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SAD and How to Kick it With Martial Arts

Well, it's that time of year again when seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is starting to affect us here in the Northwest. Even though SAD has been noted as early as the late 1800's it wasn't actually given a name until the 1980's. That doesn't mean people haven't been suffering from it, however. Seasonal affective disorder is mostly caused by the lack of light people are exposed to this time of year. Our brains secrete a hormone called melatonin which, at increased levels, can cause symptoms of depression. This hormone is produced when your body is exposed to dark, so it makes sense that its levels rise in months when the days are shorter.

The full-blown seasonal affective disorder is thought to affect as many as 10 million Americans every year. They suffer the debilitating symptoms of depression through the fall and winter months which recede to less-drastic or non-existent symptoms in the spring and summer. Other people get the winter blues which are milder forms of the symptoms of depression such as gaining a little weight, feeling sleepy or having difficulty focusing during the fall and winter months when the weather gets colder and the sunlight gets shorter (especially with all of the rain we get).

There are many different methods of treating SAD such as light therapy (either using a special artificial light or arranging to get natural sunlight during the day), herbal aids, altering nutrition and getting the right amounts of exercise. Some methods work better for some people than they do for others, but one method that tends to help people feel more energized, less sleepy, more able to focus and concentrate and less likely to overeat and gain those extra pounds is martial arts.

Martial arts is a special kind of activity that not only treats, strengthens and improves your physical health, it also treats your mental health as well. People who practice martial arts need to be able to concentrate and focus on their training because martial arts is not an activity that you can do mindlessly. This concentration and focus eventually carries over into all other parts of your life. Furthermore, the physical exercise you get while training martial arts is energizing and will help prevent you from gaining those extra "winter pounds" that many people dread. It's worth it to give it a try because you'll feel better, mentally and physically, and when the weather gets nice in the spring you'll be ready to hit the outdoors with a sense of energy that you finally didn't lose over the winter.

About the Author

Robert Jones runs 3 successful martial arts schools in Bellevue, Lynnwood, and Federal Way Washington. For over 20 years he has been helping families to improve their lives through the practice of martial arts. To help people choose a good school he has written a comprehensive consumer guide on How to Pick a Martial Arts School

He can be

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Memoirs of a Ninja: The World's First Martial Arts Musical Comedy

Memoirs of a Ninja: The World's First Martial Arts Musical Comedy
Has Political Correctness ever driven you so mad that you grabbed a gigantic foam rubber mallet and started pounding heads? Or have you ever gotten tired of all the assumptions that people make of you, based on the color of your skin, the shape of your eyes, or the size of your nose?

And when was the last time that you'd been driven so insane by politics, posturing, pretentiousness, and pinheadedness that you have run shrieking through the streets, wearing nothing but a baseball cap and a paper-towel toga?

Well then, welcome to a huge gasp of sanity at its wackiest! "Memoirs of a Ninja" mercilessly jabs at everything that has ever made you crazy.

The team of Hoashi and Lewis has created story, lyrics and music, pandering to no sacred elephants. Every night it was performed, the theater rang with laughter; we even had repeat customers, because they wanted to catch every joke they had missed because there were laughing so hard the first time around!

It's not only the wackiest, most irreverent musical ever written by an Asian-American minority, there really is substance beneath the guffaws. It's a show about slapping stereotypes upside the head (we even cast non-Orientals in Japanese roles!). It's about debunking everyone else's expectations of you. It's about finding and doing what you truly want to do, especially while an obvious, quick-and-easy, sell-out path (a.k.a.Corporate America or waitressing) is being waved in your face with the finesse of a whoopee cushion.

Enjoy the recording as much as we loved making it, and see you on Broadway!

Lyrics: Keisuke Hoashi; Score: Brian Lewis; Music: Brian Lewis; Choreography: John Dyer V; Producers: Hoashi & Lewis; Engineering: Adam Pike, Leslie Spring; Cast: Keisuke Hoashi, Ron Edward Baker, V. Ray Boddie, Aiko Yamamoto, Mimi Chen, Alicia-Lee, Vicki Rovel-Kirk

