Category: Fitness & Well Being

Feelin’ The Burn…

It’s not secret that I enjoy trying out new workouts. More than anything else, I fell it’s an important step in keeping things fresh, which in turn will help to keep things interesting when trying to stick to a fitness regime. But different workouts will work different muscle groups and provide different short and long term results, so it’s always good to mix it up and try something different. A couple of years ago, I found a simple body weight workout used by submarine occupants. The idea is that they needed something that could be done on a confined space, without the use of much equipment.

I bring it up because I did the workout the day before last and I’m only today feeling the deep, muscular pain associated with it. But it is a genuinely fantastic workout that works all the large muscle groups and helps to increase strength and stamina. It only takes twenty to thirty minutes to perform and I often use it as an alternative if I’m staying in a hotel or need something quick and easy because I don’t have time for anything else. Admittedly, the portion I use is only part 1 of 2 but believe me when I say it’s enough to get a solid sweat and have your limbs praying for mercy. Here we go…

The circuit is pretty basic. You start with 15 normal squats (pictured above, go all the way down and don’t be lazy) followed by 10 diamond push-ups (push-ups where your hands are touching in front of you, below your chest), 10 regular lunges and 15 regular push-ups. Once you’ve completed that circuit, you start again but this you’ll be doing 14-9-9-14. Keep repeating the circuit and dropping everything by one rep for every circuit. Make sense?

As you work through it, the entire workout should look like this:

Squats/Diamond P-Ups/Lunges/P-Ups
15-10-10-15
14-9-9-14
13-8-8-13
12-7-7-12
11-6-6-11
10-5-5-10
9-4-4-9
8-3-3-8
7-2-2-7
6-1-1-6
5-0-0-5
4-0-0-4
3-0-0-3
2-0-0-2
1-0-0-1
Fall to the floor and pass out… Kidding!

I normally take about 30 to 45 seconds to rest and sip water between each circuit. That being said, once the first and last exercises reach 5 and I’m no longer doing diamond push-ups or lunges, I try to hammer through the last five circuits without resting. It tends to provide that added little bit of burn at the end when one typically wants to throw in the towel. Your lunges can be done with some light dumbbells, if you have them.

For myself, I’ve started doing the entire workout with a 20-pound weighted vest, which has certainly made it more challenging and has given me a better appreciation for folks who live their everyday with 20 pounds more weight than I carry. It’s amazing how such a low addition of weight to one’s overall body makes a significant and noticeable difference. Despite how taxing the workout is, it’s low impact and simple, making it extremely flexible in terms of adding in extras or modifying the exercises.

So there you have it! If you’re looking for something that’s quick, simple and provides an insane burn to your muscles, look no further. I’ve also noticed that this workout doesn’t seem to drop my blood sugars in any significant way. If anything, it sometimes rises by a half point. Remember to stay well hydrated as this circuit will have you sweating out every drop of bodily fluid you may have. And as usual, if you feel unexpected sharp pains, shortness of breath or dizziness, you should stop immediately. Even if the circuit takes a little less than 30 minutes, there’s no reason not to take more time to complete it during the first few times you use it. Stay healthy! ☯️

Punching Pads, A Mixed Bag…

Yesterday I wrote about a fantastic opportunity I had last weekend, to go work out on my trusty punching bag. During this workout, I mentioned a punch pad I had in the garage as well and some inquiries to my inbox led me to think that folks didn’t know what I was referring to. The thing is, I have to striking stations in my garage. The first is my punching bag. The second is a small, square pad bolted to the wall. This pad was originally installed against the wall in my basement but since renovating, was relocated to the outside.

My punching bag, with the punch pad clearly visible on the wall to its right…

Striking a punch pad that firmly in place provides different benefits to one’s strike training. For example, I think we can all agree that for the most part, when you strike a person, they’re going to move. Unless they’re Kryptonian, it’s unlikely that they’ll be firm in where they stand if you punch or kick them. A punching bag is pretty good at simulating that effect. A punching bag also allows for a variety of striking techniques, from kicks to punches, elbow strikes to knee strikes. The pad won’t necessarily allow for all of that.

