RISE OF THE DRAGON

Countdown continues | Week 2 Chronicles

Join us on the journey as we build towards the grand event, the Rise of the Dragon, with intense training, thrilling demonstrations, and inspiring stories.

Week 2: Training Intensifies and New Beginnings

Day 1: Saturday

Saturday morning started off with an early training schedule. I was working with T. We hit the valley and then Monster Gym for a 3K run. T managed to get it under 15 minutes, followed by some core work and a little flexibility workout. Meanwhile, TC was at the temple working with Cheng, An, and Lan on some more advanced forms. Cheng is currently focusing on the double swords. Lan is developing her drunken stick and An is exploring the double hammers.

We regrouped for breakfast to power up with some protein oats, make some edits, and catch up with each other before class started at 11 AM which kicked off with a unique difference. Gareth, who wasn't able to make the mid-spring festival graduation ceremony, had the opportunity to earn his medal and complete spring term by demonstrating his spring term forms, those being Dragon and his kung fu stick, which he absolutely smashed, receiving his novice medal, his handmade graduation book, and of course access to this term's Kung Fu fan form, and most importantly, some amazing memories as this was the first time that he was able to demonstrate both of these forms in front of me without any errors. So well done, Gareth.

The day continued as we had a full house, over 15 people, and we welcomed Ian, a new student, and his two children Mia and Mason to join in with the fun and explore the Kung Fu fan. Midday, something that we haven't done for a long time and something we're going to keep up with each week of summertime as we approach the Rise of the Dragon, is going live on Instagram to engage with the community there and give everyone an opportunity to see what happens here at Temple and how they can get involved even if they're not local to us. We smashed a 5-minute core workout, had hundreds of people join in, and the video, which I'll link below, has over 20,000 views. Be sure to check it out and give it a shot. After working through some of the drill work program, ensuring all the students are up to date with their Kung Fu basics, we sat down for some delicious soup noodles to recharge and get set for the afternoon.

LIVE LINK

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C7ZDSW-ob9U/?igsh=d2k0ZnRmazAybWZp

After lunch, we continued to explore our self-expression through Kung Fu forms, Kamil and Nat focusing on their Dragon and Fan, whilst the senior students developed their personalised weapons. T jumped in for some action, working on his Wu Tang swordplay, and practiced his iron body conditioning with Lan Lan, the Dragon Warrior. They will both be performing Steel Jacket at the Rise of the Dragon this year, where they'll be laying on beds of nails and have concrete slabs smashed across their bodies.

After training, we had an hour of Chinese language class where we were exploring common phrases, which the students who will be joining us for the Journey to the East China trip this year will need to get familiar with so that they can get around and communicate with locals whilst we're on our exploration, learning how to ask for simple items like water and finding out where the nearest toilet is. Meanwhile, T also worked on his Chinese, translating his incredible video into Chinese so that we can share with our fanbase in China, and let the people of the world know his story. The day was still yet to finish after Chinese volunteer work commenced. The courtyard Buddhas received a fresh lick of gold paint, and the temple gates were stripped down, repainted, and are looking beautifully red. As the sun rays shone down upon the temple courtyard, T and An cracked on with some general maintenance and cleaning, giving the temple a fresh look. Once everyone left for the evening, myself, T, and TC sat down to relax, and we introduced TC to the magical Disney movie, Hook. Before we knew it, the evening had arrived. We headed home for some much-needed rest, and prepared our bodies to do it all again the next day.

Day 2: Sunday

Sunday, Day 2, Week 2, started off pretty much just like Day 1. I took T for a 3K run, followed by a session at Monster Gym, before he returned to the temple to work on some of his sword form with TC. An also had a morning with TC working on his new animal form, the Scorpion, which is coming together nicely. You can see clips of all of his forms posted regularly to the forum. Be sure to check it out and get some inspiration.

We sat down at the breakfast club, and Lan, who volunteers her time in the morning to collect Niyyat from London's Liverpool Street, turned up. However, Niyyat wasn't present as she has tonsillitis. We hope she is feeling better, and we all gathered our thoughts and shared some video clips with her to help her catch up on what she's missed out on, and ensure that even while she's feeling under the weather, she can definitely still stay focused and make progress. We look forward to seeing her next Sunday. I gave Lan and TC the task to reach out to her and organise some Zoom sessions during the week to help her catch up.

