The post Respectful Greetings appeared first on Waterloo Kung-Fu Academy.

The post Broaden Your Horizons, But Remain True to Your Roots appeared first on Waterloo Kung-Fu Academy.

The post Try Your Hardest appeared first on Waterloo Kung-Fu Academy.

by Sifu Charlie Romeo

It’s a busy time of year here at the Academy, and in many other aspects of our lives. Whether that be school, work, or other commitments, it’s important to have a clear idea of what you want to accomplish, especially during busy and overwhelming times. That being said, let’s discuss the importance of setting goals and taking action.

First things first. What exactly do you want to do this week, month, or year? There are many aspects of Kung Fu that you can make goals out of. Do you want to finish your current form, be able to complete your push-up requirements, or grade for your next rank? Think about what you want to accomplish. Now, set a time frame (this is crucial!). If you set a goal to finish your form, maybe it’ll happen over the course of several months. But let’s say your goal is to finish your form by the end of this month; now the pressure is on to take action. This means regularly attending class and practicing at home. Remember, accomplishing goals involves hard work!

An important aspect of setting goals is writing them down, and I don’t mean on your phone or computer. Go old-school and write down your goals with pen and paper. People are far more likely to take action and achieve their goals when they physically write them down, as this creates a sense urgency, self-expectation, and excitement to get to work. Writing down your goals also creates goal clarity, as opposed to having half-baked goals scrambled in your head with all your other thoughts and ideas. If you write down your goals, you will be more motivated to take action.

The most important aspect of goal setting is also the most difficult, and that’s taking action. Once you have your goals written down, what good are they sitting on your dresser, or worse, thrown in the garbage? The first step in taking action is looking at the goals you wrote down and formulating a plan. For example, let’s say you want to attend 7 classes over the course of a month. Ok, you have 8 classes available per month on average, so plan ahead. Is there a day you know you can’t attend? Then you need to make sure you are able to attend the other 7. Are you able to attend all 8? Great! You’re already on track to surpassing your goal. Once you know what needs to be done to accomplish your goal, write that down too. Now all you need to do is follow your plan, and you’re on track to achieving your goals!

For my parting notes, I want to remind you that your instructors can help you with this process. Setting and achieving goals is not easy, so if you are ever struggling to formulate a plan, or even struggling to think of a goal to set, come and talk to your instructors for guidance – we’re here to help you succeed!

The post Setting Goals and Taking Action appeared first on Waterloo Kung-Fu Academy.

by Sifu D’arcy Langois

Next time you are in the Kwoon, take a look at the wall above the mirrors where you will see four posters with the label, “Explore all of our Focus Points.” Kung Fu is undeniably a physical artform as we train our bodies to perform the various techniques in our curriculum. However, the physical side of martial arts is only one part of the picture, as martial artists are often encouraged to engage their minds in their training.

Enter our four Focus Points. Those posters are not just decorations meant to take up space on an otherwise empty wall, they are designed to encourage you to think about your Kung Fu training. With that in mind, let’s take a look at Focus Point #1: Rate Yourself on a Scale of 1-10.
“Is this the very best that I can do?” That is the question to consider when you think about Focus Point #1, but it shouldn’t just be a reflection of how you feel you are performing the techniques/forms, as there are many ways to rate yourself. Here are just a few that come to mind:

1. Keeping Focus: How well are you keeping yourself in the moment? At the start of each class we perform a simple form of meditation in an attempt to bring our minds into the present, and focus on our training. On a scale of 1 to 10, how well do you keep your mind locked in on the class?
2. Maintaining Intensity: How well can you maintain full intensity training throughout a class? Every activity we undertake during a class has some martial application to it, from training techniques, to holding stances. On that same scale, how well can you keep your intensity up through the course of a class?
3. Attention to Detail: While learning new movements (in forms or techniques), how well do you remember the specific details? Every movement from a simple punch to a complex form, share a host of specific details. On the scale, how well do you keep track of those details?
4. Flat-Out Trying: How well do you keep trying, particularly when things are getting difficult or repetitive? There are times in our training where you are being asked to do things that are extremely tough, or things that you have done before, and it can sometimes be hard to keep working at it. Again, on that scale, how well do you keep practicing the movements?

These are just a few things to consider when you are looking at Focus Point #1, and it is by no means a comprehensive list. I encourage you to rate yourself on a variety of scales, in a variety of classes, and to always try to be honest with yourself. Being able to keep your mind locked in on the question, “is this the best I can do?” is a great way to further the mental side of our Kung Fu training.

Explore all of our Kung-Fu Focus Points.

The post Focusing on Focus Points: #1 Rate Yourself on a Scale of 1-10 appeared first on Waterloo Kung-Fu Academy.

by Sije Veronica Sas

Something that is stressed with WKFA students of all ages is to take responsibility for all aspects of your training. Some students struggle with this aspect of training more than others, so here are some elements of their responsibility that you can reinforce with your kids.

