Vacations are good for you

I am looking forward to our annual family vacation this year as I do every year.  It is a tremendous opportunity to recharge and to spend quality time with family and friends.

There were many times when I was working in the coporate world a few years ago that I passed on the opportunity of vacations.  There was never a "good time" to be away from work, there was always "the most important" project for the company, there was tremendous corporate pressures, time away was often viewed as letting the corporation down, the time before and returning from vacations were loaded with catch up, etc......  As you can tell, I am not a big fan of the corporate world and all of the things that go along with being an employee in this setting.

Things are very different for us the past few years and vacations are my most favorite time of the year.  This year for me will be a little different, in a good way.  My vacation will have 2 hours every morning planned for kung fu training.  I will be keeping up my daily requirements for push ups, sit ups, pull ups, and stretching.  I will also be spending an hour each day on forms practice, which I will be recording daily and blogging when I can, and some time running, swimming, biking, etc.  I have great support from my family as they are very active and will participate along with me for some of the training.  I will also be reading the book suggested by Sifu Brinker "Peace is Every Step".  Last Saturday at our UBBT something Sifu Brinker said made great sense as there should be no excuses for not training.  "If you do not have enough time in the day for your training set your alarm clock to go off earlier."  I may not have the exact words, but it was something like that.

See you all in two weeks, enjoy your training.

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Mindful Partnership

I have been in the process of developing my five personal techniques in preparation for our October Black Belt grading.  For my fifth technique I have been developing my version of a flying armbar technique/application and have the technique broken down very specifically, in my mind.  I spoke with my son and he agreed to be my partner for practicing this technique.  Here is my learning.  I spent a significant amount of time reviewing the process in my head, but gave a vague description to Mr. Gamble.  I jumped up and landed flat on my back and head, and did see a few stars, which was very funny to watch.  I will be more mindful of working with a partner in the future.  We practiced a little more, both on the same page, and Mr. Gamble is getting pretty good at this technique, and I am developing a different one for myself.  "What was very clear in my mind, was not well explained to Mr. Gamble".

Have a great training week!

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Daily Tracking

I would like to share my experience with daily tracking.  So far this year our SRKF team has participated in three months of daily tracking challenges:

March - daily diet tracking
June - daily two hour training tracking
July - daily forms training tracking

For me personally, this daily regiment has definitely helped me stay on track.  There were a couple times in early July that I was very busy and was not able to participate, however as soon as I saw others posting to the site, I was immmediately motivated and back on track.  I will be using this tool as my family will be away on a two week vacation at the end of July.  I will be posting daily, as well as documenting other personal goals, for these two weeks as I am very focused on this 2011 year.  Just my two cents on what is working for me.  Have a great week!

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Blogging... best tool ever!

I forgot to blog!!! I am not sure that has happened to me in quite a while. I have been so wrapped up in trying to figure out what is going on in my head that I forgot to use one of the best tools that I have, blogging! I feel like my get up and go, got up and went. I want to go and work out, it is fun when I do. I miss that feeling I get when I am running, I always feel like there is nothing that I can't accomplish. I love that feeling when the workout is over, I feel proud that I did what I said that I would do (even if it is only to myself, it is important to me). So what is the problem? I am not really sure. I had planned to work harder than ever this month as I have a bit more free time on my hands and I keep coming up with cheap excuses not to do what I love the most. Some insight would be good right about now.......
So nothing is jumping up and biting me so here is the plan; I will get up and do my workout and stop trying to figure out how come I don't feel like it. Either the feeling will go away or I will figure it out as soon as I stop worrying about it so much.
Until next week, work hard and have fun!
Robyn Kichko
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, AB, Canada

Testing Your Limits

I had a great opportunity to participate in our annual "boot camp" this past Saturday and had a tremendous time.  Throughout the day I was concerned about how much fuel I would have left for the two and a half hour physical test, at the end of the day going into the evening.  To my surprise, my numbers were still strong, relatively speaking.  I learned a lot about myself going through this process and I am proud of the accomplishment.  The team concept has been engrained into me from participating in team sports for my entire life.  With this in mind, the highlight of my day was the motivation and energy surrounding the entire team of students and sifus, throughout the physical testing.  The synergy and encouragement was strong.  Congratulations to all of my team mates, and thank you to all of the sifus who made this day exceptional!

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Reality

I am really struggling to meet my physical requirements this week. I feel strong and capable but I am having a hard time getting going. I know that the success that I felt so far has been because of my hard work and committment but even that is not pushing me out the door. I have tons of excuses running through my head right but that is all they are, excuses. I am searching for a solution and the only one that is obvious to me right now is to put my shoes on and go for a run. (insert whiny voice...I just don't feel like it!) Well, too bad! This is where the rubber meets the road, literally and figuratively. I am off to run this weirdness out of my head.
Until next week, work hard and have fun.
Robyn Kichko
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, AB, Canada

Active Listening

I feel that a great characteristic to have as a person is to be a great listener.  We have had several consistent messages from our sifus lately pertaining to the "four phases of kung fu".  The consistent message is we need to focus more on the first phase of kung fu which is "form", or "technique".  This is especially evident in my forms.  When I think of this personally, it is a tremendous opportunity for me.  When practicing or performing forms, my focus has always been demonstrating the aspect of power.  I always consider each technique as crashing through a cement wall.  This has been my comfort zone. 

