mindbody

No Can Do!

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 15:35:00 +0000

"Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are right."

This week I had a revelation about how often I tell myself I can't do something. It started in Martial Arts. Master Ali took us through a set of exercises ranging from practicing forms to dragging your training partner accross the room (very tiring). I did these as I ussually do with confidence that I could do things. In fact, I was already observing a certain level of judgement. For instance, I wa staking pride in remembering certain things, and getting rattled when I forgot.

Master Ali did an exercise where we held two sticks and banged them togeteher while the class practiced agility by stepping between the sticks. From the moment I saw the drill I was starting to dread it. I realized that before I tried the exercise I had convinced myslef that I couldn't do it. In fact, I couldn't. I jumped in and the sticks hit my foot. Two or thre times I tried to no avail.

But this time I realized why. I was telling myself I couldn't jump rope, that I had poor rythum, that I never did good at these things, and a thousand other things I had learned from failures since childhood.

So, I made a decision to just forget that bullshit and do it.

Now by the end of class I was not doing it as well as others, but I had managed to get seven repetitions out. With a little more practice I am sure I could have done it much better.

I was pretty sore after the workout so I decided to go for a nice easy Yoga workout. Mandy was teaching. I was pretty sore from the Tukong training so I decided to go and just kind of take it easy. A little Hatha would work the kinks out.

Mandy focused on backbends that day, and then went to full wheel. She heard my little snide snort when she said "

I was essentially doing it again. Telling myself I can't do it. I was sore, tired, and have never ever ever come even close to raisning my head in wheel.

This time was particularly bad because Mandy decided to work with me in front of the whole class. So imagine the forces at work in my mind:

I can't do this
my chest is tight
back bends just aren't my thing
I am already tired and don't want to do this
a classroom full of beautiful women is watching me try this, oh god I look ridiculous!

Three times I tired.

Three times Mandy pushed coached instructed discussed and told me what to do.

I didn't do it, and in fact, almost cranked my neck a couple of times.

So then we went off to practice with a partner and I was lucky enough to have another yoga teacher as my partner. At that moment I realized I had once again told myself that I couldn't do it.

So I made a point to push into it, and make sure I knew I was able to do it. I was able to push up into wheel and get my head off the ground for about five seconds. It was a breakthrough...first time in my life I could do it.

So today I learned that the secret to success is to catch yourself when you think you can't. Identify that dialogue and tell yourself you can.

It sounds easy, but believe me, it is very hard. Your mind is smart, and it will come up with all kinds of logical reasons why you can't do something. It will provide you with evidence based on past experiences. It will fill you with fear of injury, humiliation and failure.

Another thing. No matter how experienced you are in your practice, this will come back. I had a break through today, but in a week, or a day, or an hour later, the mind will once again place limits on what I can do. It demands constant attention.

10 Principles for Any technique

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 15:26:00 +0000

This is from one of Master Jay Davis' "nuggets" that he gives in classes at the Tukong Moosul Academy.

There are Ten Principles in any Martial Arts Technique

Breath

Keyap

Self Control

Space Control

Inner Control

Leverage

Anticipation

Timing

Balance

Speed

Nunchaku Law

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 15:50:00 +0000

We were in class on Saturday practicing nunchaku and began to wonder how the weapon was treated in the eyes of the law.
1. Texas Law - Does someone know the specifics of Texas law? I would think that nunchaku falls under Title 10 Chapter 46 of the Texas Penal Code. Nunchaku's seem to meet the definition of a club: http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/pe.toc.htm But that is just my best guess...I would consult a lawyer if a policeman tried to confiscate my nuncaku's. I know there was a great article on the laws of knives in one of our newsletters.
2. National Law - According to the Wikipedia:"Legality in the United States varies at state level, e.g., personal possession of nunchaku is illegal in New York, Arizona, California and Massachusetts, but in other states possession has not been criminalized. In New York, attorney Jim Maloney has brought a federal constitutional challenge to the statutes that criminalize simple in-home possession of nunchaku for peaceful use in martial-arts practice or legal home defense.[13] As of March 2009, the case was awaiting the filing of a petition for certiorari for review by the U.S. Supreme Court." [They are illegal in many parts of Europe.]
3. The Supreme Court Case (pending) - Jim Maloney's website is VERY good. He discusses the current case at:
http://homepages.nyu.edu/~jmm257/mvc.html
He also has a Blog called "Forbiden Sticks, a Four Century Blog Tour" - http://nunchakulaw.blogspot.com/
NPR had a great story on him as well. "Come on, they are just a couple of sticks with a string" was one of his defenses.
4. My experience - I was pulled over in Dallas and the officer saw my nunchaku's that I have had since my 12th birthday in the back of my hatchback. He tried to confiscate them, and I told him that I used them in martial arts practice and was on my way to class. He shrugged his shoulders, put them back in the trunk and proceedded to write me a ticket for expired tags. The point is that it is probably worth it to stand up for your rights if someone questions your martial arts weapon.
5. My Opinion - Using any weapon, including your pinkie finger, or even your words to threaten another is and should be illegal. However, laws specifically banning nunchaku's in a society where mass murderers go to gun shows and get weapons for their killing sprees is absurd. Our consititution specificallly protects us "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." I think our founding fathers would not pass a law banning nunchaku's and we should carry our nunchaku's with a peaceful mind and a strong heart.

