The Karate Cure

Overcoming Prostatitis and Chronic Pelvic Pain

and
How Martial Arts Helped Me Get My Life Back

Joseph W. Webb, Ph.D.

 The Karate Cure

Overcoming Prostatitis and Chronic Pelvic Pain

and
How Martial Arts Helped Me Get My Life Back

Joseph W. Webb, Ph.D.

 2017, Joseph W. Webb, Ph.D.

Strategies for Management, Inc.

3650 Rogers Rd. #275
Wake Forest, NC 27587
drjoewebb@yahoo.com

This book is not intended as a substitute for the medical advice

of physicians. The reader should regularly consult a physician
in matters relating to his/her health and particularly with respect
to any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical
attention.

Although the author and publisher have made every effort to

ensure that the information in this book was correct at press
time, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby
disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or
disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors
or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other
cause.

The information in this book is meant to supplement, not

replace, proper exercise, stretching, or martial arts training. Like
any sport involving speed, equipment, balance and
environmental factors, exercise, stretching, and martial arts
pose some inherent risk. The author and publisher advise
readers to take full responsibility for their safety and know their
limits. Before practicing the skills described in this book, be
sure that your equipment and practice areas are well
maintained, and do not take risks beyond your level of
experience, aptitude, training, and comfort level.
It does not matter how slow you go
as long as you do not stop.

Confucius
(551BC-479BC)
 A NOTE ABOUT THE COVER

The picture on the cover is me, and is a tiny portion of a much

larger image. My teacher, Sensei Bulow, graciously recorded
me performing my original Kenpo kata one afternoon a couple
of years ago. The idea was that I would have a record of my
kata from my original style since I was at the beginning of my
studies of a different one, Shorinkan Shorin-Ryu. If I ever
needed to perform or study those prior kata again, the video
would remind me of them.

When I was considering the cover for this book, I searched high
and low for an image that would work and could not find one. In
my searching I stumbled on my videos again and saw the one
of Naihanchi Shodan. In my Kenpo style, that was the first kata
new students learn. It starts with a block of the groin area.

How fitting!

Aside from the obvious connection to where prostatitis and

chronic pelvic pain resides, it was a reminder that I did not start
getting better until I started karate. So what better image to put
on the cover than the first kata I ever learned.

Now, that kata has an extra special meaning for me and my

journey.
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
When one member of a family is dealing with a medical
issue, the rest of the family has it, too. The pains, the daily
accommodations and adjustments, the things that go
undone, and the discouragement are felt by everyone. The
uncertainty of a chronic condition that also affects your
livelihood adds to their burden. My wife and son helped
see me through those pains and the slow path to triumph
with their affection and spiritual support. I strive to offer
that and more in return. They are still amused about the
idea of me and karate, but they see the results.

Sensei Dennis Branchaud and Kim Branchaud coped with

a disinterested and disruptive intruder to their dojo and
classes. They were generous to this author who was
looking for an entertaining diversion, who later came to
understand the wisdom of their teaching and learning.
They always found a way for me to fit in and make the
most of what little I had to offer.

Since moving to North Carolina, I have been a student of

Sensei Brian Bulow. He, and his students, welcomed me
to the dojo family with great encouragement and
commitment. I look forward to studying with Sensei for
many years to come. If you know me, then you know that
Sensei must have extraordinary stamina and patience. His
teachers, Sensei Eberhard Welch and Sensei Ron Williams
and others in the Shorinkan Shorin-Ryu organization, have
an infectious enthusiasm with high expectations about
what martial arts study can be for its students, and
cultivate interest in its traditions and fellowship.

Also in North Carolina I have come to know the

bighearted nature of Sensei John Jackson who encouraged
me to remain steadfast in my martial arts pursuits. His
friendship is indeed a blessing.

Senseis Steven Robinson and Cyndy Yu Robinson of

Raleigh welcomed me in their dojo after I first moved
from the Northeast. I learned much about conditioning and
stretching from different and valuable perspectives though
I was with them only for a short time. Their commitment
to competitive martial arts training is inspiring.

