Susana Tomasio

Yoga and Martial Arts World


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Is Yoga and Martial Arts compatible?

You may be thinking, Yoga and Martial Arts, how does that work? I often get this question or the strange look when I tell people that, being a Yoga teacher, I also practice Martial Arts. It is like if Yoga and Martial Arts were incompatible!

The truth is that all these techniques, Martial Arts, Tai Chi, Yoga, they all have one thing in common: to lead the mind into silence! The goal of Martial Arts is not learning to kick and punch to hit other people! The goal is to bring the mind into quietness through the warrior’s path, by stimulating the values of a warrior such as honour, honesty and courage.  The goal is to be able to control the mind under stressful or dangerous situations. By controlling the body we learn to control the mind! Each tradition has developed its own variations which aim at stilling the mind and reaching the silence within. Performed in the context of different faiths and techniques, they may differ in expression, but in essence they are one. Without the philosophy and spirituality, Martial Arts become a meaningless and dangerous sport!

Tai Chi is moving meditation and Martial Arts in slow motion. I find it quite funny that some people seem to get shocked when we say that Tai Chi is Martial Arts. It is like if they felt disappointed as they thought that it was something else, something magic maybe.. However, Tai Chi is the purest Martial Art, and by practising those movements in slow motion they become a lot more refined and when used in the context of a combat, each movement is perfect and effective  – “one step one kill”.

But also the beauty of Tai  Chi is that we  learn to work with the energy of our body, what we call the “Chi”. And it is the slow movements and the energy created within the body that brings the calm and quietness in the mind. This is the part that people like to hear: Tai Chi with its slow movements brings serenity and inner peace, like magic. They don’t like to hear it is a Martial Art, but it is indeed.

All these different techniques, either Yoga, Martial Arts or Tai Chi they are methods of purifying the nervous system so that it can reflect a greater  degree of consciousness.

So, in answer to my original question, yes, Yoga and Martial Arts are perfectly compatible.

Yogi Kick teaches PaKua Martial Arts, Tai Chi, Yoga and AcroYoga.

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Surya Namascar B

Sun Salutation B
Surya Namascar A is the easier sun salutation in Ashtanga Yoga. Surya Namascar B is harder as we integrate two extra movements:
Utkatasana, the chair pose and Virabhadrasana, the warrior pose.
Start nice and slow and then as you become more familiar with the movements bring it up to its full pace.
Tune into the inner body and feel the heat and fire 🔥 created in your body. If you’re sweating, great! Feel the sweat, don’t resist it and breath deeply!
Traditionally, the Ashtanga practice includes five Surya Namascar A and three Surya Namascar B.
As you begin to move into a consistent practice of sun salutations you will become familiar and will start to memorise these movements: nine movements in Surya Namascar A and seventeen in Surya Namascar B. Once you do, you will find a sense of peace and tranquility and the practice will begin to be yours! 

 


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Surya Namascar A

Sun Salutation A

As we move through the sun salutation the body heats up, the mind sharpens and the inner fire  of purification starts to cultivate in the inner body. As you begin to practice the sun salutation you will notice that it is like an old friend, in which you will get to know these motions really well, but at the same time there is always room to dive deeper and explore new options, new perspectives and new awareness. The sun salutations are the foundation of a complete practice. You can just do the sun salutations if you don’t have time or feeling sick or with low energy. As little as 5 minutes a day will build the foundation and the elements of a complete practice.


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PaKua Martial Arts – Belts Ceremony

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PaKua Martial Arts – Receiving belts

 

On Thursday, the 22nd of June 2017, the students of Master Ricardo Tomasio received their new belts.

Aquelis Soares: grey belt – is Master Ricardo’s first Instructor in the UK.

Susana Tomasio: green belt – is one belt away from becoming an Instructor. Susana is also a Yoga and AcroYoga teacher.

Congratulations to the students!

The grading took place on the 25th of May with the world-renowned Master Guilherme Pigatto Arrais.

 

 


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8 Drunk Immortals

The legend tells that there were eight immortals who devoted their time practicing meditation. Combined with ancient techniques of Chinese Yoga (Kai Men / Chi Kung) getting extraordinary abilities.

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By natural law they became experts in Kung Fu.

They developed very advanced techniques such as the drunken style. They also worked the internal power to perfectly master the imbalance; they were eight great masters who dominated the control of energy (Chi Kung at its most advanced level).

Inside this group there was a female monk who had good skills in handling all leg-techniques,  developing the Martial Chi Kung.

