2017: A year of Taekwondo and fitness in review

Festive fitness | Season's greetings from The Ghostwriter!

My last Taekwon-Do session for 2017 | Adaptive martial arts and fitness

Cross training | Kettlebells and cardio

Friday afternoon at the bar | Home calisthenics workout

You don't need a gym to get fit | Working out at home

My thoughts on Dr Jordan Peterson | Fan request

Strength, endurance and fitness through Taekwon Do

Staying positive in the face of adversity | Fan request

Hand-to-hand weapons drills | Self-defence in a wheelchair

Reasons why the southern hemisphere is FAR superior to the northern | Fa...

I offer you my creative talent

You want something? FIGHT FOR IT! | Facing adversity through Taekwon Do

Disability, isolation and the human connection

Mankind is and always has been a social species, our continued survival is predicated upon how well we can interact and co-operate with each other. The thing about being disabled though (particularly in a country like South Africa) is that normal human socialisation is made extremely difficult.

I am 27 years old, but I live like someone far older. The cost and physical difficulty of a public life in a nation which is hugely lacking in accessible infrastructure means that I rarely leave my home. For the same reason, it's tough to be a contributing member of the local economy (which isn't particularly welcoming right now, even to normal folks).

However, these problems are not unique to me; many disabled South Africans are lonely and disenfranchised, but I wouldn't attribute these problems to bigotry or willful discrimination. As I see it, the struggles we face are merely a symptom of those in power lacking the motivation and work ethic to create an environment in which industrious citizens may thrive.

All this is just the backdrop for my main point, the importance of human connection. Increasingly in today's mainstream media, men are portrayed as lecherous beasts who only value women for their bodies, often implying and sometimes outright stating that men are slaves to a malevolent patriarchy and that we all harbour a deep-rooted urge to rape and subjugate women. This is a cornerstone of modern feminist theory, which itself falls within a broader movement commonly known as "social justice".

I place that term within quotation marks because I do not believe that it represents any such ideal.
Under the guise of words like "empowerment" and "diversity" Those who push an ideology more akin to authoritarian marxism would have us believe that men (especially white ones) serve an agenda whose only aim is to make women and non-whites suffer. Definitions of words such as "racism" and "sexism" are forever expanding to include trivialities like calling a stranger beautiful or asking someone of a different ethnic background where they are from. They are thrown around so frequently as to become meaningless, so that when an example of actual bigotry occurs, it's far less likely to be taken seriously.

Furthermore, "social justice" seems determined to make casual hatred trendy. Hashtags like #FuckWhitePeople and #MenAreTrash have become prevalent on social media and any man who dares to suggest that they are divisive and unhelpful is either labelled "part of the problem" or told that their race or gender make their opinion irrelevant. Women who oppose these narratives are branded as suffering from "internalised misogyny", because apparently, having a vagina renders one incapable of independent thought. (Empowering stuff, isn't it?) 

As someone with very little romantic experience, I want to make something perfectly clear; MEN ARE HUMAN. 

I have had one intimate relationship in my life, which was brief and ended so horribly that it sent me into a suicidal depression, the remnants of which I'm still dealing with more than a year later. If decent, well-meaning people continue to act as useful idiots in these times of cultural strife, I genuinely fear that men and women will drift away from one another, driven by constant fear of what either one might do.

So no, I am most certainly not an advocate of "social justice". I think I'll do just fine sticking with equality and individual liberty. 

Rewiring the brain through martial arts | Strike drill progression

Disability fitness video | Sunday morning strength session

The day that changed EVERYTHING

Dedication beats talent! Stay committed to your fitness

Fitness and martial arts | Becoming better through Taekwon Do

NEWSFLASH: White people aren't the ultimate evil

Fitness & Strength | Strive for improvement, not perfection

Facing disability through Taekwon-Do | Powerbreaking in a wheelchair

Workout motivation | Pull-up progression - NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GOALS

Simple, effective weight-training in a wheelchair

Martial Arts Training for Fitness Strength and Mobility

Home workout | Bars and Bells

Wheelchair Fitness | Weapons and Weights

Real friends will tell you when you're being an idiot

Back in the Gym

disability, depression and "ableism"

Weekend Weight Workout Montage

Got a goal? MAKE IT HAPPEN

Being Disabled Doesn't Make Me A Hero

Fitness At Home | Outdoor Workout in a Wheelchair

What Is Kekistan?

