7 Things your HEMA instructor won’t tell you because they don’t want to hurt your feelings

1. You aren’t practicing enough. It’s not because you aren’t motivated or disciplined, it’s because you don’t realise that the levelling up happens while you are doing repetitions. It’s your job to find a method that is fun for your brain. Consistency beats motivation. Play.
2. And on that note – you aren’t taking responsibility for your own learning. You won’t develop by going to class once a week and doing sparring once a month. The real development happens when you take charge of your study and practice. Find an area to develop, research it, set up a regular routine outside of class time, even if it’s just five minutes a day. Enjoy it.
3. You don’t know the basics. Footwork, distance, strikes and timing are not one and done achievements – they require continuous maintenance. Fundamentals are what make great martial artists great; not vast knowledge, not fancy techniques, not taking tons of workshops and classes. It’s practicing footwork and cuts, alone or with a training partner. It’s learning what the technical terms actually mean by applying yourself to them, failing a lot, and getting up again. Top up regularly.
4. Pick up a book before you sign up for a tournament. HEMA is the study and research of historical fighting, the testing comes once you’ve gained competence and understanding. Your disappointment at losing a match will be less of a mystery and easier to course correct if you know where you went wrong. Be curious about the sources.
5. You can’t tough it out. As much as fencing is a 1v1 activity, you can’t overcome your issues alone. Growth comes in community, through dialogue, through shared experiences, through honest assessment. Speak to your peers and coaches, even someone with less experience has something to teach you. Stay humble.
6. You will get worse before you get better, and that’s normal. Once you’re past the beginner period and you start to gain competence in sparring, you will see improvement. But then you will start to realise how much there is to learn, compare yourself to others, get in your own head, and find yourself on the dreaded plateau. This is not a sign to quit, this is a sign to dig deeper, reach out to friends, work on your self control, and find your true North.
7. You’re not having enough fun. That doesn’t mean don’t take what you do seriously, it means you’re treating training like a punishment, and practice like a penance. This isn’t school, this is something you chose to do for fun. Enjoy what you do: laugh at your errors, find the thrill in the challenges, embrace gratitude as your body moves in space and learns new skills.

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