Prudent Action, Prudent Speech: "Taido o imashimubeshi! Gengo o tsutsushimubeshi!"

I decided to save the 2nd and 3rd precept of Yoshukai Karate for last.  This was not because I find these the most important, but starting a much more intense exercise regimen has made me think a lot more about working smarter than before.  It's a complex subject, but here are a few thoughts to get the conversation started.

"Be prudent in action" almost speaks for itself.  Unfortunately, there are too many ways not to be prudent out in the world or in training.

In training, the major thing I've noticed is this:  it is very hard to scale intensity and class participation appropriately to keep from exacerbating injuries (major or minor).  Thankfully, more often than not, our instructors are willing to be our "better judgment" about some of these issues. 

My favorite of these "prudent action" lessons are the famous martial arts "self-correcting problems."  Here's my favorite of those:  if you don't tuck your head (chin to chest) for a back breakfall, eventually you will smack the mat hard--skull first.  I did this right away--probably my second or third Kyuki-do class.  I wasn't injured, but the headache I sustained from that bit of idiocy was a more convincing reminder than any I've had (or needed) since.

Here's another bit of training prudence:  don't forget to eat.  I've seen this again and again.  I'm no nutritionist, but I'm pretty sure that a nutritious coffee breakfast followed by a skipped lunch won't quite provide the energy to handle a karate class.  I don't think this is a hugely common thing, but I've seen it enough to put it on my list because I can get busy enough to forget to eat.

Obviously, there are many other possible examples of training intelligently.  I could spend several more posts elaborating on some I've seen in my relatively short time training in the martial arts, but instead, I'll poll the audience:  What are some of your favorite examples of training intelligently?

Another major example of being prudent in action involves self-defense and situational awareness.  I'm convinced that a vast portion of dangerous situations can be avoided, but that's a topic for a later post.  Soon, I'll be developing and preparing my self-defense demonstration for my shodan test.  I'll keep you apprised of that process and discuss a bit how cross-training has made self-defense one of my favorite aspects of creative preparation for testing and tournaments.

As for being prudent in speech, I'll instead offer a brief litmus test for what comes out of our mouths.  Anyone who knows me will attest that I can shoot off the mouth without thinking with the best of them, but I'm working on it.  This test is apocryphally attributed to Siddhartha Buddha.  I find it to be succinct, and I also think it brings out the best in our communications.  It involves 3 questions asked in this order:

• Is it true?
• Is it necessary?
• Is it kind?

It's pretty simple, but it works.  I find that thoughts of mine that only meet 2 of the three conditions are often worth saying, but they're probably not worth going out of my way to voice.  3 out of 3 is a must, and in my own teaching, I've found the major mistakes I've made in communication have been due to missing out on these 3 coniditions.

As I mentioned earlier, prudent speech and action is a complicated subject, and a short blog post is really not a deep enough forum to delve into the topic.  If it comes up the next time we see each other, let's see where the conversation goes.  But, for right now, I'm going to enjoy a quiet evening before heading to Isle of Palms tomorrow.

Operation Shodan Fit: Week 2!

Last week, the data from my workouts were pretty much completely recorded by striiv, which was great, but I noticed a few things that I wanted to try and improve for this week's workouts.  They were as follows:

• Although the long walks were burning great calories, they took forever, and I wanted to raise the intensity level a bit for an increased heart rate during the cardio portion of the workout.
• The long time dedicated to those walks cut into other aspects of my training.
• I wanted to have some sort of HIIT (High Intensity Interval-Training) for every day I worked out.
• I wanted to dedicate the lion's share of my time to exercises that were simultaneously polishing my Yoshukai material.

So, with these ideas in mind, I revamped the exercise regimen a bit.  From here out, the workouts will be on two week plans.  Scale will change over time.

