I had the distinct pleasure of waking up to several inches of white bullshit a few days ago. It’s one of those things where there’s just no getting away from it. Winter and snow comes along every year and when it does, there are several things one needs to bear in mind to keep oneself warm and safe. Especially f one is travelling with Type-1 Diabetes. Being prepared means the difference between being safe and finding oneself in a compromised position.
Travelling with Type-1 Diabetes requires special attention to detail and ensuring that I bring everything with me in the event of a worse-case scenario. First and foremost, your personal vehicle should always have the basic necessities that one needs during the winter, whether you have Diabetes or not. This includes booster cables or one of those very handy booster packs, a first aid kit, blankets and candles. Those are all basic things that everyone should have. We live in the age of cell phones and easy communication, so it’s important to keep your cell phone charged during your travels.
Once you’ve covered all those bases, you need to focus on the Diabetic aspect. I make a point of always having a backpack or a shoulder sling available. Inside, I keep my glucometre, some fast-acting carbohydrates and nasal spray. I also have a small, travel size first aid kit and whatever extra crap I need for the day, including books and my Bluetooth keyboard for blogging. Depending on how long I’m on the road and where I’m headed, I’ll also be carrying insulin and pump supplies.
The point is, in the event of a collision or becoming stranded in a storm, being prepared will ensure you can stay safe until help arrives. In the event of low blood sugar, you fast-acting carbs to bring it up and in the event of your infusion set or sensor expire, you’ll have replacements. blankets and candles will ensure you can stay warm since, depending on how you land during a collision, your vehicle may not run and if it does, it may be dangerous to do so.
Most of this should seem like common sense but it always amazes me how many people take to the road without any supplies or precautions. Although most people can survive for a reasonable period within the shelter of a vehicle, being Diabetic makes it all the more hazardous. Last but not least, Saskatchewan winters are especially cold as fuck, which can also affect blood sugars. During the cold, winter months, take precautions, be safe and be prepared. And stay off the roads unless absolutely necessary. ☯️
If there’s one thing that I’ve been able to start noticing with age, is the fact that my reflexes aren’t quite as sharp as they used to be. That’s a normal thing, and we all get there eventually but it lent a particularly stinging reminder last Sunday. I’m totally on that bandwagon of trying recipes I see on Facebook. You know the ones; the short little video that shows all the ingredients belong dropped into a slow cooker or a pan, to create a wonderful and trendy meal within minutes? Love those videos…
Anyway, I saw this one video where you take three packages of ramen noodles, of all things, drop them into a slow cooker with a pound of cooked ground beef, chicken broth and veggies of your choice and slow-cook it for about two hours. It looked easy enough and I enjoy the occasional package of ramen, so I thought I’d attempt it as a way of having ready-made meals for my work week. I chose red peppers and fresh mushrooms as my veggies.
Since I’m not writing this post to brag about my culinary skills or lack thereof, you should reasonably assume that something went wrong. I was using a small cutting board and slicing up my mushrooms, when some random kids came running up my driveway. Since both my kids were inside, the movement drew my attention, both because of my hyper vigilance that I believe will never go away and my ADHD. The problem is I was in mid-slice when I turned my head. The result was a very new and very sharp chef’s knife slid across the tip of my thumb.
The sharp pain and bleeding was immediate and I dropped the knife and moved to the sink, right as the kids were ringing the doorbell. I called for my wife as blood was fountaining into the kitchen sink. She dealt with the kids, who were collecting bottles, while I applied pressure and tried to stem the bleeding. At the risk of trying to sound macho, this isn’t my first rodeo in terms of my flesh getting sliced, but despite several minutes of applied pressure, the bleeding showed no signs of stopping.
I staggered to the bathroom and opened up our home first aid kit (pictured above). Despite the cost for this thing, I was disappointed at the lack of bandages and gauze contained within. Maybe I should have looked at the included materials a bit more closely before buying it. There were only two, small gauze bandages, which I bled through and turned scarlet within seconds. After 15 minutes of consistent bleeding with no end in sight, I made my peace with the fact I would need to visit the ER…
Because I’m stubborn (and cheap), I chose not to call an ambulance and just wrapped a tight bandaid to close the wound and drove myself to the hospital. There are enough people complaining about wait times for hospital waiting rooms, so I won’t touch on that beyond saying my total time at the hospital was about four hours, which isn’t extreme in the grand scheme of things. The real comedy came during my treatment, which included the freezing of my left thumb and the application of four stitches. Hopefully no one is squeamish as I will be sharing photos…
I had the attention and care of a surgical intern as well as an attending surgeon. The surgeon asked me if I was squeamish and asked if I would be okay at the sight of my own blood. Instead of just saying yes like a normal person, I made a point of bragging that I was a retired cop and had seen it all and experienced it all and would be fine. When the surgeon explained that the two-inch needle would be inserted directly into my nerves to numb my thumb (say THAT three times fast) and that I should look away. I proceed to explain that I have been Type-1 Diabetic for over four decades and have had needles of varying sizes inserted into almost every part of my body, including my eyeballs, so just do it, already.