Recovery from Mistakes

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 01:57:00 +0000

Living in the Moment

When you make a mistake don't hold on to it. Once I was practicing moving hard blocking, which is a series of seven sets of moves designed to move your body in unconventional ways. They are also sometimes refered to as "confusion forms". Even after practicing these forms for many years I still have days where I miss a move. I take an extra step, or miss a punch. It is like my mind plays tricks.

So on this day I tried to do moving hard blocking 1-7 and on the 3 series I made a mistake. Then the 4th, then the 5th, then the 6th. By the 7th series I was totally befuddled. One of the black belts said "don't let the mistake carry forward."

Master Ali has emphasized this before several promotion tests. He says, "If you make a mistake while testing either reset and say 'permission to do again', or carry on through."
"Don't stop and go ugh!" he usually mimics someone in a front stance shaking their head in frustration "no one wants to see that."

When you make a mistake, go to the next moment fresh and with an open mind. Live in that moment, don't waste a micro second on regret. This is particularly important if there are high stakes. In a combat situation regret and self examination will get you killed.

Learn from Mistakes

Even though you live in the moment, don't be accepting.

Grandmaster Yi saw the whole class was having a hard time with a sequence he was teaching. At the end of class he emphasized the need to learn from your mistakes. So while you shouldn't dwell on your mistakes, you should learn from them.

One thing he said that stuck in my mind was "don't smile when you make a mistake" . Smiling says it is ok, or that you are making the mistake, but don't care. Don't be accepting of mistakes.

Don't Understand, Do It

A few days ago we were working on an intense set of sparring moves, and I just wasn't doing it right.

Master Ali told me how to do it,
I missed the move.
He told me again
and I said,"Understood"
"Don't understand it" he replied,
"Do it"

Nothing could have summed it up better. It is not about dealing with mistakes, or fixing something wrong. It is about doing it right!

Don't understand....DO IT!

A momentary lapse

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 20:21:00 +0000

One of the great benefits of training in a mind-body system is that you learn to handle mistakes better than most people. This point was made by one of Shaival in a Tukong Moosul class. We practiced observation of the breath. This is an incredibly difficult exercise to do corretly.

Observation of Breath

In this exercise we observed our breath. This involves sitting still, closing your eyes and observing how your breath goes in and out accross your upper lip. It is not relaxing your breath and controlling it, nor counting slowly while you breath in and out. This is somewhat difficult, but much easier than simply observing your breath.

In my practice I find this a little disconcerting. If I ignore my breath it takes care of itself. But if I observe it, I need to focus on the in and out, controlling the length and depth of the breath.

Observing without interfering is disturbing to me. I feel the breath go out, and in that moment before it returns I jump in and tell my lungs to inhale. So far I have not been able to watch such a fundamental thing without letting the mind control it.

Martial Arts Application

In Martial Arts there are many tests. The tests may be for a promotion. You may be tested by tring to do something new or simply trying to do a form you have practiced for years. I have noticed that many people are unable to get past a mistake. They are worried about what people think, or concerned about how poorly they do, or how hard it is.

A good martial artist is unconcerned about the past or future. I once read something from Musashi that said a true warrior does not go into battle considering the outcome. If he considers the outcome he will surely fail. *

If, heaven forbid, you are ever in a conflict, the ability to live in the instant of conflict could save your life! Ideally you would never be hit by someone else. A good martial artist has the ability to spring to their feet after being knocked down and continue fighting as though nothing happend ---- of course, a master is never knocked down, but that is another subject.

Yoga Application

My inability to observe my breath is at the core of why Savasana is so hard for me. I will have to work on this.

*I read this and pondered it in Book of Rings. I have since been unable to find the exact quote. If someone can find it, please pass it along.

Application in Life

How powerful would every business dealing be if we live in the moment? If we were unconcerned about our promotion, lay offs, and how good we look to others we would be highly effective in all of our dealings.

Consider how many ventures have been cancelled because people were more concerned with the outcome of the undertaking. In your personal life I encourage you to take Musashi's advice, be a warrior who is unconcerned with the outcome.

Be a Mountain

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 16:53:00 +0000

I am exploring a common thread in all aspects of my life, and this aspect is being like a mountain.

Mind body exercises are great because every movement, every session can be a metaphor for your life.

Tukong

Master Ali asks me if I have any questions about the form I am working on. I reply that the main thing is I know there are things about my forms in general that I am unaware need fixing...this is code for tell me the one thing I need to work on in my practice.

Master Ali said that my motions were too tight and small. Tukong is a mountain form of martial arts. This means that movements are like climbing a mountain. Your motions should be big and definitive. While we learn other ways, we tend to practice in a big, solid way.

In contrast, there are times when you move in "beach" style. In this way your movements are small, and very close in. Picture walking up a mountain versuswalking in a big mushy beach with shifting sand.

I discussed when beach style was good versus mountain style. Master Ali showed me a few examples of each, but emphasized that my practice was too close. In fact, I had heard that from several black belts.

