A topic I bring to the table today is the idea of extreme conditions while engaging in physical activities. This can be a range of methods, such as training in unpleasant environments, bearing an unusual amount of load, to lack of fluid consumption for long periods of time. For athletes this is the norm in order to perform at their highest for their country. However, what about those who are not invested in such occupation, but just want to have fun in the activity of choice?

Extreme conditions during sports are an issue in Japan. Kids of all ages face some form of this when they participate in a sports club at school, which can range from long practices under the blazing sun with no cover, to denial of water by their coach. Whether it be tennis, baseball, soccer, judō, or kendō, the idea is for the kids to learn how to develop spirit of endurance, and go the extra mile no matter how taxing the situation is, which can prove critical when seizing victory against other prefectural schools during competition. However, there have been many cases where kids have collapsed due to heat stroke or exhaustion, some of which had led to deaths. My wife explained to me her experience when she was part of the softball team at her school in Japan, where not only was she and her teammates denied wearing a cap to block the sun rays, but weren’t allowed to drink water until practice was done even though they were dehydrated. It was not a pleasant experience for her.  Over the years, efforts by sporting committees in Japan are bringing awareness of how to avoid endangering kids that participate in sports clubs. Still, this is questionable, for the harsh conditions still exist, and the cases of heat stroke during practices still occur, albeit few.

From my standpoint, extreme conditions have their purpose, especially for those who are invested in it to excel at their chosen activity, and are monitored by staff or companions, (i.e. a manager, a medical team, etc.) ensuring they progress safely. This can be done in moderation, so that the individual can grow. Kids shouldn’t be forced to endure such harsh conditions to the point it leaves long-lasting injuries. A lot of responsibility has to be taken when putting people through training with extreme conditions. For me, in my pursuit to study martial arts, I took the plunge and engaged in this as much as I could.

During my teenage years, my mentality towards budō was old-fashioned, thinking that a person on this path trains to be as fit as a warrior. Through research, I adapted a rigorous training regiment, along with other forms of conditioning outside of training. One in particular included not drinking water during 2+ hrs of training. I spent many years doing this with no issues, which further cemented the idea of such extreme training as fine. During my college years, I met others with the same ideologies as me, whom would become my training brothers, and would engage in long training sessions together, pushing ourselves to be the best. As an example, there were times when we would meet early in the morning on a weekend and travel to a park in a different borough while I was still living in NYC. There, we would have a long training session, which included running on a path hidden in foliage and scaling the side of a rocky surface to strengthen our fingers. This normally lasted over 2 hours. Having no drinks with us, we would have to make our way to the local store which, depending on how deep we were in the park, could take as long as 20 minutes to get there.

One day, when I was having a particular conversation related to martial arts with one of my training brothers, we hit on a topic about our experience with interacting with others who weren’t part of our group. Seeing that my views were abit one-sided, he responded to one of my statements in a manner like, “people have their own reasons to studying, and you shouldn’t always expect others to want to train for the same purpose as you.” At the time, I acknowledged the remark, but still held on to my own views as law.

A little later, after joining a dojo and training with many practitioners from all walks of life, I learned there was more to life than just training to be a “warrior”; interacting with others with varying views and values from mine, along with different purposes in their pursuit to studying martial arts helped to make me more open-minded. Not everyone is training for duels to the death, carry on the tradition of a specific style until they die with unwavering dedication, or even conditioning themselves to surpass limits as if going to war…which is fine. Quite frankly, we live in a time where such devotion is not a necessity to survive; on the contrary, it is more of a personal endeavor, one that I have embraced, but need not expect those around me to do the same.

Coming to this understanding was a good thing overall, as it made me more responsible when taking others under my wing. When I started my training group years later, I created an environment where students can immerse themselves in the martial arts, but also being mindful of everyone’s capacity. For example, after a period of rigorous practice, I would add breaktime where students can take 5 mins to catch their breath, ask questions, take a water break, and so on. If practice was indoors, I ensured that we had plenty of ventilation and, if the room got excessively hot, would turn on whatever cooling system we had on hand. Also, if during practice someone needed water to stay parched, I didn’t hesitate to allow them to step away and get a drink. In a dual fashion, the option to tough it out was there, but wasn’t forced onto students. My hopes were that each would develop endurance overtime, and slowly go pass their limitations. I encouraged this through various training methods, but was still mindful not to force this ideology outright in the group as a must-do.

In closing this topic, there’s a time when we should push ourselves during physical activities. Some people relish in this, while others are grateful when their coach or team pushes them hard to excel. Subjecting people of any age to extreme conditions without any regard to their health and safety, especially when signs of deterioration is evident, is wrong. Gradual strengthening over time can produce favorable results. While I see value in training to get better through specific forms of extreme conditioning, I believe they should be used with responsibility.