The Perfect Push-up

I have been training for so long now and I am quite embarassed that I can only really do 3 perfect push-ups before my arms give out. Last week I bought some hand weights to help strengthen my arms while I am doing other activities such as forms, punching, blocking, and even sit ups and yoga. Still I am impatient with my progress.

So I ran a search on the internet "I can't do push-ups." The first article I stumbled across was Why Girl Hockey Players Can't Do Push-ups. The article sites poor posture and incorrect form while attempting push-ups.

To do the perfect push-up:

Your body must be in a perfectly straight line through the entire movement. In order to maintain this position, players must be able to keep their core tight (think about tightening up as though someone was going to punch them in the stomach), squeeze their butts (that one usually gets a few giggles) and squeeze their shoulder blades down and together (like they are trying to squeeze them down into their back pockets). When girls are able to maintain this position as they lower themselves down towards the ground, they take the load off of their "weaker" arm muscles and rely more on their "stronger" chest and core muscles to perform the movement.

I didn't know all that! I'm going to have to try that and get back to you. My core feels like it is getting stronger every day, but I didn't know I could use it to help my push-ups.

I guess ultimately I just have to face up to my push-ups. I try to do them every day but it doesn't feel much like I'm accomplishing anything by just doing three. Another website I found said "Just do 3 in the morning and 3 at night and add on one more the next day." That's what my instructor said to do...but I haven't forced myself to really stick to that routine.

I have a feeling I'm going to be asked to do at least 10 push-ups at my next belt test. At the last one he said to do 5 and I think the adrenaline of the testing atmosphere kicked my body up a noch because I actually did them!

Mama Ninja

My entire life I had been regarded as clumsy. My mother used to jokingly call me "grace." As a kid I spent a lot of time tripping and falling. So I never considered myself as someone who could one day master the jump spinning hook kick.

A few years ago, I joined a gym to get in shape. I had gained a lot of weight from having children and working a sedentary job for four years. There I discovered an amazing class called Nia, a blend of martial arts, dance, and yoga. First off it was fun and the instructor was very patient with my two left feet. So I began attending the class once or twice a week. I gradually found my balance, using my breath and energy to allow my body to move gracefully and powerfully. I knew I wanted my son, who also had a reputation of being clumsy, to take a martial arts class.

Martial Arts classes tend to be expensive so I procrastinated for a while until we found a school near our house that had very affordable prices. It happened to be Tang Soo Do, which I had never heard of before despite its apparent popularity. When I learned that the instructor was also passionate about wilderness survival I knew this was the class for our entire family. But first my son started January 2008. Then in spring my husband started.

It was an exciting day when they had their first belt test, my son got his advanced white belt and my husband, who had worked so hard and practiced every day skipped a rank and was honored with an orange belt.

I observed the class frequently and learned a few tidbits from my husband and son, but I finally joined the class September 11, 2008. The instructor is patient enough to allow my 4 year old daughter to run around while the rest of us are in class. I hope she will join in soon but right now she just doesn't have the attention span for 1.5 hours of class.

Why martial arts? These are my goals:

1. Strengthen and tone my body, increase balance and coordination


2. Hone my mental awareness and concentration


3. Strive for spiritual stillness and enhance my connection to the divine


4. Learn from nature and to live in harmony with it