That being said, the pad has some distinctive advantages as well. Besides making my strikes look more impressive to my son (the garage shakes when I punch it), its small size requires a level of precision to my aim that the punching bag is far more forgiving on. So long as I throw a punch at the bag and be cautious not to roll my wrist on it, I can pretty much punch anywhere with the understanding that I’ll hit it. The pad is far less forgiving, having a surface area of about 6×6 inches, requiring me to ensure my aim is true. The alternative is punching a solid wall…

The pad also won’t give or move away once struck. This changes the dynamic behind how I strike. The possibility of sprains or injury increases, but so does muscle development and strength. Since the pad doesn’t yield under my strike, every punch builds greater power. This can be handy when one is learning to punch properly or is looking to ensure proper bone alignment during strikes, since a few degrees in the wrong direction will hurt you more than whomever you intend to strike.

My pad, when it was still newish and fastened on my basement wall

As useful as this punch pad can be, it has it’s disadvantages. Kicking the pad is less than ideal. Some other striking techniques, such as varieties of elbow strikes, can’t be performed on the pad or depend on the angle of approach. Admittedly, I purchased this striking pad a few years ago when I was too cheap to purchase a full punching bag for myself. It was a cost-effective alternative that still let me add some striking to my training routine. Eventually, I moved the pad out to the garage when we demolished and renovated the basement. I got my punching bag soon after.

Since the basement renovations were completed in the fall of 2023, I could have moved the pad back inside. this would make strike training more accessible during the winter months. But i just can’t bring myself to mar the newly dry walled surface of my basement walls. And given that we have a little one in the house, making the walls shake by constantly pounding on them likely isn’t ideal either. But there you have it! That’s the difference between my punching bag and my striking pad. ☯️

Frosted Fun In Milder Weather…

One of the big things that makes winter drag on for me, is the inability to use my bicycle or my punching bag. Oh, sure… I could be like of those sorry idiots you see riding the city streets on a bike in the snow. But I value my life a little too much for that. And the issue with the punching is imply managing to stay outside in the cold for that long. Even if I only use the bag for a half hour, the extremes colds we get in Saskatchewan are often enough to make it unwise, if not outright dangerous.

That’s why let weekend was a welcome gift, with temperatures actually rising above 0 degrees. Recently, my wife and I have started sending our oldest outside to play on the weekends. That likely makes it sound like we didn’t before and I should probably clarify… Because he now has a Nintendo Switch as well as a disabled iPhone on which to do homework and stream Netflix Kids, he very rarely wants to do anything else. Getting him to play in the great outdoors has become something of a challenge, despite the vast plethora of toys and gadgets he has in his play shed that he can use to entertain himself. but I digress…

On Saturday, I noticed it was only -1 degrees outside. As usual, I shut down all of his devices and coaxed him outside to play. He put in his hour and came back in, citing fatigue. Once he was curled back up in a corner and playing his games, it dawned on me that I should have joined him. The milder weather would have been an excellent opportunity to hit the bag. Instead, I ended up doing a workout inside, as I usually do. Recently, I’ve been trying to push myself to workout on a daily basis so that I can hopefully start to shed some of the winter blubber from my mid-section.

The following day held weather just as nice, so I decided to join Nathan outside and do a 30-minute punching bag circuit that I have on my phone. It involves striking the bag for a full minute, then taking a 30-second break. Wash, rinse and repeat for a half hour. It’s pretty good at working up a sweat and as long as you put in the effort, it’s a pretty good way to burn calories and tone the arms, as well. I got through the circuit and made my way back inside the house, tired and sweaty but satisfied. I noted some pros and cons to working out on the bag in colder weather. And I’m gonna share ‘em with you now…

On the positive side, it was remarkably easier to breathe. Since I usually spend time on the bag in the summer, the heavy humidity and high heat not only make it difficult to breathe but it also brings me closer to dehydration with every punch. I didn’t have that issue. I also didn’t need to stop for water as often or sweat as profusely into my eyes. That being said, now is a good time to remind everyone that just because you’re not sweating, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t work to stay hydrated. That can be a bit of a slippery slope, kind of like neglecting to use sunblock in the winter.

