A testimonial by a club member…
I have been training on and off with Matt for a few years, but it was an enforced year-long break that drove home the value of Systema to me.
I am in my mid-30s, and have the catalogue of old sporting injuries that many active people of my age carry around. Hip joint sprains, tight shoulders and damaged knee cartilage all combine to knot up my muscles and my movement.
Systema has helped keep me mobile over these past few years, and also helped me handle the pressures of my career. Matt personally helped me through some challenging moments, coaching me to use breathing techniques to master difficult a situation.
However, late 2018 my workload ramped up to the point I had to stop training, and over the following months I felt aches and tension creeping into my body.
My mobility and relaxation ebbed away, until I was starting to suffer the sudden shocks of pain that used to cost me occasional days off work before I found Systema.
Six weeks ago I was able to return to the Academy, and I have been astonished at how quickly my movement has returned.
I train with Matt at the Academy once a week, and work on the pillars and my breathing daily, and am already pain-free and mobile.
I have trained in quite a few martial arts and can tell that the study of Systema combat, whilst supremely practical, is the work of a lifetime. Yet the physical benefits have been almost instant, and have carried over into every element of my life.
I can lift, run, climb and fall, all without a twinge of pain, which is so important as a father of a little girl who loves to play.
I have just started playing football in a 6 aside league, and knocks that a couple of months ago might have triggered an injury are now easy to shrug off.
The rapid gains in physical health are matched by benefits to mental health.
My wife once commented that she likes me to train in Systema, because I always come home a more relaxed and happier person.
It is important to me that my life reflects a balance of career with family life and staying fit and active, while indulging my love of martial arts.
I feel training Systema with Matt is the key to maintaining that balance. There may be no “quick fixes” for mental and physical wellness, but working with Matt has set me on the right path with remarkable rapidity.
I look forward to finding out just how relaxed, mobile and effective I can be, as I continue my journey into Systema.
All the best,
Liam.