Hey family how is everyone enjoying their summer? During these hot long hazy lazy days of Summer it’s easy to skip training sessions…
It’s important that you make time to stay consistent in your training, even if it’s only 10 minutes a day. The reason is because consistency is the key to progress in your martial arts. There are days where Jamie and I only get in 10 minutes, other times we aim for 3 sessions of 10 minutes each and on the best days we get several hours in. Regardless of how little or how much, we stay consistent and this goes for exercise too.
Not only that, but by being consistent in your effort you also create a good habit of training.
Also, be consistent and mindful of practicing your Kung Fu in your everyday movements and thoughts. This one thing has helped Jamie to grow her skill faster, because she is literally applying the saying that ‘everything is Kung Fu‘ to her life! She also immerses herself by listening to training while she is filming or working on a blog post, customer service, etc. By doing so, she subconsciously picks up on things.
I’m always amazed at what she picks up just by doing these few extra things. You can do the same thing too by listening to training videos while you clean the house, drive to work, etc. In the future we will have audio downloads available so you can listen to training on the go even easier!
If you are busy with the family this summer, or you are just enjoying some much needed R&R, still make sure you fit some time in to take care of you. Make your training and health a priority, so the rest of your life flows easier.
I recommend watching at least a few lessons a week, stretch a few times a week and practice some C.O.R.E. Training. You may also want to include some weight lifting and cardio a few times a week. With cardio pick something you love, personally I enjoy biking and jogging on the treadmill, while Jamie enjoys biking, dancing and the elliptical machine. The point is find things you enjoy doing, so you will want to stay consistent.
In the Summer months I tend to work on my forms and my C.O.R.E. mixed with some weight training a few times a week and cardio a few times a week, mainly because it’s hot!
Find your groove throughout the seasons and don’t be afraid to mix things up until you find the right combination for your goals.
Because studying Kung Fu isn’t a destination, it’s a journey, take your time and enjoy your experience! You are not going to be able to learn everything all at once, these skills and techniques you are learning are something you are going to perfect over a lifetime. There are no shortcuts to becoming a master at anything.
Often times I talk to people who feel like they should be further than they are, it happens to everyone. They create a preconceived notion of where they think they should be with their progress for the amount of time they have been training. You could do this, but in reality you are just beating yourself up which generally is counterproductive to your training. 😉
In short, take it easy on yourself. You will learn at the rate that your mind, body and spirit learns. Everyone is different, some will get certain things before others, know that, that is okay. Don’t try and force yourself to learn, rather let yourself learn at the pace that is natural for you. Now that doesn’t mean allow yourself to have a bunch of excuses as to why you aren’t training, but rather to take it easy on yourself when you aren’t getting something right away.
If you stay consistent in your training, you will get to your destination when you are ready and not a moment sooner, so enjoy the ride!
Speaking of being consistent… We got back to putting some fun tidbits on our social media outlets!
Watch me help a student deal with pressure:
In the above clip I am helping my student Kevin work on dealing with pressure. As times go on, you should increase the amount of pressure you are dealing with or giving out. I also slowly increase the power of my strikes over time so that the body can learn to adapt and accept those strikes.
This is a non-threatening and non-aggressive way to work on dealing with adrenaline dumping under pressure.
In this next clip Jamie learns a quick hair-pulling technique:
A video posted by Enter Shaolin, LLC (@enter.shaolin) on
In the above clip Sifu Phu gives a quick tip on how to properly grab someone’s hair to control them. Jamie literally did this as it was taught during the lesson, as you can see she picked up on it instantly. 😉
We hope you enjoyed this week’s update and that you have found value in it, leave a comment below and let us know how you are!
We also want to give a quick shout out to the 9 family member’s who upleveled to an Abbot membership. Thank you to David, Valonda, Gil, Kerstin, Witalis, Ralph, Cornelius, Michael and Anthony for not only believing in our vision for Enter Shaolin, but also in yourselves! 🙂
Now on to your training…
Here’s Your New Enter Shaolin Training:
C.O.R.E. Training
Tai Chi
Chin Na
Enter Shaolin Seminar
Happy Training,
Sifu Larry Rivera
& The Enter Shaolin Family
1-844-9-KUNGFU
Great advice; encouragement, and some practical ideas I can do. I needed to read that 🙂
Thanks!