Another good thing is that I had to keep moving in order to stay warm. Granted, it was only about -4 degrees but wearing a long-sleeved dry-fit shirt under a sleeveless hoodie didn’t do much to keep the chill at bay. This resulted in a need to keep moving constantly in order to maintain my body’s warmth. The result is less stopping and less breaks throughout the workout, resulting in a better burn. I’ll be the first to admit that I tend to lag and slow down once I reach the halfway mark of my bag workouts. This was an easy way to ensure that didn’t happen. Keep moving or get cold.

Of course, as with all things in life, there is a con to every pro and this workout was no exception. Although it was great to get out on the bag and blow off some steam, there were some negative aspects to this workout. The first is that my Bluetooth speaker died. Kaput. Done. Useless. Despite having nearly a full charge when I went outside, the cold weather drained the battery and the music died. Don McLean would have a conniption. Worst part is, it died in the last ten minutes or so of the workout, which is when I’m at my most fatigued and need that slight boost that good music gives you, in order to push through.

This same effect happened to my phone, having gone outside with a battery nearing 100%, only to step back inside at less than 25%. Although neither of those things may seem like a big deal, and I’ll admit that they’re not, they still affect the overall workout. But neither of those were as important as the fact that the battery to my insulin pump also drained. Not completely, thankfully, but it still drained. The user’s guide for the pump also clarifies that it should not be kept in constant heat or cold, and this would be one of the reasons why. A more ideal solution would have been to disconnect the pump for the 30 minutes I was outside and preserve the battery. Hindsight, am I right?

Lastly, were my blood sugars. Working out in colder weather has a harsher effect on the body. Not only are you working out but your body is actively trying to warm you up/keep you warm. As a result, my blood sugars dropped quite drastically over the 30 minutes that I slammed the bag. No big deal for someone constantly prepared for blood sugar issues, but less than ideal. And that’s something to bear in mind, should one decide on a workout that takes them away from the house, like jogging or skiing. Close monitoring of one’s blood sugars and good preparation can mean the difference between being in danger or enjoying the milder but still cold, weather.

All in all, it was good to get out of the house and get back to the bag. It certainly renewed my appetite for the striking aspect of my training. Although forms and shadow boxing are great, sometimes you just need to actually strike something in order to properly develop your techniques. I would say that being outside was a positive influence on Nathan but the little lazy ass came and sat in the garage for the entire time I was outside. Despite being supposed to play and get some exercise, he opted instead to just sit there. Bloody kid! My attempts to get him to use the punch pad didn’t fly, either. Oh, well. Here’s hoping next weekend is just as nice and I can put my lessons learned into practice. ☯️

Nah, I Don’t Wanna…

Having children can be a wonderful experience, for the most part. On the one hand, you get to see a tiny version of yourself grow and develop into their own person, with their own interests, hobbies and personality. On the other hand, it can be extremely frustrating, especially when you see them doing things you know could be done better or you recognize that there are certain things that you should teach them that they simply don’t want to learn. This can have a measurable effect, both on each of you as well as on the relationship as a whole.

I grew up with an intense craving for martial arts training. Like most kids my age, I was taken with action movies and the prospect of learning how to fight. As I was the victim of bullying throughout my formative years AND I had an immune disorder that was snaking my childhood hell (Type-1 Diabetes, if you hadn’t guessed), karate was a good fit for me. But it didn’t come without some searching, trying and experimenting with different schools and styles. It wasn’t until I found Uechi Ryu that I developed the deep love for karate that I still have to this day, or managed to control my ADHD and Diabetes, none of which I believe would have been as effectively accomplished as it was due to karate.

That’s why, when my wife gave birth to our son in 2014, I started seeing down a narrow tunnel into the future, one that allowed em to see the potential of passing on my skills and teachings to the next generation who would carry Uechi Ryu into the future. As Nathan learned how to walk and run, he began emulating movements that he’d see me do, which included kicking, punching and a variety of karate movements that he wouldn’t learn otherwise. The future looked bright, indeed.

Nathan and I, when he was three years old

When I was younger and training full time, I got to see the results of a parent forcing their child through karate. Sensei’s son, who happened to be one of my closest friends growing up, was Sensei’s only son and first black belt graduate. In “old school” martial arts circles, that’s a big deal. Sensei wanted his son, not only to be skilled but to be the best student he had. The only problem with that is that his son didn’t want it. He didn’t hunger for it. He saw no reason to pursue it. But he was pushed through it until he managed to reach Shodan, after which time he allowed his training to falter.

