Travel

Last night's MMA class was fun. We worked guillotine, arm bar, triangle leg choke and rear naked choke. We did them over and over and over. I like this. Often we get to do it once and then move on to the next thing, but not last night. I finally got to work out some details and compensations. With a prosthetic hip, my flexibility still remains poor. I don't want to work the flexibility too hard because I do not want to destabilize my hip so I am slowly working on increased range of motion. It's a lesson in patience. Yes, another one. Patience seems to be my biggest issue. I want it all and I want it now. What am I? Four? I am much more confident with parts of my curriculum. As I move toward my black belt, I feel like I have most of the curriculum down and now, it's all about perfecting the movement, increasing strength and flexibility and getting ready to do all of it at a higher velocity. I am feeling strong and healthy and grateful that I feel better with each day. I am heavy by 10-15 lbs which is a lot on my small frame. However, I'm resolved to being healthy and strong for now. While I would like to lose those pounds, right now, those pounds are making me stronger. My plan is to lean down a little later in the process.
Today, I am off to Washington D.C to be with Marek. He is hosting a business conference for some of his dealers and clients and apparently, wives are invited. This is a little unusual and I won't lie that I'm a little nervous about representing the Robinson family as matriarch. Corporate stuff is not my particular cup of tea. I have no idea what to wear and when to wear it. Packing was a nightmare and I ended up throwing in everything plus the kitchen sink so that I would have something for every organized event. This is nothing new. On the World Cup, I always brought everything I owned as well. Hey, if you're gonna  drag a bag all over Europe, fill it. Good thing bags have wheels these days. I'm fairly certain someone like me invented that concept.
I left home at 3:45am this morning. I don't care who you are, it's impossible to get a workout in at 2am. I will land in D.C. at 4:45 and the evening's festivities start at 6 so I'm pretty sure today's workout will get tabled. Once again, I must practice patience. I am still a wife, mother of two very busy martial artists/soccer players, and athletic enthusiast. Time is often in short supply and I have to manage it best I can. Squeezing in a workout here and there has been challenging and I haven't even started yet. Time management will be one of my biggest challenges as I go toward my black belt.
I emailed KJN Jonathan about doing some extra work and setting best tester as a goal. I don't want to just get my black belt. I want to shred the test and get the Best Tester T-shirt. After watching the last test, I believe more than ever that it is possible, but I will need help. It will require CONSTANT scrutiny and repetition of the same skill over and over and over. If I had a 20 or even 30 year old body, I wouldn't be worried. Instead, I have a harshly used and abused 46 year-old body with a prosthetic hip, a torn meniscus and a damaged, post-chemo nervous system. Digging myself out of that hole also goes slowly and 5 months just doesn't seem like enough time. I am hoping that from my current state, things will go a little more smoothly. No more broken ribs or torn rotator cuff tendons. I will have to also be careful about overtraining, a tendency I have had for 30 years. I am sure both KJN Jon and KJN Gary will get me ready but I don't want to be simply "ready." I want to shine. I want everyone in the room to go "Whoa, that woman is killin' it in the over-40 section." I want there to be no doubt that I am the best MMA artist in the room.
I am sitting on an airplane as I write this wondering how I am going to get anything toward that goal done today. All I can come up with is You Tube. Hey, if you can't do the work, watch and be inspired until you can.