Monday 14 October 2013

Tae Kwon Do Nun!

Yeah you read that right. It's a nun who kicks ass in the name of the Lord! No I'm not blaspheming, it really is the story of a black belt nun who gives tae kwon do lessons in Singapore to kids recovering from cancer.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24478533

Linda Sim sounds a redoubtable woman and a caring person who has dedicated her life to helping others first, as a nun, and now through martial arts.

A touching story and an illustration of how martial arts gets under your skin and stays with you. Regardless of how long you spend away from any given martial art that you once dedicated yourself to,  something still remains.

Picture reference: BBC



Tuesday 8 October 2013

Be grounded like the….robot!

Wow!

Check out this military, humanoid robot and its abilities to not only walk across uneven ground but can also balance and resist attempts to push it over.

It's interesting to see it make tiny adjustments to balance its centre of gravity just like a human would. As martial artists we do this all the time: thinking about being grounded, centred and having the flexibility to change our position in different environments.

From the videos I've seen it isn't able to do a mawashi geri

….yet.