My Tukong movements were too constricted, too small.

Professional Development
Flash back to a couple of months ago. I had merged my Zero Waste Network with the UT Arlington Division for Enterprise Development. Our director was at a conference and wanted me to promote the Center for Environmental Excellence. I asked her to give me the vision.

She looked at me for a moment, and then said "you need to articulate the vision". This led to a discussion that basiclyamounted to my movements being small. I was looking at my small business unit, she wanted me to be looking, and assuming leadership for, the entire environmental program.

It was time to think big.

Inner Body Bright
Anyusara Yoga teachers frequently use the term "inner body bright". Inner body bright is very hard to explain, but easy to see, and with focus, easy to do.

Take a moment and stand with your arms at your side.

Now picture a giant power field eminating from your core, out through your limbs, into your head, glowing out around your body. If you watch, you will see that your body will seem to swell up from the inside. You wil look bigger.

So in Yoga the other day I set the intention of "being the mountain", which in my mind is pretty much "inner body bright". The teacher Sanieh, actually noticed that something was up, and made a point of letting me know.

Be a Mountain
Being a mountain gives you an enormous amount of personal power and influence. People take notice of you when you are in a room. Setting the intention of being the mountain immediately begins a change in:

your posture, which gets taller.

your breath, begins to expand becase your lungs have lots of room to take in air,

your eyes tend to sparkle a little, and you are looking around,and seeing a whole valley

you tend to move decisively

you speak with conviction,

But not all the time

So why aren't we always being a mountain? Well, as in Tukong and Yoga, the mountain is not alway the bset way to move. When the path is uncertain, or we need to let others stand tall it is good to use 'beach style".

In martial arts, you change your energy constantly to seek advantage. You may be able to tower like a giant even when your opponent is bigger than you. But if both of you are being a mountain, it may be good to turn into a tight little stream and cut them in half.

Note that in martial arts mountain style is used to control the space. So, if you want others to speak, act, or express themselves in any way,back your mountain down for a while.

In my personal life being a mountain can be inspirational, but in some situations it is intimidating. I noticed this first in a supermarket. People were saying "excuse me" and not walking past me even when there was a lot of physical space around me. I could be looking at something in an asle that could hold three of me. People would stop as though I were blocking the whole aisle.

The certainty of your speaking can mislead people, giving them the impression you know what you are talking about when you are guessing. A friend of mine got irritated in Korea because he thought I knew where I was. In my mind I was saying "I think it is over there". He heard "it IS over there".

If you have had a long and intensely high energy yoga practice. Make sure you take a moment to go inside. Bring your energy back into your core and let it cool. Ashtanga practice always ends with a series of tight postures. This prepares you for final relaxation, and lets you get the maximum health benefits.

Big and Small

Scholars of the ancient Chinese game of strategy, Wei Qi (Go), willl tell you that all strategy is about knowing when to make a big move and when to make a small move. If you never make a big move you will be "living small". You may survive, but youwill be unsatisfied. However, people who move big all the time will have massive losses.

When you are on uncertain ground, revert to beach style. For instance, in business make sure you understand a contract before you step out on the sand. Ask many questions, examine each step closely. Once you sign it, the ground is firm execute the strength of a mountain.

Animals Animals Everywhere

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 01:20:00 +0000

Lately I am realizing how deep my immersion in martial arts and yoga has become. One symptom is the way I talk to my teachers. Here are some typical questions:

is that a pigeon pose?
should I go to dragon stance?
kind of like a one legged dog?
should we turn the head of the snake upward?
cobra, sphinx or upward dog?
a drunken monkey?

I swear these are all legitimate questions which were asked in perfect seriousness and got detailed responses.

In martial arts and yoga many of the poses and postures are modeled after animals, and the animals We spent about ten minutes discussig how to use our hand like a snake after class. We looked at how to bend our hand around poles, and move our hands upward or sideways in a shimmering motion.

As we discussed this I began to wonder:

Is it possible to take the anology too far? Obviously we are not pigeons, camels dragons or tigers, so why should we study their motions?
Animals are adapted to move certain ways, but the same laws of physics apply to them, so if we move our hands like a snake we can take advantage of the unique coiling motion of a snake. If we think of a tiger we can make our hands into claws that tear. If we think of a dog stretching out, we can get that angle in our upper back that feels soooooo good.

So the next time you are doing Cat/Cow, king pigeon, or a drunken monkey, think about how the animals move. At the very least it will bring some art and fun to your practice.

Off the Mat...Public Speaking

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 22:11:00 +0000

One thing I have brought from yoga is a connection between my mind and my body. Your posture influences your mood, and vice versa.

Consider public speaking. It is one of the most stressfull situations people can have. People rank fear of public speaking above fear of death.

So what is happening as you sit in a chair, waiting to be introduced? Your legs are folded in an unnaturally chair constricted posture that let's your quads shrink, and even atrophy.

These are your fight or flight muscles. When an alligator leaps out of the water these muscles need to fire up and carry you off the field. So your body is telling your mind that you are not ready to move. Your mind, in turn is telling your body that you are about to enter a dangerous situation. It is a feedback loop. You are about to expose yourself with no ability to fight or fly!

