Mixing Martial Arts & the Road to Chi-Do Combat Arts

I started my martial arts career with the most obvious one, of course, karate, when I was seven years old. After about three months, I wanted to quit because I hated it. I found it boring, and I felt uncomfortable with the way they asked me to force my body into movements and structures that …

Damage Control

Don’t wait until it’s too late. There’s a lot of reasons people don’t want to participate in self-defense classes. They think it’s for sissies, that it’s ineffective and that [insert martial art of your choice here] will be better (It’s not). There’s still this stigma around self-defense that for some reason makes people think we …

Dissociation, Because It’s Easier

I don’t know about you, but I don’t like watching those really graphic videos of attacks and violence that people circulate on Facebook and Whatsapp. I would say most people don’t, but some people seem to get a kick out of sending it on, you know, for the shock value. But personal tastes aside, there …

S.O.S

Let’s get this very straight, right from the start. You, and only you, are responsible for your own safety and protection. There’s a lot of psychology involved in this statement. But in its simplest form it means this: when the shit hits the fan, you should not be waiting for someone to come and rescue …

Quitter Syndrome

We all know how it goes: you sign up for a new thing, whether it’s ukulele lessons, tap-dancing, martial arts or just a new gym membership. You’re super excited about it and you throw yourself into it for about two weeks…and then suddenly it’s no longer fun. It’s hard work, learning to tap dance. The …