Training began, and we welcomed Kamil to our Sunday session, who after graduation has now levelled up to be a novice student, now accessing over 8 hours of training each week. JiGe, who comes from Coventry and has been driving down to us for the past 12-plus years, wasn't present, with major roadworks on the M25, he had no choice but to turn back and head home, where again, we utilised the Temple Forum to put some work in sharing and training through the temple training app. Remember, there are no excuses, only adjustments. So even when you can't make it to the Temple, there's never a reason not to train and work on your self-development.

We spent several hours in the morning working on our forms, and with the kickboxing ring still set up, we decided to create some interesting content based around some martial application and combat ideas, which we've already posted to social media and have gone viral. Here is a link to one of them, check it out. If you don't already, follow me on Instagram and check out some of our other social media platforms, so you don't miss out on all the greatness we share with our community daily. We then had a break for lunch, loaded up on some much-needed soup noodles to re-energise, and then we took to the sunny courtyard, where what seemed like hundreds of bottles were broken with the iron palm technique, which is something many of the students will be focusing on for the Rise of the Dragon. So weekly practice is in full swing.

Kamil, new to Sundays, also jumped in on the action, and although he has a lot to learn and wasn't able to break the bottle just yet, he was very close. We reminded him that you do not need to be great to start, but you do need to start in order to be great. So he's now taking that first step to the fundamental iron palm technique, and we believe that over the coming months, he too may be ready to demonstrate the iron palm at the Rise of the Dragon event in August. I was inspired as well and wanted to demonstrate to the students some of the other techniques, from chopping bottles, and doing something that I haven't done for quite a while, using the back fist to smash a glass bottle. To everyone's surprise, I was successful in my first attempt. And to be honest, it even shocked me. I was so happy and motivated that I decided to work on another technique, which I want to display at this year's Rise of the Dragon event.

This technique is the Iron Throat. During my recent pilgrimage to China, between shooting a movie segment for the Chinese National Treasure show with director Yuan He Ping (Drunken Master) and action actor Huang Xiao Fan (Louis Fan from Ip Man), I was able to meet a long-life goal of mine, a big brother by the name of Shi Yan Wu, the same monk name I have. He is one of the only actual monks that I know who is celibate, doesn't drink, smoke, or eat meat. And wow, I was beyond impressed. Fast approaching 60, and with no need to prove anything to me, after a walk deep in the mountains, he was so motivated by my story and my philosophy. He wanted to demonstrate his kung fu. We had a local news station join us to capture the event. He demonstrated his iron body technique, where I was made to kick him in the private parts, whilst he demonstrated the art form, the iron eggs. I punched him vigorously multiple times in the body, and then to sum it up, I gave him full blow punches directly to his throat, where during each strike he laughed and asked me to hit harder. It was in this moment that I found new inspiration. I too wanted to practice this technique a little bit more. On my return to the temple, along with TC, I attempted to break a 2-inch bat across my throat and had my son, T, strike me multiple times. I failed the break, but did not give up. I've been continuing with my conditioning, and with the Sunday action, and the sun shining, I was fully motivated to give it another shot. TC took a wooden bat and within a blink of an eye, smashed it across my throat, where in a shout of relief, the bat broke. This ancient technique of hard Qigong will be something I display live at the Rise of the Dragon. So if you, your friends, and your family want to see it, maybe you don't believe it, come along, and as I always say, see it, believe it, live it.

We tidied up the glass bottles, continued with our training for another hour or so, before completing the

day with some volunteer work, preparing the outdoor bar setup for our Monday bar sessions, practicing some of the high bar styles in the courtyard. We ended the day with a combination of content creation, filming some of the self-defense tutorials that T and An have been creating, taking over the filming, and assisting TC in some of the other program development ideas, exploring ways in which we can improve. To be honest, the sun was blazing hot. We put in a good solid day's worth of work. We ended on a good note, and then we cleaned up, showered up, headed home, and prepared to do it all again the next day.

Day 3: Monday

Monday started off, as usual, with TC and A working on some forms, developing the assessment videos for the Jump Kick and Flexibility Programs. I took T for a morning run before heading back to pick up Thea, who is training with me again for the Rise of the Dragon. As a long-term student of 10-plus years, it's good to have her back and working hard.