I am mirroring a video by one of my favourite YouTubers, Jeff Holiday, in an effort to educate the world at large about the beauty of Kekistan and the proud history of our people.

Undefined by Disability | Martial Artist in a WHEELCHAIR

You're not perfect just as you are (and that's a good thing).

No Gym? No Problem. | Wheelchair Workout At Home

Disability Fitness | Going Beyond the Wheelchair

Fitness and Freedom Through Martial Arts

Combat Fitness | Always Be Prepared

Face the Facts: Identity Politics Will Doom Us All

Let's Talk | How to Save South Africa

Fitness Motivation and Martial Arts | NEVER SAY DIE

Life as a Quadriplegic: The Real Deal

Fitness Motivation | Fight Training in a WHEELCHAIR

How Almost Dying Inspired Me To Train In Taekwon-Do

Strength and Self Defence Training for the Disabled

Martial Arts and Fitness | Combating Disability Stereotypes Through Taek...

Fitness Video | Weight Training in a Wheelchair

How Forced Diversity and Representation Are Ruining Entertainment

Martial Arts and Combat | Weapons Training in a Wheelchair

White Privilege in South Africa

Thoughts on Social Justice and Victim Culture from a South African Cripple

Workout Video | Finding Fitness and Confidence Through Martial Arts

Improvised Weapon of Self Defence | The Screwdriver

Seated Kettlebell Workout for People in Wheelchairs

FITNESS VIDEO| Workout Ideas For People In Wheelchairs

Comedy and disability: in defence of cripple jokes

How rare it is these days to be able to make light of difficult or uncomfortable situations without risk of reprisals and witch-hunts. Try to joke publicly about anything of broad societal relevance - be it race, sex or in my case specifically, disability - and it won't be long until some self-righteous busybody screeches the phrase which has come to define this generation's discourse, "That's offensive!"

I exist (if you'll pardon the term) at the "intersection" of two currently adversarial social categories; I'm a white male, which in many people's eyes convicts me of the crimes committed by those who came before me, whether I share their views or not. However, I am also a wheelchair-bound quadriplegic, having lived with cerebral palsy since birth.

One of the hardest things about being disabled is building new friendships, because many people are so fearful of being offensive or "saying the wrong thing" that they'd rather just avoid conversation altogether. This problem has been around for as long as I have (and probably much further back) but now, thanks to the festering ideological plague of social justice, it's even worse.

You see, over the years we cripples and defectives have become quite a useful resource for the activist crowd, providing living, breathing targets for their projection and virtue-signalling. "The world is ableist!" they cry, in a ludicrous attempt to make those with disabilities sound like a homogenous and universally oppressed group - with no individual identities of our own - that only they in all their glorious benevolence care to try and save.

Well, to those who would look at me and see value only in my victimhood, I offer a sincere and heartfelt fuck you. I am disgusted by the notion that the disabled should be made a protected class, treated like infants who would crumble and die if humour were to result from medical conditions which quite often lead to hilariously funny predicaments. I take pride in the fact that several of my friends call me "Wheels" because it means that they acknowledge my differences, but do not fear or pity them.

There are few forms of isolation worse than those around you being unwilling to enjoy an honest laugh at your expense. Authentic comedy is born of pain and to be deprived of the chance to serve as the butt of your friends' jokes would be to miss out on one of life's great bonding experiences. As for what is and is not offensive, if you think I'm going to take the advice of brainwashed zealots on that, you've got about as much chance as a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest.    

