Category: Opinion

To Fight Or Not To Fight… That Is The Question…

Given the direction that the world is heading in, and some of the thoughts and opinions that seem to float around out there, I feel that this is a topic that is not only near and dear to me as a martial artist, but as someone who was terribly bullied as a child. In fact, if you can think of it, I’ve probably had it done. From wedgies to practical jokes, all the way to having a group of three peers beat the ever-loving shit out of me for having the audacity to speak up for myself, being thrown fully clothed into the gym showers first thing in the morning and even having my car vandalized and moved on me. On one occasion, which could be a story for another post, I was even attacked by a fellow student with a pocket knife. That knife successfully found purchase in my wrist. Karate saved the day on that occasion. And this bring me to today’s topic.

In keeping with the social climate, I need to point out that this post solely reflects my opinion on the subject. And bearing in mind that I’m speaking strictly in generalities and none of what’s written here should be construed as legal advice (especially since I’m not a lawyer), you should definitely do your own research and maintain your own opinions on this subject. Recently, I’ve seen a number of posts in social media where a person or in some cases, a couple, would hold up a placard that reads something akin to, “Stop sending your kids to school and telling them that if someone hits you, to hit them back. You are part of the problem.” In all seriousness, this line of thinking breaks my usual serene sense of calm and pisses me off beyond rational thought. Part of the problem? Are you kidding? Maybe we should start by addressing the fact that someone insisted on starting that scenario by hitting first. For my part, I’ve always taught my oldest the important steps of ask, tell, make.

If someone hits you, start by asking them to stop, followed by telling them so, if asking doesn’t work. If you’re in school, seeking the assistance of a teacher or adult can help. But you still need to be able to defend yourself and prevent harm or injury to yourself if none are available. This is where fighting back comes in. For 37 years now, I’ve trained in the martial arts. I’ve both benefited and been forced, to use my skills in real life scenarios where I’ve had to defend myself or others from harm and in some cases, mortal danger. Sounds dramatic. That’s not the intent. But the reality is that bullying is not a new concept. The attention on it is, with every armchair warrior and/or peace advocate strongly believing that we should all embrace peace, love each other and avoid violence at all costs. And trust me, true believers, I’m right there with you. I commit my life to the elimination of suffering in my life and the world around me. And embracing peace while avoiding violence would seem to be a logical step in that direction. However, logic is often lacking in someone who makes the conscious decision to bully others.

For over 35 years (probably longer, but the mat eludes me), I’ve trained in the martial arts. This has been an extremely important tool for me to promote and maintain my health. What most people don’t understand is that it was also a means of ensuring I could protect myself from those who sought to harm me or bully me. There had been instances, during my youth, where teachers or my parents got involved but the result was exactly what you would have expected to see in any 1980’s brat pack comedy film; it usually made maters worse. Eventually, my skills in karate not only allowed me to protect myself but it allowed to end the fights that others started. It took very little time for the bullies to start realizing that I was no longer an easy target and that they would likely suffer just as much injury as I would, just for the sake of a laugh. So, would one be correct in thinking, in those circumstances, that I shouldn’t have hit back? When one considers the fact that the bullying and abuse wouldn’t have stopped otherwise, I would say it was an important lesson for the bullies. I like to think that some of them may even have changed their bullying ways. Maybe that’s just hopeful thinking, though…

Telling people they shouldn’t teach their children to defend themselves when someone brings harm or injurious behavior their way is tantamount to encouraging “victim shaming,” where the victim is blamed for the outcome instead of bringing blame to the bully who initiated the situation. While I wholeheartedly agree that one never knows what may be happening in someone’s life to elicit this behavior, I believe even stronger that this singular fact doesn’t grant them the right to attack or bully my child. There are mechanisms in place to help you assess and find a way to channel those feelings, that anger and that energy. And I believe that in order to become a productive and successful member of modern society, my son will need to learn the importance of standing up for himself, up to and including defending himself. To do otherwise would make him a perpetual victim for the rest of his life; something I swore I would never be myself and I would never allow for my children.

Sensei often told me during my formative years never start a fight or use your training to harm others. But if someone brings harm or starts a fight with you, make sure you finish it. Doesn’t mean you have to cripple someone for life to get your point across, obviously. But under no circumstances should someone ALLOW themselves to get struck or injured just for the sake of being passive. Stop telling your kids to hit back? Maybe start telling your kid not to hit in the first place. That would solve one problem. But when it comes to bullying, sometimes you just gotta pop them like a balloon for them to float away. That’s not mine; that was from Rocky V. But a better one might be a reminder that “the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” While I might not agree that a bully is inherently evil… misguided, perhaps, but not evil, it doesn’t mean that one should do something about it.

Again, this is a pretty charged topic and I know some folks have their own thoughts and opinions on it. The important thing is that an opinion is comparable to being a smoker. Smokers don’t care that non-smokers DON’T smoke. Because it causes them no harm. But to the non-smoker, the smoker is causing them all sorts of damage, if they do it on their vicinity. It’s the same thing with bullies. They continue to operate as they do until someone brings the harm to the forefront and makes them stop. So the lesson here is, even if you’re not the one who starts the fight, don’t allow yourself to be bullied, taken advantage or harmed. End the fight. Protect yourself. And for the naysayers who believe that scenario can be avoided, you may want to spend a bit of time in the real world before you assume friendship and hugs will fix your problems. Food for thought…☯️

Off Warranty, And Lacking Replacement Parts…

I’m sure many of you can relate… It’s early morning. Your soft alarm goes off and you groggily click it off. You yawn and stretch and roll slightly, feeling creaks and pops in your joints that you don’t recall being there before. You make your way out of bed and slowly walk to the shower, noticing the chill on the morning soaking through to your bones. Once under the shower head, you let the warm water revive some articulation and relieve some of the aches from the previous day. You slowly trudge through your morning routine with the same amount of speed as a sloth trying to climb a tree. Sound somewhat familiar?