Oh, he’s returned to it on occasion. One can’t train for as long and as intensively as he had without it leaving some sort of impression. But having been forced to study karate for so many years left an impression on him that never went away. Nowadays, despite having three children of his own, his karate training is all but gone. This is one of the reasons why I pledged never to force my children to learn karate. If the time came that they wanted to train, I would be there for them. In the meantime, I would continue to let them see me train, take it all in and make the decision for themselves.

Nathan, trying to learn to meditate…

That’s why recently, I heard the most wonderful words a Sensei could hear from their first-born son: “Dad, I wan’t to learn karate…” I was ecstatic! I made plans. I brought in old equipment from the garage I hadn’t touched in years. I monitored my blood sugars closely so that I could ensure I could train for an hour without needing to stop. I told my wife about it. I told my work colleagues about. Suddenly, I saw the potential for my son and his own ADHD that I hadn’t contemplated before and recognized it would be something long-lasting that we could do together for years to come.

On the fateful day, which was only yesterday, I got home from work, full of piss and vinegar. I dropped my bags at the door, briefly greeted my wife then looked at Nathan and said, “Tonight, we start training in karate.” I wasn’t prepared for the bursting of my proverbial bubble that came next; “Nah, I don’t wanna…” I was floored. He had been hounding me to learn karate for the past month and now that the opportunity presented itself, he wanted nothing to do with it. I did my best to try and understand why he had suddenly changed his mind or his reluctance but, like most children, all he would say is that he had changed his mind.

I made my way downstairs and trained on my own, with a brief visit from my wife for a short sparring session. It was nearly impossible, hiding my disappointment. The worst part was recognizing that I seemed to be looking forward to it more than he was. I‘ve come to recognize in recent years that I have more years behind me than I do in front. The amount of time I have to impart whatever I’ve learned to my children grows shorter with every passing day and my hope is that Nathan will see me work out just once, where he’ll decide to jump in. In the meantime, I have to be patient. I don’t want to be that parent that forces their child into something like this. Because I want him to retain and carry it for his entire life and allow it to guide him. Such things won’t be possible if it feels like a chore. ☯️

Beef Isn’t JUST What’s For Dinner…

It’s a pretty typical scene… The parents work towards preparing a family dinner and everyone sits at the table. One of the children takes one look at their plate and says, “That looks yucky, I don’t wanna eat it…” I’ll give you three guesses as to what he’s pointing at but you’ll only need one. That’s right, he was referring to his vegetables. It’s a pretty common story, one that often carries one into adulthood. I mean honestly, if you put meat, potatoes and veggies on my plate and told me I could only pick two, it’s a pretty clear bet about which of the three would get left behind.

People will often go for the food choices that appeal to their taste and preference, which, on the one hand, makes quite a bit of sense. As an adult, most assume they’ve “done their time” with being told what to eat during their childhood and so, they’ll eat as they see fit during adulthood. Although that concept makes sense in theory, it only carries you as far as what tastes good on your tongue and doesn’t say much for the fact that proper nutrition requires some of the tasteless green stuff that most of us prefer not to have.

in fact, good healthy and proper nutrition requires everything that people who claim to be tying to get healthier avoid. One big one is carbohydrates. On the one side, I try and keep my carbs as low as possible since the more carbs I eat, the more insulin I have to take. Increased carbohydrates can also lead to weight gain, which is a significant pain in the ass to a Type-1 Diabetic in his 40’s who may be trying to slim down the inflated dad-bod. But I the sad reality is that carbs represent a bit of a chicken-or-the-egg scenario, where you need carbs for energy to work out but only the calorie deficit that cutting carbs can bring will lead to weight loss.

For the most part, if I’m eating something and I anticipate working out, I’ll reduce or omit vegetables and carbohydrates since they also act as fillers. Nothing worse than trying to work out and put your all into something when your gut is full and you’re struggling to breathe for two reasons. Although most fitness gurus will agree that the only way to lose weight properly is to burn more calories than you take in, there has to be a balance. You need energy to exercise but you need to reduce the amount of food that gives you said energy in order for that exercise to slim you down.