Week A:  MWF HIIT (provided by Mrs. Garduque): progressing by 2, 2-20 (Pushups, Squat w/2 front kicks, Burpees, V-sits).  Forms workout A:  (Each open-hand form straight through without rest.  Short rest, weapons forms without rest (nunchaku, bo, then sai).  3 2-minute rounds on the heavy bag.
Week B:  TH Tabata (1 round morning, 1 round late afternoon), Forms workout B:  workout A x 2.  5 2-minute rounds on the bag Tuesday, 2 on Thursday (as a warm-up for semi-knockdown rounds Thursday night.)

I'll also be journaling classes attended, so these weekly updates should be fairly detailed, as opposed to the more free-form posts during the week.

Post fights on Thursday, I spent most of yesterday resting, but I'm hoping light workouts will be easier on Fridays from here out.

Here is the Striiv breakdown for M-T-W.  (Thursday I was unable to sync and lost data.)

Monday:

Steps:  10,431
Miles:  5.2
Equivalent steps:  140
Calories burned:  1,037

Tuesday: 

S:  6,932
M:  3.4
ES:  1,749 (Tuesday, I did the Eiffel Tower challenge.  The tower has 1,665 steps to the top observation deck.  I completed the challenge in 52 minutes.)
C:  1,028

Wednesday:

S:  11,577
M:  5.8
ES:  188
C:  1,286

Thursday:  Data lost because this goober didn't write them down before trying to sync.  After midnight, the scores roll back to zero.  You can still sync, but I waited too long.

Next week, I'll be just outside Charleston vacationing on Isle of Palms will Blair and her family.  I have my laptop with me, and I'll keep you updated on workouts during the week.  There is a gym available on the island, so I'll include some free-weight work to offset a week off from formal classes.

Tough

I train with tough people.

Yesterday, in karate class, fight training began in earnest.  And, although this may or may not be a regular aspect of this portion of training, the rest of the kyu grades joined in to fight during the earlier class.  I fought semi-knockdown to prepare for shodan testing later, so I had the privilege to watch and instruct a bit.

One observation hit home:  they're tough.

At least early on, barring previous or concurrent martial arts experience, heart and the will to wade in and fight are the major virtues that develop almost right away.  I'm fully aware that not all of the students enjoy fighting, but to see sparring in class, you wouldn't be able to tell which ones!  The matches were full of smiles mixed in with intense "I'm gonna get you with this combination" looks that warm the heart.  Remember when I said it takes a special person to hit and be hit in class?  Karate breeds it right there, at white and yellow belt.  Technique comes later, and like forms, combinations, basics, breaking, conditioning, etc. etc. etc., these skill-sets develop at different paces for everyone.  But, in that moment, they're fighting, having fun, and participating in a fundamental aspect of our "Actual Fighting Karate's" identity.

Then, after the basic class was dismissed, a different sort of fight training began.  To be honest, this portion of my training is only going to get tougher and tougher.  The blackbelts (Sensei Hofmeister, Sensei Bishop, and Sensei McCandless) scaled to level of fitness and fighting skill--I'm ok at this point, but I'm still very much an eager student looking to fight a little better each time.  Yesterday, we did 6 2-minute rounds with a short rest-period under semi-knockdown rules.  For the uninitiated, that's full contact with pads and a specific rule-set.  Over time, we'll be scaling up to 10 2-minute rounds, and probably trimming the break time a little towards the end as well.

I was generally pleased with the result.  There's a lot to work on, but this is a good start.  My happiest realization yesterday was this:  I wasn't as cardio/wind-tired as I normally am when fighting.  Now, after a few rounds, I was quite tired from a muscular standpoint, but that's definitely to be expected with the intensity I started with the last two weeks.  Usually, I feel like my lungs will explode after about 2 nice, hard rounds.  My souvenir from yesterday is a nice little egg-shaped welt where Sensei Bishop blocked a leg kick--it may sound crazy, but those little bumps and bruises are temporary keepsakes from really good fights--just part of the fun (no irony here, I mean it!).  There were good things that I was able to execute in each fight, and for each of those, there were at least 5 clear things to work on.  It's a good start.

