Blazedge

Wow!! Talk about 'Gettn'r'done'!! You must have been sweating more than the pig at the pig roast with that dojang temperature? Good job Optimus!

Great! I love a good old session of wasting time!! Especially the fantastic ones lol! I am definitely going to check it out, thanks for the explanation. Now, just have to find me some "off" people

I practice various forms of Shaolin Kung Fu's meditative techniques; Qi gong techniques that really create clear thoughts within the mind, harnessing 'focus'. Puts the mind into another realm. Daily meditation really helps with this as well, once you learn how to quiet your mind, and listen beyond.

What is 'tumblr'? I've never heard of that before.

"Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm." -Sir Winston Churchill Always great to remind yourself this from time to time.

Welcome!! I have to say, that the motivation that you hold for yourself is incredible! Who in their right mind would ever turn that type of life-bettering motivation down? Good job and congratulations!

If it is exercise you are looking for, Theillien, than the Shaolin school that you mentioned will probably do it for you. I have been previously training in a Shaolin/Wing Chun school, with heavy emphasis on the 'shaolin', and let me tell you, it absolutely got me into shape. It consisted of much running, jumping, kicking, as well as great Qigong exercises to really help clear the mind & promote proper breathing. It definitely wouldn't hurt to at least take a few free trial classes to test the waters.

Hey State_Alchemist! Sounds like you are in a crumby situation. I would feel just as lost (and helpless?) as you seem to be, if I was in that situation. But chin up! This sounds like an absolutely perfect opportunity to focus on the basics that you've been shown for your respective martial arts. You can't build an efficient, tall-standing structure without a good, solid foundation; this seems like a blessing in disguise, as you are giving the chance to really strengthen this aspect of your training. Also, spend the missing training days diving in and conducting research on your preferred MAs, with either books, internet, or both. Understanding the point of view of the art you are studying will help to realize how to approach every aspect of your training. At the very least this also provides you some extra time to really work on your fitness, using the expert advice found on the NF Rebellion! Increasing your fitness will only create a much more rounded martial artist in you, and increase your abilities in every category. I hope this helps to ease your apparent pain and anxiety. Good luck State_Alchemist and above all else, stay positive!!

Congratulations Drewsten! That's no easy feat. Reaching the elusive number of '100' is what us monks would call obtaining a black belt. If you haven't looked into it yet, check out the Push Up challenge that we have going on right now, here.

Those are absolutely great results, Thunderneath!! I also love the fact that you have developed strong 'lifestyle' habits from this challenge; truly changing yourself through the Rebellion! Good job!

Good morning & happy Monday to all my fellow rebels! My first six-week challenge has been completed. Though I didn't grade 100% on meeting my goals, I did manage to accomplish them within reasonable success. To reiterate and present my final grading, my goals were as follows: Goal #1: Acquire the Rebel Strength Training Guide (Deluxe Edition) and use its knowledge to put together a fitness schedule that fits within my schedule and compliments my lifestyle. Goal #2: Perform half an hour stretching sessions five times per week. Goal #3: Wake up early before work three times per week and perform the current form that I'm working on within my martial art, over the time of 45 minutes each time. My base stats were as follows: STR-2; DEX-3; STA-2; CON-2; WIS-3; CHA-3. Results of my goals: Goal #1: The guide has been acquired and I have used it's printed wisdom to put together a good beginner workout plan, that I train three days a week. 10/10 Goal #2: The stretching has remained fairly consistent throughout the six weeks. Though not always the desired half an hour for five times a week, I still managed to meet this at least 80% and my flexibility has noticeably improved because of it. 8/10. Goal #3: Waking up early and performing the Sil Lim Tao Wing Chun form began good, but fissiled out towards the end. This was mainly due to time restraints, but is not an excuse. I will reward myself 5/10. Final tally: 23/30 = +12 stat points. Not too bad. Not the greatest. I will have to make a point of buckling down even harder for the next challenge, and go for 100% goal completion. Any gain/improvement is just that, and I am seeing increases in my workout strength and flexibility. With that said, I suppose you could say that I stayed fairly true to the path that I set for myself, though it was walked crooked at times, as opposed to straight My point distribution will be as so: STR-2 (+2); DEX-3 (+3); STA-2 (+2); CON-2 (+1); WIS-3 (+3); CHA-3 (+1) NEW STATS: STR-4; DEX-5; STA-4; CON-3; WIS-6; CHA-4

