All crews keep training

Every major transition in my life is naturally accompanied with a major transition or understanding of myself through my art. My training has acted as a compass that helps me find my next spot on the map of my kung fu quest. My goal ultimately is to use bagua as a medicine, tool or weapon to help those in need defeat their personal enemy. Any master can only plant the seed and it us up to the student to continue watering the movements through practice, meditation and research. I hope to use modern technology to my advantage in order to spread Bagua to as many people as possible through the course of my lifetime. This means that I don't know how long I will be able to linger in any one place at any given time. But every place I do touch, I will teach to whoever wants to learn. In the end of course there will be a school for the Tianwudao, or all martial artist that wish to unite for the purposes of learning, training and developing.

In addition I'd like to make some comments to some students that I haven't seen in a while.

Within our period of training I was able to give you a complete system mechanics whether it was weapon specialization, combat, energy training, military tactics, aerobic, self-defense or whatever. You know who you are. What you already have is enough information that you will be able to grow into a master of your own through time. Of course this raises the ultimate kung fu question, "How do I stay motivated for the next 50 years?"

I'm so glad you asked.

Do you think that I wake up excited about training the same movements everyday? When the rain is heavy and the air is freezing, it is so much easier to stay in the cozy womb of blankets. Winter is upon us and it becomes easier and easier to put off workouts and shorten practice time. For the sake of the super hero inside of you, don't give in.

The problem of motivation isn't related to the weather at all. It also isn't related to your age, mood, situation, finance or any of the things that it seems to be. For example if it's freezing outside, would that stop you from seeing the new big film you've been waiting for? If you just broke up with your girl friend would you stop paying your bills? Even when we have no time at all, we still waste so much of it thinking about how much time we don't have. Self-motivation is not at all related to your situation, it is related to your thinking which ultimately affects your willpower.

Why is it that you can go to a job you hate for 9 hours and can't make yourself do something beneficial for your actual being? It's because you have crippled yourself with the idea of having a choice. If you don't go to work, you get fired. If you don't train...you can train later. This may seem to be an innocent thought but it is a poison that will in time erode your dream entirely.

Ok that's the first half of the problem. I know some of you seeing this may already start feeling guilty about some of the training that you have been putting off. DON"T! Guilt is directly related to sin. If you feel bad about something, you are definitely going to it again. You could say guilt is the Yin and sin is the Yang. You are never going to get motivated by being hard on yourself. (At least not for very long) Motivation derived from guilt is only going to make you go out and train real hard for a period....then your done. It's like those diets that don't work because no one can stick to them.

The true solution lies in taking away the choice. Just the same way that today you need to eat food. It doesn't matter how busy you get, you have to eat something. Would you like to eat the same cornflakes of every meal of every day? Of course not, so you have to continually and completely change the flavor of your training. If you practice the same move in a thousand different places, it will have a thousand different seasonings. But more importantly you have to stop separating your training from your interest because your interest are who you really are. Here are some ideas that might help you see my point

-Use kung fu posture to do your chores.
-Use a horse stance from time to time if you have a desk job (no one ever notices you aren't sitting)
-Reward your self for 5 straight days in a row.
-Train in places that you already love to see.
-Try out some of the crazy ideas that you think are only for books and movies. Nothings impossible.
-Create an obstacle course. ( I love cutting through melons while running with sharp objects)
-Buy a new article of clothing when you master a new movement.
-Give your weapons names and birthdays and take them out to celebrate.
-Teach a stranger one move.
-Write a martial arts article about something you wish to know about.
-Cut falling leaves and snowflakes
-When ever you get a spontaneous idea, go with it!
-Take a road trip and practice at every scenery that intrigues you.
-Figure out the best way to create or purchase weapons.
-Give your self an impossible challenge every month...and beat it.
-Train on ice, loose gravel or high corn fields.
-Climb a mountain and then train on the tip.
-Take a camping trip with only your sword and throwing knives for food.

If you are always seeing your training as cornflakes, then you are gonna get sick of it real quick. Just think of all the different ways that you can cook a chicken. You training is only limited to your imagination. In music there is only eight notes, but how many different styles of music and songs are there? You don't need anymore movements, you just need more ways to explore them. I can teach you martial arts, but I can't teach you to enjoy your life. Martial arts is a part of your life and your joy comes from appreciating every gift that God has given you.

For those of you who are still waiting for DVD's. Fear not. The time is upon us. I am finally adjusted and living in China. Yes, I am super busy, but nothing comes before passing on Bagua baby.

Right now I have begun teaching the crew in Beijing. It will probably be a few months and then I will swing back around to where you are. But when I do come back I'm bringing a lot of new stuff that can only be done if you have been working on the old stuff. So all crews in all areas need to keep training. Not just for me and you, but the sake of the future of kung fu is in your hands.

And if you don't practice, you're fired.