Entertained by my bravado, she inserted the needle and injected the numbing agent. When the needle reached the nerves in my hand, my body reacted immediately. My body flushed, my head started spinning and I was overcome with nausea. I have never dealt with something of this nature, where the reaction is completely involuntary and out of my control. I had just enough time to warn the ladies that I was going down, so the surgeon was able to retract the needle and guide my head down to the pillow. They attached a blood pressure cuff and a pulse reader to monitor my vitals, which will become integral to my story, shortly.
After a bit of time, my thumb was fully numb and the intern was able to apply four stitches to my thumb and I was no longer spilling my life’s blood all over the place. I was waiting for the surgeon to come back and inspect the intern’s work before applying a bandage and sending me on my way, when the intercom announce a “Code Blue,” which is the usual code in a hospital settings for someone needing to be resuscitated or required immediate, emergent care. Since I was in one of the main trauma rooms, half a dozen staff poured in and explained that I needed to vacate so they could bring in their emergent patient.
I immediately complied and jumped to my feet before I realized I was still hooked up to the heart monitor and blood pressure equipment, which resulted in my yanking several machines and pieces of equipment across the cot and floor. The staff were greatly amused by my clumsiness and helped untangle me, so that I could vacate the room. I now found myself standing in a random hallway with my stitched thumb held up, waiting for someone to come apply my bandage and give me a tetanus shot, which I was told I would now require.
All in all, it was the last fuckin’ thing I needed over my weekend. Granted, there’s never a good time for one to injure oneself and given the difficulties in healing wounds that Type-1 Diabetics tend to have just puts me further on edge, given that I can’t see how the healing is coming along. Granted, it’s been a few days and it’s the first morning where I don’t wake up from sharp pain. It has made me realize just how much use one gets out of one’s thumb. You never know what you have until it’s gone and my thumb is no exception. Daily tasks are far more difficult when one can’t apply pressure to one’s thumb.
The irony is that it seems pretty stupid and menial. It’s a thumb. A cut on a thumb. It wasn’t a traumatic injury, I’m not laid up for weeks and I don’t require any follow-up therapy. So it amazes me how such a small injury can be so debilitating to one’s daily routine. It also reminds me to pay fuckin’ attention to the task at hand, pun fully intended. Another few days and the bandage can be removed as the stitches will dissolve on their own. Here’s hoping there’s no further complications and I can get back to quasi-normal. ☯️
Sensei always says that karate is a puzzle with a million pieces; the only way to ensure you learn is to take home one new piece, every night. I’ve always felt that this applies to almost anything in life, but it’s particularly true where it involves karate. To the average layman, karate may look simple and it may be assumed that it’s all kicking and punching. In reality, there are multiple moving parts (pun fully intended) behind learning and developing one’s skills in karate.
I bring this up because I recently read a post online that basically says that you need everything to learn karate. You need kata, you need limited, you need sparring, you need drills, etc… And that’s quite accurate. You need all aspects of the art in order to achieve mastery over it. Depending on how spiritual you find yourself, you may understand that one truly never completely masters karate. There will always be SOMETHING to learn. But I’m referring to karate in its most simple and general terms.
What I mean by this and why I bring it up, is that one can’t choose to “specialize” in karate. I’ve known students and practitioners who were far better at sparring than they were at learning and developing their katas. Unfortunately, they need their katas no less than the one who seems to be poetry in motion while doing them. Learning the foundation of proper form before jumping into sparring is integral to one’s safety and proper self-defence; not least of which is the need to learn the art properly.
