Growing old (dis)gracefully
Friday 07 November 2025
Defining middle-age is a a bit of a moveable feast. Basically, it’s the period between youth and old age, somewhere between 45 and 70. Choose your poison. One thing’s for sure, we’re all headed there, whatever age we are right now. Those first appearances of grey hair (or less hair!). Taking longer to get over a hangover the following morning. Bags under the eyes that no longer go away. Maybe simply the feeling that ‘things’ aren’t working as well as they used to.
As a martial artist, however, you have everything to look forward to. The investment in fitness you have made in your youth is likely to stand you in good stead as you grow older. Much of it never leaves you. Indeed, some athletes actually peak in middle age. And it’s interesting to note that the most robust Everest mountaineers are older people with leathery lungs.
But do watch the weight as the years go by – it becomes more difficult to shed the pounds, and sheer exercise won’t do it. More focus on your diet will pay dividends. And by the way, this doesn’t mean cutting down, it’s to do with choice and selection. Diet is from the Greek word, diata, meaning way of life. So watch more carefully what you eat, not how much you eat. Simple guide – ‘eat fresh’ wherever practical. And to dispel a myth for you worried guys, and provide you with a powerful motivator, it’s highly unlikely that your testosterone levels will be affected by middle age if you keep your weight under control.
As you progress through your belts while the years roll by, your technique becomes more and more important. You will find that advanced grading isn’t just to do with stamina, or the fact that you can perform all the moves and techniques, but that you do them well, and that you’re conscious about how they look. Pairs, for example, become a symbiotic demonstration, where each party is in harmony with the other. They should have a grace of movement to them, you should ‘flow like water’. You will find that this grace of movement extends to your whole bearing, in and out of the Dojo. When you look at the really high Dans in the Far East, wizened old gurus who include things like basket weaving and healing methods in their disciplines. They are graceful and courteous in their demeanour, in tune with the rhythms of life. They have nothing left to prove.
So, having looked at growing old gracefully, especially in the world of kickboxing, you’ve also got room for more ‘disgraceful behaviour’, i.e. lacking in graceful movement, but great fun as well as being useful to you in later years. Jiu-Jitsu, for example, can be especially of benefit in groundwork. Most street fights end up on the ground, so knowing how to handle yourself from a supine position will give you a distinct advantage. And then there’s Krav Maga. Not really a sport, and certainly not pretty or graceful, but by golly very handy in a confrontation. Krav seeks to finish it before it gets started. It is ruthless self-defence, including against knife attack. It will come as a big surprise for a thug to be defeated by an oldie, male or female. Disgraceful! And immensely satisfying!