Yesterday, I spent most of the day trying to figure out what I was going to write about. Well, it came to me late in the evening, the truth. I did not have a very good week. My work was the center of the dissatisfaction. It was many different things, which is usually the case, but here are a few. We (as a group) are dealing with some team changes, all of them good but emotionally draining. We are dealing with some tough things with our clientele, the main focus is not feeling loved and not wanting to live with that feeling anymore. To say the least, each day had me dragging my sorry butt home to the couch in hopes of not moving for a very long time. I did not give into the desire to do nothing, I just went to bed early in hopes of gaining enough energy for another day.
How does this relate to my training? Well, I am not sure that I know how to put all that stuff aside and focus on my training. I can do my forms and techniques thoughtlessly and keep my numbers up, but I am having a difficult time staying in the moment and keeping an eye open for detail. When I am on afternoon shift (3-11), I do my training in the morning and I wake up fresh ready for a new day and away I go. When I am on day shift (7-3), I bring all my baggage home with me and I have a hard time shutting it down so I can focus on my training. When I have a good day a work this is not a problem, it is the other days that worry me. I don't want to get so far behind in my training that it feels impossible to catch up.
I have been meditating in the morning to start my day out freshly, perhaps if I meditate after a tough shift, then I can get some of my focus back.
If anyone has any tips or ideas, please feel free to offer them up, I would appreciate them.
Sihing Robyn Kichko
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, AB, Canada
Monday, January 25, 2010
Sunday, January 17, 2010
The Process of Incremental Progress
The process of incremental progress:
Hmmmm..... We talked about this in our Friday night class and it makes a lot of sense. We talked about being patient with ourselves and (what I heard) trusting the process. Keep on practicing everyday and pushing yourself everyday and you will reap the rewards and you will make progress. I have been reading blogs today and the message in most of them was quite clear; "Do a little bit more and you will move forward, 5 more minutes on the bike, 1 more pushup...." We are learning the process of incremental progress every day. In our practice, in our education and in our careers, and in our families.
I think that sometimes when you are in the middle of something that it is hard to be patient and trust the process. I experience this at least once a day, and then I remind myself not to focus on what I used to be able to do but what I can do. I also remind myself of my goal to train smarter this year, and not push myself so hard that I can't practice or even go to class. I am making progress each and every day that I train and I am not sitting on the couch.
Training this week has been interesting. I have been practicing forms and one in particular has been alluding me at different points. Each day, I recover memory about one part only to lose the memory of another. I am confident that it will all come together with persistence, it is interesting how it is working itself out. I am also learning a new form, it seems like it has been a long time since I have learned a new one and that puts an interesting twist on things. One has to think differently when learning something new, you have to open yourself up and allow the learning to take place. You have to completely trust your instructor and build trust with them as well. There are moments of vulnerability and of confidence and of unsureness and complete and total happiness. I was exhausted by the time the lesson was over, not just from the 90 minutes of physical concentration but from all the emotions that needed to be dealt with in the process. We also engaged in the process of incremental progress, I would learn a new move, practice it and then add on another move. I did not learn the whole form but as part of the process, I will practice what I learned until the opportunity to add more presents itself (or I create the opportunity to learn more of the form).
That's all for this week, I have to go and practice my new and old forms.
Robyn Kichko
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, AB, Canada
Hmmmm..... We talked about this in our Friday night class and it makes a lot of sense. We talked about being patient with ourselves and (what I heard) trusting the process. Keep on practicing everyday and pushing yourself everyday and you will reap the rewards and you will make progress. I have been reading blogs today and the message in most of them was quite clear; "Do a little bit more and you will move forward, 5 more minutes on the bike, 1 more pushup...." We are learning the process of incremental progress every day. In our practice, in our education and in our careers, and in our families.
I think that sometimes when you are in the middle of something that it is hard to be patient and trust the process. I experience this at least once a day, and then I remind myself not to focus on what I used to be able to do but what I can do. I also remind myself of my goal to train smarter this year, and not push myself so hard that I can't practice or even go to class. I am making progress each and every day that I train and I am not sitting on the couch.
Training this week has been interesting. I have been practicing forms and one in particular has been alluding me at different points. Each day, I recover memory about one part only to lose the memory of another. I am confident that it will all come together with persistence, it is interesting how it is working itself out. I am also learning a new form, it seems like it has been a long time since I have learned a new one and that puts an interesting twist on things. One has to think differently when learning something new, you have to open yourself up and allow the learning to take place. You have to completely trust your instructor and build trust with them as well. There are moments of vulnerability and of confidence and of unsureness and complete and total happiness. I was exhausted by the time the lesson was over, not just from the 90 minutes of physical concentration but from all the emotions that needed to be dealt with in the process. We also engaged in the process of incremental progress, I would learn a new move, practice it and then add on another move. I did not learn the whole form but as part of the process, I will practice what I learned until the opportunity to add more presents itself (or I create the opportunity to learn more of the form).
That's all for this week, I have to go and practice my new and old forms.
Robyn Kichko
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, AB, Canada
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Unstanding? Understanding! or Understanding.
This first week has been great. I thoroughly enjoyed all the classes that I attended this week. From learning cool techniques with the blue/brown class to tai chi and sweating at Shoalin, it has been a very good week. I feel like I am right where I need to be to maximize my potential.
I had an ah-ha moment the other day when I learned that something that I am struggling to understand, does not need to be understood right now. I can accept that I will understand one day, it was the fight to understand that was frustrating and hurting my brain. I can move forward knowing that the light will eventually turn on.
I also learned this week that I can't just move my body in a way that someone is telling me, I have to know what the move is for and understand it's purpose. I am still struggling to fully actualize the move but I am confident that it will come with time and practice.
I really feel like I am staying mindful throughout my days. At the end of each day, I sit down and review what I learned and what I accomplished and it feels good. Each day, I feel like I am making strides forward, to be a better person and to be a better martial artists. It is not always easy, and the struggle is somewhat tiring at times, but it feels great to accomplish something everyday.
I feel on top of the world and ready to conquer any of the challenges that this year brings.
Friday, January 1, 2010
Excited and nervous
I am excited and nervous about starting this year. I know that I will face a lot of challenges this year, both physically and mentally, and I am looking forward to it. The other day, I was thinking about my requirements how I was going to accomplish them on a daily basis, and I couldn't quite imagine what it would look like. So, I got up and did one of my forms four times and it only took a few minutes and I could see the change occurring as I repeated the form. I will use this experiment to motivate me through times of challenge and stress when I don't think that I have enough time to do Kung Fu.
Happy New Year Everyone
Robyn Kichko
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, AB, Canada
Happy New Year Everyone
Robyn Kichko
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, AB, Canada
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)