So, what if you just fight through it? What if you decide you’re an absolute champ and can reduce your carb and calorie intake and just hammer through the effort? There are a number of symptoms and effects that you’ll likely feel as a result, and none of them are pleasant. I found a lovely little article posted by HealthLine.com that covers some of the worst ones quite nicely…

The top one is that you’ll be low on energy. If your take in less than the minimum calories you need in a day, your resting metabolic rate will lower and you’ll constantly feel tired because your body can’t support everything. This can sap your motivation and lead to skipping exercise because you just don’t have the energy? Sound familiar? I may or may not have written a post recently about that very thing. Self-recognizing certain health issues can go a long, long way. But I digress…

Being constantly hungry is another issue. And it plays into the old scenario where you go on a diet and try to lose weight, only to crash and binge-eat on a cheat day because your body is craving the calories you’re missing. It’ll also affect the quality of your sleep. So even if you sleep for eight hours because you’re exhausted from the low energy, that sleep won’t rejuvenate you and will likely be poor, especially if you feel hungry while trying to fall asleep.

There’s a host of other potential symptoms, including irritability, anxiety and constipation. You can click on the HealthLine link above to read further details on all of the symptoms they’ve listed. The reality is that while trying to decide how best to reduce your waistline, you need to be cautious and not reduce your calorie intake so far as to affect the very results you’re trying to achieve. I prefer to keep my meals low-carb, if not only because of the insulin requirement but for the weight loss effort. However, some of the symptoms I’ve described above have been what I’ve been feeling over recent months, which makes me raise an eyebrow. ☯️

A Little Light Before The Dawn…

I’ve always found that old expression, “It’s always darkest before the dawn,” to be wildly inaccurate. I know it’s meant to be metaphorical, but from a literal standpoint, it’s completely wrong. but before I go off on a tangent, today’s post is about more than inaccurate sayings. The winter months bring about a score of issues that the everyday person needs to deal with. Considering the snow, cold, needing to shovel, road and weather hazards and the fact that almost everyone else seems to turn into the world’s worst drivers on account of road conditions (I’m a little bit biased), it kind of seems as though the winter months make it safer and more worthwhile to just stay home and hidden under some warm blankies…

The winter months can be harsh on a person. Since it stays dark for so much longer during the day, it can feel as though one lives in perpetual darkness, especially if your work keeps you indoors all day. Most days, I wake up and it’s still dark outside. I make my way to work in the dark and by the time I typically leave the office for home, it’s either getting dark or full-on dark. This can play havoc on a person’s energy levels and motivation. Contrary to what many of my colleagues would say, a person needs a certain level of daylight in their lives. Not only is this important in order to balance out one’s circadian rhythm but for vitamin D and shit.

The lack of motivation that the winter months bring can affect one’s motivation to do some of the little things through the course of your day, such as working out, spending time with family and ensuring proper nutrition. In fact, most days during the winter, all I want to do is flop down on the couch and binge-watch television for an hour or two before crashing for 12 hours or more. As nice as that sounds, I usually leave the house and get to work around 7 o’clock in the morning and leave work at 4:30 to 5 o’clock, making for a 10-hour day. If I followed that up with 12 hours of sleep, that would only leave about 2 hours of free time per day, which kind of sucks.

It can be pretty easy to allow the rigours of the day and darker, greyer winter weather get you down and keep you from doing what needs to be done to ensure proper nutrition and health. It takes a bit of a push in order to ensure you don’t get kicked in the balls by the winter blahs. And they can sneak up on you without notice. Eat well, exercise regularly and check your blood sugars often. Eventually, the snow will melt, the weather will warm up and weekend coffees on the back deck can become the norm again. ☯️

Because Sometimes, You Have No Choice…

I’m a firm believer that something as complicated and intricate as martial arts can’t be learned solely from a book. I know some people who have tried. The problem is that even the best illustrated book will lack the context, body movements and essential coaching one needs to properly learn the art. That being said, books can definitely be a good addition to one’s learning and supplement your in-person training. Certain books can also be read simply for the purpose of curiosity, allowing the reader to explore a particular art or skill that they aren’t actively studying.

