Where I'm at....

Last weekend I was going to blog like I always do, but then received a jolt if you will about where I am mentally and physically to date. I decided not blog because well, I was angry. Very angry would be more truthful. My anger was solely generated at myself. I had reflected on what I had accomplished to date and what I would need to do get some numbers up and so on but I was only looking at a small part of my “numbers”. I took a step back and looked at my life as a whole. My wife Judi and I had a long chat about where I was and where I should be….we were worlds apart. I was looking back at my numbers and saw them dip in April, now why was that, oh yeah twin boys were now home and sleep and time was immediately erased. Oh, numbers were up at the end of July and early August…oh yeah I was on holidays and had an awesome time getting in the work I needed to push to the next level. So on and so on. Problem is I’ve been too busy looking at my excel spreadsheet to miss my life around me passing me by. During my holidays I had gotten into a great routine but it didn’t involve my family as much. I mean I was still doing family things and duties around the house but something always had to fall off to meet my selfish requirements. I use the word selfish, maybe that’s a little harsh but its how it feels. It took me being on my holidays for my one son to actually recognize me and bond with me for the first time….he’s now five months old. That’s what hit me last weekend. Now again I can hear people saying reprioritize and time manage a little better but here’s the deal, I do that. Everyone has excuses why they can’t do this or that, and I respect everyone’s life and routine but mine is different. I was doing a lot of what we are undertaking right now last year leading up to this. When I looked at my spreadsheet over the past year I saw a battle. I have to fight for spare minutes to get pushups and situps in while I try to get my boys to nap for fifteen minutes. I fight fatigue to get up and run on less than five hours of sleep – one to two hour increments at a time to jog before running to work and so on. I have to fight to get time and most often it has taken me away from my family. I’m not home on Monday nights, Thursdays for practises, Fridays for class and then try to get out on Saturdays for open training/sparring/ practises. My wife spends the entire day at home with the boys, when I am not at home for the evening that’s a lot of strain on her. Many of us don’t have to fight for time, some do, but my other challenge has been a lack of sleep. After all these months my body has not been able to get the rest to maintain itself and last weekend just seemed to shut down. I hit the wall and it has taken me a week of minimal physical work to feel some energy again. I asked myself one important question last weekend, what am I doing this for? Is this for my ego to have that second stripe on my belt? To prove that I can do this all? I already know I can. Was it to prove I can do it with a new family during the year? When my wife and I were in our prenatal classes we spoke with families with multiples and they all agreed on two things. One, your life will dramatically be altered and revolve around the twins. Two, don’t even think about taking on any new courses, challenges, teams, activities for the first year. Yeah, didn’t catch that one. So now what. Well, first my family gets more of me; it’s my priority first and foremost. Second, I will continue to do all my UBBT goals and improve myself as a whole. I really have made great strides with the UBBT and am proud to be where I am. One thing that was lacking for myself, and I can’t stress this enough, to all of us on the team and people thinking about joining this team in the future, make this YOUR UBBT. This is your challenge, your journey. The numbers are the same for all of us but that’s not the point, this is your life to change, challenge and improve upon. If you look at it as just numbers or a set of hoops to jump through, look again. This is your masterpiece to build for you. There is only one you so live it. Find your passion in whatever it is you do and realize you CAN accomplish anything.

Sifu Bryant

Keep running

As I was going for a run this afternoon I began thinking of the elusive runners high. This happens rarely even with people who run all the time. Basically it means as you are running you feel lighter, faster and less fatigued. Usually you end up running farther because you can cover more distance without getting so drained. Roughly fifteen years ago I experienced it for the only time so far. I remember the day vividly and as I was running down the path had this great sense of calm come over me. I ran a good 2 km’s farther than before and was running in full strides all the way. I finished my run and just sat there, hardly breathing heaving wondering if I should just go and do it again, a great feeling. It’s something special doing something pure without effort; of course the secret is repetition leading to enlightening experiences. I always remember Sifu Brinker talking about his one great hip throw so many years ago; it happened in a split second and was pure as can be. We can only hope to experience these moments and relish them when they happen. Sifu Bryant