We sat down for breakfast. I volunteered for the first two hours of the day before sitting down for some soup noodles, recharged, and then we headed to Monster Gym for a push session. T has set himself a goal to complete 80kg on bench press and 120 kg on the squat by the end of the term. We then cracked on with training and captured some content creation, where we met some absolute legends of the gym, old-school bodybuilders, and some of the famous current powerlifters. We had a good day working hard, and T revised for his GCSE exams, whilst I got my steps in. We returned to the valley to work on our forms before heading back to the temple for an hour of power.

T hit some of the jump assessments with some light workouts to explore his flexibility before we finished the day with a solid hour of bunny hops. Just before heading home, Cheng arrived for the Monday Bar Class. We worked on some movements for an hour and explored some new techniques before having a good hour-long conversation about technology, new age, and the impact it has on creativity, and the way in which many people are choosing a more modernized approach to life, from four day working weeks to technology strongly being apart of their everyday life, from simples tasks like making coffe in the morning to letting AI write documents and help with creativity processes. It was a deep conversation, but before we knew it, it was time to head home and prepare for the next day.

Day 4: Tuesday

Tuesday, the sun was replaced with heavy rain, but it didn't stop us from starting the day with a run and stretch in the valley. After returning, T and I went to Monster Gym, whilst he revised for his GCSEs and continued to get his steps in. TC and An cracked on with more content creation for the workout programs, and at 10 AM, T brought Thea to the temple to work on her forms. They went through a solid hour of Kung fu movements, prep for rise of the dragon and even had time to sit and enjoy some tea and dragonball before they dropped her home

Meanwhile, after a delicious bowl of soup noodles, T and A started working on setting up T's new portable bar set, sponsored by Gravity Fitness, who T is from today now officially sponsored by! Well done T! Watch out for some crazy content that he has created this week and will begin to share from today. TC continued working on the fan program, checking in on the students' progress, and ensuring that all students are on track for the next assessment video submission. I went to Edmonton Amateur Boxing Club to train with my Costa, the Archbishop, and close friend of mine, for 12 rounds of 4 minutes each, preparing for a possible fight in autumn. It was great to be back in the ring, focusing on technique, fitness, and mental strength.

In the afternoon, I cracked on with preparation for the Rise of the Dragon event, making some edits to my book and printing out custom invitations for our VIP guests. T and An headed home to focus on their schoolwork, TC wrapped up but I continued working at the temple, striving to create a positive impact within our community. The day ended with the feeling of accomplishment and the drive to keep pushing forward.

Day 5: Wednesday

Day 5 of half-term. T spent the night at An's place. At 8am, TC arrived to pick up An for a morning of training and content creation in the valley, while T met me at Monster Gym for his morning 3K run, followed by core work, flexibility exercises, and iron finger training. We returned to the temple with the sun out and began volunteer work. DG focused on creating program content to help everyone assess their current level, prepare for the Rise of the Dragon, and get ready for the new academic year starting in September.

After lunch, An, T, and I headed back to Monster Gym for a leg day workout. T and An both set new personal records in squats, with T hitting 105kg and An reaching 70kg. They also tested their leg press strength, with T achieving 260kg and An hitting 190kg. After nearly three hours, we returned to the temple, had some fruit, and prepared for an hour of jump kicks. We explored different movements for our current forms, including flying kicks, twirling kicks, cartwheels, and more. I experimented with Dragon style Ditan moves, which I plan to demonstrate at the Rise of the Dragon this year and want to perfect.

Next, we had our Hour of Power session, focusing on finger strength and handstands. We completed over 100 finger push-ups, various handstand drills, and exercises. We also worked on our hard Qigong practices, including the Bed of Nails, the Four Spears, Neck Hanging, and the Iron Core Suction. Time flew by as we had so much fun, and we welcomed a new student, Primo, An’s dad, who has been at the temple for over five years but never participated in a class. It was wonderful to have him join us; he demonstrated great potential with his handstand technique, learning the fist handstand hold and developing straight arm strength on the dip bars. He even helped A with his Iron Abs and me with my Iron Neck Technique.

After class, we sat down for our evening meal and discussed our plans for later. T and An aimed to shoot more content for Gravity Fitness, utilizing the Gravity Fitness Weighted Vest. Lan, who attends Wednesday sessions each week during the summer term, worked on her Drunken Stick with TC. I practiced my Iron Palm Technique by breaking glass bottles with different parts of my hand. We wrapped up at 9pm when Lan, TC, and I headed back to Monster Gym for an evening cardio session and some editing while getting our steps in. An and T went to my house for a sleepover to start editing today’s session content. Finally, TC and I took Lan home to Essex Brentwood, made plans for week 3 on the way home, and got some much-needed rest before Throwback Thursday kicks in.