The trick I learned at a recent speaking engagement was to loosen these up these tense muscles. You will be cool, calm and relaxed as you speak. Just sit a little forward on your chair, and bend your leg to the floor. The top of your body will be unchanged, so people watching you sit at a table will simply see your upper body and a smile on your face. Meanwhile your quads are loosening allowing you to relax and prepare for a stressful situation.

And...if your speech is not well recieved.

You will be able to fight or fly!

On and off the mat --- Relaxation Response

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 23:27:00 +0000

Today, I had a demonstration of something truly amazing. If you conquer your fears, and relax your anxiety, problems start to disapear!

Some may say this is mystical, but the explanation could be much more simple.

Case in point. On my way to a meeting today, and already running late.

RED LIGHT! At this point there is nothing to be done. Talk about pressure....I am sitting there, with a BIG ASS MEETING Coming up....SITTING IN THE CAR, WAITING ON A LIGHT!

Then I remembered the NPR show this morning. That if you elicited a relaxation response at a red light you could have a significant effect on your health.

Well, I was still pretty sure this light was going to make me late for the meeting, but at least I could arrive with low blood pressure, no rashes and not a trace of sweat (or other bodily fluids). So I

took a deep breath

The light changed, and I drove one block to anohter red light.

breath, calm

Three red lights later I was calm.

The funny thing. All those lights slowed me down less than ten minutes. I made the meeting, smelling and looking good, and a little early.

My Temper, My Quads

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 20:34:00 +0000

No doubt about it now, every time I get into a pose that stretches my quads I start to feel irritated. Liz was working on Hero pose (vira sana) and I was just getting more and more angry. It started with frustration (why cant I do this pose), then fear (is that my knee?) and ended with outright irritation (why in the HELL don't we do another pose....HERO AGAIN! C'MON LIZ, DO ANOTHER POSE

This by the way is a variation with the toes bent....(photo from Downward Blog)

I really wasn't being much of a hero.

So here is my conclusion.

1. I tend to sit in a pose, much like the one I am in now. Hips folded in an unnatural chair, psoas compressed, quadricepts tightening.

I do this all the time, and have done it for quite some time.

2. The hips are supposed to contain the fight or flight mechanism. Stetching that tight muscle releases aggression.

Liz mentioned that Hero pose does a really cool thing. It connects the heart to the core.

This got me thinking of a story Grandmaster Wonik Yi told us.

"There once was a region that the king wanted to collect taxes from, but the people were fearsome fighters. The king sent a general who had strength. One year later the people sent a basket to the king with the strong generals head in it.

So the king sent a general who was smart. For three years the rebellious region sent tribute. Then one year the tribute came with the smart generals head in it.

So the king sent a general with a strong heart. The next year, and forevermore the people of the region sent more tribute than was asked.

The moral is:
Strong body is weaker than strong mind
strong mind is weaker than strong heart."

So let's think about this hips to heart thing. What would a person who had mastered Hero Pose be like? The following is pure conjecture on my part, I could be completely wrong.

Mastering Hero's pose connects the heart to the core. Or the physical strenght to physical compassion.

If one could master this they would be powerful and loved for their power. They would have a lot of strength. Their strength would emenated from the Tan Tien (a.k.a. the root lock manipura). This area holds the power that is projected in martial arts moves.

If I can master this pose (and apply the principle at all times) I can be cool under pressure
I can avoid conflict out of compassion, but never from fear
When I do enter conflict I could do so without anger, maintaining my awareness, emotional stability and strenght all at once.

This is very exciting.

class attendance - Yoga Yoga, Repost from Myspace

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 00:48:00 +0000

I just figured out that I have access to my class attendance records at yogayoga

I took my first yoga class at Yoga Yoga with Kewal on March 7, 2006 at noon. Since then I have taken 345 classes, averaging 13.2 classes per month, or about every other day for two years. I tend to go every day, but have breaks when I travel.

My favorite class is by far Hatha (41%), I also took a lot of beginners Hatha (23%) and Hatha flow (20%). I went to Ashtanga about 7% of the time. If you don't know Ashtanga from hatha, here is a guide to the classes.

My most frequently attended teachers kind of suprised me. I really take advantage of the diversity of teachers at yoga yoga. I have taken a lot of teachers for two or three classes. Over 30% of my attendance was to a teacher I only took a few times. The number of times I went to a teacher doesn't relate closely to how much I learned or enjoyed the class.

I know I ussually pick a class because of the time, type of class, my schedule, how sore I am from other exercise and my level of energy. Teacher is about the third thing I look at. Nevertheless, some teachers consistently rose to the top and that isn't coinciedence. These teachers shaped my practice and taught me a lot.

My top teachers were:

Mandy 12%

Liz B and Sapphire with 8%

Gundega, Larrisa, Pamela B. and Chuck (5%)

I think Mandy is on top as much because of her regularity, and the amount of time she has been teaching as any other reason. Mandy is a great teacher, has taught for the past two years and teaches a lot different time slots. In contrast, Gundega who I have recently been going to has only had a few classes for about a year. Liz B. has had extended absences but would probably be the teacher who has the deepest effect on my practice.

