Ken Gullette's Internal Fighting Arts

Rest is Not Weakness -- Lessons from a Glute and Groin Injury

Two weeks ago, I did something bold, brave, and totally against the martial artist’s natural instinct.

I rested.

It wasn’t easy. I didn’t want to do it. But my body made the decision for me.

I had tweaked my left glute. I'm not sure how I didn't, I just know I didn't do it the fun way. But it quickly became one of those annoying injuries that doesn’t seem major at first, so you try to push through it. “It’s just a little pull,” I told myself. “I’ll work around it.”

Sound familiar?

But martial arts doesn’t always give you the luxury of working around a pain that affects your core stability. Tai Chi, Xingyi, Bagua — all require strong, coordinated lower-body mechanics. Even walking the dog became a lesson in humility.

Pivoting on my left leg, pushing back into a couch or recliner, bending over to tie my shoes or pet the dog -- everything sent me into a spasm of agony, like a knife was stabbing me in the butt! 

And sneezing! Don't even get me started. We are so connected inside our bodies that when I sneezed, the upper body convulsion caused the fascia to pull and send a stabbing pain through my butt. If I felt a sneeze coming, I had to stand up and press hard into my glute to stabilize it.

After a couple of days, trying to compensate resulted in a strain of my right groin, along the inguinal ligament. So I was a hurtin' puppy.

As martial artists, we’re conditioned to be tough. Push through. Ignore the pain. Be a warrior.

But here’s what I’ve learned after more than five decades of training: Sometimes, the toughest thing you can do… is nothing.

So, I rested. For two full weeks. No forms, no standing stake, no fajin practice, not even slow-motion spiral stepping. I focused on healing -- using ice and heat and letting the body do what it’s made to do when given the chance.

And guess what? It worked.

When I returned to training, I felt 90% better. Within a couple more days of movement, I was back to full mobility — and smarter for it.

This experience reminded me of an important principle, one that martial artists and driven people often forget:

Rest is part of the training.

Muscles recover. Tendons heal. Nervous systems reset. And maybe most importantly, ego quiets down.

In Zen, there’s a concept called wu wei — effortless action. It’s not about laziness. It’s about knowing when to act and when not to. When to move, and when to be still. There’s power in that stillness. There’s wisdom in restraint.

So the next time your body gives you a message, listen. Pushing through pain doesn’t make you tough — it often just makes you slower to heal. Resting when needed? That’s the real strength.

I didn't realize they make a butt and groin sling. The photo shows it. If this glute injury happens again, I'll order one immediately. It will be fun to say, "I work so hard I have to wear my butt in a sling."

Train hard. Rest well. And don’t be afraid to take two steps back — sometimes, that’s how you take ground.

--by Ken Gullette