This style was brought to the Shaolin temple to be taught to advanced students after the Saholin destruction in which several monks escaped and hid in villages to not be recognised, and exchanged their names and dressed as beggars. In each village they left teachings that the villagers improved adapting to their customs and physical structures. Within these transformations, the southern drunken style of China, which is not as beautiful but very effective in fight ; at that time the  Stick of the Southern Beggar’style is born – name given in honor of a monk who walked the villages pretending to be a blind beggar and handling his stick with great ability.

The drunken style, improved with time and lost its essence due to being a difficult style to learn and perform, since  a great physical, mental and spiritual  preparation was needed to perform this task.

This style stands out for its ability to deceive the enemy, mistaking him, using the imbalance, spins, jumps, dodges and acrobatics using the opponent’s strength. The techniques is used with the internal energy from the Tan Tien (waist force), hips and shoulders, which combine to launch a coup fists and legs followed by sweep kick.

The purpose of this style is to keep our body in good condition to turn and store energy (Chi Kung) that is used in more advanced spiritual levels.

To the practice of the drunken style is a set of highly refined techniques,  and therefore, it  is considered as the highest level of the physical plane.

With practice, physical changes on the internal organs and endocrine glands are performed. Our body becomes a deposit of energy that elevates the human being to its highest level of consciousness. Through the exercises of Chi Kung we began to channel the energy and find the connection to the gland to develop the immortal fetus. The vital force of the practitioner depends on these glands; with the practice it increases the flow of hormones strengthening the immune system. The sexual energy (creative) improves cleaning and strengthening the organs.

This is very important to have strong and detoxified organs; the practice helps to eliminate toxins, waste and convert fat into the roots of the connective tissue in energy (Chi Kung). Currently, there are modern styles of the drunken style which have simplified the old style to facilitate the learning.

 

 

 

 

 


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Os 8 Imortais Bebedos

A lenda conta que existiam oito imortais que dedicavam o tempo na praticada da meditação. Combinavam as técnicas antigas de Yoga Chinesa (Kai Men / Chi Kung) obtendo habilidades extraordinárias.

Por lei natural se tornaram peritos no Kung Fu.

Desenvolveram técnicas muito avançadas como o estilo bêbado. Também trabalharam o poder interno para dominar perfeitamente o desequilíbrio; foram oito grandes mestres que dominaram o controle da energia (Chi Kung em seu nível mais avançado).

Dentro deste grupo havia uma monja que era hábil no manejo de todas as técnicas de pernas- técnica que se desenvolveu através da Chi Kung marcial.

Este estilo foi levado ao templo Shaolin para ser ensinado aos alunos mais avançados após a destruição de templo Shaolin, vários monges escaparam e se esconderam em aldeias, e para não serem reconhecidos trocavam seus nomes e se vestiam como mendigos. Em cada aldeia deixavam ensinamentos que os aldeões os melhoravam adaptando a seus costumes e estruturas físicas. Dentro destas transformações o estilo do bêbado do sul da China, que não é tão vistoso e sim efetivo na luta; nesse momento nasce o bastão do mendigo do sul, nome dado em honra a um monge que caminhava pelas aldeias fazendo-se passar por mendigo cego e que manejava seu bastão com grande habilidade.

O estilo do bêbado, com o tempo foi se aperfeiçoando uma vez que perdia sua essência por ser um estilo difícil de aprender e executar. É necessária uma preparação física, mental e espiritual muito refinada, para executar essa tarefa.

Este estilo se destaca pela habilidade de enganar o inimigo utilizando o desequilíbrio, giros, saltos, esquivas e acrobacias, utilizando a força do oponente confundindo-o. As técnicas são utilizadas com energia interna desde o Tan Tien, força da cintura, quadris e ombros, que se combinam para lançar um golpe de punhos e pernas seguidos de rasteira.

A finalidade do estilo é manter o nosso corpo em bom estado no plano físico para transformar e armazenar energia (Chi Kung) que é usada em níveis espirituais mais avançados.

A prática do estilo bêbado é um conjunto de técnicas altamente refinadas, e por isso é considerada como maior alcance do plano físico.

Com a prática são realizadas transformações físicas sobre os órgãos internos e glândulas endócrinas. Nosso corpo se converte em um deposito de energia que eleva o ser humano em seu nível mais alto de consciência. Através dos exercícios Chi Kung começamos a canalizar a energia e a encontrar a conexão com a glândula para o desenvolvimento do feto imortal. A força vital do praticante depende das glândulas mencionadas, com a prática se encrementa o fluxo de hormônios fortalecendo assim, o sistema imunológico. A energia sexual (criativa) melhora limpando e fortalecendo os órgãos.

