Hypnotherapy and Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) are two practical tools that can really help you get more from your martial arts training. Martial arts has always stressed the link between the mind and body; knowing that it is more than just physical techniques that creates mastery. Therefore it makes sense that training your mind is going to enhance your physical performance.

What is Hypnosis?
Many people are surprised to learn that a hypnotic "trance" is a naturally occurring state that everyone is likely to go in an out of many times during a day. This can be for example, when we are engrossed in watching a movie or driving over a familiar route. The hypnotherapist uses techniques to lead you in to that normal state in which your level of consciousness is altered. In this state you will tend to have a narrower focus of attention, giving you the power to focus easily on the changes you desire.

by Aaron Hoopes

Chi is the prime moving force both within the human body and outside in the universe. Chi is not breath, it is the power that makes it possible for us to breathe. Chi is not simply “energy,” it is what gives energy the power to be energy. Chi is the power behind movement and thought…and it is everywhere. It is in the oxygen we breathe and the blood that flows through us.

It is difficult to define chi concretely. It cannot be seen or measured, it cannot be touched or captured. It is everywhere yet we have no way to touch it, make it tangible, or even prove its existence. Therefore chi is a difficult concept to accept. The Western mind likes the tangible, the concrete, and the specific. It likes a scientific explanation that defines, dissects, and categorizes. Chi transcends explanation. It doesn’t fit easily into a strict biomedical framework. It is simply indefinable. If, however, we are able to take a leap of faith and try to believe in the idea of chi, then maybe we can open our spiritual eyes and envision what our physical eyes cannot see or open our mind to understandings we cannot normally comprehend.

The ancient Chinese believed chi flowed through the body along sacred channels called “meridians,” just as blood flows through arteries and veins. Traditional Chinese medicine considers blockage of chi, or even the incorrect movement of chi through the body, as the cause of both mental and physical disease. People with strong chi have a healthy and youthful appearance, a strong immune system, and are full of energy, while people with weak chi appear frail and haggard, tire quickly, and fall ill often.
Chi within the body is like power in a rechargeable battery. Occasionally it needs to be replenished. The chi of the universe is inexhaustible, yet the body needs fresh chi to maintain its vitality. You take in food, water, and air and convert them to energy within your body. During sleep, while your veins are relaxed and open and your brain is calm, you are able to take in a fresh supply of chi. If you are stressed or nervous, you become rigid and circulation is blocked, you have difficulty sleeping, and your reserves of chi dwindle. When you are exchanging the chi within you with the chi of the universe, you feel healthy and vigorous. By energizing the body with chi it is revitalized naturally, enabling it to fight off illness and maintain good health. The vitality chi gives to the physical body is generally obvious, but it also gives vitality to your mind. Chi is not only physical energy, it is also mental energy. Realization of this is a key to becoming aware of chi in your life.

By Aaron Hoopes

The word Tao (pronounced daü) in Chinese means "way," indicating a path of thought or life that is the essential unifying force of everything that exists in the universe. Taoism is following the way. Many martial artists embrace the idea of the Tao without actually understanding the basic principles behind it.

The Tao-te Ching is the earliest document in the history of Taoism. It is a viewpoint that emphasizes individuality, freedom, simplicity, mysticism, and naturalness. Considered one of the great philosophical works of ancient China, Tao-te Ching literally means “The Classic of the Way and Its Power.” The book is less than 5,000 words long and is very likely one of the oldest written texts in the world. Authorship of the Tao-te Ching is generally credited to a man named Lao-Tzu but knowledge of him is so scarce that only legends remain. Seeking to learn more about Lao-Tzu only distracts us from his teachings. His name itself, means “old master” or “wise sage” – which only leads back to his writings.

The Tao is all encompassing. Despite the appearance of differences in the world, within the Tao everything is one. Since all is one, matters of true and false or good and evil are irrelevant and only arise when people cannot see beyond their narrow perception of reality. Taoism is a system of philosophical thought that puts emphasis on the spiritual life instead of the material world. The Tao is considered unnamed and unknowable.  Followers of the Tao avoid wasting their energies on the pursuit of wealth, power, knowledge and other distractions. Instead, they concentrate on the reality of life itself of breathing, moving and living in harmony with the natural world. Because all is considered one, life and death merge into each other and immortality can be achieved.

Living the Way of the Tao can be expressed by the term wu-wei which means doing – not doing. This concept does not signify non-action, instead it hints at action without attachment to the action, action without thought of the action. Sounds a little like Zen, doesn’t it?

The roots of Zen are based in ancient Chinese philosophy. The Chinese word for Zen is ch’an. In Sanscrit, the ancient language of India, it is dhyana which can be roughly translated as pure human spirit. It can be imagined as the integration of the disparate aspects of the self into one complete and divine being. Zen was eventually brought to Japan where it was elaborated and “perfected” by the Japanese samurai. It is the foundation of the Bushido code, the way of the warrior. The samurai, who lived their lives at the edge of a sword and could die at any moment, were taught to concentrate on and immerse themselves in the here and now in order to connect with the fundamental core of their being. It helped them develop the powers of concentration, self-control, awareness and tranquility. If they approached each battle as if it were their last, they would be able to have every part of their being at their disposal.

Zen itself has no theory. It is not meditation. It is not thinking. It is not not-thinking. It is not something you learn. It is simply something you are. To practice Zen is to live fully and completely, not in the past or the future, but right here and right now. Zen is, in fact, the reflection of the moon in a mountain stream. It does not move, only the water flows by.

As with Zen, the power of the Tao is in simplicity, and yet it teaches one to become a master of all things by learning to go with the natural flow of the universe. Trying to walk upstream against the river is pointless. It is better to accept that change is inevitable, learn to embrace it and make the most of it when it comes.

by Michelle Owen
Corrective Holistic Exercise Kinesioligist (C.H.E.K L3)
Nutrition and Lifestyle Coach (C.H.E.K N.L.C L2)
www.fitness-n-function.co.nz

Our health comes down to a combination of actions associated with the 6 life principles that we do everyday without being very conscious of them. These principles are the foundation for our health. Doing them poorly over long periods of time results in lack of health, vitality, energy, self-esteem, image and eventually disease. Improving any or all of these will significantly improve health and vitality and for us.

Thoughts.
Wellness is an integration of body, mind and spirit;
Awareness that everything that we "think, feel, do" and "say, believe, value" impact on our overall state of health and wellness.

Stress describes a person’s physical or emotional response to demands or pressures that they may experience from time to time.  Common sources of stress include work, money, relationships, illness.

Stress can be a positive thing - helping an individual to grow, develop, be stimulated and take action.  However, if stress exceeds a person’s ability to cope it can impact on their mental and physical health in a range of ways.  Some research studies estimate up to two thirds of illnesses seen by GP’s are stress related.

In the days of the caveman, stress often came in the form of physical threats that required individuals to react quickly and decisively.  The body helped out by automatically clicking into high gear at the first sign of trouble, releasing a surge of hormones (notably adrenaline and cortisol) to accelerates the heart rate, raise blood pressure, increase blood sugar, and enhance the brain’s use of glucose.  This stress response meant the caveman was instantly ready to fight or flee.

Modern day stresses are more likely to be psychological in origin and prolonged in nature (work-related stress, financial worries, inter-personal relationships, chronic illnesses).  But they can still set off the body’s alarm mechanism and the associated hormone surge.  Over-exposure to those stress hormones can, in turn, have a range of impacts on the body’s systems - brain, cardiovascular, immune, digestive and so on.