I often look back fondly at my twenties and remember the almost surreal ability I had to train for absolute hours on end, sweating and core temp skyrocketing… Performing line after line of full contact shadow boxing up the length of the dojo, doing dozens of katas, one after another, staying on my knuckles for 20 minutes at a time or in a horse stance for half an hour without missing a beat… This was usually followed by grabbing a shower and hitting the town, either for a game of pool with friends or a quiet coffee and soup at the local coffee shop while making my way through the latest book in the “Wheel of Time” series. The speed, reflexes and ability to recover I maintained was almost supernatural, despite being Type-1 Diabetic AND despite my blood sugars never being quite as well balanced as they are today. By the light, times have changed…

In the past couple of years, I’ve come to acknowledge a couple of hard truths; that I can’t maintain fitness to the level I did twenty years ago, which should go without saying, and, it takes me far, far longer to recover. While the stubborn part of me would love to knuckle down and say “Hell no, we won’t go,” and keep pushing just as hard as I always have, that’s just not a fair reality for me anymore. I recognize that I’m saying this while simultaneously remembering that Sensei is in his 70’s and easily puts me to shame, in the physical activity department. But I digress… The point is, I’ve grown older and as we grow older, the body’s ability to heal and recover effectively begins to diminish. This is why adults will often complain about the cracks and pops they never noticed there before. None of this has been quite as obvious as it has been for me, over the past few months.

AT some point earlier in the year, and I can’t recall exactly when, I started to notice a twinge in my right shoulder. It was subtle, at first. A bit of difficulty scrubbing my back using that hand, or a slight pain when I would reach a high cupboard. I chalked it up to having slept wrong or just tired muscles. MOST workouts were reasonable uninterrupted as a result. But over the course of a couple of months, the pain worsened and mobility in my right arm depended, to the point where I actually ordered a shoulder brace for some of those more extreme workouts. As an aside, the shoulder brace I found was one designed specifically with sports and martial arts in mind. It’s made by a company called Anaconda Fightwear, and their stuff is pretty good. If you’re interested in a braces for almost any of your joints, you can check out their website here. My shoulder brace has been a life saver, especially when I’m performing a lot of the circle blocks or techniques that I need through karate.

Once I recognized the need for external support just to do the things I’d been doing for decades, I started to contemplate the usual; appointment with the chiropractor, massage therapist, acupuncturist, etc. Anything more extreme or medical would come as a second step. But as is often the case in adult life, time passed and busy schedules dominated and I didn’t get to the chiropractor until about three months ago. Now, chiropractic medicine gets a bad rap from a lot of people. Some of this is born out of fear of having one’s joints (especially the neck) cracked. Some of it is because of one-offs where someone with something pre-existing may have had it aggravated by a chiropractic adjustment. Whatever the case, I’ve yet to have a chiropractor’s visit where I don’t feel better afterwards. The first time I went to the chiropractor was back in 2010. The relief that flowed through me after my adjustment almost brought me to tears. But once I again, I digress…

My point is, my shoulder was examined and it was determined that I may have weakened muscles in the shoulder that are limiting my mobility. Not an uncommon thing for a decades-long martial artist who is getting up there in age. Although not yet what one might consider a senior, my body’s ability to heal is less than it was, even a few years ago, so here we are. The solution? A set of simple body movement exercises to try and build back some strength in the stabilizing muscles of the shoulder. That lasted all of a couple of weeks. Towards the end, the exercises themselves became too painful and I needed to find an alternative. Going back to the chiropractor a few weeks ago, a deeper, more extensive examination of my shoulder was done. It was determined that I had a condition called “frozen shoulder.”

So, what the hell is frozen shoulder? Well, according to an article by the Mayo Clinic, whose web link I’ve conveniently lost, frozen shoulder, also called “adhesive capsulitis,” is a condition where the connective muscles and tissues in the shoulder thicken and tighten around the shoulder joint, causing limited range of motion and pain. While it’s not exceptionally rare, people over 40 and who have certain conditions like, oh, say, DIABETES, are at higher risk. Great. Thanks, T1D! One more issue on the checklist. The treatment is pretty simple; movement. yes, you read that right. Range-of-motion exercises, working the shoulder and on occasion, some pain-numbing medications injected into the joints. But, it does take years for it to completely recover. The article goes on. To explain that it’s unusual for frozen shoulder to come back to the same shoulder, so I guess THAT’S good.

Why do they call it “frozen shoulder?” As described in the article from Mayo, which I managed to find here, it hits in three stages:

  • Freezing stage. Any movement of the shoulder causes pain, and the shoulder’s ability to move becomes limited. This stage lasts from 2 to 9 months.
  • Frozen stage. Pain might lessen during this stage. However, the shoulder becomes stiffer. Using it becomes more difficult. This stage lasts from 4 to 12 months.
  • Thawing stage. The shoulder’s ability to move begins to improve. This stage lasts from 5 to 24 months.

When looked at from this perspective, it paints a long, bleak picture of recovery. While this falls under the category of “this could be worse,” y’all know just how much I love hearing THAT. If you do the math on this, I’m looking at nearly four years to recover, bearing in mind that everyone is different. The good news is that I appear to have passed the freezing stage. After that initial chiropractor visit and the subsequent working of the joint and the pain it accompanied, I head a couple of weeks of limited mobility in the shoulder and neck that saw me walking around like a fucking robot. You don’t realize just how much you need the supportive muscles in your neck until you can’t use them. Sitting, lying down and even rolling over in your sleep becomes an extremely painful prospect. And when every movement during the night jolts you awake in pain, your rest goes to shit, so your recovery is lengthened even further. But i seem to have a fair mobility back in most areas, with only a bit of limited mobility in the shoulder with very little pain. Looks like I’m at the frozen stage. Yay.