I took classes through two marathons, countless martial arts classes, injury, sickness, S T R E S S and MORE STRESS, I even found it comforting the day my dog died.

I still can't do a headstand, full wheel (for very long), stick my toes up my nose and kiss my ass, but I think I am getting stronger and more flexible every week. I have learned to look deep in my body, align my muscles, heal sore achy muscles. In combination with martial arts I have increased my ability to balance immensely. I can relax under extraordinary circumstances, and deal with my emotions much better than before. On a more mystical level I can feel the flow of Prana (also known as "Chi", or "Ki").

I am very glad to have incorporated yoga into my life, and highly recomend Yoga Yoga to anyone in Austin.

Appropriate Use of Force

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 00:33:00 +0000

For the past two days we have been reviewing a series of joint locking techniques. These techniques consist of trapping some part of the body, like the elbow, shoulder, wrist or thumb. When you feel these techniques even lightly applied your knees turn to jello. If force is applied to that one small part of the body the whole body just melts, and in that moment you can lead your opponent wherever you want.

The key is learning how to apply that force at just the right angle with perfect timing. I was practicing one today and I went left instead of right; I noted this worked fine since I still controlled the person and my elbow was in a perfect position for a strike. Shaval (the instructor) however was not going to let me off that easy; he noted that from the position we started I had a number of strikes available to me.

"If someone grabs you with both hands" he said "I am grateful because both my hands are free to strike his face
groin
elbows"
with each word he showed a strike.

"The point is not to break our friends nose here, but to control them"

hmmmm...

A true martial artist has a large arsenal at his disposal for any situation. He can launch a debilitating kick, or simply escape the grasp. In this case we apply pressure to a tiny joint and basically arrest their movement. This is the essence of martial arts.

We are not street fighters who simply seek to win a conflict. We are artists who turn conflict into art; the ideal outcome could be no conflict at all.

If someone grabs you what is the best response?
Talk?
Escape their grasp?
Strike the arm so they release and think twice?
Lock their weak joints and bring them to the ground?
Strike them so hard that they are permenantly injured?

A fighter always goes to the last option, they seek to fight and win. The artists will instantly apply the correct response.

This is why we must train our philosophy and hearts as much as our body. If we only go around hitting people at every conflict then you are probably going to eventually wind up in jail or the hospital; not to mention unnecessary pain you inflict on others. Yet only with a lack of fear and complete awareness can we react with the correct response.

We must use our art to get the desired outcome. Applying a small amount of force to a weak point.

Introducing....The Psoas

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 06:30:00 +0000

The purpose of the psoas is to lift the leg to the body, or move the body towards the leg. Both functions were adequately explored in the last two Anyusara Hatha Yoga classes I took.

This muscle tends to tighten and shorten in long periods of sitting. I have come to believe that this tightening leads to a feeling of stress and anxiety.

Releasing this muscle can greatly lower you stress.

Strengthening and increasing it's flexibility has some rather obvious advantages for martial artists. Most notably getting into a front stance, or long stance (ap kubi).

Three moves in a form

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 03:34:00 +0000

Master Ali helped us with forms. I can tell I am improving because this time he waited until the first move to offer correction. The last time he started at "ready position". The higher your rank the more exacting the instruction becomes. There is no end to the detail.

Headstands

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 03:33:00 +0000

Liz worked on headstands last night. I am getting there, I can almost kick-up without assistance. I can't tell if it is that I lack the strength to get my legs (and ass) up or if I need to overcome fear of tipping over. I do know that I can hover tentatively for a moment before clunking back to the ground.

Letting Go

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 21:49:00 +0000

One of my current philosophical challenges is to maintain my desire and drive without getting attached to something.

Does that make sense to anyone else?

Two Steps Back, better than One Step Forward

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 21:15:00 +0000

There is an old saying:
"It is better to become the passive
in order to see what will happen.
It is better to retreat a foot
than to advance only an inch."

This is called
being flexible while advancing,
pushing back without using force,
and destroying the enemy without engaging him.

There is no greater disaster
than underestimating your enemy.
Underestimating your enemy
means loosing your greatest assets.
When equal forces meet in battle,
victory will go to the one
that enters with the greatest sorrow.

- Tao Te Ching Chapter 69

At the end of Tukong Moosul today Master Ali said that the school used to recite a saying at the end of every class.

"It is better to take two steps back than one forward".

He said that the obvious intention of this was if someone wanted a fight it is better to step back, rather than rush in.

Martial Application

Other classes have emphasized how to keep your guard up, while appearing passive. It is very funny to see my fellow Tukong students in some of these postures as they talk to each other. I was in a coffee shop talking to one of the black belts and he dropped into one of these stances. I adopted the same posture and we had a little private laugh. To the outside observer it looked like we were just standing there yacking.

These postures are good for "two steps back". I had a friend who worked in psychotic wards and he learned how to stand in a calm posture that would allow him to talk to psychotic patients; it was the same thing, the posture allowed him to block and avoid a number of attacks without seeming confrontational.

My Experience

So far I have never had to use my Martial Arts to hurt someone. It is an opportunity I hope I never have; but prepare for every day.