Olympic training

The Olympics have been underway for the past while and I always love watching the games. I especially love the athletics (why not just call it track and field) since that is what I used to compete in. I am always struck by some of the elite athletes competing and winning almost effortlessly. Like we say at the school - effortless effort, they make it look easy because of all the time and energy they have put in to get to that point. As I was running this morning, I have to say I didn’t feel like doing this at all, I mean I could always put it off till the evening or maybe even tomorrow, but no I ran my eight km’s and felt great. This is our Olympics right now that we are training for and it just feels good to keep putting in the effort and seeing the results each and every week. I have always said that a true test of someone is when adversity is thrown their way and they continue to push through to the challenge, attitude is everything. This motivation towards our Olympic calibre training puts a smile on my face this time of year. Sifu Bryant

Versatility

Yesterday many of us met and did a few rounds of sparring again. I'd say it went well for me personally but I'd be lying. I felt ok, but into the second round I really banged up my right shin, I know I need to build up some strength in my shins but this one really did some damage. Problem was after that I was totally useless. I had lost one of my main weapons and couldn’t compensate with any alternative forms of offense and defense for some reason. I know I’m still trying to get my sparring up to speed again but yesterday was really frustrating; everything I did was off – my timing, my precision. Going back to work on this for the next week with some shadow boxing should help some. Need to work on my combinations and again not just always relying on my right leg for my bulk of the work. Guess this is as good a time to fix these flaws that have crept in the past few years and see it as an opportunity to widen my versatility. Thanks again to all who came out yesterday and a special thanks to Sifu Lietz for the smack to the shins and another with a stick to the shins for good measure. Next time let’s have the bleeding stop on my shin before building up my conditioning on the leg...kids... Sifu Bryant

T-E-A-M work

Yesterday many of our team met at the Kwoon for open training. For us it was a chance to work on our sparring and any other requirements we wished to tackle. For one full hour we trained together through sparring and it felt great. For me it made me pause and think about our team and our mindset. Think about it, most of our requirements are personal in nature – forms, pushups, situps, acts of kindness, etc. I do most of this away from the Kwoon since this is how I like to train and go about my day, yet we are a team and some of our requirements need other people to be involved. I mean I can work on my combinations and such by myself but sparring requires another person in front of you (my wife doesn’t count I guess). It was nice to know that for that one hour there were over a dozen like-minded people working toward a similar goal – great stuff. As for the sparring, it went great, I need to work on a few things – a few bad habits have crept in but again another step in the right direction. This could turn into another good weekly habit I think. Sifu Bryant

Another chapter.

So these past few weeks I have been tackling my other form, being the spear. It has been going slow, but again that is to be expected. One thing that has been the same as my other weapons is the feeling of the connection with me and the weapon itself. Sometimes I will force the weapons movement and be working against it instead of with it. It just takes some time and patience. Another good week of good progress and of course I have the blisters to prove it. Still feeling like each day is another step forward in my progress which tends to make me want to tackle the next day and see what lies ahead. Sifu Bryant

How do you eat an elephant....

Thinking about the goals that we have set for ourselves and how we approach them. I know the numbers that we strive to achieve can be a heavy weight if we let it be. Each week I never ever look at the total numbers as a whole, I look at the numbers I have put up the past week and adjust accordingly. Maybe I’m up on some and down on others so I make small adjustments when needed. For me if you had a bad day or a string of days you need to have a short memory – wipe that off the slate and start the next day like you’re right on track. I have been focusing on only small aspects of my training at a time, if I try to do too much it all gets lost in the mix. I may be doing a lot of things as a group but none of them well. So another week in the books, time to call it a night. Tomorrow I will hit the reset button once again and hit it harder once more. Sifu Bryant

Changing gears

Well this was another great long weekend. Spent time with my family, celebrated not one but two Canada Day Celebrations(odd but still fun) and performed a demo representing our school. Not a bad weekend to say the least. July 1st is always a change of pace for me. School is over and the teachers and students are gone leaving our department free and clear to do what work needs to be done. I love this time of year, a busy but enjoyable pace. For me this summer is different in that I have broader goals for myself. I can focus more of my time on Kung Fu these next two months and get out and enjoy this great but short season. I plan to get ahead on my requirements and hit that next gear I've been itching to get to the past few weeks. It will be nice to recharge and immerse myself in every facet of my training. Yup best time of the year. Sifu Bryant