Growing older is a part of life. There’s no getting away from it or getting out of it. That’s why it is so critically important to maintain one’s physical fitness, nutrition and getting proper rest. That will go a long way towards ensuring that you can ride off into the sunset with some reasonable constitution left, as opposed to a lump of scarred, immobile old man crankiness. I mean, let’s be honest, I’m still ticking that very last box with the crankiness but that’s a whole different thing. Next week, I’ll be starting a form of vibrational shock therapy that will help to break up any potential scar tissue and potentially help with the healing process. While I’m looking forward to it, as one would expect, I’m not a fan of the whole “shock” aspect. But I’m sure it’ll be fine. Stay tuned for updates as this treatment progresses. In the meantime, I take solace in the fact that even while having had Type-1 Diabetes for 43 years at this point, my organs are in great health, my blood sugars are phenomenal and even my eye injections have been spaced out to fourteen weeks. Not too shabby. I’d say I’m doing quite well. ☯️

Let the Hate Flow Through You…

Okay, so it’s probably a bit odd that I’m quoting from the original Star Wars trilogy for a post that touches on something a bit more philosophical and important but in my defense, wisdom and knowledge can often arise from the most unlikely places. So, take for what it is. As someone who studies Buddhism (yes, I still do, despite the fewer posts on the topic) I recognize that the world has suffering. One of the most important precepts is to eliminate that suffering, in order to live a happier, more fruitful and satisfying life. This isn’t always an easy thing, especially in modern times. The type and frequency of the world’s stressors only seems to be increasing. It can make things difficult to navigate, especially when one succumbs to one of the most difficult to navigate emotions; anger.

Anger is insidious. And it tends to creep in at the most unexpected times for the most ridiculous reasons. red light not turning to green quickly enough? Anger. Boss adds another project on your plate during your days off? Anger. Your kids eat the last of your Skittles right before you need them to treat a low? Anger. Accidentally stub your toe on the corner of a wall that’s always been there and is absolutely on one’s fault but your own? Inappropriate levels of rage and anger… It seems to strike more than the average person cares to think about and the issue with that, is that anger eventually does cause physical and psychological damage, over time. On the physical side, constant anger will lead to health issues like increased blood pressure, cardiac issues, stomach ulcers. On the psychological side, poor thoughts, depression, lack of motivation, to name a few. And let’s not forget that nasty vices one may undertake in order to forget or forego one’s anger. Or realistically, we think we do it to “relax.” In reality, we try to stem our angry emotions.

Without a proper outlet, anger can lead to a number of negative results in one’s life, outside of the direct effects on oneself. Someone who is constantly angry may be perceived as difficult or unpleasant to be around. Anger in the workplace can lead to damaged working relationships, perceived poor performance and if you happen to be in a position of authority, extremely poor perception by your staff. At home and in your personal life, a near-constant state of anger can damage relationships, create a toxic home environment and alienate the very people around you who could potentially help stem some of those angry thoughts. I’m making it sound like everyone is walking around like the hulk and it likely isn’t this bad for everyone, but the key is recognizing that anger. One may find themselves a bit surprised at how often this emotion seeps in without notice or warning.

Miyamoto Musashi, one of my favorite writers and author of “The Book of Five Rings,” a famous book on strategy, touched on anger in his book. While I won’t be quoting the book directly (you can find ebook versions of it through Kobo starting at $0.99), his thoughts veered more on the concept that one should recognize and acknowledge anger as it builds, as opposed to waiting and recognizing that one IS angry. Musashi wrote that loss of control over one’s anger, especially towards others, means that the other person has a control over you. If you allow anger to creep its way in during a given situation, it can also allow one’s potential adversaries to note your vulnerabilities, your weaknesses and allow them to take advantage of you or make you a potential target for those who mean to do you harm.

The trick to anger is to control it before it controls you. Some of it is as simple as starting by recognizing that most situations, if not all, are not worth getting angry about. Do you think that person who cut you off at the intersection has spent the rest of the morning contemplating how they cut you off? Of course not. They likely forgot you as soon as the sound from your car horn died down. Despite this, if they live rent free in your head for hours after the incident, this is a clear sign that you’re allowing anger to control the most minimal events of your life. This makes it an obstacle to peace as opposed to an elimination of suffering. And as I’ve often said before and I don’t know about y’all, but I have a strong dislike of suffering. I’m all about trying to find that peace.

Instead, when one begins to feel that anger bubbling up to the surface, it becomes important to find ways to harness and channel that energy into something productive or useful. By channeling and harnessing one’s anger, it can become an important tool for discipline, training and achieving one’s goals. It can be aimed for a positive purpose as opposed to exploding or erupting out of you like an uncontrollable tempest that threatens to damage you and/or those in your environment. By using it as a positive tool, you can also acknowledge that anger is normal. A perfectly normal and expected human emotion that everyone experiences. It isn’t about having that emotion that’s bad. It’s what you do with it. How you allow it to affect you.

If you find yourself in a position where anger is slowly starting to rise to the surface and you have no means of channeling or using it, there are ways to control it. Deep breathing exercises or meditation can be valuable tools in ensuring that your anger doesn’t bubble over into something negative. And will ultimately help in eliminating the suffering within your life. And at the end of the day, finding peace will not only help maintain your health and promote a happier, fuller life but will also allow that energy to be shared or passed on to others. As the old saying goes, don’t sweat the small stuff. Food for thought…☯️

Routines Good, Habits Bad…

People live their daily lives based on their habits and routines. One may be inclined to wonder “what’s the difference?” Well, there are some integral differences that can drive whether what you’re doing is helpful to yourself or not. A habit is loosely defiined as something you do without thought. For example, picking your nose or chewing your nails would be a habit. Making a point to work out for thirty minutes every day after work would be a routine. I’m using pretty one-sided examples to illustrate my point. But ultimately, habits don’t generally become part of one’s routine, although if you perform your routines with enough focus and intention, they will eventually become habit. This can be the difference between bad habits and good.

