Fight for a Happy Life with Sensei Ando: Martial Arts for Everyday Life

Welcome to Episode #124 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Stop Pulling Your Punches.” It might sound harsh, but most people are holding back… not just on the mats, but in every aspect of life. T...

Welcome to Episode #123 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “How to Build Courage in Martial Arts.” Many people worry that they won’t have the courage to fight back against a real-life attacker… an...

Welcome to Episode #122 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Yin or Yang: A Tale of Two Black Belts.” There are many paths to choose from in the martial arts… but how do you know if you’re on the r...

Welcome to Episode #121 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Hero Worship in the Martial Arts.” We all need teachers and role models in the martial arts… but can following a leader become harmful a...

Welcome to Episode #120 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Use It or Lose It.” Some people say martial arts is like riding a bike… I don’t! I say use it or lose it! The fact is that no matter how...

Welcome to Episode #119 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Lighten Your Load – Tai Chi’s Double-Weighted Error.” The art of Tai Chi Chuan is often criticized (or even mocked) in modern martial ar...

Welcome to Episode #118 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “How to Get More from Your Martial Arts Practice.” You train hard… but are you getting everything you can out of your martial arts practi...

Welcome to Episode #117 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Bad Advice in the Martial Arts.” You get a lot of advice as a martial arts student… you probably give a lot of advice, too! But is it po...

Welcome to Episode #116 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “You Got This.” Confidence is a tricky commodity. If you have too much—trouble. If you have too little—trouble! Especially in the martial...

Welcome to Episode #115 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “How to Be a Good Judge.” Are you a good judge or a bad judge? In the martial arts (and in life!), I’ve definitely been both. But as I ge...

Welcome to Episode #114 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Driving Without Brakes.” I’ve done some stupid things in my life… but driving without brakes may be the stupidest! Of course, I didn’t p...

Welcome to Episode #113 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “The First Technique in Martial Arts.” Do you remember the first technique you learned in the martial arts? Was it a jab? A block? Maybe ...

Welcome to Episode #112 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Lessons From Being Choked Out.” When I started training in the martial arts, I practiced a long list of moves to escape from chokes. No ...

Welcome to Episode #111 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “How to Make Martial Arts Techniques Work.” You see a move. You learn a move. You try a move… …but it doesn’t work! ARGH! So frustrating....

Welcome to Episode #110 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Close Your Mind to Learn More.” We all know that a martial arts student should keep an open mind, right? But should it stay open forever...

Welcome to Episode #109 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Panic and Pandemonium.” In self-defense, facing a single attacker is never easy. Now imagine defending yourself from 80,000 people! That...

Welcome to Episode #108 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “The Hardest Part of Self-Defense.” I have some bad news–the hardest part of self-defense is something you can’t change or stop. What am ...

Welcome to Episode #107 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “The Art of Moving Furniture.” I moved twice in the last year—first from L.A. to Raleigh and now to a new place 6 miles up the road. That...

Welcome to Episode #106 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “It’s Okay to Suck at Martial Arts.” After almost two years of hiding out from Covid, I finally stepped outside and joined a BJJ school. ...

Welcome to Episode #105 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Waiting to Die.” My wife and I once found ourselves in a scary situation. Fortunately, we lived to tell the tale… so I’m going to tell i...

Welcome to Episode #104 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Participation Trophies.” Awarding trophies for participation, as opposed to the actual winning of an event, is a controversial topic. Bu...

Welcome to Episode #103 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Tools Not Rules.” Is there a difference between sticking to a routine and being stuck to one? YES, absolutely! If you’ve ever felt like ...

Welcome to Episode #102 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “3 Halloween Self-Defense Lessons.” When I was a kid, Halloween was a big deal. That’s because in our town, you were allowed to “trick or...

Welcome to Episode #101 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “You Are the Dojo.” A few years ago, I made a video called, The World Is Your Dojo. The message—that you can learn anywhere, from anyone,...

Welcome to Episode #100 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Throw the First Punch.” That’s right! We made it to Episode 100. I say “we” because if you weren’t here, I wouldn’t be here either, so t...