Adaptive Fitness Through Taekwon-Do| Disabled Life

Taekwon-Do training video| Combat techniques for people in wheelchairs

Creatives have bills too (rant)

If you have a profession which requires some form of innate creative skill (photography, music, art, writing, etcetera) chances are that at one time or another, you've been asked to ply your trade not for the promise of financial reward, but for that mythical and enigmatic prize, "exposure".

I am no exception; over the years, I've contributed a lot of free content to websites on the off chance that someone of influence might see my work and actually pay me to do more. I have since realised that to operate this way is a fool's errand. In my case, all that results is someone else reaping the benefit and generating traffic to their site, while I receive little more than a "thank you". Worse still, some have attempted to reshape my voice in order to push their specific narrative and let's be honest here, if you're going to ask someone to abandon their integrity, the least you can do is offer fair compensation.

With rare exceptions, lawyers, accountants and architects do not work for free. Why then do we ask it of people who enrich the world in a way that's different, but no less valuable?

Weapons training video| Disabled martial artist FIGHTS BACK

Weird things about having a (mostly) online social life

The nature of my life with cerebral palsy means that with few exceptions, most of my time is spent at home. As a consequence, the internet has become my portal to the outside world, and social media my conduit for communication. I have friends across South Africa, North America, Europe  Australia and Asia, but when interactions are not bound by physical proximity, unexpected things start to happen. Here are just a few:

• Wanting to talk to someone, then realising they're still asleep because of an eight-hour time difference and you'll just have to wait.
• Learning a great deal about a friend's life before you know what their voice sounds like.
• Being able to conversate almost entirely by way of memes.
• Having your beliefs about the culture of other countries challenged, corrected and reshaped by the people who actually live there.
• Feeling elated that there are people in the world who actually "get you", but sad because they are thousands of kilometres away.
• Feeling more kinship with online friends than many people you've met in the real world. (Sorry if this hurts anyone's feelings, but it's the truth and I don't sugarcoat my views.)

Life is hard and I regularly experience profound, painful loneliness, but the people I've met while wandering the vast digital landscape are all kind, quirky individuals whom I am honoured to call my friends.

FITNESS VIDEO| Brain damaged quadriplegic trains in Taekwon Do

Pushing limits: Work 'til it hurts

The social justice mindscape

Preface:

I know this piece might ruffle some feathers, but how can I truly call myself a writer if I use my talent only to construct flowery ethereal offerings, yet remain silent on issues of tangible consequence? 

I am aware that not all advocates of social justice behave in the manner described herein, but from what I can see, those wielding the most power and influence certainly do.
________________________________________

Women's voices matter as long as they are used to cry "Misogyny!" Gay voices matter as long as they highlight the "narrow mindedness" of heterosexuality. Trans voices matter as long as they push for the recognition of a gender spectrum which directly conflicts with objective reality. Disabled voices matter as long as they conform to the role of pitiful victim. Non-white voices matter as long as they base their worth on the unchosen colour of their skin. Oh, and white voices? Their only value is as self-loathing slaves to the cause.

Remind me how this is a movement for the greater good?

Things of simple beauty

A smile of authentic joy.

Cupcakes baked with love.

Sunlight breaking through the leaves of a tall tree.

The scent of the air after a rainstorm.

The way a person's eyes spark when they discuss their life's passion.

Laughter shared with friends over a cherished memory,

Beauty exists in abundance, even in a world as cruel as this one. 

My quadriplegic wishlist

Originally posted on Instagram on 19 June 2017:

One of the strangest things about quadriplegic life is to find yourself longing to do the mundane things that other people either take for granted or complain about having to do for themselves. So I thought I'd make a list:

• Bathing/dressing/using the toilet privately.
• Cooking meals
• Cleaning the house
• Doing laundry
• Doing my own shopping
• Going to bed late without bothering anyone
• Going where I want, when I want
• Visiting friends and not having to worry about whether I'll be able to get into their house.

Be grateful for your independence, it's worth more than you might think.  

Pushing limits: This week's workout highlights

Be grateful, damn it!