However, I have had a number of people confront me in threatening ways. I have found that my attitude and demeaner often defuse a situation. I simply look the person directly in the eyes, without tensing the muscles, calmly, and without fear. Very few hotheads will go off on you if you adopt this demeaner.

It is not easy to take two steps back. Once an angry guy cussed me out in Best Buy for no reason other than I was standing in the aisle looking at something. "Get your ass out of the way!" he shouted.

I turned and looked at him.

"You better get your ass out of the WAY!"

I stared at him.

"y' you shouldn't stand there"

and he walked off.

Part of me was afraid; he was a big guy
another part enraged; I could have hurt him

But mostly I was proud to have stood up to his threats, making violence uneccesary. If I had backed down I would have felt weak, defeated, and probably would allow myself to be bullied in other less threatening situations. Further, the thug would have been more likely to threaten others and may have wound up doing something stupid. But if I had fought him, what would I have gained?

In the words of General Tzu

" Move not unless you see an advantage; use not your
troops unless there is something to be gained; fight not unless
the position is critical."

Dinosaur Tail

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 02:19:00 +0000

Sometimes the practice of a mind body exercise elicits humor. I particuarly find myself laughing in hatha yoga classes.

Take last week when Rebecca was teaching a hatha beginners class. We were doing a pose called cat/cow, and she wanted us to loosen up our hips. Her instruction was

"imagine you have a great big dinosaur tail behind you" she continued to say "now wag your tail back and forth, but not fast, smoothly, remember it is a dinoaur tail"

I started guffawing. The thought of everyone in that class having a dinosaur tail. I saw great big brontosaurus tails sticking out. Then my mind went through a series of images:

women worrying that their dinosaur tails were too big

J Lo and Beyonce got some good dinosaur tails

It would be so nice to have a dinosaur tail when standing, you could sit back on it.

it would be really cool in sparring and wrestling adding a whole new limb to your body

Let's see, in downward dog it would point out at a 45 degree angle, in half moon it would go straight up, in tree it would wrap arount you, full wheel would be interesting

It just went on and on. In fact, I walked around the rest of the day with a big dinosaur tail.

About Mind and Body

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 00:08:00 +0000

This is a blog for exploring martial arts and yoga. I plan to fill this blog with insights of my mind that are gained through the physical practice of Tookung Moosul and Yoga.

Red Belt Test

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 02:11:00 +0000

After a year without testing I decided I was ready to retire my blue belt and go for promotion. Grandmaster Wonik Yi administered the test. A few days before testing he told us that he had meditated and decided to make the testing more challenging. He felt the tests had been getting informal and that he wanted to move back to traditional testing.
For the next two days we heard that an "interesting" test was coming. On the day of the test I knew we were in trouble. We were asked about injuries and encouraged to quit if we had health problems.
Our tests have about 7 judges which consist of some of our most advanced practitioners.
I don't htink it is right to go into details, but I can tell you the test encompassed a broad range of skills. The test was very challenging...physically and mentally. It lasted 2 1/2 hours! Two days later I am still sore.
However I am glad to have passed this test. Testing is a good way to learn control, even in unpredictable and challenging situations. This last round has inspired me to practice harder, and work on my conditioning. Need to start running again.

Take a Deep Breath

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Mon, 21 May 2007 01:19:00 +0000

I was in the elevator, and as I frequently do I took a deep inhale and let it out. A woman goes, "Yeah, life is hard!"
I realized that people think we should only let out a big long relaxing exhale if we are having troubles, or are frustrated.
I remembered being in a long meeting and I took a deep breath and exhaled to give me some energy. The boss glared at me, thinking I was making a statement.
But a deep breath is a treat, we can take it anytime, anywhere. It is natural and relaxing. Don't wait until you are tense, tired or frustrated to use a deep breath. Find little times in your day to take a deep breath.
- in the car just before you start it
- at a long stoplight
- while your computer is booting up
- before you go to sleep
- before you lift something...even something light
Take a deep breath
N O W

300 Days of Yoga

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Mon, 07 May 2007 01:23:00 +0000

It has been one year since I joined YogaYoga. Considering days off, travel and a few days of laziness I estimate that last year I practiced 300 days or approximately 400-500 hours of yoga last year.
I still can't put one foot in my ear while standing on the other and wrapping my arms up my ass. In fact, I really can't do any spectacular poses at all. I can barely touch the floor in a forward bend.
Yet the internal benefits are manifest.
I have zero neck and shoulder pain. I used to have chronic, regular pain in my shoulder. My blood pressure has lowered.
More subtly my attitude is a lot more calm and peaceful.
I think it is an outstanding compliment to martial arts, and often helps me relax while we are doing some intense exercise. The other day I couldn't figure out a staff form and I just relaxed, went with it and eventually got it. I think a year ago I would have been frustrated and that would have only made matters worse. Of course I have to give a good share of the credit to martial arts training but yoga has been a good compliment.
Ok, gotta go see if I can get my elbow in my ear so I can say I am a true yogi.