A long week

This week was a different week from the usual. I spent the entire week as a student taking a technical course at the U of A. It posed a few challenges since I haven’t had to battle the drive into the city for many a year and really never missed that. More importantly I had to adapt my time to train over the course of the week. Initially the course was a little earlier in the morning, but through the consensus of the class, the group decided to bump it back an hour. Now again I’m not a morning person (still don’t know why I teach so early) but it was a blessing for me. This allowed me to get in an hour of training before class which helped kick start the day for me. The other oddity was meals for the day. I could buy lunch for each day and it would be covered by my work, yet I decided like I always do to bring my own lunch. I was the only one in the course that did this and spent each lunch break eating and then walking around the campus. My instructor thought I was quite odd (he was from the east) bringing my own lunch since I could buy whatever I wish, but again those places never appealed to me. Anyways, after he joked about where my carrot sticks were and I told him in my backpack he stopped the shaking of his head. Choices, we all make them and watching the group around me, a few were making the wrong ones. A few of my classmates were heavily overweight drinking big gulps of pop and just asking to become a diabetic. Yup long week on the brain, but at least it was fuelled by some fruit and veggies to carry me through. Sifu Bryant

A Father's Day

The person I am has been shaped so much by my father. He has taught me so many valuable lesson’s over my life there isn’t enough words to start to describe all that has been passed on. This day now obviously has new meaning to myself in that I am a father times two and look to pass my wisdom onto them as my father did and his father before him. It is easy to see the parallel at our school, and again it is our privilege and duty to embrace this knowledge and pass this onto our future students both young and old. Today is only a day like any other, it loses meaning if we do not recognize the profound difference we can make it one person’s life. Happy Father’s Day to all. “Never put off to tomorrow what you can do today.” Albert Bryant Sifu Bryant

Act of kindness

I had been looking to do some spring cleaning the past few weeks and this morning I spent it cleaning out my closet. Now we all have those shirts, sweaters and so on we have kept for years, you know the ones that are three sizes too big that you got for a present from your relatives. The kind you could never bring yourself to wear since you and your significant other could both fit in it together. Well they all finally were sent to the Goodwill to be hopefully put to better use than hanging in my closet. My wife's purging was a whole lot easier, something about she will never weigh as much as a small truck and so there would never be a use for that again. We have donated quite a bit to our local Goodwill the past few years and definitely was a great start to the day. Sifu Bryant

It's all routine

Now well into the year I keep thinking about routine. My guess is that everyone undergoing this test has had to adjust their routine as the weeks go by. The reason I keep thinking about it is because it can be a hard thing to adjust for some people. We all have our daily routine and when we want to change our routine it can be a struggle, the brain and body just keeps trying to go back to the old routine and can fight the new. For me now it has become abnormal when my new routine is disrupted in the slightest but again this is the other part of the test - adaptability. Tonight I went out for a bike ride along the paths of Spruce Grove which I love. It was a great clear evening and quiet as can be. I love to bike through the city as it helps me clear my head; it’s like an active meditation for me. Over the years I have spent a lot of time along these paths walking, running and biking; every corner of every path has a story to tell. As I was riding through my block we have large item pickup coming up and I counted four pieces of exercise equipment sitting on various front driveways to be given away or taken away, guess for some routine is hard to change. Sifu Bryant

Be Flexible

One of my to do’s this year is to increase my flexibility and strength, a pretty broad statement but relevant none the less. Last night after playing my weekly baseball game I realized 1. I’m not in my twenties anymore and 2. I need to increase my both …wait for it … flexibility and strength in my back. I have seriously lost my mobility over the past few years. This is where stretching and conditioning is a must for me to maintain and then improve my past ability. My three main areas of focus are in my shoulders, lower back and hamstrings. Back catching for two hours each week has reminded me that I have some work to do on this. I feel it in my forms from time to time and must get it back. Sooo a daily stretching routine is now part of my focus, unless I can get knee and back replacement in the near future, just saying…. Sifu Bryant

Recharge

I have to admit this weekend couldn’t come any sooner. I was running pretty low on energy this past week and really needed that extra day to recharge and refocus. Now don’t get me wrong I didn’t just sit around and flip channels all day, I was busy doing a lot on my list. One thing I’m famous for is making lists, I am constantly making a To Do list for the day, week and beyond. This has always helped keep my thoughts together and stay well organized. This weekend I knocked a lot off of my To Do’s as well as spend a good deal of time working on my weapons forms. Over the past week I really had a few aha moments where there was little effort in manipulating my spear and feeling its flow. If I hadn’t pushed to work on it while I had fifteen minutes here or ten minutes there it would have been a lost opportunity. We all lose opportunities; I’m now just trying to maximize my opportunities more often now. It was a great weekend all in all, just wish I had used sunscreen yesterday, Judi is calling me lobster….stupid lobster….. Sifu Bryant