Originally posted on Instagram on 16 June 2017:

How often today do we hear and see sentences which begin with "I deserve..."? Variations of this sentiment are a seemingly endless refrain in ad campaigns for everything from clothing and jewellery to perfume and cosmetics.

Here's a hard truth though; you don't deserve anything and nor does anyone else.

Your house is too small? Some people sleep on concrete.

You don't get to visit other countries? Some people have barely seen their own city.

Your car's old and worn out? Some people would jump at the chance to own a bicycle.

So the next time you catch yourself thinking, "I deserve..." stop and remember what you've already got.

Thoughts on friendship

Originally posted on Instagram on 11 June 2017:

All of us have flaws, but it seems increasingly common that our society defines friendship as supporting any choice made by those you care for, no matter how unwise it appears or how severe its consequences may be. In my view, if you are asked for advice, ignoring an obvious danger in order to spare someone's feelings is not friendship at all. It is cowardice.

Thoughts on success

Originally posted on Instagram on 7 June 2017:

Having been in a state of marginal employment for over a year (and recently losing the one job I did have) has challenged my idea of what it means to be successful. I've realised that even if I'm someday able to find work that pays well, happiness will not come from amassing a large collection of costly things. Money is a wonderful thing to have, but I think it's important to keep in mind that financial wealth should not be the ultimate goal, but a means of achieving greater, more useful goals.

Pushing limits: Baton, bags and a chain

Pushing limits: Saturday stickwork

Pushing limits: Dynamic drills

Pushing limits: The show must go on

We can all be monsters (and sometimes, we need to)

We live in an age of feel-good philosophy; look at whatever media you like and it won't be long before you find narratives of empowerment and entitlement. Whether it's a self-help book or a motivational video, the focus is generally the same: beating into the consumer's head by way of constant repetition and flowery, emotive language that the mere fact of their existence makes them wonderful and special. In my view, this attitude is incorrect and if left unchecked, dangerous.

Don't get me wrong, it's important for everyone to feel like they have purpose and value in life. However, basing an entire worldview on the belief that you're one of the "good people" without acknowledging your potential to do harm is to walk down a path that only ends in misery and suffering.

Throughout the course of human history, we have committed hideous crimes against each other and because of our inclination toward simplistic understanding of complex issues, we will often look at a conflict and paint one side as right and just while condemning the other as entirely malevolent. This simply isn't how life works.

If you were to ask two average soldiers on the opposing sides of a war who held the moral high ground, they would probably both argue that theirs was the one fighting for what's right, because only a small minority of people have the capacity to be aware that they're truly evil and not care.

Convincing someone that they stand for good, regardless of the context or repercussions of their behaviour is one of the first steps in programming them to do objectively reprehensible things without an ounce of remorse. This is the reason that today, groups claiming to represent tolerance, equality and respect will attempt to ruin people's lives and commit physical violence against them.

Finally, it's important to remember that our dark sides exist for a reason. I have been studying Taekwon-Do for two and a half years now; at its core, the art is designed to enable practitioners to kill an opponent with ruthless efficiency. One of the most difficult aspects of training is getting comfortable with the thought of doing grievous (possibly fatal) damage to another human being. The simple truth is this; it's better to have the capacity to be a monster and not use it than to be confronted by monsters and realise that all you are is prey.

Pushing limits: Combat seminar

Pushing limits: Powerbreaking on grading night

Pushing limits: Weekend workout compilation

Pushing limits: Horizontal hell

Pushing limits: Mixing it up

Pushing limits: Static strength and triceps presses

I haven't had a bath in over a year

The life of a quadriplegic isn't all glamour and intrigue.

Have no fear though, for I am no unwashed neanderthal. However, one of the most frequent misconceptions people seem to have about life with a disability is that the most difficult thing about it is being wheelchair-bound, but there's much more to it than that.

