Just finished editing the montage (fifth bloody version) for our 2013 Chinese New Year demonstration, hope you guys like it. Visit www.jowga.com.au if you’re interested in learning Kung Fu!
– Lobo
Montage loving – Kung Fu demo
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The Lobo Chronicles, Part 5 – a Capoeira love story
The continued Capoeira adventures in my story. If you wish to know more about Capoeira, read this.
Capoeira has a very strong social nature, with groups developing very strong internal cultures – you will see a lot more events, dinners, post-workout drinks, demonstrations, workshops and collaborations with other groups than what you see in your standard martial art. I hadn’t been with my school for more than two weeks before I found myself throwing kicks and cartwheels before an audience! Although I was deeply nervous at most of the demonstrations, it was also quite the kick to show your stuff to others. And a lot more demos were to come further down the track in all kinds of locations – theme parks, schools, fashion nights, shopping centers etc along with a number of festivals in Sweden. Continue reading
The Lobo Chronicles, Part 4 – Becoming Lobo
The part of my story where I come into contact with the Brazilian martial art Capoeira. If you wish to know more about this martial art, read this.
Just like a lot of capoeiristas (Capoeira players) my age, my first contact with the art was through the movie ‘Only The Strong’, which was a fantastic and epic action movie with the most bizarre and impressive fighting style that has ever been shown in any movie, ever. Or so my teenage brain though anyway. Filled with backflips, spins and head-over-heels spectacular fight scenes (and the compulsory montage, of course) it left most viewers with a sense of wonder. Continue reading
Montage loving – Lobo Acrobatics
A bit of self indulgence – when my knee got seriously damaged and I could not train for over a year, one of the few good things from that period was that I finally got the time to sit down and compile the best footage of the tricks and acrobatics I had learnt so far. Continue reading
Montage loving – Cain Thompson
Another shoutout to a friend of mine from the Capoeira days. Before posting this I asked Cain what he does nowadays, but he wasn’t able to give me straight answer – apparently the man is just too talented for words. Actor, personal trainer, martial artist and semi-professional narcissist. Check out his action reel below, and see contact details at the end of the video if you want him to star in your next movie (or hens night)
Do try to ignore the moustache, no one is perfect.
– Lobo
10 tips to the Martial Arts student – Advanced
Disclaimer – The advice in this post is purely based on own experience, one student to another. Check out the 10 tips for beginners here, as well as 10 tips for intermediate students here.
Congratulations! At this stage, you have considerable experience and solid skills in your style of martial arts. Undoubtedly this comes from consistency and motivation, channelled through dedication and hard work. Well done. Watch out though, as you now face the higher level aspects such as rivalries, politics and raised expectations. You may also have reached a skill level that demands constant maintenance in order to stay sharp, which is not helped by the boredom that may kick in from doing the same thing for years on end. Hopefully these ten tips will help keep you moving forward. Continue reading
The secrets to Martial Arts progress– Motivation, Part 2
Second part of the motivation post, with concrete tips on how to keep yourself fired up. Click here to read the first part, and feel free to add your own tips in the comments section. Also, have a look here for more secrets.
In the first part of this post, you saw the run through of defining your current situation followed by setting an end goal along with the steps necessary to get there. To many of us that is all common sense – simply having a goal will do wonders for your focus and drive. But over time the end goal may not be enough, and we find ourselves struggling. In the moments of exhaustion, when you’re all out of energy, when the obstacles are simply overpowering your resolve, it is easy to give in.
But remember that accepting defeat and giving up your dreams is easy; living with a lower sense of self-respect isn’t. Better to try and fail gloriously, than to let others convince you that you are less than what you could become. Continue reading
The secrets to martial arts progress – Motivation, Part 1
Motivation is the ideal partner of Consistency – make good use of both and chances are that you will one day fully realise your potential. This is part of an articles series on advise on how to keep progressing in martial arts.
In your average school, you normally find that some students stand out from the rest. It becomes noticeable that there is a fundamental difference in how these individuals go about their training, even whilst doing the same exercise as everyone else. These students tend to develop their skills faster than the others, ever growing in ability and appetite for more. You find them working harder, being more focused on the exercises, always showing up for class and never giving up in spite of any and all obstacles. The difference between these individuals and the other students often lies in motivation rather than actual talent or potential. Continue reading
The Lobo Chronicles, Part 3 – Trial and Error
The part of my story where I found myself looking around for a new passion, as my old home away from home had closed its doors…
After our old Kempo dojo shut down, I found myself in a limbo of sorts. As I’ve mentioned before, this was in a pretty small town so there was no obvious second choice of what to do or where to train. Continue reading
Defeating Big Mike
When writing about my Kempo years and my old Sensei Werner, I remembered how he used to tell us stories when we were stretching after class. One in particular stuck with me, the story of a smaller man’s quest to defeat a most imposing foe. You could say it shows how important martial arts can be when one has no choice but confrontation…
There was once a man named Norman, who worked as a bus driver in a small village. Norman was a nice man who enjoyed his job. Every day he drove the same route, and always greeted his passengers with a heartfelt smile. All passengers – except one. Continue reading
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