The Prostatitis Foundation and its website was very

helpful to me in the worst of times with this condition.
Their information led me to explore the research and
experiences of others. They posted two different accounts
of my karate experience to their website over the years. In
that process I have come to know many people who are
newly challenged by prostatitis and CPPS. The question
those sufferers ask is whether or not what I wrote for those
web pages years ago is still working for me. This book is
the answer: Yes! But the fight is never over.

Joseph W. Webb, Ph.D.

March 2017
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................................1

Chapter 2: How Chronic Pelvic Pain Stole My Life and
How I Got It Back .......................................................5
Chapter 3: Right Expectations .......................................15
Chapter 4: Diligence, Persistence, and Commitment .....18
Chapter 5: Other CPPS Considerations .........................31
Chapter 6: Before Committing to Exercise ....................44
Chapter 7: Some Exercises ............................................57
Chapter 8: Other Important Topics .................................72
Chapter 9: Should You Start Karate? .............................77
 Chapter 1: Introduction
This document has been written over the course of more
than twelve years, always with the good intention of
finishing it next month. That slowly became years. My
resolution for 2016 was to find my notes, untouched since
2010, and finally finish what I had started. Finally, it is
done.

This book may be done, but my struggle against chronic

pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS) can never be. The potential
for a return of the pain always lurks, and beating it back
requires a life-remaining commitment to exercise.

Martial arts unexpectedly became my interest for more

than 15 years. It satisfies a commitment to exercise,
provides an opportunity for lifelong learning, and creates
many opportunities for supportive social interaction with
many others. Those relationships are across generations,
family, spiritual, economic, and educational backgrounds.

The study of karate has been consistently interesting,

which is why I expect it to be part of my lifes routine for
many years to come. It fights the drudgery that exercise
programs often become. It fosters a sense of
empowerment and control over ones health, and prevents
the depression and loneliness that many sufferers of
chronic prostatitis and CPPS experience.

Make no mistake: this is not a book about karate.

1
Teaching karate is not for this book, but for the many
committed Sensei (sen-say, teacher, which literally
means person born before another) who have devoted
decades to their craft and knowledge. They are dedicated
to teaching and to their own lifelong improvement in their
skills and in the volume of their knowledge. Over time
sensei is not just a term of respect, but it can become a
term of affection for a long-tenured personal teacher.

Why A Book?
The purpose of this book is to
document what I have learned,
report my setbacks so you dont make the same
mistakes, and
encourage CPPS sufferers to consider karate
and martial arts as a means to coping with the
condition and improving ones health.

The symptoms of CPPS are insidious. They can sneak up

on you at the worst times and in early stages seem to
disappear just as quickly. Dont fall into the trap of
thinking youre totally cured. You might be better for that
moment, but you cant always trust it. Its better to keep
the symptoms of CPPS at bay by developing healthy
routines that can make you feel better, healthier, and more
confident overall.

Good habits of exercise can convince you that you are

better than before, and often feel better every day. That
means it is always tempting to stop or reduce the
frequency or intensity of exercise because you feel like its

2
no longer necessary.

Keeping prostatitis and chronic pelvic pain

at bay requires constant diligence.

Martial arts has been the way for me to ensure that I

remain diligent against CPPS with something I find
consistently fascinating and always want to learn more
about.

My First Writing About

The Karate Cure
A few years ago, my story was posted at the Prostatitis
Foundation website1. It has not been updated for years, but
I still get emails from sufferers asking if my results from
martial arts study is still working. They are pleased to
learn that it is, and that I am still committed to it. They ask
for my advice. In that process, they often describe their
situations with a sense of defeat and near hopelessness.
They delineate work, family, and relationship situations
that were negatively affected by their condition.

Many of their feelings and conditions I have felt, too.

This book relates my experience, a summary of what Ive

learned and where Ive failed, what I wish I knew sooner,
and what I wish I never tried. I hope it helps.

Its not hopeless, but it is not instant, either. It can be

better.
1 www.prostatitis.org

3
I am confident everyone can find something thats right
for them that helps them overcome the problems of CPPS
and can help them manage it with a sense of purpose and
hopefulness.

4
 Chapter 2: How Chronic Pelvic
Pain Stole My Life and How I
Got It Back
As I type these words it is about 16 years after I started
my karate studies, 14 years since I have been serious
about exercise and classes. I have not had a lengthy,
debilitating attack of prostatitis since.

