I'm Back

Training has been going very well for me over the last few weeks. My over use injuries have healed and I have been easing my way back into serious parkour training. For a month or so I was definately unable to train, which left me with many mixed feelings about alot of things. However now that I am back in action I am so much more appreciating of my abilities, the people I've trained with, and everything.

This local traceur and I have actually taken some crude video footage of some techniques. That is exciting and entirely beneficial because it allows you to actually see what you are doing. Definately a huge help.

So things are great. My flow has improved, along with my creativity. I am more capable than ever before in the movements of parkour. It still amazes me how parkour transends into all other aspects of my life.

Being back home in CT brings me before all those people I left behind. Just about everyone of them sorta got left in my dust...in that they still do nothing but party and sit around or whatever. Then there I am doing planche/handstands while they watch some television. I don't tell them to do it, but there is a slight interest that is growing in them to ACT rather than merely REACT in life.

I really want to thank those PK-Cali folks I trained with, it had such a profound impact on my life. David up here in New Britian keeps me on my feet learning new things. Zeno, if you read this know that those conditioning videos you share are probably the most helpful advice I apply in this journey.

Stay tuned for the encounter with David Belle coming up in the beginning of October.

back in my lands

It's good to be home though I have been out of contact with most everyone since my return. Things will float closer to normality soon enough. Beware the black hole that is connecticut.

Tracuer Down

I live parkour. Many of us seem to flow into that mentality, which is why I spend so much time talking about conditioning, to the great annoyance of my companions. My rule of thumb is to train ninety percent of the time in terms of strength, endurance, flexibility, etc... while actually practicing the preferred athletic, (in my case parkour and martial arts) a mere ten percent of the time. WwhaaAATT???

This summer I've seen just about every tracuer I know go down in one fashion or another. Be it the need for them to wear a cast all summer, or a decision to take it easy for awhile because of over use injuries/pain. That is where I fall in, over use. Thankfully I'm smart enough to realize that and have been laying up for awhile. Anyways, it is crucial to have enough rest time for your body to fully recover. It is imperative that your body is conditioned well enough to handle the rigorous demands of practicing your athletic, especially parkour.

Yesterday I did a bit of practice, not much really because I need to rest for longer. WOW what a difference! One goal of mine this summer was to go from a planche to a handstand, while maintaining total control. Yesterday I did it for the first time. After resting and having a clear mind the technique was literally effortless for me. Therein lies the danger...

A fellow tracuer saw the progression accomplished on two wooden posts that were about three feet high. I went from a controlled L-sit into the planche, into a handstand, then back down. This tracuer stopped doing conditioning, (dips and whatnot) and attempted the move. I turned away for only a moments time, and when I came around to see what he was doing I expected to see him working on dips. I see him with his feet high up in the air, one arm bent more than the other; both bent completely under the load. A half a second later...

Time slowed down to a crawl as I watched in horror as my friend, my comrade, began to fall forward. I would swear that his arms didn't move at all to brace him. They couldn't. Shock does that to you. His legs were unable to come around to take his fall. His face smashed into the concrete below him, and I knew fear. The look in a mans eyes when the walls of reality come crashing down. The look of realization that this is for real. Life is real and it means more to us than any possession ever possibly could.

Had he not been at the level of performance ability that he is, had he been a lesser man; he easily could have broken his neck. Then what? A life is precious. A life can be lost that quickly. That suddenly, total muscle failure occurred in this mans arms. There is naught to be done about that reality, your body completely shuts down. He didn't know his capability or his limits. This is from lack of conditioning. Conditioning brings you an uncanny awareness of yourself.

It is absolutely vital to all athletes; training. You must be one hundred and fifty percent committed and certain with what you do. Train your body religiously to DO what you demand of it, and it will respond. Do not expect progress overnight, or even over-month. Anyone can vault a rail, or jump from point A to point B. You must take those movements to a higher level, constantly striving to perfect each and every technique, however insignificant it may seem. Mastery takes a long time to achieve, do not be so foolish as to assume you have some special ability because you have had some pale achievements in your short lifespan.

I challenge every warrior among us to think on these things. I challenge you to live by those ideals, as you realize they must. Come to your own conclusions, decide your own training methods. Nobody knows you but you. Train accordingly.

Looking Within

My rest has been an experiance so far, as my body craves action. For awhile I was misled about how to handle my ankle and knee pains. I was listening to my body and my intuition, however I had to keep researching other sources to find out if I'm injured or not. That's all trash inside my head, preventing me from recovering.

Nobody, no doctor, would know my body better than me. If I can only choose to listen to myself and have the courage to look inside myself for the answer, and accept the responsibility of the Truth I know. Fortunately my pains are just from overuse, not enough rest. There is no injury, no swelling, I can bear weight, my joints in question do not buckle under weight, and the pain is very mild. I am also well aware of the need to recover from these mild discomforts, because they could easilly get worse in time and ignorant usage... The point is to atop seeking answers outside yourself, from other people... your answers are within. Don't be afraid, for fear is a natural emotion like the clouds and rain overhead. Fear keeps you alive.

The time I spend idle has left me with nothing much to do accept meditate on various concerns of mine. I'm actually glad I have this rest period ahead of me, it will allow me to really decide on important matters that have been on my mind. It will also grant me an opportunity to begin my training anew, fully recovered and very eager to get sweaty everyday.

The thing is, there are some realizations that every warrior must know. The first lesson to train and meditate on: Get rid of ALL the junk 'thoughts' in your mind. A junk thought is one that prevents you from being completely in the moment. Life is not the future, life is not impressing someone else, life is not in the past, life is right now and once this moment is gone it's never coming back. There is never 'nothing' going on.

