Yesterday, I had the day off. I went to daily mass, to the dojo, and to the gym. All bases were covered, except the bio., which I am getting to now.
If you don't practice, you will suck. Or, at the very least, you will not be as good as you could or should be.
Practice makes the person. Some people practice virtue, others vice. Whatever you practice, your practice will make you what you are, either better or worse, depending on your direction and orientation (if you are gay).
You could do worse things than to practice practicing, but that is what's required.
If you approach your practice as though it's just practice one of 2 things will happen. You will either be delightfully detached from the process of what you are doing and will enjoy it, or you will discover your ego--your pride--and how big or bad it really is.
That is the essence of all training. To get beyond your foibles to the good stuff, the real you.
Many martial artists, for example, initially seek the martial ways to become your archetypical bad ass. That's nice and all, but what usually happens at some point is that they realize that no matter how hard they train, or how tough they become, they are not invincible and never will be. And so, the arts begin to take on new and real meaning and one's perspective broadens.
And that's what seperates the boys from, well..., the other guys.
Take care. Be well.
--Nick