Something Sensei had explained to me over the summer during my last visit resonated and stuck with me. In his 70’s, Sensei still very much reflects the man I always knew him to be. He wakes in the morning and engages in routines that promote his continued health and ability to remain independent and moving. This includes proper nutrition, fitness and exercising, including but not limited to cycling, house work and of course, consistent karate training. He’s never really lapsed in that department and he is still at a stage where he would be effective against opponents several decades his junior. He can do this because he uses discipline and intent to ensure he maintains his routines, and while they may have become habit, they’re not without effort. After all, the human body, much like water, tends to take the path of least resistance.

Habits can be bad because they often bring you to a slump in your daily routine. AND they can be much harder to stop, once you have them. Routines are the opposite. They take effort and sheer force of will to start and maintain, but once they become habit, they can still be difficult to maintain, since they require effort. Habits usually do not. Some simple examples. Every Tuesday and Thursday when work finishes, you and a few of your work colleagues tend to hit up a local pub for a couple of pints. You end up eating some bar food, maybe some wings or fries, followed by making your way home. Since you’re full and carbo-loaded, you’ll likely slump down on the couch and binge-watch a few episodes of your favorite show then make your way to bed for a quasi-deep, alcohol-assisted sleep. This is an easy habit, easy to get into and with little or no excuse on the person’s behalf to prevent of refuse to participate.

Now, let’s look at a routine. Let’s say you decide to take it upon yourself to wake up an hour earlier on a given morning and go running. You work up a good sweat, get a few miles in and get your heart pumping first thing in the morning. You get home, cold but sweaty, and work your way through your list of pre-work items, including but not limited to showering, dressing and packing a lunch for the day. You leave the house and hit the ground running. You feel energized, motivated and decide that this will be the new routine. Then, your day ends. You get home from work, struggle through your evening meal, maybe take care of the dishes, spend a bit of time with the spouse and kids before falling into a deep, exhausted sleep. While you may have initially hoped to make the routine of that morning a standing one, the following morning has you feeling groggy, tired, cold and wanting nothing more than to stay in bed for the added hour where it’s warm, comfortable and you don’t have to do anything. You decide that since you went running yesterday, you can likely take a “break day,” and hit it hard the following morning. You skip the routine you intentionally began. It’s all downhill from here.

The discipline and effort that’s required to maintain any good routine doesn’t come easily. And since the human body prefers to take it slow and easy, it’s much, much easier to skip things and just relax than it is to stick with any measurable routine. The thing about routines, is that even once you’ve gotten into it enough to make it a habit, it only takes once or twice to skip it, omit it from your day or decide not to do it, for it to break the routine and have to start all over. And the irony is that the same amount of discipline and effort will be required to start it up again, even if you’ve been there before. Which sucks. This is why you want to ensure you maintain those routines and avoid skipping days, negating your routines and allowing apathy to seep in are detrimental to one’s overall health. Like being able to get up in the morning and hit the ground running? Enjoy having reasonable energy levels and flexibility? Being able to continue doing all the things you enjoy doing, even in old age? Then you need to stick to your routines. Break your bad habits but foster your healthy routines. As Sensei has often told me, only you can manage your health. Food for thought… ☯️

November 2025

Well, here we are again. In a few days, November 1st will be upon us and this means that I will start growing out a ‘satchel for Movember. I do this every year and I also seek out donations, every year. It’s been several years where I’ve done it as part of a team, either during my time with the RCMP or since moving on to my current role. In my current role, we hit the ground running in 2021 with a team that was pretty committed and we raised over $500 just among ourselves. During 2022, the allure and gimmick of joining Movember flickered out, and we only raised just shy over $400. Last year and in 2023, I pretty much threw in the towel in terms of having a team effort and recognized I was once again walking this road alone. So, why do I keep doing it? This, dear readers, is the important question…

During the month of November, I set aside my reluctance to ask others for anything, and begin asking donations to support Movember. While the usual trend includes growing a resplendent mustache through the month and posting before and after photos, I always take it one step farther and grow out an entire beard (much to my wife’s dismay). By the end of November, I look more like a yeti than my usual self, but charity means sacrifice, so the scratchy face can be managed for the period of one calendar month. As I do every year, I should probably explain what the hell Movember is, and why it’s so important.

Movember is a registered charity in Canada that holds an annual challenge as a way to raise funds and awareness for prostate and testicular cancer, which is diagnosed in more than 1.4 million men globally, each year. While I have participated as part of a team in recent years, this year, I will be tackling it alone. Despite this obstacle, I’m keeping my previous year’s goal of $500 and feel that this is easily achievable, if I have a few kind readers who would be willing to pitch in a small amount. Even a little help can go a long way and any donation you make will do just that. We live in a society of increasing costs, inflation and increased cost of living, so I fully understand that times are tight for everyone. But I really can’t oversell how important this cause is. The cause is near and dear to me, especially since my beloved, departed grandfather had prostate cancer. Even the smallest donation you make can help with the bottom line.

