By Allie Alberigo

Normally the word “outbreak” brings on fear of diseases or viruses and causes panic.  In this article, “outbreak” means many things, both negative and positive.  In class, a virus outbreak could prove to be a negative force: on the other hand, an outbreak of energy, sincerity, humility and discipline could be life changing.  We need this latter kind of outbreak in our lives more often.

One negative person in your immediate circle can cause you to become negative. Words that are spoken, actions that are taken, and emotions that are voiced are easily adopted. So we need to be very careful not to allow a negative outbreak in our lives.  It is easy to sit back, listen to the news, and hear about the negative occurrences going on right around us.  It is very difficult to resist being affected by this input, to make the conscious decision to walk away when you are bombarded by this kind of negativity.  The mind is easily affected you need to take the necessary precautions so you can decide whether to be a part of the cotangent or not.  Just as in medicine, a placebo may either protect you from a sickness or not, depending on your belief system and the power of the mind.

Have you ever felt a cold coming on, and allowed yourself to fall ill by accepting the fact that you will get sick?  Other times you may tell yourself you are not going to get sick and then you don’t.  It’s the same with negative emotions and energy, and on the flip side, positive thoughts.

What is nature of the energy in the class, in your workout, or in your home? Can you be the catalyst to make a positive change? Can you create the environment to make it happen?  The answer is “Of course you can!”  You can either be positive or not, it is entirely your choice.  When working out at your school, all you need to do is tell yourself you are going to make this the best workout you ever had, and pass the positive energy on to others.  A simple loud Kiai (spirit shout) or an extra strong respectful “yes sir” can be very contagious.  Your emotions will bring on positive emotions in others, and before you know it the classroom, workplace, or home life will be changed.  You are what you believe, either negative or positive, so choose to make every day a positive.  Envision the positive energy and it will manifest right before your eyes.

Ah . . . the art of listening. Even though you claim to be listening and you respond at the right moment with the typical ahs, uh-huhs, and yups, you may still find yourself in a daze. Just because the auditory process is working and the sound is going into your ears it doesn’t mean you have clear understanding.

Maybe even right now you’ve scanned this article up to this point and really haven’t given it your 100% undivided attention. Let’s stop and start again, this time with 100% intent. Okay, are you with me? I hope you went back to the drawing board and started from the top and now you are intent on getting everything possible out of this.

I have some rules for listening and they can apply to you. The very lessons I am speaking of can help you in your Martial Arts, with relationships, at school and at work.  If you become a better listener you will become a better person.

Four Tips for Better Listening!

1. Make sure you are not distracted. Eliminate any outside factors that may take away your concentration.

2. When you listen, really listen. Do not let anything interfere, such as background noise, music etc. Stay focused on the topic at hand.

3. Look directly at the person you are listening to; do not shuffle through papers and do not engage in any other activity: eye contact or at least face contact is important.

4. Feed back what you have heard. “So this is what I understand that you’re saying. Is this correct?” Make sure you are on the same page.

Becoming an effective listener takes practice. I notice in my classes that only a portion of what goes into a person’s head is retained. And especially when I’m teaching young students, only a part of the information is learned. Even parents don’t always give their undivided attention to their children when they are talking.  But it doesn’t need to be this way.  Although this may be the case now, the best place to start to fix the problem is with you. Follow rules one through four and you will be well on your way to becoming a better listener.  I assure you that this is something that will improve your relationships and communication with others making you a better Martial Artist, student, and friend. Just listen!

By Allie Alberigo

Ancient principles with modern applications are what the Martial Arts is made of.  Even in a modern world where many Martial Arts systems have become eclectic and where words like “Mixed Martial Arts” have become synonymous with what the Martial Arts represents, there are age-old philosophies that still ring true in the 21^st century.

When I was a young boy, the Martial Arts was taught a bit more elusively.  The teacher may have disguised his lessons a bit more. Now we want to cut to the chase and demonstrate benefits quickly.  Is that good or bad?  Of course it is entirely up to the student: when the student is ready the teacher will appear.  How ready are you as the student?

