Connecting with the Team

I have made a realization this week that has widened my field of view a little bit.

Looking at previous years, I do not have a very good track record for blogging. I can make any number of excuses for it, but ultimately, it was mediocrity on my behalf. Back then, I could be found at nearly every single class throughout the week, every open training, every event, etc. When we would talk about how important blogging is for keeping us connected and up-to-date with the team, I would shrug it off simply because I had a strong physical attendance. I realize now just how wrong I was.

I have always cherished the interpersonal connections the IHC team has created for me. The Kwoon was my home away from home and the team was the family to go with it. When I started this year and knew I was not going to have my usual in-the-flesh attendance record, it really donned on me just how vital blogging will be for keeping me connected with the team. However, I have realized this mindset was wrong. 

Blogging has not kept me connected with the team. Rather, it has kept the team connected with me. Blogging is not a two-way communication; it is essentially the same as sending a letter. We each send out letters and that is how we stay connected.

With that said, putting aside the few classes I can attend in person, blogging sometimes feels like my only link to the team. As such, I have been extremely thankful for everyone who has been blogging. I still feel connected. I still feel as though I am experiencing your journey the same way I always have. Above and beyond that, Todai Ferris's daily blogs have been really good for this. It's as though I am still present, every single day, experiencing her journey. It has definitely helped with the isolation I have been feeling.

On the flip side, for those have been blogging very infrequently or not at all, I do not have that same feeling of connection. Unfortunately, I do not know where you are at in your journey. I do not know how far you have come or where you plan to go, and it makes me a little sad, to be honest. Blogging is supposed to reap benefits for you and because of that, this next request may seem selfish. But please, let me be connected.

Regaining Balance

Something I have realized lately is that I need to be a lot more careful of over-exertion. It kind of hit me during the last meeting. Over the last few months, I have not taken a lot of time for rest and relaxation, nor for much of personal activities. While I have not had much issue with this personally, it has occurred to me this that attitude has been my downfall before. During my grading year, I did not let up the gas very much, nor was I taking very good care of my body. By the time of the banquet, I had come down with a case of pneumonia in which I am still impacted by today, although I have come a long ways since. 

Lately, I have been struggling with a strain in my trapezoid muscles. Some days are better than others for sure, but I have had to be careful not to push myself with certain forms and techniques, lest I be subject to a rather irksome amount of pain. Could this have been prevented had I been more careful? It seems as though there are reminders every day that I am not the same unstoppable force of nature I thought I was six years ago. 

Despite balance being something I have always cherished and sought after, it seems to be pretty easy for me to lose it. Of course, balancing everything in life all at once is a monumental task, so it is not something I am entirely alarmed about. That said, I definitely need to work on regaining my exertion/rest balance or I am going to face the consequences for it. This will be something I can really focus on during my time working this summer.

VKR 03: Snake and Parabolic Speed

As we discussed favourite forms yesterday, mine is undoubtedly Snake. In fact, the reasons why it is my favourite form is the same reason why I picked it as my IHC form: there is so much I can learn from it. I think Snake is one of the easiest forms for me to personalize and play around with, for a reason that I can now properly explain being a few posts into the VKR series. To recount, my nine existing core visualizations that I represent in my movements are the four elements and five animals of Kung Fu. So my visualization for Snake is, you guessed it, a snake. The fact that this form uses a single visualization so whole-heartedly makes developing the visualization very easy, as I do not have to worry about certain moves not flowing with my mindset. Its like going to paint a room and the colour you are using is blue. Not cerulean blue or baby blue or sky blue, just blue. It really simplifies things for me.

As such, I can put my brain effort into developing my understanding of a snake. Now, as funny as it may be, snakes actually happen to be one of my least favourite animals. I am absolutely terrified of them. I have a very good understanding of how things can move and work based on skeletal structures and ranges of motion, and that is why they terrify me. I cannot predict how a snake will move. It feels like they can move any way they feel like, and with enough speed I am unable to react in time. As far as I am concerned, it should be counted as a violation of nature. That said, it is this very concept I have been trying to emulate recently with my form.

Snake has several techniques which one could count as "unpredictable". Lots of twists and turns and suddenly bending backwards, etc. To highlight and develop this unpredictability, I have been trying to emulate the extreme change in speeds at which a snake moves. You know, when they reaaaaaalllllly slowly slither and coil up before moving at a speed too fast for the human eye? In my form, I have been working on dropping my speed during my transition moves and jacking it back up for my strikes. Slow, fast, slow, fast, slow, fast, much like a parabola. Since I have become cognisant of this development, I feel like the depth of my form has improved exponentially and I am ecstatic to see how far I can take it.

Busy Bee and Video Kung Fu

As I have been super busy lately, I have had days where it is tricky to get form numbers in. I have been able to catch up on the next slow day, but I still like to have stuff to do on the days I do not have the space to do actual forms, if that makes sense?

As such, I will be preaching the use of videos once again. One can learn a lot from just sitting there and critiquing themselves, y'know. I have been trying to record myself at the top of every week in the event I get stuck at the college for most of the day and cannot get to forms till late in the night, so I always have something new to compare and further critique. 

A big thing I have found so far is that my right leg kicks have a tendency not to fully extend. My right knee has been injured a few times, and although I thought I was fully healed up, I believe I am subconsciously trying to keep it from being injured again. You can't hyperextend it if you don't extend it at all, right? I have noticed through my several videos that unless I am actively focusing on extending my leg, I won't. Progress to work on, I suppose. 

Monthly Mini Challenge - APRIL

 Hey everyone, sorry for getting this out so late, I fell asleep earlier than I anticipated last night :p

Without further ado, the mini challenge for this month is...

20 Form Reps! 

As always, pace yourself according to your body. If you can manage more than 20, I encourage you to do so. Additionally, as everyone has their own schedules (and because I am a little late getting this post out), feel free to work on the challenge whichever day you can in the next week, although aim for that "within 24h" mark.

While this is a good opportunity to catch up on form reps, I encourage people to do a variety of forms, particularly some you may not have done recently.

Best of luck!