Our Family Is Becoming MMA
On Monday night, Big I and the rest of our family went to watch a Danzan Ryu Jujitsu class to see if she might be interested in taking some classes. I have taken a seminar or two during annual trainings in the past and it was always really cool stuff. There are plenty of moves to learn, but no kata. Interested doesn't even begin to describe how into it Big I was while watching, and even after we came home.
As she watched the two students and instructor demonstrating the things that she would learn, she sat quietly. I heard an occasional "wow, that was cool." The instructor is starting a children's program in a couple of weeks and it looks like Big I is going to be one of his first child students. Because I stayed for karate class later in the night, I didn't get to really ask her about her interest level, but I had a feeling she was hooked.
My suspicion was confirmed yesterday as she asked Mr. BBM if she could try out a couple of the moves she learned on Monday night. He grabbed her arm and she made him take a seat on the ground in mere seconds. She's definitely excited about starting jujitsu, and I am thrilled she's staying with the martial arts in one form or another.
On Monday night, after watching jujitsu for a while, I went upstairs to karate class. There were only four of us and we worked on bo kata and bunkai. There's nothing quite like bunkai to realize how many cobwebs have grown in the karate portion of your brain. Lacking practice and polish, I hit Ikigai on the ankle with my bo twice. I said "sorry" too. Here's hoping that push-ups for sorry's isn't instituted anytime soon.
When class was finished, I asked the very forgiving Ikigai to help me get Chounokun back in my head. It took a good 20-30 minutes, but I left the dojo reaquainted with the kata enough to be able to come home and get through it on my own.
I've decided that I'm going to run through all the kata I know well every day. I'm avoiding the ones where parts have gone missing. I don't want to practice and repractice it the wrong way. If I keep doing that, then hopefully the cobwebs will clear a little faster.
Through it all, my knee has been holding up great. I'm wearing my brace and that has provided a little extra support of the mental and physical variety. The most uncomfortable thing so far has been the rei at the beginning of each kata, class, etc. I just don't have the same extension I have with the other leg. Without even realizing it, I tend to try to make the legs match and my left knee always protests with a big enough shot of pain to remind me to knock it off.
I can't tell you though, how nice it is to replace knee bruising with some bo bruising on the arms. I didn't think it was possible to be happy about the bo bruising, but this is one girl happy to have some bo bruising back in her life. It's about time.
Don't forget to leave a comment over at The BBM Review for your chance to win one of three Spa Break baskets.
Also, leave a comment on any of the Admired Martial Artists' posts and you'll be entered to win one of several great MA prizes.
Beverages, Bathrobes, and Party Crashers
Eleven women. No kids. No husbands. Add a spa and you have a weekend to remember.
This past weekend was the annual trek to the Hershey Hotel and spa. A bunch of my girlfriends from Pitt planned it last year and I was unable to attend. This year, I committed to the weekend months in advance because I knew I couldn't miss it.
We arrived on Friday evening and spent the night sitting in the middle of our three hotel rooms and having beverages, lots and lots of "beverages." One of my friends brought the board game "I've Never." If you haven't ever played the game "I've Never" then just imagine being about 12, at a party, and it's your turn to go into the closet with some random boy for "7 minutes in Heaven," not that I've ever done that or anything (Ok, so I did it once, but we both sat there under the coats and talked about ice hockey. I kid you not). The uneasiness and discomfort of that junior high scenario. . .can you remember that. . . well "I've Never" is the adult version when it comes to uncomfortable situations.
Clearly I didn't have enough of those beverages on Friday; and clearly, women are way worse than men when it comes to talking about sex. Clearly.
Also, there was much discussion about important things like how to solve the economic crisis in our country. Don't worry. These girls are on the job.
Actually, I believe they're debating lime or no lime. Or not.
Saturday morning, I was up before eight, dressed and out the door. The Hotel Hershey had a really nice fitness center and I was going to get my money's worth. On Friday evening, one of my friends said she would come along with me, but that was a beverage-induced affirmative. Saturday morning found most of my fellow girls either still sleeping or having a desperate need to stay horizontal.
They got some amusement out of me showing up in my "Lazy Sucks-Just Do It" t-shirt before heading off to the gym. At 8:15 a.m. I started my workout. I spent some time walking and running on the treadmills that overlooked the Hershey gardens. I made my way around the fitness center trying to figure out their equipment (Note to future hotel guests-the slant board sucks). At 9:30 a.m., I returned to the room with an apple to find my room still completely dark. They were awake, but no one was moving very fast.
Many of the girls thought I was insane to go to the gym so early on a day when I could have slept in, but the truth of the matter is that being able to get up and go to the gym without having to get other little people dressed and to sitters or Kidzone was like a little slice of heaven.
Soon after I returned, it was time to hit the spa.
