Top 10 Mistakes That Hold Students Back

Doubting themselves

This may be one of the most seen mistake students make in Krav Maga and in real life nonetheless: living in a constant state of fear and self-doubt. The problem with self-doubt is that is going to get in the way of your training because you will spend your time worrying about what others think of you or second guessing every move you make. “Curing” self-doubt is a process, but the beauty of Krav Maga is that it will also train your brain to go into a more confident and happier state. Here are a few mechanism to deal with self-doubt:

• Stop comparing yourself to others.
• Don’t think about what everyone else thinks of you.
• Make a decision and correct it down the way is necessary.
• Balance negative thoughts.

Not listening

Ernest Hemingway once said: “I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.” Many students listen briefly to what the instructor said and form an opinion or conclusion too fast. What they don’t understand is that if they are not going to listen and pay attention they are more likely to make mistakes, which will affect their training and maybe even getting them hurt. Just remember to pace yourself and really listen to what the instructor is explaining, not just waiting for him to finish talking. This way you will understand better and make your training more successful.

Not knowing how to handle their mistakes

We all make mistakes but just a few know how to deal with them. In the process of learning, many students make mistakes but we’ve seen a fair amount that just don’t know how to bounce back. Those students will make a mistake and start getting frustrated and beating themselves up by doubting or simply stopping. The best way of learning a technique is by practicing over and over again, until you understand the aspects of it and do it right. If you make a mistake and stop that is going to affect your training and also of those around you. The best way to react to mistakes is by adopting a growth mindset: accept the idea of failure and move on as quickly as possible.

Coming just for the “one” instructor

When you come to train your main focus should be to learn Krav Maga. A lot of students forget that and focus on the instructor: they will refuse to train if is not with a particular instructor. As flattering as that can be for that instructor, that is not a good attitude to have because that shows lack of adaptability. All instructors in our school are trained under the same process, know the same principles and have the main goal of teaching you how to walk in peace.

Not being a good partner

Many Krav Maga lessons will require for students to train with a partner and work as a team. A lot of students will make it really difficult for their partner to learn, by holding back, being extremely resistant or too aggressive or by not helping their partner get a good feel for it. Just remember that is you are working in your comfort zone and not pushing yourself you will never get the full extent of Krav Maga and nobody will want to work with you.

Not letting go

Krav Maga wants to prepare you for the realness of real life events by providing you with the most realistic training there is. A lot of students hold back and do not let go by not providing realistic energy. They will hold back from hitting or kicking with full power or making impossible moves. Training has to always remain as close to real life as possible and students have to understand that they have to act out the exact situation and get in the same mindset they will be when in danger.

Having too much ego

This is an oldie but goldie! A lot of students don’t get that they have to leave their ego at the door and they will find the learning process sometimes demeaning, become bullies with their training partners and refuse to lose and let go. They will eventually learn that once their ego gets out of the way they will train better, which only will strengthen the relationship with their teacher and training partners.

• Training for the wrong reasons   There’s a handful of students that will come in just to learn how to fight or to feed their ego. Although, the reason for taking Krav Maga lessons does not have to be solely to learn self-defence, using it for the wrong reasons and hurting or putting the life of others in danger, is not acceptable.
• Not being consistent   We’ve said this before: a good Krav Maga student has a plan and is consistent with it! Missing classes for relevant reasons is not a problem, but when you are not consistent with our training that becomes a problem. Krav Maga requires discipline and consistency, because if not you are just going to waste your time and money.
• Trying to get ahead   We’ve all seen that student that always asks a lot of questions, rushes through techniques or asks the more advanced students for new stuff. Don’t try to rush your training! Rushing will only make you do mistakes and will stop you from developing a strong foundation for the techniques you learn in the future.