Evening all. It’s great to catch up as always. It’s been a long time. Or maybe it just feels like it has. My new Twins 10oz arrived a couple of days ago and ever since then I’ve been itching to try them out. I kind of know what the experience is going to be like as I as I’ve sworn by the brand for many years, but right now hitting pads or jumping on the heavy bag would feel brand new again.

We’ve got at least another three weeks of lockdown left here so as always I’ve been doing my best to keep the home training going and to keep my fitness up with running. This morning I had a truly awesome run in the woods near mine, and I already can’t wait to do it again.

Training at home isn’t always easy so this week, to stay motivated  I’ve started getting into strength training as I have a kettlebell and free weights that have been gathering dust for a while and feel now is the time to put them to good use so on that basis I’ve been doing Kettlebell swings and goblet squats as well as free weights.

I’ve been enjoying watching Sylvie’s training videos and have taken a lot away from her Dieselnoi inspired knee drills and like the elbow reps too! although I’m not training as much as I should be I’m going to make sure I’m doing something for at least 45 minutes to an hour a day next week onwards. Works quiet, I have the time, it’s waving a glowing neon sign in my face saying “FREE TIME DO WHAT YOU WANT WITH ME.” so I think I should put it to good use.

Other than the generic physical strength, fitness and shadow boxing I’m also going to spend a little more time working on flexibility. I threw a body kick the other day shadowing and although the kick wasn’t too bad my flexibility made Robocop look bendy. Seriously, I was expecting a twang! 

There is lots of great resource out there on flexibility and mobility and if your not soaking up 5G coronavirus conspiracy theory on youtube (don’t get me started) you might find videos such as this from the awesome Cyrus Washington  useful.

In fact, there’s some great home training material out there such as 100 Solo Training Workouts from the Warrior Collective  from some of the biggest names in martial arts. Whether you’ve been training for a few months or like me you’re a war-torn stormtrooper who’s been training since the dawn of time there’s something for everyone. It’s your journey, make the most of it. 

On that cautiously optimistic note, I think it’s fair to say that for now, that’s all she wrote. Let’s hope life returns to whatever it is they call normal soon (I’m just about avoiding a damning communiqué about society) and that the pad rounds are many. Stay motivated, stay focused and train hard and just like the last time.. I’ll see you on that road.