We were shown to a locker room where we changed into bath robes and slipper/sandal things. Then we were given a tour of the spa and told where to wait until we were called for our spa appointments. It was 11 a.m. and after a hard workout and only an apple I was starving, but as soon as I picked up a muffin my massage guy came to get me.
Yes, I said guy.
In the past, I've always had a woman whenever I've gone to get a massage. The guy was super nice and he did a good job, but I just couldn't relax the way I was able to when it was a woman. After the massage, I met up with my friends and we had lunch outside, in our bathrobes. To say that dining in such attire, or lack thereof, felt weird, would be the understatement of the century. At one point, I told my friend it kind of felt like we were in a mental institution, let out for some fresh air or something.
After lunch, I spent some time in the steam room, dry sauna, hot tub and pool. It was a relaxing afternoon and I was sorry to see it end. That's all of us, minus the one working the camera.
For dinner, we went to the Forbay restaurant at the Hershey Lodge. My dinner was spectacular, but the highlight of my weekend came after we arrived back at the hotel.
The lounge was featuring a jazz band as the live entertainment and upon entering, we brought the median age down to around 70. I ventured off to find a restroom with two of my friends when we happened to walk by a banquet room where there was an awesome band playing.
"We should totally crash that party," I said to my friends. We laughed about it between the bathroom stalls, but as we were about to walk by it again, we couldn't help but linger a bit longer. We started dancing out in the hallway and before you know it, and much to my surprise, my friend Kim strutted right into the banquet room and onto the dance floor. I was happy to follow her.
At first we thought it was a wedding we were crashing but a quick glance of the room revealed there was no bride. Another one of my friends ventured off to find out exactly what kind of party we had crashed and found out that we had crashed an "Auto Traders Association's" annual banquet.
It was obvious that the three of us were the best thing to happen to that party. One of the guys from the band came out on the floor, took our purses and put them up on stage (to keep us there), and practically begged us to stay. They kept playing songs "for the crashers," and we spent the night dancing to jazzed up Santana, Amy Winehouse, and Christina Aguilera tunes. At one point, the main band guy wanted to "slow it down" and when I protested he found me a dance partner.
I found out more about my friend Kim at that crashed banquet than ever before. First, she can dance like Tina Turner, better actually. In fact, I spent the rest of the weekend calling her "Tina." Second, she's up for anything once you get her out of her shell. Third, that girl can play a mean tambourine.
Needless to say, it was quite fun.
I came home yesterday afternoon to an empty house and was able to snag a decent nap before Mr. BBM got home with the girls. I woke up thinking that the spa weekend was really nice, but that party crashing might just be my new calling.
To be entered to win your very own Spa Break Basket, head on over to The BBM Review for all the details and leave a comment telling me why you deserve a spa break.
To be entered to win one of several great martial arts prizes, please leave a comment on any of the Admired Martial Artists posts.
Self Defense Advice from a Pioneer
In 1975 I was in college. There was a notice posted about a Women's Self Defense course being taught in the auditorium. At the time I had just started training and was a yellow belt. I went to the program and there was a woman giving a lecture about self defense for women. She was an excellent speaker and I left there feeling empowered by what she said. I knew that someday, when I knew enough karate, that I wanted to teach women's self defense classes also.
Months later I was at a karate tournament. I noticed the only woman judge was the same woman that taught the self defense program at the college. There she was up on the ring with the men wearing a red and white belt. I didn't know what a red and white belt was. I am teaching my 29th Annual Women's Self Defense program this year. I still say the exact words that I heard in 1975 in that program at college.
That woman who taught me so much about women's self defense was Bobbi Snyder. I admire Bobbi Snyder for all she did for women in the art. She is the true Mother of Karate. She opened many doors and plowed the way for us to follow in her footsteps. I am honored to use her words in my classes.
Some of things she said are as follows.
She told us no one is with us 24/7 to protect and take care of us; it is up to us to defend ourselves. If you are confronted, don't expect anyone to run to your aid. No one wants to get involved. Never yell for help; no one will help you. Yell "fire" because everyone will run to see the fire. Don't be a quiet victim; yell and scream. Make a scene.
We must be aware of our surroundings at all times. Trust your gut instinct. That voice is there to protect you. When you meet someone, that first impression is 99.9% of the time correct. If you must strike someone, remember the three main target areas: eyes, knees and groin. Also remember that if they can't see you, they can't find you. If they can't run, they can't catch you. Survive and thrive.
Ms. Bobbi Snyder, age 72, passed away in August of 2008 in Pittsburgh, PA. Ms. Snyder was one of the first black belt women competitors in the United States Karate Organization in the 60's. At a time when all women were forced to compete together in one ring regardless of belt rank, and were not allowed to judge any ring, she fought for equality and stood up for women and men as well in all areas of martial arts.
