Eke Academy of Martial Arts

After a dip in a frigid Icelandic lake I have gone from being someone who hates the cold to taking a cold plunge every morning. What is even better is that I have seen a huge difference in how I feel as a result. Experts are saying dipping in water that is less than 15 C can have profound positive impacts on our health.

Basics are key in any martial art.

Mondays are fun days when you are training.

Breathing…letting go. A brisk 2 degrees in the cold plunge tub. Want to change your life? Take the plunge.

Khaelys making it look easy!

The lethal elbows of Barbara!

Congratulations on the promotion Maya! One of our youngest students who inspires us all!

Iceland was once a heavily forested place but it was victim of deforestation when it was first settled. There is a lot of valuable lessons to be learned about life and how or why we train in that. Nobody intentionally made Iceland virtually void of trees and everything that results from that and in the same way most of us don’t really realize the mistakes we make when we are living our lives. What we need to do though is understand that we are all humans and all make mistakes, judge ourselves and others and live in duality. Now is the time for our planet to start to see things differently and learn.

In Iceland you historically had to be strong to survive and this is still evident today when you spend time in the place. What can we learn from the Norse/Icelandic concept of þetta reddast? How can you train to be less fragile and to embrace all aspects of life?

Let’s take a look at cultivation of a state of mind that sees everything fresh, new and magical. Beginners Mind can change not just our training but the way we live our lives.

This could be the most important episode yet. Let’s look at how rare, how special and how nearly impossible the chances are that you managed to be born — but not just that, that everyone and everything has a life. What does that mean to you? How does that change your life? How does that change how you treat others and yourself? How do we use that to focus our training and our energy?