Isso é muito importante para ter órgãos fortes e desintoxicados, a prática ajuda a eliminar as toxinas, os resíduos e converter a gordura nas raízes do tecido conjuntivo em energia (Chi Kung). Atualmente existem estilos modernos do bêbado que foram simplificados do estilo antigo para facilitar a aprendizagem.


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O Jovem Samurai

Um jovem samurai perguntou ao seu mestre: “Mestre como me torno o melhor guerreiro? ” O mestre então respondeu: ” Estas vendo aquela pedra ali? Então vai até a pedra e xingue bastante.”

O jovem samurai foi, xingou a pedra, e retornou ao mestre. O mestre perguntou: “O que foi que ela fez?”  O Jovem respondeu:  “Nada!”  Então o mestre disse: “Pega tua espada e ataque ela, com vários golpes. ”

O jovem destruiu a espada contra a pedra e retornou ao mestre e disse: “Nada Aconteceu!

” O mestre disse: “Para seres o melhor guerreiro, tens que ser como aquela pedra, teres a frieza de não reagir diante de atos e palavras, e te entao te tornarás imbatível…”

 

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The Young Samurai

A young samurai asked to his master: “Master how do I become the best warrior?” And so the master replied: “Are you seeing that rock ? Go there and swear to that rock. ”

The young samurai went there, swore to the rock and returned to his master. And the master asked: “What did the rock do? ”

The young man replied: “Nothing!” So the master said: “Grab your sword and attack the rock with several knocks.”

The young man destroyed the sword against the rock, and returned to his master and said: “Nothing happened!”

So the master said to him: “To be the best warrior, you need to be like that rock, and have the coldness not to react to words and acts and then you will become unbeatable…”

 

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Cherry Chocolate Shake

Hi beauties,

Coming from a chemistry background I love to experiment in the kitchen!

On the other day  I was craving something fresh, sweet and with chocolate. I made this smoothie with cherries and cacao nibs and the result was heavenly good! I had to share it with you!

Cherries are packed with antioxidants  that offer many health benefits, including help with insomnia, belly fat and aging.

In a study, researchers found that when rats had received whole tart cherry powder mixed into a high-fat diet, they didn’t gain as much weight or build up as much body fat as rats that didn’t eat cherries.

Cherries are actually  one of my favourite summer fruits, and if it helps to avoid belly fat, that is awesome!

The Smoothie is very easy to make. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients
  • Serves 2 (medium glasses)
  • 1 cup coconut milk
  • 1 cup frozen organic cherries (or fresh, if you have the patience to de-pitt them yourself!)
  • 1 ripe banana (fresh or frozen)
  • 1/2  avocado
  • 2 tsp. raw cacao nibs
  • 2-3 drops of vanilla extract
  • Toppings: non-dairy chocolate chips
Instructions
  1. Add the coconut milk, cherries, banana, avocado and cacao nibs to the blender. Starting the blender on a low speed, blend until smooth. If needed gradually increase to higher speeds and blend until smooth.
  2. You can add a bit more of coconut milk to achieve the desired consistency.
  3. Top with non-dairy chocolate chips if desired.

Enjoy!

Happy bank holiday!

x

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The Wise Samurai

Near Tokyo, lived a great Samurai,  already old,  and  now spending his time teaching young people. Despite his age, the legend was that he could defeat any opponent. One afternoon, a warrior, known for his complete lack of scruples, appeared there. This warrior was famous for using techniques of provocation. He hoped that his opponent made the first move. Gifted  with a privileged intelligence to observe the mistakes of the other warriors, he counterattacked with fulminating speed.
The young and impatient warrior had never lost a fight . Knowing the Samurai’s reputation, he had come to defeat him , and increase his own fame. All the students were against the idea, but the wise old Samurai accepted the challenge. They all went to the town square . There, the young man started insulting the old samurai.

He threw a few rocks in his direction, spat in his face, shouted every insult he knew, offending even his ancestors. For hours he did everything to provoke him, but the wise old man remained impassive.  In the late afternoon,  feeling exhausted and humiliated,  the impetuous warrior gave up and withdrew.

Disappointed that the master had accepted so many insults and so many provocations, the students asked : “As you could bear such indignity?  Why not use your sword, even knowing you might lose the fight, instead of showing cowardly and fearful in front of all of us? ”

” If someone comes to you with a gift, and you do not accept it, whom does the gift belong to ? ” Asked the Samurai. ” To whom tried to deliver it “, said one of the disciples “.  The same goes for envy , anger and insults”, said the master.
When they are not accepted, they continue to belong to whom carries them . Your inner peace depends solely on you. People can not take away your serenity, only if you allow it.

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