When was the last time you fought?

When was the last time you had fire burning inside of you?
Burning so hot you actually swagger around like you own the place... own everything in sight.

Well, today I ACTUALLY did that... and it FELT goooooood... HEH HEH HEH

"Karate for life" - Sensei K. Tomiyama

Hmm.. These words were repeated quite a few times when he was in town last Saturday to give us a short lesson on what it means to be training karate wholeheartedly. Unfortunately, it was rather short. I had so much to digest over that short seminar but it generated so many questions, many questions that came a little too late (after he left to be exact). Nevermind, I guess there will always be next time.

Grading is around the corner and I see a lot happening in our dojo. There are some (like myself) kanchiong spiders, practising katas, kumite, bunkai and upping our fitness level so we won't make an ass of ourselves during the grading.

There will be 6! SIX! Examiners... GULP! Sensei Morooka, Sensei Arai, Sensei Sakamoto, Sensei Kawata, Sensei George Tan and Sensei Wong. They are good solid teachers, but this is an exam, so they will be wanting to see what we know so far....

Ahh....

Liao liao liao liao

The way I see it. there can be no shortcut through this grading. They will be brutal, strict and serious. I mean, hey c'mon guys, if you don't do your homework before the big exam, don't expect miracles to happen on that day hor...

3+ weeks left, plenty of time to catch up on training... 27 days = 648 hours. Go go go!!

Oh by the way, good luck to those having grading this Sunday. Don't be late!

Next week we will be going to Woodlands Civic Centre for a tournament. Monday, Mr Wong will be choosing who will be in what team... Hmm, I don't know if I will be in or not...anyway.. K'Serra Serra... Wish us luck!

~Outz

9th Malaysia Schools Open Karate Championship 2008

Cheras Badminton Stadium, Kuala Lumpur.

The title and picture says it all... Hmmm..But where do I really begin to start telling about this?

My kiddies did such a good job lor.. well... not exactly excellent lar.. all of them were a little deaf to what I say to them at one time or the other... BUT BUTT... overall they did their best and I think they deserve better.

The Boys and Girls and Uncles and Aunties that were there...

Yvonne, Paolo, Christian, Xavier and Edwina. Well done! Although I wish I could be there fighting by your sides, I guess there is always next time. :)

~...(grumble... grumble...)...~

**additional comments (made 27 May)**

~~...(grumble grumble grumble).....

I AM UNSTOPPABLE!

Hey world! I am here to tell you I am unstoppable! Starting in 3 weeks time, I will be unstoppable for a while... Stop me if you can...

Don't believe, click here--->I AM MIGHTY!!

~The Committed One

Matsumura no Rohai

The other kata I am training up for my sandan grading is Matsumura no Rohai. This will come under Matsumura Sokon kata. (Video footage will be posted once I get some decent ones)

Problem is there are so many versions I was confused uptil a couple of weeks ago. I guess I am going to stick to my guns and go with my chief's version. He is my chief after all, haa haa.

Anyway, I really think that knowing a kata is one thing, getting to know and apply what we have learnt from the kata is another. I got this from "Kuro Obi". I finally laid my hands on the movie! I will be doing a short review of that show here in my next post.

I will be leaving for KL in a couple more days, gonna accompany my kids up for a short tournament and hopefully we can warm up for our Goju Invitational (8th June) when we get back.

FINALLY! A decent tournament for me to warm up and pick up where I left off so many years ago. 8th June will be the start of my resurrection. I guess if there is anytime to finish my competition career, this last few tournaments will be a good place to end. Hopefully by the end of it all, I have some good memories.. new ones to replace all the old ones.. I am kinda sick talking about the old times... Lets get new ones baby!!!

~~Out

My kata Jiin

Jiin looks more similar to Jion as to Jitte and is also longer than Jitte. But Jiin includes footwork with difficult turns, requiring good balance ala Chinto. In this area it is the most difficult of the three Kata.

Jiin, the name is to translate to "ground of the temple" or "temple ground". It is classified under Itosu-Te family of katas, however, there are some (including myself) who thinks the 3 katas may have their roots in both Tomari-Te and Matsumura.

Common traits of Jion, Jitte and Jiin are movements out to the side and in the case of Jiin, there are some backward turns which sets it apart from the former two.

I would love to show you what Jiin is all about but due to copyright issues, I will only have to show you what I can do. (...not very good, but at least it is better than some I have seen posted online.. *wink!!)

Kata: Jiin. Time: 1min 18secs

By the way, I think it needs more work (I need more practise lor), my grading is in 6 weeks time)

~Outz

DANG!!

DANG! As the title of my post suggests, DANG!! DANG!!

Sometimes the most well meaning gestures can be detrimental to our health.