Punctuality

Being on time is strictly enforced at all ages, and there are consequences for late arrivals, especially habitual late arrivals. It’s important that they arrive on time and ready to go before the class starts. We encourage students (parents) to arrive 10 minutes before class and wait quietly in the weight room. This allows time to put on their belt or sash if it’s not already on and to be prepared to enter the Kwoon as soon as the previous class is dismissed.

Belt or Sash

It is important that your child knows how to tie their own belt or sash. When my son was young, he was in karate. I found it easier to tie his belt myself, instead of having him learn. In the end, this didn’t help him as much as I thought. Unfortunately, belts have a habit of coming loose, and even falling off during class. The Academy’s website has instructional videos of how to tie both a belt and a sash. For younger students, you can find a ribbon or string and pretend you have a belt too. You can then watch the video and tie your “belt” alongside your child, and you both learn. Another option is to bring your child to class early and have them ask an instructor for help.

Personal Equipment

Once they are allowed to spar, your child needs to bring their sparring equipment to every class. Sparing is an important part of your child’s training. Only the instructor knows when a class will spar, therefore students should always be ready. Before we leave home both my daughter and I fill up our water bottles and place them in our sparing bag. My sash and weapons also go into my bag. This way, I know that if I have my bag with me, I will have everything I need for class. As a parent, it’s easier to see if they remembered a bag when they get to the Academy than it is to check for individual items.

Over the years, I’ve had a habit of helping my kids get organized, instead of letting them do it themselves. However, eventually they will have to figure it out themselves. My two children are complete opposites of each other when it comes to responsibility. The youngest is very responsible, and the oldest tends to forget things. However, I know now that once my oldest gets into a routine, things usually go much smoother. You know your child best, and what might work to help them remember everything they need to for class.

Responsibility is a vital part of life skills that we try to instill in all students. Parents are an active part of that portion of their training.

The post Taking Responsibility appeared first on Waterloo Kung-Fu Academy.

by Sifu (Dr.) Rikin Patel MD

Recently, I have been shifting into the emerging field known as lifestyle medicine. It encourages doctors to integrate coaching skills rather than simply relying on medical expertise to help patients. At the core of coaching and teaching for that matter is the skill of listening. As a pediatrician, I have had plenty of opportunities to master this skill listening to parents, but I will admit that going into auto pilot and getting distracted still happens for a variety of reasons.

When we can listen intently research has shown that we can make the speaker feel heard and understood which in turn, creates safety, builds stronger relationships and more satisfying connections. Further, by listening well we can avoid conflicts and misunderstandings and it saves us our most valuable resource: TIME.

We are very fortunate that just by being a martial artist and training at WKFA we have a chance to cultivate this skill at each class.

First, at the beginning of each class we have an opportunity to listen to ourselves when we meditate. When Shaolin monk, Shifu Yuan Jing came to teach us Qi Gong in 2020, he said something profound, “you can’t catch your mind but you can catch your breath.” When you meditate focus on listening to the sound your breath – inhale and exhale. It’s simple but not always easy.

Second, is listening to others which we are more acquainted with. We have an incredible opportunity be a better martial artist and impact everyone around us when we practice these key active listening skills:

1. Pay attention and focus fully on the speaker: naturally, this opportunity arises at the beginning, middle and end of each class as we follow the teacher’s instructions. We zone out at times because it takes effort to sustain attention but like any muscle, come prepared to flex and grow your listening ability.
2. Show interest: body language is EVERYTHING even when its simply standing tall, nodding, stern face or smiling when appropriate. Remember as we say in gradings, our body language communicates our spirit and shows we are listening.
3. Don’t interrupt: this one is much easier in the kwoon than outside. Remember we typically speak at 125-150 word/min but the human brain can comprehend at 600 words/min and this is why we get distracted so easily and potentially cut people off. Try jotting notes of your thoughts while you wait your turn. Consider changing your goal for the conversation from speaking to listening. As the saying goes, we have two ears and one mouth so we should try listening in that ratio as well.
4. Avoid seeming judgmental: you don’t have to like or agree with everyone’s ideas but you have to withhold blame and criticism to fully understand someone. Cultivating respect as we are encouraged to do helps combat this tendency.

Listening is the unheralded skill in communication and for martial artists has the potential of being our unspoken superpower both inside and outside the kwoon.

The post Listening: The Unspoken Superpower appeared first on Waterloo Kung-Fu Academy.

The post Your 2022 Academy Award Winners appeared first on Waterloo Kung-Fu Academy.

The post Mastering Yourself appeared first on Waterloo Kung-Fu Academy.