Ten Philosophies of Greatness

1) Always be open minded – ready to learn from any experience.

2) Always work hard to achieve greatness – never settle for mediocrity.

3) Never expect – always strive to deserve.  Never assume results are owed to you.

4) If it is too easy – it is not always worth it.  Sometimes we want to take the easy way out. Today’s buzzwords are “work smart, not hard.”  But hard work always pays off in the end.

5) Don’t compare – everyone is different. Don’t fall into the trap of trying to do what the person next to you is doing.  You are your own person; you should work on you and you only.  It doesn’t matter what others think.

6) Be Patient – strive not to sweat the small stuff.  If you allow yourself to get distracted or upset over little matters, then other components of your life including family and friends will be affected by it.  Put everything in perspective.

7) Be Compassionate – Realizing that all people have their own agendas will certainly help you gain perspective on how you should react to others’ actions.  Try to always put yourself in their positions.

Be Loving – My teacher always told me to treat others as you would treat your mother, father, son or daughter.  We tend to be more patient with people we know rather then perfect strangers.

9) Be Strong – As the Navy S.E.A.L.S say, pain is weakness leaving the body.  Don’t shy away from hard work or tasks that are difficult.  Strengthen your spirit, your body, and your mind.

10) Be Healthy – Treat you body as your temple. The saying goes “Everything in moderation.”  Always be careful about what you eat and drink and how much rest you get.  The body is like an engine; if you do not put in the proper fuel it will fail.  Take care of your body; it is the only one you have.

The principles of the Martial Arts that include respect and courtesy have been around for thousands of years and have been virtually unchanged. These principles that have lasted lifetimes are still being taught freely at Martial Arts schools across the world. In most Martial Arts schools, you will witness many types of acts of respect and courtesy. Students can be heard saying “Yes sir” and “Yes ma’am” as a regular occurrence; you will see bowing, hand shaking, and raising of hands before a question is asked; you may also hear students’ grammar being corrected when they say “yeah,” to say “Yes.”  Yet outside of the Martial Arts schools, why is it a common discussion topic among friends that there is a lack of respect in society today?

The answer, I believe, is that with the advancement of society we are simply getting out of practice.

If we want to raise patient, caring, empathetic, respectful children in our society, we can’t expect for it to happen automatically. We all need to behave in that way, then teach it and expect it. It’s easy to want to point the finger at computer games, Hollywood movies and other people as being bad influences on children and on parents. Yet many children become a perfect representation of what parents and other influential people in their lives have modeled for them.

By teaching our children to stop and look someone in the eyes when they’re speaking to them or being spoken to, or even by holding the door open for the next person behind us, we’re showing our children how to be respectful.

At our Bully Buster seminar yesterday, we discussed the idea that there is only one reason for someone to bully another person – a lack of confidence (on both parties). This can start to change by also instilling respect in our children.

By David Corrigan

Most of us have been in the majority for our entire lives. You might not have realized it, but training martial arts makes you a minority! This past week, Felipe Costa and his wife Ana, came to Knoxville, TN to spend some time with my family. While he was here, we naturally discussed Brazilian Jiu Jitsu competition. When you love a sport like many of us do, we follow the sport, know the names of our favorite athletes, and watch some matches on YouTube. However, my dad taught me a great lesson when I was younger that I want to share with you all -

Many times because of the people we surround ourselves with, the websites that we frequent, and the amount of time we spend thinking about martial arts, we forget that only a very, VERY small percentage of the population is like us. For example, name the top 3 swimmers at the last Olympic games, or how about the top 3 runners. Most of you probably thought, "ooh Michael Phelps..." or "Usain Bolt!", but couldn't name any more. Swimming and running are probably one thousand times more popular than Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, but we cannot name the top 3 in the world! Unless, you are one of the people that really follows swimming, visits swimming websites, and watches swim meets on YouTube.

Sometimes because of the growth of the UFC and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, we get a false perception that many people are training martial arts. The truth is, the population that understands the difference between Karate and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is growing because of the UFC, but is still extremely small. The amount of people that actually have trained Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is even smaller. And finally the amount of people that have ascribed to the "Martial Arts Way of Life" and consistently train is miniscule.