As the title of this piece states, I haven't entered a bath for quite some time; this is because it came to the point when my cousin realised he could no longer safely lift me in and out of one on his own. Nevertheless; hygiene remains a daily necessity (of course) and so he built and varnished a wooden platform (pictured below) that slides over-top of the tub, which I could then transfer onto and have something more akin to a conventional shower.

Do I miss being submerged in warm water? Damn straight - particularly in the depths of winter - but as I said, having to use a wheelchair is just the beginning when it comes to the adaptions people like me have to deal with every day.

Nightjar Street (poem)

Its cobbles are worn, there are dark corners aplenty;

Here you won't find the usual gentry.

There's fun to be had if you can summon the will, Nightjar Street's a cornucopia of thrills.

There are cut-throats in the alleys and demons on the doorsteps;

One can never quite guess what might happen next.

Keep your wits about you while your fortune is told, for gypsies part fools from more than just gold.

If you go a little ways, a tavern you'll find;

But partake in no card-games or you'll end up in a bind.

The Raven's Eye it's called and the drinks, they won't kill ya;

But Mistress Hecate may hex you for acting familiar.

So take a stroll down old Nightjar, I swear it's a blast;

But when it's time to get out, you best get out fast!  

Pushing limits: Triceps triumph

Pushing limits: Weapons of necessity

Unsolicited confessions

In the past few months, I've had two recurring thoughts which can probably be attributed to the fact that I've been wheelchair-bound my whole life and also because I'm a little strange:

• Wouldn't it be cool if life were a video game and instead of simply watching the world go by, I could pass on whatever constitutes my life-force to someone else, who might then be able to do something useful with it?
• Failing that, the idea of existing as a wave of energy without corporeal substance (therefore unbound by the limitations of the physical world) seems like fun.

If technology continues to advance like it has in the last 50 years, this stuff might be possible one day, who knows?

Pushing limits: Some striking and a plank

On the Road (poem)

Every so often, I hear the familiar metallic whine of a passing car and wonder where it might be going...

Casting my mind outward, I ponder who the driver might be and whether they are returning to loved ones from some long and arduous trek, heading off on a newly unfolding adventure or just picking up some frozen peas.

Do they prefer the radiant sun as a travelling companion, or find contentment beneath the moon's pale gaze?

Whatever their destination, the sounds of a rumbling engine and rubber on tar evoke one thought within me above all;

Freedom. 

Pushing limits: The one constant

Pushing limits: Testing a new torture technique

There's always another way to improve.

Pushing limits: Monkeying around

A new piece of equipment has broadened my fitness horizons.

Pushing limits: Speed kills

Last night, I was struck by just how vast a change training has made to my life. The physical and mental growth I have undergone seem almost inconceivable when compared with how I once lived.

Pushing limits: Strikes, strength and movement

No matter what troubles befall you, remain steadfast in that which you love.

Pushing limits: A bar, some bags and a ball

What I lack in grace, I make up for in enthusiasm.

Pushing limits: Improving grip strength with a rehab ball

It's a fundamental of fitness.

Pushing limits: Defence and focus

Without an element of risk, there can be no true reward.

Pushing limits: Working on dynamic movement

To conquer my disability, I must become as mobile as possible.

Pushing limits: Weekend workout - 11 March 2017

Saturday afternoons were made for working out, which is precisely what I did yesterday.

Pushing limits: An outdoor adventure

On this day, I ventured forth from my den of macabre to explore what lay beyond...

Pushing limits: Striking up a storm

For those of you considering getting into a combat discipline but worried that you can't do it, I'd like to show you what's possible, even with a severe disability like mine.

Pushing limits: Spinning wheels and a big red bag

My new sports chair has opened up a whole new world of mobility; check it out.

Pushing limits: Testing my new sports chair

Today, I got my first ever custom sport chair. Watch the video below to see what I got up to.

Fun with a force multiplier

This video will show you that a weapon doesn't have to look impressive to be effective.

Weapons training - 23 February 2017

Some freestyle fun with various weapons, watch the video below.