These are all excellent tips, Cr33g! Thanks for sharing some secrets; I will definitely add them to my practice tips. You mention that you don't train WC anymore; what are you training now, and why was your reasoning for halting your training?

Today is as good day to start as any day, Dr3wcifer! Welcome to the 'Persistent Black Belt Challenge: Push Ups'!!

Welcome aboard 'A better N8', and congratulations on your dedication. This is the perfect attitude to have. Slow & steady also equals consistent results. Once you have legitimately convinced yourself that you want to lead a healthy lifestyle, you'll fall right into place. It's not a miracle that takes place; it's determination & willpower that will transform you! Good luck!

Props to Kishi indeed! And to you too, Cob, for recognizing and expanding on the message I was trying to promote! Thanks!

Welcome to the community john97! Good luck with your challenge; everyone has to start somewhere and it's better to start with some 'ease-in' sets to encourage success, then to hit it like a rock and produce failure. Work up to the rock stage! I may be ignorant, but what is 'DOMS'?

I like the idea of beginning at your own personal base line, whatever that amount of push-ups may be, and then showcasing improvement through a percentile increase. Obviously this would apply for the junior belt levels, as cob has displayed. I believe this will resonate good with many people. One flaw (if you could even call it that) that I can think of would be many people would reach blue belt and then remain at that level for quite some time, but possibly this may further spark the push-up motivation to improve oneself? Either way, I think this persistent black belt challenge has sparked some great conversation & motivation/inspiration for us fellow monks. However it becomes formally structured, it appears that it has already accomplished its goal in providing new & challenging ways of self-improvement. Thank you again Kishi!

Right on Spider-Dan!! I can't wait for the day that I can announce to the world I can only do 50 push-ups....and then only 100 push-ups lol!

Obviously, I love this quote (given that I use it on my signature): "Knowing is not enough, you must apply.....willing is not enough, you must do." - Bruce Lee

Great one, Silent Ninja!!! And so full of truth.

Well, this conversation sure is on a rollercoaster track lol! In my experiences, I've seen women that are definitely more physically fit than many men I know, and of course I've seen the opposite. "Everyone, regardless of gender, is at their own level and the challenge is to improve yourself, not to rub dookie in people's faces." I think Cob said it best, here. We all have our bench mark base points to begin at, regardless of gender or physical ability; this challenge is simply another scheme, another motivator, to push us towards improvement beyond our base points (wherever they may start at).

Thanks Thunderneath! I'm always up for an awesome quest; especially when it includes martial arts & working out!! I am absolutely having a blast with the WC/Shaolin; problem is, we are focusing on flexibility right now, and I am a little behind the 8-ball in terms of where I 'want' to be....hence my choice to include stretching in my six week challenge. It'll come with consistency!

Thanks for the support & encouragement; such a great group of people!! I agree with you Kishi, and it is something that I am concerned about as well, as the RSG had mentioned that it is a likely scenario. Its something that I will definitely be keeping an eye on, and will most likely be regulating my daily intake accordingly. I'm looking to gain muscle, and not any other type of mass; with that said, I'll use these next couple of weeks to identify what type of gain I get with my current workouts, and go from there. I haven't religiously been doing any type of calorie tracking, but even early on in in the process I can see why it is highly recommended to do just that.

Welcome Thunderneath and good luck on your quest! You appear to be an extremely talented artist; I can't wait to see some of the finished products for the comic book you are illustrating!