Happiness

I stumbled upon this video last week and thought it tied into what we set out to do for Pandamonium. The video really puts a different spin on what we perceive as happiness and what we all can learn from one single simple act of kindness. Again it never has to be big or expensive but purposeful in its intent to create positive change. How To Buy Happiness Sifu Bryant

Adaptable

I was going to post this week about how I had changed my approach to completing my daily requirements. That by making slight adjustments I had continued on without a hiccup. Well that was last week and this is now. This week didn’t work out as I had planned and really left me tired and frustrated. So starting again tomorrow I have put together another approach to meet my requirements and still keep up my end of the work load around the house with the family. I guess all I can say is adaptability is key to overcoming any obstacle and that’s what keeps me searching for that perfect balance on all fronts. I am definitely excited to see how the next few weeks play out and now that the weather is getting so much nicer am ready to spend some time outside practising again. Oh and sleep is sooo overrated….

A new chapter

My family has officially doubled in size this past week. Nathan Thomas and Samuel Marcel were born late Friday March 23rd and this past week has felt like a blink, maybe a long blink but still. The boys are still in the hospital but doing great, hopefully home this week some time. Now the next chapter in our lives has begun. This was one of those unofficial accomplishments on my list for this year and can now check it off – what else could possibly change in our lives right? This week was what I call the real test for me now. I no longer dictate when I may have time to work on my forms, reps, etc. I will have to be creative to find time for my requirements throughout the days and push ahead. The home nurse must have thought I was nuts this past week pounding out push ups and sit ups in the basement while she attends to my wife upstairs. I can’t wait to see what the next few months have in store for us and live in the excitement that each new moment brings. With the new challenges on the horizon means it will all be more rewarding Sifu Bryant

Nice to have some help

Since this year has started I have been very fortunate to have my wife Judi aid in my day to day routine. Our routine has evolved over the past few months and will radically change in the next few that’s for sure. What has helped is her understanding that I need time each day to dedicate to my routine and training. Today was a great example as we were finished doing our grocery shopping and heading home. We were expecting company this evening and I had a few things to take care of, she made a point of saying I should put these things off for later since I still have to get my training in. She was right that these trivial things could wait and my O.C.D. tends to take over from time to time. I can’t say enough of how much this helps me continue forward with a coach in my corner letting me put in the time and pursue my goals. I have no doubt in the near future I will have to adapt again and am thankful that she will understand and help in continuing down the road. Sifu Bryant

Balance

Over the course of the last few weeks I have continually been working on my weapons form, specifically the nunchuks. I have found that I have needed to slow down segments to get the proper vectors and let the weapon do the work as opposed to myself. I have broken down certain components of the form to concentrate on and then build out from there. I have to admit some days it just doesn’t come easy, I have found that is the time to walk away for a few minutes to clear my head and then come back to it slower and more relaxed. If there is anything to learn its patience and persistence, small changes can make a big difference. I recently found this video of a bike rider in Scotland. The cinematography is great but what I took away from it was his persistence. You have to fall A LOT to get these sequences right. As the saying goes don’t let fear and common sense stop you. Think about how much of a connection this guy has with his bike, it’s an extension of him knowing its balance and centre. At one point in the film you see him taking a drink and can actually see his arms bruised up from falling and getting banged up. Yup dedication to what you love. Way Back Home Sifu Bryant

Slow and steady

These weeks fly by so quick, had another good week, a little behind in my pushups/situps but am catching up. Have been working with my nunchuks and still taking time to get the flow going. I have been pushing too hard on the form and decided this weekend to start back to a few segments of the form to get down before moving on. Definitely trying to slow it down and get the proper angles and sequences down right which is challenging. Now that I am working on this form more often, I find it feels sloppy and choppy, sometimes I'm just forcing it too much I think. Sometimes I just need to walk away for a minute to let it soak in. Progress, slow inch by inch. Sifu Bryant