Welcome to Episode #99 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “You Are a Master.” Do you ever feel like a martial arts “loser”? Ever feel like you’re so far away from achieving your goals that you mig...

Welcome to Episode #98 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Tame Your Brain to Win the Game.” Are you too smart for your own good? Does overthinking get in the way of performing at your best? If yo...

Welcome to Episode #97 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Little Pain, Big Trouble.” Pain is part of life… especially if you’re a martial artist! But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to minimi...

Welcome to Episode #96 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Decision and Action.” It’s common in self-defense training to focus on the speed of your punches and kicks… but how fast can you make a d...

Welcome to Episode #95 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Respect for McDojos.” Is your martial arts school a “McDojo”? Could that term of derision ever be a good thing? I say YES! If your school...

Welcome to Episode #94 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Don’t Be Water, My Friend.” We’ve all heard Bruce Lee say, “Boards don’t hit back.” You probably also remember his admonishment, “Don’t t...

Welcome to Episode #93 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Cross-training Tips for Martial Arts.” Actually, a better title for this episode would be, “My First Ballet Class!” That’s right! I start...

Welcome to Episode #92 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Shouting at the Moon.” Stress is a part of life… especially this year! The challenge—if we want to maximize our health and happiness—is t...

Welcome to Episode #91 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “The Dark Side of Self-Improvement.” We all want to make our lives better in some way, right? Unfortunately, it might sometimes seem that ...

Welcome to Episode #90 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “12 Tips for a Happy Life.” We all a love a list, don’t we? Well, here’s a new one for ya! To be honest, I actually compiled this list a f...

Welcome to Episode #89 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Living in a Lockdown.” The Covid-19 lockdown has changed all of our lives… but is it possible that it might be for the better? My old rou...

Welcome to Episode #88 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast with special guest, Sensei Andrea Harkins. Andrea Harkins is the powerful voice behind The Martial Arts Woman—a blog that offers a female p...

Welcome to Episode #87 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast with special guest, Sensei Kris Wilder. Where do I begin…? First off, Sensei Kris is the owner and chief instructor of the West Seattle Kar...

Welcome to Episode #86 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast with special guest, Sensei Seth Adams. Sensei Seth is a lifelong martial artist-—his first Karate teachers were his own Mom and Dad! By the...

Welcome to Episode #85 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast with special guest, Ramsey Dewey. Fighters aren’t always the best teachers… or best communicators! So, it was a special pleasure to sit dow...

Welcome to Episode #84 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast with special guest, Sensei Jesse Enkamp, founder of KarateByJesse.com. You already know Jesse… and you probably LOVE him! Jesse Enkamp was ...

Welcome to Episode #83 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast with special guest, Sensei Jaredd Wilson. Who is Jaredd Wilson? Jaredd is the host of the long-running Martial Thoughts Podcast. For martia...

Forms and kata… a functional, practical training tool in the martial arts or a big waste of time? Join me and special guest, Sifu Randy Brown, for a lively discussion on the pros and cons of forms tra...

Welcome to Episode #81 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “The Law of the Jungle and Self-Defense.” Can a smaller, weaker animal survive an attack by a larger, stronger animal? The truth is UGLY, ...

Welcome to Episode #80 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast with special guest, Menamy Mitanes. You can find a lot of show-offs in the martial arts… Menamy Mitanes is not one of them. But he could be...

Welcome to Episode #79 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Two Teacher Types.” There are two major teacher types in the martial arts. Each has pros and cons, depending on what type of student you ...

Welcome to Episode #78 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “My First Fight.” When I was seven years old, my babysitter set me up to fight another kid in the neighborhood. Surprise! Even though the ...

Welcome to Episode #77 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast with special guest, Paul Read. If you don’t follow Paul’s work as a Tai Chi instructor, you should! Many people talk about expressing thems...

Welcome to Episode #76 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast with special guest, Chris Hanson. Chris Hanson is a school teacher, father, lifelong martial artist, founder of Karate Unity… and a really ...

Welcome to Episode #75 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Talk to Your Body.” Question—how well do you know your body? If you’re like me, you probably think some parts are strong and healthy… but...