Staying Connected Through Training

Covid-19 has affected everybody- some in different ways than others. In my case, I’m not able to spend time at my dojo as much as I used to, which is a huge change in my life. I’m used to spending at least two hours there around four times a week, teaching the kids and focusing on my own personal training. I went from spending all of my free time there to spending no time there at all. My dojo is like a huge family, I found my best friends, the most important role models in my life, and kids that I care for very much. It’s not hard to imagine how hard it is to be away from everybody.

However, just because we’re not in the dojo together doesn’t mean that we can’t stay connected. We’ve been conducting our classes through Zoom, which allows everybody to train together in one virtual class. Of course, nothing about this situation is ideal. Not for me, not for my friends, not for anybody. The important part is that we all stay connected and don’t leave each other behind. That’s why one of my co-highs has created spirit days that she posts on our dojo’s Instagram account and it keeps the kids and adults alike engaged and involved in the dojo’s activities. Other Sensei’s and I also have meetings to come up with more activities to keep students engaged, and my ensei's make videos every couple of days as updates on how they’re doing or anything new happening at the dojo.

I know everybody else is going through the same struggles I am during our social distancing, but lucky for us, we have the internet and social media to keep us all connected. Check in with your friends and family, learn new things, or find a new hobby. Stay active, but be well rested as well. Once this is all over, we’ll all be back with our friends and families, but we will have a bit more appreciation for them than we did before.