I’ve seen students who depend solely on form. They make their way through the lessons without ever making contact with a target or another practitioner. This is also a flawed approach, as karate requires the practitioner to experience the sensation of the impact of their strikes, to develop muscle memory and to learn how to have proper bone alignment so you don’t break every fucking bone in your hand because you decided to throw a punch! Form alone won’t get you there…
That’s why it’s so important to get all the pieces of the very large puzzle that is karate. You need form. You need sparring. Hell, you need cardio and muscle development. Meditation, proper nutrition, proper sleep… I can go all day, the point is, the are many moving parts to ensuring that your martial arts journey not only safe and effective but a good use of your time. You may like the look and feeling of pounding away on the punching bag. You may even be quite fast and good at getting that strike out. But it will serve you quite poorly if you haven’t learned the proper form to get the result you need from that strike. So be sure to collect all your pieces. A puzzle with a missing piece looks terrible, indeed. ☯️
I absolutely love this post! I consider it to be one of the best-written and important posts I’ve ever drafted and when I mention this to some of my readers and/or followers, it usually catches them by surprise. Perhaps they believe that my endearment should be reserved for posts about martial arts or even Diabetes. But the truth is, the contents of this post cover a lot of the bases: nutrition, health and requirements of the body, which all play an integral role in maintaining proper health for Diabetes and ensuring one can train and develop their fitness acumen. So read on, if you haven’t. Scroll on by if you read it last year…
I consider the consumption of vitamins and minerals to be an important part of maintaining one’s health. It’s no surprise that modern nutrition is sorely lacking in most people and with every reposting of this material, I’m reminded of the importance of taking a steady multivitamin on a daily basis; a fact my doctors keep reminding me, as well. With the colder weather hitting our area and everyone’s immune system taking a hit, vitamins and supplementation are very important. So, bearing in mind that I’m not a doctor or nutritionist, here’s what I posted all the way back in June of 2019. Enjoy!
One of the key reasons behind the consumption of food is to obtain carbohydrates for energy. The human body requires energy to carry on normal functions and, well… stay alive! But what else do we get from the food we eat? A proper diet will also include a number of vitamins and minerals that we require to maintain proper health, growth and energy levels within the body. We’ve all heard about getting enough vitamins from a young age. I remember getting my Flintstones vitamin everyday as a kid.
But if you’re like most people, you’re likely wondering what these vitamins are for and what they do. My goal is to cover off the main ones here:
Vitamin A: This is an all-around vitamin that provides a number of functions including but not limited to the proper health of various bodily functions, tissues and helps to fight chronic disease and is known to be good for the eyes.
Vitamin B: This one is a bit complicated, as there is a large grouping of enzymes, vitamins and minerals that fall under the “B” category. In general, B-vitamins are used for energy production, immune function and absorbing iron. Some them include B2 (riboflavin), B3 (niacin), B9 (folate) and B12. There are a few more that I can’t recall, but B12 is considered amongst one of the most important of vitamins overall because it helps you turn food into energy.
Vitamin C: At some points, this one has been referred to as the sunshine vitamin. I’m thinking that’s mostly because people’s main source of Vitamin C is from citrus fruits. But this vitamin also helps with iron absorption, immune function and is a natural antioxidant that helps with the elimination of free radicals. Eating citrus fruits are also what sailors used to eat on long voyages to prevent scurvy.
Vitamin D: This vitamin helps with the strengthening of bones and teeth. Our bodies are designed to self-generate this vitamin naturally through exposure to sunlight, but obviously that needs to be done in small doses. Modern life has created an environment where more people spend their time indoors, away from the sun. So supplementation becomes important.
Vitamin E: A pretty straight forward vitamin, this one helps with proper blood circulation and clear skin.
Vitamin K: This vitamin is essential for blood-clotting. In order words, if you’re deficient in this vitamin, small cuts or injuries can cause excessive bleeding that can become dangerous.
Folic Acid: We hear people speak about this one as being necessary during pregnancy. And they would be correct! Folic Acid helps to prevent certain complications during childbirth but is important to everyone for proper cell renewal. This one is also known as Folate, or Vitamin B9 (as listed above).
Calcium: Most people should be familiar with this one. Teeth and bones, people! Teeth and bones! Good calcium levels are required to keep those body parts healthy.
Iron: This helps to build muscle tissue naturally and helps with proper health of the blood. As an interesting sidebar, it’s also what makes your blood red through the reflection of light!
Zinc: Immunity and Fertility. I’m a little unfamiliar with this one and haven’t had the opportunity to research it a great deal.
Chromium: This one is near and dear to my heart. Because it helps to control blood sugar levels. Chromium is what helps all the systems of your body to get the energy they need when they need it. Some traditional medicine practitioners will suggest Chromium supplements for Type 1 Diabetics who may have difficulty in maintaining proper levels.
Magnesium: This one helps your body to absorb all the other vitamins and minerals. It also acts as something of a relaxant to muscle tissue and play a role in proper muscle contraction.
