Consulting Swordsman
Some time after my dad died, I asked my mum what she wanted to do. She could come to Ipswich and live with us? or go to London and live with my sister? or downsize from the large house we moved to in 1992? or stay in the house? Her answer: “You’ll carry me out … Read more
I spent the first week of October on a data detox. No emails, no whatsapp, no socialz, no scrolling. It’s been a lovely mental break. My initial reason for trying this was to allow my inner visionary to be heard, as per this post. The single biggest surprise is how little I missed it. I was … Read more
As I posted on Sword People last week, I’m taking 100 days off alcohol. Why would I do that? The DEXA Scan: an uncomfortable truth I was in London a couple of weeks ago for a family reunion, and took the opportunity to wiggle along for another DEXA scan (at BodyScan UK). My last was … Read more
It’s the beginning of “Mental Health Week”, so I thought I’d share the chapter “Mental Health” from The Principles and Practices of Solo Training. This comes after a chapter on visualising your mental model for training as a tree, with mental health as the roots, physical health as the trunk, and specific attributes as … Read more
There’s a lot of doom and gloom going around at the moment. As the pestilence has subsided a bit, we’ve got war and famine instead. If you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed and crap, it’s not your fault. But I have one key idea and two practices that may help. The key idea: Your experience is … Read more
Last month’s challenge was very simple: prioritise sleep. While sleep quality varies hugely, it’s still basically the same thing for everyone: there’s good sleep, there’s bad sleep, and there’s enough sleep or not. We all know what we mean by ‘sleep well’. But what do we mean by ‘eat well’? ‘Eat well’ is incredibly varied. … Read more
Ah, sleep. The foundation of all health, mental, physical, or otherwise. One bad night’s sleep can ruin a day, and get no sleep at all for 8 days and you’ll probably die.But we as a culture do not appreciate it nearly as much as we should.Your challenge this week is to put sleep first: both … Read more
No, this post isn’t a few days late. I posted this last week for my Patrons on Patreon: rewarding their commitment with early access to the things I produce seems fair to me. Want to join them? There’s a link in the sidebar. Now, on with the post. Challenge: February 2021 Well, that didn’t go … Read more
I have finally managed to articulate my health goals precisely. It’s just this: I want to play tick-tock-tick-tock-bong! with my grandchildren. In case you don’t know the game, it’s simple: you hold the (enthusiastically willing, squealing with glee) child upside down by their ankles. Swing them a few times side to side like a pendulum, … Read more
Do you have asthma? If so, you might find that breathing exercises can help. But don’t just take my word for it…. I have been teaching breathing exercises for as long as I have been teaching martial arts- to my mind they go hand in hand. Over the last twenty years or so many of … Read more