Black Belt Reflections: Christopher Haupt (part 1)
[This is Part 1 of Christopher Haupt's essay on the topic of "What Taekwondo Means To Me" which was written as part of the promotion requirements for his second degree in Taekwondo.]
I was stressed. I found myself on the road yet again. It was just before dawn, and I was on near auto-pilot driving from Auburn to San Jose to get to a 9am meeting at work. I wasn't looking forward to three more days away from home, and really not thrilled to be away and missing the kids' upcoming school activities.
When I rolled to a stop after the 150+ mile trip, I was aching, and finding that both my mental and physical self was in pain. I knew that years of this being my weekly routine were adding up, and not in a good way. Something had to give, and I didn't want it to be me failing my family and myself.
I had stopped working out years earlier, been on very irregular diet due to never being around for normal meals while on the road, and the stress of it all just led to more improper nutrition. Food was the stress reliever, fortunately not the worst of vices, but still, the pounds added up over the years.
Worse, in my mind, was that for the first five to six years of my kids' lives, they really didn't have "dad" around except for what seemed like extended weekends. While to them it was "normal", it wasn't making my wife or I very happy.
So, one day, while visiting my son's Little Ninja's Taekwondo class on a rare week I was around, I came to a conclusion: I need to make a change, and I need to make it NOW.
I decided to give myself an unusual birthday present around my 40th birthday. I arranged a visit to my family doctor for a physical to get a baseline assessment of at least my physical self. It wasn't pretty. Over the years of my travels, I put on nearly 50 pounds, felt I was prematurely aging, and was on the path to more serious physical problems due to being overweight, under-rested, and constantly stressed.
I knew this was coming, but it was still a shock to hear.
"Chris", my doctor said, "it is still possible to avoid all of the issues and complications that could come to you if continue down this path."
I really didn't need another push. I, the guy who was captain of my high school track team, who ran and played competitive racquetball in college, skied, biked, and did long distance backwoods hiking, did not like what I had become.
I wanted to fix this for me, for my wife, and for my kids. I was in it for the long haul.
The doctor's visit really was the proverbial last straw, or perhaps it was the gust of wind that filled my sails, I don't know, but it was around then that I got started.
It helped to set two general plans into motion. First, I was going to get physically active again, in a way that I could also participate in activity that might help me spend more time with my family, and second, I was going to start changing my career path to steer towards more healthy living and less stress, all while supporting and expanding on the first part of the plan (spending more time with the family).
Conveniently, my son was just outgrowing his Little Ninja's class and looking at the next series of classes he could enroll in. I had also been having informal chats with Master Dan Lovas that reinforced my own interests in martial arts. Wouldn't it be cool if my son and I could spend quality time and learn all about Taekwondo together?
I enrolled shortly there-after.
[To be continued in Part 2]
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