Benchmark

    Where am I and what am I doing? We have all heard this a few times, I am sure of that. There is a reason for this being said to us, but am I really listening? But am I really living it? 

   Yesterday was the 2nd degree candidates first crack at the fitness test. That being said, I want to talk about my frame of mind during the test. 

   It is a hard test, but of course it is, it is a Black Belt Fitness test. If it was easy, I wouldn't respect it or see it's value. It tests you both mentally and physically, to the Nth degree. You are either spent when it is complete or you didn't try your hardest. I both love it and not love it (no hate here). I will willing admit that whilst I am in the midst of the test my body is screaming at me to quit, to stop before something bad happens, asking me if it worth the pain? Then my mind says, "shut up fool" (please insert your best Mr T voice here). 

 

 

   Of course it is worth it. Every drop of sweat, every raspy breath, every single moment. Pushing yourself, HARD, sooooo rewarding. Torture while doing, euphoria when done. Mind over body, will and determination over mediocrity.  Where am I and what am I doing I ask? I'm doing a black belt fitness test, repeat, I'm doing a black belt fitness test, repeat,repeat......

   I know this round was a benchmark for whats to come, a ground zero, point A on my graph, a gauge to measure my progress. But just to be allowed to be part of this test, I feel privileged.

I Am....Breathing

    I am....Breathing.

   I am breathing in, I am breathing out, I am breathing in, I am breathing out. Close your eyes and say this to yourself for 1 minute, no distractions, no cheating, just concentrate on your breathing. At first it will be hard, almost unnatural, then it wont be. 

   Both Master Brinker and Sifu Cosgrove have taught me the importance of focusing on my breathing. How cleansing both physically and mentally it can be. Even my Apple Watch has an embedded App dedicated to just breathing, that is how important it is.

   Being a life long severe Asthmatic, breathing is hard work. The slightest thing can trigger an attack, and trust me, that is the right word, ATTACK. Picture putting a straw in your mouth, taping all the edges of your lips and nose up so that ONLY the straw lets in air...... now have a Sumo wrestler sit on your chest, now get up go for a run and don't stop till you think you are going to die, then run some more. Pure Hell, terrifying, and whats worse, the more stressed you get, the worse it gets. That is the life of an Asthmatic. Sure modern medicine has fairly good control of the triggers through a regiment of various inhalers, but it is NOT perfect. 

   So, I am breathing in and I am breathing out, and I am thankful for that.

P.S. You should really try Sifu Cosgrove's fire breathing, ask her about it, it is amazing!!

All Ways to Nowhere

    Lately I have been feeling that my training has been pulled in too many directions at the same time. Too many thoughts, too many external pressures, too many ideas/concepts to learn, too many changes, not enough time to address them all in the manner I am accustomed to. And it has caused me to fall into a bit of a funk. Instead of focusing on one or two things, I have been trying to encompass it all. Nuts to that! 

   Starting this morning, I am going to choose what I need to focus on, because I know what needs work the most. And until I address what I know needs work, I can not move onto the next thing because all that does is exasperate the first technical problem. I mean, you don't put shingles on a roof you haven't even built yet, right?! 

   So time to work on my "foundation", strong, deep, stable and powerful. Then I can add the shiny stuff later. 

P.S. I am not forsaking or ignoring the progress and lessons we learn in class, I am talking about the "me" time at home, my own personal one on ones with myself.

I am .... an Example

 I am.... an example.

    Good, bad or ugly, I am an example. Everything I do, whether in class, home, work or public, sets an example. Positive, negative, neutral, pro, con, other people see what I do. Outspoken or silent, both can be just as loud, involved or abstaining, both can be just a profound. 

   To my employees, to my boss, to my customers, to my wife, to my kids, to my parents, to my teammates, to my instructors, to friends, to strangers I meet, any and everything I do or say, sets an example of who I really am. 

   That is way I must set a good example, but also a personally and morally strong example. My examples in both leading and following should be positive but not condescending, strong but not overbearing, righteous but not SELF-righteous, clear but not preachy. 

   As long as I am able to stay true to myself, my Example should be a pure reflection of me, good bad or ugly, but still me.

