January 2011 Journal Entries (22)

There is so much to reflect on in the last two weeks. The tournament was quite an experience. So was the class at the Joslin dojo. There was also my green belt project at Ride To Walk. All this seems hazy though. In the UBBT spirit is perseverance, here is the last two weeks assembled from loosely written reflections after the events and foggy memory.

The tournament was my second ever attended. The first was seven years ago in the bay area. Both felt overwhelming. Where do I…

Seven weeks done and we're just about two months in now. Feels good. 

Still feeling good about the physical demands of the UBBT and still struggling with the mental challenges. In a way it feels good to be confident. I thought it would take a bit longer to get comfortable with knowing that I have to do 150 push ups today. You know? 

Meditation is such a challenge for me. Is there a class I can take??? Haha. I have been trying to do a few minutes after my…

So I know the majority (or all) have already begun their UBBT training. My beginning is...making the commitment. I have committed to joining, journaling, exercising, taking on a community project. I am excited to see my journey unfold throughout the year.

Kaylee is on her path to putting in place her project for community service. Her vision is to create "Get Well" cards where she can distribute them out to hospitals and doctors’ offices. Her cards would be available to be handed out to anyone who needs; some kind words, words of hope, a picture, a child’s thought, a Prayer. That card that lets them know someone is thinking of them.

This gesture is anonymous. It is given at a time when an act of kindness is in…

On Saturday I competed in a Northern California GSKA Tournament. As someone that trains in traditional karate I've often shied away from open tournaments. I've had bad experiences in the past--everything from bad sportsmanship to questionable judging. This year however I've made it a goal to compete at 10 events and decided that I'm going to go in without old negative thoughts. Also competing along side me was one of my junior 11-year old…

Clearly this entry is a bit late, we are half way thru week 7 alreadly! That's okay...

I have something very specific to write about for this entry: Motivation.

I like how I feel more motivated as time goes. It's a different kind of motivated than I feel when I'm training for a race. It's a lot more calm. I've been thinking a lot about that difference lately.

I know my workout habits and thresholds fairly well. In the past when I picked a race to train…

At the end of this week I’m reflecting on and savoring some minor accomplishments, and getting ready for new challenges. I’m proud of what I accomplished for UBBT during the work conference, not as much as during a normal schedule, but much more than I would have ever imagined in those circumstances:  7.55 miles ; 460 crunches and modified pushups; 6 repetitions of basics; 7 acts of kindness (this was really hard because there’s so much self-management). Meditation time was also difficult to…

Saturday, before our dojo kotohajime cleaning, those of us involved with the Ultimate Black Belt Test got together for our first team workout. As the leader of the team and of this particular workout, I knew that I would be expected to bring on a decent challenge. Never one to disappoint, we laid it on thick.

Each us did the following:

• Ran 1 mile
• 480 Kicks
• 240 Push-ups
• 240 Sit-ups
• And about 10 minutes of…

Good Morning Martial Arts Family!

I'm writing with a different purpose this morning. Some of you have heard me mention that I'm doing a bike ride this April. Well, here's the scoop on what the bike ride really is:

I'm participating in the MS150. It's a 150  mile bike ride to raise money for MS (m…

I'm writing this post from San Diego (rough!), and the first professional conference of my year.  A lot of my workday involves sitting at a computer.  At conferences though, we do a lot of running--back and forth down the convention center--as well as a lot of sitting, which is often on the floor in the back of the room by the power outlet (for the dying laptop).



This is also my first conference since starting karate, and in particular, starting UBBT. It's only one day in, but I've…

Week 5:

• Brought in the new year (woo!)
• Ended the first month and started the second
• Achieved the rank of Shichi Kyu
• Broke the 5000 mark on push-ups and sit-ups
• Started learning my first kata!

That's one busy week.

Feeling pretty good about things but thankful that I spent some time on my tracking spreadsheet. Staring at that thing and color coding rows, cells,…

A firebomb at the Arden-Arcade branch damaged 1,000 books this morning! Let's get a book drive going and see what we can do. This would be a great project idea for any of our students.

Who's game for taking this one on?

News 10 Link: …

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