[celticlonghouse]

I’ve read that many people have learned to concentrate and control their body from things like heart rate, feats of strength, solve problems in their sleep, to being able to induce orgasm with out touch.

Does anyone have experience with this?
What were you able to do?
How did you learn?

[Whero]

I think this is very true. Your body is a vessel; you must nurture it any way you can.

[ARaven0137]

I am a long term martial arts practitioner and there is a state of mind called mu shin. It's a state of concentration and focus where you see and feel things that you can't in a normal mindset. When I get there, everything around me slows down and I can hone in on things that are more important. With many opponents I can sense their breathing change or their muscles tense for an attack and sometimes I sense what will happen before it does. I move faster and exhibit more strength without tension and the body moves and reacts without conscious thought. It goes along with a state of mind called zanshin where you are relaxed yet entirely alert. I took karate as a girl and aikido as a teen, now I'm into kendo and iaido. One of the ways in which I got to this point is through endless repetition of techniques and meditation. Repetition is the mother of all learning so I've heard. One of the most basic things is suburi where we deliver certain cuts over and over and over, hundreds of times until we achieve an altered mindset like a meditative trance. I'm a competitive shooter too and it works well for that. For bullseye shooting, I can literally see the muzzle flash and the slide cycle when I'm mentally in the zone. For combat shooting I visualize the course of fire first and see myself in action and then the body just follows the mental script or adjusts as needed.

I'm still waiting for the sleep issues to resolve or for the orgasms.

[celticlonghouse]

Yes! You said it- The ZONE- another great example (albeit maybe subconsciously) a place that athletes can get where everything just works, and the game slows down for them. But the trick would be getting in the zone at will.

Kind of the opposite is being zoned out.

[celticlonghouse]

I have a friend who was riding his motorcycle and was hit head on. The result was him being thrown airborne for 60 feet or so. He said that as he was going through the air, all he could think about was relaxing his body and not bracing for impact. He said he felt he was airborne for a while, and in that moment he had no fear at all. He walked a way unharmed. I asked him how he was able to do that and he said he “had no idea, it was a miracle.”

[sarahsweets]

If you dont mind me asking... why is this in the sexual/gender issues section? is that what you are struggling with?

[celticlonghouse]

The reason I posted here is not to throw up a problem on the table, but explore and learn if there are techniques people can use to solve problems.

[ARaven0137]

One thing I forgot to mention is that when I reach that state of mu shin, all anxiety and worry fade away. It's like being truly in the moment where the only thing that matters is you and the sword...or whatever is most important to you at the time. It may sound cliche, but it's like the Force. The sword becomes alive and I can feel a resonance and energy in it. For the time I practice, noting else exists and I have no problems or pains.

[celticlonghouse]

Originally Posted by ARaven0137

One thing I forgot to mention is that when I reach that state of mu shin, all anxiety and worry fade away. It's like being truly in the moment where the only thing that matters is you and the sword...or whatever is most important to you at the time. It may sound cliche, but it's like the Force. The sword becomes alive and I can feel a resonance and energy in it. For the time I practice, noting else exists and I have no problems or pains.

So many questions! How did you learn? Have you applied it to other things? How long did it take to master it?

[ARaven0137]

My parents got me into karate when I was about 6 or so. I got to Nikyu rank or brown belt by 14. As a teen I wanted to try aikido. From what I know, there are two distinct styles where I trained, Ki Society and Aikikai. Ki Society is very spiritually focused and the techniques are usually done cooperatively where you blend with your partner. I just happened to sign up with Aikikai, which was a "hard form." After a certain rank, your partner is non cooperative and you must do the technique correctly to succeed. I was a teenage girl practicing with grown men so I had to do it perfectly. Still, it was much about mental focus and ki energy that made your technique work. When I got to Yonkyu or blue belt for us, I was uke or the throwee for my sensei. I was expecting a nice gentle throw when he did kotegaeshi or a wrist throw. Next thing I knew I was flat on my face seeing stars. Sensei said, you're Yonkyu now, you can take the fall. I eventually got to Nikyu as well.

I've used aikido in real life a handful of times. I was groped a couple of times and once in a "bar fight". Haha, actually, a former female friend was about to hit another friend and I intervened and she grabbed my hair and ended up in a Nikkyo wrist lock.

I've been taking kendo now for about a decade. I'm on the verge of Godan or 5th degree black belt equivalent. We don't wear color belts and there is no rank distinction on the gear. I also have been taking iaido for the same time. Kendo is the competitive sport with the armor and iaido is the art of drawing the sword and cutting. With previous martial arts experience I found reaching a state of focus came quicker, maybe around two to three years in. It is like "the force" in that, it's easier to apply with one less skilled, but very difficult with one of greater skill. With some opponents, I just know what they're going to do before they do it. With Rokudan or Nanadan high level sensei they know what you will do first. It's a sense where their energy shifts and you notice a twitch or change in the breathing or pressure between the swords.

