Form Reps

I came to a realization this past few days that I have let some bad habits sneak into my forms and I need to start removing them. The way I am doing this is mindful practice while evaluating every move in the form. This has slowed my repetitions down but is providing some great insights.

My goal for form reps this week was not met but I did get more reps in than I have been so it was successful in that aspect. I am going to keep the same goal for my I Ho Chuan forms this week and see if I get closer as this week.

A Weakness

I am still trying to catch up on projects from the summer that didn’t get finished because I was away for work so much more it seemed like this year, I have been lucky that the weather has been not too bad so far and hopefully I can finish a couple more yet this year.

We were asked in Thursdays I Ho Chuan class if we knew our weakness(es) and I know I have more than one but I also know which one is my biggest. It is not a technique or a part of a form but it is a mental one. I sometimes do not prioritize or dedicate enough time to practicing my form. There are all kinds of reasons I could give but it really is sometimes just me not prioritizing them. It is something I need to rectify so I have set a goal of performing each of my I Ho Chuan forms 5 times a day for the next seven days. I will see if this is doable and I will follow it up with a new goal next week.

The seminar is going well I think/hope and Sifu Ryback was there on Saturday which made it a lot easier to manage. As I stated my goal is to try and help everyone improve their sparring but to also make sure, they are getting what they want out of this. So, if you do attend, I will probably talk to you at some point this week to see how you are finding it.

Upcoming Seminar

I have spent a lot of my time these past couple of weeks preparing for my Sanda seminar. My thing is I want to cover as much as possible but I also don’t want to rush through things either. This balance is what makes these types of things exciting and also a little nerve wracking. I am also making sure that it is tailored to all different skill and comfort levels as well as for people who have to modify certain things. This also adds an extra challenge to it.

So far, my work travel has also slowed down for the year and I will not be making any long trips as I will be here for the next 6 Saturdays for sure.

Blank Sceen Kind Of

I started this blog with a definite topic in mind but it is not working out to transform it into words. It was mostly going to be about not getting frustrated when you receive corrections in class as it is only designed to make you be a better Martial Artist. Also, the person giving you correction is not doing to be mean or trying to make you feel bad, but generally wants to help you.

I sometimes have to remind myself of this and to also then be honest with myself. This is more in relation to being on the A demo team or the B team. I know I will be on the B team because I haver not put in the practice required for my forms yet this year. But I am working on them and I feel like I am improving. I think I am going to end this here as I think I am starting to ramble.

Abandoned (Mines)

I have made it back to civilization after 2 weeks of remote work. I was at 2 abandoned mines in the Yukon with very limited services and people. It is a little strange being in a camp that used to house 400 people and only have 50 there. The other camp was a 300 man camp with only 13 of us there. You could walk around for an hour and see nobody.

It is nice to be back (only for 1 day so far as I got back yesterday afternoon). Today was spent doing a project in the city so I haven’t actually had a day off yet. I am hoping tomorrow will be a little more relaxed.

My Kung Fu needs some attention as I have my forms to work on and I need to continue prepping for the seminar. I was able to get in some practice today and plan on spending quite a bit of time training this next 2 weeks.

There is a chance I may have another 3 to 4 day project coming up in the next few weeks but hopefully not.

Disconnected to Sanda

I just came back from a remote abandoned mine site in the Yukon that had almost zero service. I had enough for texts and that was about it. Sometimes it is nice to just disconnect and leave the world behind even if it is only for a short time.

I finally have the full sequence for the Butterfly Swords form. It needs a lot of work yet as I am still not great with some of the movements but I can at least work through it now. It is tough to practice either form when I am away as I can’t really bring the weapons with me and there is no space or time to play with them. So, I just work through them in my head and try to do a small sequence here and there.

I am excited about my upcoming seminar as it has been a long time since my last one (before Covid). I am also hoping lots of people sign up as that would be disappointing if no one came. I am really going to focus on things to make people better and more comfortable with sparring but also show them where they can take their sparring. I am also going to ensure it is setup for all skill levels and all experience levels as well as modifying for people with limitations.

Well I am off to my next project and unsure what service will be like there but I assume it will be pretty much non existent as well/

Balance

It never seems like there is enough time to do all the things I need to do. I know I am not the only one to feel this way but sometimes the stress of knowing what needs to get done with the limited time I have to do them feels overwhelming.

I was supposed to be done all my projects for the year with the exception of maybe a week in Whitehorse sometime before December. That changed when a new project popped up and I was asked if I could go. I didn’t need to say yes, but being a contractor, it would not be in my best interest. So of course, I said I could go. What that means for me, is I have a week home and then I will be gone for another 12 days again.

The stress comes in from the list of things I need to work on at home that keep getting pushed off. I also like to get to the Kwoon as much as possible which cuts into my time at home. What I realize from this is even after all these years of travelling for work, I still struggle to maintain a balance in my life. Sometimes I have to make sacrifices in my life and it is never an easy decision on what to sacrifice.