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.

Yoshukai Karate: What it is and How I Started

In June of 2010, I was sitting in Joel Dover's Rules of Interpretation class, and the topic moved to martial arts.  As a kid, I studied Tang Soo Do, and I had gotten pretty good at it, but as so often happens, changes in interests turned into a loss of interest.  17 years later, I was about to start martial arts again.  I asked Joel about the cost, which he informed me would not be an issue.  That evening, I visited Athens Yoshukai Karate.

If the cost hadn't caught my attention immediately, the idea of the school would've made cost moot.  Athens Yoshukai is a branch dojo of the World Yoshukai Karate Kobudo Association, and its main dojo is located as an addition to the head instructor's home.  I walked into the house expecting to see some sort of "garage dojo," which I had seen before.  What I found was a work in progress, and an impressive group of people.  I watched 90 minutes of class, and the old interest in the martial arts flooded back.  I recognized certain blocks, kicks, and strikes.  And when I got home, I told my girlfriend Blair that I was pumped to start studying when the dojo accepted new students later in the year.

Since AYK wants to make sure every student can get top quality training, we only accept new students at certain times of the year.  So, I had to wait until September, 2010 to start my training.  On my first day, I opened a door that would change a lot of things about my life and strengthen many others.  I'll tell you more about that on another day.  For right now, let me give you a little background on Yoshukai Karate.

Yoshukai Karate is an Okinawan hard-style martial art.  As a branch discipline of the more encompassing term Karate-Do (meaning "Empty-hand Way of Life"), Yoshukai Karate builds character as well as strength and technique. 

Yoshukai Karate was founded in 1963 by Grandmaster Katsuoh Yamamoto, pictured here.  Soke Yamamoto based his style of karate on Chito-Ryu Karate, which he learned directly from the art's founder, Dr. Tsuyoshi Chitose.  Since then, Yoshukai has spread throughout the world and is known for its focus on traditional forms, weapons, and full-contact fighting.  More on all of this to come later!

Founded in the year 2000, the World Yoshukai Karate Kobudo Organization is the only Yoshukai organization that is overseen by the world headquarters in Kitakyushu City, Japan with the blessing of Soke Yamamoto.



So, this is a very basic background on my beginnings with Yoshukai Karate.  In later posts, I'll describe the training process, ranking, weapons, and other assorted bits of Yoshukai info.  I'll also recount stories of Yoshukai events such as the WYKKO Summer Camp, and the WYKKO Traditional Tournament in Atlanta.

Relaunch

So, it's been a couple of years since I last wrote in this blog, and to be honest, that doesn't surprise me too much.  I ran out of things to write about, or at least things that I thought were funny and pithy enough to add to your list of internet time-sucks.  But, thankfully, now I have an entirely new topic to post about:  martial arts!

For the past 2 years, I have been studying Yoshukai Karate, Kyuki-Do, and Hapkido.  The study of martial arts has re-energized many of my interests, and it has allowed me to get into better shape while learning a new skill.  In addition to more posts about music and other random sundry topics, I'll take you into the fascinating world of martial arts and give you some stories of my involvement.

Why am I relaunching the blog after so long?  I'm glad you asked!  Partly, I've missed writing, and I'd like to get back into recording my adventures.  But, the main reason for thinking about it again is a conversation I had this week with my good friend Greer, recalling a blogging experience from our college days.  So, in short, I'd like something else besides pictures to keep as a memory of this fun time.  So, enjoy and feel free to ask questions--I'm definitely up for responding to any martial arts, music, or other random questions.

See you again soon!

Dear Hollywood...STOP.

Dear Hollywood,

STOP.

I mean it. Stop, please. I've personally had it up to my eyebrows with the "remake fever" that has gripped all of you in recent years.

Please, tell me, what happened to creativity in motion pictures? For those of you that don't know, I'm something of a movie freak. And by something, I mean wayoutthere, understatement of the century "something." I love movies. I haven't seen fewer than five movies in a week since I was 7 years old, perhaps younger.

And let me tell you, Hollywood...I am so disappointed in you.

In an age where CGI technology is starting to look pretty daggum real, where absolutely anything is possible in the movies, most of what I get from you is an endless series of remakes--remakes to classics, remakes to flops, remakes to movies that haven't even been out FIVE YEARS.

First example...Repo Men. Why make this movie? The concept was original and exciting when it was used in REPO: The Genetic Opera, and I was pretty amused by the whole thing. Now, it wasn't the best movie ever, and I understand that rock operas aren't for everyone, but why not try to find an original story to attach all that A-list star power to?

Second example...A Nightmare on Elm Street. I know that the CGI revolution, along with the cinema's returned interest to the horror genre after Saw shocked Sundance, brought a new age to horror flicks...but, why? The original Nightmare is an unqualified classic. Now, horror isn't for everyone, but I'll tell you this, Nightmare was one scary movie. And, one of the best things about it was that it was fairly low-budget. So, tell me again, why remake this movie? It will be a reimagining, but I don't buy the whole "introduce the concept to a new generation" thing. The sad thing is, I'm actually going to have to see this movie. If it is actually good, I'll eat a whole mess of crow about it, but to be honest with you, I doubt it.

Third example...The Karate Kid. Let me repeat that...THE KARATE KID! Why do this to us? That movie is a classic! And, it defined the entire careers of its two stars. Who are they going to get to play these roles? Will Smith's kid as Daniel, and Jackie Chan as Miyagi. Sorry to be a naysayer (no, I'm not), but Jackie Chan doesn't have the gravitas necessary to fill the iconic presence of that character.

More examples that have me fuming: Arthur, Romancing the Stone, Back to School, Meatballs, Metropolis (#@$%#@$%@!!!!!), Clash of the Titans, My Fair Lady (please, don't...please?), The Birds, Poltergeist, The Rocky Horror Picture Show...and about 45 more being filmed in 2010...unneccessarily.

Hollywood...do you want a suggestion? If you want to introduce a new audience to great movies...why not re-release classic movies in theatres? People will go to limited releases of great movies! It doesn't have to be a gigantic national release, but if you took the time to remaster excellent movies...PEOPLE WILL COME SEE THEM! What possible good does it do to the American cinema to rehash old plot lines and reshoot movies that were GREAT THE FIRST TIME.

Hollywood, STOP. I'm so &!)(*^&ing disappointed in you. Shape up.

Here ends the rant.

Disdainfullly yours,

Ben


(PS...The performance season is over, so...I'm back in the blogosphere.)