I find the ability to laser focus very useful in so many things. From just the personal benefits of stress and anxiety reduction to practical use. I've also been fencing for more than 20 years since I was very young and the crossover of skill and mental focus is great. I've been very good at finding weak spots in an opponent and luring them into traps. I also fly for a living and focus is critical when things go wrong or on landing. With mu shin, where you're zoned in, you observe so much more, both in fine detail and big picture. During many of my bouts, after the sword exchanges occur, I don't recall thinking anything, but I do recall every detail of the exchange from attacks, parries, dodges, etc. In iaido, we sometimes do tameshigiri or mat cutting. This requires a lot of focus to make a successful cut through a thick tatami mat.

This is the gentle version of kotegaeshi. YouTube

Here's the harder version. YouTube

I hope that answers your questions. I could talk all day about stuff like this. :P

[celticlonghouse]

Awesome! Thanks for sharing

[medievalbushman]

I used to shoot a fair bit, and my state of mind had a massive affect on my shooting ability. If I was in a bad unfocused state of mind, I struggled to shoot pop cans at 20 yards. If I was in the zone, "zenned" out so to speak, I could shoot 3" groups with a .22 at 100 yards... with iron sights. I eventually learned how to drop myself into my "zen" state. It starts with my breathing. Most of the time, we breath without being aware, just automatically doing it without thought. By making myself aware of my breathing, and then focusing on controlling each breath, I slowly reign myself in and "center" myself. Once I've achieved "control" of my body, I then start running through my shooting checklist. Relaxed muscles, properly couched cheek, proper body posture and positioning. Then I line up my sights, zero in on my target, all while maintaining controlled breathing. Once I'm close to lined up, only then does my finger drop to the trigger, making sure it's properly positioned so that the squeeze doesn't cause a misalignment when the round fires. I time my squeeze with the last exhale, a very slight pause, and then CRACK! The shot should surprise me if I've done everything right. I'm not saying I'm an amazing shot, and it's been years since the last time I went shooting, but I knew that if I wanted to I could have done very well in competitions. I'd like to get back into it and see if I ACTUALLY am good enough, but I've other hobbies occupying my funds and time. I'm still learning to achieve my zen in those hobbies.

A couple other "mind controlling body" abilities I've developed, more inline with this subforum, are orgasm suppression and size expansion. They start with controlled breathing like my shooting, but delve more into my "energy" (for lack of a better descriptor), and thus differ a bit.

For the suppression, as I'm quickly approaching or am about to go over the brink, I mentally identify that building ball of energy in my core, that building feeling down in my groin. Once I've got a mental grasp on this, I imagine closing my "hands" around it, like catching a firefly or a dodgeball, and start compressing it in and pushing it back down. It's almost like trying to squeeze a bright intensely vibrating ball of energy into a jar with a too-small opening. If I've successfully got control of it, I can feel my core pushing it back down into my groin, and then the feeling slowly subsides into a dull hum rather than threatening to boil out in an explosion.

As for expanding my size, again I have to identify that source of energy, but this differs in that I'm not trying to suppress it, but instead am trying to harness and direct it out. So I'll feel that energy, less like a ball when I do this but more like a pool or reservoir deep down in the core of my groin, and I'll tap into it, slowly pushing it out into my shaft. This becomes like a guide wire for my muscle contractions in my pelvic floor (similar muscle contractions to kegel exercises for women), which I will use to push my blood outward and into my shaft. I'll feel my shaft get tight, and then stretch out, expanding it beyond it's normal size. Using this technique, I've achieved expansion of close to 1cm more in diameter, and at least 1.25cm in extra length. Might not sound like much, but it makes my fiance go wild eyed and she'll sometimes lose control and claw my back up when I pull this trick out mid-sex. Especially when I pulse it.

Both of these techniques require I start with my breathing exercises for best success, achieving awareness and then control of my body before attempting. Sorry if this is TMI, but I felt it suited the vein of the convo. Btw, I have yet to achieve willed orgasm, but I can use the expansion techniques to stimulate myself into arousal.

[ARaven0137]

Oh, you're a firearms enthusiast as well! I'm impressed. I compete in pistol and three gun competitions. I own a Glock 22 gen 4 and a Glock 19 gen 5 as well as a Sig Sauer P228 for pistols and a Remington 870 12 ga. For bullseye shooting, breathing and focus are so crucial. In the zone I can see the muzzle flash, the spend shell eject and the slide cycle like its in slow motion. I take a deep breath and present a little high, let the front sight setting on the bullseye while letting out half the breath and then squeeze. For combat shooting I visualize the course of fire in my head to include drawing and reloads.