Sore but smiling

This was a busy one and frankly would love to feel a little less sore but still content. Yesterday I tackled my front driveway shoveling and pulled my lower back so was left walking around like the hunchback of notre dame the rest of the day and most of this one. I have done this before, a year ago almost to the day. This time I feel it easing and should be better in a few days. The reason I’m smiling, I had a great weekend with practising and still working on day to day routines. Judi looked at me and thought I was nuts practising a weapons form in the living room last night with no weapon in hand. She said “why are you doing that, leave it for another day when you get better.” Just couldn’t do it, still wanted to practise and keep it in front of me. I feel better tonight already and know that I need to work on strengthening my back. I had noticed the last few months that my posture as I sit was pretty awful and now I have a reason to improve upon it. Looks like I’ll be creating a new exercise routine for my back which frankly was overdue. Sifu Bryant

Needed a boost

As the weeks go by and the routine takes shape things can become a little easier as we make our way through. Today unfortunately was a great example of low energy and motivation can be a detriment. This was likely caused by the past few weeks of little sleep and much worry. I always say that when I am energetic and motivated it is easy to tackle the daily pushups, situps and other requirements but when you have no energy and push through it can be more rewarding. This was definitely true of today, I really had to force myself to do these things but it left me with a smile that I could still keep up the pace and momentum. Tomorrow will be much easier I’m sure. Oh and when practising weapons such as say nunchuks and you turn slip and fire they can and will go right through a double pane window with ease. Luckily Home Depot was still open…… Sifu Bryant

One with vision

I recently finished reading the Steve Jobs autobiography and it definitely changed the way I viewed the man and his legacy. Working in the technology field myself, his impact was profound and far reaching. Much of the technology around us was due to his vision of the future and what it could mean to the world. What struck me most was his ability to get full potential out of the people who worked for him. Sometimes this was a stressful and demanding environment they were put in, but many when all was said and done were in awe of what they had accomplished. Finishing the book, I recognized the true genius he was and the power of one individual to change the world around him. Every day I try to look back and ask myself did I accomplish anything of value for that day. As I grow older I always strive to make myself a better person, but a great individual makes those around him even better. This is what I hope to improve upon as time goes on. Sifu Bryant

Meaning in the method

When I was a kid growing up playing sports and as an early adult, there was always the inevitable prerequisite for fundraising. This always varied from sport to sport but the idea was the same - sell product A for fundraising, ask relatives for money and my alltime favorite was working a bingo all night to raise funds for the community with which I was a part of. Now these were all quite simple and easy for everyone to understand for instance we needed the funds for fuel for transportation, or equipment, etc. Now as I have been involved with our yearly fundraising for many years I still feel like its just not gaining traction like it should. Each New Year's banguet I see first hand the charities that we are helping out with our donations and fundraising but it feel's almost faceless as we start raising funds in November. I know this is for an amazing cause but when I start asking my coworkers for money I try to explain what these funds are being put towards and I can see their eyes start to glaze over, they have no connection and if I'm lucky can only get a few dollars from them as they sip a five dollar latte each day. One thing I started doing last fall was each week I would put five dollars aside in a jar to go towards fundraising for our school. Each week I am reminded of what that money is going towards and what it will mean for these individual charities. Now like I said five dollars a week is not much - a special coffee or snack once a week, yet it has meaning. I will continue to articulate what our fundraising is about to my friends, relatives and such but if I am not fully engaged in this endeavor how can I inspire other's to do so as well. I have spoken with Sifu Brinker about the timing of fundraising and have come to the conclusion there is never a perfect time. The fall is terrible, kids are back in school so this means school supplies and such, winter, well you have Christmas and after Christmas you have holiday debt, the spring - summer sports pick up and vacations start happening etc. For me it is about starting with myself and the intent of this act and work out from there. Now as each week comes and goes I will put another fiver into the jar and embrace the moment and what it's purpose is. Now just have to change the writing on the jar that says "Tom and Judi's Nite Our Jar" don't want Judi to get too excited.... Sifu Bryant

Starting off with a bang

Well the first week has flown by and ended with a bang. I always look back at each New Years Banquet and marvel at what a great group I am privileged to belong with. This weekend always triggers a renewal in myself and brings home the inspiration to kick start a new year. This year I will have more purpose than so many past years combined and I am absolutely pumped at what this year will bring. I know it will not be easy by any means but with hard work and focus I will create more momentum for the years ahead. Each day I document my progress and it doesn't leave me with a feeling of burden but of accomplishment. I wish all of our team the best of luck this year and may we all grow as individuals and as a team. Sifu Bryant