantly thriving to develop their self above and beyond. Martial arts should not be just a physical training focused on merely how to fight; martial arts should should focus on mental growth and development as well.