Year of the Tiger I Ho Chuan Team

 Year of the Tiger I Ho Chuan Team

Master Jeff Brinker

Master Max Hayes

Master Kona Rybak

Sifu Tania Vantuil/Brinker

Sifu Randy Langner

Sifu Kevin Lindstrom

Sifu Jackie Kohut

Sifu Lacie Cosgrove

Sifu Kobe Csillag

Sifu Sharida Csillag

Sihing Nate Kohut

Sihing Harrison Whitehouse-Strong

Sihing Kody Bjorkquist

Mr Paul Dyble

Ms Cathy Manderson

Ms Malinda Ferris

Ms Elizabeth Walker

Ms Michele Ward

Ms Karine Poitras

Mr Nigel Bauer

Mr Ian Repay

Ms Shira Csillag

Ms Lucy Lee

Ms Ella Grant

Mr Mike Kohut

Mr Jordan Carreau

Ms Noa Csillag

Ms Kayley Burke

Ms Deb Bjorkquist

Mr Don Bjorkquist

My Moving Energy Bubble

    Expansion - contraction. Push - pull. We talked about this in Saturdays Brown Belt class. I can tell this is a conversation that has layer upon layer, and we just scratched the surface. So I will give my cursory take on this. 

   My Chi bubble, my power zone, my limit of useful power delivery of my intent. This is where I am placing this concept to work on. 

   Expansion, if I expand to far, I am reaching, off balance, no center, past my power zone. Contraction, if I contract to far, I am hunching up, loosing my skeletal support in favor of muscle, collapsing my power zone beyond the useful. 

   I have attached a video to show something so simple. It actually took several takes to get this to work, why, because if we opened it to far, it was hard to close and if we closed it to far, it was hard to open. Kody had to be smooth and limit his range of open and close or it got stuck. Just like me and my power zone. Who would have thought that a kids toy at a Kung Fu training hall would have such a direct application to something so deep? Well I'll let you guess who.

   Now for push - pull. This is still a cauldron of bubbling onion soup. I have tried various forms with the idea of analyzing whether I am pushing my intent or pulling my intent. This is a can of angry worms. Just by changing one move from push to pull or vice versa changes the next move or two to support that move. It can change the entire intent of my form. I will need a decade or two to play with this as the more I change my push -pull intent, the more questions it creates about my intent. And then I have to also think about how expansion and contraction relates to this as well. Good stuff.

I am....In Training

    I am in training. ...

   Training, simple word, infinite application. But what does it mean to me? Well I am going to apply that to just Kung Fu for this blog because if not, I could go on forever. 

   The application of new ideas and concepts and how to integrate that with existing ideas and concepts. I'll use making a fist as an example. We can all make a fist, take four fingers and one thumb, curl, squeeze.  Easy, right? Wrong. There are an entire freight car full of variables that go into making a PROPER fist. And the only way to perfect this is to train. As Master Brinker would say, "50,000". 

   Only by training can you take knowledge and turn it into skill. Only be training can I become able to understand my intent. Only be training can something become wuxin.

   So please, train me, I will be grateful.  

How Many Sins?!

    The 7 deadly sins. I am guilty of a few. But in a good way. What?! Let me explain. Greed, sloth, envy and pride. These are the four I have recently have had cross my path. And these all have to do with Kody achieving his black belt last night. Again, please let me explain.

Greed... I want that belt!

Sloth.... I don't want to do the work.

Envy.... Why him and not me?

Pride.... Boy I am proud of my son, but what about me?

   I could go SUPER deep on this, but I won't. Suffice to say, I am going to use these four "sins" to inspire me. Greed, if I want the belt, IT IS ON ME TO GET IT!. Sloth, if I want the belt, IT IS ON ME TO DO THE WORK. Envy, if I am feeling bad because I did not get a black belt this year, IT IS ON ME TO CHANGE MY ATTITUDE AND COMMITMENT. Pride, yes I am proud of Kody (of course I am!), but to change this from a sin to a blessing, I MUST TAKE PRIDE IN MYSELF! 

   Weave what you will into this blog, I am feeling both bad and good because of it. Bad because I had these thoughts to begin with, good because I laugh at myself because at times I am my own worst enemy. Just thought I would share where my head is at this morning. 

I Am .....A Student

 I am ....A Student

I do not know everything.

I am not as smart as I think I am.

My scope of knowledge on most given subjects is cursory.

I tend to get stuck in a groove

I am a sponge. 

I love to learn.

I try to ask pertinent questions

I always show respect to those teaching me

I value new opinions

I love knowledge 

Please, teach me, I will forever be in your debt.