Little did he know ...

[Matt - a simple hobbit]

Seven years ago I ruptured my achilles tendon completely. My tendon balled up into my calf after diving for a steal in a championship 3 on 3 game. After reconstructive surgery the doctor said, "Well, it is time to retire to just playing golf." To which I replied, "Not an option. I have my first little girl two months along in the womb and I need to be able to run, jump, climb, wrestle, and carry her (and all her stuff) on backpacking trips." He changed his tone and said, "99/100 retire to golf. The few I have seen stay active were either gymnasts or martial artists." The next day I committed to join a dojo once I could move athletically again. I thought the outfits were cooler at a dojo.

It took seven months before I was able to walk on my own again and another five months to train my leg to remember how to gently run, jump, and move. When it was finally time to join a dojo, I jumped in with both feet. Up this this point I had trained with a variety of programs. Our strenghts/conditioning coach in college tailored a specific work-out for basketball movement. After college, I kept some of the strength training I learned there and added some yoga with some backpacking training since my wife was an avid outdoors person. During my training my for my black belt run, I trained P90X alongside classes to stay strong muscularly and to keep cardio at high levels. I finish my black belt run in 2010. At that time I felt like I was in the best overall condition I have ever achieved - at 35 years old. I thought it might be downhill for there for the rest of my life physically. I would try to slow it by continuing to train, but I doubted if I could be as strong, flexible, with solid cardio again. I was wrong.

I was wrong, because I hadn't yet learned what training forms brought to overall health. I have been training forms for a year and a half now and I am beginning to see some substantial improvements in my overall core and leg strengths, increases in my flexibility, and my cardio is stronger compared to the time I tested for my black belt. I am also noticing an odd, yet intuitive, connection with all other activities I do. I work with college students (18-22 year olds) and at times they rope me into athletic adventures. I agreed to play basketball last year, both 3 on 3 and 5 on 5 leagues, without playing basketball for about eight months. I planned on taking it easy, but when I got on the court I found my coordination, cardio, and quickness were near and sometimes better than the levels I had when I was training to play in my early 20s. How could this be? Sifu Bronson knows. It happened again in May when a group of college track athletes wanted to get to the top of Hood, but needed a leader. I agreed and found myself having to wait for them consistently. How could it be that a 35 year old was dancing up the mountain only doing forms training, and college track athletes who were lifting, running, and stretching daily were sucking air? Sifu Bronson knows.

What I have learned from this year and a half of training the forms is somehow the process trains your whole body with intensity in ways that complement and deepen natural movement. This natural movement prepares you to perform well in a variety of arenas. For me I have seen increased performed playing basketball, doing outdoor adventures, and most importantly when I wrestle my daughter. Little did my doctor know he was spot on with his counsel.