Porter
11-14-2005, 09:20 PM
Short review: STUPENDOUS!
Longer review: I came to Japan from Hong Kong to participate in the Osaka seminar as a good excuse to visit Japan for the first time and perhaps learn a little CST stuff. I did not expect to receive highly-professional and individually-focused instruction, combined with the most gracious hospitality by Ryan Hurst, his family, friends, and dogs.
The first day I after I arrived. Ryan took me into his garden to do a little Clubbell work. Although I have a pair of 15 lb-ers, I have never received instruction on how to move them properly. Ryan went into detail on using technique and not muscle power to work the weight. He emphasised proper breathing and learning how to lock-in muscles for alignment and power generation. His dog, Brie, likes to play catch with swinging Clubbells.
Ryan then took time out of his busy schedule to show me a temple in Osaka with orange bridges and 1,000 year old trees. It was really interesting and great fun.
On Saturday evening, Ryan got us together to go over some basics and assess our level before Sunday's seminar. We went into a large dojo. It was an open mat night, so we were working next to aikido, taido, boxing, judo, karate, and other stuff that I couldn't identify. We worked some Warrior Wellness, breathing, and Softwork partner drills. Ryan talked about healing aspects of the work for healing yourself and healing others. I think all of us are in some sort of injury recovery.
Even though I attended the Softwork Lancaster seminar in July, we didn't do some of the basic movements there as shown on the DVD. So, this was great for me to learn striking “heavy”, and the “drop” of the body into the breathing. We got on the ground and went through breathing with weight on top of you and control of the diaphragm. We also worked on arm screw pushups and then finished up with a quick handstand lesson.
On Sunday, the seminar began with Warrior Wellness. He really emphasised breathing. “Are you guys breathing!?” Although I have been doing Warrior Wellness for a while, I developed an even greater appreciation for it, especially for arm swings (using the shoulder and not the arm), hip movement, and leg extension. We moved into Body Flow. Ryan started with shinbox and shinbox switches, and eventually worked us into doing long-arm rolls in combination routines. He focused on breathing and structure which allowed us to all make great progress. Ryan also specifically went over movements that were not in the DVD. Some of the others had never seen Body Flow before, but after an hour or so, they were moving and hopping all over the place. I felt very loose after all the Warrior Wellness and Body Flow.
Clubbells were next. Ryan lined them all up from 5 lbs to the Bruiser. Oh boy, what a treat. I have 15 lbs so I wanted to work on technique more weight (20 and 25 lbs) to see how it feels. Not sure if it was the best decision because I sacrificed some technique. However, it did drill into my head the necessity of breathing as there was no other way to do a press without exhaling powerfully and smoothly. Ryan particularly noted the difference between muscling the weight and using technique with breathing to accomplish the task. Ryan also showed us some combination routines that he developed, like 'Pass the Arrow' and 'Around the World'. His movements are incredibly swift and smooth. Amazing to watch. We even took a crack at the Bruiser. When I first saw it, I didn't think anyone could clean it. Ryan gave us a shot to do it. He had me try it with my off hand so I would focus on technique. Lo and behold, I could get it upright after a few attempts (but not hold it). What fun and great instruction.
Some things I learned:
1. Get training from a certified trainer. There are many small movements that can't be seen or picked up from the DVDs.
2. Breathing is paramount.
3. Ryan is a heck of a nice guy and a skilled, professional trainer. His background in martial arts, gymnastics, nutrition, and CST creates a fantastic learning combination.
4. Working alone is great, but training with others is critical to observe partners' movements and generate feedback for your own.
5. Warrior Wellness, Warrior Wellness, Warrior Wellness. It's the basis for everything.
6. I'm thinking of attending Iota in March. The seminar was great to seeing what is required in terms of CST skills required. There's a lot to learn.
7. Go to Japan. Sake and sashimi taste great after a CST seminar.
Thanks to the other participants for making it all work: Andy, Randy, Colin, and Dany. I enjoyed meeting and working with you all.
Lastly, thanks to Ryan and his family for putting together a great seminar and hopefully this is the first in many years of great work in Japan. Thanks to his wife, Chika, for giving me an acupunture session; and his mother-in-law for great homemade Japanese food.