How does this work to your advantage? If you are training to learn to defend yourself, do not fall into the trap of thinking your attacker will attack you the way your partner in class rolls with you. The average bully on the street will not have any real training, and will resort to many of the "classic" attacks such as haymaker punches, headlocks, and pushes.

If you are training because you love the sport of Jiu Jitsu, enjoy the fact that you are in an elite club! I am lucky enough to call one of the most successful competitors in BJJ, Felipe Costa, my close friend and teacher, AND to have my 56 year old (later this month) Dad as my number one training partner and teacher, providing me with this kind of insight day in and day out.

Now to prove my point, go ask 5 random family members and friends who the two people are in the picture above!

By David Corrigan

In 1993 the Ultimate Fighting Championship was used to showcase to the world which martial art was the most effective. The Gracie family came in and dominated the first few events, turning away fighters from virtually all martial arts backgrounds. There have now been 129 official UFC events and countless other MMA events around the world.

Over this time, the backgrounds of the fighters has shifted. Now, all fighters virtually are training the same techniques. As Muay Thai, Boxing, Wrestling, and Jiu Jitsu proved their effectiveness in the cage and ring, every fight gym around the world incorporated the most effective techniques from these arts into their arsenals. With that said, as a MMA fan, is there anything that we can take away from these events besides entertainment? Are their any lessons of self defense still being taught in the cage?

The answer is YES but they are not as obvious as they were 15 years ago.

Last night at UFC 129 in Toronto, there were some great fights from legends such as Georges Saint Pierre, Randy Couture and Lyoto Machida. GSP defended his title against Jake Shields, BUT many were disappointed. Why? GSP's performance was far from exciting as he was hit in the eye during the second period. GSP is arguably the most trained athlete in the world and the 21st century Bruce Lee, but a scratch to his eye turned him into a very cautious and timid fighter.

Self defense lesson : there is a reason eye gouging is illegal in MMA! This is not a commentary on Jake Shields, as it looks like the eye scratch might have come from a legal punch. The moral of the story is that all of us have been driving down the highway and all of a sudden a piece of dust or lent gets trapped in your eye, and we may almost cause a wreck from the sudden irritation. It is very painful and distracting. Now imagine intentionally striking, scratching, or gouging at an untrained attacker's eye. This is a VERY effective weapon.

Now while this eye shot tremendously hindered GSP, he showed his true champion spirit and continued to maintain control of the fight. Why wasn't Shields able to capitalize on this obviously hurt Saint Pierre? GSP is a very well rounded fighter. He has not closed his mind to thinking that being dominant in one aspect of the fight is good enough.

Self defense lesson: you do not have to be a St. Pierre, but you need to learn to defend yourself in all ranges of a fight, including striking, grappling and weapons defense. GSP has the ability to neutralize his opponents' strengths, thus going home with a decision victory, and he occasionally might finish the opponent. A fight is not about winning as it is in MMA, it is about surviving. Therefore you should train to be able to take the fight wherever needed to neutralize your opponents strengths and survive the fight. You don't have to be great at anything, but rather decent at everything.

Bruce Lee taught us to use no way as way. Maybe the 21st century Bruce Lee has taught us to use all ways as way.

What are the benefits of martial arts? This is a great question parents often ask when they enroll their children in martial arts. Of course, there are many obvious benefits such as stress relief, self-defense, and social and sports aspects, but did you know martial arts training is also a great form of fitness?

Martial arts training is not only great for toning your body, but it also offers a great cardio workout. The best part is you get all the other values while getting into shape.

Another benefit over the typical gym, is we have professional instructors to motivate you and keep you on track to meet your fitness goals. Keep in mind, results don’t happen overnight but you will start feeling the benefits right away. Combine martial arts with a balanced diet and you will be on your way to a healthy lifestyle.