Donating has never been easier. You can donate directly online by visiting the Movember website and clicking on the black “Donate” button at the top of the screen. Search under “Find a Person or Team“ and type in “Shawn Arlington Cook” and you should find me easily. Not sure why my ugly mug doesn’t appear as my profile pic, but you can scroll through the photos and see it. Fill out the donation form and you’ve done your part. You can even get a tax receipt, if needed or wanted. I don’t wander social media much and I never ask anything of others, so I’m hoping I’ll have a few people on my friends list and contacts, my blog readers and some family, who will help and contribute to this very important cause. Here’s the webpage: Movember Canada. No pressure and no expectation on my part. But I will be sincerely thankful and appreciative for any donation or contribution that anyone makes. 🙏 ☯️

You Only Did Thirty Minutes…?

Look, working out is hard. It is. Even if you’re one of those freaks who absolutely LOVES their 5 a.m. run through the neighborhood, the effort and discipline required to haul your sleepy ass out of bed and make it out the door into the morning chill is usually more than what the average person can put up with. And I should know; I absolutely LOVE karate, but finding the time, will and balanced blood sugars to get through a couple of hours, twice a week, in order to stay consistent is tough. That’s why one sometimes needs to take baby steps. Habitually, and for the most part, my wife and I are quite adept at carrying out brief, 30-minute workout circuits together. While it might not sound like a lot, for the purposes of a workout, 30 minutes allows us to get our cardiovascular efforts in, break a significant sweat together and gain that tell-tale ache in our muscles of a job well done. This begs the question; are we doing enough?

According to an article by the Mayo Clinic, the average person should aim to get at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity a weekor 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity a week. This total can be spread out into smaller chunks throughout the week. So, we’re talking about a workout that gets your heart pumping. The article goes on to say that you should “Do strength training exercises for all major muscle groups at least two times a week. One set of each exercise is enough for health and fitness benefits. Use a weight or resistance level heavy enough to tire your muscles after about 12 to 15 repetitions.” Further, it specifies that “As a general goal, aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity every day.” Okay, perfect! This means that the 30-minutes allows us circuit workouts that my wife and I hammer out together on the weekends meet the mark and is all we need, right? Well, maybe not…

If you’re carrying on your fitness activities with the end goal of losing weight , keeping the weight off or achieving specific fitness goals, this minimalist approach may not be adequate. And sitting for prolonged periods of time can be horrendous on your overall fitness and goals. This should be pretty intuitive but you’d be surprised, and I’m guilty of this myself, how much time people spend on their ass, either working, binging television or in their leisure activities. I lose count of how much time I spend sitting when I’m out to coffee with friends or binge-watching new episodes of Grey’s Anatomy with my wife. Not so great for fitness goals and can actually aggravate or undo some of the fitness achievements you’ve reached. But that isn’t the goal of today’s post. Today’s post is about length and frequency of working out. So, let’s get to the important question: Are my current 30-minute workouts worth it?

The short answer is yes. As most leading health practitioners and fitness experts will tell you, any activity is better than no activity. Another obstacle/hurdle, at least for me, is the fact that as I get older, the energy levels and ability to maintain the same level of fitness as I did even just five years ago, has altered significantly. Sensei would likely cuff me on the back of the head if he reads this, considering that in his seventies, he is very much the image of fitness. More so than someone at my age or younger. Frankly, he puts most people to shame. That being said, ensuring I reach that couple of hours’ total throughout the week CAN be challenging. My body’s propensity for letting the blood sugar drop about twenty minutes before I get home certainly doesn’t help matters. This leads to more evenings than not, where I find myself wolfing down food when I get home as opposed to taking the half hour needed to burn some calories and get a sweat on. The struggle is real…

At the end of the day, all of this starts with you. Unlike most people, I don’t subscribe to the thought that one needs to be motivated in order to workout. That is a whole lot of nonsensical bullshit, right there! You need to be disciplined. Period. Start. Do something. Only do ten minutes of running in your backyard? Good for you. Twenty minutes of doing some weight reps? Fantastic. An hour of wrestling and rolling around on the floor with your kids? Even better. Develop and maintain the discipline to do SOMETHING. Once that discipline is in place, the motivation will follow. It can’t happen in the other direction. That’s an important detail, and most people fail to understand this. For me, going back to the days of 2-hour karate workouts several times a week are likely dead and gone. Type-1 Diabetes and my overall age and health just won’t allow it any longer. If I tried, I likely wouldn’t have the energy and ability to deal with, you know… work, kids, life… But I can guarantee that I’m going to keep pushing workouts and exercise. As often as I can, for as long as I can. They’ll have to pull my cold, dead corpse away from the mats because my health is important, as it supports everything else. So, take care of yours, as well. Unless you’re healthy and capable, you’ll find yourself unable to do any of the other things in life that may be important. Food for thought… ☯️

The Spouse Is In The House, So Grab Your Boxing Gloves…

There’s a saying that I’ve often heard, although it changes with particular situations, that couples who [BLANK] together, stay together. And no, that blank is not a typo. It changes with the given situation. In this case, my thought is that couples who work out together, stay together. While that isn’t the only driving force behind staying together (obviously), there’s nothing more satisfying than getting a solid work out in with your spouse. The awesomeness of working up a sweat, getting healthy and getting that post-work out tired feeling together is something that can bring couples closer to each other and allow them to share something they wouldn’t otherwise; their overall health and fitness. For me, the decades have proved difficult in trying to have anyone I’ve been involved with, work out with me. In previous years, that was an obvious obstacle as my fitness time was usually limited to inside a dojo. But even in situations where I had someone I was dating or involved with joining the dojo, it usually didn’t work out well.

