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On training I hear all the time the world "relax" and "loose your self" etc.

From what I have see you must be relax to do anything, from martial arts to dancing, to talk.

So my question is very simple: is there any fast and simple technique for the relax ? and how do I know or prove that I am relax to my self ?

I mean a technique that can be done as you are stand or not, on every place you are, in any moment.

Mind or Body ?

I wish to learn for both.

What I know: Emotional is the feedback of the body to the mind. So emotional is reflect the body and its the signal to the mind, its how the body affect the mind status and we fell like that.

You can relax your body with one technique, but you need a second technique for the mind.

The one can affect the other ofcource mind <-> body, if the body is relaxed then maybe and the mind go to relax, or if you relax your mind thinking birds and see maybe the body relax also, but they are 2 different and is better to have different techniques for 2, and not wait the one to affect the other.

For the mind I expect for mental technique, but for the body I expect a physical one.

David H. Clements
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Aristos
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  • By relaxation do you mean physical or emotional (see this question)? Perhaps the meditation tag applies here? – Zephyr Feb 18 '12 at 13:43
  • @Zephyr No the question you give me not reflect what I ask for. – Aristos Feb 18 '12 at 13:53
  • @Zephyr To clear it. emotional is the feedback of the body to the mind. So emotional is reflect the body and its the signal to the mind. You can relax your body with one technique, but you need a second technique for the mind. The one can affect the other ofcource mind <-> body, but they are 2 different and is better to have different techniques for 2, and not wait the one to affect the other. – Aristos Feb 18 '12 at 14:03
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    There are two questions here. This might be better off being split: "How can I [physically] relax quickly" – David H. Clements Feb 18 '12 at 17:07
  • Not really. You can be mentally tense and physically relaxed or vice-versa. There are links there, but they aren't the same thing. More importantly, you are looking for two answers. One is physical, the other is mental. If you are looking for two answers, it implies that you should have two questions. – David H. Clements Feb 18 '12 at 18:51
  • @Aristos Go read this: http://martialarts.stackexchange.com/a/485/65 – Ho-Sheng Hsiao Feb 18 '12 at 21:47
  • While this is a good topic/question, the original poster is asking for a much narrower question. That narrower question has already been asked here: http://martialarts.stackexchange.com/questions/482/how-to-meditate-after-an-adrenaline-rush-or-exertion

    @DavidH.Clements what do you think?

     – Ho-Sheng Hsiao Feb 18 '12 at 21:48

5 Answers5

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As Trevoke said, there are no shortcuts, no fast-and-easy way to know you are relaxed. This is a very deep subject.

Relaxing the body is much easier than relaxing the mind. There are biofeedback methods you can use to relax your body. Relaxing the mind gets into meditation. However, as long as your mind searches out for an objective -- or a shortcut like the way you are doing, you won't actually relax your mind.

This is a fairly common trap for a lot of people seeking this. Its root cause isn't the inability to quiet or relax the mind so much as thinking you are important and fearing non-existence. To continually prove that you exist, your mind comes with clever reasons to justify itself. It will find ways to measure "relaxation" or come up with "goals" in order to avoid its own impermanence. Biofeedback will get you started but fear will eventually co-opt it. If you seek to relax the mind, you're going down one wild adventure. This venue is not a good place to learn how to relax the mind.

If you are content with relaxing the body, some things to try:

  1. "Dead Arm". Let the body part fall to the ground with gravity. This is easier to demonstrate physically.
  2. Learn how to slow your heartrate.
  3. Learn how to soften your flinch response.
  4. Learn how to let go of fear, particularly fear of pain. Few people enjoy themselves when in pain. Fear and fear of pain keeps you from relaxing.
  5. When sparring, avoid trying to "win".
  6. Learn how to use the peripheral vision.
  7. Learn how to be gentle. Learn to be gentle with yourself and with others. This is one of the most underestimated and least-respected skill among people attracted to martial arts. It takes significantly more strength, precision, and dexterity to be gentle than it is to go all-out. Being gentle is how you endure while staying relaxed. (But please, do not try that at home).
  8. Learn how to stay relaxed.

You will find more as you keep playing. Despite StackExchange's format, you will never find the "best" answer all in one place. There are some things you cannot find on Google. You pick up the best stuff along the way.

