Kettlebell At The Casino

Thought some of you might appreciate a photo I took from the air yesterday morning near Seattle. I’m calling the image Volcano Land. Presently, I’m in Spokane, Washington, flown in by the Kalispel Tribe to speak at their Tree of Healing Conference. They’ve set me up pretty posh in their Northern Quest Resort and Casino, but it’s really not my kind of scene. I don’t gamble, and these sorts of places - casino resorts, shopping malls, theme parks, cruise ships, tourist traps, etc - they’re all built to be self-contained, luxury habitats for those who, as far as I can tell, are here trying to buy happiness, if only for a brief moment. It’s sad, because to me it shows that a lot of people probably never experience deep satisfaction and sustained joy in their lives… you know, real pleasure in just being who and where they are normally, every day. They chase the little shot of hope that the products presented at these kinds of places offer. Casinos are the worst. They demonstrate that even our senior citizens, with extensive life experience, are still drawn to something as simple as blinky lights, and the slim potential of getting lucky rich. No offense to anyone with a different perspective, but I really value my energy, and I’m pretty careful how I expend it. I’m not selfish with it; I’ll volunteer my energy toward pursuits I think are beneficial. But to me, sitting half the day at a slot machine seems pretty much a complete energy sink, and I wouldn’t even do it if someone paid me for it. I’m here because it’s an opportunity to share some of my perspectives with a relatively wide audience of health care professionals, psychologists, social workers, and educators. But in order for me to do this, and not become moody or passive aggressive about what I’m witnessing, I have to find ways to draw my attention toward other aspects of the place.

My main approach has always been to immerse myself in the wider ecological happenings. In this respect, it doesn’t matter where I am, and what kinds of crazy stuff the humans are up to, there’s always nature to turn toward. Early morning is a good time for this. The birds wake up hungry, and will happily lead anyone who’s interested to all their seasonal sources of food. Following birds around in the morning like this is a surefire way to get the big picture about what’s currently important to them, in their perspective of the place. But really, any time of day, when I get a chance to direct my attention toward nature, is enjoyable. It releases me of my tensions. When I’m in places like this casino resort, I particularly like finding examples of where animals are repurposing something the humans have made – be it the jewel spiders setting their webs up next to the electric lights to catch more moths, or the house sparrows picking their meals off the grill of a car.

Now that I’ve returned to martial arts, I have a second source of retreat… that being my own body. For instance, while attending a couple of the conference sessions this morning, I made a point of maintaining good posture while sitting and listening to the speakers. I once met an Okinawan karateka in his eighties who was still really vital and fit. When asked to share his secret, of whether or not it was from his daily karate practice, he admitted that while the martial arts helped, the true source of his health was in a rule he’d set for himself many years before, never to lean on anything. In other words, core balance. That wisdom has stuck with me, though I’ve never had the discipline to completely institute it in my own life. The posture exercises are a start, and I added several sets of stomach tightening to keep things interesting. After the sessions, I went downstairs to check out the hotel’s fitness room. To my surprise, it was completely empty of people. I did a few circuits with the weight machines, and then got curious about the kettlebells. I’ve never worked with a kettlebell before, but I’ve seen others do so. What I was thinking is that they might be useful for developing the muscles used specifically in our CLF form. So I played with them for about the next half hour, and actually really enjoyed it. Think I might even buy one for at home when I get back. I’ve posted clips from some of this training below.

Todai Ling Fitness test

Dear all,
After 3 attempts to upload videos of my fitness test, I decided to only publish the result here. We will see if I can prove my results with a YouTube video (direct link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NJguxC0000. For some reason, upload stops at some moment. If you ever had a similar problem, please let me know how I can solve it. I did not do the one arm push up, as it causes me a lot of pain, resulting from an elbow injury. If Shi Zu can give a replacement exercise until I fully recover, it would be great. As for the push up exercise, I could have done more, but for some reason believed that I had done 53 ^^
Here are my stats for the last test on September, 9th :
I will keep working on it !

