Weight, Weight, Don't Tell Me

"Have you lost some weight?" It's a question I've been hearing a lot lately. And while that question is usually meant as a compliment (as in, "Hey, you look great! Have you lost some weight?"), that's not so in my case. I have lost weight. My wife has noticed. My parents have noticed. (Actually, I think they're a little concerned.) My boss at work has noticed. And in a recent Skype call with Coach Tom, the first words out of Coach's mouth were, "Geez, looks like you've lost a few pounds."

I've noticed, too: I'm swimming in shirts that used to fit perfectly. In training, I feel lost inside my gi. I'm using the next-tightest hole on my belt to keep my pants up. Folks, for me, these are not good things.

Not my waistline! :)

I usually hover around 186 lbs. This is a good weight for me based on my fitness goals and the demands of my practice. I'm no bodybuilder, but I carry a little more muscle than the average person as the result of the weight training that I do. I didn't need to lose any weight at all. In fact, In the beginning of this year, in an earlier blog, I noted that I weighed in at 187.4 pounds — with the specific goal of gaining a few pounds in lean, functional muscle during the course of 2011. Reaching 195 lbs by the end of the year, I thought, would be terrific.

Well, it appears that a lengthy personal illness at the start of the year, plus a ton stress, aggressive physical training, a profound lack of sleep, and a combination of missed, skipped, and interrupted meals is really taking its toll on me: I'm running on empty, it seems. I just weighed in at 179.6 lbs — Yikes! I've lost almost eight pounds!

I haven't been under 180 lbs since 1998. Back in my U.S.M.C, days, when I used to hover at about 176 lbs, I ran 3 - 5 miles 3 - 5 days a week, with little to no strength training beyond basic calisthenics. So being about 10 lbs lighter back then made a lot of sense. These days, I'm not exactly as gaunt as a marathon runner, but I'm clearly heading in the wrong direction!

I need more rest, less stress, better eating, and smarter training. It's time to right the ship (before I disappear!).

Some Stuff I've Learned in the Last Few Weeks

Some really cool stuff I've learned in the last few weeks (and you thought I was just a kurotty teacher):

From The Go-Giver:

The Law of Value: Your true worth is determined by how much more you give in value than you take in payment.

The Law of Compensation: Your income id determined by how many people you serve and how well you serve them.
The Law of Influence: Your influence is determined by how abundantly you place other people's interests first.
The Law of Authenticity: The most valuable gift you have to offer is yourself.
The Law of Receptivity: The key to effective giving is to stay open to receiving.

From The Instant Millionaire:  

• If you want to succeed in life, you have to make sure you have no choice in the matter.
• True genius lies in simplicity.
• Life give us exactly what we ask from it -- if you don't ask for anything, you won't get anything.
• All events in life are a mirror image of your thoughts.
• Expand your mental limits and you will expand the limits of your life.
• When imagination and logic are in conflict with each other, imagination invariably takes over.
• I refuse to die without having had the courage to do what I wanted to do.
• Tranquility is the greatest manifestation of power.
• You must find work that is satisfying to your heart.

Okay, I've just summarized and gift-wrapped a LOT of distilled wisdom that was hard-won by other people, over many lifetimes. What are YOU going to do with this gift?

 

 

 



Keeping Up A Pretty Good Pace

So far this year, I've been keeping up a pretty good pace when it comes to my physical training. I'm feeling good -- and sleeping better, too! Our dojo just completed week four of our annual six-week fitness cycle, wherein we focus on bodyweight exercises, calisthenics, ab work, and aerobics. Each week, we either add exercises, increase repetitions, or lengthen the duration of the training, so that by the time we get through the end of week six, we're all in pretty good shape. The coming week will be a tough jump, but I'm ready: I've been getting in some extra training with weights and extra kata reps here and there.

I'm slowly working through my reading list and taking in all kinds of new and interesting information. One of my students pointed me to the free "peace ambassador certification course" on the Monks Without Borders website, which I completed a week or so ago. The peace education material is so wonderful, that I've decided to make completing the course a requirement for all of my adult students advancing to purple belt. At this stage in their training, I ask my students to complete self-directed work in peace education, nonviolent communication, anger management, and/or conflict resolution. The MWB course adresses all of these subjects and is a great launhing point for more study. And did I mention it's FREE? This course seems like a good warm-up for the more involved Peace Education course offered by Teachers Without Borders, which I'd like to tackle some time soon. One thing at a time!

