The ability to remain calm in a real situation can be very difficult indeed. It almost seems like a contradiction. It sounds very strange to relax while you're trying to hit someone and avoid being hit, but you must do this. One of the keys to doing this is learning to control your breath. This is done through Qigong breathing exercises. If you practice these exercises regularly, it will have tremendous benefit to your overall health and the ability to remain calm.   RELAXATION, AWARENESS, INTENT are the keys to combat. You must stay relaxed inn order to be properly aware and you…

The heavy bag is one of the most recognizable pieces of equipment in Boxing and other martial arts. Indeed it's one of the first things that come to mind when you think of the martial arts. It can come in many shapes, sizes, and types. However there are two major categories. One is the hanging type which can hang from a ceiling hook or from a heavy bag stand and the other is freestanding with a water or sand filled base. Top me the best is the hanging type from a ceiling hook. You can of course get a great workout no…

Sometimes people have difficulty understanding step through or shifting footwork when it comes to the hands. But if you put a knife in your hands it all makes more sense. There's a real flow to it that's hard to get with just the bare hands, but it can be transferred over with weapons.    You may have heard people say that the weapon is an extension of your hand. That's exactly true. Any of the techniques you can do with the knives or other weapons can be done with the hands. Not only that, but the personality of the weapons would always…

Forms practice is a very large part of the traditional martial arts. They serve many purposes. One is that in the old days it served as a glossary of the techniques of a martial art. The majority of the population was illiterate at that time and forms were a way to physically pass down the techniques and spirit of a martial art. Another is that it helps to ingrain the techniques into your subconscious improving muscle memory. And a third is that they are good exercise and in fact great for cardio as well as coordinating the body.   However for our…

These energies were taught to me as The Eight Energies Of Wing Chun. However, I've come to realize that they are universal to all martial arts. Understanding these energies will vastly improve your knowledge of the martial arts and how to use the various attacks and defenses. Here they are.   1. LISTENING ENERGY - This is also known as sensitivity and is an integral part of all martial arts. Once there is contact between you and your opponent, a bridge has been created. You can feel your opponent and your opponent can feel you. Listening energy is what will allow you…

We're living in very unusual times to say the least! With things being locked down, gyms closed, restaurants closed, theaters closed, travel being extremely restricted, our lives have been turned completely upside down. There is light at the end of the tunnel and I'm confident that 2021 will slowly see improvements to allow us to return to normal. But one undeniable fact is that this past year with so many people living sedentary lifestyles, has seen a lot of unhealthy weight gain. I personally know some people who've packed on 25 lbs or more this past year. Normally one's day…

The heavy bag is certainly one of the best pieces of equipment you can use. It's a fantastic cardio workout, develops explosiveness, power, timing, and so much more. And of course it's essential to develop your strikes for all martial arts. It is important however to use it properly. Learn to form a fist correctly and also use the proper energy. The golden rule (and this may sound a bit strange) is this:   IF YOU TRY TO HIT HARD, IT WON'T BE.   I'm sure that sounds very weird, but the reason why I'm saying that is if you think about trying to hit…

Footwork is without question the most important element of martial arts. It's the foundation for everything you do. One expression my Boxing coach always likes saying is "You box with your legs, not your hands!". Anyway in the video I go over some basic exercises that can be used to develop the footwork. There are four drills in total.   1. Half Step Drill 2. Full Step Drill 3. Two Step Method 4. Four Corner Stepping  

Qigong is one of those things you may or may not have heard of. However Qi or Chi is something many people have heard of. It's been featured in countless movies and tv shows. It was even spoken about in the movie Kung Fu Panda! So what is Qi and what is Qigong? Qi is your life energy or life essence as some people like to call it and Qigong is the method which cultivates it. However unlike how it's portrayed in movies or by scammers, it is NOT some type of magical power or energy you have in your body.…

This is a killer workout I learned of recently from my Boxing coach. It's called the Walkin' 25s. Here's how it works. It's a circuit with several exercises done back to back and done in a ladder format. With ladders the reps for each exercise increase by 1 with each subsequent circuit. Start with 1 and increase all the way up to 25. After every 5 sets some of the exercises change, but there are some that remain the same all the way through. You can of course change the exercises, but for the example in this post, the exercise that stay the…

I'm pretty sure most of you have done Paint By Numbers art projects before where a number corresponds to a specific colour. With punching in Boxing and Martial Arts, it's the exact same thing. Except that the number corresponds to a punch! This can really help in a number of ways. It helps familiarize yourself with the punches and also when hearing combos being called out spontaneously, it's much quicker to just say the number than the words. It makes things a lot easier when you're taking notes as well. Another benefit is that of having to think and respond quickly.…

There are tons of different opinions on this. All I can do is give you my opinion as well as the reasons behind it. Hopefully it will make sense to you. It certainly does to me, but you'll have to decide.   So to start with, I remember I used to work at a gym where there was this other trainer about the same age as me. He always changed his client workouts every workout. I don't know if I every saw his clients doing the same thing twice. He would justify it by saying that it's for muscle confusion and to…

No matter what activity you engage in, footwork is buy far the most important thing. In today's video, I demonstrate some martial arts footwork and body connection drills, but they can be applied to any activity. Remember that without good footwork and strong legs, it is very similar to a car with a pitiful engine. It may look fantastic, but if the engine is useless you won't be going very far or fast.   In the video I go over a few exercises. The first two are Qigong exercises taken from the Bagua system of Chinese martial arts. The third is a…

The youth of today are our future of tomorrow. Therefore it's  super important for them to be healthy and fit. There are of course many distractions that exist today that didn't when I was a kid. Internet, video games, social media, etc. Unfortunately as a result of this, kids are now more sedentary than they've ever been before. So there's the problem.   HOW DO WE GET KIDS INTERESTED IN FITNESS?   Of course as I'm sure you already know, people won't do something unless it's fun. Hardly a revelation, but it still needs to be pointed out. Personally I think the best way is…

There are many misconceptions about self defense. What it is and what it is not. But most of it boils down to what your goals are. Similar to fitness goals, if you don't have a clear idea of what you're trying to achieve, there's no way you can possibly know how to get there.   First, let's get something straight. Your goal is not to win a fight! Your goal is to survive and get home in one piece. If it's possible to do it peacefully, do it! Getting into a street altercation never ends well. Even if you win the fight,…

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Most people have probably heard the term HIIT before. In case you haven't, it stands for High Intensity Interval Training. A very solid method of training particularly for fat loss. In fact, some studies have actually shown that it can be up to 3 times more effective than steady state cardio.   Not that anything is wrong with steady state cardio, but for maximum efficiency HIIT wins. Of course this concept is hardly new. A round of boxing is interval training as well. 3 minutes of work followed by 1 minute of rest. And of course, as an alternative to timing your…