Potassium: This mineral helps with the proper hydration of your body and helps to control blood pressure.
There are many others of course, but I’ve tried to cover off the main vitamins and minerals required for a proper diet. We get most of what we need by eating regularly and including a variety of healthy foods. A lot of people take a daily multi-vitamin, which is fine. But unless you are experiencing symptoms or unexplained illnesses, there shouldn’t be a need to actively try and take added amounts of anything. Your medical practitioner should be able to advise you if further supplementation is required. For example, patients who are recommended to take Folic Acid and Iron during pregnancy.
Obviously, all of this is extremely important; not only for proper health and fitness, which is important to me, but to help with Type 1 Diabetes as well. Taking a daily multivitamin can help to ensure that your body gets everything it needs, in combination with carbohydrates, lean proteins and fibre. My wife Laura originally gave me the idea for the post I wrote in 2019 when she asked about B-vitamins. Every time I re-post this material, I think of her. The credit for this post is all her! ☯️
If you’re talking about karate, the short is yes. Yes, you do. But is it really that’s black and white? I’m talking about the training environment, of course, not an actual fight. If you’re in an actual fight and you don’t strike your opponent, you’re in for a bit of a bad time. But even in those circumstances, there can often be alternatives. I bring this up today because, having been in my fair share of fights, both on the street and in the dojo, I know a little something about having to strike and in most cases, striking first to avoid getting injured.
I recently saw a meme online that quoted a Shorin-Ryu practitioner named Hiya Yuchoku. Yuchoku studied under a number fo well-known teachers, including Chojun Miyagi, who is known as the founder of Japanese Goju-Ryu. He was awarded his 10th degree in the late 1970’s, almost 20 years before his death in 1994. I’m never one to speak ill of the departed, especially such a revered martial artist. But I’m also quite leery of any quote that’s attributed to a source that is no longer around to confirm or deny what words they may have said. Here’s the quote I read:
“It’s not Karate if you interrupt the blow before contact. It is impossible to fight without the possibility of injury. Injuries are often inevitable.
Karate is essentially not fit for Tournaments. It is not feasible to make real Karate a competitive sport.”
– Hugs Yuchoku
There’s a lot to unpack in those two short, little paragraphs. For the most part, I tend to agree with the second paragraph. Karate was never intended to be a competitive sport. Although we do see karate tournaments, the spirit and intent of the art was never meant to score points or win trophies. I know that’s for myself, personally, I’ve never competed. Sensei doesn’t approve of such things and neither do I. My karate has always been about self-defence and the defence of others. But, to each their own, right?
What concerns me with the quote is the first paragraph, specifically the first sentence. “It’s not karate if you interrupt the blow before contact.” Let’s examine that statement, for a moment. For decades, I’ve trained myself to have an accurate control over my strikes so that I can stop on a dime or plow through my target with the intention of only stopping on the other side. And quite frankly, every possible degree in between. This is important. being able to strike something/someone is easy. Any poor bastard who can close a tight fist can throw a punch and make an impact.
But to have the control to be able to spar in a full contact environment and still stop a hair’s width from your target takes skill, concentration and focus. Three very important aspects that most would argue is integral to learning karate properly. To be able to put full strength behind a strike but still maintain enough control to stop on a dime develops a level of muscle memory that one simply won’t get by always plowing right through.
The second part of the first paragraph, where injuries are referenced, is quite accurate. Let‘s be real, for a moment… Karate isn’t a fuckin’ knitting circle. If you want to avoid injury completely, maybe you should take up checkers, instead. The “possibility” of injury always exists, even in the training environment. This is why firm control, concentration and focus, as well as respect for your opponent, are so very, very important to effectively learning karate.
As is always the case, different styles and martial artists will have different views and opinions on this. I invite any of you who have input to please feel free to provide your thoughts in the comments section. I always welcome a good debate. Food for thought… ☯️
I don’t know if any of you have heard of the most recent trend where people are using a certain Type-2 Diabetes medication for weight-loss. I had a colleague of mine bring it to my attention this morning and I couldn’t believe it, when I watched the news clip released by Global news on October 6 about the phenomenon. It’s one of those things that quote frankly rank right up there with eating Tide pods or snorting condoms. Although, I guess this one isn’t so much a dare as it is a quasi-medical attempt at cutting corners.
So, what am I talking about here? Well, specifically, I’m talking about a medication call “Ozempic,” or semaglutide, which is the generic name. like most Type-2 treatments, Ozempic is intended to be used in tandem with proper diet and exercise in order to help control and maintain blood sugar levels. Problematically, this drug apparently also promotes a certain level of weight loss, which people are jumping on, because no one seems to understand that healthy weight loss does need to involve proper diet and exercise. If anyone wants to see the news clip, it can be accessed here.