Be Aware not Wary

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 01:25:00 +0000

A friend of mine was telling a story of how he was at a gas station and he saw two shady looking characters try to sneak up behind him. He watched and waited until one was close and popped him on the head with the handle.
Now the move wasn't what impressed me, it was that he was watching his surroundings. He was Aware.
Think about the difference between being aware of your surroundings and being afraid. Scared that someone might attack you. Being wary serves no purpose. In fact, when we are afraid we tend to tense up, pull inside ourselves and lose our focus. This makes us weaker and a better target.
If my friend had been frightened at the gas pump he probably would not have escaped the attack.
Now I am not just talking about awareness in a fighting situation. I also want to discuss the possibility of being aware in every day life. What if things are going bad. Are you worried about the outcome, or do you simply observe all the things that are going wrong. My guess is that you will get a better outcome if you are aware of what is happening without reacting in a fearful manner.
What about your body? Are you aware of what is going on? When you eat your body sends you all kinds of signals. Are you aware of your aches and pains and what they are telling you? Do you feel a cold in advance and ignore it, or watch it?
Be aware of how your relationships with others go and you will have a much better time in life. Be wary of others and you will live in fear that they will harm you.
Be aware of the most dangerous things in your life. Be it where you drive, walk or the possibility of a fire. However remote, be aware of them so you can react. But don't be afraid of the dangers, that will only weaken your heart.
Aware not Wary....my thought for the day.

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Sun, 21 Jan 2007 02:26:00 +0000

An important concept in mind-body exercises like yoga and just about any martial arts is Chi, or Qi.
I have to give the late Stan Rossi a lot of credit for radically transforming my understanding of Chi. It was a long long long path, frought with a healthy dash of skepticism that was released without hesitation after one class with Stan.

To explain what happened I have to go through many years of training and discussions. I first heard of Chi from a judo instructor I worked with. He called it by it's Japanese name, Ki. I asked him what Ki was and he said, "let me show you". He reached out his finger and held it two inches from my forhead. I felt a touch, even though he never touched me. It was like magic!
I later learned from Mister Ho that Chi is an essential life force that flows through the body. He said there were channels in the body that followed (though not exactly) the blood circulatory system. Tai Chi moves this force around and projects it outwards. This force can heal your body, and be used as a devastating weapon by martial artists.
Yet even as I watched people use this to bend rebarb, even when I could muster chi to take pointy sticks in the soft part of my neck, I still was skeptical. I thought it was some trick, or a combination of physical mechanics. In fact, I spent quite a bit of time wondering what it was.
And while I was in Dallas, I remembered Stan Rossi coming to practice with us. He was a student then, with no students of his own, but he said something quite profound. "to master chi, you first have to believe in it." I smiled and listened, but inside I was sooooooo skeptical. I pictured him as one of those goofy new age philosophers and almost forgot him entirely.
Then about ten years later, I am in his class in Austin. I had come to believe something was going on because my Chen lessons had reached a point where I could feel something, particularly in the holding column position that Stan was practicing that night.
We were in a circle, and I felt the chi between my hands stronger than ever. In fact, it was hard to push my hands together. I could feel it bouncing back and forth. Stan was walking around the circle, helping students whith their form, when I turned my hands towards the center of the circle, sending the chi in his direction.
He turned around immediately. Understand now, he had no normal cue what was going on with me. If you saw a film I would have just tuned my hands a little. There was no noise, only a subtle movement that Stan detected as surely as if I had turned a fan on him. He walked over, looked between my hands, where I could feel this strong field, and passed his hands between mine in an exploratory manner.
From then on, I was a believer in Chi.
Chi and Prana
Lately I have been fascinated by the connections between Yoga and martial arts. The study of this life force is very similar. In fact, they were probably originally developed in ancient India and enhanced and changed in ancient China. However my understanding of both systems is in it's infancy, so take my comparisons as speculation at best.
Yogi's call this life force Prana, and as near as I can determine they are discussing the exact same thing. However, I think Yoga practitioners manipulate and enhance Prana in very different ways from how martial artists use and enhance Chi.
Both disciplines use breath control. Both encourage different types of breathing. Both stress the immense importance of Chi (Prana) for health and long life.
Martial artists usually accompany Chi exercises with great sweeping movements of the body. They can focus Chi in different parts of their body. They can even send it into other things, like a sword or an opponent. One practice I have seen many times is people relaxing their arm and filling it with Chi...the arm cannot be bent.
Yogi's, to my knowledge, only focus on the health aspects. When I spoke with one yoga teacher about moving Prana she winced and said "do you want to move it?" It made me think about how Yogi's observe the flow of Prana while martial artists seek to control Chi and utilize it.

My Personal Martial Arts History

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Vinson) — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 02:31:00 +0000

I have been on a three month "sabatical" from martial arts (Tukong Moosul) practice. I am not sure why I dropped out of training for a while, but it's not really important. Martial arts is deep in my bones.

Childhood Stories

When I was a young child I watched a show called Kung Fu. I always thought that character, Kwai Chang Kane was sooooo cool. He was a monk who committed one act of violence in China and was forced to wander the wild west America as a result. He walked from California to the east coast encountering Chinese bounty hunters, Native Americans, railroad workers...irish and chinese, gunfighters, witch doctors, mining slave labor camps. All these stories filled my imagination. He was always forced into situations where he used his amazing martial arts skills. But in the end he always found a peaceful solution. That kind of set it in my mind. Be a strong man, but seek peace.

