5 New Black Belts!

For 5 students at Quest Martial Arts Academy it was the realization of many years of hard work, dedication and self-discipline, they have achieved their First degree black belt in Tae Kwon-Do.  Catherine Johnson, Lisa Nishi, Pam Horton, TaeJin Sohn and Wendy Desrosiers all received their Black belts at Quest Martial Arts.  The 5 where joined by Loren Kuich 2008 & 2010 member of Canadian Team, and Donald Godon also a member of the 2010 Team Canada as the newest 2^nd Dan black belts as well as Eric Koch member of the 2010 Team Canada, now a 3^rd Dan Black belt.

            Achieving your black belt is only something that a maybe 1 out of 100 people might do.  Many 

people  start the journey, but it is hard and lined with opportunity for personal growth, and not many people 

can take that type of action.  These 8 individuals have received something more important than a belt or a 

certificate, they have received the gift of knowing what they are capable of when they truly focus their mind.

Congratulations Everyone!

Respectfully,

Chris Rowe
Chief Instructor
Quest Martial Arts Inc.

Running Tips for Safety

    While the weather is finally getting warmer, I have seen alot of people out running and walking the Mission Park Greenway here in Kelowna.  As one of those people out running, it always suprises me how unaware some people seem to be.  At Quest Martial Arts we talk about the ABC's of self defence. 

A) There are no rules - use anything you have to defend yourself, car keys, rocks sticks...the normal rules that we live by go out the window when you are dealing with your own personal saftey.  Even going as far as through a rock through a car or house window.

B) Be aware of your suroundings and people who may be around. Your intuition can save your life if we listen to it.

C) Stay in shape, most self defence situations will last for 30 sec. to 1 minute, under adrenaline stress so.  Unlike just going for a 1 minute run, it is more like running full sprint with a bear chasing you...

Here is a top 10 list of things to be aware of while you are out enjoying the sunshine and nature we are so blessed to be living in;

1) Always be aware of the trail, and things that obscure your view.  Trees, corners and blind spots can all be great hiding places for someone to jump out at you.

2) Let someone kow where you are going and when you expect to return.  Sounds simple enough but most of us over look it.  Any kind of trouble whether it comes from an injury or something worse, you have a back up plan.

3) Stay alert while running avoid wearing both earbuds while running.  While it helps to distract the mind from discomfort of running, it also stop syou from hearing if someone is coming up from behind you.

4) Ladies with long hair should avoid having it in a ponytail that is accessable for someone to grab.  Have it tucked into your swaeter or shirt if possible. 

5) Keep your cell phone with you and easily accessable at all times.  In case you begin to get the feeling that something is not right, you can quickly make a phone call. 

6) If you are approached, remain as calm as possible.  More often than not the person approaching has no intention of doing anything they may just be asking a question.  That being said always be aware of their tone, body lanuage and movements. 

7) Communicate effectively - Be assertive with your tone and body langauge but do not come across as uncaring or errogant.  If asked for change, "No I am sorry I don't but have a great day." "Back off I don't want any trouble..."  Being loud not only alerts anyone else who maybe around that there is trouble, but it will also help with controlling your emotions.

8) Keep your open hands in front of your face to avoid being sucker punched.

9) Become offensive and attack.  Knees and elbows are the best techniques, highly effective and a larger margin for error.

10) At a bare minimum you should be taking a self defence class/seminar every couple of months so that you keep the movments fresh in your mind and body. 

Happy Running!

Chris Rowe

Local Martial Artists Kick it Up

    Approximately 170 martial artists from BC and Alberta competed at the Tae Kwon-Do International Western Canadian Championships this past weekend. Fifty competitors from Kelowna’s own Quest Martial Arts Academy took home 40 medals including Jon Zaleski who captured the Grand Championship for sparring and patterns in the Black belt Division. Mr. Zaleski and several other members of Quest Martial Arts are training hard for the World Championships to be held in 2013 in England.

    “Although most of the competitors were Tae Kwon-Do, both WTF and ITF were represented, we were honored to have Chilliwack Central Karate Club which has been traveling to competing at our Okanagan events for the past 5 years.” says Mr. Chris Rowe Chief Instructor of Quest Martial Arts. Mr. Rowe went on to say that, “Next year we are planning a Canadian Championships to be held here in Kelowna which will not only bring some great competition but also will help to continue to grow the tourism in the Okanagan Valley.”

