The Ninja Zone

Eric von Lustbader wrote "The Ninja" back in 1980.  I would soon graduate from high school that year.  Things had been tough.  I needed exactly what Lustbader wrote about, "the void".  A place to hide, get away from it all, escape.

That's not really what "the void" was in his book.  To a ninja, the void is what we today might call the "zone".  Getting in the zone on command whether on the course or in training is a necessary tool.  What exactly is the void/zone?  How do you get into it?  We hear people talk about it but, as Lustbader wrote, it is not well understood, difficult to master, more difficult to control.  It is worth a lifetime of pursuit.

As a master OCR mudder, I encourage you to start this practice young.

Getting into the zone/void is something you must strive to achieve at any time.  It is not just for when you are in pain, sprinting to the finish line, going for that PR.  Sometimes being in the void is just for plain fun, for the joy of being there in the midst of whatever it is you are doing.

Yesterday was my long run.  It's been a tough winter.  I had hoped most of the trail snow was gone, especially on the hills.  But it wasn't.  As I approached the hill, I slipped into the void, noting just before the sheer aloneness that I was experiencing in the woods.  Just me, the trail, the sun, snow, and the snap, crackle, pop of the ice under my feet.  It was mesmerizing.  Entrancing.  Like floating along without effort.  I needed that, because I wanted those hills so badly.  And they were tough.  But I never noticed.  I joyfully ran home, still full of juice for the rest of the day.

I'd love to run an entire OCR race just like that.  But is it really something that just happens, a perfect moment, an aligning of the planets?

No.  Getting in the zone takes practice and skill.  A Japanese friend of mine, Tanabe-san, taught me some things he learned from his sensei.  I will pass them onto you now.

The primary tool of the ninja is his sword.  To get into the zone, you must learn the proper grip of a sword.  Imagine that your dumbbell is a sword.  All of the grip power, strength, and effort is in the thumb and little finger.  Hold your weight like that.  You'll have it right when you can easily release your other three fingers from the bar.  Notice that the weight is still perfectly balanced and firmly within your hand.  Now slowly twist your wrist a little to each side.  The weight remains affixed.  It is a part of you, like a sword.  You can move the weight in any direction and it will not slip.

Using all five fingers does not work as well.  The mind and hand will tend to want to hold on with the middle three fingers, gripping and squeezing for dear life.  Meanwhile, the thumb and little finger exert less effort.  Now the weight is less stable.

Think about this when you are on the course.  Consider all the things you must do where grip strength is so critical like monkey bars, cargo nets, the spear throw.  Do these things with a ninja grip instead.

Tomorrow I will share with you the most important tool a ninja uses for getting into the void, also courtesy of my friend Tanabe-san.  Today's lesson Grasshopper was just one example of the kinds of tools and mental sets that you need to get into and stay in the zone.  That is where you achieve maximum effort with the least amount of energy.  You will be your absolute best out there when you are in the void.