Big Bend

The 7hr drive is always more than worth it.  We had great weather and an awesome weekend with family.  There is something special about these mountains that you have to see to appreciate.

2400 ft back down to the car

made it to the top of Emory Peak in 1:27

Haunted House

Fun, Fun, Fun.  We did not do the haunted house last year.  October is always a very busy month for us with Black Belt & all other belts testing in the same month.  I am really glad we took the extra time to have this event again. Most people seem to enjoy it & are very thankful that we put it together.  It would not be possible without all the help from people setting up, participating, and clean up. Thanks to all that helped and enjoyed this years haunted house.

Test night

Part one is over. Hardest test I have ever done for lots of reasons.  We have a great group & I am so proud to have them as students.  Master Payne is still kicking butt & setting a great example how to be an incredible instructor & person. I am so grateful that he is a part of our school. I will give a full report later when my head stops pounding.  Thanks to everyone that made it an epic night I will always treasure.

Weeks 9/17 - 9/30

Mon.  Sparring with some strength & conditioning after

Tues. a.m. 8 hill repeats up school street. 9m
         p.m. Light grappling

Wed. a.m. 45 min. on the bike with strength training after

Thurs. a.m. 1 hr run with 3 sets of squats & pull-ups.    Forms at night.

Fri.  run 9.3m cielo vista loop with Josh.

Sat. run 2.5 hrs on trails

Sun.  Family hike & swim in the river.

Mon. Fun night of sparring.  Those guys are good.  Abs & push- ups after.

Tues. run 8 hill repeats 9m

Wed.  all weapons training. Stick, bow, & knife sparring. Does not get much more fun then a few guys whacking each other with foam & plastic.

Thurs.biked 45 min. Squats & pull-ups after. Light sparring at night with forms after.

Fri. Zip. Knee was hurting.

Sat. AMA kids black belt test training.   Strength training

Sun. 55 min on bike with squats & pull- ups after
 Decided to give up on all running until my foot starts hurting. Taking every step every day in pain is getting old.

Master Payne, 26 years of running a top-notch school.

weeks 9/3 - 9/9 & 9/10 - 9/16

Mon.  a.m. ran 1hr. 3 sets of pull-ups & one legged squats
       p.m. Sparred 6 x 4min , 4 x 5min. finished with strength & conditioning

Tues. a.m  Ran 1 hr - 6 x 1/3 mile hill repeats.
          p.m. 4 x 3min grappling - forms

Wed.  a.m. strength training 
           p.m. 1hr grappling - finished with push- ups & abs

Thurs. a.m. ran 1hr
           p.m  sparred 4 x 5min

Fri.   Ran 2.5hrs out at Government Canyon.  Was planning on doing 3hrs.  The thermometer at the trail head said 97.  I'm not acclimated for that kind of heat.

Sat. Zip. clowned around at a bike race

Sun.  45 min on bike with some strength training

Mon. a.m. ran 1hr. with 3 sets of pull-ups & one legged squats
 p.m. Foot really hurt, so grappled an hour with some push-ups & abs.

Tues. a.m. ran 1hr - 6 x hill repeats
 p.m. Parent orientation for boys.  good excuse to call it a day.

Wed.  Ran 2m with alpine than 10 x 150m full out with 10 sec. break.

Thurs. a.m. biked 45 min. with strength training after.
            p.m.  Sparred with some good forms practice after.

Fri.  ran 1hr 20 min. with almost 1000ft of gain.

Sat.  ran the 9.3m cielo vista loop before classes.  Man I miss that loop.

Sun. ran 1hr hard effort with squats & pull-ups after.

First 2 weeks back with some actual real running effort. 38m & 45m on the two weeks.  I'm not going to load up to much running over the next few weeks. I can feel my fitness improving with the added work-outs.  4 weeks until the test & I am feeling pretty good with my skills & fitness.  My foot however is still giving me a healthy dose of pain.  I'm hoping that a week taper before the test will give it enough  rest to hold up. 

