Always a Work in Progress

 In Thursday’s class we were working on a transition in a crane stance to turn 90 degrees. At first I was doing 180 degrees, and then realized I was turning way too far lol. Funnily enough though I found this easier to do than the 90 degree turn. I played with moving with the heel and then the ball of my foot, and right foot/left foot. 

One of the biggest realizations was how far I have come since surgery, and also how far I still have to go. The muscle is slowly coming back, and I can do small twists now. I’m still a bit swollen and sore after class, but recovering quicker. Kung Fu is a journey, not a destination, and sometimes I do need to remind myself of this. 

Push ups- 23,675

Sit ups - 23,675

Form reps - Hand 427 Weapon 397

AOK’s - 1210

Sparring (modified) - 700

KM’s - 1173

Blogs - 37

Mindful

 I was able to take a few days off from work last week. It has been a very long summer, as I haven’t taken any time off since the first week of May, and worked 6 out of 9 summer Saturday’s. Sure I have my 1 or 2 days off every week, but they are usually busy preparing for the following week, and trying to squeeze everything in that needs to get done. It has been a difficult year with my job, and long work days everyday. I’ve talked about this before. 

With these days off I made sure to be very mindful of my time. I had appointments that were long overdue, had quality family time, worked on forms and some numbers catch up, and was busy around the house/yard with apple season lol. But I also took time for myself to simply relax . Although I still worked to stay semi caught up, it was at my own pace. This helped to reset myself, and take stock of where I am at. It was needed, and overdue. 

Now that summer is over, I have a few more breaks with a few days off here and there, and plan to stay mindful of that time. It is so important to take care of ourselves, and yet for myself, and I think most of us, we are the last that we think of. Life is busy, and we don’t realize how much we need some down time until we take it. 

Numbers as of Sunday - 

Push ups- 23,025

Sit ups - 23,025

Form reps - Hand 405 Weapon 370

AOK’s - 1145

Sparring (modified) - 680

KM’s - 1173

Blogs - 36

Disconnect

 Some excellent feedback from class on Thursday. Not only for myself, but trying to take in all the feedback given to everyone. I know all the feedback applies to me as well. I could not retain all of it, but did make some mental pointers for some points to work on and progress with. 

Impeccable timing, but a disconnect. I feel the disconnect and know exactly what Sifu is referring to. I couldn’t quite place where I was feeling the disconnect, so this was certainly a lightbulb moment. It now allows for more of a focus point. Since my surgery, and even before I have been working on modifying my forms to still allow movement as correct as possible, but to not aggravate or cause pain. This part of my journey has certainly been great opportunities to learn, but I also think I have gotten in a habit of getting to where I need to be incorrectly. I slowed my form down to work on this for the rest of the week, bringing my center down, and coming from my center outwards (another point of feedback given to a few). I believe I am starting to see some progress, but also have a long way to go as well. I also brought this into my other forms and although not as prevalent of feeling, but still there. 

Seeing the devastation first hand in Jasper was heartbreaking, but seeing the hope and growth already was also heartwarming. I was able to deliver the funds we raised at work in person, so even though I shed some tears, it filled my heart with happiness and hope. 

Push ups- 22,015

Sit ups - 22,015

Form reps - Hand 375 Weapon 350

AOK’s - 1115

Sparring (modified) - 510

KM’s - 1123

Blogs - 35

Feeling in a Funk

 It feels as if I’ve been in an endless loop of being in a funk the last several weeks. Two blogs written this week were very relevant to me (thank you Todai Ferris and Todai Bauer). As they both write so eloquently and make you feel and know exactly what they are writing, I won’t even try to reiterate in my own words. I keep chasing that level of writing, but will most likely never achieve it, and that’s okay, all I can do is try. 

I’ll start with eating habits. My eating habits have not been great for a couple of years. I go in spurts of healthy eating, but resort back to the norm of not great. I have been doing really well with lunches, but the nighttime habits are not great, and usually abysmal. Yes this is due to late nights, working late, and being short on time. Melinda wrote the points out really well, and for me it is almost exactly the same. I need to make more time to prep the healthier meals/snacks to have at the ready for the late night meal times, and the restricted time to eat. 

Long work days, little energy, lack of sleep, stress of a situation with my son (older one), weight gain, and almost weekly issues with my mom as of late, are all leading me to feel drained. Distant, short tempered, and being easily annoyed are all the side affects I am feeling/seeing in myself which leads to further irritation. Trying to see the positive and being grateful are things I still seek everyday, but they feel fleeting and only pull me out of this funk for a short time. 

I left Thursdays meeting feeling more depressed (I know that wasn’t the intention!) but in my current state of mind, it made me think of how much more I could be doing (one on ones!!), and irritating me that I don’t know where to pull that extra time out of. 

And then I finally had the opportunity to join in on the 2nd degree brown belt class yesterday. This was good medicine (as it usually is). With the busy summer (working 6 of the Saturdays, and trying to take advantage of the warmer months to get outside projects completed) I have missed attending this class. Some great insights I needed to hear, and I’m sure not intentionally for me, but advice that will guide me towards getting out of this mindset. 

I’m already working on making changes at work, which will alleviate a lot of stress, and long work hours. I have a planned call with my son this afternoon, and I will make a point of those healthier food options while grocery shopping today. Weight gain due to injury, menopause, and bad eating habits will be a slower task to tackle, but I need to start somewhere. Small steps, and hopefully positive ones. 

I apologize for the long post, but feel like it helps to provide some direction on changes that need to be made And then the 4 words spoken yesterday, which I needed to hear the most. 

This too shall pass. 

Push ups- 21,250

Sit ups - 21,250

Form reps - Hand 345 Weapon 335

AOK’s - 1075

Sparring (modified) - 475

KM’s - 1078

Blogs - 34

BTSW 2024

 First, thank you to all who helped last week, all that planned, organized, and seen it through to the end. I found this year that there was not a lot to do by the time I arrived after work. Could be because there was many during the day working on the cleaning/smaller jobs, and the larger projects were more person specific. Either way the Kwoon looks great as usual, and the bulkhead looks amazing. It is so wonderful to see the participation and everyone taking pride in the Kwoon.

Although I had planned to take some time off this year to be able to spend more time at the Kwoon for BTSW, I did not get into the calendar at work quick enough. Some changes may be coming for me at work which will allow much more flexibility. I’ve been working hard at training for a new position, so we’ll see. More to come when I have more information and a clearer path. 

Push ups- 20,360

Sit ups - 20,560

Form reps - Hand 390 Weapon 330

AOK’s - 1053

Sparring (modified) - 465

KM’s - 1043

Blogs - 33