I'm writing this just after returning from practice. I'm almost always more focused and clear-headed after a lesson, it brings me back to life after a long days work. I get more done starting at 9:00 or 10:00 after getting home from the school than I ever did getting home from work at 6:00 before I started practicing Oom Yung Doe.

My life had reached a kind of dull stasis about four years ago. I was working a job that didn't challenge me, provided no future and I wasn't doing anything about finding something better. Having recently graduated with a Bachelor in Music, I was not pursuing any of my dreams with any sort of vigor, and I wasn't seeking out new experiences or seeking any of the opportunities (musical or other) for which I had moved to Boston originally. I wasn't depressed, I was just kind of floating waiting for something to happen I suppose. It was a classic wishing for something to happen and then getting distracted and trapped and forgetting to follow through with those goals. It also affected my relationships as I was also just floating through them, not challenging or seeking anything new out of them.

Then one Christmas as a present I was given a 2 month program at the school in Davis Square. I had always wished to try some sort of martial art but again never actually followed through with it. I started noticing I had more energy after only about a week or two of practice, and I would start getting excited about going. I think I went 6 days a week for the first 2 months of practice before signing up for the degree program. In the last two years of practice in writing this I'm seeing how much I've accomplished. I now work the job I wanted originally coming out of college, which I credit to the incredibly focused energy I would have after practice allowing me to start writing music at 10:00 or 11:00 at night which was the only free time I had. I play in several other music groups around Boston, and most importantly have found some great relationships with friends and family. The reason I've been able to do all this is because I can see myself clearer and see the pitfalls that I would normally fall into. Instructors would always say that the practice room is the place to challenge yourself, and test your mental strength to carry on, because unlike the real world, there are no irreparable or painful consequences if you are not strong enough. I find this to be absolutely true. There is literature in my school with the translation explained as "forged in flame". This always rang the most clear to me, as through the movement and forms I would be able to push myself further and further not through pain, but through giving myself good enough excuses to stop. Each time there was a seemingly brutal Pal Gae practice, I would feel the swirls of excuses, pain, and every other thought I had during the day start to form a barrier where my mind would inevitably have to crash into. However, each time I could break through and find my focus and find the strength to keep my breathing, keep my eyes, and keep my thoughts clear, I would leave the practice room with an overwhelming sense of pride and warm feeling, even if I couldn't really walk very well. That strength has carried outside of my movement, I started to notice this when I would work 5:00 in the morning to 6:00 at night, and then go to rehearsals from 6:30-1:00 in the morning for 2 to 3 days in a row for about 2 months. I would normally start to feel sorry for myself and quickly build up a lot of stress and a negative shroud around myself hoping for other people's sympathy at how hard everything was, but that was not the case. With my practice I still had plenty of energy, I never got sick during that period, and even though at that point in time I was still working the job I despised, I kept a very positive outlook and was able to manage the stress.

I feel more human and more natural than I ever have, and I feel more connected to others than ever before, and that is why I keep practicing and plan to continue.

After going to the weeklong and practicing the meditation practice, I've discovered a new feeling. I have never felt any sort of connection to something greater, believing that everyone was detached from each other. In my meditation I started trying to connect with nature, and meld into it. After about two weeks of the meditation, one night I had some sort of epiphany. I envisioned myself sitting in a forest by the water, and I removed everything that was not in a state of nature from my mind. I could feel other life breathing, with the thought that we were all put on this planet with nothing, and we would eventually all leave, and that was something that every living thing shares. With this bond I felt a sense of comradery with other life, and I felt an energy surround that. I then suddenly and completely relaxed like there was a cool breeze that just washed everything in my head away, and there was absolutely no stress. I started breathing, breathing that energy into me, allowing it clean me, and each breath felt like I was becoming more and more with the trees I was sitting by. I can return to this peace now each time I meditate depending on how much time I have.

This is one of the reasons I want to teach other students. I am coming around to realizing that there is nothing else as important as the bond we all have with each other. To be able to heal and help another's health is more important than anything else. Teaching also teaches me more about my character than anything else I've ever done before. It challenges me to challenge others without letting them give up on themselves, which is a problem I've always had. It also challenges me to have confidence I've not previously had. I am also better learning how to connect with people, and how to reach them through teaching them movement. Some of the best feelings I've had have been after a lesson where I've given a hand.

Nick Warseck

The training I have received has been remarkably efficacious. The learning environment is positive, challenging and highly supportive... I have increased energy, reduced stress, a clearer focus and a healthier perspective.

...3 hours had already gone by yet I was very energized. I find every time I attend a Sae Gae MooDoe seminar my mind and body become moreharmonized, and, at such an accelerated rate.

Even if it was not for the monetary gain, Oom Yung Doe would still be the best investment I have ever made in myself.

Best of all, I now have the energy to play with my children. Middle age will have to wait for a while longer!

...I even began to run again. Each morning I would run 2 miles down the beach to get my body moving in the morning. I had run in high school and college, but was unable to run after Fibromyalgia set in. Again, the training that Oom Yung Doe was passing on to me was working and healing my ten years of pain... I am stronger than ever... even stronger than I was before Fibromyalgia.

As I continue my growth as a man, and someday as a physician, husband, and father, I consider myself to be extremely fortunate to have "stumbled" into Traditional Moo Doe. Through Moo Doe, I have become a much stronger, more compassionate and humble human being

...my ability to cope and find healthy ways of dealing with anger, pain, stress and even euphoria is dramatically more successful. Although I still have difficulty in unorganized social situations, public interactions have become much less fearful...

I also found all the challenge and potential for growth that I could ever have wanted - in mind, body, and spirit. Through the training, I've gained a lot of self-discipline, will-power, and inner strength.

Oom Yung Doe is the third martial arts school that I have attended and by far the best. The other schools had their attributes, but they didn't help my health, mental state, and physical condition like Oom Yung Doe.

Traditional Moo Doe movement has challenged me time and time again, but I have found that I am stronger, faster, more accurate, and overall healthier than I have ever been

...my body and mind are now improving rather than deteriorating as I grow older. That is a rather remarkable thing! My body is becoming more flexible, stronger and my mind is more at peace than I have felt in many years. As a side benefit, I've lost 30 pounds without even trying to lose weight.

...I was unable to enjoy watching my daughter as she grows, or my husband as we move through each stage of life together. I've made so much progress with Oom Yung Doe that I can now look forward to a better quality of life with both of them.

I am aging well-free of arthritis and with great energy. The better care I take of myself, the better care I can take of others. I have a quality of life I cherish and look forward to continued achievements and knowledge with the help of Oom Yung Doe.

Realizing that I was at ground level in my training, I demonstrated 5 forms I had learned. To say the least, he was shocked and from his mouth came the words "I'm jealous. How could you learn all that in several months... those are high level forms of Kung Fu - I don't even know those."

I have become an independent women doing things as much so, that my husband no longer has to take care of me.

There are many benefits I have gained in my training: flexibility, strength, and determination. But, I would like to share with you why I decided to be come an instructor.