Saturdays And A Place For Me

For a while now, I've reflected on how much I'm enjoying my martial arts training, and what it's come to mean to me. I typically attend classes three days a week, but I especially look forward to the classes I do on Saturday, which consist of two basic Choy Li Fut* classes, and a class in Qi Gong movement and meditation.

I've been pondering how to put this coherently into words, and a question Saturday from one of the instructors pulled everything into sharp focus, like operating a camera's zoom lens. He asked each student how they were doing, and how their day had gone so far (my first class is at noon). When he came to me, I replied that I was doing well, and was glad that it was Saturday. He asked me, "Why? Are your weeks difficult or troubling?"

I replied that they were sometimes, but mostly that I was glad it was Saturday, because that meant it was time to come to White Dragon. That's when things pulled into focus for me-yes, I am glad it's the weekend, yes, I'm challenging myself, learning new things, and enjoying it, and yes, I'm enjoying the people in our school community-my "Kung Fu brothers and sisters," as our head instructor likes to say.

But in that moment, the gut-level reason for my enjoyment of martial arts, and why I look forward to Saturdays (and my twice weekly night classes) sharpened itself to a point and pulled clearly into focus:

I needed someplace to go, just for me.

If you were to logically examine what my life has been over the last 3-4 years, this might not seem to make any sense. With all that was going on, the last thing I needed was another schedule commitment, especially during my weekend time-or so it seemed. I was involved in a stressful project at work, which demanded a lot of overtime and travel to the project site. My mother-in-law was in failing health, which meant my wife spent as much time with her as she could. This meant that I was responsible for handling almost everything at home in order for her to be able to care for her mother, along with providing emotional support to my wife. A close friend was experiencing a rough time personally, so some of my time and emotional energy was devoted to them as well.

My weekends were supposed to be time for me to recharge, not to "have to be somewhere". Yet I was finding that, when I did have free time on the weekends, I wasn't doing much of anything, and sometimes when I headed back to work on Monday, I'd feel somewhat sad and frustrated, like I had missed something.

All that started to change when I started my Tai Chi classes. It was something I'd wanted to do for a while, and since I wanted to get in as many classes per week as I could, I decided I would make time on Saturdays to attend. I found myself looking forward to class, especially on Saturdays (I enjoy the weeknight classes, but sometimes getting there is a bit of a "push" schedule-wise, so I need to unwind and prepare myself mentally more than I do on Saturdays). My weekends now had a little structure, and I found that I liked that.

Beyond that, I began to feel like I was part of a community-something bigger than myself (even though my training was for my benefit and enjoyment). I felt welcomed and encouraged from the beginning. That isn't always the case with activities like this-it's natural that people with common interests will form bonds, but at times this can lead them to feel (and act) like the martial arts school, the gym, yoga class, shooting range, etc. is their "private club", and newer people tend to get ignored. I've never felt that way at White Dragon.

Our head instructor likes to talk about our school community, and our "Kung Fu brothers and sisters." The more time I spend there, the more I appreciate it, and want to do my own part in making everyone feel welcome. I feel like something really special has been created there, and we all need to respect and nurture it.

So, Saturdays are different for me now. I don't devote the entire day to training, but my day is definitely built around it. I've got time for other things in the morning, and after I get home in the afternoon, clean up, and eat something, I've still got free time left for other activities and duties, or just for quiet time at home. But the core of the day is my class time. It's a comforting routine that I've come to look forward to, and hate to miss.

So, yes, Mr. C-I'm always glad it's Saturday.

*(Choy Li Fut is the other martial art that's taught at our school-it's what most people would think of as "Kung Fu". Since our school stresses the martial aspects of Tai Chi along with the health benefits, it's all kung fu to us. Although my training emphasis is on Tai Chi, I am allowed to attend lower level classes with the Choy Li Fut students. I find it's good for conditioning; like an aerobic kickboxing class, only more intense and focused on technique, and it's helping with my balance as well.)

Up Off the Couch

After Thursday's class, I was thinking about how effective (read, "painful") the Tai Chi stance training was. So Sunday, while I was enjoying the NFL playoffs on TV, I decided to get in a little more training. I would get into the Horse Stance or one of my Tai Chi stances during commercials (or the endless replays) and hold the stance as long as I could. I also followed some tips a classmate gave me, and worked on my balance with all my weight on one foot. One thing you learn pretty quickly doing this is that you're not perfectly symmetrical-you can balance better on one side of your body better than the other. It will be a worthwhile goal to even this out, so even if one side still feels stronger than the other, neither one will be wobbly.

"As long as I could" turned out to be less time than I wanted it to be, but it's more than I could have done even a few weeks ago.

Saturday Training

This Saturday, we had our 3-hour "Mega Class" at White Dragon. This is an event the school just started; the first Saturday of every month will be "Mega Class" day. I wasn't able to participate for the whole thing (Had some chores to do in the morning, and also had my first lesson of 2013 scheduled during the 3-hour period). I'm not sure I could have made it through the whole 3 hours, as I'm still getting my strength back as I recover from my winter cold.

I did an interesting mix of things during the class, both Tai Chi related, and some basic Choy Li Fut kicking/punching exercises, a lot of which were new to me. I probably looked pretty silly doing some of the drills, but I was working hard and that felt good.

The more I do this, the more I realize how crucial your lower body and leg strength it is to martial arts (and so many other activities). Tai Chi is deceptive because you're moving so slowly, but it works your legs really well. Since I've started in the basic kicking/punching classes, where you spend a lot of time in the Horse Stance, that's just ramping up my leg strength (it hurts, but I know I'm getting stronger).

After the Mega Class, I went to my regular Qi Gong class, which quieted things down. We've been working on an elaborate sequence of movements over the last few weeks, but set that aside for some breathing/stretching and standing meditation. I was pleased that my legs didn't hurt through this exercise; occasionally I can get a little wobbly during standing meditation, and my legs and feet often get sore. Didn't have any of that this time, which made me happy.

All in all, a very satisfying two-hour workout. Next month, I'll be sure and stay after for the monthly showing of a cheesy Kung Fu movie.

Back At It

I'm back to posting after a long absence, and back to my martial arts practice after staying away for about a week due to a winter cold. All of my plans for extra classes/practice during my holiday time off vanished in a fog of clogged sinuses and headaches.

Prior to getting sick, I had ramped up my number of classes, to get in more conditioning work. At our school, all students are allowed to attend the lower level classes, regardless of your main discipline. The additional classes I'm attending focus more on the basic movements and techniques of Choy Li Fut (what most people think of as "kung fu"), and are an excellent upper/lower body workout.

Went back to class for the first time Thursday night. I was glad I went, but the 90 minutes of classes took a lot out of me; I could definitely tell I'd been sick. Getting back on track at school and on the blog.