A former BF taught me some tantric sexual techniques with breathing and focusing on...things. I have to say it does good things.

[ARaven0137]

Originally Posted by medievalbushman

I used to shoot a fair bit, and my state of mind had a massive affect on my shooting ability. If I was in a bad unfocused state of mind, I struggled to shoot pop cans at 20 yards. If I was in the zone, "zenned" out so to speak, I could shoot 3" groups with a .22 at 100 yards... with iron sights. I eventually learned how to drop myself into my "zen" state. It starts with my breathing. Most of the time, we breath without being aware, just automatically doing it without thought. By making myself aware of my breathing, and then focusing on controlling each breath, I slowly reign myself in and "center" myself. Once I've achieved "control" of my body, I then start running through my shooting checklist. Relaxed muscles, properly couched cheek, proper body posture and positioning. Then I line up my sights, zero in on my target, all while maintaining controlled breathing. Once I'm close to lined up, only then does my finger drop to the trigger, making sure it's properly positioned so that the squeeze doesn't cause a misalignment when the round fires. I time my squeeze with the last exhale, a very slight pause, and then CRACK! The shot should surprise me if I've done everything right. I'm not saying I'm an amazing shot, and it's been years since the last time I went shooting, but I knew that if I wanted to I could have done very well in competitions. I'd like to get back into it and see if I ACTUALLY am good enough, but I've other hobbies occupying my funds and time. I'm still learning to achieve my zen in those hobbies.

I put up a few target pics if you wanted to take a look. For shotgun and rifle I try to get a really good cheek weld and pull the weapon in tight. I get a twisting form of pressure between the strong hand and the support hand and pull both my elbows down to the center to lock the weapon in tight.

[celticlonghouse]

Keeping some continuity in the thread but also getting back on topic...

A good read is “modern day gunslinger”. It describes four levels of competency. Of course it’s in the context of handgun combat, but it could be applied to other aspects of our lives. It goes like this in order of least competent to most:

1-You’re bad and you don’t even know it.
2-you’re bad but at least you are aware.
3-you are good, but you have to deliberately concentrate on it.
4-you are good and you don’t even have to think about it.

[medievalbushman]

Originally Posted by celticlonghouse

1-You’re bad and you don’t even know it.
2-you’re bad but at least you are aware.
3-you are good, but you have to deliberately concentrate on it.
4-you are good and you don’t even have to think about it.

Well, in regards to my shooting, when I was actively shooting I would have classed myself a 3, but these days I'm probably a 2. I'll try to remember to find this book and give it a read, it sounds interesting.

[medievalbushman]

@celticlonghouse I'm curious, is there anything "mind over body" related that you've wanted to learn in your life? Anything you've thought "that sounds cool, I'd like to learn that!"?

[ARaven0137]

Originally Posted by celticlonghouse

Keeping some continuity in the thread but also getting back on topic...

A good read is “modern day gunslinger”. It describes four levels of competency. Of course it’s in the context of handgun combat, but it could be applied to other aspects of our lives. It goes like this in order of least competent to most:

1-You’re bad and you don’t even know it.
2-you’re bad but at least you are aware.
3-you are good, but you have to deliberately concentrate on it.
4-you are good and you don’t even have to think about it.

I recall when I was getting shooting lessons, thinking grip, stance, breathing, sight alignment and trigger control...squeeze bang.

A former kendo sensei had me teaching for a bit and I told kohai (less experienced students) that the three stages of development to me were physical, mental and then spiritual.

Physical was, how do I stand? How much pressure do I put into the grip? How hard to I swing? What is X technique?

Mental was, how do I maneuver for advantage? How much pressure do I put on the opponent's blade to control the center? How far ahead can I imagine a potential phrase of cuts and parries?

Spiritual was, how do I overcome my opponent's strengths with mine? (ki o korosu) How do I take advantage of his mental lapses? How do I preserve my energy longer than my opponent's.

[medievalbushman]

@ARaven0137 Interesting development philosophy, I like it. What's interesting to me is that it becomes a perpetual feedback loop, at least when I think it out. Because as you develop each, it will then flow into the other and alter how that is done. For example, the physical will inform the mental. The mental will then inform the spiritual. The spiritual will then flow back into the other two, which will in turn change and develop from this and re flow back into each other, and on and on. Every time you develop one aspect, it changes how you think/perform the other aspects. So being conscious of this helps one be conscious of when they need to look at adjusting their other aspects when one has experienced a period of development.


