Health and Fitness

Martial Arts is a way of being in life. It's very difficult in the beginning to make your practice into a habit and even when you've been doing it for many years, there can still be a struggle. But this is good because it shows your practice is constantly challenging you. The key to rising to the challenge is to make a strong commitment to your martial arts practice from the very beginning. This commitment automatically makes you practice, and any thoughts that go against your practice can be more easily dismissed. In order to gain something you have to give up something. For example, you can't eat chocolate cake every day and lose weight. It's true that a martial artist does not have as much "freedom" as a non-martial artist because so much of your time is taken up with the practice. But what exactly is freedom? Martial Arts helps us to be. If you can just be then you don't have so much desire for external things. If you can be, the Buddha says, all of yo...

I've had many enquiries from people who haven't done any fitness or martial art's training for many years and have asked me how they can use the Shaolin Workout DVDs to get back into shape. This month I share with you a programme based on Shaolin Workout Volume 1 . If you're in okay shape or you want to move up a volume then you can use the same principles for Volume 2 and 3. Please note, that these are guidelines only and you shouldn't undertake a new workout regime without checking with your doctor first.  The Shaolin Workout - A physical and spiritual overhaul The Shaolin Workout is designed for the martial artist but it can also be used as an exciting fitness regime. The beauty of Shaolin Kung Fu is that it carries us through each phase of our life, boosting our metabolism, helping our heart and increasing our flexibility and coordination. Welcome To The Class The DVD is designed exactly the same as the beginner's class so it's perfectly normal if you st...

1) One small step "When you improve a little each day, eventually big things occur... Don't look for the big, quick improvement. Seek the small improvement one day at a time." John Wooden - successful basketball coach Taking one small step makes our training manageable. If you can keep your skill over the winter months and not lose your stamina or technique this means you are improving. If you've stopped training, then take two movements from The Eight Treasures Qigong form and practice them for a few minutes every morning. It will make you feel better and give you the motivation to keep going. 2) Integrate the training into your life Everything we do can be an expression of our Shaolin training. When we stand in a queue we can spend that time to go over in our mind the form we are practicing. When we walk to the supermarket we can walk quickly to help our fitness. If you have kids, go to the park and play football or tag. Teach your kids how to do the Five F...

Whenever I go back to China, I'm so happy to see my friends and family that I eat too much delicious food, and  I'm always much heavier coming back to the UK than I was leaving. I used to be able to lose weight quickly but now I'm in my late thirties, I find it harder to shift and I notice that all the fat goes to one place: my belly. Belly fat slows a fighter down and for middle-aged people it can lead to health problems  later on. The belly is a very stubborn keeper of fat. To successfully shift weight from this place, we need to tackle it from not only a fat burning angle but also hormonal and diet. These are my top tips. 1) Eat breakfast Studies show that people who eat a quality breakfast, consume less calories during the day as whole. If you're like me, and you like to workout after waking, then eat a banana or a healthy milkshake. I use a food processor to blend   a banana with some cashews, walnuts and milk. Food eaten before a workout boosts performance and e...

Working Out The Mind & Body Before I came to the West I only knew what was taught in the four walls of the Shaolin Temple. I knew there were other martial arts outside of Kung Fu and Qigong but I had never seen them before. When I came to the London I was curious and went to many classes to study. I wasn't so much interested in the different techniques. I was interested in how the mind worked. Would the mind of a Muay Thai fighter work differently to a Sanda fighter? But the most important mind that we need to get to know is our own. It saddens me to think of the many people who workout without using their mind. At the temple, our training is always seen as a meditation. The mind and body work in a unique way and by using our workout as a meditation we infuse our self with a deep sense of spaciousness and peace. So next time you are running, swimming, weight lifting, practicing Qigong or doing a kung fu class either through a DVD or in a class, use my   seven laws to help you...