Community
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Ho-Sheng Hsiao
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    @Aristos Ok, I see where you're coming from. You're assuming there's some trick, some button you can press on your controller to activate your Super Samurai Ninja Jedi Relaxation Technique. There isn't one. There is a secret here, but it is hidden in plain sight. It's the kind of secret that people tell you exactly what it is, try very hard to make as plainly as they can, but you still would not get because it is not something you are looking for and not something you want to accept. – Ho-Sheng Hsiao Feb 18 '12 at 21:36
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There is no "fast and simple technique to relax", except maybe a hypnose-induced trigger, and I expect it would have to be carefully composed.

This is done like everything else - piecemeal. And when you get familiar with meditation, it becomes something you carry around with you.

The other solution is to start paying a lot of attention to your body, so you get aware enough that you can go through a quick body scan and relax what needs to be relaxed. Either will take you many hours of practice to develop.

Anon
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  • @Aristos, I respect and understand what you are saying, but for some things, THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS. Not until we enter the Age of the Matrix and we can do high-speed, intensive training of the neurons and nerves. – Anon Feb 18 '12 at 15:37
  • Well, I hope you get the magical answer you are looking for, but I am not holding my breath. – Anon Feb 18 '12 at 16:53
  • @Aristos there isn't a shortcut. There's no fast and easy way to relax. In looking for a "fast and easy way" you're already lost in the woods. Having said that, there are numerous ways that help you get there. Their effectiveness depend on what kind of person you are. – Ho-Sheng Hsiao Feb 18 '12 at 18:25
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    @Aristos -- if you know the answer, please, provide it. It sounds like you know something I do not. – Anon Feb 18 '12 at 21:30
  • @Aristos tell us and we can fill in the blanks. – Anon Feb 18 '12 at 21:43
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    @Aristos You making the same mistake every newbie makes. Meditation happens continuously. It's not something you turn on for a few minutes and then "go back to normal". – Ho-Sheng Hsiao Feb 18 '12 at 21:44
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Meditation methods have already been mentioned, so outside of that, having a good laugh helps me. Finding a way to laugh helps me relax mentally and physically and shake off nerves. Far side cartoons, watching Zoolander or the 40year old virgin, or talking trash with my brother always help me relax and get to a good place. I think the trick is finding the optimal state if arousal where I am relaxed but also positive and alert. Sometimes more classic relaxation techniques do the job too well and take me deeper into relaxation than is useful for me.

Josh
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Exhale.

Exhale deeply and allow the jaw to "drop" and loosen. Spend a second looking for the tension in your body and make an effort to relax it. (related link: http://copdcanada.ca/anxiety.htm That is the first link I found, not the best link I could find. Years ago when I was in management they taught a variety of techniques to link exhalation to bodily relaxation, which has an impact on mental relaxation.)

Alternatively, if you're willing to tolerate something a bit slower, try zhan zhuang, but that converges on the "meditation" answer given by others.

I concur with some of the other comments that the question can be construed as asking a bit much. I doubt that it is possible to quantify relaxation without equipment. (If you have a blood pressure cuff handy and if you're willing to accept that as evidence perhaps, but that seems to violate the precondition of anywhere/anytime). You might be able to measure heart rate and use that as indirect evidence. I have absolutely no idea how I would objectively measure mental relaxation. I think the last half of the

My answer is limited to techniques that can be done anywhere, at any time.

MCW
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As had been said repeatedly here, there are no shortcuts and practice and continual training in self awareness of your body are required. That said, a description that really helped me that has not yet been mentioned here, at least not in so many words, is to completely relax any and every muscle that is not needed for the current task. In martial arts this tends to translate into speed as your body is not fighting its own tension. I have found this to be a very difficult concept to put into practice. When training, most martial artists try to do their techniques as quickly as possible but I have found that training slower, specifically my katas or forms, really helps me to relax the muscles not needed. This "slower" training creates a greater fluidity which, paradoxically, creates faster speed. Also, as previously mentioned, the best way to begin this type of training is with meditation. This does not necessarily mean sitting, though that is the easiest way to start. Try meditating while doing your best form, i.e. the one you do not have to think about the moves.

Rmtel
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