168cm (5’5”)

 64.4 kilos (142lbs)

12.2% Body Fat

 60% water 53 Kg muscle (116 lbs) 

no bone ratio

September, 9th 2012

Gender	Ling		Male
Ages	24	20 to 29	30 to 39	40 to 49	50 to 59
Exercises
1 min. Sit-up	50	40, 45, 50	35, 40, 45	30, 35, 40	25, 30, 35
1 min. Push-up	43	40, 50, 60	35, 45, 55	30, 40, 50	25, 35, 45
1 min. Squat	51	40, 45, 50	35, 40, 45	30, 35, 40	25, 30, 35
Jump rope (min.)	9’	6, 8, 10	5, 7, 9	4, 6, 8	3, 5, 7
Side kick hold (sec)	30	10, 20, 30	5, 15, 25	0, 10, 20	0, 5, 15
Front kick hold (sec)	20	10, 20, 30	5, 15, 25	0, 10, 20	0, 5, 15
L-hold (sec)	8 sec	5, 10, 15	4, 8, 12	3, 6, 9	2, 4, 6
1 arm Push-up	x	10, 15, 20	7, 12, 17	5, 10, 15	4, 8, 12
Pull-ups or Chin ups	16	6, 10, 14	3, 7, 11	2, 5, 8	1, 3, 5
Dips	16	10, 15, 20	7, 12, 17	5, 10, 15	4, 8, 12
Handstand Push-ups	12	5, 9, 13	2, 6, 10	1, 4, 7	0, 2, 4
Middle Split inches from ground	9 inches	13, 9, 5	14, 10, 6	15, 11, 7	16, 12, 8
Bent over reach	OK
Arm stretch	Parallel

The Fire

There was a huge prairie fire by my house yesterday. It’s the second of its kind that has happened this year, and rarely does our summer conclude without one. On each such occasion, my initial reaction is to weigh the loss my family might suffer should our home burn down, and for the most part I’m at peace with this potential material impact, though I’d never invite it. Once I’m reminded of that, the next phase of each big fire experience leaves me feeling anxious, like I should be doing something to help put it out. But because of the specialization of knowledge and authority that occurs in our culture, I and the vast majority of other able-bodied men are rendered impotent to assist. We’re told to stay back, let the professionals do their job. I see this as a problem, and it compels me to contemplate why we aren’t training our young adults, all of them, to respond collectively and cooperatively to these kinds of regular dangers, or even how to successfully acquire food and water, or maintain the material stuff we rely on, or conduct emergency medical procedures. It’s like we’re purposely keeping our public ignorant, and it bothers me. Worse still, where I live, there’s another level of this culturally-induced ignorance invested in a long-held racial divide. This too surfaces with the fire, which crossed our fictive boundaries, and rekindled an entirely different kind of flame. Over the last twenty-four hours, I’ve written a couple statements about my thoughts on these matters, and posted them to my Facebook page. I figured I’d share a video recording with all of those involved in FMK, in which I read and elaborate on these statements… again, as part of sharing experience

Two Brand New Century Wave Master Standing Bags

Their Solid One Piece Construction does not break like the first one Everlast  joint joined did.
Right Now Each Weigh 250 lbs....and room for more gonna have to fill them some more and to the max they are sliding.....that one did...unexpectedly because I haven't turned on the power hits on them yet.

 

FOUND THIS TO BE INTERESTING AND INFORMATIVE LOOK AT THE BODY LANGUAGE////////////ABOVE

I'M SURE THAT ANY RESEMBLANCE IS PURELY ACCIDENTAL!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

 

The Rap Industry & Martial Arts

 

The Rap Industry & Martial Arts

In the rap industry, it is completely frowned upon to imitate.  Artists are continually promoted to be original.  Martial imitators can learn much from rap Artist’s.  A producer creates his own beats.  A rap artist creates his own lyrics or poetry.  There is no imitation, as soon as there is imitation, the audience will immediately label you as a fake.  In order to become successful in the rap industry, you must build your own name; you must build your own following.  As in any industry, it is very competitive, but one thing that should be noticed, is that they fully encourage creativity & originality. 

