Lots Fun on Fox4 News This Week! Defend against a surprise side attack

This week my time on Fox4 KC News was filled with lots of laughs; I think it's because prior to recording we were talking about how great the Renaissance Festival in Kansas City is (I love it!).  But this light-hearted mood led to a segment filled with jokes, talk of using a turkey leg as a weapon, and lots of "sound effects".  Apparently, the sounds effects were quite entertaining although I didn't even realize I was doing them!  Ha!  Fun times...

Check out this week's segment at: http://fox4kc.com/2013/09/22/self-defense-sunday-protect-yourself-from-a-side-attack/

Remember to click on the "Recommend" and "Share" buttons!

A Blessed Life...

My grandfather passed away this week.  Luckily, I took my kids down to see him and my grandmother last weekend so we were able to see him during his last days; something I feel very blessed for.  Seeing him in that state, and seeing my grandmother with him, has left me with a few images that will forever be imprinted in my mind.  Although his consciousness was fleeting, in the brief moments we did have, you could tell how much it meant to him to see his family and his great grandchildren.  In one moment, his reached out and held my 4 month old daughter's foot and he smiled with joy.  Another time, he just stared into my son’s eyes, almost in awe, finally saying: “he looks like you”.  And after each time we leaned over to tell him “we love you”, we got a “love you” in return.  These were some of the last words my grandfather spoke.  Wow.

But one of the images that has impacted me the most was from the last time we went in to see him.  He was not really conscious at the time so we went over to see my grandmother.  Soon after, she got up, walked over to his room (they were in a rehabilitation center together), saw his state, and just leaned over to give him a kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss on the lips; even from across the room you could feel how much she loves him; my heart ached for her.

They celebrated their 70^th wedding anniversary this year.  Actually, both sets of my grandparents celebrated their 70^th wedding anniversary this year.  Amazing.  I told each of them that they are an inspiration.  Although I am so saddened to think of my grandmother’s love passing on, I am moved to my core by how much they stood by each other, loving and supporting each other as one unit.

As my husband says, “that is a blessed life”.  I am reminded how important it is to tell and show your loved ones how much they mean to you.  And I am reminded how important it is to believe in them and support them. 

I think of my husband and how much we love and support each other; I would say we do an amazing job of that.  And I hope that we can be as blessed as my grandparents, with at least 70 great years together.
 

So, my test for my next black belt is tonight; I will let you know how it goes.

Tone Your Triceps with the Tricep-Punch Combo

I’m down to a week for my next black belt test; wow.  There really is no way to cram years of training into a week of prep so all I can do now is walk through (mentally and physically) my material as much as possible and then trust in myself.  So, I have a whole week to combat any jitters that pop up with a mental pep talk of: “come on, I can do this!  I’ve got this!  I will get through it and I will do great!” etc. But to be honest, once you have the training and the practice, it’s your confidence and faith in yourself that is one of the biggest determining factors for how you will perform.

Today is a lovely dare-I-say (almost) Fall weather day.  I’m sitting here enjoying a bowl of freshly cut peaches, kiwi, and purple grapes (so sweet and satisfying who could need candy!) with a spaghetti squash in the oven to eat with my fresh picked tomato, zucchini, and pepper meat sauce.  Yum, yum, yum!  It’s an ultra healthy food day that makes me really appreciate the warm weather and the delicious foods we can grow.    I have a small garden in the back and although it’s my first year with it, and I definitely could have done a better job, there is still something so special and rewarding about going out to pick my own fruits and vegetables (especially with my son).

If you haven’t jumped into gardening, there is still time to jump in and try it out.  Broccoli and kale are two super green foods that love the cooler Fall weather.  Although we are past the prime time to plant, head to your local nursery to find matured vegetables you can still plant and harvest.  Plus, they can fill you in on what you need to do to help them thrive.  Later this Fall I will write up some of my favorite broccoli and kale recipes so we can all savor the bounty of our efforts together!  Live here in Kansas City?  I love going in to Soil Service Nursery Center on 71^st and Troost; I always find them to be knowledgeable, helpful, and with quality plants.

This week we are going to focus on the arms with the:

Tricep-Punch Combo

Note:  You will want to use a hand weight to kick up the volume on this exercise.   Don’t have a hand weight?  Grab a can of soup, a bottle of water, or any other weighted item you can hold onto. 

Start in a mini lunge position with your left foot in front.  Pull your belly in, open and lift your chest, and relax your shoulders.  In addition, activate your thigh muscles and feel as though everything is pulling into your middle.  Hold the weight in your right hand and bring your hand up to your armpit (consider this your starting position).  From here, extend your hand out behind you, lifting up until your feel your tricep muscle activate; reset to your starting position.  Now punch out in front of you, pressing out with your tricep and pulling back in with your bicep.  This is one repetition.  Do 10-20 reps on each side for 2-3 rounds.

Have a great week and good luck with the veggies!

