After a hiatus, I am once again teaching martial arts. It has been a while since I put my thoughts, philosophies and insights into a blog. I am once again in that period of limbo when in between jobs I have some time on my hands. At times like this, my mind starts to wander as a deluge of memories and nostalgia comes pouring in.

After a crazy weekend at the movement Jam in Auckland, I am painstakingly putting together the very first ever episode of my hitch hiking documentary. Three days of running, leaping, vaulting and flipping around Auckland (ok ok I was behind the camera mostly) with guys from all over the country has been a great way to get to know not just the style but the people who practise it. Anyone can get a wikipidia definition of a style but only by meeting the people can you truly get a sense of what it is about (because the people who practise make the style).

So week three has finally come and gone and a pattern in my training has emerged. I seem to have a fear of commitment (way too many jokes come to mind....ok ok just one “that’s what she said”). You see in parkour a lot of the movements are designed to continue your momentum. So that as you approach the obstacle the vault movement is nothing more than the next step from your last. The timing, distancing from each step doesn’t change this means slower you go the harder it is to achieve correct technique.

I was listening to a great interview recently in which a famous person was speaking about a particular time in their life.

This man went through a very traumatic birth in which forceps were used to help to deliver him into the world. However the use of the forceps left him with a slightly deformed face and he talked with a slur.