    This sentiment was echoed by Tae Kwon-Do International Canada President Master Dan Zaleksi 8th degree Black belt who was also in attendance to cheer on the players and continues to grow and spread the true spirit of Tae Kwon-Do, along with one of the Pioneers of Tae Kwon-Do Grand Master C.K. Choi 9th degree black belt and Master Zaleksi instructor for the past 35 years. “To watch these two high ranking Master and Grand Master walk around and interact with kids and adults taking pictures and signing autographs was amazing to see. The impact these simple gestures can have on people will stay with them for years. Quest Martial Arts would also like to thank the Ron Cannan MP For Kelwona, Lake Country for supporting the event, and offering words of encouragement and support to competitors and volunteers.

For further information on this please call Chris Rowe at 250-869-0111

Be Happy Now

Learn to enjoy every minute of your life. Be happy now. Don’t wait for the something outside of yourself to make you happy in the future. All you have to do is know where you are going. The answers will come when you are ready to hear and learn them on their own accord. There is no way to happiness because being happy is the way.

We are never too old or to young to set new goals.

There are just these easy steps to follow:
Know what you want,
        Take action,
        Have daily habits towards your goal(s),
        Be willing to do what’s necessary
       With the attitude of gratitude and then
        Enjoy the journey because its going to appear in your life.

In Tae Kwon-Do we use the term intentional excellence. This is eliminating negative thinking on purpose by being aware, and focussing our thoughts by will power to choose positive thought. When you do this it produces more natural energy through your body to achieve goal setting results faster.

The development of true will power comes from the constant repetition of correct thought patterns. These thoughts are then accepted into our sub conscious minds and become our habits which are how we create stronger true will power.
It is important to remember that what the superior Tae Kwon-Do person seeks is within his or her  self. What the small person seeks is in others.

Respectfully,
                                                                                          Mr. Chris Rowe

The Road to becoming a Champion

    At Quest Martial Arts we are preparing for our upcoming Tournament the Tae Kwon-Do Inernational Canada Western Canadian Championships to be held Aptil 28th 2012 in Kelowna BC.  We will have players coming from all over to compete and test their skills against other martial artists.  When we do such events they are open tournaments, meaning anyone who wishes can come and play as long as they follow the rules of the game. 

    The thing that I always find interesting is how some people are so lucky?  They always seem to come out on top, score that last second point to win the sparring match or better yet score the first point to set the tempo. 

    Now maybe part of it is god given talent, not everyone can go out and be comfortable and confident while someone is through punches and kicks at them.  Even though it is not a full contact game, it is still not a comfortable feeling. 

    But the reality is that it is not luck...those who say it is are not there when those "Lucky Guys" are there hours after everyone else has left still working on techniques, patterns, conditioning or their flexability.  They are not there to see home many times they are training alone because so few people are truly dedicated to something they love that much. 

    Jim Fannin is a great speaker who I saw in Vancouver a couple of years ago, talks about knowing the S.C.O.R.E., for life (Great Book!) and basicly it is just that.  We can use it in any arena of life at this moment it is applying to being the best martial artists you can be. 
 
Self-Discipline  - Doing what you have to whether you feel like it or not.  The first step is controling your thoughts by keeping them positive, which generates a positive emotion thereby driving you to take positive actions towards the desired results.  You are in total control of your desitiny, you first just have to become aware of the fact that you are where you are because of choices you have made.  Harsh but true...I never chose to get into a car accident, I never chose to loose my job.  True but you choose how you want to respond to those outcomes.  The reality is there are very few things in this world we can truly control but ourselves.

Concentration - Focusing your mind on the end goal, having Laser Focus and being single minded.  That is why so many people start in martial arts to help with focus, and self-discipline.  These are traits that will help you to over come the ups and downs of training or life.  My sons volleyball coach Jon Rowe (no relation) was trying to get the kids to make changes to the way the pass the ball.  The results were mixed at best and frustration started to kick in.  Then he told them to trust the process it will get worse before it gets better, just concentrate on the end goal and be disciplined to the form and the results will Great Advice!

Optimisim - It is hard to walk around the world with rose coloured glasses on.  But it is a much happier place when we focus on looking for the positive.  The reality is whatever we focus on we get more of.  Have you ever noticed that when you make the deceision to buy a new red car...what do you see ever where?  New Red Cars, ust like the one you are wanting.  The same thing occurs in any area of life.