Active Breathing -- Calm the mind and center yourself

The importance of silence…

It has been quite a week, make that a month.  Like I’ve said before, I am an optimist.  An optimist and what I have dubbed: a solution finder.  Basically that means I always try to see the best in the world and when an issue comes up, rather than getting all worked up or wrapped up in drama, I simply go to finding “solutions” to take care of the issue…rework the path for merely a slight detour instead of getting stopped in a construction zone.  However, sometimes things build up so much that even my optimistic nature and solution finding abilities start to crumble a bit; I have found myself in a situation this week.

I think my limit happened last Thursday evening when we had to rush my son to the ER to get stitches.  Man, the look in his eye when they held him down to put 5 stitches between his eyes…I think that scene (and his face when he initially got hurt) will haunt me for quite awhile.  But in the end, it’s not just this one event that has taken it’s toll on me, but rather all of the recent events that seem to have put a vice on my heart and a weight on my shoulders.  So what to do…

The answer came yesterday evening when I went out to sit on my front steps for a few minutes, all by myself:  I need some time alone to just be.  Being out in nature with nothing going on around me except the wind blowing in the trees allowed me to just sit and breathe; breathe in calm and peace and exhale out the tension and stress I was holding onto.  I finally felt some of the weight being lifted off my shoulders and as though I could re-center myself.  The 5 minutes I had definitely wasn’t enough so in the evening, after my tennis lesson (I picked up tennis lessons after my daughter was born for something fun to do), I went for “a drive”.  I had the windows down and drove through all the pretty streets in my area.  No music.  No phone.  Just the gentle breeze and warm night air coming in through the windows.  And I realized here how easy it is to get caught up in the chaos of life; to always have something going on to distract us from just being, centering, and connecting with ourselves.  In this day and age we are constantly bombarded with information, noise, activity, technology, etc. that even when we have a few moments with “nothing to do” we fill it up!  But, the thing is, sometimes it’s in the simplicity of the silence that we can find peace.

This week, I encourage all of you to give yourself a few minutes to just sit and be.  Sit outside or sit inside, it really doesn’t matter (although outside adds in the meditative component of watching the breeze in the trees, the birds chirping, etc.); the key is to put away all of your distractions and just breathe.  Breathe in the silence, the calm, and all the potential life holds; and breathe out whatever is running you frazzled or weighting you down.

Active Breathing

This will be our exercise of the week.  Although it doesn't seem like much, learning how to breathe properly takes effort and dedication, just like toning your arms or your backside.  We will do this exercise standing but you can do it just as easily from a seated position. 

Start with your feet about hip width apart; roll you pelvis forward slightly feeling the lengthening in your lower back.  Pull your belly in, open and lift your chest, and relax your shoulders.  Feel your feet grounding you to the Earth and the crown of your head lifting up to the heavens.  Maintaining this position, inhale thru your nose, breathing all the way down into your lower lungs; this means your shoulders should stay stationary while your floating ribs (bottom ones) expand out.  Pause at the peak of the inhale, feeling the expansion in your body.  Now, slowly exhale from your belly, sighing out any tension or stress, centering your body and mind (your exhale should be audible).  Continue this breathing, in and out. 

Now, as you inhale, reach your arms out to the sides and up overhead, opening your chest as you go.  Again, pause at the peak of the inhale, lengthening your spine.  Exhale, slowly bringing your arms back down by your sides.  Inhale, lengthen; exhale, relax.  Repeat for 5-10 breaths.  Then, just stand or sit, continuing to fill up your body with good and center back in to yourself.  With proper breathing, you should feel at peace and yet invigorated at the end.

Cheers to all of us having a calming and centering week.

Strong Legs and Great Cardio with "Speedy Steps"

As you know, I am getting myself ready to test for my next rank in the martial arts; in it’s essence, this is a goal, just like any other you might set for yourself.  And just like all good goals, there is a deadline attached to it.  And, like all the paths taken to achieve a goal, sometimes it gets a bit bumpy.  This week, I was tired and lacking enthusiasm to workout and practice my material.  But alas, I have this big deadline looming over my head, demanding that I not give in and “rest on my laurels”.

Although it was my deadline that got me started in the workout last night, it was one of my students that helped me do just the little bit extra I talked about in my last blog.  During class we were doing the following exercise of the week.  I came up next to this student (I’ll call him “Awesome D”) and started doing it alongside him, going a bit faster than he was.  The result of this went as follows:

Awesome D: “Awe! You’re making me look bad!” (said jokingly)

Me:  “Come on!  Get it!” (chuckling along with him)

To which he responded by speeding up even faster than I was going…challenging me with a friendly:

Awesome D: “Where you at???”

This of course “forced” me to step it up and match this new, top-speed pace!  It was this friendly competition that got both of us to go that extra bit and have fun along the way. 

Sometimes it’s hard to stay on track, but having a deadline and some friendly competition might be just what you need to keep on going and get you to achieve your goal.  If you are trying to reach a goal, set a deadline; this gives you an endpoint to strive toward (when you reach your deadline, reevaluate and repeat the process).  You also want to develop a relationship with your instructors; they will help you set realistic goals and keep you accountable (at my martial arts/fitness studio we call our students when they don’t show up and follow up on their progress at least every week).  Lastly, get to know your classmates; you can razz each other, encourage each other, and overall keep the process a bit more fun.

