| WHAT! No boxing in the martial arts? | | | | can take a step closer to being outside. For |
| We have enough boxes as it is. I am only asking | | | | example, does your training center have windows |
| that you take your physical training outside. | | | | and are they open? Does your training center |
| When focused on a healthy diet, I usually tell | | | | have airflow? You need a window / open door on |
| students to focus on making 70-80% of their | | | | one side of the room as well as the other. |
| meals healthy and then giving yourself 20-30% | | | | When you breathe, you are cleansing the body. |
| freedom to indulge. I believe you could use the | | | | Clean air in, toxins out. However, if you are |
| same strategy for training in the outdoors. This is | | | | breathing old used air, this process is less |
| of course if you are not currently on an outdoor | | | | effective. Just as if you were to feed your body |
| training program. Although it might be hard to | | | | old, stale food with no nutrients. Your cells need |
| spend 70% of your day outside, so for you | | | | to be fed the right air too. |
| hard-core boxers, you can flip the strategy and | | | | When you breathe out - you are releasing carbon |
| get 30% of your day, week, month or year - | | | | dioxide and other wastes. Therefore, if you are in |
| OUTSIDE. The quick-fix solution is to attend one | | | | a room sharing oxygen with others, you are all |
| of our camps if your year is full of boxes. | | | | essentially breathing in all this garbage over and |
| Most martial artists train indoors in a dojo (training | | | | over again. Breathing air that is old will not provide |
| hall) type of environment. I too have spent many | | | | your cells with enough oxygen to function at an |
| years enjoying the benefits of a well-equipped | | | | optimal level. |
| martial arts box. Nevertheless, let's think about | | | | The more consistent your air flow the better. |
| the reality that we already have quite a few | | | | Your body, brain and cells will function at a higher |
| boxes taking control of our lives as it is: | | | | level when given fresh air. Therefore, you can see |
| Fact is, if you live a normal life, you migrate from | | | | how important this is for your education and |
| one type of box to another. It is part of how we | | | | training in the martial arts. When you train outside, |
| prefer to manage our level of comfort. When you | | | | you are maximizing the overall benefits of the |
| go to Starbucks, you like the fact that this | | | | experience. |
| particular box, has what you are looking for. The | | | | Exercise gets your circulation going and floods |
| same goes for going to the movie theater, the | | | | your body with oxygen; this is why it is very |
| mall, a hotel or even a martial arts school. We are | | | | important to do any long-term training outside |
| traveling from one empty box to another. What | | | | (and one of the reasons I founded the long term |
| is in that box determines its value and level of | | | | martial arts training camps in Thailand and |
| importance in our now traditionally trained | | | | California). Are you spending more time in the |
| materialistic lives. | | | | gym on a treadmill killing your cells when you |
| My point is that we already have enough boxes in | | | | could be running outside at the park near the |
| our lives that we could bring more balance (while | | | | trees, by a lake or through a river? |
| adding a few years to your life) if we had a few | | | | Outer Space and why we need it |
| locations to visit that were outside the boxes. | | | | If fresh air is not enough to get you outside, |
| Moreover, since this is a martial arts website - we | | | | consider the abundant amount of space that an |
| are going to be talking about taking your kicks | | | | outdoor training location can provide. Most of our |
| outside. | | | | martial art classes make use of a large park. |
| You probably get some time in the outdoors if | | | | Space is key for Martial Science students, as we |
| you travel from one box to another. However, | | | | like to have room for sparring and weapons |
| this is not going to be enough time for you to | | | | training. Put 30 people in a room with a long staff |
| truly benefit from an outdoor training experience. | | | | and you will begin to understand the limitations of |
| It might help if you fully understand the primary | | | | even a large dojo. |
| benefits of training in the outdoors: | | | | With a park setting, you have the best martial |
| Fresh Air Comparison | | | | arts training center one could ask for. You have |
| You are more than the skin that shapes your | | | | grass, which is a perfect natural martial arts |
| face. Inside of that shell, you have over a trillion | | | | training mat. You have of course fresh air in |
| cells that require oxygen. The healthier the cells | | | | abundance without the risk of sharing old oxygen. |
| (the parts of you), the stronger and healthier you | | | | You get an almost unlimited amount of space. |
| will be as a whole. This is perfect synergy and the | | | | You get room to run and warm up or play games |
| foundational philosophy of the Mental Martial Art | | | | that would be a challenge to do in a dojo. We play |
| System of Winjitsu. The parts combined together | | | | a sport called "Grapple Ball" that works best with |
| equal to a stronger whole. Consider your finger (a | | | | more space. |
| part of the hand) as compared to the fist | | | | As kids, we played a lot outside, but as we grew |
| (combined fingers). | | | | older, we are conditioned to spend more time |
| We need oxygen to survive, but we also need a | | | | inside or on a box. Everything from computer |
| fresh supply of oxygen. If you lock yourself in a | | | | boxes to televisions. The typical life of an adult is |
| box without new air coming in, you would die | | | | simply transferring from one box to another; |
| from a lack of oxygen (and over consumption of | | | | sleep in the bed box, take a shower in a box, |
| carbon dioxide). Therefore, common sense would | | | | drive to work in a box, sit in a box behind a box |
| state that the bigger your box, the safer you are. | | | | inside an even larger box, go to dinner in a box, |
| Now consider removing the box altogether and | | | | go back to the big box home to sit on a box in |
| you provide the body with more oxygen. So | | | | front of the visual box. Rinse and repeat. |
| training outside, is amazing for your health. | | | | Sure, the above changes a bit as we challenge |
| Every single one of your cells needs fresh air to | | | | the system - we fly in a unique box, we call our |
| survive. Therefore, in truth, if you are not serious | | | | friends with a cool new box and I am writing this |
| about your fresh air, you are killing off parts of | | | | article on a tiny multi-box. |
| you. The math is simply - healthy cells = healthy | | | | Face it - we love our boxes and we are not going |
| body. | | | | to be getting rid of them any time soon. If |
| Now a cell is very much like a box. So let us say, | | | | anything, we will probably add more. I am looking |
| healthy boxes = healthy bodies. Moreover, before | | | | forward to going to the book box today and sit in |
| I mix metaphors and confuse the heck out of | | | | a movie box eating a snack from a junk box. |
| you, remember this article is about removing the | | | | However, I will balance it all out with a year full of |
| box altogether. | | | | outside the box Martial Arts Training Camps and |
| What can you do to have a healthier box? You | | | | Adventure and I invite you to do the same. |