A question for the older MMA enthusiasts

[GuardMaster]

I myself am 31 years old and like most people my age have a full time job that I take seriously. My question is do i dedicate myself to my work which pulls in 60 grand a year and hopefully KEEP my job or do i slack off and put my efforts in MA and then risk losing a promising career. The reason I say this is because I plan to attend MMA 6 days a week.

Which is more important $$$ or MA? How would you choose? Some may say do both but I find it hard. I have a challenging job in IT as a programmer and it requires a lot of time, including outside of work.

Give me some tips here guys! I really want to keep my MMA goals but feel time is the issue!

[Hookah Smokin Caterpillar]

I'm only 19 myself (on the 14th, wish me a happy b-day) but it seems like to me like you should keep your job. How are you gonna pay for the training if you don't have a job

[Shrimp]

The balance you strike depends entirely on your personal situation.

I'm 37, single, and also a programmer. For the last 2 yrs I've spent more time doing MA than programming, and it's been the right decision for me. My bank account has suffered, but I've been able to devote myself to something very important to me. At this age you realize that there's more to your (very finite) life than figures on a bank statement.

Might or might not be the right decision for you.

[Mickey Finn]

Go for the MA thing. You can always sell your body on street corners after class.

[Lithp]

Pursue your career. I'm also 31, and have a very good job, which gets top priority. I plan to retire at 40, and as I get closer to it, my financial situation allows me to spend more and more time doing BJJ and less time working. Hopefully I explained that properly.

Go the other route, and you'll get older and have to work more, have less of an extravagant lifestyle, and still do less BJJ.

[Americana]

Hopefully, the situation will not come down to your carreer or bjj. I'm trying right now to do both. It is true that sacrifices will have to be made on both fronts. If you enjoy bjj and find it rewarding, that is what counts.

Lithp:

IMHO, the idea of postponing training until you can retire early is extremely unrealistic for most people. I wish you luck though.

[TracyKarate]

I believe you should go with your heart. If training is what you love to do, that is how your life should be spent. If you knew you were to die in one year, what would your answer be?

[dan downard]

It depends.Does the idea of being an old fart living in a rat hole eating cat food appeal to you?Hopefully you will have another derilect to help you get around,as you will have no insurance to get your worn out joints replaced.

[Lithp]

Americana,

I'm not proposing that you postpone your training till you're older (I knew i didn't explain it properly). IMHO I feel it's best to do what you can do without sacrificing your career (unless you percieve this to be your career).

Your statement about it being unrealistic for most people is true, and thanks for the well wishes.

[NGU]

Do both! I'm a programmer - make a bunch of money - have spent a lot of time getting worn down by the job and Martial arts is the perfect outlet for stress relief. You have to achieve a balance - not everyone can retire at 40. I struggle on a daily basis with that balance. I also have 3 kids, married, drive a long distance to work - get paged out at 3 AM, etc, etc. That's life....

[SweepEm]

hmmmmmm I wonder who's older?

ok, ok all you morons here are pointing to me.......
but remember, Hawk will always be a bit older than me and choke my a s s

You ask 40 people here and you'll get 40 different answers.

My opinion is that with money, you can do quite a bit, but if you're poor, you ain't going to be doing much.
You are almost near your peak earning and so, your career should be your focus. If you make enough money, you can take private lessons, but if your carreer suffers, well, you can stand on a freeway off ramp and beg for some pokcet change to use for training.........heh heh.


Do what you want to do,
but don't look back and regret something that you did or didn't do...............

[Americana]

I'm too old for bjj/mma to be my career. I'm not good enough at it any way. Back in the day when I could have been a bjj slacker, all they had was tkd.

Training has had a positive influence on my life. I have many colleagues who've gone to being fat pigs in their early 30's. I was going there too.

When you start to stare into that abyss of middle age management it can be scary. I'm fairly good at my job and have done some creative useful things for the team. But, I'll never set the world on fire. On the other hand I'm not one of these dot.com start-ups moguls who's life for the next few years will be trying to sort out the pieces.

I want to take it one day at a time and see if I can do something good for my bjj, something good for my career and something good for my family every day. So I'm not quiting the job for bjj and if I hold my end up with business, I hopefully won't be fired.