Even once I found myself outside the dojo and involved with someone, training in karate with a non-karate practitioner has some inherent problems. They won’t know the techniques. They won’t know the forms. If you hope to get a full workout, you’ll be going too fast and doing too much for any rational beginner to follow along. It can make it tough. And if you stop or slow down long enough to explain, you essentially burn through your workout time teaching instead of training. It can be frustrating and difficult for both parties, to be sure. But if you can be lucky enough to have a spouse or partner who is willing to work out with you, there’s lots that you can do to enjoy the experience together. If you insist on doing a karate workout, you’ll can limit it to kicking and punching drills, squats, jumping jacks, balance exercises… Lots of things that the two of you can do that won’t have to involve teaching some specifics to your respective exercise mate. Other possibilities are riding bicycles together, going for a job, doing weight sets… Or maybe, just maybe, you can expand your horizons and go to a class and learn something TOGETHER.

For me, I’m lucky in that my wife and I will often exercise together. While I don’t teach her mainstream karate, we often share 30 minutes of weight workouts. I have some wonderful circuits that I’ve saved on my iPad that I can bring up that focuses specific muscle groupings. Once my wife and I have hammered through one of these, we’re usually ready for snacks and/or a nap. A few times now, we’ve shared some time on the punching bag, favoring a circuit that allows us to take turns. While one is on the bag, the other uses a jump rope or sits in a horse stance. Wonderful burn and great exercise. And one of the best results of using this methodology, is the hour you spend working out is no longer an hour away from your spouse. Instead, it’s an hour you share with them. Where you get healthier and work out together. Not only enriching and healthy, it helps to bond you and bring you closer. Sounds like a definite win-win to me.

So find your niche. Discover what works for you and your spouse or partner that will allow the two of you to focus on health, increased energy, better sleep patterns, together. The result will also be shared experiences and laughs along the way that money can’t buy. And that bonding is important. Especially in a relationship that;s intended to be for life. Food for thought… ☯️

The Shoemaker’s Kids Go Barefoot…

The title is actually a very old phrase, apparently originating centuries ago. It demonstrates the unique irony that people will often neglect their own needs and desires while trying to help or take care of others. This line of thinking was not lost on me last night, as I sat quietly sipping a cup of tea while watching some short comedy clips on my phone in a local coffee shop. I was there for barely an hour. But the time there paid dividends in improving my mood, increasing my calm and allowing me to reset after what had been another shitty day in an otherwise overall shitty week. And this has been a shorter week, by virtue of Monday having been a statutory holiday. So just imagine, if I had the fifth work day to contend with? But I digress…

Modern adult life holds so many requirements, that most don’t necessarily realize the toll it takes on them. Often masking their pain and stress with vices such as alcohol, gambling, or any other combination of bad habits, people usually just try to get through their days as best they can. But if one were to stop and truly take stock of everything they need to do within a calendar month in order to hold their households together, the list would look pretty daunting and overwhelming. Taking care of one’s home, shopping for groceries and other household necessities, chores around the house, taking care of one’s children, prepping meals… The list can go on and on. I’ve become more fervently aware of all of these as I have been using a very useful little app in recent months called “Errands.” It’s a straightforward app that I installed on my iPad. It allows me to list and schedule all the errands and tasks I need to undertake, including by specific breakdown (home versus work, an outside errand, appointment, etc). Need to fuel up the car on my way home? Put it on the list. Traveling to Saskatoon for my eye injections? Put it on the list, as well as items to book my hotel room, pack my overnight bag and refill prescriptions.

While the app has been extremely handy in helping me to recognize what’s needed to be done around the house, its also helped me to recognize the daunting weight I carry when it comes to taking care of everything. Some of this has come full circle for me, with the recent decision to commit two nights a week to karate training within my home. Placing a repeating reminder in my Errands app, every Tuesday and Thursday sees me earmarked for karate training. Obviously, it would be easier if I were training outside the house. After all, it’s harder for the daily grind of life to catch you when you’re in an outside dojo. But training at home can be difficult. Last Thursday, I got home with full intentions of jumping into a gi and having an hour or two of solid karate training. Then, my oldest came downstairs to get my help with something. Okay, fair enough. While I was setting up, he came downstairs a second time. This time, his younger brother was hovering around the top of the steps; a habit he usually has, since he enjoys following his brother around. I dismissed him and explained I would be doing karate shortly and needed some alone time. Ten minutes later and before I had even started, he came downstairs to use the shower. His brother followed and was now underfoot. Karate didn’t happen.

This tends to be the recurring trend, with this past Tuesday seeing me working until late hours, resulting in fatigue that saw me crash once I was finally able to log off from work. The resulting effect is eventual burnout, and I’m headed there. So when I say that sitting quietly at a table in a coffee shop sipping on a cup of tea, Earl grey, hot (Picard reference), is a necessity, I don’t mean it lightly. I mean it literally. The hour I spend alone decompressing allows me to refocus my energies and provide for my family with less of a danger of burning out or losing my shit on them while I try to do so. Most people don’t recognize this need. And while I have trained for years to meditate and use it as a tool to promote my own inner-self and wellbeing, trying to meditate in a household with two young children carries the same risks as when I try to practice karate. While typical workouts like weight training or working out on the punching bag aren’t really affected if a little one comes pestering, being interrupted in the middle of a kata is damaging to one’s overall martial arts training.

That’s why it is most critically important to take time for oneself. And there are plenty of options. For me, and during the warmer summer months, I enjoy sitting in my open garage with a cigar and listening to music or watching comedy videos. Laughing is good for the soul. Maybe your downtime includes sitting quietly in a coffee shop reading an old school book, or taking a walk around the lake. It inherently doesn’t matter what you do, provided you do it outside the house so you aren’t interrupted and it’s something solely for you. When explaining this to your family, there’s nothing wrong with making it clear that for the next hour, you’re unavailable for anything that isn’t an emergency. That you love them but unless the house is on fire or someone is injured, you should be called or texted until you give the all-clear. So many relationships that end badly could have been salvaged or better held, had the people in those relationships acknowledged and respected this need. It isn’t selfish. It’s needed. Your feet also need shoes. Everybody’s does. Food for thought… ☯️

Why Carbs?

