You know the old expression "Too much of a good thing"? Unfortunately it also applies to health and fitness. I've heard it countless times over the years. "I love the way working out makes me feel. I want to do it every day". There's also "I just need to workout every day. My day just isn't complete without it". And of course we have "It's been months since I ate any junk food. I love the way healthy eating makes me feel. I don't ever want it again".   At first glance, someone might ask "What's the problem?". Let's look at these…

The weapon is an extension of the hands. This is a very common understanding in the world of martial arts and one particular weapon where this applies perhaps more than others, is the Wing Chun Butterfly Swords. They essentially resemble large butcher knives with hand guards. Basically every technique you can do with your hands can be done with the swords. In fact, I don't think it's possible to truly understand the proper energies of Wing Chun without the swords.    When you look at empty handed techniques, they're done with what we call a small frame. Everything is tighter and more…

It's been a tough winter so far here in Southern Ontario, Canada. We got a ton of snow so far this year and we've also had some bitter bone-chilling cold weather. Luckily, we have a bodyweight workout that can be done anywhere. This is a circuit workout for either two or three rounds. Here are the exercises.   Dips Punisher Squats Chinups Tabletop Thrusts Fist Pushups Wideouts Bicep Body Rows Spiderman Mountain Climbers   Of course, certain changes can be made but this is the exact workout I did. Try to keep the reps high and the rest to a minimum. Working out doesn't have…

The battle ropes are a very versatile piece of equipment. They're great for strength, endurance, body connection and coordination, and even for training sport specific skills. On top of that it provides am amazing cardio workout and can really help melt those pounds off. In this video, I cover my favourite exercises on the ropes.    One thing to keep in mind always is that you must use the body as one unit. In the Chinese internal arts, we like to say "One part moves, All parts move". With the ropes it's very difficult to not do this. For if you don't then…

Here's a 9 Exercise Bodyweight Circuit for you. No equipment is required. Here are the exercises.   1. Punisher Squats 2. Pushups with Alternating Widths 3. Frog Jumps 4. Pike Pushups 5. Side Lunges 6. Knuckle Pushups 7. Bear Crawl 8. Ape Crawl 9. Crab Crawl   These are done back to back in a circuit. 2 to 4 total circuits are done. It's a tough one, but effective! Check out the video!  

Jumping on the trampoline is one of my favourite types of exercises. It's fun, it's simple, and it has tremendous health benefits. One major benefit is it helps you feel youthful. Look at kids running, jumping, and playing. They're so light on their feet and moving easily. Unfortunately it doesn't take long before you start to stiffen up and most adults have completely lost that supple feeling. It doesn't have to be that way however. Trampoline jumping is one of the best ways to get that feeling back. Another benefit is that it promotes lymphatic fluid flow. Jumping up and…

This has been a challenging time to say the least. With so many things closed and put on hold, how can you stay motivated to workout and live the fitness lifestyle? The easiest thing is to make small changes. Don't tell yourself that you'll never have a cheat day again. That won't work. All you'll end up doing is driving yourself insane only to end up going nuts one day and finishing off a large pizza and a container of ice cream. I've seen it happen! So what are some of the ways we can do this? Here are three…

During these times, it's important to be able to workout anywhere. Gyms are closed or open with restrictions. But we still need to stay in shape. How can this be done and how can we keep the workouts fun and interesting? There's more to it than just saying to do 100 squats, 100 pushups, 100 sit ups a day. Sure that may work for a bit and you may even get some decent results from that. But eventually you'll get pretty bored and stale on that.    A big part of keeping things fresh and to get better results is to change the…

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…

This is a bodyweight workout that can be done anywhere with just a bit of floor space. There are four major categories of exercises that all need to be trained for a balanced workout. They are  1. Squats 2. Upper Body Push 3. Upper Body Pull 4. Core Work   At least one exercise from  each category should be done. In this case I've done three from each. Here's a full list of the exercises.  1. Squats 2. Beat Your Boots Squats 3. Wideouts / Pop Squats 4. Pushups 5. Hindu Pushups 6. Knuckle Pushups 7. Swimming 8. Renegade Rows 9. Body Rows (Lebert Equalizers) 10. Spiderman Climb 11. Frog Crunch 12. Side Plank Raise   Click below to see the workout. https://youtu.be/Wd1OHc7yWrU And send…