In my own fighting style, I've seen a lot of changes over the past four years. I'm a southpaw, so that alone poses some different challenges (especially fighting sword and board), but when I first started my guard was that of my round center grip shield being directly in front of and held square to me, my sword above it held parallel so it could guard my face while I kept the shield just low enough to have good vision over it. This was the physical. This inherently produced certain strategies in the mental aspect, like making lateral movement undesirable as it produced openings for my opponents, and I was usually very defensive in my fighting (also a product of being new). Lots of reverse movement and "c" range strikes as this style of holding the shield has serious weaknesses the closer I am to my opponent. I developed a "sniper" spiritual approach because of this, always wanting to fight at my max range, being very methodical, and never wanting to commit too hard to engagements as prolonged engagements make egress more and more difficult. I would wait out my opponent, waiting for the shield to drop enough or seeing an opening I could exploit elsewhere. After a while, some glaring weaknesses started to pop up in this style, like having no "b" or "a" range competence so all anyone needed was to be more competent in those ranges and then close quick and hard enough that I couldn't effectively backpedal before they could throw a couple shots. Also, there's a lot of standing around and waiting in this style, and that got boring super quickly. People don't want to engage you if you're just going to keep breaking contact and refusing to stand and fight. Plus, snipers strike from concealment, and there is no concealment outside of hiding your sword behind your shield or below their sightline (strats I hadn't developed yet). They know where you are and you usually won't be catching them unawares, so a "sniper" spirit isn't well suited to fighting swordnboard.

So my style changed. I tried a different guard and found it much more effective with my personality and strengths. I adjusted my shield to being angled along my arm, being held at approximately 45 degrees with an edge angling out in front and slightly to my left. My sword ended up being held in a "shotgun" position, the blade angling back over my shoulder and behind my head. This gave me a lot more flexibility with ranges, I could use my shield edge to manipulate other shields and weapons, and my sword was still able to guard most shots to my head but was now in a better position to fire quick powerful shots to anywhere I wished to target (within physical ability). This in turn changed my mental strats from always fighting at c range to using the whole range, looking for opportunities to manipulate with my shield, and a desire for more lateral movement so that I could get better angles with a single step at b and a range. I ended up in more b and a range fights and my competency shot up from this. Spiritually, I was now a "brawler", looking to engage early and open them up by forcing them to be defensive with rapid shots from multiple angles, being a lot more aggressive with my shield, seeking to prolong engagements while I searched for that opening.

My style is now at a new evolution point, as new weaknesses have made themselves evident and I'm adapting to address them. Being a brawler is aggressive and fun, but my technical prowess has suffered and people who have good defense need but weather the storm and wait for me to tire before getting their opening. Also, my guard has some inherent weaknesses at the onset of a bout, as it leaves the rightside of my head open to someone with a wicked fast offside shot, and my leftside has been lit up on multiple occasions due to it being more open to right handers (ie. most people I fight). I can usually defend my left well, but anyone with a good wrap or good lateral movement will find an opening sooner or later.

[ARaven0137]

That's fascinating how you present that. It really makes sense. In fencing, I have a different philosophy for each weapon. Sabre is my primary weapon and I'm very aggressive, always trying to pressure my opponent into making a mistake. I'm on the attack 80% of the time, but much of my attack strategy is to force my opponent into a bad attack, which I can parry/riposte. In foil, the male captain of our team and I have this rivalry. He is very aggressive and taller so I adopt a more defensive philosophy, using counter attacks like Passata Soto and Inquartata, ducking under or sidestepping his powerful attacks. I am also able to get in his head a lot and keep him off balance. Subconsciously, I'll stand taller and drop into an octave guard with foil low and "convince" him to take a highline attack or I'll square off, bringing my left shoulder forward and offer that as a target for me to sidestep. If I get ahead after a couple of successful counterattacks, he tends to lose focus and I can be more aggressive.

In kendo, I am up for Godan (5th degree black belt) soon and "seme" is the spiritual force that the judges are looking for. It's a sense of spiritual energy that wears down your opponent and forces him to make mistakes. This can be mental or physical pressure that gets them to make a bad attack or flinch, giving you the opportunity to strike. Kiai or a loud shout is also used to get the opponent to freeze or flinch. I've had a little bit of experience with sword and shield when I was an SCA groupie. In kendo, they say the sword is the shield and much of the techniques are timed countercuts or angling the blade during parries to deflect the cut and create the opening or having the parry be your strike so that your cut lands just after deflecting the attack suck as in suriage men or suriage kote where the your parry is practically the cut to the head or wrist.

Having taken aikido for so long, it was hard for me to get into the aggressive nature of kendo. I was very hard to hit, but I sat around a lot and just maneuvered for advantage, wearing down my opponent in the process. Kendo is an aggressive art, attack being 75% of the equation. Kendo is also more linear with less lateral maneuvering. I was always just stepping off the line of attack. I'm making the transition, forcing myself to embrace the forward thinking philosophy.