Week 8/27 - 9/2

Mon. Called off the training. Rolled my ankle.

Tues. Biked 50 min, then strength training.

Wed. 4 bow sparring matches, 10 hands only 4 min. Matches. Finished with some conditioning drills.

Thurs. Ran 1 HR. 3 sets of pull - ups & one legged squats. Forms

Fri. Ran 1 HR.

Sat. Ran 95 min on purgatory creek trail in San Marcos with Bruce from New York. He was not used to the humidity. Bruce is a former division one track runner. He knows a lot about how to run short distances fast, but when he got out of the car with no water, I thought this could end bad. I shared my 22oz of water with him and he got through it. Running in Texas summer is like a totally different sport from just running.

Sun. Pool side

Not as much sparring as I would have liked. Maybe it's good to give my face a little rest from taking a beating 3 times a week. Having a ton of fun hitting the pads & pushing myself. It can actually be so peaceful in the middle of a sparring match. You can't think about anything else and have to be totally in the moment. Live to train - train to live.

week 8/20 - 8/26

Mon.  5 x 3 min. stick fighting. 10 x 4 min. hands only sparring.  finished with some strength & conditioning.

Tues.  Biked 50 min. with strength & conditioning after. 

Wed.  Ran 1hr on trails.  bow form, 8 x ??min. grappling matches. push-ups & abs.

Thurs.  Biked 50 min. with light strength training.

Fri.  strength & conditioning , Forms

Sat. Zip

Sun.  2hrs running on trails.  foot not ready for that kind of abuse yet. Live & learn.

Lost "burnt" Pines

boys will be boys, hitting each other with sticks never gets old

Hayden is moving to Ecuador

Somethings never change. Rick trying to punch Robert in the face.

ice, ice, ice, every day

Feeling the skills & strength are getting better each week.  I wish I could say the same about my foot.  It seems that it will start to feel better than get worse. I did start Airrosti treatment with Stephen Offenburger last weak.  We will see if they can work their healing powers on me. Whining is not helping the healing process. Hoping my foot will hold up for 7  more weeks of focused Martial arts training.  Last weekend Kim & I did a run at Lost Pines State Park.  They had a large fire last year that affected all but 95 acres of the 6000 acre park.  Strange & sad running in burnt out pine forest that I  really enjoy visiting. Texas is 99% privately owned, so it really stinks when our limited public lands our torched. I'm sure the forest in time will come back stronger than before.  I do miss having these towering pines to visit less than 2hrs from my door. 

Week 8/12 - 8/19

Mon. 4 stick sparring matches. 11 x 4 min hands only sparring matches. No break other than 30 sec. Between matches. Wore 4 oz. gloves thinking we would keep it light, I was wrong. Have not been hit that hard in a long time. Lots of blowing out blood that night. On the positive side I feel my sparring conditioning is good. Finished with some push- ups & abs.

Tues. Rode the bike for 50 min. Then did some strength training. At night worked forms & grappled 4 x 4 min light matches.

Wed. Ran 5m in the morning. First run in in almost 8 weeks. At night had a great session with Rick & Stats. 4 x 2min bow sparring, 4 x 2min knife sparring, 8 x 3min grappling matches. Finished with push-ups & abs. Had great night of training.

Thurs. Biked 40 min. Strength training after.

Fri. Ran 5m.

Sat. Strength & conditioning

Sun. Ran 5m with 3 sets of one legged squats & pull - ups.

started back running this week. Foot is still hurting, not any worse though. The sparring Monday was a good test of stamina & sharpness. Stamina felt good, need to work on the sharpness. A few good bumps & bruises this week. Martial arts is life changing, makes everything possible.