Rap artists create their own names, their own trademarks.  Well known rap artist’s such as 2pac, Jay-Z, Notorious Big, Eazy-E, Eminem, LL Cool J, Common, Mos Def, Wu Tang Clan, Immortal Technique, etc.  You see they have all created original names that are uniquely different & expressive.  Each one of their rapping styles are different & unique to their expression, none of their raps are the same.  Their voices immediately send out a unique expression that can never be imitated. 

The beats that they choose to rap to, the lyrics that they put together, the message that they wish to express, the rhythm of their flow, their unique way of dress, their character, their inner spirit, etc.  Everything is uniquely different.  They may all use the English language to communicate, & they may all rhyme, but their individual expression is different & unique to them.  There is no system.  There is no tradition.  There is no style.  There is just artistic expression. 

2pac drew influences from Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Machiavelli; various rap artists before him, his life experiences, etc.  His poetry was his expression of life, & that is what made his music beautiful.  He was not just rapping to make money, he was rapping to spread a message.  There can be many imitators of 2pac, but there will never be another 2pac.  DMX may even look like 2pac, his voice may be deep like 2pacs, but he certainly is not 2pac.  DMX has to express his own, he cannot imitate.  Rap artists cannot be imitated, it is impossible; their voice will immediately set them apart from any other human being. 

So in the rap industry, imitation is heavily discouraged.  But why is it that in the “Martial Industry” everyone is encouraged to imitate?  These people should not even be called “Martial Artists” they should be labeled as “Martial Imitators.”  An Artist is a creator, art is creation, there is very little Art in the Martial Industry.  The Martial Arts has been taken over by Martial Sport.  Sport is a game, Art is an expression.  Art is like music, it is an expression of the inner spirit.  Sport and Art is not the same.  If you practice sport, do not call yourself an Artist.  You may be an athlete, but you are not an Artist. 

A rap artist may not be athletic, but his expression of art has nothing to do with his athleticism.  2pac & Eminem are certainly not the strongest, fastest, most flexible, & most fit people in the rap industry, but they are certainly viewed as 2 of the most talented Artists in the industry.  They are Artist’s, they are not Athlete’s. 

Martial Arts is a non-verbal body expression of your inner spirit.  Unlike rap, you are not primarily expressing yourself vocally, you are primarily expressing yourself through body movement, and secondary is the voice.  Your body movement is your artistic expression.  And because it is body movement, in order to be the absolutely most expressive Martial Artist, you must be extremely fit.  You must be able to move your body exactly the way you wish to move it.  The more flexible, the stronger, the healthier, the more athletic, the better; that way you can fully express yourself as you please via body movement, you will have less limitations on expression. 

Compared to the rap artist, if you tell the rap artist that he is not allowed to swear, that will limit his expression.  If you tell the rap artist that he cannot use any words that start with a, b, c, d, e, or f.  That will limit his expression.  It is like the Martial Artist who does not have the range and motion in his legs or arms to kick or punch the way that he wished he could; that will put a limitation on his expression. 

When you step into the realm of combat sport, you are imposing limitations on the Martial Artist.  If it is a boxing ring, you tell him you cannot kick.  If it is a kickboxing ring, you tell him he cannot elbow or knee.  If it is a Thai boxing ring, you tell him he cannot grapple.  If it is a cage, you tell him that weapons are not allowed.  The rules & limitations hinder the expression of the Martial Artist.  A true Martial Artist cannot be bound by any limitations in his expression.  The only limitation is his own limitation, the limitation that he sets upon himself; it does not come from the outside. 

