Master Dove’s ‘Four experiences that make a beneficial class’

• Stretch, make sure that you reach the point of sustained tension followed by relaxation at the outer limits of your physical motion during stretching periods in order to benefit your flexibility.

• Burn, make sure that you experience that bent leg burn when holding a correct back stance and that heavy arm feeling when holding out a correct punch or block position and that ‘fast twitch muscle fibre’ burn after you execute repeated lightening fast sparring combinations.

• Breathe, make sure that you experience that temporary breathless feeling that comes from real physical exertion.

• Learn, make sure that you experience technical progress and progress in your knowledge base of Tang Soo Do. Deposit these points of progress into the ‘Happy Bank’ when you meditate at the end of class and withdraw them when you meditate at the beginning of your next class.

Building the levels of personal discipline that will allow us to gain these four beneficial experiences every time that we train is neither easy nor convenient. It is however a great way to set us on the path towards self reliance.

As Master Dove says:

discipline is rarely convenient but always beneficial