old jong’s CUTIE post had me wondering about the weather.
Do you guys have any preference to weather when it comes to training?
Personally, I like brutally hot summer days during which I can strip down to my shorts and practice without fear of messing up my clothes or technique.
I always prefer to practice at least shirtless because then I can’t hide my technique from myself, and that’s hard to do in winter even in my (mostly) heated apartment.
Actually, I’m convinced I’ve asked this question before. But I’d love to see your opinions anyway.
Anything above 25 c is just too hot. You sweat profusely, grass and dirt sticks to you, your stamina runs out more quickly, the staff slips out of your sweaty hands, your shoes stink from being soaked with sweat, gloves and head gear stink from sweat.
Yeah, it’s all good and blokey. But going through that four/five times a week is pretty grotty.
I like the moderate weather of spring and fall. Summer is good because you can warm up quicker and stay warm longer (less soreness and risk of injury), but I have to wash my Gi almost every day. Also, dehydration and overheating due to high humidy is a serious problem.
In the winter it is harder to warp up and stretch, but the quick cool down period is nice for changing back into your street clothes. You don’t get as dehydrated and you can stay sharper longer.
I agree with what Lyle said, althoiugh perfect weather is not that easy to come by. If I had to choose between the extremes I would choose hot for the simple fact my whole body will get warmed up quikly.
Any thing but snow. I like to practice outside but i cant do that when its snowing, i can deal with the hot sun, cool evenings, even rain, anything but snow!!
Its not what goes in a man that defile’s him, its what comes out.
yea, snow . slippery, ice cold, wet. yuck! the dead of winter is when i practice in the comfortable condition of my school (i have a set of keys!). any other weather i can bare. except for hurricanes. oh and tornados. i tend to stay indoors for those.
“…either you like reincarnation or the smell of carnations…”
I practice my taiji outside in the snow in front of of my yard each day. I dress very warmly though, downcoat, gloves, hat, warm pants, and usually maintain body heat when doing so. I probably do not spend longer than 45 minutes outside in any given session though, and do the majority of my qi gong indoors.
I prefer Spring and Fall. They happen to be my favorite seasons–days aren’t too long or too short, not too hot or too cold. The Fall is more brisk, and the Spring is alive with bright, reborn colors (I love it when the grass comes back and it looks electric green).
Robin
Surrender yourself to nature and be all that you are.
If you pr!ck us, do we not bleed? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge? If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you in that the villany you teach me, I will execute, and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction. MOV
I prefer training in winter. Australian summers are so bloody hot. Where I live it sits between 45 degrees (celsius) & 53 degrees on an AVERAGE day in summer. I also prefer to train at night as I always feel more alert after dark.
Maybe I should be a Ninja
I love training on the beach too. But my favourite training scenario was one time when one of my friends & I had a sparring match (complete with gloves & mouthguards) on the beach, at night during a thunderstorm. The rain was absolutely sheeting down, and the only time you could see each other was when the lightning flashed. It was f***ing awesome. Anyone else tried this?
Hot weather recruits more capillaries in the skin and extremities to remove heat. Exercise recruits more blood flow to the muscles. Unmoderated, all of this can add up to a large drop in blood pressure leading to dizziness,nausea, fainting spells, etc..
I like training when its almost winter b/c itsl ike 45-50 degrees outside and you cant relly sweat too much unles your doing forms as fast as possible.
Zvika
“He’s not dead, 'es resting! Well if 'e’s resting, I’ll wake him up! 'Ello Mr. Polly Parrot…” -Monty Python, Dead Parrot Sketch
I really don’t care to know how much either of you poop
As for the topic, I like spring and fall weather. Summers here are like 95 - 110 degrees between mid june and early september -it’s hot as hel1. We don’t use A/C in the summer, sifu will only turn on the fan, which doesn’t help a whole lot. Winters here aren’t really that bad, and it takes a lot for me to get cold anyway, so winter is a pretty cool time for me to train outside also.
"Just because I joke around sometimes doesn’t mean I’m serious about kung-fu.
" - nightair
I don’t get that much change in weather. I do enjoy practicing in the fall, especially early in the morning but I get so d@mn stiff! I’m trying to work on weather conditioning(difficult considering most days range from 70-80F) so I do practice outside in the snow when I visit relatives in Kansas etc. It’s kinda cool. Side note- never train for extended periods of time in the snow in your boxers(and NEVER train grappling in that manner) It’s FRIKKEN COLD! But I’m crazy so I like it.
Training in the rain is really nice too. Especially the day after(very pretty).
-Z
“The thorn pricks only those who would harm the rose.”