You know, having discovered carb counting back in 2014 when I was first introduced to insulin pump therapy, I realized that I had spent my entire youth misunderstanding the body’s relationship with sugar, carbohydrates and what they really mean for someone living with Diabetes. When I was a child and known to have “Juvenile Diabetes,” the basic rule was simple; take your shot and don’t eat any sugar. This led to significant errors on my parents’ part. Hungry? Have a slice of bread. There’s no sugar in bread. Thirsty, have a glass of milk. There’s no sugar in milk. It resulted in a number of years where my health was in decline, my blood sugars were rampantly out of control and had me live through a number of Diabetic comas. Not fun. But it was the early 1980’s and my parents, light bless them, did the best they could with the limited information we were given. Even when the health care system was “better,” there were still significant gaps that could have cost me my life early on. If not for the several times my brother woke and ran to my parents to wake them, I likely would have died before reaching my teens. Which is what they expected of me back then. But I digress…

Pump therapy introduced me to the concept of carb counting. So, let’s start with the basics, for those who may not be aware. Carbs, or carbohydrates, are macronutrients found in most food that your body breaks down to use as a primary source of fuel. For the most part, you NEED carbs, even though your favorite celebrity may tell you that you should go carb-free. Complex carbohydrates can include simple carbs, which are usually the ones that act fastest if you need to increase your blood sugars, or complex carbs, which need to be broken down by the body first, which is why they don’t make an ideal blood sugars treatment. This can includes breads and crackers and such. And this also includes fiber, which is included in the carb total on your food label but should be substrates from the carbs you calculate for, as they don’t affect blood sugars. The other main sources of fuel are protein and fat. If your body has no carbs available for fuel, it will begin burning stored fat for energy, which is why some folks believe in fasting and going carb free. All caught up? Good. Moving on.

Since learning to carb count, I’ve altered my mindset when it comes to food. For the most part, the trend in the western world is to add carbs to carbs, when eating a meal. Think about it. When was the last time you went out to your local restaurant for a meal? If it was a burger joint, you likely would have had a burger and fries. The carbohydrates in the burger are paired up with the carbohydrates in the fries, leading to a massive amount of unnecessary carbs within one meal. The second aspect is that since these are all complex carbs, bolusing for the correct amount of carbs will likely cause your blood sugars to drop significantly before your body has a chance to break those complex carbs down into usable energy. Then you end up piling fast-acting carbs on top to, you know, keep from dying… The result usually ends up being that your blood sugars will skyrocket. Even trendier and “full meal” restaurants seem to pile on the carbs. Have a side with your meal? Sure, why not? Potatoes, fries, rice… They’re all an unnecessary and unneeded carb added to the total count of your meal.

Most of this stemmed from the need for restaurants to portray the concept of getting bang for one’s buck, by ensuring full plates or meals. Since most sides are made from something lenticular and cheap, it’s a no-brained, from the business’ perspective. From the perspective of a Type-1 Diabetic who needs to calculate everything, it can be complicated and complicating. And no, that’s not a typo; I mean both. The inherent problem is that a portion of crabs that you yourself didn’t measure out can be extremely difficult to bolus for. A pile of mashed potatoes can quickly turn into bolusing too much or too little for what you’re getting, on top of being a complex carbs within that will take forever to break down. And unfortunately, while salads and veggies are options that would eliminate that problem, most vegetable, especially the high-fiber ones, are fillers that will make you feel fuller, faster. While this is not an inherently bad thing, it sucks when you pay a small fortune for a delicious meal where you might get to full from vegetables to enjoy the main. Plus, I’m one of those “I’m not paying for food that my food eats” people.

When eating out at any dining establishment, have a closer look at your meal and consider the pros and cons. Maybe a particular location has those seasoned, crispy fries that you really like and makes it definitely worth the added insulin. Or maybe, just maybe, you can just enjoy the burger, skip the fires and NOT deal with the added blood sugar issues or bolusing that ensues. Not least of which is the added fullness and bloating from overeating. You don’t have to be an Ozempic user to recognize how to keep your meals reasonable and portions smaller and more manageable. You just need to give a fuck about your health. Food for thought… ☯️

Give Yourself A Break…

Type-1 Diabetes is a beast of a condition to manage. I don’t think that should really be a secret to anyone who has it but to the undiagnosed general public, many seem to think that all it involves is taking the occasional insulin shot, testing your blood sugar and NOT eating sugar. In truth, managing Type-1 Diabetes is a life-long journey (although some would call it a battle) that requires constant monitoring and being on one’s guard. For myself, I was diagnosed at the tender age of 4 years old. Some would throw out a few token “aww’s” at that but realistically, I was too young to really know any different. It was likely easier for me than it would have been, had I gotten diagnosed into my teens the way some friends of mine have. I grew up learning how to manage Diabetes and never had the opportunity to develop “bad habits” that might have made control more difficult in my later years.

