Category Archives: Martial Arts

Still working at midnight on a Sunday…

Posted on by

Nearly midnight on a Sunday and I’m here working on stuff for my school, but thats the joy of working for yourself… Actually, it is a joy – I’m sat her doing this because I wanted to, I felt inspired because what I’m doing is actually interesting.

Obviously sometimes its a double-edged sword, when you work for yourself you are constantly aware that your quality of life is basically one big performance-related pay scheme – but even that is an inspiration :)

It’s not always easy, and I know that Kel doesn’t really understand why I need to be working all the time but I’m rather hoping that when she sees the end result she will …

“The master in the art of living makes little distinction between his work and his play, his labor and his leisure, his mind and his body, his information and his recreation, his love and his religion. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence at whatever he does, leaving others to decide whether he is working or playing. To him he’s always doing both.”

- Zen Maxim

Almost famous…

Posted on by

Some time ago I got a letter to inform me that I had been nominated for the World Martial Arts Hall of Fame as “Master Instructor of the Year”.

The nomination was related to the work I have been doing online for the past couple of years in bringing together a group of high ranking martial arts instructors, initially to investigate the wrongdoings of one particularly unscrupulous instructor from Canada, and later to form a focus group to the study and ressurect some of the more traditional aspects of martial arts training and make them more relevant today.

Well, I got a letter today to confirm that the nomination was accepted and I am to be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year. Yay me!

There are of course several of these hall of fame thingies, but this is actually one of the more well known ones and includes many well respected Martial Artists such as Chuck Norris, Cynthia Rothrock, Eric Lee, Don Wilson, George Dillman and others.

Means fuck all in real terms, but it will look good on my CV… :)

The Ultimate Black Belt Test

Posted on by

So many Martial Artists become complacent after reaching their Black Belt. I have seen it hundreds of times. They lose their drive to push themselves forward, they hide behind excuses like “it doesnt matter what belt I wear I am the same inside” etc…

Yeah, fair enough, as a Black Belt we know that the belt around out waist is not necessarily a true reflection on what we know, what we do, who we are….

So then, what can you do to test yourself? Forget what others think, say or do, how about the ultimate personal challenge…?

That is the goal of the test devised by legendary Martial Arts guru Tom Callos and his instructor, the legendary Ernie Reyes.

Take a look at the test requirements on the site: http://www.ultimateblackbelttest.com.

First time I read it I thought it was a wind up, the requirements seemed unsurmountable, then one by one I saw a group of the worlds finest black belts were signing up for it… some of them have been pivotal in my own martial arts career, people I have looked up to in awe on many occasions. These are the type of people who are prepared to push themselves this far, it is that that makes them who they are.

So, what am I going to do about it… given my current state of fitness I am not going to be able to apply for the test this year as it starts in a few weeks time so instead I have set myself the goal that I will do this test next year. In the meantime I am going to define my own mini-version for the 12 months leading up to it.

Need to actually define some goals and some time-scales. As soon as I do, I’ll post them here then I’ll have to stick to them wont I!

I love it when a plan comes together…

Posted on by

Seem to be getting a lot of enquiries at the school recently, which is nice, especially as we havent done anything out of the ordinary with regard to promotional stuff.

I’ve got a target point in mind for when I should be able to consider a full-time centre, which is my ultimate goal. Originally I saw this as quite a long term goal, but as we start to get some more systems in place and as Kel becomes more involved in the day to day admin it looks more likely to happen sooner than expected, which is nice.

Kel is gaining in confidence whish is great, i put her on the spot tonight and got her to start things off for me, which with a full kids class can be quite daunting for her but she handled it really well. When I think back over the past couple of years the improvement she has made, particularly in her confidence has been amazing. Having your boyfriend as your instructor is not really an advantage because it puts her under more pressure to perform, and in class I have to be seen to be totally professional all the time which prolly makes it even harder for her too.

long day…..

Posted on by

Been a long day today.. up at 9 after a top night catching up with the crew in Frome and then all day officiating at a grading examination at my school.

Pretty important exam too, as in addition to the group of regular students, I was testing two for their first degree Black Belt and three more (including Kelly) for their final coloured belt, which indicates their status as official Black Belt Candidates.

I was sat at the grading table from 10:30 this morning until 6:30 this evening and boy did I know it! Worth it though as all the candidates were up to scratch and hence I now have two more Black Belts in my school, making a total of 10 so far. Not bad for a small school eh…

Go Go Power Rangers….

Posted on by

Err, right, sorry, couldnt resist..

Just got home from a seminar in sunny Doncaster. Actually it was in fact both, sunny and Doncaster – two terms which are generally considered mutually exclusive…

Nice to catch up with the usual suspects and this was a great seminar as Kel came too which is extremely important for me as she takes a more active role in the day-to-day running, and planned expansion of the school.