Relaxtion - Someitmes the best thing to do is to just take a minute and breath.  When sparring it is one of the hardest lessons for new students to really grasp.  Would you run the greatest sports car full out all of the time without giving it time to cool off, refuel or recharge?  Probably not, if your like me you would treat it with soft mittens.  So do the same things with yourself, when you get to that state where you feel tension it might be time to just take a minute and relax.  Jim Fannin says "Like a palm tree in a hurricane - just go with the flow"

Enjoyment - Make sure you are enjoying what you are doing in life.  When you are work enjoy being there by concentrating on that alone, so that when you go home and are with your family you can be there with your family.  Here at Quest Martial Arts we say "Enjoy the Journey!" 

   So our future champions will use these tools, sometimes even uncontiously to improve their training for the upcoming Tae Kwon-Do championships and if they are "Lucky" they may even bring home a few medals.  But the choice is ours, what are you willing to do in order to achieve your goal?  Have you stated your goal, in writting?  How can you achieve your goal unless you write it down...

Respectfully,

Chris Rowe
Cheif International Instructor
IV Dan Black Belt

Pink T-Shirt Day

    A few years ago some high schools students decided to take a stand. They were no longer going to stand by while one of their school mate was tormented for wearing a Pink T-Shirt to school. So they decided to get together with their friends and wear Pink T-Shirts in a movement of solidarity. The courage for those young men to stand up has inspired this movement that we now affectionately call Pink T-Shirt day, which occurs Wednesday February 29th.

     At our academy we talk about bully prevention on a weekly basis, we talk to kids and adults alike about what to do what to say and who to talk to if you are being miss-treated. Yes, we speak to the adults as well because we all know the person in the office who seems to bull their way into getting what the want. In the adult world it might be called office politics. We do not want to make waves so we let that person do or say things that we don't like. We are trying to keep the peace but it does not make it right so more often than not we let our feelings go untold so that we keep the peace.

     This is where the training we do in martial arts goes beyond punching and kicking. We learn to physically defend ourselves, so we are better equipped to mental defend ourselves. We stand up for those around us who are not able to stand up for themselves. We have courage to stand out in the crowd to help others, not to stand in the crowd afraid to help. It does not mean we do not have fear but we CHOOSE to focus on our courage rather than our fear. We choose to be the example of the community we wish to live in, rather than just complaining about where we live.

     One thing that we have changed at the academy with regards to Pink T-shirt day is our focus. We are trying not to focus on what we don't want but rather what we do want. (What we think about we bring about) We are focused on the fact that people who wear Pink on February 29th are not just standing up against bullies and injustice they are standing up to be recognized as a leader in their community. Whether the train in martial arts or not they are using the lessons of Courtesy - respect myself and others, Integrity - Honesty with myself and others, Perseverance - Patience Never Never Never give up, Self Control - Controlling your Thoughts emotions actions and results, and Self Discipline - Doing what we have to because it is for the greater good.

    You are invited to join us for Pink T-Shirt day on Wednesday February 29th kids and adults wearing Pink can train for free or come in wearing pink and receive a Gift Certificate for a free class, as well enter to win a MONTH of classes for free.  Kids train 4:00 pm, Adults 5:00 pm.

Respectfully,

Chris Rowe
Chief Instructor
Quest Martial Arts Academy
 250-869-0111

Willingness

You have most likely heard in class and I’m assuming from someone or somewhere that in order to succeed in life you must be “willing to do what’s necessary…with the attitude of gratitude”.

But just what does this entail? Willingness = cheerful compliance.

It means simply to act gladly and eagerly by free will to do what’s necessary. Your inner true master, your spirit within is always indeed willing, but the body is weak and we must be aware and awake to guide our bodies and mind.

When you guide your mind and body with your true master within things quickly get done, it’s a given, accepted, and you do it ungrudgingly.

The saying “Do it now, do it right and do it all” applies.

When we take this knowledge of willingness into our minds and understand that we receive a higher vibrational state (sometimes called peak state) into our hearts, we react through our bodies to create the result of openness – which is the readiness to receive, especially impressions or ideas that will come our way to help us to achieve our desires and goals. “Knowledge in my mind, honesty in my heart, strength in my body” is a message that every student should strive to know.

Next comes optimism – this is the intent and expectation to receive the best result. When you are open and willing to receive you give out optimism and attract optimistic people and circumstance into your life. By remembering that anything is possible and that circumstance does not create you, it is you who creates your circumstance you feel happy and positive. Keep these thoughts in mind.

o "The only thing I can control is my attitude towards life."
o "I always have a choice."
o "I choose to be positive in life."

When we choose to dwell on willingness it creates our natural energy to be open and optimistic in life and the result is we get a hopeful, happy and positive life view. This attracts the correct positive people and circumstance into your life.
                            
                                                                 Respectfully,
                                                                            Master Dan