I keep a varied library of training books, as seen in the photo above. Some are a bit more on the philosophical side, such as Bruce Lee’s “Striking Thoughts.” The first three books on the left are the ones I got for Christmas that I wrote about in a previous post. Despite the philosophical nature of these books, they still contain knowledge and lessons that can be valuable to a martial artists. As I write this, I notice that my copy of the Book of Five Rings ins’t there! Where the fuck did I put that thing…? But I digress…

For the past fourteen years or so, I’ve had to train in karate on my own, with Sensei being 3,400 kilometres away from me. I’ve had the opportunity to train with him an average of once a year during that time, which has slowed and hindered the rightful progression of my learning path. because of this, I’ve had to lean on my books for a certain amount of training. The red book entitled “Uechi Ryu Karate Do” is a comprehensive manual covering the art of Uechi Ryu, written by George Matteson, who brought Uechi to the United States from Okinawa. It contains illustrations of all the basic exercises and forms one needs to learn Uechi Ryu karate.

This works in my case because I already know all the forms and basic exercises. This allows me to use the manual as a corrective tool to smooth out and perfect my techniques as opposed to trying to learn from scratch, which I stand by the opinion would be improbable. What I particularly like are the Men’s Health manuals that teach a number of different weight workouts. Either way, building a personal library of reference manuals can be a good addition to your overall training and help you out on the occasions where you need to be reminded of a technique or exercise and your instructors aren’t readily availability. ☯️

Unfamiliar Sweat…

As part of my recent decision to try and better myself all around, fitness plays an integral role in maintaining a healthy body and regulating blood sugars. For most people, this can mean joining a local gym or fitness group or working out from home. For me, the latter is preferable because I can do what I want when I want and I don’t have to follow others or wait on people using machines that I might want. Not everybody feels this way though and it would be inaccurate to say that there aren’t some benefits to using an outside gym. yesterday, when i got to my hotel in Saskatoon, I had a bit of free time as the roads were better than I anticipated and I had two choices; kick back and relax before heading to the hospital or hit the hotel’s gym… Guess which one I chose?

Normally, I arrive in Saskatoon, check into my room, unpack my necessities so that I’m not groping around for them when I get back and have lost most of my vision and then make my way to the hospital for what is almost always a delayed process where they’re running late. On this visit, I actually had a couple of hours to spare before my scheduled appointment. I changed into gym wear and made my way down to the hotel’s gym. A reasonable space, I could see it becoming somewhat cramped if there were more than one or two people in it. But, the space had everything one needs for exercise, including free weights, a couple of cable machines and at least one of every type of cardio machine (elliptical, treadmill and stationary bike).

I put in a solid thirty minutes of resistance training followed by about fifteen minutes of fast-paced elliptical to cap off my workout. It was good times, despite the fact that I forgot my Bluetooth headphones or earbuds at home and had no way of listening to music while I worked out. Talk about first-world problems, right? But I got a solid workout in and worked up a wicked sweat, which was nice. It felt good knowing that I had done the workout and wouldn’t squander the extra time. Typically, I don’t get much done prior to my appointment and once I get the eye injections, I sleep it off for a couple of hours followed by some time in the pub, having dinner and a couple of pints to fight off the pain. This was a nice change.

Reasonably, one can hammer out a workout just about anywhere. With only a six-by-six foot floor space, I have a wicked marine workout that uses body weight only and will absolutely kick your ass. By that logic, it could be easily done in the hotel room. But sometimes it can be fun and keeps things fresh, using machines and resources you don’t typically have access to. Every little workout counts and helps contribute to better health, better weight management and better overall blood sugar control. It can be SO easy, finding an excuse not to work out. And the body usually prefers being at rest because it’s designed to reserve energy. But if you can find it within yourself to push a little and hammer through, not only do you get to tell your body I told you so, but it’ll thank you in the long run. Food for thought. ☯️

Thermogenic Supplements

I’m a big fan of supplementation. Start a conversation about vitamins and shit in any group and I can promise that it will be divided conversation, almost ALWAYS equally divided. For some, they believe there’s no point to supplementation as it just ends up being something you swallow to crap out the other end with no measurable results. The big problem is that one needs to take supplements for a significant period of time before any measurable results can/would be seen. Plus, since all people are different, supplements may not work as well for one as they would work for another. The other half are the ones that at least take a daily multivitamin or supplement in order to help themselves along in whatever they’re trying to accomplish.