I need to change this to focus on the first phase which is "form".  I am going to challenge myself starting today to mindfully practice forms focusing on the first phase of kung fu.  The benefits will include centering, flow, quality of moition, effortless movement, and the connection of the six harmonies.  I look foward to the benefits of this direction with my forms practice.  This will align my path in making kung fu an art for me.

I will also listen to the advise from Sifu Brinker on Saturday.  Today I have stopped breaking boards, partially because I have broken all that I have, and also because the advise makes sense to me.  I will focus on the specific techniques within my board breaking sequence.

To keep this front and center for myself, the four phases of kung fu:

Form or technique
Speed and power
Accuracy
Realism

Have a great training week all!!

Allan Gamble

Gaining Momentum

A group of us have been recording our kung fu training for the month of June.  We have been very focused on our conditioning, and it has become the focal point for our kung fu training.  I am finding that as my conditioning level increases, all aspects of my kung fu training are improving physically and mentally.  Our challenge for June is to record two hours of training per day.  Personally, I am going to strive for three hours per day and will add more endurance and quickness training with more distance running, wind sprints, and the P90X training program.  I am also going to record my daily weight as I seem to be successful when I document what I am doing.  I will strive to be at 175lbs by the end of June and I am starting at 184lbs today.  Daily documenting has helped me a great deal with my physical training, but has not stopped me with stuffing chips in my mouth in the late evening.  Have a great week!

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Having Fun with Kung Fu

This has been a really good week for kung fu training.  I have been recording good numbers with respect to my UBBT goals and am developing confidence and creativity in board breaking.  We had an opportunity in our morning class to practice our board breaking skills with Sifu Prince, who has been an inspiration to me with respect to board breaking, among other kung fu related activity.  This has been a fun time and I am looking forward to participating in board breaking at our in-house tournament this weekend.  Have a great weekend all!

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Time is at a Premium

Very busy week with work, yard work, and training.  Balancing work, life, and training is a good challenge for 2011.  Have a great week!

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Forms Seminar

I had a great opportunity last Saturday to attend our annual forms seminar.  The form I chose to work on was Lao Gar, which I really enjoy.  The atmosphere, direction, and feedback that we all received from our Sifus was excellent.  The improvement that you can achieve by dedicating a few hours to a specific form is amazing.  It was a great week.  This week finds us away visiting relatives, but offers a great opportunity to work on conditioning activities.

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

April Challenge

The month of April has always been a challenge for me with snow mold allergies.  I have a bit of difficulty with my respiratory system, but the month is almost over and I am looking forward to a green May.  Training is going well, however my numbers are a little low in forms over the past couple of weeks.  The good news is I am looking forward to our "Forms Seminar" this Saturday and hope to work on the Lao Gar form, which is a required form for Black Belt testing this fall.  I am really excited for this opportunity!!

Have a great week.

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Sullivan and Kiddog

These are my boys in the first year of their lives. They are much bigger now and each time that I look at them, I see these two little faces. They are capable of giving so much love and understanding that it is incredible. It doesn't matter if I work late, sleep in or spend all day training, they still great me with all of their enthusiasm and love. They will turn eight this year and their little faces have more grey hair than black, they take a few more naps than they used to but they jump around like puppies when the leashes come out. They like to cuddle, watch movies and eat grapes. They make me laugh, cry and fill my heart with love. These are my boys.
Robyn Kichko
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, AB, Canada

Fine Tuning

I have spent a lot of effort this year related to improving my overall conditioning level.  I think spring-time may be here, but we have been fooled before, and I am going to add running for the next few months to my goals.  This will increase my quickness, which is required for some of our black belt conditioning requirements, and will also help with the remaining seven pounds I would like to discard.  I am also going to add pull ups as a goal throughout the next  few months as well.  Training is going well and I am finding it benefitial to switch up my routines to add some flavor.  Have a great Easter weekend!

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Numbers

Training is going well.  Last week was a physically demanding week for conditioning, strength, and endurance training which was great.  This week for me is all about attaining numbers related to push ups, sit ups, and forms.  I will be away for 5 days starting Friday and know that I will be doing little training during this short vacation.  Have a great week!!

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Diet Tracking - Looking Ahead

For the month of March our group UBBT project was to track and blog everything that we consumed each day.  I definitely have determined a trend in my consumption.  I consume about 2,500 calories a day, which is in the target zone for my gender, size, and activity level, however there is a lot of (good) and a lot of (not so good) calories.  I have done some research and will actively incorporate the following moving forward.