When you are grounded in the moment, it's Zen like, or whatever earthly label you call it. It's like 'Neo' in The Matrix being able to do anything impossible. The important thing is the awareness of that moment, the Move or Technique the martial artist is performing. Don't think about it...Do it.

A warrior does not ever give up what he loves, he finds the love in what he does. Being injured like this is the essence of the warrior; absolute vulnerability, the only true courage. Choose to be a victim, or anything you'd like to be. Life is a choice.

So as I lay around to rest my legs, I can only think. I think that I love this, this part of life. I am alive while I lay there thinking. I realize that happiness, success, it's a journey. The journey itself is what brings us happiness, not the destination. The battles a warrior faces are not on the outside. The battles we fight are on the inside, for peace. The battle to be happy, without a reason in the world.

Concerns, Objectives, Methods

It should have been obvious that certain parts of my body would require special attention. For the most part I do understand that bone density takes several months, years in fact, to become a reality. Joints are more than the muscle strength of the surrounding tissue. The Bones, the Ligaments, the Cartilage, and Tendons take longer than sheer muscle to heal and adapt to the rigors of training. This is why Form must be perfected long before speed is acquired.

Since my rest days seem to revolve around the same types of soreness and pain, I must again evolve my approach to training and application. My Target areas include:

• Knee Strength - ability to stay in range of motion to prevent twisting.
• Foot Strength - less cramps, less chance of fracturing of the delicate bones.
• Ankle strength - titanium ankle routine
• Core Vitality - The most important area
• Shoulders - range of motion, strength, endurance

After several weeks of general fitness goals, I do indeed see a huge improvement to my parkour/urban ninja skills. I also see the same joints giving me trouble, which could lead in the future to more permanent injuries. A new focus is in order.

• Flexibility Training - Dedicated
• Stronger Core Emphasis
• Lower Body - Low Impact for knee recovery
• Upper body - Low Impact, basic methods
• Frequent Jogging/swimming (less impact by far)
• Dedicated Endurance Day Once a week.
• Basic technique (like handstands, planche, martial arts moves in the water)

Strength training always works out if done correctly, so I'll keep that up. The swimming pool is a dream, as you increase resistance 15 times, and everything can be practiced in the water at very low impact. For the following two weeks the pool will be my primary location. Gotta stretch out statically at least twice a day. Proper diet and rest. No High Fructose Corn Syrup, ( builds fat, prevents fat from burning), no hydrogenated anything. Water, Water, Water. Getting dehydrated in Friday nights Jam was a major bummer and def. embarrassing to suddenly sit out and be tired. Rest solid eight hour stretches, with alternating days so the same muscles do not get over trained.

In two weeks I will note my status and adjust as I need to. I will be emphasising Low Impact, and those target areas, specifically the joints.

Parkour Field Trip

Last night was spent doing Parkour with the local group of people, and a field trip to another area to meet up with two Tracuers in their home territory. It was a total success. I have definately learned a great deal from the experiance.

My first completely successful Kong Vault was achieved over a picnic table. I remember when that seemed impossible to do. It used to be so scary. A kong is a sort of 'Superman' piece of action; where you straight up dive towords your obstacle so you are fully extended, and grasp your hands upon it, then continue to pull your legs through your still extended arms. Scary indeed to the unexperianced. Graceful and breathtaking to the practitioner. That is the very reason I love Parkour; It enables you to realize that Nothing is Impossible.

Lately I've been doing so much more conditioning. To see the results in my increased performance ability came at such a shock to me. By conditioning my body through excersise I gain so much more real control of my movements, and maintaining constant awareness of my level of progress so I do not ever progess too quickly. Conditioning 90% of the time to 10% of practicing your desired athletics will take you from good to great, in addition to greatly improving your chances of walking away un-injured. I spoke and exchanged some training/conditioning philosophies and methods with last nights people. The key is not that anyone is completely correct; the key is in fact to constantly evolve your ideas too make them more effective for you, while discarding continuously the aspects that are not your Truth. This constant refinement of your attituted and practice will banish any concept of monotony, while allowing you to achieve your absolute maximum potential over time. Baby steps dude.

Finally I've learned some great new abilites. Those Kongs I was doing, and some tic-tac action and running along side of walls...wallrunning is like the matrix man. One of us was swinging on a swingset...only not sitting down like we complacent Americans are so fond of doing; Rather swinging by his arms like a gymnist. That was awesome and I will definately be doing more of that with the turns he was doing. Some more basic techniques that are crucial to survival, like the parkour Roll, was drilled in a few different ways. Lots of climbing and jumping around, precision work with rails, balance work...everything was covered.

I know for certain that I walk away from this episode able to begin a new chapter in my life.

wisdom of the elder

Earlier this week I had my first jam with a group of people, at night. I took alot away from the session, most importantly that I do parkour for myself and to impress only me. I say this because I am in my twenties, and most kids doing parkour are just that: kids. Besides, I love the reservation normally associated with a talented elder. That special wisdom only true experiance can grant. It was special to note however, as I ran and did my thing, there was a group following my lead. The mantle of leadership thrust upon a soul is a weight one must beare with responsibility, in any situation I find myself within, I readilly accept the weight of the world.

After all it is who I am, at least. I study and train myself not for isolation...but to connect with the world in my own self expression. My knowlage is yours to share, so long as you possess the wisdom to seek it for yourself.