Like pretty much any medication or treatment ever created, any specific medication will usually carry more than one use. That’s why it isn’t overly surprising that even if this medication is intended to help control Type-2 Diabetes, someone was bound to jump on the weight-loss train. The caveat is that like every medication or treatment, there are also side effects; some of which can be pretty serious if the medication in question is not being taken for its intended purpose. Ozempic is no different.
According to an article posted by WebMD, mild side effects of this medication can include tiredness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and constipation. On the more severe side, there can be a possibility of kidney issues as well as pancreas or gallbladder disease. Doesn’t exactly sound like a fuckin’ spa treatment, right? Seems like a bit of a risk to try and lose weight quickly. Seems easier to simply start working out and eating better but what do I know? Oh, wait! I’m a patient with Type-1 Diabetes who has managed to go over four decades without any serious complications. THAT’S what I know!
That last point and likely the biggest issue, is the availability of the drug. Because people are all jumping on the bandwagon to get their hands on it to build their bikini bod, people who actually need it to help treat Diabetes are left wanting. If you watch the news clip I linked above, supply chain issues are becoming a problem. Not so great. There are no free rides, folks! If you want to lose weight, get up and get moving. Control what you consume and in what amount. Seek the guidance of trained professionals in both nutrition and fitness. The concept of any magic drug that will help you lose wight is laughable. Even the ones that may have this effect, the risks far outweigh the reward. Food for thought…☯️
No, I don’t mean kids WITH type-1 Diabetes… I mean having Type-1 Diabetes while there are small children in the mix. If you take care of yourself and manage your condition properly, you’ll eventually reach a point where life will progress to a point where children are part of the equation and get in the mix. We often hear that being a parent means sacrifice. So, what happens when there’s an aspect of your life that you can’t sacrifice or even compromise on? That can makes things difficult, especially since children don’t have the tools or the maturity to necessarily understand some of the ins and outs of their parents’ condition. If you’re just entering into this particular chapter of your life, let me share some of the realities I’ve faced in that regard over the past decade…
Managing Type-1 Diabetes in the hopes of reaching old age and seeing your family grow up, requires a number of moving parts and aspects that don’t always work well when there are small children in the mix. At times, it can mean being borderline rude and mean to the members of your family, even if in reality, you’re doing it in the interest of being around long enough for their benefit. Even IF you’re lucky enough that this may be understood, it eventually falls on deaf ears when the years melt away; especially since most people don’t understand the need to maintain one’s standard as opposed ot just trying to fix it later on. The irony is, as technology has advanced and my personal treatment has become more effective, it’s opened up the door to different issues. Here are just a few of the bigger ones:
Treats Aren’t Necessarily To Share While some people can get away with a quick glass of orange juice or some of those glucose tablets, those options have been very effective for me. In short, fast-acting carbs have included candies such as jelly beans, gummy bears and other fat-free gummy options. Skittles also work well in a pinch. Picture yourself having a low and trying to wolf down a handful of that goodness, only to have your toddler want to have some. On the one side, handing over a couple of them wouldn’t necessarily break the bank. On the other, depending on the available stock one has, the few you hand over may be the ones you need to push yourself up the added point or two to get back to normal. Trying to make a child understand that is usually difficult at best. After all, why does daddy get to snack on some goodies and I don’t?
Sleep Is Not An Option Or A Negotiation As I’ve often written about before, sleep is an integral part to a person’s overall health. Blood pressure, mood, weight loss and blood sugars are all affected by the amount and quality of sleep that someone with Type-1 Diabetes. This can often mean that grabbing the occasional nap as well as ensuring that one gets the 7 to 9 hours of nightly sleep required is difficult. Ever had a kid lift your eyelids and ask for food? Or have both children awake and basically beating the shit out of each other while you’re trying to nap? I have. Just this morning, despite it being the weekend, I had one of my kids wake me up at 5 o’clock because his iPad was dead and he needed something to watch his cartons. How well do you think he understood that daddy needs his sleep and he shouldn’t be waking anybody? Not in this lifetime?
