Results Not Typical

Yesterday’s report: lots of errands, one load of dishes, did a load of laundry AND folded it AND put it away. (there’s more that needs folding and drying, etc.) Not enough done (kiddo was home, teacher workday) but small progress.

This morning I realized there’s one big thing that needs unfucking - along, honestly, with everything else. But when I wrote my unfucking post, I didn’t consider this.

I need to unfuck my kung fu.

I started kung fu in… 2000? 1999? I can’t remember. You know. Back Then. I loved it. It was helping me gain confidence and even get strength. I am a small woman and have always hated feeling vulnerable. Then in 2002, after gaining my green belt, I took time off to have a kid. I could have trained through pregnancy, but my pregnancy was not a happy, glowy time; I was an achy, bitter thing and moving wasn’t fun. Then in 2003 I tried to return, but my heart wasn’t in it, not to mention a particular bully I had hated was advancing through the ranks, and you don’t want a bully instructor.

So two years ago, I decided the Pink Tornado was old enough to join, and I should go back with her. With eight years off, I returned to kung fu, still a green belt, trying to remember all I had learned. (Aforementioned bully had left the school in this time. Yay!)

I’ve been a green belt for two years now. Now, if I had been going diligently to class, I could afford to be bitter about this, but honestly I haven’t been. All last year, I was only able to do 1 hour of the normal 2 hour class on Thursdays because of Jim’s work schedule (PT was with me in class) and second hour I missed often contined sparring. My goal is two classes a week, but I can’t think of any month where I achieved this. This past February has been my best attendance month in maybe EVER and still I missed one day for sickness and one day for PT’s school event. My instructor acknowledged today that I’ve been a green belt for a very long time, but I think we both know I’m not ready for the next level.

Why? Because I need to unfuck my kung fu.

Let’s go over what I need for the next level of kung fu (that I do not feel confident in):

• The ability to fall safely, front, back and side.
• Good sparring skills.
• Speed.
• Endurance.
• The ability to do 50 push-ups.
• Did I mention the sparring? Yeah. Worth mentioning again.

I don’t work out enough at home (see unfucking my life). I am the Excuses Queen. Bow down. But I have to work at home to get better at kung fu and show them I’m ready for the test. So what can I do at home to unfuck?

• Falling drills.
• Speed drills like evil jumping drills, fast punching, etc.
• Running for endurance. Weapons forms for endurance. (We worked with weapons today and I was shocked how tired my hands were at the end of class.)
• Lots of arm exercises to build up to pushups.
• As for sparring? I honestly don’t know what I can do in order to improve that, with no one else to spar with. I suppose that’s where going to 2 classes a week comes into play. Bag work, shadow work, at home. 

So tomorrow I begin unfucking. No, wait. I started today with a 75 min class, with 50 (shallow) pushups and 40 sit ups and all the other stuff we did. Tomorrow I need to do my arm work and make a schedule for workouts. Which days to run, which days to do speed drills, etc. But I will begin continue to unfuck. Dammit.