lifes a pain !

Have you ever thought you should have taken better care of yourself when you were younger, it is true to say being young is wasted on the youth! I still get an amazing buzz when I train in Martial Arts, any martial arts or conditioning I still feel like a kid, racing to get to a space on the mat to try out my new move but in doing so I have created an over trained, overworked (underpaid) body. When I stop to think of the stupid things I have done in training and the injuries that they have caused (to me not others, well maybe a few other people lol) you would think I would have learned my lesson, well no I have not, I still want to do everything and more, even when I am tired and sore I still push myself until I hurt something else. I know this does not sound the rattling’s of a normal human being but I have found out that we all push ourselves in our chosen pastime, as example up and down the country thousands of overweight men running around as if they are Alan Shearer every Sunday with minimal warm up and far too much to drink the night before sliding tackling each other, two footed challenges and the heavy smell of deep heat from the changing room before and during the match and freeze spray for after. (If you are laughing it is you!) The art or sport that you take up when you are young or find in later life when you are really old (over 30) you still enjoy it in the same way , as some people says it keeps you young or makes you feel like a kid, we all find it hard to admit that we can't do certain things in the way we used to do them (like drinking lol) when you spend 4 times longer with a hangover than you actually spent trying to drink is always a bad sign that your raving days are numbered . Even when you just stayed up later than normal and feel like you have had a 3 day rock party in your head, time to hang up your bandana and spandex pants. It is a cruel world we live in, a world that gives us the excitement and brain of a teenager with a body of a 40 something that has been hit by a bus then backed over until we stayed down! But despite everything we are still want to do it! When i was younger (don’t laugh) I always saw people in their 40's warming up differently to everyone else I thought what are they doing (skyving) they stretched certain areas first then moved on like a plan b warm up rather than the press ups and high jumps we were doing and most of them never did the running games or diving rolls, now I know why! Because they were sore, or were injured in a certain area so that they had to find a different way of doing things but the great thing about them they were still wanting to train they would not quit and if anything they should have been admired. They were willing to stand toe to toe and train with these young upstarts with their fancy kicks and their non-clicking knees and shoulders! As the drill sergeant in Full Metal Jacket said they are the phony brave or the crazy tough (you pick the one that applies to you) I now have a new found respect for anyone of a certain age that does not listen to the fat bloke in the pub that tells them they are stupid to do martial arts or anything else that you enjoy, they want you to be like them and drink and eat and call people and moan about everything in their life but are unwilling to do anything about it, but hate anyone else doing something to change the status quo, because they are unwill to but themselves out there! Be proud you are doing something you love and be proud that you stand up to the haters and tell them to.....go away!! As you know i am always fighting (excuse the pun) with an ongoing lower back problem, just recently a company from America contacted me and asked me to try out a stretch routine for my lower back, I have tried many hundred or styles of stretches and any type of training routine to strengthen my back and I do core exercise’s daily just so that I can work and walk around so I was in the mind set as it might be just another false god routine (routines that tell you that they will be amazing and turn out to be not so good!) Elastic steel, run by Paul Zaichik has been far the best one I have tried, certain exercises have made my lower back move for the first time in about 12 years, I am keeping up with the routine and I am a work in progress as they might say and I will keep everyone up to date with my results, but hopefully if I stick with it and not be too stupid with my coaching and training (please read above) I hope to at least take some of the pain away! The next routine will be the side splits so watch this space for van damme like photos or my all-time favourite kicker Bill Wallace! Bill Wallace shows that you can be later in years but a kid at heart if you keep stretching and enjoy you training. If you want to contact elastic steel You can by going to Elastic.steel via facebook I highly recommend a look Until next time Have fun and be good John atkin