To the white, yellow, and blue-belt kyu grades, at least for testing purposes, you'll have semi-knockdown rounds starting at your test for 4th-kyu green belt.  Don't be afraid; you can do it.  The first few semi-knockdown matches are "wade in, punch and kick" sort of affairs.  Here's the surprising part:  a good strong body or leg shot does hurt a bit, but it hurts significantly less than you might think.  Your opponent will scale appropriately to you, and everyone there is looking out for you, both from a safety perspective and from an enjoyment standpoint.  It's a bummer I won't see a lot of you test this next week, but I'm pulling for you and I'll see you after vacation, ready to move forward with training!

In closing, toughness is a good start.  It reinforces such a great self-concept in training, and I'm proud to train with some tough people.

 

Note:  Today's feeling like a two-post day.  I'll write a little later with some thoughts on the last 2 precepts and a summary of the week's workouts.  Musing a bit about toughness was just so timely, though.

Thanks Professor Tabata!

Note:  I've decided to save musings on the 2nd and 3rd precept of Yoshukai until tomorrow.  It's been a few days since I've talked about my exercise, and I thought I'd write an update today before hitting you with more numbers tomorrow.  Thanks for reading!

HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) has yielded some amazing workouts in the past two weeks.  These short-burst sprints of exercise followed by less-instense recovery periods.  My favorite setup was developed by Izumi Tabata in 1996.  Originally, the exercise was used with Olympic speed-skaters to determine if a short HIIT workout could improve maximal aerobic capacity more efficiently than steady state training.  The results must have been surprising.  Although the group who did 5 days a week of steady state training had a higher maximal aerobic capacity, the skaters who trained Tabata 4 days a week started lower and gained more overall and showed benefits in anaerobic capacity as well.  Check out the efficiency:  5 hours vs. 16 minutes...and 16 minutes was more than effective.

Tabata training is fairly simple by concept.  There are 8 high-intensity intervals lasting 20 seconds with a 10 second rest period between each.  With this basic idea in mind, then ask what specific improvements you're looking for:  improving endurance, muscle endurance, size and strength while improving cardio?  The benefits are varied, so feel free to do what I'm doing...experiment!

My favorite Tabata set right now is with the heavy bag--or preferably a kicking shield when a training partner is around (I'm doing my daytime workouts solo, so the bag will do for now.  Any suggestions would be welcome!).  I alternate 20 second high-intensity punch-outs (read this as:  punch, punch, punch, and keep punching.) and quick low round kicks.  Thanks to Shihan-dai Josh McCullars for showing me this one!  After 3 days of this, I was feeling pretty amazing.  I'm also looking forward to seeing how this exercise combined with my others affects fight training.

Tabata tip:  You'll need a way to keep time, and I've found keeping an eye on a clock distracts from the intensity.  There are quite a few Tabata or HIIT apps available for those of you with smartboxes, and if that doesn't appeal, a quality HIIT timer will set up your Tabata sessions nicely!

Coming up in workouts:  Fight training starts tonight.  10 2-minute semi-knockdown rounds once a week until shodan testing.  I'm sure I'll have plenty to write about this aspect of the training.

A Culture of Respect: "Reigi o omonzubeshi!"

Kiyotsuke!  Rei!

These words ring in the beginning of every class, and they complete the transition from "the world" into the training hall.  We are in class now, and we'll deal with the issues outside of the dojo when class ends.  From the decision to attend class that day (and on some days, we definitely have to decide to go), to putting on the dogi, tying the obi, gathering gear, and traveling to class, we are preparing for the "bow-in" moment.  After that, we're in training.  And what glorious training it is.

Practically speaking, we have been instructed to come to attention and bow, but spiritually, we are doing so very much more.