Great training

Sometimes you have a training session that totally changes your mood, even outlook. Tonight I was feeling a bit run down, not really looking forward to putting myself back in the meat grinder. Turns out it was just Rick & Stats, two longtime black belts. My foot & back were hurting at the start. My mood soon all changed after a few bow staff sparring rounds. Those guys are so much fun to train with. We all seemed to be really enjoying the moment. It was as challenging as it was rewarding, a perfect blend of struggle & joy. It reminds me of two really important points, 1: no matter how you feel a great work- out can change the way you feel mentally & physically; 2: I really feel that those who do not get the opportunity to experience martial arts training are missing out on so many life changing aspects. One night training with two great guys will have a far reaching positive impact on me for a long time. Martial arts is incredible.

Week 8/6 - 8/12

Mon. Partner punching drills, 7 x 4 min hands only with take down matches, 2 x 6 min grappling with strikes. Finished with some strength training. Great work-out.

Tues. a.m. biked 50 min. Finished with 3 sets of pull-ups & one legged squats.
p.m. Forms, knife sparring, 4 x 4min. Grappling.

Wed. 4 x stick fighting, 4 x standup - hands only, 4 x grappling with strikes. All for 4 minutes each with 30 sec. break in-between. Abs & push-ups after.

Thurs. a.m. 50 min. On bike, with strength training after.

Fri. Forms

Sat. Forms, Pad work with strengthening after.

Sun. Biked 50 min. With more boring strength training.

Felt great sparring mon. & wed. 9 weeks left of specific training. Even though the strength training is beyond mundane, it seems to be working. My old bench mark for pull-ups was 20. That was my must have, wake up any day & do number. Well I'm finally getting back to that. I have been sleeping in a boot for the past 3 weeks to help my foot heal. Funny how strapping your foot into a clunky plastic boot while you sleep is somehow supposed to help. That combined with icing, rolling my calves, stretching hips, hamstrings, rolling my foot & a lot of complaining seems to be working. I'm hoping to try some easy running next week. I'm defenitly feeling the wear from the increased training. Still feel really lucky to have such great people around me to train with & be inspired. Having a blast.

Train Hard - Eat Great

 This is what I ate last night. 5 different fresh veggies.  I'm very lucky my wife is an awesome cook.

Kim always keeps us stocked up. This will not last long.

To reach your full physical potential, I am firm believer that your diet is just as important as the work-outs.  I changed my diet 18 years ago when i first started training martial arts.  Over the years I have modified, updated, & experimented with different things.  Overall the basics have stayed the same.  The more raw & natural the foods you can eat the better. Staying away from sugar & animal fats as much as possible.  I believe the way we feel(physically) day in & day out is largely due to what we eat.  Eat great - feel great.

week 7/30 - 8/5

Mon. Grappling drills. 8 x 4min matches. Finished with push-ups & abs.

Tues. a.m. 50 min on the bike followed by strength training.
p.m. bow sparring.

Wed. pad work, then strength training.

(Focus Master Training system)

This is what I use for pad work.  It's the next best thing to having someone hold pads for you.  It was the first thing I installed in our house 7 years ago.

Thurs. Nada. unexpected family matters

Fri. Biked 50 min. forms, then push-ups &  abs.

Sat. Back on the bike for 50 min. with just 3 sets of pull-ups & one legged squats after. I'm really looking forward to running the trails again. Sitting on my bike starring at the ground is not the same.

Sun. Chilled at the pool with the family then went to a classic rock concert with a good friend. Fun day.

My foot seems to be improving each week.  I'm hoping to get some boxing in next week then add some kicks into sparring in a couple of weeks. Still have 10 good weeks of training left.  I can feel my strength coming back ever so slowly.

Week 7/23 - 7/29

Mon. Sparring drills. 8 x 2min, 8 x 4 min, 7 x 1 min. Sparring rounds. Sparred straight through with a 30 sec. break between matches. Tons of fun, except for foot hurting.

Tues. a.m. biked 45 min then did 45 min strength training. No fun at all.
p.m. Forms, grappled 5 x 2 min, 1 x 3 min, 1 x 4 min, 1 x 11 min

Wed. Pad work 1 HR. Foot was killing me afterwords.

