Prior to my joining the Studio in Sandy, I had a complete physical by my family physician. He outlined the following to improve my health: 1. Loose weight 2. Lower my blood pressure 3. Lower my cholesterol 4. Reduce stress.
It didn't seem like much to ask of a stressed-out, aging 48 year old salesman. He told me that I needed to work to achieve "Good Health" and that my body warranty was on the decline. It was shortly after my physical that my daughter invited me to her class. I enjoyed it very much and decided to join feeling classes would be a good source of on-going physical exercise. I've now been a member of your studio for approximately one year ... At a follow-up appointment with my doctor this month, he was pleased with my weight reduction from 205 lbs to 185 lbs with a 2" reduction in my waist size, and a lower blood pressure reading from 144/102 to 102/90. My cholesterol is down. I feel better and have more energy. I feel that your staff have helped me make strides toward my health goals. I'm anxious to see what next year's physical will show. Sincerely yours,
John Hoonakker
My daughter has benefited in many ways from these programs in physical and emotional areas as well as the maturity she has achieved and the poise that she shows. As a baby, she had a serious heart condition which she was very blessed and fortunate to have recovered from. Even so, it took a few years to get back to normal. This condition distracted from her physical development so that she was thinner and weaker than she would have been. In junior high she was expected to run a certain number of laps around the track with the other girls, but she was simply unable to do this. She did her best by walking but she got a lot of criticism from an unknowing and uncaring teacher ... In recent years, she has had an arrhythmic heart condition where the heart can start beating excessively fast, such as 220 beats per minute instead of the normal resting rate of 78 bpm or even 120 bpm while exercising. This was symptomatic of her previous heart problems as well as her reduced physical capacity. Her cardiologist has had her on a medication designed to strengthen the heart. She has had a significantly reduced need for this medication, her strength has increased tremendously and her stamina is so much better than it was before after being involved in the martial arts for a few years. She was a beautiful girl, now a beautiful young woman who shows so much confidence and poise that it is hard to compare with how she was growing up. She had expressed an interest in Kung Fu when she was quite young, but as a father I was really not convinced that it would be beneficial to her since in my ignorance, I equated it to fighting. Of course, I know better now. Now I'm grateful for the good that she has achieved through Shaolin Arts, but still regret that we didn't start earlier. There was a problem with money earlier, but if I had known how beneficial this would have been, I'm sure that we would have found the money for this. We don't even question spending the money now because of the value that it brings. Her maturation has been a benefit during the time that she has been involved and she has grown up to be a great, confident woman with great self respect and maturity. I credit a lot of this to Shaolin Arts. It's true that we live in a dangerous world and the ability to protect yourself is an important attribute, but I realize now that this is just part of the benefits you can gain through these programs. Again, I'm impressed and grateful for the good that this has done for her and wish that we had started earlier, but still glad that she started when she did ...
Bob Howard
