Monday, March 13, 2006
Too...much...chi
I need to burn off some serious energy. As I type this I notice my hands are still deep red. I can always tell when I've been spending just a little too much time in my head 'cause it starts manifesting in other areas.
When I'm really thinking on things through the day or just letting my mind churn I start building up chi. Maybe it's the pace of the breathing I subconsciously fall back to when I'm meditating that's snuck it's way into my day to day life. Maybe it's a lot of things. Who knows. Either way, tonight's workout at the studio was pretty intense. I know I'm not sloppy, and I know I have good control....but, my shots were landing hard. Over time you stop realizing just how much difference your breathing and precision make in simple striking.
One of the other guys I usually work with and I were practicing with some foam padded clubs and I went in for the block at well less than half power. It's an exercise, not a death threat. He dropped the club from the impact on his forearm and just sort of went limp. Normally it just stops the arm, a little "zing" and it tingles, a good "pow" and it makes a sound. After that we were working on something else and I love tapped him on the back with my elbow and almost dropped him. I felt pretty bad afterward 'cause I know I'm not hitting that hard, but it's still painful.
Later on I was working with a different guy closer to my rank. We were half-speed sparring (so, no gloves) and he got whammed with the ridge of my hand in the chin. He wasn't bleeding but it definitely impacted him mentally. You can always tell when someone get's tagged in sparring a little harder than they like, 'cause they start being a little less aggressive. Shortly thereafter we were working on general technique and he caught the knife end of my hand to the side of the neck and was seeing stars. Had to take a momentary break so he could regain composure.
On one hand it feels good to know that years of effort have paid off because the damage-causing ability is apparent. On the other it kind of sucks that my friends are getting first-hand knowledge of why we breathe and meditate. I need to get back to my tai chi and chi gong exercises.
When I'm really thinking on things through the day or just letting my mind churn I start building up chi. Maybe it's the pace of the breathing I subconsciously fall back to when I'm meditating that's snuck it's way into my day to day life. Maybe it's a lot of things. Who knows. Either way, tonight's workout at the studio was pretty intense. I know I'm not sloppy, and I know I have good control....but, my shots were landing hard. Over time you stop realizing just how much difference your breathing and precision make in simple striking.
One of the other guys I usually work with and I were practicing with some foam padded clubs and I went in for the block at well less than half power. It's an exercise, not a death threat. He dropped the club from the impact on his forearm and just sort of went limp. Normally it just stops the arm, a little "zing" and it tingles, a good "pow" and it makes a sound. After that we were working on something else and I love tapped him on the back with my elbow and almost dropped him. I felt pretty bad afterward 'cause I know I'm not hitting that hard, but it's still painful.
Later on I was working with a different guy closer to my rank. We were half-speed sparring (so, no gloves) and he got whammed with the ridge of my hand in the chin. He wasn't bleeding but it definitely impacted him mentally. You can always tell when someone get's tagged in sparring a little harder than they like, 'cause they start being a little less aggressive. Shortly thereafter we were working on general technique and he caught the knife end of my hand to the side of the neck and was seeing stars. Had to take a momentary break so he could regain composure.
On one hand it feels good to know that years of effort have paid off because the damage-causing ability is apparent. On the other it kind of sucks that my friends are getting first-hand knowledge of why we breathe and meditate. I need to get back to my tai chi and chi gong exercises.
# posted by Chris/Stewy @ Monday, March 13, 2006 
