2012: Year of the Dragon

According to the Chinese Zodiac, 2012 is the Year of the Dragon.

Although I'm not too caught up in mysticism I find it interesting to read up on the Dragon and what it represents.

Ultimately, whether you have a good or bad year falls upon your own shoulders, and really when you think of it, there isn't such a thing as a good or bad year.

Every year you simply LEARN.

You take the feedback you've been given and make adjustments.

If you look at your year from a standpoint of having won or lost you'll just beat yourself up.

You can't possibly win in all areas of your life.

I sure didn't win in all areas of my life last year.

But that's the point.

Living and learning is a journey not a destination.

Will you continue to make the same mistakes or bad choices you made last year, this year?

What happens when you paddle the row boat with the same hand?

You go in circles right?

Your growth depends on your ability to turn weaknesses into strengths.

And nobody ever said you had to be perfect either.

Just identify one thing you would like to do better this year.

No pressure, no stress.

You have 365 days (actually a bit less than that) to make that one thing better.

Once you make that one change, your new enthusiasm will drift to another area you need work on, and the momentum will grow.

Every year is a success.

Real success is what you've done compared to what you could have done.

Could you have done more or less?

I'll let YOU think about that.

Master Yourself,

Sibok M

New Website is launched!

You've certainly noticed a recent update to our website.

Newest technology, faster loading, high quality pictures, easier navigation, and an easier check out process when buying DVDs or merchandise.

You'll see many upgrades and features during the coming months on the site.

Lots more videos.

Cool pictures of the whole team in action.

Online instructor certifications for our friends abroad and around the world.

We have big plans.

Hope you enjoy the upgrade and stay tuned for updates and new products being launched shortly (Sanshou Kickboxing Level 1, Karambit Mastery, Neigong Vol. 2) and over 70 other new titles to take your martial art training to the next level!

Master Yourself,

Sibok M

Mathieu Lemay: Un bon samaritain au secours d'un voisin

That is the headline on the front page of the "Le Droit" Newspaper yesterday.

On Friday night, one of our students from our Gatineau school was forced to defend a man who was attacked by 3 men armed with baseball bats.

Mathieu who has been training with Sifu Patrick for close to 2 years now was able to rely on the self-defense skills he learned at the school to successfully, knock out and disarm 3 assailants during an altercation that could of turned out for the worse.

Considering the odds, a 3 on 1, Mathieu took excellent care of the situation by putting a stop to their rampage using simple concepts and techniques you learn on your very first class.

Training in a realistic martial art is crucial. Can you imagine what would have been the outcome if Mathieu had no training whatsoever?

Many people have the mentality: "I'll never be attacked"

Do you have that mentality?

It's always a smart thing to prepare yourself for any kind of situation that could put your life or someone's else in danger and have the proper training that will allow you to respond to it successfully. No one is guaranteed a safe passage in this life, always be ready!

Mathieu has a couple of TV interviews today and during the week on TVA and other stations. Will do my best to post more info here on the blog.

Until then here's a link to the story printed online for Le Droit:

Un bon samaritain au secours d'un voisin

Master Yourself,

Sibok Martin

The End of Year is Near

It's coming.

You know.

The End of Year.

Are you ready to tackle the fall, give a final push to get everything done on your resolution/action list you filled out in January?

Do you still have that list? I know it's easy to get distracted but you should seriously review it and reclaim that same determination you were feeling on January 1 st of this year.

Maybe you wanted to quit smoking or lose a certain amount of weight, reach a certain level of skill and rank if you're in the martial arts.

Or maybe change jobs, start a business, go back to school or spend more quality time with your family, make investments or go on a trip.

Did you follow through on what you wrote?

If you slacked off (no need to feel bad, many have) we want to give you a chance to redeem yourself and still finish the year strong by arming you with an experience you will never forget.

An experience that will give you the drive to knock off those last few items on your list.

You're invited to join us at the Pagoda, this Friday Oct. 21st at 6:30 pm for what will possibly be our last public firewalk of the year.

You can register here for the firewalk.

Master Yourself,

Sibok Martin

Cung Le Teaser Fight Camp 2011

As you might already know Cung uses Sanshou techniques to dominate his opponents.

Sanshou means "Free Hand" or traditionally, Sparring is called Sanda which means "Free Fighting". It's a mixture of various Kung-Fu styles rolled into one. Kinda like how the Soviets created their Sambo or how MMA has evolved in North America.

Naturally, Kung-Fu practitioners gravitate towards Cung because of the connection.

And we’re not any different.

We’ve been following Cung’s career for a long time and always appreciated how well he applied the principles of Kung-Fu in competitions.

That said, when the opportunity presented itself to train privately and have him come down as a guest of honour at our annual Fight Camp, we couldn’t pass it up.

With Cung’s help we’ll be training and preparing our fighters for national level competitions and getting them ready for the Canadian Olympic Team try-outs for Sanshou.

Click here to view a teaser video of our Fight camp with Cung Le in action.

Apart from Cung’s awesome skill, what impressed me the most about him is; he’s one of the most down to earth guys I’ve ever met. A true martial artist.

Friendship Always.

Sibok Martin

Cung Le Fight Camp 2011

Had a blast with Cung.

Here are some pictures from the event.

If you're thinking of getting involved in Sanshou and Martial Arts in one of our schools in the Ottawa-Montreal-Toronto Area follow this link to get started.

Sanshou is a dynamic sport and visually entertaining.

Similar to Kickboxing, Sanshou matches also include Throwing, Sweeping and Take Down techniques.

You can view one of our latest Sanshou Fight Nights here.

We'll be rooting for him in his upcoming match against Wanderlei Silva.

Cung Le isn't just a fighter. He holds very strong traditional values of honor, respect and dedication. It's rare to see this kind of balance in today's fighters.

We're looking forward to continuing our work with him in the future.

Master Yourself,

Sibok Martin

Martial Art Guru is Live!

Was it a crazy summer for you?

Did you manage to get anything done during the madness?

How's your training coming along?

Any breakthroughs?

Any new personal records being shattered?

Are you turning weaknesses into strengths?

During the summer we created something for you.

A new way to train.

Void of any excuses since it's available 24/7.

It's accessible to anyone, wherever you are in the world.

It's the next best thing to training with us personally.

And you can get involved in this virtual training platform for 40% off just because you're on my list.

It's called Martial Art Guru

Choose any area of interest: Kung-Fu, MMA or Fitness (new programs are being added weekly) and start your training.

You can use it to supplement your existing training (if you're already an FSD Member) that way you can review and brush up on techniques and principles at the click of a button.

Or if you're outside our network of schools but always wanted to train with us in the FSD System, now's your chance.

You can learn everything our students learn from the comfort of your own home.

Once you complete a program it stays in your library so you can review it anytime you wish.

Also, each program ends the same way as it would in our schools, with testing and ranking. So you know you're making progress.

Now, "living too far", "being in another country", or "don't have the money", are no longer an issue.

It's online and most programs cost you 20$ a month.

Here's what I would like you to do.

Go to Martial Art Guru and hit the Sign Up button, create your account (like 30 sec.) and start your training by choosing your area of interest.

Let me know how you like it. Use the site to deepen your knowledge of the martial arts and also use it to stay focused and motivated.

New programs are being added weekly and without a doubt, this will be very valuable to you.

When you check out simply punch in "FSD" in the coupon box to get an instant 40% rebate on any program (monthly or yearly).

Looking forward to hearing your feedback.

Master Yourself,

Sibok M