The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting

On the one hand, I am a huge fan. I have been watching the UFC since its inauguration in 1993, and have enjoyed fights in Pride FC, Shooto, WEC and many other organizations. I have nothing but respect for the skill, athleticism and mental toughness of the modern MMA fighter. However, as the sport has developed so has the risk and impact of severe head injury. Fighters are getting hit more often and more striking has resulted in more headshots. Are there ways of limiting these head injuries while still maintaining the intensity of the sport? Find out in this weeks archived podcast.

If you fail to plan, plan to fail. I am just about ready to leave for my 1000 mile journey to Hudson Bay. This is just a small glimpse at some of the planning I have had to do in order to survive all on my own for the next few weeks. Though I will have very little communication, I have made it possible to upload real-time podcasts from the field as I embark on this journey.

This summer I am attempting to travel 1,000 miles in a canoe by myself in Canada's northern boreal forest and the barren lands of the eastern arctic. In this episode I talk about why I would ever want to do such a thing, the logistics and planning involved, contingency plans, dealing with bears, and how I'm going to pack 50 days of food into a boat that doesn't quite seem large enough... During the trip I hope to use a satellite data link to upload short updates and episodes to this podcast, as well as the occasional picture to my Instagram which you can follow @stephan_kesting or https://www.instagram.com/stephan_kesting/ I hope you enjoy this episode. Subscribe to the podcast if you want the live from the field updates! Stephan

One of the most common questions I get is how to find a good school. This is a REALLY important issue, given that in your martial arts journey you'll potentially be spending thousands of hours training and placing your health in the hands of total strangers. In this podcast I give you some of my very best tips for picking the best school for your needs Check out my instagram at https://www.instagram.com/stephan_kesting Get tons of BJJ and grappling tips at https://www.grapplearts.com/articles And find out more about self defense at https://www.selfdefensetutorials.com

This blast from the past podcast brings back a good friend of mine, Brandon Mullins. In our time together, we discussed Life and Death on the seminar circuit, transitioning from gi to no-gi, the evolution of Jiu Jitsu and some ways to help manage training, conditioning and sparring.

Roy Dean is a martial arts pro. In this podcast, he explains the fundamental differences between the different martial arts, including Aikido and how he translates it over to other martial arts. He also talks about what kind of markers and skill differences he looks out for when bringing people up to the next belt and whether the belt should be used as motivation or if it disrupts the learning process. To check out his apps or instructional DVD's, go to his website at: roydeanacademy.com

This is a short rant about the dichotomy of individuality in the martial arts. On the one hand you absolutely have to take responsibility for finding techniques and strategies that fit your body, your physical attributes, and your personality. On the other hand if you spend too much time training in a small group without the opportunity to calibrate your skills against people much better than you then you can end up king of your local hill and never make it up the slopes of the higher mountains around you! Stephan Kesting

Not many people know that in 2015 I was dying of kidney failure and had to have a lifesaving kidney transplant surgery to save my life. Here is the story of that transplant from my brother (eternal thanks to https://www.instagram.com/christophkesting/), the recovery process, and getting back to normal. IMPORTANT: Listen to the end of the podcasts to get the details on how I'll give you a complete BJJ instructional just for signing your organ donor card!!! Don't you love it when people bribe you to do the right thing?

Scotty Nelson is one of the original gangsters of North American BJJ. From training at the Ralph Gracie Academy back in the day, to training jiu-jitsu in Brazil, to developing one of the first online BJJ technique resources, to his adventures in Pakistan sourcing gi's for On The Mat, Scotty shares some incredible stories with us today! Grab my app for learning high level BJJ for FREE at https://www.grapplearts.com/masterapp

TEDx speaker Brett Piperni joins us on The Strenuous Life Podcast to talk about discipline, decision making, and deliberately putting yourself into situations where you have no options other than going forward. Brett was a nationally ranked Taekwondo competitor who was diagnosed with an illness that crippled him which specialists told him was incurable. He fought through it, returned to competition, and even managed to medal at a national championship again. This is a great example of the power of the human mind and how martial arts training can literally save your life. Find out more about Brett at https://vancitybrett.ca