***Leave a comment (or several) on any of the featured martial artists' posts during the month of March, and you'll be entered to win one of several great prizes. For details on the presented writers this month or for more information about the prizes, go here.
Trial by Fire-Back in the Dojo Baby
I decided to take my first night back slowly. I figured I'd skip the early class, roll in a little early for the second class, stretch, and then ease my way back into the dojo with a one hour work-out. I came out of the locker room gi'd up and ready to go. As I climbed the stairs, a karate Mom and friend of mine started cheering for me. The Shodan teaching the kids class downstairs began singing, "We are the Champions." It was a overkill, just a bit, but it sure felt nice.
I made my way upstairs and stretched in the waiting area while I watched the first class wrap up.
People were taking turns doing individual bo kata. I willed myself to be invisible in the waiting area. After a 17 month break, it's not all in there right now, at least not in an area easily tapped. I knew Hanshi wouldn't make me, but still. Invisible I was, just in case.
The beginner class wrapped up and Hanshi came over, shook my hand, and gave me a hug. The advanced class was starting. Instead of the traditional kneeling rei in, Hanshi announced that we would be standing as he nodded in my direction. The class was loaded with black belts and two other brown belts. I was the only girl. A nice and easy start back, or not.
Hanshi told everyone to get a pair of kama. Kama? Kama.
I've worked with the kama maybe twice, once in class a long time ago and once at a training camp. They are super cool to work with, but I was kind of hoping for some non-black belt stuff on my first night back. Hanshi was sure to give me a pair of wooden kama and we got started.
The stances felt fine. I don't know that I had them all as they should be because I was too busy trying not to stab myself, but cat stance felt decent. Nai hanshi stance was mostly ok, and even kosa dachi felt ok. The worst position knee-wise was actually the rei at the beginning of each kata. I thought I had stretched my leg out enough, but I definitely need to keep working on my flexibility in that leg.
At one point in the kama kata, there's a jump. Hanshi looked right at me and said, "no jumping." I told him not to worry, but when we got to that part I thought I'd try a little hop to see what happened. It went fine, so the next jump I went a bit higher (I'm talking about two inches total here people so don't get too excited).
When we were finished with kama, we moved onto tekkos (think old school brass knuckles). I made it through the kata, and even made it through a couple kicks. I may not have had all the moves down but the basic aspects of the kata felt good.
When class was over, we did the final rei out (standing again-Thank you Hanshi!) and Hanshi made a special point of welcoming me back. All the guys clapped and smiled. It was a very nice welcome back.
The best thing about tonight? I didn't think about my knee the whole time like I did the last time I tried to make my comeback. I was concentrating on the new moves I was learning and feeling so fantastic to be back that I wouldn't allow the uncertainty of my knee situation to come onto the dojo floor with me. Plus when you're trying not to impale yourself with kama, you tend to think more about your arms and hands than your bum knee.
It may have been a long wait to get back, but it seems to have done me well mentally. I think I'm much more prepared this time, than I was the last time I tried to come back.
As I write this tonight, my knee is feeling good. We'll see how it feels tomorrow, but I think this comeback is going to stick. It feels SO incredibly good to be back.
Finally. . .
Admired Martial Artists month just got even more exciting! There are now several cool giveaways. All you need to do to be entered to win is leave a comment on one of the Admired Martial Artist posts. The more comments you leave, the more chances you have to win. Check out the main AMA page for details on the prizes, and check back often. More prizes may be added in the days to come!
We also have a cool non-martial arts giveaway coming up on The BBM Review in just a few days. Think spa people. Oh yeah!
It’s Admired Martial Artists Month!
For new posts, please scroll down! Thanks for stopping by!
March is an exciting month here on Black Belt Mama. Not only will there be an exciting guest post from admired martial artists each week, but now there are also giveaway prizes from Martial Arts Supplies, Turtle Press, from Kyoshi Hayes, and from Bags of Character (and there may be others too)! For your chance to win, leave a comment on any of the posts featuring one of the Admired Martial Artists. The more comments you leave, the more opportunities for you to win! If you post the Admired Martial Artists button and link back here, you'll automatically get three additional entries! (Shoot me an email with the details.) Just click on one of the featured posts below (look for the banner) and leave a comment for your chance to win! For more details on the prizes, visit the Admired Martial Artists main page.
Admired Martial Artist Posts
The Importance of Control (Less Boring than it Sounds) by Sandan Matthew Apsokardu
Self Defense Advice from a Pioneer by Kyoshi Nancy Caliguri
Why a Kid Needs to Learn to Fail Successfully by Kyoshi Ann-Marie Heilman
There Are No Stances in Kobudo by Hanshi C. Bruce Heilman
Deepening the Way by Kyoshi Bill Hayes
What is Sometimes Hidden, You Oversee by Kyoshi Rick Zondlo
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