In our society, many people have been trained to feel helpless. As if they have no control over things. If something is wrong with your health, take a drug. If you suffer from Depression take a drug. If your back hurts there's nothing you can do about. You're old and that's just the way it is. Or you could take a drug for it. If you're diagnosed with Diabetes take a drug. If you have High Blood Pressure, take a drug. Do any of these remedies involve taking control of your life in a a healthy way. These are all legitimate…

One of the less glamourous, but certainly essential elements of fitness, is body alignment. My first gym I trained at was Mack's Gym in Toronto which was run by Mack Miya. He was one tough SOB and was a very old school trainer. His philosophy was that you had no business handling any weight unless your alignment was spot on. So in order to teach me, he had me doing squats with a broomstick. This seemed very unusual to me at the time and I didn't understand it, but as the years went by I truly appreciated it since I've…

Never before have we had so much information about diet and exercise and never before have we had so much bullshit at the same time! Seriously when I think back over the past 30 plus years that I've been doing this stuff, I've seen the entire fitness industry change from being thought of as a weird activity for health nuts to the point where everybody, even kids, are discussing things like the Keto diet, Paleo diet, etc. You know the old expression "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing"? Well it's certainly true when it comes to nutrition.    Honestly it was…

Here's a full body workout using just your bodyweight. With a lot of restrictions at gyms right now and home gym equipment being hard to find, we all need simple minimal workouts like this! Here are the exercises.   Jumping Jacks Squats Pushups Peeing Dog To Donkey Kicks Spiderman Mountain Climbers Crunches Superman   Do a total of two or three circuits. Each exercise in the circuit is done back to back. After this, do the Qigong finishing exercises and closing For more information about these exercises or for personal training, click here

Posture is definitely one of the most overlooked things in fitness, yet it's also one of the most important elements. Without proper posture you open yourself up to all sorts of injuries, muscular imbalances, neck tension, and a whole ton of other issues. In this video, I explain proper posture during exercise. Keep in mind that mirrors, although they can be useful on certain exercises, can be disastrous for others.   For more information about this or for in-home or online personal training, click here

I love HIIT training (High Intensity Interval Training)! It can be done with just your bodyweight and the will to get it done. For this workout we have 9 exercises, each one done for 30 seconds of work followed by 15 seconds of rest, and a total of 3 rounds. It works great. The exercise are   Burpees Pushups Squats Speed Skaters Renegade Rows Mountain Climbers  Ape Crawl Bear Crawl Crab Crawl For more Information about Online or In-Home Personal Training, click here  

We are currently dealing with the Coronavirus Pandemic which is leaving a huge number of people stuck indoors at home with nowhere to go. Unfortunately this is just something that we all have to deal with. However that doesn't mean that your fitness has to suffer. In fact, some of my best workouts ever have been right in the comfort of my own home. And of course as an in-home personal trainer, I train people exclusively in their homes. But for those of you who are accustomed to the gym and need to have some at-home workouts, here they are.   One…

Almost everyone has hard of reflexology. But what you may not know is just how simple it is to incorporate into your daily life with simple techniques that can be done anywhere. First, what exactly is reflexology? It's all about the various pressure points of the body. Applying pressure to the hands, feet, and ears in the correct way can relax your body, relieve pain, and relieve stress.   For this post, we'll focus on the hands since your hands are always right there out in the open and can easily be done anywhere. Even if you're on a subway or a…

One thing I've seen a lot in the fitness industry is trainers giving everyone the same workout regardless of their goals and needs. For the most part, this is a bodybuilding style split routine. You know the ones I'm talking about. The programs where you train different muscles on different days. You may have an upper body day and a lower body day, or you may do your chest and back one day, legs and abs, one day, arms and shoulders one day, etc. And depending on your goals, that may be the right program for you. Or it might not…

A question I get asked sometimes is whether or not I feel the time and effort invested in fitness is worth the sacrifice. It's true that I do spend a great deal of time working out, researching, pondering, etc. As a result, I'm not able to spend as much time doing other things such as watching tv shows, gaming, and other similar activities. I'm very selective about which shows I watch as I only have limited time. I do however make time for playing music, spending time with my family, art, and some other interests. But nonetheless, there are things…