Fun Fact: If it wasn't for being GREEK I would have never found out about FMK.
I finally decided to join a year after dating Sidai Wei, because him & Sifu are (Tau Phi Sigma) fraternity brothers.
I too am in a national (Delta Xi Phi) sorority, and wanted to reach out to sisters about my experience with FMK. Hopefully they'll look into stopping by if their ever in the city.
This is a part of me I wanted to share with you all too. Just click on the link below & Enjoy!
Connections Magazine: "Wacky Workout": Delta Soror gets her martial arts...: -Aileen Apuli On February 2012 I joined “Freddie’s Modern Kung Fu” (FMK) at Rogers Park, Chicago. Since then I’ve built a foundati...
That was a nice blog article. Maybe it'll help recruit some new Todai. I like that FMK is Reality Kung Fu, out there on YouTube for everyone to see. It is a really unique experiment. It shows what martial arts training is really like, rather than just the choreographed finished product that the public usually gets to see in demos online
ReplyDeleteI like the blog article too. You are right about FMK being not about violent competitive behavior. We are here to develop ourselves as true human beings. We exist to go beyond the corruptions of society: alcohol, competition, drugs... ect. It is nice to hear that you are from a sorority also. Hopefully this article can help recruit more women into FMK. The martial arts need more women.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading! I know it was quite long, and I didn't expect them to keep all that I wrote...but hey! I won't complain!
ReplyDeleteAnd as easy as it sounds I've tried recruiting women, but martial arts doesn't appeal well to them. I'm not one to push people into something I know will take a lot of commitment, but I'm hoping once summer comes even just personal fitness will be of interest to them. The most I can do is just let it be known that I'm here for them to reach out to if anyone's interested. Even just getting them exposed to the YouTube channel would not only help the kwoon, but get them exposed to what it is we do.
Yeah. You make a valid point. Martial Arts require a lot of commitment. I am kind of like you in a way. I am not someone who would push my way onto people if they do not show any interest. All I can really do is share it and hopefully the right people would come. Training in the Martial Arts to me is like being in a relationship. A real relationship needs loyalty and commitment. If it lacks that, it means it was not a real relationship to begin with.
DeleteIt was a good article. You probably would be more likely to bring more women in with the physical fitness than the martial arts. More women really should learn good ways of self defense though to protect themselves.
ReplyDeleteAwesome article Todai Ai! It was a great read & I'm very thankful that you put the energy into sharing with others your experiences as FMK. We are very fortunate to have you and the women of FMK here, I know it is NOT easy to be a part of such a male dominated practice but I hope that in time we can change the perceptions and stereotypes of Martial Arts into something different. Sidai Shunyuan is training 3 women himself already and recruiting more! I think you would be a great trainer yourself when you are ready and that should definitely up the involvement of women in what we do. Although they may not be into the Martial Arts, we can definitely push the Fitness and Fan Dancing training that is being offered by my mother. No matter what gender you are, you cannot ever tell me that health and wellness is not important, therefore there are no excuses for women not to get involved.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sifu. I wrote it back in January, so it was only a matter of time it finally got posted.
DeleteProgressing this past year has actually made me think about training others. I know it would be so much fun! especially to be able to get more women involved. However, I'd feel confident in doing so if I earn rank, because I know I need to work on my own fitness before teaching it on to anyone else. And I'd definitely leave fan dancing to your mom, because I know you wouldn't want them coming out from zumba class! haha
I'm excited to have you start teaching your own classes at FMK. I believe you have the energy and spirit to bring in many people to get involved. Even when I have you lead the class in forms you are doing a great job. I really look forward to putting great efforts into getting you to the red rank. Great news, you only have to do 3 chin ups now instead of 4, so you should not be too far off. Keep working on the power twister as well, you are getting close.
DeleteIt would defintly be exciting, but I know it will take much patience.
Delete& I thought it was 2? regardless, that's still good news. I've been working on it every day I get home. There has been few instances when I could atleast do one, (without jumping Jenny! haha) so I guess it's progress.
I've also been meaning to ask you if I could buy a power twister from you. I rarely get to even see it in class, and it would be a great help to practice at home. Plus, I don't want to go through the hassle of getting the wrong one yet again.
Thanks You!
You're doing great, you have great cardio, flexibility, leg strength, & coordination. The hardest is the Chin ups for you. For your age group it is 3, for Jenny's age group it is 2, and for Paulines it is 1. Once more women are ranked, we can then increase the standards if we so choose but 3 is definitely within reach for you. I have plenty of Power Twisters available for sale, you can get one in your next lesson on Friday.
DeleteOh yeah! I forgot about that. Mann! now I wish I was older. haha jk. well I'll defintly buy one from you this weekend when my payments due.
DeleteSee you Friday!