Week one done

So my first week of training has passed, and while I have been focussing on my balance, flexibility, and push-ups, it still feels a bit scattered.  I went a bit gung ho this week and found some muscles and ligaments that had been lying dormant.  My serratus anterior is waking up, and my left hip joint is rebelling a bit.  I am backing off a now because I do not want to develop any injuries, so rather than doing the serratus every day I am going to every other day.  In terms of stretching, I am going to start using a roller.  I'm not convinced this will make any difference but will give it 30 days and see what happens.
When I was training for distance running and triathlons, there were so many training programs available it was hard to choose which one to take.  Googling "how to train for black belt" vs "how to train for a triathlon" highlights the lack of specific programs for getting ready for the multi-discipline event of black belt testing.  Triathlons trainers are a dime a dozen, but finding a sport-specific program for TKD has proven to be trickier.  My personal trainer, Alan Kaita of Evolve Conditioning, has a black belt in Karate and has provided a sport-specific weight program for me.   Full disclosure,  I have been a bit lax in my commitment to this, mainly because I abhor the gym.  In all honesty, I feel that up until now I have been coasting on my fitness level and have not fully committed myself to develop the skills for TKD.  I have been working full time, and just completed an MPH so my attention has been 80% elsewhere.  Now, as I turn my full attention to TKD, I feel like I have just woken up from a deep sleep in a strange bed and can't figure out what time it is, what day it is, where I am, or how I got there. So, week one has been a realization that I have my work cut out for me,  but  I am glad that I am giving myself 6 months to prepare, and hope that it is enough time.  So here is a rundown of what I've come up with.

I have decided to "pick a kick" each week, focus on the muscles used in its execution, how to stretch and strengthen those muscles, and how to improve my delivery of it.  This week my goal is the sidekick.  I have selected this one because it is a basic kick that requires balance and flexibility, and will help me focus on my week glute medius.

I have always benefitted from cross-training.  It prevents overuse injuries,  reduces boredom, and expands skills.  Roller skating is a great sport to compliment martial arts training because of the lateral leg motion.  My glute medius is quite weak, making any abducting kicks like the sidekick pathetic.  Since I abhor the gym,  I went and bought new skates and joined a roller skating club.  I have only been skating in my living room and doing some online training, but I can already feel the difference.  We even did a dance move using the back stance position!   The 'shuffle' incorporates shifting a lot of weight to the back leg and in slow-mo is quite similar to back stance.  The club has also offered some great exercises (one-legged squats are a whole other game), that has proven to be challenging and beneficial.

My new "cross-trainers"

I will continue to work on the flexibility, balance, and push-ups, but think if I use the kick as a jumping point, I can find a theme.  I'm trying not to get too scattered in my program,  so I will work toward developing something logical, doable, and most importantly, fun.