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Have you reached a plateau in your Martial Arts training?

Friday, December 16th, 2011

Karate, Basingstoke, Martial Arts, giving up, beginners,Learning any Martial Art in Basingstoke, it doesn’t matter whether it’s hard martial art like Karate, Taekwondo, Kung Fu, Ju Jitsu or Judo, is difficult. Many people even say that learning a soft Martial Art such as  Tai Chi, Aikido, Pa-Kua or Hsing is even harder.

There is a typical scenario that happens with practitioners. When they start practicing, they know nothing, so progress can be made rapidly and new things are learnt almost constantly. The beginner tends to feel energised and is generally pleased with their progress.

As they consolidate these skills and hone, things become flatter in terms of the feeling of success and accomplishments. Many students become unhappy or disillusioned with their seeming lack of progress and quit their training. For those that stick through this phase the rewards when they come out of the plateau are great. It’s often like a light switch has been turned on and that persons skills  have been multiplied.

By the time a student gets closer to their coveted Black Belt, their Instructor is by now, pushing them much harder, both physically to perform their techniques and mentally to demonstrate their understanding of the art. Their skills are much greater, speed and power are really starting to come together and their understanding of the art is much greater.  However it’s generally one of the most dangerous phases, because many people lose heart and the will to persevere and give up, when their goal is so close.

All of us who have reached their Black Belt have experienced these plateau in our own training and if we are honest, we still experience them as Black Belts. Personally speaking I’ve had times when I’ve felt like I’ve regressed in terms of skill and ability. When I was a 2nd Dan, I went through 12 months of everyone in the Dojo from Yellow Belt upto Black Belts being faster than me, stronger, more skilful and basically able to beat me every time I fought them, and beat me convincingly. One day at training it all fell into place and the  old me was back. Actually that wasn’t quite true, it was the new highly improved me and I could do it again, only better than before. I reflected long and hard about that experience and my conclusion was that my belief in training had handsomely paid off and the will not to give up had proven itself invaluable.

So next time you go through that feeling that you aren’t getting anywhere. Dig deep and keep training and learn from the experience to make yourself a better Martial Artist.

On the other hand when the going starts to get tougher, you could always just give in to that little voice and give it all up. Just remember though that little voice will years later say “If only I’d………………………..”

You can be a Black Belt or lazy. You can’t be both.

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Unsung heroes – Caroline Halil secures a team of 75 at Race for Life

Tuesday, May 24th, 2011

Caroline Halil is a great friend, a super mum, a fantastic Bodycombat coach and moreover an inspiration to all of us. Every day you meet her, you can’t help but become affected by her vivaciousness and bubbling personality. In Caroline’s case it really is true that great things come (as she would put) in wee packages.

This is the story of how one woman from Basingstoke can help to make a difference.

Caroline, simply THANK YOU. x 

 

Bodycombat, les mills, bts, race for life basingstoke, fitness classes, cancer researchA Sherborne St John woman, who was told she wouldn’t be able to have children after battling cancer as a child, has amazed doctors by having four.

Now Caroline, who had to fight for life through emergency surgery for a very rare form of cancer, is the proud mother of Rebecca, 12, Lewis, 7, Reiss, 6 and Samuel, 3.

She says: ““I am very lucky to be here and I want to share my story to give others hope”.

Caroline’s inspirational story has already prompted over seventy women and young girls at the Shin Gi Tai Martial Arts Academy at Basingstoke – where she teaches – to get behind her for this year’s Tesco and Cancer Research UK Race for Life.

She is hoping others will join up for the event at Down Grange Sports Complex at 11.00am on Sunday 26th June to raise money for vital research which is helping more people like Caroline to not only survive cancer, but go on to lead normal lives.

Caroline, who is now 38, was diagnosed with cancer in her kidney on her 10th birthday. She was living in Edinburgh at the time and she had been ill for around two years.

She said: “I had been suffering horrific stomach and back ache but nobody knew what was wrong. I had a hugely bloated stomach and I was eventually taken to hospital where I was immediately sent for emergency surgery to remove a tumour and one of my kidneys.  

At one points her parents were told there was only a 50-50 per cent chance of her surviving the nine-hour operation.

 

However, the cancer had spread and Caroline then faced two years of intensive chemotherapy and radiotherapy. She was told having the treatment as she approached puberty would prevent her from having children.

She said: “It took me months to recover and losing all my hair at that age was a horrific experience. I was told exploratory tests had confirmed I would never be able to have children”.

Caroline and her husband, Spencer, 40, accepted they couldn’t have children when they got married and were therefore stunned when her first pregnancy was discovered when she was in hospital being treated for something totally unrelated.

“A check-up found I was three-months pregnant with Rebecca. I was advised for my own health not to continue with the pregnancy, but I decided to take the chance. It was a complicated pregnancy, but we both survived”.

Her fourth pregnancy was also discovered during an unrelated hospital check-up, although the pregnancy itself was relatively straight forward.

“I am currently very well and feel very lucky that we have proved everyone wrong who said I couldn’t have children”.   

Caroline has been an active fundraiser and has raised several thousands of pounds for a variety of charities since she was a child.

“I have taken part in Race for Life with Rebecca for several years but wondered if I could encourage some members of the martial arts club to join us this year”.