I've started filming a series of videos for my students that I call "tokonoma-side chats." My original intent was to share these little clips only with my students at the dojo, but since I've not gotten any response or feedback from them, I've decided to share the video posts with anyone who will care to watch. I've had too many wonderful experiences in the martial arts to keep these stories to myself. Enjoy!

Training Good; Diet Bad!

I've really enjoyed my workouts over the past couple of weeks. We've been training really hard in the dojo — our annual "January fitness cycle" with its focus on exercising with ever-increasing intensity and duration over a 6-week period has got me feeling pretty good. I feel stronger and more alert, and I'm sleeping better, too. All good news.

And I've been doing additional physical training, too: I teach a "combat conditioning" class one night a week, and I fit in personal sessions wherever and whenever I can. I've been stretching, hitting the heavy bag, and doing my TACFIT Warrior bodyweight exercises. (I still really need to do some planning to maximize results.)

One thing that has been really slipping over the past week, however, has been my diet. My over-hectic schedule has led me to eat poorly, in a rush, and at odd times. There's been way too much pizza on my plate in the past week, and more than once I found myself eating in the car — a BIG no-no — just to make sure that I had enough calories in my system to keep myself from being ravenous. I have a general rule to not eat after 8:00 PM to allow my body to "rest, not digest" overnight, but more than a few times lately, I've sat down to dinner at 8:30. Even worse, I've found myself eating really late at night: after 10:00 PM upon returning home from the dojo.

This simply cannot stand. I KNOW better!

I've been reading the book Savor, by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr. Lilian Cheung. It's sitting here on my desk as I type this. Clearly, I need to do a better job of practicing the art of mindful eating. I went to the grocery store this week with the specific intent of grabbing some healthy, portable snacks — granola, fruit, nuts, etc. — to keep me from starving throughout the day. Just purchasing healthier food and re-establishing my mindfulness around what I put into my body really changed my attitude.

2011: Two Weeks Down, 50 To Go

Time flies, whether you're having fun or not. Sheesh, where did the time go? I shot the video that's embedded below about a week ago, and it's taken me this long to get it off my camera. I've got lot's of training and "inner work" ahead this year. I've been working with the TACFIT Warrior materials while also engaging in a lot of physical training at the dojo.



So far, it's been a little tough marrying the relentless TACFIT Warrior training schedule with my LIFE and my regular dojo workout routine, so I've got to do some planning and smart thinking so I don't over- or under train. We got over a foot of snow here in Boston yesterday, so the two hours or so of shovelling that I had to do counted as yesterday's workout. Now, I need to spend some dedicated time stretching and resting as well as working hard and sweating.

Last week, I was at 187.4 lbs, with a BMI of 24.8 (healthy). So, I shot these embarrasing photos so that come June (halfway mark) and December, I'll have something to compare:

2011 -- Week 1: When you're going through hell, keep going

The new year has been off to a bit of a rough start so far, but as the saying goes, "When you're going through hell, keep going."

I've been sick for the past couple of weeks (apparently the chronic lack of sleep has finally caught up with me), so it's been very difficult to train and the holidays were a little rough, but last night — my first night in a gi in a week and a half! — I taught three consecutive fitness classes as part of our dojo's annual 6-week fitness campaign. Lots of pushups and ab work. I'm pleased to report that today, I'm not feeling the after-effects too badly! Tonight, I'm running a "combat conditioning" class at the dojo — now, that should be fun!

I'm anxious to get moving on my commitment to use the TACFIT Warrior program as my primary fitness and goal-achieving platform this year. I earned myself a 3rd place in Scott Sonnon's video challenge with this entry, which earned me a refund of the purchase price of the program. I re-invested part of the refund in a new digital watch with an interval timer so I can more precisely execute my tabata sessions without needing to look up at a clock. Look for more TACFIT updates from me soon!

Outside of training, I've added to the series of videos on bullying prevention that I've committed to producing throughout the year to benefit the community with a review of Terrence Webster Doyle's "Why Is Everybody Always Picking On Me?" I posted the video on Boston Self-Defense, the community self-defense resource guide I created, and I'll be sending a link to the video to the local school principals. I also created a new series of videos that I'm calling "tokonoma-side chats." These videos will be for dojo members only, but you can see the intro segment here.