Equipment Is Always At Risk This is a big one, especially if you include items like an insulin pump or continuous glucose monitor sensors in your treatment. Over the years, tubing and equipment have been torn out, grabbed, yanked and destroyed by the little hands of the innocent. This can lead to significant issues, especially if you happen to have NO coverage for your supplies. Imagine trying to figure out how you’ll get proper insulin delivery when your infusion set still had two days’ worth and you were on your last one? During both of my sons’ infant years, trying to spent some cuddle time while trying to keep them from ripping out my equipment has proven problematic. Babies don’t usually understand “don’t touch” at the best of times. When they see something that’s shiny and plastic, grabbing is grabbing.
Exercise Can Be Difficult If Not Dangerous I’ve spent the majority of my life pushing myself physically. From my martial arts training, to police training, weight lifting, cycling and the score of hours I spend on the punching bag, exercise is not only a big part of who I am as a person, it’s the thing to which I owe the majority of my good health and Diabetes control to. It’s no secret that physical fitness contributes to one’s overall health for anybody, Diabetes notwithstanding. But one’s commitment to fitness can be compromised by the presence of children in the mix. Picture bench-pressing a solid amount of weight, only to have your kid walk up next to you and decide that it’s a good time to tickle or poke your eye. Or even if they don’t, getting smacked by the bar will cause a meltdown that will end your workout pretty fuckin’ quick.
The caveat to this one is that at some point, your kids will be able to join you in those workouts. There’s a lot of fun in having my toddler on the punching bag while I’m on the strike pad and we take turns switching. Or having my oldest play a rigorous game of basketball of tag with me. On occasion, I even get lucky enough to entice my oldest to use the punch pads while I hold them or move along with me as we do some calisthenics. That’s where at least one aspect can be fully shared or enjoyed with one’s kids. But finding the free time for oneself to commit to a solid workout is not only not often understood by one’s kids, especially when it means added time away from home. Kids don’t get that.
The last point I’ll touch on, is the scariest part of all. There’s always that possibility that the son may inherent the condition of the father. It’s one of the things that keep me awake at night the most. So far, my oldest has been found free and clear. I’m hoping it stays that way. but the reality is that dealing with Type-1 Diabetes can be difficult at the best of times. Explaining it to one’s children and navigating some of the difficulties listed above (and there are others) can be just as difficult. The important thing to bear in mind is to stay consistent, recognize that may not always understand but that you’re doing it for them. They may not be happy about it but in the end, everyone will be better off for it. Food for thought… ☯️
When you include all the variations and offshoots, there are hundreds of different martial arts styles, hailing from several different countries. This includes a martial art called “Kalaripayattu,” which has origins in India and is said to be thousands of years’ old. Some styles owe their creation to the existence of previously-existing styles, like Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. That style seems to be all the rage and everyone always praises it but did you know that the style is actually a combination of Japanese Judo and Jujutsu? The style that a good portion of the world seems to think is “oh so great,” is actually a combination of two already-great styles. But the fact I could make that snarky last comment speaks to what today’s post is all about.
I’d love to say that my style is the ultimate one and can outdo any other style that could possibly be out there. But the reality is that it isn’t just about the style but how you train and how much you put into it. I’ve had people I’ve trained with that royally shit the bed in terms of how they’ve developed themselves. Meanwhile, I’m pretty convinced that my Sensei could not only beat the shit out of a team comprised of Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Jet Li but he would follow up by walking away slowly as an explosion happens in the background. But I may be JUST a little bit biased. The point is that most practitioners tend to develop that bias, since most dedicated martial artists will find and stay with one style for the majority of their training career. Because of this, they tend to believe that their style is THE style.
There’s nothing wrong with a little bit of loyalty and it’s certainly important to bear in mind that style hopping tends to water down a student’s overall skills. But the style you choose is exceptionally subjective and the idea is to choose a style that suits you, fits your needs and helps to provide you with what you need, overall. You have some exceptions, like Chuck Norris and Jean Claude Van Damme. Say what you will about some of the movies, both those fuckers have multiple black belts in various styles. But that tends to be the exception, not the rule. The idea is that sticking with one style doesn’t mean that every other style is wrong or ineffective.
That’s why it’s important to show a little respect. If the original developers of martial arts styles hadn’t kept an open mind and showed a bit of willingness to learn something new, the style you’ve dedicated yourself to would probably never exist. Or at the very least, it might be significantly different than what you know. In my time, I’ve had the opportunity to study with a variety of schools touching on a number of different styles. These different styles have had different ways of doing things, including how to stand, how to execute techniques and even how to close one’s fist and throw a punch, which seems quite basic but there’s apparently more than one way to do it. Imagine that! And although these styles were different, there was always something for me to learn. It wasn’t always easy… Adjusting to different techniques when you’ve been doing it a certain way for decades can be rough. But through all of that, respect has always been there.