Signed up as an instructor for the XMA (Extreme Martial Arts) programme designed by Mike Chat, who to the uninitiated was one of the worlds leading creative forms competitors, and is now a succesful actor (he was even one of the Power Rangers…) and stuntman.

Pic of me & the XMA demo team

XMA is all about ‘performance’ martial arts, i.e. the sort of thing that you might see in musical/creative forms competitions, film & tv stunts, hong-kong action movies etc. This is exactly the sort of thing the kids are interested in and hence I am really excited about this programme. I am sure it will prove very popular in the school both as an extension for our existing students and as a stand-alone programme as well.

Have also signed up as an instuctor for a coaching programme aimed specifically as boosting childrens confidence and self-esteem. Callled “The Self Esteem Team” it is well established and has a proven track record as an ideal entry into schools, especially with the current views on anti-bullying etc.

I love it when a plan comes together…

Posted on by

Earlier this week I decided to send a couple of emails to see if any of the instructors that I know around the UK were interested in having me over for a day to do a seminar at their school, primarily in my main area of interest which is the practical self-defence stuff including the pressure points and related topics.

I sent three emails on Monday, and as of today I have two confirmed bookings for seminars and another which will be confirmed when he has checked the availablility of the venue.

Putting that into perspective, those three emails have already secured me £900 for the two confirmed dates, plus another one for £400 to be confirmed this weekend. i.e. those three emails will have net me £1300 plus expenses. I would expect each seminar to be about three hours so that is £1300 for 9 hours worth of teaching.

Those were just the first three tentative enquiries which I made, I have a bunch more to check out too and if these go well there is a real possibility of repeat bookings too.

Hee hee – see, if you don’t ask you don’t get!

I keep getting distracted….

Posted on by

I’ve been going through some of the many files in my office, starting to further sort a lot of the stuff that I just threw in appropriate files during my BTU. Its great, I keep finding odd bits of stuff I wrote ages ago, mainly bits and pieces of martial arts notes from way back when that I obviously meant to refer to again sometime. Thing is I am being relatively organised about them now as I am keeping a running index of cool stuff to refer back to in my notebook now and I am really looking forward to getting stuck into expanding on some of this stuff.

I think I may well try to get up at a sensible time tomorrow and get on with it, loads more cool stuff to get distracted by.

God I love being my own boss :)

You don't get anything for nothing….

Posted on by

Felt decidely crap earlier… had a banging headache all afternoon, undoubltedly caused by the fact I’ve not been drinking enough water…. slapped wrists for Dr RiK, must learn to practice what I preach. Got a litre of H2O and a couple of neurofen inside me and I feel right as rain now :)

School was good tonight, kids classes were buzzing, loads of energy… It’s interesting to note that some of the new students that have joined recently have really taken to the training like a duck to water which is great. There are however a couple of the existing students that are really not up to scratch, nor are they putting in anything like the effort that they need to which will only show itself next time they come to take a grading… To be honest if they aren’t going to pull their weight then I will probably kick them out as I dont need dead weight dragging down the energy of the school. The kids classes are always full and we frequently end up with a waiting list so I can afford to be selective with the students that I enrol.

I was speaking to a friend (another professional instructor) earlier and explaining my thoughts on screening students, like the principle of a gardener who has to know when to cut away the dead wood to let the good wood grow… Although I have a business to run, it is important to the long-term success that the school is based on quality first rather than quantity. I am damned sure that my school has more to offer than any other in a 15 mile radius and as a school we are committed to constant improvement. I have a certain set of criteria that I expect of my students, starting with dedication, focus and a consistent attitude. Technical standards develop in time, but I expect a student to work for their progress. If they are not prepared to do this then as far as I am concerned then they fell at the first hurdle and failed the entrance exam.

It’s not just about whether we perform as a school, it is whether the student meets our criteria for membership as well… time for a wake-up call for a few I think…

Normality resumes….

Posted on by

And it was rather pleasing too…

First night back at the school tonight, and everyone seemed on good form which was nice. I was particularly pleased at the attendance, especially from a few of the students who are usually a little shaky in that respect.

It’s a good feeling when you see (the majority) of your students working so well and seeming to be pretty well focused. It is a shame that some of the more senior ones don’t set the example they could, or should be setting. Hopefully the fact that they will soon find themselves with a significant number of the lower grades snapping at their heels, and even overtaking them might make them sit up and take notice. If it doesn’t and they fall by the wayside it will be a real shame, but c’est la vie.

A skilled gardner knows that you need to cut away the dead wood to allow your plant to grow.