If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to work out and get in shape, then give martial arts classes a try. If you aren’t enrolled in classes, or you know someone looking for a place to get in shape, talk to an instructor today to meet and exceed one of the most common and difficult resolutions. This is your year!

p.s. Check out our FREE Friday Night Bag Workouts for the month of January 2011 at Progressive Martial Arts - pmaoakridge.eventbrite.com.

By Allie Alberigo

Many, many years ago there was a man who lived his life in a temple training in the Martial Arts.  At one point his teacher and all of the elders at the temple decided to send this man on a quest.  They gathered in a room and invited him there to tell him the news.  Upon being summoned, the student was both elated and fearful as he appeared before the elders.   The instructors were clear on the instructions and told the student that he must travel across the world to a temple in a far-off foreign land to complete the rest of his training.  They told him this would be the quest for knowledge and when he arrived at the far-away temple the teachers there would share with him all their secrets.

As you can imagine, this student was very excited.  He prepared and went on his way.  His travels were filled with many trials and tribulations; he battled many vagabonds, warriors, gypsies and street thugs along his way.  After almost one year on foot he finally arrived at the distant temple, tattered, weathered, but a different man.  He was greeted as a champion and was led directly into the chamber of elders.

He was instructed to sit while the rest of the elders gathered and came to the room.  Once everyone was in attendance he was handed a beautiful, leather-bound book with the title “The Book of Knowledge.”  The warrior took a deep breath, looked around, and smiled as he opened the book.  The book had only one page which was a mirror.  The warrior looked at it, and saw only himself.  He became frustrated and asked “Is this a joke?”  The elders said “You are the only one besides us who has made the journey and survived.  You are the living example; you can now take our place as the elder and run the temple so we can leave.”  The warrior was very frustrated and threw the book to the ground, breaking the mirror.  Loudly he said, “I am happy to be able to have lived the lessons, but I will not waste my time in this jail when so many things are still to be learned.”   He then got up and left.

This story is a fine example of the quest for Martial Arts training.  In the 21^st century, students are not as patient as they once were and they do not realize that lessons are not always as evident as they would like.  The lessons are in the time spent, the experiences, the failures, the losses, the successes, the bumps and bruises, the pain, the frustration, the confusion and the trust in their teachers.  They also lie in perception – whether a struggle, a confrontation or a situation is taken as a lesson or dismissed as something other then that.  Lessons are constantly presented to us, if we chose to learn.  In our modern society we are accustomed to finding information at the click of a keyboard and getting the information in a nano-second.  It is amazing that any of the actual physical skills are still around.  The road to success is paved in sweat, hard work and determination.  A very wise man once told me, “The only thing worth anything is something you worked hard for.”  If something comes easy it is not all that valuable.  Trust in your teacher, but work hard and live the lessons – train to live – live to train.  Be the example – live the Black Belt, don’t just tie it around your waste.

The holidays are supposed to be a time to relax, enjoy good food and family and experience the best life has to offer. However, for most Americans it is a time to stress and worry. Which one of these is you? Which one would you like to be? Believe it or not, martial arts can help you be the one that you would like to be and it all  starts with your attitude.

The word attitude means a state of mind, behavior, or conduct. It is true that we are totally in control of our own attitudes. We cannot control many parts of our environments, such as the weather, but we can control how we think or behave in various circumstances. In return, our attitude has an effect on the outcome of our lives. With that said, it makes sense to practice maintaining a positive attitude so that we can increase our chances of living more positive lives.

In the Martial Arts, we are taught to think positively. This does not come naturally for some of us. Having a positive attitude requires skill, consistency, and practice. If we allowed our negative thoughts to overcome our behavior, then we would be defeated quite often. That is another reason that the distinguished rank of Black Belt is so special. It represents not only excellence in Martial Arts skills and abilities, but excellence in attitude as well. Without a positive attitude one could not reach the level of Black Belt because of the numerous challenges that the journey entails.

Will you have a positive or negative attitude this year?

By David Corrigan

When is the last time that you really tasted success? For most of us, we really have to think back to remember when we were last victorious. Was it at work? school? the gym?

Success is defined by dictionary.com as

the favorable or prosperous termination of attempts or endeavors.

"The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will." - Vince Lombardi