No matter what style you study, how long you’ve been at it or how effective you think it is, always remember that anyone else likely feels the same way about their style. There should be no lack of respect for the other styles you may encounter. There are far too many people who bash and bad-talk other styles and always assume that their style is the ultimate one and that no other style has any value. The truth is that there is value in all styles and they’ve all had their journey. So keep an open mind and be willing to consider different perspectives. Although dedication to one style is important, respect for ALL styles holds a seat on the same platform. Food for thought… ☯️
It’s a natural instinct to want the things we don’t have. In some instances, this is called ambition, or having goals. This concept applies even when it happened to be something we CAN’T have, although many of us can’t differentiate the difference between “don’t” and “can’t.” But many things in life are often taken for granted, at a time in our lives when we don’t even realize we’re better off.
A good example of this is sleep. How many times have we fought off bedtime or refused to nap as children, afraid to miss something important in our day or preferring to play or watch television than get some sleep. It always seemed so arbitrary and unnecessary. For myself, I was always a little too smart for my own good; I would rationalize that even if I stayed up now, I could sleep more at the other end. This didn’t always work in my favour, considering my parents had to work, run errands and meet appointments, which didn’t always allow me to lounge in my bed at my leisure…
As an adult, I often look back at those days of menial defiance and recognize that I often wish I could go back to a time when my only concern on a weekend was wether I actually took the nap or not. And I can assuredly promise that I would take advantage and crash hard. These days, between work obligations, family obligations, children, errands and chores, there is little time for naps and even a proper night’s sleep is often interrupted by the difficulties of Type-1 Diabetes or the pitter-patter of tiny feet, sneaking out of their bedrooms to pilfer snacks or retrieve their forbidden electronic devices. But I digress…
My point is, we rarely take the opportunity to appreciate the circumstance we’re in; usually preferring to yearn and wish for the circumstances that could be. But if I use my sleep scenario as an example, the issue is not wishing one could go back but rather examining one’s current state and contemplating what one might do to change it for the better. Want that afternoon nap on the weekends? There may be some compromise and negotiating to be done but it isn’t impossible. That’s where the concept of goals come in, after all.
As pack animals, humans will also yearn for what they see others possess. Whether it’s a bigger house, a fancy car or an apparent high-paying job that one may think is far better than their own, the acquisition of material possession and wealth is considered not only a societal norm in the Western world, but an expectation. But how better off are these folks who have everything you covet? Are they truly happier or well off? Or is there a storm brewing under the surface of their existence that you may not be seeing.
They say that money can’t buy happiness. I’ve heard and read that saying more times than I can possibly remember. This makes sense, since I was raised in a household where material possession and acquisition of wealth made way for our overall health. We spent so much time in hospitals and travelling to see specialists, all of our time, efforts and resources as a family went to that. In some ways, in many ways, we were better off as this meant that we learned to enjoy the simpler things in life. A quiet night’s sleep where neither child woke up dying. A warm afternoon of swimming in a local brook or river. It’s true what they say that some of the best things in life are free.
But although money can’t buy happiness, it can alleviate the pressures associated with everyday life that prevent said happiness. That’s the caveat that those who would spout that rhetoric seem to forget. But for the high-salary executive who makes a shit ton of money, the over-extended hours of work and time away from their families, coupled with the stress and burnout of the job, are just some of the negative aspects that they don’t display on their public face. This is why, while one may look at that executive and think they’ve totally got it made, their home and family life are in shambles BECAUSE of their success, instead of being aided by it. As with all other things in life, there must be a balance…
So, what’s the point of all of this? I’ve thrown out a lot of words and used a few sayings and have made a few solid points but the ultimate one for today is that one should be happy with what they’ve got and stop wanting everything they see elsewhere; whether it’s in someone else’s possession or not. Make your goals, work towards your dreams but always remember that the here and now likely isn’t anywhere near as bad as you feel it is because you haven’t reached those goals yet. Money truly doesn’t buy happiness. And even if the grass happens to be greener on the other side, it didn’t get that way on its own. And it usually harbours the same bugs as your own grass does. Food for thought… ☯️
One of the questions I’ve often been asked, especially when speaking with other prospective martial artists, is which technique I feel is the best in an actual fight situation. This is a loaded question and one that is almost impossible to answer. The reason for that is that most traditional martial arts have enough techniques to make choosing only one seem a bit like trying to identify one’s favourite drop of water in a lake. It’s all water, it all gets you wet… Choosing one makes very little difference. The same can be said of a martial arts technique. Every technique has its use, its place and its function. Each also has its own set of advantages and disadvantages that people don’t necessarily consider when using them, which is a bit of what I’m going to try and touch on within this post.
