I started my my journey into the physical arts when I was 8, my first discipline being the martial art of Taekwondo.
I was lucky enough that my local club was headed by a Taekwondo legend in Master J H Yoon. This master was a 7th Dan champion from Korea, who had trained 9 world champions in the space of one year! He was also an area level boxing champion, as well as the Korean Military Martial Arts head coach. He was hardcore and I became like his disciple for those early years, I became obsessed with Martial Arts. In the year 2000 I went on a 6 month intensive training trip to South Korea with my master. This set the path for my future. It was during this time I began exploring meditation, and its relevance to martial arts.
On returning from Korea, my next discipline was in the world of boxing. Coming late to the scene, I didn’t have time to waste, so I jumped in at the deep end to get experience. I was fighting elite level fighters who were in their 70th contest by my 5th fight, and I was winning! As an amateur I won the national novice championship, knocked out the Welsh number one in the first round, and knocked out the England number 3 in the third round. It was a fast track amateur career, turning over in to the paid ranks was a dream come true. After a roller coaster career, becoming southern area champion, defending the title twice, having two appearances on the prestigious Prizefighter contests on Sky Sports, and with two British title fights, it was time to leave boxing behind.
I had been doing a daily Yoga practice for ten years alongside my boxing career, as well as practicing meditation, and many internal processes such as NLP, self hypnosis, shamanism and psycho synthesis. I was also practicing different martial arts movements, and Chi Gung. Everything clicked together and I realised that all this training in different arts were all for one single purpose, self exploration, embodiment, and ultimately, self realisation. Through further internal practices and meditation techniques I found a way of synthesis and created my own system of practice to optimise the physical and mental. I wanted to create something that encapsulated the incredible benefits of all these modalities. I called this Martial Flow. I am continually furthering my training, to improve what can be offered at Tiger Temple. I have been trained in hypnosis and breath work, and I am now a qualified practitioner in both. This has added further dimensions to my training.
Yoga Asana and striking arts have something fundamental in common. The integrity of posture.
In the context of yoga asana, the “integrity of posture” refers to maintaining proper alignment and stability in each pose, ensuring that the body is positioned correctly to support both physical and energetic balance. This involves aligning the spine, engaging the core, and distributing weight evenly to prevent injury and promote the intended benefits of the asana. Integrity of posture in yoga means staying mindful of how each part of the body contributes to the overall form, breathing deeply, and ensuring that the pose is both steady and comfortable (as per the yogic principle of sthira sukham asanam).
In the context of striking arts (like boxing, karate, or Muay Thai), the “integrity of posture” is crucial for maintaining power, balance, and protection. It involves keeping the body aligned to maximise the effectiveness of strikes while minimising exposure to counterattacks. For example, when throwing a punch, integrity of posture would mean keeping the chin tucked, shoulders engaged, and weight properly distributed to allow for both powerful strikes and quick recovery. Maintaining this posture ensures that the practitioner is always ready to move, defend, or strike again without losing balance or leaving themselves vulnerable. When the structure of the body is correctly aligned we are able to strike with great power but little effort. The practice of Yoga increases this ability of introception, to feel with great subtlety when alignment is correct and precise.
In both yoga and striking arts, the integrity of posture is about maintaining a strong, balanced, and mindful alignment that supports the intended activity, whether it’s holding a pose or delivering a powerful strike.