I'm offering a special and very limited bargain – my new Self-defense Rescripted DVD & the book Effortless Self-Defense for Women (co-authored with Kimberly Dillman Foreman). This is a $69.90 value for only 49.95. But, I have only 25 sets to sell (limited bargain). This should appear in the store shortly.

CT

Death of a pair of good friends

It had to come to this one day...

The soles were gone, the sides ripped and my feet finally felt flat and unsupported running in them. Goodbye faithful Karrimor trail shoes... Into the bin you go...

Sniff.

Green exercise aids mental health

Just five minutes of exercise in a "green space" such as a park can boost mental health, researchers claim.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8654350.stm

I will be teaching a Friday evening seminar in the Milwaukee area. Just click on the image to download the flier.

A great groundwork game to play with kids

"Crazy horse" is a tremendous game that you can play with small(ish) children, devised by the Gracie family, but equally good preparation for judo:



Advantages:

1. Great fun
2. Builds skills in both parties
3. Makes good use of the adult/child size difference
4. Reasonably safe

One of "ten playful jiu-jitsu games" demonstrated in the new Gracie Bullyproof 10 DVD set, this has got me curious about the other games, too:

Discs 2-3: Gracie Games™ 

In the beginning, Rorion didn’t teach his children Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, he “played” Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. Using a series of 10 playful jiu-jitsu games, Rorion engaged his children in the learning process while informally introducing them to the fundamental principles of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.

The idea that most young children (say under 8) will struggle with more formal martial arts training, but love  all sorts of wrestling games and other horse-play rings true to me.

I particularly like games that are intrinsically fun, rather than relying on competition to add zest to them.  Competitiveness can wait until later.  Enjoyment and skill-building should come first.

Edit (19 June): Just got the DVD set.  The other games are also very good.  Highly recommended.

Bartlow Challenge: 9 mile run

I had never run 9 miles before so I was a little apprehensive. More so when I saw that there were only about 40 runners, most of which looked like pros...I was going to be at the back or even last so I had to accept it, relax and run. Before the run PP advised me to start at a slow pace, saving my energy and this helped immensely. It helped me also get into a steady rhythm.

92 minutes 23 seconds through wind and rainy conditions in beautiful undulating Cambridgeshire countryside...

View Larger Map

PP and I about to enjoy a breakfast roll, cuppa and muffin. The spoils of victory.

Grading day, Shorinji kempo

I had to stop and check out the boats as they clunk-whished past me on the river Cam. It was a nice settling noise which eased my nerves a little…

After having met up with the other grading candidates we chatted on the train to London and tried to remain focused. We each had our ways of handling the nerves but mostly we didn’t try and swot up, but simply relaxed. Jonathan’s cast iron concnetration was broken by a “silk” finish on a car he saw. From that moment on he couldn’t hink of anything else. I think he’s in love.

The grading went without hitch but during the warm-up I thought Iwas going to expire! This was when the nerves really kicked in. Luckily my grading started fairly soon and I didn’t have too much time to wait and think about gaps in my knowledge. As it happens the other two kenshi in my group seemed to have more gaps than I! At first this seemed like a blessing and boosted my confidence (even though I wanted them to do well too) but soon it became apparent that grading with others not so prepared can be a challenge in itself!

The grading flashed by with only a few hitches for me but we helped each other through and I felt good when it came to an end. The train journey home was full of relief and I wished we’d had a couple of beers…