Flat back

A flat back... I have one.

At this year's successful seminar series, in which I was glad to participate in two tour stops, it was made literally painfully clear to me that I have an overly flat upper back, and that I am to work hard to correct this issue.

Working, working out, and training -- Exercises aren't created equally

Since it seems that I've had a bajillion things to do around the yard this summer, mostly involving a fair amount of physical labor, I've had some time to reflect upon how working, meaning hard, physical labor, working out, as in the gym, and training are similar and yet different. As it is easy to get caught up in substituting labor or a workout for training, particularly since both make you feel like you've accomplished something physical and eat into your training time and energy, I thought it might be worth putting something down about some of the differences, at least in my understanding.

An hour a day... Turning training tips for beginners: Getting your time up

Turning practice is difficult, and to follow Yin Style Baguazhang's demanding schedule for maximum development, it is a goal of all serious Yin Style practitioners to turn for an hour a day on every day that their schedule permits (particularly if there's a seminar or intensive coming up!). If you've ever turned, particularly the way we turn in Yin Style, then you know that an hour is a long time to turn.

Fall tour prep training

My training, usually pretty good, is up. I'm almost always sore, sleeping like a (very uncomfortably hot) log, and evidently rather dehydrated (proved by unquenchable thirst and my first calf cramp in my sleep in over a year). I'm training like a fiend, or at least like how I figure a fiend would train, because of the upcoming fall tour, the Knoxville, TN, stop in particular.

Yin Style Baguazhang International returns to Knoxville, TN, in Fall 2010

Undeniably, it has been a long time since I've posted anything on here, and what better reason to take up the charge of writing on this blog again than to announce this year's Yin Style Baguazhang International Fall Tour, including its Knoxville, TN, stop. This year's tour promises to be even better than ever, repeating much of the same in the way of organization as last year, this time with all-new material. If you want to read the announcement from last year's Yin Style Bagua Knoxville tour stop, click here.

New Yin Style Baguazhang links on my blog! Oh, and awesome tips to gauge your progress in a martial art like Yin Style Baguazhang

So I did a little hunting around and decided to add some links to my link list since the world of Yin Style Baguazhang is growing steadily, and my blog should probably reflect that.

I just can't get into MMA but keep feeling like I should... wtf?

I feel like I should be into MMA (mixed martial arts). After all, I fit the demographics pretty well, and worse, I feel tremendous passive social pressure to be into it.

Tip to get better at martial arts -- stop thinking you're good and train

I had a bit of an epiphany while I was driving today, hopefully to further my career (rather to start one?) -- the key to getting good at the martial arts is leaving room to get better, and that starts with realizing that you're not good yet, no matter how good you are.

On training Yin Style, to paraphrase Laozi

To paraphrase Laozi, here is a comment on training Yin Style Baguazhang:

Saluting Stockholm

I've seen the pictures on Facebook:YSB now, Stockholm... and while I can tell you with certainty that I'm not busting it like MB's busting you, I am saluting you in my own small way.