OneHeart Challenge – Week 1

“Challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.”

Joshua J. Marine

One day at a time…I have to remind myself. Our Black Belt requirements are daunting; not for the weak-minded and only the strong (heart, mind, body & spirit) need apply. Over a 1-year period, 50k pushups and crunches, 1,000 reps of a single kata, 1,000 acts of kindness, 1,000 rounds of sparring and 1,000 mile journey…and MORE! All of this and absolutely, NO QUITTING!

For me, it has never just been about the black belt. It really is about the journey–karate training and living the “One-Heart Way” (Isshinryu). I have been afforded the opportunity to learn from my sensei, who learned from a sensei before him and so on. While there is most certainly an individual challenge in my karate experience, there is also a true sense of comradery and common set of principles to which we all seek to align and practice.

At this point (exactly 1 week into this latest challenge) I have met some of my requirements such as pushups and progress to date against my 1,000 mile journey (got ~26.2 miles / in the plus column), but have some catching up to do relative to my kata and sparring time. My plan is to take it one day at a time; do what I can with the time I have in a 24-hour period–less work, family and other adult obligations and maybe some skiing time in there, too, as to meet my requirements. Weekly, the requirments I was not able to complete will be covered in additional training time on Saturday’s (after class) and Sunday’s. The keys are regimen, discipline, determination and resiliency.

I am very excited and grateful to be on this journey with Dirk-san and Geneva-san and together to set a positive example for others in our dojo and community as well.