A Martial Artist is guided by his inner spirit.  He is guided by wisdom & truth; he is not guided by the industry.  Those guided by the Industry are not Martial Artists.  They may be contracted Fighters, they may be actors, but they are not Martial Artists.  Within the rap industry, 2pac is an Artist who was guided by his inner spirit, but the rap Industry was overwhelming his inner spirit, he was a positive force within too much negativity.  Eventually the negativity had taken his life away.  Most rappers in the industry are not guided by their inner spirit, they are guided by the industry, they are not Artists, they are entertainers; they are puppets. 

An Artist can only be a true Artist when he has the freedom to express.  If an Artist is starving and he is changing his Art in order to make money to pay for his next meal, his expression will be corrupted.  A truly non corrupted expression is when an Artist is self-sufficient.  When an Artist is self-sufficient, he does not need you to approve of his expression, his expression is as is, with or without your approval.  Because money is valued so much by society, you will rarely encounter a true Artist.  Most people will take the money over expression; they will not take the expression over money.  Most people will choose to fight for a million than to express humbly for free.  To encounter an Artist is rare; to encounter a Mystic is even rarer.  That is why you will rarely ever find a real Martial Artist in this world. 

Take down your ego, let your spirit grow

Being unable to post new videos on my YouTube account, I wanted to share with you a few thoughts. Nothing is fixed, and I regularly read and change a few things. Hope you can find a few interesting ideas so that we can share and learn.

Take down your ego, let your Spirit grow

1) Our condition as a human being is extremely fragile

When we look into scientific theories, we learn that we are the most advanced species on the planet. That is only according to our conception of life. We can all become sick. We will all get older and we will all die. A very small cut can become infected with microscopic microbes and end up killing us. A single mushroom can make us die. The human body, compared to the other wild animals is extremely fragile. We don’t have claws, though skin or large teeth.

2) Most people are not exceptional.

If we rarely turn on our TV’s we can easily witness an inversion of values, where stupidity is enhanced and basic human virtues are derided. Still, there is initially no reason to be so proud of us and to think we are better than others. Achievement in life is something that very few people will ever reach. Others have live before us and other will live after. One good thing about online communities or twitter is that they let us realize that we are all virtually friends and that we all do the same things. In its primary condition, man is not original. Even with sophistication, we all wear the same clothes, do the same things and we are very similar in our behavior.

3) Competing rarely makes us better.

Only genuine expression of our true inner self can make us better. What many people don’t understand is that realization is an inner process. As a matter of fact, the only way a competition can be a good thing to you is when we lose it. This loss will force us to think about our own weaknesses. The only person we can really compete with is ourselves.

4) Get in touch with nature.

How can we pretend that we are different from other creatures in nature? Our arrogance leads us to believe that we are superior to other creatures but any wild encounter like a boar or a dear will make us feel otherwise. In fact, from our infinite superiority, we are so terrified of other creatures that we even lock our houses and kill small insects which are unable to harm us!

5) Manipulation everywhere, all the time.

1% of the population has been controlling the rest for hundreds of years. Even if we believe our political or social ideas to be revolutionary, our opinion will probably never make a difference. Those who have power decide. Opposition to the empire means death. Those who try to reach out to other people, refusing to become an instrument of the oppressors will have to face social or physical death. Therefore, the only thing we can do is trying to free ourselves and lead by example to help our loved ones. It is impossible to teach truth and freedom to someone who is not ready.

6) Traditions can be useful, but everything should be put into question

When we study Geography or History, every citizen in the world is considered to be religious. There are so many beliefs and cults that we can’t deny a religious feeling, common to all human beings. One problem is, this feeling has been surrounded with dogmas and manipulators and used against humanity. Interesting thing happens when we analyze traditions. In one country, a wise man is someone with a beard, in another someone who shaves his head. Believers have dreadlocks, beards, hairstyles… If a superior spirit existed, do you think it would care about what you ate for your last dinner or the way you dress?

7) Getting in touch with our inner spirit.