Karate at the Rec Center

When I was in Junior High and early High School I got a chance to take American Shotokan at the local recreational center in Vinton, Virginia. I was a fat kid, who was into books more than exercise and I loved Karate. I soon found myself practicing all the time. I particularly liked the nunchuks. After a couple of years I moved to Texas and didn't have the opportunity to take lessons until I moved to Arlington.

I started thinking seriously about learning martial arts. UTA had a lot of clubs, and the DFW area is a major city with a lot of good teachers. I went on a tour of many different schools, taking a week or so of Akido, Tae Kwon Do, Karate, Hopkido, Shao Lin, Judo etc....

Yang Style Tai Chi

One day I was in the student center and I saw a demonstration of Tai Chi Chuan. There was a practitioner of Chen Style who really impressed me. However, when I asked him to teach me he said he he wasn't taking students and referred me to Chin Han Ho, a practitioner of the Yang Style of Tai Chi. He taught me for about five years, and I came to love Tai Chi. I still practice the long form and have taught it to a few friends. I continued to practice it off and on (mostly off) for a few years.

Mister Ho emphasized the health benefits of Tai Chi. He would show the martial application, but I think this was mostly to ensure our form was correct. He also was an excellent teacher of Chi Kung. He taught a soft style for health and a hard style that helped students harden part of their body to withstand blows. He was able to bend steel rebarb with the soft part of his neck for intance. I didn't know it but I was suffering from hyperthyroidism, and as a result became mentally and physically...well I wasn't myself.

Chen Style Tai Chi

After I was cured I started to rebuild my body. I was out running and I saw these Chinese exchange students practicing Tai Chi. I joined them every night for a few months. The teacher was showing us Chen style. It was very informal. After a couple of months he refered me to a graduate student named Paul Chen who had practiced in the Chen village. Paul and I got along very well. I studied with him for about a year and he taught me the first Chen form. He particularly empahsized how to move energy through my body, and techniques for using the whole body to generate force. To this day I work on some of the principles he taught, though sadly I can't remember the Chen form.

After about a year and a half with Paul I got a job in Austin. I kept practicing the Chen form every single night, and would go visit Paul. But slowly, over time, working by myself became tedious and lonely. I sought out another school to practice with. After trying a few schools, including Wu style, and a couple of Chen teachers I wandered into Stan Rossi's class.
Back to Yang

Stan Rossi was a fine teacher of Tai Chi. He had practiced with several teachers in Hawii and Dallas. He was teaching Yang style in Austin. As soon as he saw me he knew my teacher was Chin Han Ho. We vaguely remembered practicing together in Dallas.
Sifu Rossi had learned under my teachers "brother" Chung King Tu. I rememberd Master Tu very well. He would come and teach at our school, and was clearly respected by my teacher. He was amazing at the art of push hands, taking on the whole class one at a time until we were each beaten. When he was delivering food in South Dallas someone shot him through the lung and heart. The next day Master Tu was on his feet practicing "holding jug", his recovery was a testamant to the health benefits of Tai Chi.
I practiced with Stan for a couple of years, but life the universe and everything seemed to change that. They moved school location and times, and I was really starting to yearn for soemthing more.

I continued to practice Tai Chi sporadically. I practiced a form of Yang that was somewhere between Sifu Rossi's style and Master Ho's style. Although I wasn't as regular, I was making slow progress in my ability, and my understanding of Chi.
Yet I was wanting something more. I was beginning to feel that my martial arts were getting too much art, and not enough martial.

Tukong Moosul

Over the years I had met many other martial artists who I respected. I kept hearing about a teacher named Wonik Yi, who taught a style called Tukong Moosul. Two teachers who I respected greatly considered him their teacher.
I went and visited the school and enrolled the first time I talked with Master Yi. I have been going there a few years, and have had a couple of breaks in training, but by and large consider this school to be the finest school I have ever known.

Master Yi teaches a special style he developed which combines hard style martial arts techniques with soft style techniques. He has had the benefit of practical military training and practicing martial arts in the Korean Buddhist Temple. In fact, he is a kind of real life Kwai Chang Kane.

And so, on this day that ends the great ice storm of '07. For the first time I feel like I feel like I am learning the Martial Arts that I had dreamed of when I was a child, watching those campy martial arts films on TV. Master Yi teaches great techniques, how to kick, punch throw, use weapons of all sorts. But what I really admire is the spirit of his classes.

His students are respectful of themselves and others. This respect is an integral part of Master Yi's training. He also teaches us that we can accomplish anything when our mind and bodies are aligned. This to me is the essence of martial arts. Not busting boards or throwing people in the air, but using your mind to move your body in response to a seemingly impossible challenge.
This discipline of mind and body sets the expert martial artist apart from a common street fighter. The connection of mind and body keeps drawing me back to martial arts. It is why I keep going to Master Yi's classes, where it is emphasized over and over.

Certainly other schools have their merits, but personally I would recomend Master Yi's Tookung acadamy to anyone seeking to learn martial arts. If you ever want to visit the school just drop me a line. I would be happy to give you a tour.