what recent progress have you made?

[BonesCom]

I can almost do a pistol, just one and almost...

I guess you do not want to know this. I did 24 pistols on my right (could of taken it to 25) 14 on my left, then 21 on my right, then 11 on my left, the 20 on my right and then 10 on my left.

The straight after sat in dun shou shi for 20 minutes.

Some new goals are for me, sit in squatting monkey for 30 minutes and do 30 pistols plus on my right, 20 on my left.

JB

Up to five pistols on each leg using a brick as a counter-weight, soo much easier with a counter-weight! Next working on doing them as slow as possible then without the weight, working on getting my stance lower in the single leg posture as well as raising my empty lfoot just off the ground

[CaliG]

Taking the advice of SC players I've been focussing a lot on gripping strategies over the last year. Although I don't have an SC coach in the States I try to learn what I can from whatever resources I can judo, books, tapes, anything and I notice that now when I grapple people have a hard time throwing me and it's helped my ground game a lot.

I remember JW or Fong saying that to an SC player getting the grip is more important than getting the throw and at the time I couldn't understand why, but now I can.

Thanks to EF!

[bigphatwong]

Not sure how much this counts for training-wise, but I do a lot of walking/hiking and lately I've noticed that I can literally run up a jagged slope of rocks by "rolling" my center of gravity over them rather than thinking about where to place each step. I'd imagine the feeling is something similar to how a puma or some other big cat would do it.

It can be fun to take the Reebok Challenge with yourself every now and again. lol

[I-mon]

sounds cool phat wong!

I have just this minute got a 24kg kettlebell from a classmate, and done some turkish getups with it.

[Walter Joyce]

I have two weeks left in my 13 week program. I've now lost a total of 22 pounds, down to 188, 8 more to go then on to different goals.

I have to say that now that I am fairly fit again, when I practice IMA it is easier to feel the connections, especially to and in the core.

[yusuf]

..weird.. i seem to be bouncing as i walk recently and have just realised that my gums are holding a lot of tension .....

[everything]

learning a little striking from some friends in informal playing around.

used the comb hair move (only thought to try after reading on RSF!) and it seems to get added to the catalog easily and quickly.

[JusticeZero]

Been spending about an hour a day on floor movements, now that it's thawing and I have a clear little footbridge to practice on. Mostly i'm trying to break the rust loose, but I have been tightening up my form and expanding my range of what attacks I can launch from the ground. Somewhat wishing there was a dishuquan or harimau stylist in my neighborhood to trade notes or feet with.

[Ian]

Not sure how much this counts for training-wise, but I do a lot of walking/hiking and lately I've noticed that I can literally run up a jagged slope of rocks by "rolling" my center of gravity over them rather than thinking about where to place each step. I'd imagine the feeling is something similar to how a puma or some other big cat would do it.

This is interesting stuff.

If you have loads of stairs to climb, I find it's better to generate the step from the hip and torso - to swing the leg in a narrow, relaxed ark rather than simply lifting your knee and contracting your quad, which will tire you out a lot faster.

The applications of a relaxed hip are pretty obvious.

[bailewen]

Yesterday at the end of a fairly long workout on a really hot day. . . .

I found I can now (if sufficiently warmed up) touch my forehead to my toes on my right side.

I tried to repeat the stretch later to take a pic but by the time I got home and had a nap my legs had already gone from "warm and loose" to "cold, tight and sore". Still though, it startled the hell out of me. I've been working on that stretch for a couple years now and had no idea I could do it. I stopped stretching down and over and for the past year have only really been stretching my legs by lifting them up. I like to use a doorway for that. Stand in the doorway and lift one leg up onto the inside of the frame. Yesterday at the end of our class in the park Shifu was talking stretching with some of the old middle aged working stiffs who were still struggling to touch their toes. He asked me if I could bend over and place both palms flat on the ground. I said that wasn't even a challenge any more and demoed. I then said the one I was working on was the old "kiss your toes" stretch and did the elbow to toes thing that I managed to get too a couple years back. He asked about head to toes and I said, "No way. I can only get this far...." ....and I totally touched my forehead to the toes. YIPEE!!!

For reference:

[Joe L.]

Nice, Omar! Been trying on and off for years to get that damn stretch to work..

[Walk the Torque]

Cool,

I have been out of action for a while with a nasty flu (not swine thankfully). But I thought I'd get back on the horse and rocked up here for a little inspiration. Well I found it!

Thanks Omar

Conn

[CaliG]

I got my bluebelt in BJJ today.

Considering I first started in 1999 and have been doing it on and off I'm feeling pretty good.

But only problem now is that they're expectations of my jiu-jitsu, so in my mind I still have a lot of work to do.

Yet it is good to know that hardwork pays off. I've been applying the same principles of jibengong and training from CMA and applying it to my own grappling training and it looks like it's working out.

Good times,

G

[wiesiek]

contgrat Greg

Nice strech Omar
i still can do only elbow to toe,
to much sweets recently...
mayby in age of 60...

[bailewen]

Well so far I have still not been able to repeat the feat. I'm gonna have to take a camera to the park this weekend or something. I really think that the 38 degree(Celsius) weather combined with stretching at the end of a 3 - 4 hour workout had something to do with it.

Today, with just "regular" stretching and warming up, I came pretty close but was still about 2 inches shy. The elbow though, I can now do totally cold.