Judo

Prior to moving to this beautiful island of St. Kitts, I had reservations... about a number of things. Probably the thing that weighed 3rd or so down the list of reservations was missing out on Judo, which has by this time been one of my great obsessions. Disclaimer: This post gets weird, and it's about Judo, read at your own peril!

Watch this video to get a little context. It's actually a pretty damn awesome video too (I think).

To the outsider, I can understand why Judo looks confusing, or even nonsensical. Two guys (in an slightly homoerotic wrestling match), wearing white cotton trash bags are grabbing each others' jackets and trying to throw them down on the ground and choke or (almost) break their bones for funzies. I can see why people wouldn't want to watch or do it.

We're taught not to fight growing up (like we should) and that's why for most people, Judo isn't a good fit. That's ok, that's normal; you're probably a person who contributes and is an active and healthy member of society, with no underlying mental condition.

That's why to do Judo, you have to have a little something wrong with you. I'm not saying that in a funny, trying to be cool, "haha" way. I think there is something missing (or present) in a person's mind that makes them mildly or moderately unstable if they like to do Judo; or perhaps more correctly, if someone likes Judo they have some kind of mental issue.

I had a friend once tell me that to succeed in Judo (for yourself) you either have to be an "S"(adist) or an "M"(asochist). Ignoring again the slightly homoerotic undertones, there is a lot of truth to it.

You start off in Judo knowing nothing, (though many-- myself included-- think they do) and you are continually ground into dust on the mat. Consistently, and constantly destroyed, your body slowly breaks down and every day you come home more bruised and bloodied than the last.

For experienced Judo players, though, it is like fighting an infant.

At this point, for almost every beginner, there is a moment when you can stop, when your brain is tricking you to fail:

"Relax... you've been going consistently for a while now. You can miss one practice. No one will even care that you're gone. I'm not even that good"

It's with this idea that people fade away in Judo. And you know what? That's ok. For most, Judo isn't a good fit, it's best to do what you want to do, and if Judo isn't it, don't waste the nice peoples' time.

The people who stay are either the "M's":

"I like this. I may not be very good, but I need this to: get in shape/get stronger/get mentally tough/get ladies."

Or the "S's":

"I like this. I want to: be good/be the best/crush my enemies, see them driven before me, and hear the lamentation of their women."

Both the "S's" and the "M's" are eventually tempered, and probably their view on what they get out on Judo changes. They certainly don't get ladies, they don't necessarily crush their enemies (some do though!), but they always remain "S's" and "M's".

Which does that make me...?