One of the main things I'd like to accomplish in the coming year is to be more mindful, and to keep myself more focused on truly experiencing the present moment. On my current personal development reading list: Savor, Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr. Lilian Cheung and The Soul of Leadership by Deepak Chopra.

We've had a wee bit of "family drama" in the past month, so I've got some relationships in need of mending. But that is the work, no?

Looking forward to it all.

Reflection: On Setting Big, Audacious, Public Goals -- And Then Failing Miserably at Acheiving Them

It's mid-November. We're in the home stretch of 2010 and heading at a break-neck pace toward the end of the year. For me, Thanksgiving usually marks the time of the year when I look back at the annual goals that I set for myself and the dojo, to check in and see how I/we have done.

Last December, I posted this blog and video, stating publicly that it was my bold intention to make Emerald Necklace Martial Arts the most well-known, well-respected, most influential community-service-oriented dojo in the city of Boston. No easy task to be sure, but I was determined and energized, and I was confident that with just a little help, I'd make the goal a reality.

So here we are, 11 months later, and I've got a mixed bag of a progress report. How to measure success here?

First, I ask, how strongly did I/we serve? In the past 11 months, our dojo has done a lot for others in need: We successfully raised more than $5,000 for the victims of the Haiti earthquake; We cleaned up the neighborhood around the dojo and planted flowers in the local green space; We launched a free community safety, self-defense, and bullying prevention resource website; We created a peace garden for the community with stones that were decorated by our members and local school children; We helped raise funds to fight blindness; And as the year comes to a close, we're making and collecting knitted gloves hats and scarves for Boston-area children in need, collecting toys for kids for the holidays, and we have a blood marrow donor registration drive in the works. Phew!

Second, I ask, how hard did I/we train? Well, I've gotten myself in outstanding shape over the past year. Gotta lead by example, right? This year, I took and passed my examination for 4th dan (fourth degree black belt), and five of my students passed their shodan (first degree back belt) tests, too. We train hard, and we are improving every day. We are a tough (but tastefully refined!) group of souls.

Third, whom did I/we influence? Well, I like to think that I'm having a significant positive influence on the students who train at the dojo. You'll have to ask them how I'm doing in that regard. As for teaching outside of the regular classes at the dojo, I personally taught character-based martial arts classes and anti-bullying classes in local elementary schools, led classes for blind and visually-impaired children at the Carroll Center for the Blind, and I served as the karate instructor at the Boston Martial Arts Academy.

Third: Who did I/we meet and connect with? This year, I chronicled my diet, shared my thoughts on healthy eating with the entire community, and featured my visits to the local farmers market; We met, trained with, and interviewed notable instructor and author, Rory Miller, and I've also interacted with authors Azby Brown (environmentalism) and Paul Chappel (peace education); We studied meditation with meditation instructor and martial artist, Richard Hubbard.


Fourth: Who noticed me/us? In the past year, the dojo has been featured in the Boston Globe, the Allston-Brighton Tab, and the Boston Bulletin. Video clips of the dojo have been featured on television. More exposure before the end of the year is on-tap through Boston Community Cable, and even possibly in the Improper Bostonian. We are in the public eye.

At least I think we are.

Yet for all the good that we've done, all the things we have accomplished, all the wonderful people we've met, and all the press we have gotten, I have to say today, November 18, that the year 2010 has been a HORRIFIC FAILURE. Because in my blog last December, I said that I would measure my/our success not only by our accomplishments as a dojo, but by our growth in membership and headcount.

So here we are. Year over year, we have NOT grown as a dojo. Many of the faces have changed, but we have not really added to our numbers in a meaningful way. We've done a lot, yes, but we have not gotten any bigger. And because we have not grown, every month it is a struggle to pay the rent and keep the lights on. The sad-but-true fact is that I've renegotiated our lease TWICE with our super-generous landlord.



And so today I check the FAIL box.

I can honestly say I'm doing everything that I can, but it's not enough. We may indeed be the most well-known, well-respected, most influential community-service-oriented dojo in the city of Boston, but if we can't pay the rent, we can't continue the MISSION — to increase the quality of life of our members and clients by teaching personal safety skills, mind/body awareness, and the self-defense mindset that generates self-confidence and a greater sense of personal empowerment, well-being, and security.


The responsibility for this tremendous failure lies with me.
 
Perhaps 2011 will be a better year.

It really, really needs to be.