In his short treatise The Twenty Guiding Principles of Karate, Grandmaster Gichin Funakoshi, founder of Shotokan Karate-do, elucidates the culture of genuine respect implied by our bow-in procedure in his first principal:  "Do not forget that karate-do begins and ends with rei."  According to Genwa Nakasone, a student of Soke Funakoshi who wrote essays for each of the twenty principles, rei in this concept is defined as a complex respect that can permeate all aspects of a martial artist's life.

In the US, we see trappings of respect all around us, but unfortunately, it is often couched in irony.  Just listen to the "sirs" and "ma'ams" you hear.  I genuinely believe that a great many people who use these terms to honor others mean it, but there are enough who don't that there are many who see these honorifics as insults.  I wish it weren't so, but it is.

The difference to me is this:  true respect must radiate from the core of one's character.  It has to be consistent with what people see in us every day, and that can be very hard.  We live in a world that has become more and more competitive, and courtesy can be seen as cloying, toadying, or even disrespectful.  If "respect and manners," the first precept of Yoshukai Karate, is wholly consistent with our character, our respect will not be suspect.

Back to martial arts--In this particular traditional art, rei makes our entire training experience possible.  It informs the backbone of our hierarchy--that is, give respect to the higher ranks you train with, and their respect will be returned to you in kind, by teaching you.  Respect binds a dojo community together, and training partners develop fast bonds which allow them to support one another.

Rei is also strongly related to the practical use of our martial art.  It allows us to take the skills we are learning and use them responsibly in society.  A weapon, be it a literal weapon or a martially-trained body, is potentially dangerous to the practitioner and others, but with rei, that weapon is a befenit to society at large.  Plus, I offer that truly courteous and respectful people are less likely to be attacked in the sillier altercations that we are all aware of in bars or other public venues (exceptions to this will be discussed a bit in tomorrow's post on prudent action and speech).  To paraphrase a line in The Karate Kid, we train so we won't have to fight.  Karate without rei is violence.

Let me repeat that:  Karate without rei is violence.

Along with respect for others and respect for the art, rei also embodies respect for ourselves.  In my experience, true self-respect takes so long to develop.  I know personally, my process of developing and reinforcing my own self-respect is ongoing, and I hope to continue that development for as long as I live.  We strive for excellence in all things.

Obviously, rei in the martial arts cannot be captured in 600 words, but the meditation behind it is one we can always keep in the back of our minds.  "Reigi o omonzubeshi," or "respect and manners," is to me the most important precept of Yoshukai Karate.  It is the core of our character.  And, I am proud to be a member of the WYKKO.

NOTE ON YESTERDAY'S POST:  You may have seen the comment from my Sensei (who writes a witty and inciteful blog on alcohol tourism--check it out!) regarding "Keep yourself clean."  To be honest, I overlooked the cleanliness metaphor, and I want to make sure it is mentioned prominently.  In reflecting on "Clean heart and mind plus a clean gi and body," it occurred to me that a clean heart and mind is well-achieved through the consistent application of the first four precepts.  Training respectfully, smart, and hard is more than enough to get our dogi dirty and our hearts and minds clean.

Osu!

Training is Messy Business: "Seiketsu o mune to subeshi!"

Keep yourself clean.

It's Yoshukai Karate's fifth precept, and it's the only one that is really, really specific.  Like I mentioned yesterday, I feel like these precepts were listed in order of importance, and even though "keep yourself clean" is the fifth in a list of five, it's still pretty important.  Anyone who has ever grappled will tell you that.

If you attend enough clinics where groundwork is taught, you'll end up meeting a guy whose submission of choice is the "perenially unwashed gi of death."  And it works.  We all get a little grimy when we work out, and I can't remember ever rolling with someone who was completely Tide-fresh, but the gi of death is a little much.

So, why after four general precepts dealing with the general development of good character and personal safety do we find a specific order on cleanliness?

