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Tag: Martial Arts Inspired

If You’re Going To Rep… Rep Right.

Published on February 21, 2025

While helping my students get ready for a tournament this weekend, we spent some time talking about the difference between reps and visualization reps.

They are NOT the same thing.

A rep is mindless… it’s intention-less… it’s muscles being moved around by signals from a distracted brain.

A visualization rep is the opposite.

A visualization rep is mindful… it’s completely intentional… it’s your whole being moving through a sequence that you can see in your mind, feel in your body, and connect to with your soul.

The time it takes to actually do each of these reps is identical. But the ROI is exponentially in favor of the visualization rep.

The only difference… is the minor investment required up front to connect to the future moment… The moment when the rep will be used in its most desired way… to unlock a feeling that only that well performed rep can unlock… to realize an untapped side of your potential that only that well executed rep can realize.

And what does the minor investment upfront entail? Exactly what it sounds like… careful visualization.

Visualization of the environment… the people… the sounds… the smells… the textures… the feelings. And then the moment when the rep is about to be called upon… the moment when the heart beats fast, the palms get sweaty, and the thinking clouds up… And then the moment when the decision is made to take a deep breath… and do it.

A rep done from THIS headspace is NOT equal to a rep done while thinking about what’s for dinner.

The mindset is this: If you’re going to do it… do it right.

You’re The Expert

Published on February 9, 2025

A friend shared an experience she had in her martial arts class the other night.

She partnered up with a new student and just before they started the designated drill, the new student said, “You go first… you’re the expert. My coordination is so bad.”

My friend said that comment hit her like a ton of bricks.

…Really bad coordination was why she started.

And after just having recently gotten her black belt… to hear, “You’re the expert” felt… shocking.

From one perspective, this friend probably still feels very much like the same poorly coordinated girl who showed up to her first martial arts class all those years ago…

But from another perspective, this friend also accumulated hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of martial arts classes which has trained her body otherwise.

The reminder for me from this is a simple, but powerful one.

Day by day… nothing changes. But when you look back after a while… everything is different.

The key is to never underestimate the power of small choices made over extended periods of time.

…The decisions to eat one less treat or one more healthy item.

…The decisions to take class on days when you’re leaning towards couch cozying instead.

…The decisions to read or listen to audiobooks instead of binge watch passive entertainment.

Big sweeping changes made in a day rarely make a difference over the course of a life.

…But the little things done daily??

It’s hard to find a lasting formula that makes a greater difference.

It’s Never Just About Us

Published on January 19, 2025

Some of my martial arts students celebrated one of the biggest accomplishments in their lives today by achieving their black belt or higher degree.

And at the end of it all… when it was all said and done… every single graduate who I saw was looking to celebrate their big moment with family, friends, and loved ones.

Not a single graduate (who I saw) got their belt, patted their own back, and just left without any kind of exchange.

This should tell us something about our journeys… it’s never just about us.

Our biggest accomplishments feel empty without having someone to share them with… all of our growth is for nothing if nobody is there to feel the impact of it… and when you boil it all down… nothing we ever accomplish in life is done so alone.

Create space on your journey for others to join in. Keep loved ones looped into your journey and connect with them on both your high points and low points. And always try to balance growth with contribution and gratitude.

This is how the great accomplishments of our lives are made great—by the great people we’re surrounded with, supported by, and able to share our greatest moments with.

What To Do In The Calm Before The Storm

Published on January 17, 2025

Tomorrow there’s a black belt and higher degree test for almost 50 of my martial arts students.

Tonight, we had one final open workout.

At the end, I gathered them together and gave them three simple pieces of advice:

1. Drink lots of water. Hard physical performances are made proportionally harder based on how dehydrated our body is. And hydration doesn’t happen 20 minutes before a really hard physical performance… it happens 20 hours before.

2. Don’t forget electrolytes. Many of the students will be fasting prior to the test so this reminder is key. Without electrolytes our muscles won’t function properly and can oftentimes lead to cramps, spasms, less fine motor control, and general fatigue or dizziness. Electrolytes are the key to strong performances and can be consumed in a capsule.