If you would have asked me twenty years ago, I likely would have said that the roundhouse kick was my favourite technique. It had reach, it had flexibility in its application and could be applied to anywhere along the vertical axis of an opponent’s body. It also had the look of karate; meaning that one could almost channel their inner Van Damme while performing it, without having to completely leave the ground. However, as the years have dragged on and one’s flexibility and reach diminishes with time, delivering an effective roundhouse kick becomes less and less possible. Although a solid roundhouse kick will provide an effective result when applied to the legs, I have a tendency to unfortunately pull more muscles than I strike these days, when using the roundhouse kick. It also doesn’t seem to have as much of a range as it used to, likely as a direct result of that lack of flexibility.
This can be said of most kicks, considering that as one gets older, muscle tissue has less flexibility and requires more time to stretch and warm up before explosive use. But in a real fight situation, there IS no time to warm up and stretch. The idea is meant to be that one should train and develop consistently in order to be able to rely on muscle memory in the event a technique needs to be used. But even consistent training will not keep up with the ravages of time and age. But enough about me being old. The reality is that I’ve never been a fan of kicking as a general rule. That likely sounds odd, coming from a karateka but the reality is that in a real fight, lifting your feet off the ground, even for a brief moment, can mean the difference between getting out of a sticky situation or finding yourself taken to the ground where your opponent may cause unexpected damage and injury. A bleak thought? You fuckin’ right it is! And accurate. We ain’t talking about a knitting circle, here…
My style has always focused on close in, small circle techniques that require your opponent to actually be within your reach. I’ve trained with other styles and I’m certain there’s value in it for them but I really don’t see the value in trying to cross half a room to deliver a punch. In my world, if you’re outside my reach, I’m outside your reach and there’s no reason to strike and/or block. To any practitioner of Uechi Ryu, this would make sense. When I see someone in a lowered leaning stance, stepping almost five feet forward, simply to throw a punch at an opponent who would no doubt see them coming, I cringe for the art! I’m sure there are technical practicalities to it, including flexibility and leg strength and a bunch of others. My point is that I’ve been trained that trying to strike an opponent that’s outside your reach is a waste of energy and potentially opens you up to being struck, yourself, which brings us to punches…
Punches in any variety are by far the techniques that I’ve worked the most with. In any variety or form, a punch is direct, effective, easier to aim and can deliver an impact to anywhere on an opponent’s body. Given the nature of one’s hands, you can deliver a punch with the front of the knuckles, back of the knuckles, ridge knuckles or even some limited jabbing strikes with the fingers, if you’re brave enough. Punching is the safest means to deliver a strike to an opponent who is in reach, while maintaining one’s balance and stability by leaving both feet on the ground. Not exactly the flashiest or movie-worthy of techniques, but certainly the best. Of course, as with all things in life, there is a negative to the positive and punching is no exception. The human hand contains more than two dozen bones…
When you consider all the metacarpals and phalanges in the human hand, punching poses a particular risk; a broken bone will incapacitate the hand and likely render it unusable for the remainder of the fight. It isn’t like in the movies where, after getting their hand broken, the protagonist continues to fight and even use the broken hand. Although this is cinematically fantastic, it isn’t very realistic. If you break your hand, you have a number of obstacles to deal with, if the fight hasn’t concluded. This includes debilitating pain and potentially shock. Fighting while in shock is nearly impossible, as the whole point is that your body is trying to conserve energy and blood flow as a result of an injury. So all those times you’ve seen an action hero punching someone repeatedly in the skull is highly unlikely, as well. Punching requires a certain level of precision that’s necessary to ensure that you don’t strike something hard that will damage your hand or break bones.
So, what’s the verdict on this? What do I believe to be the best technique to use in a real fight? All things being equal and if I’m being realistic, there is none. This is the big reason why it’s generally best suggested to NOT get into any fights to start with. That way, it’s a problem you don’t need to have. However, the reality of life is as such that you may not always have that choice. And if you’re backed into a corner and your only choice is to fight or be injured, only a proper combination of blocking and striking will prove effective and trying to get yourself out of that jam. You’ll likely get injured… Let’s be clear; being in a fight is harmful, whether you are delivering the strikes or are on the receiving end. The nature and severity of those injuries is what you need to consider. So, although you may train to fight, the most successful martial artist is the one who consistently sharpens their skills without ever having to use them. Food for thought… ☯️
The Blogging Buddhist 