Training under Shi Zu made me realize that there is a key in human being’s growth. We can be in good shape, have a nice job, be proud of our relationships with people no matter their gender or background. There might still be a sense of lacking. Mainly this feeling comes from our soul. Body and spirit may be very well trained and sharp; the only way to attain a blissful feeling will take a serious practice in the field of arts and meditation. It is our own responsibility and work to discover what our “god given” talent is, through listening what our soul says and thinking about our actions… Even though this voice has been nearly muted through centuries of manipulation, it will still speak if we try to listen.

8) Human spirits desperately needs freedom and expression.

We may all feel a sense of lacking and helplessness at times. Deep inside us we know that there must be something better, somewhere for us. Some believe in paradise or reincarnation. But this is only a promess of fate. Why should we wait to be about to day to communicate honestly with ourselves? This better way must exist in the present moment in order to be alive. The key to our inner self is consciousness. Learning more about people and their behavior is a way to find the truth and live in happiness. Once again, it starts with knowledge and compassion.

- Todai Ling

My New Published Book!

Reflections Volume 1

List Price $17.95

Order yours today at CreateSpace:  https://www.createspace.com/3974435
Or place an order with me directly. 
Please pass the word onto your friends & family.

Tao of Freddie's Modern Kung Fu

Balancing Body, Mind & Spirit

Authored by Sifu Freddie Lee
Edited by Ben Nicholls The 'Reflections' series is a compilation of writings and thoughts from Sifu Freddie Lee. The series has been entitled 'Reflections' as they are Sifu Lee's thoughts, his reflections, but also because these thoughts have been compiled to act as a mirror, to reflect the direction that individuals and society in general is going and to draw people's attention to these problems the way mirrors often attract people's attention.

Each volume covers a range of topics such as identifying the ego, healthy (and unhealthy) physical training and discovering happiness pursuing an Art. These topics are broadly split into the three facets of human development; the body, the mind and the spirit. Only through the development and training of each of these three aspects of human existence can a person become truly balanced, healthy and happy.

Every chapter has been written with the hope that it will encourage you to think about your own life and your own reality. You are not expected to blindly agree with everything that is said but maybe it will encourage you to discover what truly motivates you, what truly makes you happy and to truly help you discover your own Way.

Publication Date:

Sep 10 2012

ISBN/EAN13:

147923933X / 9781479239337

Page Count:

292

Binding Type:

US Trade Paper

Trim Size:

6" x 9"

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Related Categories:

Body, Mind & Spirit / Inspiration & Personal Growth

About the author: Sifu Freddie Lee started his spiritual journey practicing marital arts at the age of seventeen in 1998. In the year of 2002, Sifu Lee was guided towards the philosophies of Bruce Lee, who introduced him to Eastern philosophy. During his study, Sifu Lee achieved spiritual enlightenment through the study and understanding of the ancient text "Tao Te Ching" written by Lau Tzu.

Sifu Lee founded the Tao Of Freddie's Modern Kung Fu in 2009, a Spiritual Martial Arts academy that specializes in the advancement of the Body, Mind and Spirit. Some of the wise sages who have heavily inspired Sifu Lee's spiritual teachings include Buddha, Osho, J. Krishnamurti, Bruce Lee, Eckhart Tolle, Erich Fromm and Abraham Maslow

