2 Months---NO WAY

I can't believe that 2 months has passed since the last post. Ah well, nothing too exciting to post..........until now. We successfully tested for our Advanced Red Belts last night & needless to say it was smashing (poor attempt at humor).

This was our first testing that included breaking boards. So, tonight's post will include the vid clips of that.

First up we have Dalton doing a step behind side and a forearm break:


Next up was Tyler doing a step behind side and a overhand hammer fist with his Left hand:


Last was ol Dad doing a slide-up side and an over-hand hammer fist(2 boards each):


Next post will include some of our sparring. So stay tuned ;-)

Results from UTA Nationals/Worlds

Well it has been a week since the UTA Nationals/Worlds and I am just getting around to posting the results. Truth is it has taken me this long due to the negative feelings that I came away from the tourney with. Without going into the sordid details, I'll just state that the judging was somewhat inconsistant and some judges allowed their personal & training affiliations cloud them a bit. That's it, anymore and it'll sound like sour grapes.

First up was Tyler. He competed in the 10-11 yo Brown-Advanced Red division. Tyler did the best pattern that he's ever done. That boy didn't show a single hint of nerves and earned 3rd in Nation in the forms category.

Tyler sparred in the land of the giants. Unfortunately both boys have their Dad's short gene. But he did the best he could, placed 4th and we were very proud of his efforts.

Up next was Dalton competing in the 12-13 yo Brown -Advanced Red. Dalton's pattern was spot on. He did not miss a single step, was powerful, precise and well timed. His performance landed him 4th in forms.

Dalton also sparred in the land of the giants. He gave it his all and earned 3rd place. Well done son!

Last up was Dad. I placed 1st in forms.

The oddest thing happenned after the forms competition. Two new judges were brought in for the sparring and they just happenned to be 2 judges from the same school as the two competitors that eventually placed 1 & 2. Humm, that must a been some pure coincidence there?! As my friend Mike would say "Bitter party of one".........cuz I still am.

My first match was a loss 4-5 to the fella that won 1st. After that 1st match, I did not spar again, not for 3rd, 4th, 5th place......NOTHING. Still can't explain that one and to add to the frustration, there were no Black Belts from my school to inquire how that occurred or to lobby a complaint.

Thus the look of disillusion even in winning 1st in forms and no placement in sparring.
So now it's back to training we all go. Each of us now with a burning desire to improve and perform better next time. In the end, none of us are too dissapointed. How could we be, all of us competed at a National Tourney and each of us earned a Top 3 placement in one event or another.

Till the next time.......keep on kicking.

The Pay Off

Friday night testing has come and gone. Testing is always a little unnerving for all of us. The room is always filled with excitement and anxiety.......students reviewing their patterns, stretching and chatting 90 miles an hour. Parents, Family & Friends file in and find the perfect seat to watch their loved ones. The start can't come soon enough.

Testing in front of everyone still causes the proverbial butterflies; eventhough we learn, practice, review and perform over & over. Many times we have to help eachother remember parts of the patterns right before testing, as Dalton did helping one of the other students:

Patterns

Emily Grace struggled a bit with learning her Yul-Guk pattern; however, she gave her very best effort, blasted thru the nerves and hit all of the moves.

Me & the boys successfully demonstrated the Toi-Gye pattern. Even if I slipped?!?! Good Grief. Tyler was 1st up and he really showed some power:

Dalton was next up and he too showed power and timing: Funny how similar me & Dalton perform our moves so alike: Sparring Time:
Emily shows aboslutely no fear, no matter how much bigger her sparring partners are: Tyler's kicks are coming right along:The thing I harp at the kids to do is to "KEEP YOUR GAURDS UP" and at this testing, I demonstrated why they needed too:

Oh well, lesson learned (I hope)?!

In the end we all advanced and that is the best news of all:

It's getting Closer by the day

Well it's been about a month since the last post and things are progressing very nicely. The boys have learned their Toi-Gye pattern and have the stick drills close. I have struggled a bit with my pattern and stick drills.........you know "Old Dog, New Tricks". But things are progressing, so no complaining here.

Emily Grace is coming along with the Yul-Guk pattern. She really tries hard and that is all I would ever ask or expecting from her.

Testing is this Friday, so we are trying to fine tune things a bit for that. Once Friday comes & goes, it'll be a hard press till National/Worlds in April. That competition is getting close fast, so we don't have time to procrastinate.

Some folks have asked about my weight loss. So, here the scoop. I began in January at 215lbs (ridiculous). Knowing that being in such pitiful shape gave me little to know chance of competing at a higher level in April, I began a focused effort to lose down to a target weight of 185lbs by April 20th. I have incorporated Weights, Running, HIIT, increased stretching along with the standard TKD classes throughout the week at night.

The routine is as follows:

• Weight training- 3-4 days a week at 4:30am
• Run 2-3 days during mid-day follwing HIIT program
• TKD 3-4 nights a week.