Thurs. a.m. Biked 45 min, strength training 45 min. Still not enjoying sitting on my bike in the 100 degree garage.
p.m. Adult belt test. Grappled all the jr. Black belts testing. Those kids are really good.

Fri. Forms & strength training. Kids phase three test at night.

Sat. Kids belt test. Did some good strength & conditioning training at night.

Sun. Biked 45 min with abs & push ups after.

Monday night sparring felt really good. I feel like the speed & timing is coming back. Little by little. I really paid for it afterwords. I could barley walk wed. night after the pad workout in the morning combined with sparring from mon. I have decided to take a break from most stand up sparring for a few weeks. Hopefully my left foot will some how heel up with the break. 11 weeks until test time. Not sure how the foot is going to hold up with sparring. It's hard to beat the feeling you get from setting a goal & then putting forth a plan to make it happen. The journey is the best part of achieving a goal.

Week 7/16 -7/22

Mon. Sparring drills, 6 x 3min rounds, abs, pushups

Tues. Forms, light grappling

Wed. a.m. 19 Fredrick stairs. 3 sets one legged squats
p.m. Drills, 4 x 4 min grappling. Abs & pushups

Thurs. Stipe test

Fri. Strength training

Sat. Nada

Sun. Chilled

Not really the way I wanted the week to go. Back & foot were really bothering me. Decided going up the steepest slope in the area is not helping my foot. Going to give up the hiking for the bike for a while. Sitting on a bike does not really motivate me to get out in the heat & build my cardio. Not going to Fredrick on friday & taking the weekend off seems to have helped my foot some. Still really look forward to the training. I find myself thinking about all the drills I want to do the next session.

Movie night

Karate Games, pizza, movie, & friends. We had a great time with everyone & look foward to the next one. Thanks to everyone who made it a great night.

TKD National Champ

Luke the "Duke" Simpson won his 3rd straight TKD tournament. Pretty awesome since that is not the particular style of sparring we do at World Karate. Luke traveled to Flordia last week & won the national championship in his division. While he was down there he popped into an MMA school for some sparring. Luke was complemented by the instructor on his ground sparring, not bad since we have hardly shown him any ground skills. Could Luke be the chosen one. If not, we are still really proud to have him on our team. Great Job.

Week 7/9 - 7/15

Mon. Sparring drills. 5 x 2 min. Rounds. Finished with strength & conditioning. Great turnout. Feel great & having a blast. My foot is still hurting a lot. Not sure if I should skip all sparring on my feet for a few weeks. I will probably just keep icing & whining about it.

Tues. Forms , some very light grappling.

Wed. a.m Hiked 11 stair sections @ Fredrick. Finished with 3 sets of one legged squats Super slippery & humid.
p.m take down dills, defensive kicking drill. 4 x 3 min ground matches, finished with abs & pushups.

Thurs. Hands only sparring matches. Still slow, but footwork & timing is improving.

Fri. 16 stair repeats @ Fredrick, 3 sets of one legged squats. Whoever told me one legged squats were a good idea, was wrong.

Sat. Rode bike for 45 min. No fun

Sun. Forms & strength training.

I hurt my back during Monday nights workout. Still really bothering me on wed. Took it easy so I didn't feel like I was able to push myself like I wanted to. Still some good training that I badly need. Wed. was Sean G's Birthday, I can remember when that kid was knee high, know he's above me. What a cool way to spend your birthday. Still having so much fun training with the guys.

Week 7/2 - 7/8

Mon. Josh & I hiked up Union peak. Not very exciting, just straight up a ski slope. The views were totally worth the trampling through bushes & rutty slopes. 2500ft of gain & 5.8 miles round trip.

Tues. Bagged Jacque Peak with Josh. Same route up the slope as Union. Crossed the saddle to the 900ft climb up Jacque @ 13205ft. Got to the top just after 8 am. No wind, clear skies, & views of 3 different mt ranges. Great way to start the day. 3500ft of gain 8.8 miles round trip.
P.M. Practiced forms & did some abs & push-ups.

