The purpose of this blog is to share my experiences and some thoughts from the lockdown which have helped me to maintain routine without being perturbed by surreal circumstances.

In every perceived downhill struggle, there is a need to reach for that ray light that may shine through and protect one’s inner core. During the Coronavirus Pandemic and in particular the lockdown enforced on as all, I have found many aspects of Training enabling me to remain calm and at ease with restrictions placed upon us all.

Lockdown has allowed me to embrace the word STOP! self-reflect and reconnect myself with my inner self and surroundings. Time suddenly becoming abundant has facilitated more Karate practice. Learning new Kata and continuous refinements through repetitive training, ingests energy, focus, confidence and regularity during a period of most necessity.  Focus on routine warm up’s and practice of stances combined with Kihon serves as an enabler to remove layers like a Samurai polishing his sword. Encompassing the practice with Breathing techniques accompanied with burning of some pure sandalwood incense helps to clear airways, focus on breath whilst serving as a reminder to the task in hand.

Regular practice of Yoga has also been a saviour! Joining the mat removes any sense of unease by working on various muscles throughout the body helping to develop greater strength, flexibility and balance. As with Karate, merging postures with breathing techniques helps to clear channels, allowing energy to travel more freely, removing any blockages.  A sense of tranquillity is achieved every time with a feel-good factor as the mat is rolled and placed away.

Daily Walks merged with sprints to the local forest through uphill and downhill slopes is most refreshing, helping to improve stamina whilst being surrounded by peace and tranquillity.  On a hot sunny day any feeling of breeze is most appreciated as the body starts to break into a sweat. The longer the journey within limits, the more beneficial it is to improve one’s health. In particular where restriction on movements and interaction with others are at play, this is critical to combine stamina with breath of fresh air for the welfare of the body and mind.

Eating healthily and having a sense of awareness of what good looks like is vital in protecting our bodies from a health perspective. Ensuring that meals consist of a variety of colours, accompanied with fruit, vegetables and lentils etc. Eating food in season and Organic where possible. Consideration of this is more critical than ever in particular during this period where the immune system and general health and wellbeing require further protection. Awareness of what you are eating is part of the training by ensuring that a well-balanced diet full of nutrition is consumed providing the body with nutrients necessary for self-protection and energy. Applying this learning to practice by challenging oneself to new food varieties is exciting!

Finally, the lockdown combined with the cohort of practices above allows a sense of appreciation of one’s surroundings. Observations of various shades of greens and colour within our gardens and open spaces, shapes, texture are most interesting to observe and refreshing for the Mind. Growing vegetables such as Radish, Fenugreek, Mangetout amongst others are a delight to observe as they mature over time and the joy they bring once they reach fruition. Gazing at fish and how content they appear to be with their lives in small restricted areas serves to remind oneself to appreciate all that we have and take this opportunity to make the most of time with any aspect of Training that appeals to you!