But for the folks who are not Diabetic and may not have a family member who is, there is a lot that goes on in the day-to-day steps to control my Diabetes and ensure I don’t lose my eyesight, have an organ fail or have limbs amputated due to poor control. And those are just some of the more knowable potential outcomes. The lesser known and visible side effects are things like ketoacidosis. I had a friend who hosted a guest in her home who was Type-1 Diabetic. He spent the weekend there and the following morning, she and her husband were curious at the fact that he was sleeping in so late. They knocked at the door and inquired when he would be getting up. She remembered him responding “Do I have to,” to which she indicated no and let him go back to sleep. An hour or two later, they were concerned enough that they decided they had to wake him. He had unfortunately locked the door and they had to break their way into the room. He had gone into a Diabetic coma and died. This is the darker side of the condition that people don’t recognize when they’re busy making jokes about “Diabeetus” and thinking it’s because just eat too much sugar or candy. But I digress…

Here are some of the things that I need to stay on constant guard about, when managing my Type-1 Diabetes on a day-to-day basis. This is the stuff that most people don’t realize and that aren’t visible to anyone who isn’t immediately in my household. This list is not exhaustive but is definitely part of my daily routine, which is likely why I’m always exhausted and need several cups of coffee. But here we go:

  • Extra and non-Diabetic Medications: This one is a particular sore point for me. Besides insulin injections, I have daily medications I need to take. In early 2010, a regularly scheduled doctor’s visit resulted in being prescribed statins, which are apparently a required staple of grown adults with Type-1 Diabetes to help control cholesterol levels, and Ramipril, which is used to control overall blood pressure and heart health. On top of that, although I came off of this one a few months ago, is a medication called Ezetemibe, which also used for cholesterol control. Although, since starting to use Ozempic in late 2023, I no longer need the Ezetemibe since my cholesterol is essentially a non-concern. Oh yeah, I take weekly Ozempic injections to help blood pressure and kidney health.
  • Frequent Blood Sugar Testing: I’m pretty lucky to be on a modern insulin pump. Prior to 2014, I was testing my blood sugars up to ten times a day on average. The problem with that is the inconvenience of having to blood let one of your fingertips when you’re feeling off, no matter where you are or what you’re doing. Flying blind and assuming your blood sugar levels can be dangerous and detrimental to your health. It’s even more inconvenient if you’re on a flight, in a restaurant or in a work meeting where you need to excuse yourself. Even worse was during the dating phase where you’d need to test your blood or worse, if things were heating up and getting physical and you had to ensure your blood sugars were okay to “proceed.” Thankfully, that part of my life is over.
  • Constantly Carrying a Man-Purse: What I’ve learned over time and especially in the past year or so, is that I can never take anything for granted. Stepping out of the house to run an errand while thinking “I’ll only be fifteen minutes,” can turn into a medical emergency pretty fuckin’ quick.! Just at the start of this summer, my blood sugars were normal and I had to run to a local mall to pick up one item. The mall is a literal five-minute drive away from the house. It should have been quick, easy and without concern. Once at the mall, my pump started loudly blaring at me. My blood had dropped to 3.4 mmol/L. What should have been a quick, ten or fifteen minute trip turned into forty minutes of sitting on a bench, sipping on a Coke and waiting for my blood sugars to rise enough for me to safely (and legally) drive home. These days, I always carry a small shoulder sling that contains a glucometre, a small first aid kit, wipes and hand sanitizer and at least one (although usually several) bags of non-perishable fast-acting carbs. Which brings me to my next point…
  • Keeping family Members from Being Concerned: They say it takes a village and in most circumstances, they would be right. One of my mother’s greatest concerns over the years would be that I would find myself alone as an adult and have to deal with the pitfalls of Diabetes alone. This can be inherently dangerous, since slipping into a serious Diabetic episode when I have no one to help can be deadly. But when I look at that scenario with the trip to the mall, one of the first things I did was text my wife. Not only to let her know I would be a while longer than expected but in the event I found myself in greater medical distress, I had to be prepared to have her assist me in some way, or at least know to go to the hospital to find me if something happened. It can be somewhat exhausting for family, especially considering it isn’t a condition they have themselves. That’s why it’s incredibly important NOT to get testy when they ask if you’ve tested your blood, or eaten enough, or remembered to take your pill. If you have family members that are invested enough to give a shit about your health, you need to soak that shit up and be grateful. Like I said, it takes a village.
  • Near Constant Adapting To Changing Conditions: Probably the toughest and most annoying aspect outside of taking insulin or testing your blood sugars, is having to adapt to plans depending on what your body is doing. Sure, everyone does this. Ever had to cancel plans with friends because you had the runs and couldn’t leave your house? Picture that, but on a daily basis. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve had to cancel coffee or hangouts with friends because I was ill due to blood sugars or my compromised immune system had me dealing with yet another common illnesses that most people would shrug off. Don’t even get me started on wanting to get a workout in but my low blood sugar fucks my night. Or, speaking of fucking up one’s night, imagine wanting to get physical with your significant other, but your blood sugars are too high or too low to allow you to perform as required. Not fun.
  • Traveling Becomes a Burden: Honestly, this has become WORSE since starting on an insulin pump. Travel becomes tedious, especially if I should be leaving the province or country. I have to calculate and plan out my insulin intake, use of supplies and alternatives in the event I run out of something at my destination. Will I be able to find what I need? Will I be covered for it, outside of my home Province or while I suddenly find myself paying a significant amount of money out-of-pocket? If a given pharmacy in the area doesn’t carry what I need, can I do without or will I be sacrificing a portion of my trip traveling elsewhere to find what I need? Just two years ago, my continuous glucose monitor expired and the one I had packed for the week failed on installation. My local pharmacies not only had no idea what I was talking about when I tried to purchase more, but I had no means of ordering any. I had to run the pump without CGM for the remainder of my trip.

While some of these can be chalked up to basic inconvenience, some of them can lead to significant issues or even become life-threatening. You know how you always read about these folks who get harassed for parking in a handicap space but don’t “look” disabled? Picture that, with everything but not limited to, everything I listed above. Managing and living with Type-1 Diabetes requires a daily grind where you can never let your foot off the gas. And people often wonder why I’m always exhausted and binging caffeine like it’s going out of style. Don’t eat sugar? Sure. Take daily insulin shots? Absolutely. But trust me when I say that while it could always be worse, Type-1 Diabetes, at least when it’s properly controlled, is a far cry from an easy walk in the park. Food for thought… ☯️