The Results by week so far:

• Week 1: January 23- 215 lbs
• Week 2: January 30- 211 lbs
• Week 3: February 6- 204 lbs
• Week 4: February 13- 202 lbs
• Week 5: February 20- 200 lbs
• Week 6: February 27- 198 lbs
• Week 7: March 6- 196 lbs
• Week 8: March 13- 194 lbs

Eating habits changed to follow 50-30-20 (protein-carb-fat) eating plan. One day a week I have a cheat day to keep my sanity. Working real well so far.

Hope all has a Fantastic week/month/whatever. Peace to you.

How others see you

This will not be the standard TKD post today. This will serve as our reminder that others see what we do, even when we are unaware. Let me start with some background.

This past summer at TKD-USA the kids & I met a Mother (Ms Helen) & Daughter (Abigail) who train together. Their Husband/Father (Brent) had passed away just the year before after a hard fought battle with Leukemia. The two of them do TKD together in an effort to recover and bond in a physical sense. Ms Helen has a blog that details their life without Brent that is very inspirational, yet touching.

On Saturday the kids went to a Lock-in at TKD-USA that was offered to let parents have some alone time on Valentine's, while the kids had a safe & fun evening of activities with friends. What fun everyone had. After it was over, all of us parents picked up our kids. At this point in today's posts, I am going to share what Ms Helen observed as I picked up my children. She shared this in her blog and it touched me deeply.

" He walked up to the door wearing a blue jacket the color of his favoritebasketball team. As he pulls open the door he turns slightly in my direction. We wave a friendly hello. We have both come to pick up our children from the lockin. He stands just inside the door, not venturing very far. He's looking for his children. Many of the children are in the back room where they've been watching a movie or have been climbing the rock wall. They come pouring out of the room, some of them are walking, while others run. I see his children come out of the back room. It's his little girl that I see first. She's so cute wearing her red outfit of stripped red and white pants and a red top. Her blond curls are pulled back in a small pony tail on top, while the rest of her hair is down. She stops for a moment at the desk and then starts up again. Daddy and daughter see one another. She runs to him with a sweet smile on her face. He bends down, ready to grab her up into his arms. There's a brief conversation as he picks her up. She's so happy to see her Daddy. I smile at this brief moment in time that only took a couple of minutes. A moment where the details will be forgotten, but the feelings of love and security will remain with her.
These are the moments when I miss Brent the most. There is no more chance to make memories. We must remember the ones we have. Make memories with your loved ones. You'll cherish them when they are gone. "

Helen Currie Davis
http://helen-lighttomypath.blogspot.com/
Genealogy Page: www.loosahatchiegrass.com

I asked Ms Helen if she would mind if I shared her observation on this blog. Doing so as an act of appreciation to her & to serve as a reminder for all of us with children and/or loved ones to live every minute as if it were the last. Enjoy one another with happiness and love. We never know, if that moment may just be the last we'll have together!

May God Bless each and every one of you in all that you do!

New Patterns bring lots of work

Well we all are now working on new patterns since testing. New patterns are always fun to learn......well maybe not always. Confusion, slowness, mistakes, and frustration mixed with those "Ah Ha" moments of beginning to put it all together. Guess that's the basis for Martial Arts, tho. Success is not based on doing something right from the beginning, but instead the hard work, focus, desire, and willingness to overcome those intial mistakes on the way to mastering that level.

Here's what we're working on:

• Emily Grace is working on the Purple Belt Pattern " Yul-Guk"
• Dalton, Tyler & I are learning the Brown Belt pattern " Toi-Gye"
  
  

The countdown has begun for the UTA TKD Nationals/Worlds that are being held April 24-25 in Memphis. Only 70 days left to prepare.

3 Brown Belts & a Purple

Well, the journey continued tonight as we tested for Belt Ranks. What a joy to see the kids progressing and giving their all. Could not be prouder. The whole school was filled with excitement, nervousness and Families. The place was packed and it made for quite an air of electricity.

Our night kicked off as Dalton tried to help the old man loosen up:

Emily started things off perfectly by doing her Green Belt Pattern- Won-Hyo pattern the best she has ever done:

Then Dalton & Tyler performed the Joong-Gun Blue Belt Pattern flawlessly. I had a hard act to follow, but tried my best:

Then Came Sparring. Emily was first and boy did she give her best effort!
Got Knocked Down___Got Right back up and went at it

The boys were next up sparring and they left it all out on the floor. Spinning techniques, high kicks, reverse punches...man I tell ya it was like Fists of Fury?!
Dalton enjoyed sparring (the telling smile)

Tyler by contrast took it serious

All of the training, effort and work culminated in our passing this set of tests and moving up in rank.

• Emily moved from Green to Purple Belt.
• Dalton, Tyler & I all moved from Advanced Blue to Brown belts.

Kicking together and sticking together. That's our motto.






























































































































































































































































































































































































































I follow the boys to complete my pattern: