Alright team… it’s time to decide 💪 We’ve narrowed it down to the final names: 🥊 Tireon 🥊 Mitch 🥊 The Rubber Ronin 🥊 Rocky 🥊 Bashy McBashface Now it’s over to YOU 👇 Drop your vote in the Poll ⬇️ (Or comment a new name if you think you’ve got a better one 👀) Let’s make this official and give our striking partner a name worthy of the grind 💥 Most votes wins… I’ll announce the winner soon 👊

My good friend and training partner Joe built this awesome Eskrima striking dummy for me. It’s made from tyres, super durable, and gives me something solid to aim at when training my stick strikes. Perfect for working angles, accuracy, and power. But every good training partner deserves a name… and right now this guy doesn’t have one. So I’m throwing it over to the community 👊 What should we name the dummy? Drop your suggestions in the comments. The best name wins… and will forever live in martial arts history (or at least in my back garden).

Shadow striking (swinging a stick in the air) is great for developing flow, coordination, and movement. But if you want to build real attributes — structure, accuracy, power, and recovery — you need feedback from your strikes. The weapon has to hit something. I’m looking at adding a striking target in the garden and weighing up a few options: Option 1 – Cheap & effective: Tie a tyre to a post. ✔ Great feedback ✔ Builds conditioning ✔ Very affordable Option 2 – DIY project: Build a wooden man with tyres. ✔ More realistic targeting ✔ Different angles and heights ✘ Takes time to build Option 3 – Premium option: Buy a BOB (standing humanoid bag). ✔ Best visual targeting ✔ Good for accuracy & combinations ✘ Most expensive All three will develop different attributes. The key point: flow is only half the equation — feedback completes the loop. Question for the community: What are you hitting in your training space right now? And if you could upgrade, what would you go for?

I’d love to get a feel for everyone’s experience level in the community so I can create content that helps you most 👊 I know we’ve got a real mix here: • Complete beginners who are keen to learn • Experienced martial artists new to Eskrima • People with a few years of Eskrima under their belt • Veterans with 20+ years of training Where do you fit in right now? Drop a comment below and let me know: 1️⃣ Total beginner 2️⃣ Martial arts experience but new to Eskrima 3️⃣ Eskrima for a few years 4️⃣ 10+ years experience Bonus question: What’s ONE thing you most want to improve right now? (flow, basics, sparring, footwork, drills, teaching, etc.) This will really help me tailor future videos, drills, and courses to the community 🙏

The last few days I’ve been dealing with sciatica — sharp pain running from my lower back down my leg. Not the “oh that’s uncomfortable” kind… the kind that reminds you how much you take movement for granted. As someone who trains, coaches, and preaches consistency, this stuff is humbling. But it’s also a reminder of a few important things: • Training isn’t about being invincible • Rest and rehab are part of the process • Listening to your body is a skill, not a weakness I’m still moving. Still showing up. Just adapting — mobility work, gentle movement, breathing, and patience (the hardest part 😅). If you’re dealing with pain, setbacks, or frustration right now — you’re not broken. You’re just in a different phase of the journey. Forge isn’t just built in the hard rounds… It’s built in how you respond when things don’t go to plan. 🔥