My Influences: John Trudell

Shi Zu has encouraged us to introduce wisdom that we have encountered, through one means or another, be it scriptures and books we've read by the sages, or what have you. One significant influence in my life has been the Santee Sioux artist John Trudell. In First Nations circles of North America, he is a significant figure, but others may be completely unaware of his teachings, because Indigenous people are perhaps the least socially-empowered people in the world. During the late 1960s and through the 1970s, he was the key spokesman for the American Indian Movement (A.I.M.), and so in this respect is much like our version of a Malcolm X or Martin Luther King, but in my opinion he speaks more to the global context and to human beings broadly. Though the F.B.I. keeps a 17,000 page file on him, John Trudell was never assassinated in the way that other significant and threatening sages of his time were. Rather, the government of the United States decided to make him suffer more painfully by killing his wife, his three children, and mother-in-law, burning their house down around them on the same day Trudell made a political statement by burning an upside-down American flag in Washington D.C. After that event, he withdrew for about a decade, and began privately expressing his mourning through poetry. Around the time I was doing my undergraduate training in Boston, Trudell decided to come back into the public eye, putting his poetry to music, and once again standing up to speak his truths publicly. I have been following his work ever since. I don't agree with everything he has to say, of course. But I do really appreciate his understanding of some of the key cognitive and socio-structural obstacles that are contributing to our failure to truly identify as human beings, and to really represent that identity, in an ecological sense. Trudell justifiably directs a lot of his critique toward the partnership of government and industry, the same partnership (I would argue) who have primarily corrupted the martial arts - on the government's side by legalizing violence as sport, on the industry side by selling it. I have listened to many of John Trudell's speeches over the past twenty years. One of the most thorough summaries of his thoughts can be found in the talk he did for the U.S. Social Forum in Detroit in 2010 (embedded below). If you have forty minutes to spare, I'd recommend it. 

Let's Jump!

I wasn't going to record any of my workout this morning, but then I noticed the post updating us on fitness requirements for rank. So today became jump day. I practiced vertical jumping straight, then onto boulders, then onto the back of a park bench, and I did some horizontal leaps as well. The only one I was able to measure at all was the horizontal. Judging by lengths of my shoe from toe to heal, I can horizontal jump about 7'5". I also tried some other new exercises today, including decline spiderman push-ups, a couple attempts at lowering myself slowly from pull-up position with one arm (it's hard and I don't make it look pretty), and a few improvised things with the log. All fun warm-up before CLF practice, which I didn't bother including in the recording... maybe in a few days, when I feel there's been progress.

Fitness for rank update

Update on Fitness for rank. Pull ups or Chin ups have increased for the men & a new exercise has been added, called "vertical jump." I will post a video on how to measure your vertical jump. This will be effective for all future testing from this day forward.  Check this link for requirements. 
http://freddiesmodernkungfu.com/fitness-for-rank/

Balm Of Gilead Recipe

I’ve had a busy but great week, with classes starting back up at the college, and our first round of grad students. I’m focusing on core fitness and CLF progress at the moment, so that’s what’s consumed my mornings and some of my late nights this week. I managed to cut twenty seconds off my two-mile run, not too tough to do, considering I was worn out from all the other exercises before my baseline run last week. Also, my pull-overs, which I guess other people these days call muscle-ups, increased by one. I was going to go ahead and buy a power twister so I could play that game with all of you in Chicago, but it turns out nobody sells them here. Should I buy one off the net? Are you guys going to keep working the power twister?

This morning, I spent about two hours at the park. I began with a few simple strength exercises: decline push-ups, sit-ups, log squats and lunges, and “Keira Hops” (I don’t know how that bird does this for hours at a time)…

Then I stretched for a bit, and went on to practice the Choy Lay Fut techniques on the trees for close to an hour. Here’s snippets of each…

I’m used to punching the trees without much ill effect. But I must have been going overboard, because my knuckles were pretty swollen afterward. Figured this might be a good occasion to introduce a homemade ointment for reducing pain and swelling…

My afternoon was reserved for the rattlesnakes. I hiked out to check on a couple hibernacula (winter dens) to see if they were returning yet, after having several cold nights in a row. Sure enough, they were. I met a young male rattler in the grass on my way to one of the sites, and he was pretty agitated, because he didn’t have his usual hole nearby to dive into. So he took a strike at me, and I thought I’d include footage of that for you guys as well…

Just when I thought my snake encounters for the day were over, I got a call to go pick up a particularly large rattler from a nearby golf course. Unfortunately, I was too busy dealing with the snake to film that one. But I’ll try to convince Adrienne to go out with me on a snake rescue one of these days, so I can show you that part of my life.