Longer review: I came to Japan from Hong Kong to participate in the Osaka seminar as a good excuse to visit Japan for the first time and perhaps learn a little CST stuff. I did not expect to receive highly-professional and individually-focused instruction, combined with the most gracious hospitality by Ryan Hurst, his family, friends, and dogs.
The first day I after I arrived. Ryan took me into his garden to do a little Clubbell work. Although I have a pair of 15 lb-ers, I have never received instruction on how to move them properly. Ryan went into detail on using technique and not muscle power to work the weight. He emphasised proper breathing and learning how to lock-in muscles for alignment and power generation. His dog, Brie, likes to play catch with swinging Clubbells.
Ryan then took time out of his busy schedule to show me a temple in Osaka with orange bridges and 1,000 year old trees. It was really interesting and great fun.
On Saturday evening, Ryan got us together to go over some basics and assess our level before Sunday's seminar. We went into a large dojo. It was an open mat night, so we were working next to aikido, taido, boxing, judo, karate, and other stuff that I couldn't identify. We worked some Warrior Wellness, breathing, and Softwork partner drills. Ryan talked about healing aspects of the work for healing yourself and healing others. I think all of us are in some sort of injury recovery.
Even though I attended the Softwork Lancaster seminar in July, we didn't do some of the basic movements there as shown on the DVD. So, this was great for me to learn striking “heavy”, and the “drop” of the body into the breathing. We got on the ground and went through breathing with weight on top of you and control of the diaphragm. We also worked on arm screw pushups and then finished up with a quick handstand lesson.
On Sunday, the seminar began with Warrior Wellness. He really emphasised breathing. “Are you guys breathing!?” Although I have been doing Warrior Wellness for a while, I developed an even greater appreciation for it, especially for arm swings (using the shoulder and not the arm), hip movement, and leg extension. We moved into Body Flow. Ryan started with shinbox and shinbox switches, and eventually worked us into doing long-arm rolls in combination routines. He focused on breathing and structure which allowed us to all make great progress. Ryan also specifically went over movements that were not in the DVD. Some of the others had never seen Body Flow before, but after an hour or so, they were moving and hopping all over the place. I felt very loose after all the Warrior Wellness and Body Flow.
Clubbells were next. Ryan lined them all up from 5 lbs to the Bruiser. Oh boy, what a treat. I have 15 lbs so I wanted to work on technique more weight (20 and 25 lbs) to see how it feels. Not sure if it was the best decision because I sacrificed some technique. However, it did drill into my head the necessity of breathing as there was no other way to do a press without exhaling powerfully and smoothly. Ryan particularly noted the difference between muscling the weight and using technique with breathing to accomplish the task. Ryan also showed us some combination routines that he developed, like 'Pass the Arrow' and 'Around the World'. His movements are incredibly swift and smooth. Amazing to watch. We even took a crack at the Bruiser. When I first saw it, I didn't think anyone could clean it. Ryan gave us a shot to do it. He had me try it with my off hand so I would focus on technique. Lo and behold, I could get it upright after a few attempts (but not hold it). What fun and great instruction.
Some things I learned:
1. Get training from a certified trainer. There are many small movements that can't be seen or picked up from the DVDs.
2. Breathing is paramount.
3. Ryan is a heck of a nice guy and a skilled, professional trainer. His background in martial arts, gymnastics, nutrition, and CST creates a fantastic learning combination.
4. Working alone is great, but training with others is critical to observe partners' movements and generate feedback for your own.
5. Warrior Wellness, Warrior Wellness, Warrior Wellness. It's the basis for everything.
6. I'm thinking of attending Iota in March. The seminar was great to seeing what is required in terms of CST skills required. There's a lot to learn.
7. Go to Japan. Sake and sashimi taste great after a CST seminar.
Thanks to the other participants for making it all work: Andy, Randy, Colin, and Dany. I enjoyed meeting and working with you all.
Lastly, thanks to Ryan and his family for putting together a great seminar and hopefully this is the first in many years of great work in Japan. Thanks to his wife, Chika, for giving me an acupunture session; and his mother-in-law for great homemade Japanese food.