Wed. Hiked 5 miles with Jeffrey on the CO trail. Can't wait to do all 500 with him someday.

Thurs. Hiked 6 miles of CO trail with Kim, Lindsay, & boys. Same route with an extra 300ft of climbing.
P.M. Abs & push-ups

Fri. Best hike of the week. Jumped on the CO trail to the base of Copper peak. Went straight up the scree slope to the summit. Josh & I blazed down the double black slope trying not to ski on our face. We hit the saddle to Union peak & made our way up the ridge. Took the most direct line back to the house. 3400ft of gain 8.2 miles.

Sat. 15.5 hrs driving home.

Sun. Sick

Great week in the mountains. Taking a week off from teaching always gives me that recharge to keep the mental energy high. We were very fortunate to have a house(very, very, nice) lent to us by a very generous family. I only hope my boys are not too dissapointed staying at the super 8 motel next vacation.

Lets Battle

I wish we had nerf guns like these when I was a kid. These things could shoot across the room. A kid had one that would shoot like 10 per second. We started out with some target practice on the mirrors.

After everyone had there aim down, we then started the nerf battle. 15 pizzas & 2.5 hours later we called it a night. Shooting foam darts at friends is a great way to spend a Friday night at any age.

Week 1 : 6/25 - 7/1

Sun. Traveling back from California. Had a blast crewing for elite ultra runner Liza Howard @ the western states 100. Got to run 40 miles of the ws trail. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday. Got home at 2:20 am. No training

Mon. Still tired from 6 hrs of sleep over past 72hrs. Was going to do some conditioning exercises, thought sleep sounded better.

Tues. Worked bow form, grappled a few fun matches, finished with pushups, abs, & medicine ball strenghth & conditioning drills. Stretched before bed.

Wed. Drilled getting to clinch, single leg take down from hook, protecting the open guard from passing & strikes, rotating off the wall, 4 x hold dominate position & 4 x escape. Finished with abs. Went home did some dumbbell strengthening drills. Man I feel slow & weak. Having a blast.

Thurs. 4 sparring matches. 25 minutes without stopping. Except for changing partners & some whining.

Fri. Practiced forms for 1hr & did a 30 min strength & conditioning workout.

Sat. Drove 17 hrs. Got to CO @ 5:20am. Didn't feel like doing much except sleeping & enjoying the mountain air.

Sun. Soaked in views , enjoyed good company, day dreamed about training.

Week 1 of 16 in the bag. Felt really good putting in some good focused effort. Had a ton of fun wed. night with the guys. Man, we have some really good black belts to train with. No egos, just good training. Already looking forward to getting back with them.

Let the training begin

So it's been 9 years since I last tested for a rank. I'm hoping with some focused effort I will be ready to go this October. I will spend the next 16 weeks preparing my mind & body to showcase all that I have learned in martial arts. I have been planning to test since last year. My endurance is far past where it needs to be for October. My speed & explosive power however is nowhere even close to ready. I will be replacing my 15-20 hrs of running with a gauntlet of drills to help with the quick movements that one needs to excel in the arts. Running 100 miles in the mountains helps the mental toughness & endurance, not so much on the speed it takes to dodge a punch or stuff a takedown. I just started this week on my 16 week plan & I'm already having a blast. Sometimes when you have been teaching so long you forget how munch fun it is just to train yourself. I'm very fortunate that this go around I have so many skilled treamates to train with. 9 years ago Josh & I almost killed each other not having enough partners to mix it up. I really do feel so lucky to have the people around me to train with. My plan is to blog each week of training. Many people over the years have asked me what my training is like. Well now they will get to read about it. Not the same as being apart of the actual sweat, bumps, & bruises. Still you can imagine from a distance. Now it's off to stretch my hips which have become super tight.