3. Get as much rest as you can. The day before the test is not the day for hard practice. It’s the day to trust in your hard practice. It’s the day to take your mind off of the hard practice. It’s the day to appreciate all of the hard practice you’ve done and just allow your body to… soften.

…In the calm before the storm, we need to learn how to allow ourselves to be calm.

…So that when the storm comes, we can RAGE and give it our undeniable all.

I Was Being Selfish

Published on December 9, 2024

There’s a major martial arts tournament happening this upcoming weekend in Toronto, Canada.

And one of the biggest draws for this tournament is that they’re offering around 15-20 full one hour seminars with the best of the best in the sports martial arts world—that are all FREE for competitors.

Recognizing the unbelievable value in this, I immediately started to make plans where I could go for the seminars and have my instructors cover for me (teaching classes at our martial arts school), and then come back to run the school and cover for them while they went down to compete.

But, the more I thought about it, the more I realized… I was being selfish.

I wanted to go to the seminars so that I could come back and teach them all that I learned—and be the bearer of knowledge.

When really, I should be taking myself out as the middle man and allowing them to go and get the information first hand. They’re the ones who are competing and they’re the ones who are on the “come up” part of their journey.

I’ve had my time to compete in these tournaments and attend these types of seminars. It’s time for me to check my ego and humbly step aside so they can experience what I fell in love with first hand.

And besides, even if I retaught every seminar verbatim when I got back, it still wouldn’t be anything like the original experience. First hand learning will always blow second hand learning out of the water.

…And if I (we) really cared about our team’s growth, we’d be willing to make some sacrifices to prove it.

Embracers of Challenge and Masters of Perspective

Published on November 19, 2024

When I write about “embracers of challenge and masters of perspective,” here’s what I mean:

  • One of my teenage students was telling me about how she fell down in the middle of her martial arts weapon performance. It was a form she decided to make more difficult the week of the tournament and yet, even though she fell and felt “so embarrassed,” she also said she was so glad she did it and can’t wait to own it at the next one.
  • A group of my adult students were telling me about how they all—maybe five or six of them—forgot the memorization of their traditional weapon form. All of them. Blanked. And yet, this is the email I got from one of them: “Our group of competitors learned a lot of humility when attempting and failing our weapon forms. We all knew we didn’t do it correctly and immediately cheered on our competitors to not quit. We all finished and were able to laugh at ourselves and cheer each other on for our next tournament. This group of competitors is just so amazing.  We all strive for nothing but our best but do not break each other down. Love this family!!!!”
  • Another one of my adult students (48 years old), decided to compete in her first ever tournament. She’s a mother of two, a wife, has been training for 2+ years and simply hadn’t pulled the trigger to do one. And when I asked what her ideal outcome would be she said, “just getting through it—place isn’t important, getting this first one under my belt is the real victory.” …And I couldn’t agree more.

Competition Success vs Life Success

Published on November 18, 2024

Competitions aren’t designed to build confidence, they’re designed to challenge competitors.

When I think about confidence, I think about success remembered. Remembering a time (or many times) when I successfully did the thing I’m about to do—that I’m scared to do—is about as reassuring as it gets… because it’s tangible, evidence-based proof.

And when I think about traditional settings of competition, where there’s one first place winner and a group of three or more competitors, more competitors will end up losing than winning. And “losing” isn’t the foundation that confidence is built upon.

But—and this is a BIG but—losses learned from IS the foundation that life success is built upon.

As I mentioned in the beginning, competitions are designed to challenge the competitor. And what is life but a disproportionate amount of challenge compared to ease? And what makes challenges so challenging…? The fact that we keep losing when we’re trying to win!

See, when we learn how to manage the “losses” appropriately… when we learn to contextualize what’s really happening when we compete (is it really about the first place trophy?)… when we learn to roll with the punches, extract the lessons, and return to our practice with fresh insights—better insights than we had before…

How could we ever really lose?

Demanding competition success isn’t helping with life success—especially if it’s removing the challenge from the experience. Teaching competitors how to become embracers of challenge and masters of perspective… now that is a foundation that will set them up for life.