I imagine at first, it was a necessity.  People train, get dirty, and train some more.  And, if you have enough roommates, you may need to launder sparingly or at least at a respectfully-spaced rate.  But, given the necessity, I still think Soke Yamamoto had a higher purpose in mind.  Cleanliness is one of the traits of people who are generally taken seriously.  In class, the student with the clean, pressed dogi generally looks pretty sharp.  And, I'll admit freely, I sweat so much that it doesn't take long before any of my dogi look like it has been worn for years.  Also, remember that we study traditional martial arts, and whether the art originated in Japan, China, Korea, or other nearby Asian nations, we're dealing with a culture of respect for whom decorum, discipline, and order are all ways of life.

Why write so much about cleanliness?  Well, since I've been working out more and more, I've found that I am one dirty, messy fool after a walk/jog and adding in a forms workout or HIIT/Tabata.  In fact, Saturday night when Blair and I went on a short walk to burn off a few post-dinner calories, I returned to find that I looked like the windshield of a tractor trailer.  Bugs must've figured they'd found the Promised Land and laid down and died on me.  Pretty gross, huh?

But, all the cleanliness-talk aside, while you're training, enjoy the grit and grime--I do!  It's like being a kid again; just going outside and playing (sorta) and getting dirty (ok, not as dirty).

And, when your workout clothes or dogi gets dirty, I suggest Überweiss:  The East German laundry detergent!  "It's new; It's German; It's extra tough!" 

"Überweiss.  Es is das beste, nicht wahr?"

Intensity: "Iki o sakan ni subeshi!"

It's more than energy.

It wasn't that long ago that I was rediscovering martial arts after a 17-year absence.  I had studied Tang Soo Do as a small child (up until age 11), and I always missed it a little.  It would be a particularly long story to tell, so I'll set it aside for now and get to today's point.  In December of 2010, I arrived at the AYK dojo, stretched, and eagerly awaited my first test for 8th kyu yellow belt.  I had attended a lot of classes by that point--a lot.  So, by this point I had attended a few particularly tough workouts.

Testing was different.

Here's the interesting thing:  it wasn't that different from a regular class.  Especially testing to 8th kyu, the amount of material is not huge, so in a lot of ways, it really does resemble a regular class because you have the time to do full sets of all of your techniques.  What was different about the test however, was me.  I wanted to NAIL IT.  I waited on the side to be called while watching the higher-ranking students test, and I was getting pumped up.  I don't remember much about the test besides getting my brain tied-up and switching inside-center block with outside-center block (see current 8th and 7th kyu folks, I told you it happens to almost everyone!), but what I do remember is at the end of the test, I was pouring sweat and still equally as pumped as when I started.

I've had 21 kyu/kup-grade martial arts tests since then (7 more for Yoshukai, 9 for Kyuki-do, and 5 for hapkido), and I still get that pumped-up excited feeling.  Recently, one of my instructors at AKF Athens told me that he's enjoyed watching me ever since I was "all attitude, intensity, and a huge kiai."  A lot's happened since then, and although a lot's changed, my feelings about intensity have not.

It really does take a lot to reach a person's limits--maybe not at first, but that goal line keeps moving, and there has to be an x-factor to keep us pushing to the peaks of our technical ability, strength, endurance, spirit, and mental capacity.  I also believe that anyone who is determined to avoid hitting his/her limits absolutely will not.  There's only so far an instructor/trainer or training partner can drag us.  Don't get me wrong; it's extremely important that they're there, but I think their purpose as far as spirit is concerned is to buoy our intensity when it starts to dip.  I can psych up a group reasonably well, but the group has to be in a "psychable" state already.  So, intensity begins when you get your things ready before the workout, it should be coursing through your veins by the time class is bowed-in, and it should still excite you after class is done.  Believe me--if you ever have trouble sleeping, the post-intense class crash is glorious.

This week, in addition to some posting about workouts and progress in Operation Shodan Fit, I'm also thinking about musing a bit about the 5 precepts of Yoshukai Karate.  As you can see, I'm doing it non-sequential-Tarantino-style.  Today's precept, Iki o sakan ni subeshi (keep high-spirited), is the fourth.  I'm not doing these in order or importance--I feel that they are ranked in order of importance, but I'll get to that later in the week.  But, after a much-needed day of rest, I was able to start the day with a very intense workout, and I feel fantastic.  I'm hoping the new week is treating you all well, and I'll be back with more thoughts tomorrow!