Day 6: Thursday

Day six of the week, always promises excitement as we inch closer to the weekend. The day began with a morning workout in the living room while An T and TC prepared for the day. I completed a 20k ride on the bike, did my flexibility routine, and practiced some iron finger techniques. We left home at 8 am. An and TC ventured into the valley to continue their work on forms and content creation for the temple.

I took T to Monster Gym, where I did my cardio and worked on some exciting edits that have been performing well on social media. I'll share some of my favorites below. T dedicated an hour and a half to revising for his upcoming GCSE exams. We returned to the temple at 10 am. TC got to work on a traditional stick form, now live on the temple training app. Though we'll be teaching this form in the autumn term, you can purchase the program now if you're eager to start over the summer.

T and A collected Thea and spent just under two hours developing various techniques for her performance at the Rise of the Dragon event. We enjoyed some tea while watching Dragon Ball before dropping her home. Afterward, we gathered for a much-needed lunch.

We then headed back to Monster Gym to explore more equipment and learn about the various cardio machines, from treadmills to CrossFit equipment and different bicycles. T and An continued with content creation for T’s new sponsor, Gravity Fitness, with his first video set to release tomorrow at the start of week three of the summer term.

D joined us, and we dived into acrobatics, practicing different jump movements needed for this term’s forms. We also took turns attempting the Iesu challenge, posted on the forum. Iesu is one of my kung fu brothers from Mexico, whom I met in Shaolin in 2006 and brought on a tour to the UK; he now lives in France.

During our intense hour of training, it began to rain, so we moved indoors to work on single bunny hop explosive jumps and test our qigong elements. An achieved a milestone by lifting off the floor with TC and me. D practiced his iron neck hanging, and T balanced his body weight on four spears. We then sat down for a meal to recharge before engaging in 60 minutes of kickboxing, practicing various punch and kick drills, pad work, and a bit of sparring. However, a light sparring session between TC and me took a turn when my sidekick accidentally knocked TC out for a few seconds. This incident was a stark reminder of the dangers of fighting and the importance of safety, echoing Master Roshi’s wisdom: “We do not practice martial arts to win fights; we do it to conquer ourselves.”

We wrapped up the evening, tidied the temple, and headed out. Cheng, who usually joins us on Thursdays, couldn't make it due to illness. We send him our best wishes for a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him in week three of the summer term.

Day 7: Friday

Friday, Day 7. We woke up full of energy, only to find the weather had taken a turn. It seemed to be a test of our resilience as we stepped out the front door after my 20k bike ride and morning stretch. The rain and ice-cold wind hit T and me as we made our way to the gym. T tackled his revision while cycling, and I jumped on the cardio machines and completed some work for the Temple.

At 10 am, we arrived at the Temple to meet An and TC, ready to dive into content creation as the last day of half-term for the boys began. We stayed active and motivated until lunchtime, then loaded up on some soup noodles before heading to Monster Gym for a final half-term workout.

Our monstrous pull day began with 100 pull-ups. Due to camera issues, we ended up doing an additional 5 sets, totaling 150 pull-ups. Next, we tackled rack pulls. T and A set up their station with 10kg plates, while TC and I used 20kg plates, quickly progressing from the 20kg bar to 340kg for reps. T set a new personal record with a 120kg rack pull from below the knees, and A practiced his technique and form, attempting the rack pull for the first time.

We explored various gym equipment for training different parts of the bicep and back, then headed upstairs for an hour of kickboxing practice. We sparred, captured lots of content, and then returned to the Temple.

Primo met A for his Friday performance arts class to develop confidence and acting skills, while TC, T, and I prepared dinner, snacks, and movie night. I made a grocery run to get everything we needed for the weekend. Upon my return, Lan arrived at the Temple, and we all settled down to watch Kung Fu Panda on the super-sized screen. It was incredible.

We packed up, headed home, and prepared to rest, knowing Saturday and Sunday would greet us in the morning. We were excited to step into week three of the summer term, with so much happening on Saturday morning—from training to going live with our fans on social media and celebrating TC's 23rd birthday. We look forward to sharing week three with you next week.

Before I wrap up the blog, here are some additional Instagram videos I haven't mentioned yet. These clips are going viral, so make sure to follow us on all our social media handles for daily posts and amazing content. Stay tuned, and I'll see you in the next video!