Capoeira. It’s a lot like advertising.

Someone in advertising, famously said ‘only half of what I spend on advertising works, the thing is, I don’t know which half’.

What he meant to say was, he doesn’t which 50% works, and which doesn’t, so the best way to continue working on it is to continuously give your 100%.

This is something quite apt to bring up as a parable with training capoeira as well. Last night at training, Rafa sat us down for a chat. He was trying to tell us about the methods we train, specially in partner drills. Maybe we should reprofile the way we use that word – drills. Capoeira is anything but fixed and formatted. While Rafa wants us to practice through repetition, this doesn’t mean we play like robots.

“If you don’t practice like you’re in the roda, are you going to wait till the roda to practice?”

A very relevant observation. Most of us have the mindset that the training drill is safe. It’s monotonous. And I’d be the first to admit, this sets us into complacency when training. We need to be serious in the drill. To get it right. Think of it as a Roda, but only with the moves that you were supposed to do.

“I don’t know which 50% works, but I’ll give my 110% to be sure”

This is also important. And ultimately, the main lesson from this post. Most of the moves we learn are new in training. A lot of times, they’re moves we never get a chance to pull off in the roda. We spend too much time thinking, and not enough time moving.

Capoeira is about making your moves as much a part of your bodily functions as breathing or blinking your eye. The only way to do that, is through repetition. Get the basic movements right first. Then articulate how to do it better.

A simple metaphor - If you don’t know how to walk, you won’t know how to dance.

“Everybody wants a piece of Bantus capoeira”

We’re the leading capoeira group in Malaysia. It’s a reputation we should wear with pride and responsibility. We have to represent the Bantus jogo the best way we can. In the music we sing. In the manners we conduct ourselves. More importantly, in the roda with another person. Capoeira’s growing. There will be more groups. There will be more jogo. There will be competition. While we’re not asking you to be competitive, you do have to be conscious when you go into a roda with someone else.

Be prepared. In the academy. During training.

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