Operation Shodan Fit: Week 1 breakdown

Alright, everyone, here are the numbers for the first week of my workout regimen.  Next week, the data will be a little more in line with my whole set of workouts, including kata, fight training, HIIT, martial arts classes, and cardio training.  Due to the massive amounts of time needed for long walks/jogs like I took this week, I'm going to work on efficiency next week to allow me to enjoy the free time I have during the summer.

It's an old exercise adage that a habit can be made or broken in 3 weeks, so let's put that thought to the test!  Thanks for keeping up with the start of this endeavor--blogger recorded more than 250 hits in the past 3 days.  Here's a confession:  accountability is going to be the make-or-break factor in developing my motivation to keep moving and get well-conditioned for my shodan test.  That's where all of you have contributed beautifully--thanks for all you do!

Week 1

6/17

Steps:  13,744

Stairs:  305

Miles:  6.8

Calories:  1,371

 

6/18

Steps:  9698

Stairs:  223

Miles:  4.7

Cal:  1300

6/19

Steps:  15801

Stairs:  151

Miles:  8

Cal:  1722

 

6/20 (Stair day!)

Steps:  5,008

Stairs:  1,255

Miles:  2.5

Calories:  855

 6/21 (morning walk/jog/20 flights of stairs)

Steps:  8,508

Stairs:  432

Miles:  4.2

Calories:  1,058

 

Weekly Totals: (all recorded by Striiv)

Steps:  52,759

Stairs:  2,366

Miles:  26.2

Calories burned:  6,306

 

So from the breakdown, Tuesday and Friday were lighter days for the cardio workouts.  I intended Thursday to be light, but I went a little nuts climbing stairs (80 times up the stairs from the ballroom to the living room in Glenwyn--all fairly fast, stadium-run-style).  Needless to say, I already feel different from the beginning of the week.  I'll blog on this soon, but I need to shower and get ready for my girlfriend Blair to arrive--we're celebrating our 3 year anniversary this weekend, so I'd like to get presentable!

As for the weekend, I will be doing some like workouts, but I think some rest is in order to let my body recover.  Any thoughts on recovery are welcome!

Once again, thanks for your support.  And, let me know about your workouts as well!

Peace,

Ben

Coming up next week:  Fight training begins!

Sore Feels So Sweet!

Occasionally, after recounting a fairly normal day of martial arts training, my friends from college and grad school would shoot some weird facial expressions my way.  They wouldn't always be the same, but a few would look like I just described a brief foray into kitten torture.  After the facial expressions, I would usually hear a litany of "that's intense" and variants or "better you than me."  I once got a "Dude, that's pretty twisted" after describing some Tabata-style kicking shield drills.

Here's the part I find funny:  I can't understand what in the world they're talking about.

I don't know when the mental shift happened, but it did.  I used to despise discomfort of any type, and I went out of my way to be comfortable just about anywhere I went.  To be honest, that mindset probably led me right here to a re-evaluation of my motivation and personal fitness.  I know one thing; I owe the shift to martial arts.

Before getting back into martial arts (I trained as a small child--didn't we all?), I spend a year doing some pretty intense weight-training with my buddy Chase.  It was fun.  Actually, it was a lot of fun.  But, my mindset towards discomfort always loomed over my training, and if Chase ever needed to cancel to accommodate one of his personal training clients, I rarely felt the need to get the job done on my own.

Enter the martial arts.  I hadn't even promoted to yellow belt in Yoshukai before hitting several tough classes and walking out grinning like a fool.  Something rewired me.  It may have been the community; it may have been the art.  In fact, it may have been an x-factor that I am not far enough along in the process to completely understand.

I think it boils down to this realization:  pain and discomfort are different.  And, the difference matters.