For example, you can take supplements for low iron, lack of B-vitamins or if you spend all your time indoors and never get the opportunity to spend time outside, supplementing your Vitamin D can be a good idea. Actually, I wrote a really good post about certain vitamins, minerals and supplements that explain what individual supplements do and how they benefit one’s body. I’ve reposted it several times and for your convenience, you can read that post here. Despite promising myself that I wouldn’t conform to societal norms and make a New Year’s resolution, I would be lying if I said I didn’t have plans to increase my fitness in the coming year and a part of that is a new form of supplementation.

I recently did some research on some called “thermogenics.” Simply put, thermogenic supplements are intended to increase the body’s core temp, specifically in the fatty tissues, which is supposed to cause the body’s metabolism to burn fat through this increased body temperature. Since I’m not a scientist or medical practitioner, I’m sure there’s more to it than that. But it’s an interesting concept and one can’t deny that something that aids in fat burning sounds far more plausible than a supplement that’s supposed to just make you lose weight. After all, one’s fitness must always include one’s own efforts as well.

According to an article posted by HealthLine.com, “the word “thermogenic” literally means heat-producing.” The article covers different types of supplements that have a thermogenic effect on the body but outlines how the effectiveness of this is hotly debated and there’s no significant evidence that it holds any significant effectiveness. One thermogenic supplement they mention is caffeine, which is ironic. If caffeine was effective as a thermogenic supplement, I’d be a skinny bitch by now, considering how much caffeine I suck down in the course of a day. Of course , all of that will need to change since I have decided to find out for myself and have started taking a thermogenic supplement prior to working out.

It’s only been a few days, of course. But if it works, great. If it doesn’t, no harm, no foul. Seeing the effects of any supplement takes a significant amount of time, usually a few months at least. In the meantime, the same rules of life continue to apply. Stay hydrated, monitor blood sugars and check one’s blood pressure regularly. If I begin to notice anything out of the ordinary, I can drop the whole thing without issue. I’ll keep everyone posted, if and when I see any results. ☯️

What Is A Dojo?

I get this question once in a while and with mainstream shows like Cobrai Kai being all the rage, it rather surprises me that I still do. But those of you who know me are fully aware that I can talk an elephant’s ear off, so here I am, ready to explain once again. In short and from a high level, the term “dojo” is actually the joining of two Japanese characters that are combined to mean “Place of the Way.” A dojo is generally a special place that is set aside and laid out specifically as a gathering place for students of the martial arts, like Karate and Judo. The term has been used in other forums as well. Interestingly enough, Zen Buddhists refer to their meditation chambers as dojos, as well.

Unlike other training locations, a dojo is intended to maintain a certain level of decorum and ceremony and is intended to be treated with respect. A clean, proper uniform is required when training in one, and bowing respectfully when entering or leaving is also expected. Unlike training locations like your local gym and only under special circumstances, the dojo is intended for structured training, with a Sensei or senior student leading the other students through drills, lessons and teachings, which can include forms, sparring and even meditation, in some styles.

The important aspects to look for when visiting a dojo include the cleanliness. As I mentioned earlier, a dojo must be treated with respect and filth does not align with that. Unlike what you may have seen on television and in movies, a dojo doesn’t need to look like a bad Japanese tourist trap, with the polished wood everywhere and fancy decorations. Literally four walls, a floor and a roof are all that are required. Any additional equipment or accoutrements should be limited to what’s required for training and not include a bunch of decorations or trappings intended to make an onlooker believe the dojo is fancier than it is. Because a dojo isn’t MEANT to be fancy.

I’ve trained with students who have had a small, square ten foot by ten foot space set aside on their home. That’s their dojo. And it’s adequate for training and all they need. Although it can be enticing to see all the gilded decorations and weaponry on the walls of some dojo, it’s important to bear in mind that such things don’t speak to the quality of the art or its teachings but to the quality of their decorator. And that won’t provide much in terms of learning the martial arts. If a student chooses what style to study based on how fancy the dojo looks, they may be in for a rough ride. ☯️