Friday, August 23, 2013

Physical Fitness

I started my first course in Martial Arts about 15-16 years ago while I was in Monterey.  I can't remember exactly which school I attended (it's entirely possible the school has closed down since then), but I remember they did Tang Soo Do and they also had a cardio kickboxing class that my friend attended. 

Unfortunately, I was unable to commit myself to continuing with Tang Soo Do after 3-6 months, particularly after I moved from Monterey.  I found myself out of martial arts completely until about 2001, when I signed up with a Taekwondo dojang in San Angelo, TX.  I was unimpressed with the quality of instruction there, and did not stay longer than about a month.

It wasn't until I got my youngest (the Apple) into Taekwondo a couple years ago that I really started considering getting back into martial arts.  I feel a little odd taking martial arts classes at the Y (I keep hearing Daniel LaRusso saying "Not at the Y, a real school!"), but I find the instructors are good people, they teach the kids well, and so I figured I'd take a chance with it.

My son is currently 2 steps away from black belt, and should be testing for candidate within the month.  I am one belt behind him and my daughter, who started up a few months after me, is just past her halfway mark. 

I don't know how much more physically fit taekwondo has made me, as we only have classes 2 nights a week for an hour at a pop, but I know that it did help.  Adding the cardio and weights to the mix has really been the biggest benefit for my current bit of getting healthy. 

I'm taking a short break from getting back to work, and just felt like rambling a little.

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Losing Touch

I swear I've not completely given up on this blog, but I just don't find myself with anything interesting to write.

Since my last post, I started working out more, and eating (somewhat) more healthily.  The goal was to not get winded while walking up the stairs to check on the kids... I take that as a sign that I was not in great health. 

Since then, I've lost 35 pounds, give or take (39 if you count the post-workout weigh-in, but since we're in Texas I attribute most of that to water weight lost through sweating). 

Feeling better.