I wish I could remember whose blog I read this in! If you know, please tell me and I’ll link it!
I define an AHA moment as: a big eye opener, something that helps change your game. It’s usually concepts rather than “AHA I learned the flower sweep!” Jiu Jitsu is made up of several of these along your journey, and for me, they signify a deepening of a larger principle rather than just remotely going through movements. Like your brain is catching up to what you’ve been doing and is trying to make sense of it.
Keanu Reeves — too inarticulate to say AHA!
Disclaimer: As a blue belt, I’m still a beginner – I’m not telling you what to do.
The AHA moment: Move what you can. The idea is simple: if a training partner is sitting on my chest and my right arm is trapped, instead of trying to wiggle my arm free, I focus on what you can move – like perhaps my left arm, or my hips, or my legs.
So this week when I’ve sparred with partners, I would focus on moving what was free. So if they had my legs and hips trapped, I would move my upper body around. It feels like a “duh” moment, but let me tell you – it can be REALLY HARD to NOT focus all your attention on where the pain or pressure is rather than where it is not.
My brown belt friend, said “I was pointing this out when you visited [last year].” The problem was that I wasn’t ready for it. I wasn’t at a place where it made sense to me. The AHA moments come when you’re ready to absorb them.
What’s your most recent AHA moment?
First let me say that I really resent Oprah for popularizing “aha moment” when the word “epiphany” already exists and is so awesome.
Second, thanks for the post. It is timely as recently I’ve been thinking that I don’t move enough when I’m in a bad position, and perhaps that is why. I “can’t” because I’m focusing (sub-consciously or not) on what I can’t move…duh, indeed! =P
Hahahah To be honest, I didn’t know that – I’ve been outside the US for going on 5 years now. I didn’t watch Oprah when I was in the states, and I definitely haven’t watched her since, so I independently came up with the “aha moment”. Sincerely.