I've heard on many occasions that "Pain is only weakness leaving the body."  This statement has been made time and again from legitimately tough people who I train with and admire.  And, I respectfully disagree.  I view pain--and I mean legitimate pain--as the body's way to tell you that something is about to snap...something you will definitely miss.  Discomfort, on the other hand, is something entirely different.  That burn after you've just wailed on the bag for a full-tilt round is discomfort, and nowadays, discomfort feels good.  So good.

I know that part of my non-budo friends' issue with training stories probably deal more with the idea of hitting and getting hit than the actual workout discomfort.  I'll definitely talk about that later because the feel of the fight is blog-worthy on its own.  But, I firmly believe that those who don't get us are not yet aware of the difference between pain and discomfort.

Anyway, back to the title of this post.  I woke up this morning feeling a nice, fully-formed burn in my chest, quads, and calves, which given yesterday's workout, I would be disappointed if I didn't feel.  That burn is more than a badge of honor or any tough-guy stuff like that.  I feel that burn as proof that what I'm doing is working.  My body is changing.  My goals are possible.  And, it's almost time for a much-needed day of rest...almost.

Soreness...ain't she sweet?

Yoshu: Our Ethos of Excellence

It's basic personal inventory time:  How many actions do you perform each day which require skill?

If you're like me, the question brought up a surprising number of things relating to work, travel, activities, interests, games, and the list goes on and on.  We are surrounded by the possibility of developing skill-sets, learning new ones, or allowing those we already possess to deteriorate.

Here comes the second personal inventory question:  What would happen if you became dedicated to making those actions slightly better every time you performed them?

What if we did that?  I'm guessing that our lives would change.  Perhaps not immediately, but we would one day find ourselves operating on a different level than we were aware of before.  Of course, "better" is a subjective word, and we could have great discussions on what really is better.  So, instead I'll offer a different word in my next question.

What if we were dedicated to excellence in all of our skills?

As many of you know, since September of 2010 I have studied Yoshukai Karate.  The style is known by a few important names, including "The Actual Fighting Karate," which I'm sure raises the competitive hackles in our "cousins" in other knockdown styles right nicely.  But, today I'm referring more closely to the names derived from the style's Japanese name.  Yo-shu-kai, "Association of Continued Improvement" or in motto-fied fashion, "Strive for Excellence."  And, after this weekend's Summer Camp, I offer a combined definition "Yoshukai:  The Family that Strives for Excellence Together."  It fits nicely--WYKKO events are warm reunions, and we are all asked to get a little better every time we work together.

Yoshukai has been all about getting better for me--once I realized it was.  Yesterday, our class workshopped basic kicks, and there was something for everyone to improve upon--from the yellow belts in attendance to the 4th-degree black belt leading the class.  To me, yoshu means that we can never accept a technique as completed--there is always a better, cleaner, and stronger iteration waiting to be realized.  I'm finding ways to work this concept into any available avenue in my life.  And, you know what?  It's not easy, but the feeling when the effect starts to set in is nothing short of inspiring.

I'll let Vince Lombardi close for me on this one:

"Gentlemen, we are going to relentlessly chase perfection, knowing full well we will not catch it, because nothing is perfect. But we are going to relentlessly chase it, because in the process we will catch excellence. I am not remotely interested in just being good."

                                --Vince Lombardi, in his first team meeting as head coach of the Green Bay Packers

Ode to a Burpee

I hate burpees.  Really.  Hate 'em hate 'em hate 'em.  The inventor of burpees must have been a sadist psychopath with a well-developed sense of humor.

We hates it, precious.

But, they're making me stronger, faster, more agile, and they're proving to be a fairly accurate indicator of my general fitness on any given day.

So, in this way, I love burpees a little, too...but just a little.

So, for those of you who didn't already make a face at the mere mention of burpees (and the few of you who are wild burpee-enthusiasts...and you know who you are.), I realize I may need to explain a little bit.