Bruce Lee - Master Collection

Bruce Lee - Master Collection
Sinewy, sleek, and oozing charisma, Bruce Lee brought sex appeal to the martial arts genre, dominating even the most cliché-riddled adventures with his mix of good-humored geniality and focused intensity. His first film, the low-budget Hong Kong adventure Fists of Fury (as it was titled in the U.S.), is exactly that: a raw, rough-edged revenge drama of a country boy who uncovers a heroin-smuggling ring. Yet the film comes alive when Lee pounces into action, his wiry, well-muscled frame erupting in lightning moves. His follow-up, The Chinese Connection, keeps the revenge theme going for a tale of a kung fu student who avenges his teacher's death at the hands of a Japanese rival. The international success of both films enabled the increasingly ambitious Lee to write and direct his own feature, Return of the Dragon, a more-comic tale of a Chinese country boy who travels to Rome to help out cousins under the thumb of local mobsters. Though filled with excellent martial arts bouts, all choreographed by Lee, the highlight is a death match between Lee and karate champion Chuck Norris in the Roman Colosseum. Lee died before completing his last feature, Game of Death, and a rather unconvincing double runs around much of the film between footage of the real Lee, but the climax features an impressive bout with basketball star and Lee student Kareem Abdul-Jabar. Though a cut above most martial arts movies of the period, these are no masterpieces, but then who watches a Bruce Lee film for the story? In these films, plot is simply there for the scenes between Lee's amazing fight sequences. The documentary Bruce Lee: The Legend completes the collection. --Sean Axmaker

Seven Blows of the Dragon

Masked Avengers (Sub Ep)

Rush Hour (New Line Platinum Series)

Rush Hour (New Line Platinum Series)
The plot line may sound familiar: Two mismatched cops are assigned as reluctant partners to solve a crime. Culturally they are complete opposites, and they quickly realize they can't stand each other. One (Jackie Chan) believes in doing things by the book. He is a man with integrity and nerves of steel. The other (Chris Tucker) is an amiable rebel who can't stand authority figures. He's a man who has to do everything on his own, much to the displeasure of his superior officer, who in turn thinks this cop is a loose cannon but tolerates him because he gets the job done. Directed by Brett Ratner, Rush Hour doesn't break any new ground in terms of story, stunts, or direction. It rehashes just about every "buddy" movie ever made--in fact, it makes films such as Tango and Cash seem utterly original and clever by comparison. So, why did this uninspired movie make over $120 million at the box office? Was the whole world suffering from temporary insanity? Hardly. The explanation for the success of Rush Hour is quite simple: chemistry. The casting of veteran action maestro Jackie Chan with the charming and often hilarious Chris Tucker was a serendipitous stroke of genius. Fans of Jackie Chan may be slightly disappointed by the lack of action set pieces that emphasize his kung-fu craft. On the other hand, those who know the history of this seasoned Hong Kong actor will be able to appreciate that Rush Hour was the mainstream breakthrough that Chan had deserved for years. Coupled with the charismatic scene-stealer Tucker, Chan gets to flex his comic muscles to great effect. From their first scenes together to the trademark Chan outtakes during the end credits, their ability to play off of one another is a joy to behold, and this mischievous interaction is what saves the film from slipping into the depths of pitiful mediocrity. --Jeremy Storey

Under Siege 2: Dark Territory

Under Siege 2: Dark Territory
The success of Under Siege made a sequel mandatory according to Hollywood's rules of maximum revenue, and as sequels go, this one's not half bad. Steven Seagal returns as former Navy SEAL and skilled chef Casey Ryback, who's trying to spend quality time with his niece on a cross-country train trip. But as luck and action-movie formulas would have it, the train has been hijacked by a demented genius (Eric Bogosian) who is using the train as a moving platform to seize computerized control of a top-secret U.S. satellite that is capable of causing earthquakes from space. Seagal has to stop the train or the villain (whichever comes first), and the action is fast and furious on its way to a high-speed climax. He's not as wacky as Tommy Lee Jones in the first Under Siege, but Bogosian has got a delirious quality that serves the comic-book plot, and action fans get more than their fill of dazzling stunts and special effects. --Jeff Shannon

The Legend of Drunken Master

The Legend of Drunken Master
Jackie Chan return becomes and is able to fend off numerous attacks and perform incredible stunts. Aided by his hilarious stepmother and friends, Hong faces the challenge of protecting valuable Chinese history and saving his family honor.s to the role that made him a star in 1979's "Drunken Master." Chinese folklore hero Wong Fei Hong discovers a smuggling ring, orchestrated by the British Government, to transport valuable Chinese artifacts out of the country. Hong must use his unique style of martial arts, "Drunken Boxing," to fight the conspirators and salvage the Chinese treasures before it

Phantom Ninja Costume: Boy's Size 4-6

Phantom Ninja Costume: Boy's Size 4-6
Includes jumpsuit with two shoulder guards, hood and badge.

Headlines on martial-arts-clothing
US to deport fugitive to NZ - Radio New Zealand

Sat, 01 Mar 2008 08:55:25 GMT

US to deport fugitive to NZ
Radio New Zealand, New Zealand - Mar 1, 2008
It was that image that stuck in their minds when they saw a wanted picture of him in martial arts clothing in their local Chinese language newspaper. ...