My mother has been trying to stuff me with rice, noodles, bread... almost everything CARBS you can think of. I think I may have gained a bit of weight back since.

This goes to show that if you are lazy even for a few days and ill-discipline about maintaining your fitness and weight... it will come back. Like I said previously, this is all about a life-style change. If we go back to our old life-style, your old habits and weight comes back... Like a boomerang.. whoosh whoosh..TWACK! DANG! SH*T! Weight gain lor, figure go out of shape lor... go bang wall lor...

OR... OR!!!!

Just make sure we resume our active efforts at life-style change. No use going around blaming others for our weakness... Like my chief told me yesterday..

Mr Wong: "Oei! Sim! You getting fat again ah! Look at that stomach! Hoi Yoh! Weak lar you!"

SIGH!!!.... I tell you ah... sad lor..

**Note: I don't usually blog from SKA but I am doing it now because I just finished my morning training (Today is kata training, later at 2pm I am going to Cali Fitness for gym and STEAM & SAUNA.. ahhh.....).

Anyway, the reason why I must blog now is because my kata SUUUUUCCCKKKSSS!!!!

YES!~ Really sucki man! I have never had such bad kata in my life! I am thinking what the heck am I doing, trying to go for grading!! Argh!

My kicks sux big time as well!

My punches are generally slow!

I have SUPER high neko-ashi (for those not in karate, that means cat stance.. one of the few advance stances in karate.. and it has to be low to be considered good. I have super high one lor..so equates super bad lor...).

Wah l*n! Anyone might as well give up man. Like this carry on, I think 3-4 years, anyone also cannot cannot make it lar!

Hmm... but then again.. oh I see, I am not just anyone. Haa haa haa.. So it does not apply to me.

I will be making daily trips to the gym (strength), dojo(karate) and running(cardio) my ass off. I am also making sure I stick to my regime of non-carb (weight loss) and healthy foods (nutrition). I am also trying to throw in a healthy dose of stretches (flexibility) and swimming (joint & muscle mobility). Sundays are off-limits to training. It is couch potato and family day (Recovery)!

Be defeated or do something about your obstacles. The choice is up to you.

I choose the path of the water.. it is my representation of the unstoppable force.

Hmmm..? Hmmm..? What is that you say? Did you not read my blog title? I suggest you go read it again. Be the unstoppable force...

"Be like water my friend"

- Bruce Lee

The Commited One

Changes are in the air

I am not sure if changes are good for life, but generally they are good... especially so for maintaining a diet that leads to a better quality of life.. :)

I know losing weight to many means to abstain from food, some does extreme exercises humanly impossible, some do both... and the end DESIRED result will be to look good, perhaps, or maybe feel good? PLEASE understand that losing weight is a process, not a destination (CORNY lar I know, stop going "eh eh eh, he got that from somewhere.. but I digress), By pegging it as a destination, once you reach there, there will be nowhere else to go but back...see what I mean?.. hmm? hmm?... But if you see it as a process or journey, then it will become a lifestyle change. I cannot stress enough, the road to losing weight, getting fit and looking AND FEELING good, is a sustainable change in lifestyle habit. That means, food in-take, exercise, work and hobbies must be tweaked to suit our new lifestyle.

*For those who winced at the word CHANGE, you may not be ready... If you must, take it easy and slowly.. SLOWLY change (heh? winced again eh?)... the Key word is SUSTAINABLE hor...

Anyway, let me just share a little today, since I seem to be in the mood to blog... (more to come in the next blog)

Modified Atkins Diet consist of non-existent carb intake + cardio-vascular exercises leading to ketosis induced fat burn.

My version of the Modified Atkins Diet is divided into 2 parts for the sports person aka martial artist like myself;

1. To reach your target weight:

• Intake: Non-carb. Always go for high protein, high calcium, fibre-rich and low fat content food.

• Workout (Week 1 & 2): 30 mins to 1 hour of low level intensity (2-3 times a week)

• Workout (Week 3 onwards): 1 hour of low - mid level intensity (2-3 times a week)

• Caution: Always start SLOW. The weight WILL DROP as long as you are patient and willing to persist.

2. To maintain:

• Intake: Carb intake is permitted. Again, always go for high protein, high calcium, fibre-rich and low fat.

• Workout: 1 - 2 hours of mid - high level intensity (3 times a week)

• Caution: Remember to let our bodies rest once in a while so it can recover.

Part of my lifestyle change was also NOT to eat at night, I made it easier for myself by getting involved in computer games or going online when I feel hungry (roughly translated, that is me being greedy and being a glutton). Draw your own road map, make detours away from your obstacles, maybe you might just make that all important step FORWARD.

Remember, there is only FORWARD and BACKWARD, never STILL in time. So go go go!!!