DIET = DIE +T

I don’t believe in DIETS. Cutting carbs, restricting yourself to vegetables (if you’re not vegetarian), skipping meals .. in the end, your body will give up and you’ll inevitably resort to bingeing. 

Eating Rules to Live By:

1. Your plate should be colorful (greens, reds, oranges, etc)

2. Breakfast like a KING, lunch like a PRINCE, dinner like a PAUPER

3. Atonement - If you eat a lot of junk during lunch, eat healthy for dinner.

4. Portion Control - Eat whatever you want, but cut your usual portion size in half.

5. Cheat Day- Allow yourself at least one cheat day! On my cheat days, I eat gelato :)

6. Never skip BREAKFAST!

Of course, healthy eating habits should be paired with regular exercise e.g. BJJ :)

in hiding

With all the craziness that has been going on in my life, I took a self-imposed hiatus from BJJ. Ok, its only been two weeks, but it feels like forever. My last training session was hell for me..I was still recovering from the flu and my cardio was next to non-existent. After a horrible sparring session, I felt demoralized. To top it off, I received the worst news ever.. which I won't bother to mention here. I've got all my ducks in order and I'm ready to get back into the game. Sometimes, all you need is a little break from everything. 


Can't wait to train tonight!

Cross Training

Here are some pictures from a cross-training session we had two weeks ago :

(In this picture : Marc "Benignose" Benigno, Toffy "The Destroyer" Ilagan and Myself "Chipmunk BJJ")

(In this picture: Alvin "The Alvinator" Lee and Raymond "Lalake Ako" Varilla)

Cross training sessions are the best. Not only do you get to check out other games, but you get a whole new lesson and of course, taught in a different style. Training with the same people all the time is fine and dandy, but mixing it up makes it so much more interesting. You also get to hang out with your other teammates and eat in yummy places like Lugang (OH SO GOOD) and try ginormous desserts as seen below:

Red Beans with Shaved Ice

Peanut Smoothie

Thank you to Toffy, Raymond and Sam! We'll be back soon!

GEN ASS

General Assemblies never cease to amaze me. The DEFTAC family is huge, with over 8 branches nationwide! We're getting stronger and stronger thanks to our new colored belts.

Pictured above are our two new blue belts, Joel and Alvin. Not only do they look sweet, but they actually are. Contrary to popular belief, these two are some of the nicest guys you'll ever meet! Both of them have worked hard for their belts : training regularly, cross training, never giving up. They also serve as an inspiration to the newer white belts who just watch them  in awe. First to defend the weaker, spazzy guys and last to leave the mats.. I'm proud to have them as my teammates! Congrats Joel and Alvin! May you stay sweet forever!

Other promotions:

PURPLE

Karl Rodriguez 

Myron Mangubat 

BLUE

Mike Luna

Rover Lustana

Ali Reza

Patrick Lubaton 

Taking down notes

The BJJ Notebook- do you have one? If you don't, get one. How could you possibly keep track of all the techniques you've learned in class? Nobody's memory is that good.

I love taking notes. My BJJ notebook is filled with techniques, drawings of techniques, flowcharts.. BJJ can get pretty nerdy if you get into it. 

Here are a few tips for keeping a BJJ notebook:

1. Details, details, details. Mention all the details that go into executing the technique. Which hand do you use? Which leg do you kick? Where do you put your head? Write it all down!

2. Videos I've divided my notes into techniques I've learned from videos and techniques I've learned in class. I make sure to mention which DVD I got the technique from and of course,I include detailed information about the moves I learned.

3.Spars Ideally, you should be logging all your spars, especially the ones you've lost. You have to figure out how that guy got your back or why you ended up in someone's triangle. Once you find the answer, the likelihood of you ending in that position again would be next to impossible.

Good luck!

Running

For the past few days  weeks , I've been promising myself that I'd start running. For some reason, I just can't bring myself to do it. I have no problem going to BJJ training after work, but running just seems so tiring to me. I know, I know.. it really shouldn't be that hard. I keep on making excuses for myself, about how I'm going to start once I get a new pair of running shoes how I need a new running playlist, etc. 
After reading what I just wrote, I'm feeling more lame by the minute. Today is a new day and today I start running. 


Running program for the week:
55411
5 minutes brisk walking
5 minutes brisk walking with longer strides
4 minutes jogging
1 minute sprint
1 minute sprint

A promise

I promise myself…

• I promise myself to be so strong that nothing can disturb my peace of mind   
• I promise myself to talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person I meet   
• I promise myself to make all my friends feel that there is something worthwhile in them   
• I promise myself to look at the sunny side of everything and make my optimism come true   
• I promise myself to think only the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best   
• I promise myself to be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as I am about my own   
• I promise myself to forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future   
• I promise myself to wear a cheerful expression at all times and give a smile to every living creature I meet   
• I promise myself to give so much time to improving myself that I have no time to criticize others   
• I promise myself to be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble   
• I promise myself to think well of myself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words, bun in great deeds   
• I promise myself to live in the faith that the whole world is on my side, so long as I am true to the best that is in me

Christian Larson

So many promises, yet which ones will you actually keep? There's no harm in trying and thinking positive. If we don't have that, what else is left?