Workout video - 19 February 2017

Despite my cerebral palsy, I'm a very active guy; so imagine my joy when I was finally able to train this morning after four days of flu. Video below!

Brothers (video poem)

An old piece inspired by the film Green Street Hooligans. The video is below.

Soulphone (video poem)

Here's another of my pieces, converted to video for your enjoyment.

After a Long, Hard Week (video poem)

I recently bought professional video editing software and one of my first attempts at using it was to turn a poem of mine into a video, which you can view below.

My journey to fitness through Taekwon-Do

Life-changing moments rarely come when you expect them; I was struck by one on a Friday in November 2014. At the time, I was communications manager for a nationwide South African emergency response coordinator.

That morning, I had a meeting with a colleague, so after my cousin/driver had put me in the car (back then, my cerebral palsy left me unable to get in or out myself) he opened the gate and when he came back, we were ambushed by a thief who forced him inside and proceeded to ransack our home.

Violent crime is a reality in South Africa, so as I sat trapped in the car for 45 minutes (the thief had taken my phone so I couldn't call for help), I fully expected that both of us would soon be dead. Fortunately, when I didn't show up for our meeting, my colleague - who is always armed - came to find me. The thief fled and was arrested shortly thereafter.

I came out of the experience deeply shaken, but determined never to feel that helpless again. I reached out to Sabum Sean Cremer, head instructor of the Pinetown Stingers Taekwon-Do Academy to ask if he could teach me to defend myself. When I did so, I expected him to say, "Uh, you're a quadriplegic, there's not much I can do with you."

However, to my immense surprise and gratitude, he accepted me without hesitation and after assessing my physical limitations, he (along with other members of the academy) began pushing me to move beyond them. I currently hold the rank of yellowbelt, but to tell you the truth, I'm not motivated by rank. what keeps me going is a desire to constantly improve and achieve things I once thought impossible. I train an average of 5 days per week for 1 to 2 hours per session.

My strength and mobility have improved by leaps and bounds (for instance, I can get in and out of cars with very little difficulty). My entire body, including my legs, has become functionally strong and although my disability will always make life challenging, I aim to make it as small a factor as I possibly can.

Below is a collection of various training videos:

Facing insecurities - perceived vs actual

As a cerebral palsied quadriplegic, one of the largest barriers I've encountered in trying to build relationships with people is that many are so terrified by the thought of saying the "wrong" thing that they lose the ability to speak freely and openly, or worse, choose to avoid interaction altogether.

While I can't speak for other disabled people, perhaps some honesty about what does and what does not cause fear and trepidation within me could somehow be useful:


What people think scares or angers me

• Referring to me as disabled. This doesn't bother me at all; in fact, I detest politically correct alternatives such as "physically challenged" and "differently able" because they are nothing more than cowardly attempts to avoid an unpleasant truth.
• "Offending me" by not understanding my disability. I've lived with this since birth, you haven't. How could you possibly be expected to understand my situation if you're forbidden to ask about it?
• Making jokes about my wheelchair. Humour is one of the best ways to cope with shitty circumstances and you have to remember that despite the parts of me that don't work right, I'm just a dude trying to get by in the world. So go ahead and poke fun at me, but for the love of all that's good, be original! If I hear, "Hey, you got a license for that thing?" one more time, I will take out your ankles and punch you in the throat. 

What actually keeps me up at night

• Thinking I'll always be an outsider, even among friends.
• Worrying that I'm not worthy of romantic love from a woman.
• Feeling like a burden to family and friends.
• Never finding a fulfilling job because of how my disability impacts my prospects.
• Never making decent money (for the same reason).
• Never having freedom of movement because I can't afford to employ a driver/assistant.
• A sudden change in my living arrangements destroying what little freedom I do have.
• Living all the way through my 20s with almost no memories of wild times.
• Feeling as though my life has no purpose or direction.
• Having absolutely no idea if things will get better or if what I have now is the best I'm gonna get.

I hope reading this was worth your time but if not, cry me a fucking river, jellybean.