Seventy-five women and young girls from the club’s 400 members have joined the team in support of Caroline **.

Lea Blake, the Basingstoke Race for Life organiser, said: “We are very grateful to the ladies from the Shin Gi Tai Martial Arts Academy for making up such an impressive team.

“However, this year recruitment for the Basingstoke event is significantly lower than anticipated. With just 7 weeks to go, over 1500 women have already entered but there are still 2583 places to fill.

“Some women think they won’t be able to complete the course but in face most are able to walk 5k in an hour. In that same amount of time around five people will be diagnosed with cancer in the South.*

“If fewer women take part there will be less money to fund research, which in turn means fewer lives saved in the future”.

Women in the South can enter Tesco and Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life at www.raceforlife.org or by calling 0871 641 1111.

For media enquiries please call Helen Johnstone of Cancer Research on 07768 987 925

Ends

 

* All cancers (excluding non-melanoma skin cancer) diagnosed from 2005-2007 in the South East Government Office Region.

 

** To find out more about the Shin Gi Tai martial Arts Academy please go to: www.basingstokekarate.com or telephone 01256 364104

 

About Race for Life

 

  • Tesco and Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life 2011 is the UK’s largest women-only fundraising event series with over 300 events around the UK from May to the end of July.
  • Women of all ages, abilities, shapes and sizes from all over the UK join together to walk, jog or run 5k to raise money to help beat cancer.  
  • 2011 is a very ambitious year for Tesco and Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life.  The goal is to raise £80 million to fund Cancer Research UK’s life-saving research. 
  • In 2011, women will have the opportunity to take part in the traditional 5k or opt for a10k route, without having to pay an additional entry fee, at 42 venues across the UK.
  • Race for Life started as one event in 1994 at Battersea Park with 680 participants.  In 2011 it is celebrating its 17th birthday.
  • Since it started, an incredible 5.4 million participants across the UK have raised over £362 million to fund Cancer Research UK’s vital work.
  • Entry fee is £14.99 to cover the costs of staging the event series.  All money raised in sponsorship will go directly to our work to help beat cancer.

 

About Cancer Research UK

 

  • Cancer Research UK is the world’s leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research
  • The charity’s groundbreaking work into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer has helped save millions of lives.  This work is funded entirely by the public.
  • Cancer Research UK has been at the heart of the progress that has already seen survival rates double in the last forty years.
  • Cancer Research UK supports research into all aspects of cancer through the work of over 4,000 scientists, doctors and nurses.
  • Together with its partners and supporters, Cancer Research UK’s vision is to beat cancer.

 

For further information about Cancer Research UK’s work or to find out how to support the charity, please call 020 3469 6699 or visit www.cancerresearchuk.org

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I CAN’T DO IT!

Sunday, March 20th, 2011

How many times do we hear……….. “I can’t do it”… “It’s too difficult / impossible”… “I’ll never”… “why can she / he do it”… “It’s not fair”…………. As adults we all recognise these phrases, often coming from (disgruntled) workplace colleagues unhappy with their lot in life. Usually the culprits are ‘the worker bees’ rather than from those in a managerial position.

Green eyed monsters are everyone. The people who won’t put in enough effort to improve their skills and worth to their employers or those that think society owes them a living and a decent one at that.  Martial Arts practitioners are sadly often exactly the same.

Most practitioners of Martial Arts find learning their art challenging, regardless of whether they are learning Karate, Taekwondo, Kung Fu or Kickboxing for example. It’s not meant to be easy to learn the techniques in any depth, yes there are some shortcuts, namely having an experienced teacher and training properly and consistently, but the biggest shortcut of all…. Don’t ever give up trying to be the best you can be.

We probably need to take a step back into our childhood to find the origins of the mentality “I can’t do it.” Usually the adult is telling the child “You can’t do that” this is further reinforced at school with the teachers telling the kids “You can’t do that.”  So by the time the poor youngster is a teenager, they have been brainwashed into thinking “I can’t / won’t be able to do that” So by the time we become adults, the vast majority of us will follow the herd and also “Won’t be able to do that.”

There are a small number of people who break this conditioning. They are the people that see opportunities that others do not AND then through self-belief, commitment, determination and sheer hard work deliver the opportunity, in business terms, they have a special title. They are called entrepreneurs. Have you heard of them, people like Bill Gates or Donald Trump or closer to home with Alan Sugar, James Dyson or Richard Branson. Each and every-one an entrepreneur who fought and overcame adversity to become successful and then once successful through their own self-belief, drive and hard work, stay successful.  

 Positive Mental Attitude, Self Confidence, Self visualisation

So we should act in our Martial Arts practice. Rather than focussing on the problem or what we can’t do, focus on the solution to overcome the problem and keep working on it until we achieve the results that we deserve.   All the time we need to continue to foster a mental ‘can do’ attitude by visualising ourselves performing that perfect technique, each and everytime we do the move. Imagery of ourselves in a positive light can make a real difference to what we achieve, if we use it as a tool, both frequently and persistently.

Think about the little Pussy cat looking at itself in the manner, it sees a magnificent Lion. Do you?

The only time you fail is when you give up trying.

Written by Bryan Andrews

19th March 2011. 

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