Speedy Steps

Note:  You can use any height of step for this exercise.  (I like to use 12”-18” step.)

Start in front of the step, belly in, chest open and lifted, and head up.  Step up with your left foot, followed with your right foot; then step down with your left, followed with your right foot.  That’s it!  Go as fast as you can for 30 seconds, starting with your left; repeat on the right side for 30 seconds.  If you aren’t huffing and puffing (with your legs burning), speed it up!  If you still need more of a challenge, increase the time and the height of your step.

How to: Get-Into-Shape-Immediately

It's official. I just found out I'm testing for my 3rd degree black belt in a month.  As you know, I just had my baby girl 3 months ago so instead of excitement, I'm filled with nerves. So, I have now started the "must-get-back-into-shape-immediately" game plan. Now, here's the great thing about this plan: I'm not doing anything crazy to get back into shape. Come on, I have to be realistic!  I am still taking care of 2 kiddos all day and having to provide the exclusive sustenance for 1 of them (nursing); I have to take in enough calories and have enough energy to do both of those things. 

This is important because it makes what I'm going to do to get back into shape is something all of you can do.  Yes, we all want to look and feel great in as little time as possible, but who wants to do some crazy workout-2-hours-every-day plan to get there?  Very few people.  And you know what?  Only very, very, very few people will maintain the results they get from doing it that way; it's just not sustainable.  Instead, overall good health and fitness is something you have to work at every day and every week.  Sorry!  But, if you want (or in my case need) to step it up for a bit, you can do it by simply making the most out of the time you have to workout.

I'm going to be doing at least a little bit each day to help tone my muscles, build endurance, and remembering my material (since for me I am working toward attaining that 3rd degree).  And the times that I have a scheduled workout planned, I am going to push myself as hard as I can.  Yes, that means I expect to be dripping sweat at the end of my workouts, and to be sore, but that's what I need to do to get results.  When I do squats (or a horse stance in martial arts), I'm going to push my limits and get my legs burn.  When I punch, I'm going to punch with gusto and put my whole body into it, and when I do my "break" exercises (like jogging in place), I'm going to try and go just that little bit faster than my normal pace.  And that last bit is what is key: just do that little bit extra....that little bit more effort....that little bit lower or harder...that is what is going to get me into shape and ready for my test.

For all of you out there, if you are trying to reach a goal, start with something you can do. 
1. Give yourself an "end date" that is in the near future (for me, that's my test).  This way you know that you need to do that little bit extra for just ____ weeks; then you can re-evaluate at that time.
2. Do a little something each day to bring you closer to your goal.  It can be as simple as taking the stairs instead of the elevator, going up and down the stairs twice instead of once, parking farther away from the store entrance, and walking briskly. 
3. In all of your scheduled workouts, do just that little bit extra.
4. Lastly, if you really want to get in shape, you need to workout (and by workout I mean get yourself sweating) at least 3 days a week (ideally 4).

All of you can do those 4 steps, just like I am.


Only have a few minutes?  Try this quick workout to get your blood pumping and tone your body.

20 Jumping Jacks
20 sets of Front Two-Knuckle Punches
10 Squat Front-ball Kicks
5 Push-ups
15 Mountain Climbers

Repeat 2-4 more times.

Fast Feet! Easy to do and great for your legs

This is a great week. It's not that anything really special has happened, it's just one of those weeks where everything seems beautiful and good: the weather (even when it's raining), my kids (even when the are crying, my hubby (even though he was out of town).  I am definitely an optimist by nature, but I still enjoy weeks like this where I seem to be able to find happiness and pleasure in everything.

My little girl just turned 3 months old (and my son 2 years old); it's amazing how fast that time has gone. I am finally feeling like my body will let me do most of my martial arts moves again so now it's just working back up my endurance and strength. The great thing is that I know I can do it (just like you can), I just have to keep working on it, one workout at a time.

This week is about your legs. I use this exercise in every class as part of our warmup (and sometimes mixed into some agility training). So get ready for:

Fast Feet

This is me, 3 months after having my beautiful baby girl

Think of this exercise as jogging in place really fast and with really small movements.  Start with your feet together, belly in, head up. For your "fast feet", stay on the balls of your feet and only lift each foot up about an inch. Bend down into your legs making sure to not lift back up as you lift your feet up (don't bounce, stay low and steady). Next, you want to make sure to not waddle from side to side as you pick up your feet; think of your upper body staying totally stationary the entire time. This will isolate into your quads, inner thighs, and hip flexors. If you don't feel in working these areas, make sure your knees are bent, you're staying low, and you're not tipping side to side; from the top up you should hardly tell that you are moving your body at all. If you are having a hard time keeping still, try doing this in front of a mirror so you can watch your shoulders and keep them flat.

That's it!  Go for at least 30 seconds - 1 minute, building up to longer. To mix it up, try going out wide with your feet, keeping your movement the same as with your feet together.

Have fun with it!  Make "smoke" come off those feet from moving so fast!