A basic burpee, also known as a squat-thrust or a 4-count burpee, is as follows:

From a standing position, 1.)  Drop to a squat position with hands on the ground.  2.) Extend both feet back in a smooth and swift motion into the front plank position.  3) Return feet to squat position.  4.)  Return to standing position.

Now, a few of you already have your hands in the air and are about to jump on my behind because I'm describing burpees incompletely.  You're not wrong.  You're not entirely right, either.  There are at least 21 generally accepted variants to the basic 4-count burpee, and some of them are flat-out nasty.  The ones I do add a pushup once I've reached the front plank position, and then instead of simply standing up from the returned squat, I jump and bring knees up to chest.  I like these because I don't have to think about all sorts of extra sequences, and they wear me slap out.

I won't go into major detail with all of the different burpees you can do, but a simple Google search will yield a veritable Burpee Baskin Robbins.  Enjoy responsibly.

If you want something nasty, and I mean really, really nasty, then be my guest with the BURPEE MILE.  Just in case you're wondering...I'm not freaking doing it...at least, not yet.  Here's how it works:  After completing a burpee (let's for argument say a basic 4-count), then perform a standing long jump.  Continue these two exercises until you have traveled a mile.  After that, your loved ones are free to peel your butt off the pavement and place you directly in Intensive Care.

I'll write a little more about the difficulties I have faced with some of these exercises in an upcoming blog post, but needless to say, a lot of up-down motion is tough for a guy currently carrying most of his extra padding in the midsection.  Do it anyway, gang.  It is a very old, well-respected, and home-grown American bit of fitness crazy.

Speaking of the history, the burpee was designed by American physiologist Royal H. Burpee, who got the living dogmess beaten out of him in gym class every day and once he completed his doctorate, he exacted grand revenge on EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE.  Okay, I made up the thing about gym class, but knowing high-schoolers, it takes a lot less than a weird name to get a basketball bounced against the side of your head in gym.  Seriously, though, the "Burpee Test" was a major fitness exam during World War II, and it was used to be a quick and accurate measure of strength, speed, agility, and general fitness.  It's still popular in the military today...just ask someone who has served or is serving about the 8-count bodybuilder, another burpee variant.

Alright, gang, time to stretch out a bit and prepare to teach a few voice lessons.  More coming at you tomorrow!

Ever feel like you're on a hamster-wheel?

So, jogging makes me feel like a hamster.  Seriously.  I've listened to runners go on about how much they enjoy the run and all of the great benefits it's given them, and everytime I'd try, the hamster image would take over and kill any potential joy I could have wrung out of the experience.  Yeah, I'm a stick-in-the-mud like that sometimes.

Any of you that have spent more than a little time with me have surely noticed that I'm pretty competitive.  And, the eye-rolling you're doing right now indicated that I'm not being entirely truthful about that.  In fact, I'm competitive as hell.  You know the type...I'll play Monopoly to the bitter end even though I can't remember ever enjoying that game past the 45-minute mark.

Now, for fitness purposes, and more specifically my martial-arts training, this competitive drive has pushed me across thresholds that would have taken much longer (if at all) without that competitive sense.  The major difference is this:  I've learned to compete with myself.  That way, I'm less of a "steamroll over you to win" jackass (Note:  I said *less*...come game night, IT'S ON).

So, the obvious question became "how do I compete with myself in my cardio training?"  Enter the Striiv.  It's a "smart pedometer" about the size of a circa-1998 beeper, and it measures all sorts of great aspects of the walk/jog/run to make a game out of activity.  I first saw this in action with my roommate Erik who, to the best of my knowledge, always has his on him measuring his steps, stairs, calories burned, etc.  So, when he got me one of my own for Christmas (a purchase this fool would never have thought to make for himself), I started to get into the game.

Now, it's a little more than a game.  My training so far has obliterated my ideas about my physical capabilities, and now that I'm marking a major milestone (shodan testing...more on this later), it's time to make the game a habit.