Much research indicates that a person who trains consistently should consume about 60% of their calories from complex carbohydrates in their natural state.  This catgegory includes oatmeal, whole grain cereals, grains, brown rice, potatoes, whole wheat pasta, root vegetables, wholemeal breads, beans, and lentils.  I will consume more within this grouping. (the good and improvement)

I will continue consuming protein from lean meats, poultry, and vegetables. (the good)

I will continue consuming dairy from low fat milk, yogurt, and cheese. (the good)

I will control and avoid fats found in fried foods, processed foods, and fast foods. (the not so good)

I will contol simple sugars found in junk foods and pop. (the not so good)

I will keep this simple as it is not complicated.

These very simple changes will have great results!!

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta

Tracking

Tracking, tracking, tracking it feels like all I am ever doing now is tracking. Tracking what I eat, tracking how many sit ups and push ups I do, along with the number of reps I do of a certain form. I am even tracking how much water I have been drinking each day.

I know tracking all of this stuff has great benefits on my training, and I have been seeing the results already. Tracking helps you stick with it, because when you can see your numbers increase it is a sense of accomplishment. Especially on those days when you are just sick of push ups and would not mind just skipping that day, but you don’t because you know you will be angry with yourself since you won’t be adding to your total you will actually be taking away from it.

I believe so much in the benefits of tracking that we are doing that I introduced a fellow employee that had just started taking a martial art to the idea of tracking the number of times he does something. He now tracks every push up he does in a day and adds that to his total. He has said that it is a very excellent motivator and he is enjoying it, he never thought he would enjoy push ups.

So let’s keep on track (sick pun I know)

Greg Wiebe

Stony Plain, AB, Canada

www.silentriverkungfu.com

Week 11 Did someone say it was spring?

Wow this past week was crazy for me. 10 hour work days plus drive time. Then classes, plus my sons classes, and still try to get some training in. Plus parent teacher interviews and a few other distractions as well. It has been hectic thats for sure. I think I must have blinked and missed spring and summer cause its snowing again. Mother nature is having a good laugh on us I guess, oh well.

I found it really difficult to get into any kind of rhythm this week. Live happens I know, but it can slow down a bit, soon I hope. My little toe has been bugging me again, it doesn't like being flexed with weight on it so that is hampering my pushups. I've had to do them from my knees for now. Which my right shoulder doesnt mind. I was born 3 months premature due to my mom getting toximia(think thats the correct term). Anyway to make a long story short, I don't have the major peck muscle on the right side. My back muscles have always done the majority of the work for me on my right side and pushups can get my shoulder pretty sore. I have had it all my life so I just deal with it as it happens. I just grateful that my shoulder works, I guess there was a chance that it might not.

Still loving Kung Fu, I so look forward to saturdays fitness class. It helps me get through my 5 hours of meetings on friday. The positive energy, the exercises and techniques we do are definately helping me. I need alot of work on my flexibility but I knew that when I started. 20 years in the trades and no stretching  isn't a good thing. It will come I just need to be patient. Something I'm also working on bit by bit. I know I am becoming a better person and a better me each day. I have a long journey ahead of me and I am looking forward to it.

Mr. Neil Hamilton
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, Ab, Ca

Individual Price Paid for Canadian Government Services

We as Canadian citizens are the "customer" of government services which are broken down into federal, provincial, and municipal levels.  The "Canada Revenue Agency" is the department responsible for collecting revenue, which we define as taxes paid through corporatate profits and individual income, as well as consumption taxes.  I had the opportunity to participate in an audit this week for "one" of the taxes that the "Canada Revenue Agency" is responsible for.  The specific tax is our federal "Goods and Services Tax", which is a multi-level tax assessed and claimed back at every level of business through conception of a product or service, to the final consumer.  Most provinces have their own provincial taxes as well, which are now being combined into a "Harmonized Goods and Services Tax".  Fortunately living in the province of Alberta, we do not have a "Provincial Sales Tax" simply because we have substantial oil revenue.  I have just touched the complexity of the tax system but my point is that we as citizens are bombarded with taxes!!  I am an accountant by profession and I felt totally uncomfortable during the three year audit of our business, and started to wonder how other citizens trying to run their businesses feel when the "Canada Revenue Agency" employess interrupt their businesses to visit their customers.

Again we are the customer!!

How can we measure our Government's Scorecard.  This is very difficult to do, but I can make a reasonable estimate of how much tax as citizens we pay.

Household personal income measured
100%

Income tax
federal and provincial income tax
unemployment insurance tax
taxable benefits received tax
dividend tax
investment tax
personal business profit tax
27%

Ownership tax
municipal property and business tax
4%

Excise/hidden tax
fuel, tobacco, environmental, hotel, airport, to name a few
6%

Consumption tax
federal goods and services tax
harmonized sales tax
11% (Canadian average)

This is a high level estimate, and may not be all inclusive, and for every $100 we earn as citizens we pay $48 for our government services.

How do we begin to measure the bang for our dollar?

Allan Gamble
Student Member
Silent River Kung Fu, Stony Plain, Alberta