One of the best pieces of equipment you can use for core and balance training is the BOSU. Because it decreases your stability, you have no choice but to engage your core to hold yourself in position. And two of my favourite exercises are in the video. They are   1. Cross Body Mountain Climbers 2. Suicide Planks Anyway here's the video. Check it out and give it a try!

One of the most important things about learning a martial art is how valid it is. Does it actually work and is there a history? You certainly wouldn't want to learn from someone who just made it up themselves. In my case, my Ving Tsun family tree can be traced back to famous Grandmaster Ip Man. There have been many movies made about him, but of course the real man didn't do all those things on screen. He was however a great martial arts fighter and a great teacher.    So Ip Man taught Moy Yat. Moy Yat taught Sunny Tang. Sunny…

Sometimes I get asked my opinion on Cardio Boxing so I figured I'd just write about it. Short answer is NO. I don't think it's useless. I'll admit that there was a time when I thought it was, but that was at a time when I was more immature and I failed to ask one of the most important questions in fitness? WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS? I mean not everyone is willing to get punched and kicked for real? It hurts and isn't the most pleasant experience. Believe me, I've been punched and kicked countless times. That being said, it…

Working within your limitations is something we all have to do. And one of the things I've helped people with over the years is help people get fit who are in wheelchairs. I spent a number of years helping a man at a fitness center in East Toronto called Variety Village. Doing that not only helped him but it was a great learning experience for me. In this video I'll go over some of the exercises which I taught him. It's a combination of breathing, Qigong, and strength training. Here are the exercises.   1. Breathing 2. Reverse Breathing 3. Serving Teacups 4. Lion Rolling…

We see martial arts everywhere. In films, on TV, MMA, etc. Now especially, MMA or mixed martial arts is very popular and has to a large degree taken over a lot of the martial arts world. Even martial arts such as Western Boxing seem to have taken a backseat to MMA.   However, even though we may see MMA gyms popping up everywhere and traditional martial arts seem to be decreasing in popularity, it doesn't need to be that way and I also don't think it will be forever. Actually the way I see it, they're one and the same. Many may…

One of the most neglected body parts is the neck. Everyone loves training their chest, biceps, and abs. But often when it comes to legs, back, triceps, people just don't put in the work. And when it comes to things like calves, forearms, and necks, it's even worse. But the neck is one of the most important muscles in your body. It's responsible for your posture, alignment, and overall body strength. In the Burmese martial art of Lethwei, they allow headbutts. And because of this they take neck training very seriously. This video will demonstrate the exercises used. Give them a try…

I remember as a teenager and in my early 20s, when I thought about being 50 years old it seemed so far away. I thought for sure I wouldn't be working out the same way. Well here I am at almost 51 years old and I'm still doing my thing pretty much the same way as I was in my 20s. But there are some differences in how things must be done that you can't just ignore.   First, recovery is an issue. Like it or not, you can't recover the same way in your 50s as you did I your 20s.…

Wing Chun is a very unusual martial art. It's principle based rather than technique based. This causes a lot of confusion including ridiculous arguments about what is and isn't Wing Chun. So instead of looking at and memorizing an endless list of techniques, we're seeing techniques merely as expressions of the principles. If for example, my right hand is closer to my opponent than my left, I'll use my right hand since it's more efficient. If I can avoid a fight entirely, I will since I want to always save time, movement, and energy. In any case, I hope this video…

The TRX is one of the most versatile pieces of equipment you can find anywhere! It's adapted from Gymnastics rings. Although you don't have to do the Iron Cross on them! The beauty of it is that you can adjust the difficulty of the exercises simply by moving your feet. Doing so will change the angle of your body and therefore change the resistance or percentage of your bodyweight you're lifting.   The TRX has two mounting options. One can be in a doorway and the other can be around a bar of some type. This could be a tree branch, a…

The centreline is one of the most important concepts in the martial arts. People use it and are aware of it even if they don't realize. There are actually three separate centrelines and each one has its importance.    MIDDLE CENTRELINE - This line runs right down the front of your body and it's the line along which many of your vital organs are located   MOTHERLINE - This line runs right down the middle of your body and is responsible for your balance. Leaning too far forward, backward, or sideways will compromise this. You must always by balanced even if your weight is not…

The weapon is an extension of the person who wields it. This is an extremely important concept in the martial arts. After all, hand to hand fighting systems have their origins in weapons. You can take straight punches, hook punches, and uppercut punches, and you can see all of them in the staff. The key difference is that with weapons, everything is larger. Steps are larger, body rotation is larger, etc. But when we switch to hand to hand fighting, things become much tighter and closer. This is why we sometimes like to say "TRAIN BIG, FIGHT SMALL".   Take a look…

Nowadays we hear a lot about pre-workout drinks. People like the idea of getting an energy boost before a workout. Unfortunately there are also some ingredients in these drinks that may not be the best for your health. In addition, many of their supposed benefits are not backed by research. Also, why would you want to resort to stimulants or other questionable supplements when natural approaches can get the job done safely?   Dried fruits (or regular) have been used for centuries for an energy boost and a source of quick fuel. They are probably the richest natural foods on earth in…

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…

Ask 10 trainers for their favourite workouts and I'm sure you'll get 10 different answers. There are many ways to train and they all hold value. It really is impossible to name one workout more effective than any other. The goals you're trying to achieve, physical limitations you may have, your personality, preferences, and other factors all play a role in figuring out the best plan for you.   So while it may be impossible to name one absolute best workout, I have discovered one plan which seems to work quite well for most people, is easily customizable, and can be trained…

Tabatas are a great exercise method. The entire process is 4 minutes long. 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest. This is done 8 times totaling 4 minutes. You can take either one or two exercises. In this video, we did 2 exercises which were the Wideouts and the Mountain Climbers. A short yet effective workout!  

We've never had as much information about diet, nutrition, vitamins, hormones, etc as we have right now! We've also never had as many frustrated and confused people over it! There is a principle called Ocam's Razor in philosophy which refers to the idea that the simplest answer is the correct one. This certainly applies to weight loss and nutrition. In the video I explain a bit more about it and I also go over my 6 Rules Plan. Just keep things simple. For a quick reference here are the rules. 1) 30 in 30 2) 8 Cups of water daily 3) A mulit-vitamin daily 4)…