Lets be clear: Ive occasionally had bouts of viral

prostatitis, but I have not missed work or travel because of
it. Its always run its course, more quickly than ever. My
body, and my attitude, were prepared to handle it. The
symptoms would disappear in a couple of weeks. I have
been told, and I have read, that once you get chronic
prostatitis or CPPS, you are usually prone to get it again
and again. That fact should be used as an incentive to stick
with the program.

Until I found my karate cure, it seemed that once I had

prostatitis, I always seemed to have it. The severe pain
from CPPS affected my life, family, and career.

It all started in 1990, and the suffering persisted for almost

12 years. The doctors tried many drugs, prostate drainage
(sometimes called prostate massage or manipulation),
and homeopathic approaches. I took antibiotics, hot baths,
heat packs, cold packs, muscle relaxants, drugs for
enlarged prostate, and the drainage. They sometimes
provided short term relief, but the conditions always

5
returned, sometimes worse. I event tried the suggestions of
looser pants and not wearing belts. Those failed, too.

Frustrated doctors seemed to be throwing darts as they

fumbled around trying to find something that would work.
Wherever the dart landed on the treatment dartboard at
that moment is what you were prescribed.

Mentally, the condition is exhausting, and it has its dark

periods. An essential way of coping is to stay busy, and
keep your mind occupied. It helps cope with the pain, and
prevents you from falling into the constant sadness and
discouragement of defeat.

Its All in Your Head

Over the years, pain research has often found that
biofeedback, meditation, prayer, can all help because the
minds attention is being diverted elsewhere. There is a
placebo effect to CPPS that can actually be encouraging.
No, its not all in your head, but some of the research in
the effects of placebos tells us a lot about the mental
approach that can make dealing with the problem a lot
better.

At the time my unfortunate journey began, the concept of

chronic prostatitis being CPPS was starting to be explored.
All of the prior attention was to the prostate itself, not to
the complex of nerves and muscles of the pelvic floor.
Many urologists were not yet aware of the details of this
research; they may have suspected it, but they were not
necessarily aware of the specifics. This is not to say that

6
the research was definitive. Its still not. But as a
justification for a course of treatment for symptomatic
relief, at least it was a beginning to new philosophies of
treatment. The results were encouraging.

Perhaps stepping a little further back in time can give

more perspective.

A couple of years before my first problems, I started

working as an independent management consultant. I was
a freshly-minted Ph.D. and had opportunities for teaching
and consulting. That independence was wonderful. The
responsibility to find your own success is stressful for
many who try it, but I came to enjoy the freedom to seek a
variety of work and also to create mutually profitable
relationships with other businesspeople. My practice
focused on market research projects for manufacturing
businesses. I had great mentors and I was successful.

Prostatitis slowly started to take a lot of that away. Many

of my symptoms were diagnosed of new stresses of my
business and being a new father. I was putting in many
hours, but I cant say I really felt stress. The early 1990s
recession did not really affect my business; we actually
did well at that time, which made me feel more confident
that my practice would succeed.

I wondered if it was financial stress that was hiding behind

the problem, so we saved a bit more and paid off our
mortgage just five years after we were in our new house.
Things did not feel any less stressful; they were not all

7
that stressful to begin with.

I still had chronic prostatitis symptoms, and they were

occasionally severe, but they would go away after a few
weeks. The burning sensation inside my thighs and up my
back would ebb and flow. Occasionally I would find blood
in my shorts, but nothing to indicate anything other than
prostatitis. The pain would occasionally go up my lower
back, too. So I would rest.

Then the symptoms would go a few weeks became

months, and then over the months became constant.

Traveling was the first casualty.

When I drove from my then home in Rhode Island to New

York on business, I had to allow time for stops to walk
around about every 90 minutes. I knew where every rest
stop was along I-95 and whether or not the mens room
were usually crowded or empty, the food concessions they
had, and even familiar with the times of day when they
were clean and when they were not.

If I needed to fly cross country, I would load up on

ibuprofen before the flight to get through the pain. There
were times I turned down jobs because of that pain during
travel. I would try to price myself out of jobs in hopes I
would not get them. That way I there would be no need to
explain why I could not travel. CPPS is not easy to talk
about. No one wants to hire a sick consultant who might
miss deadlines. If you talk about CPPS, it becomes too

8
much information, and clients feeling uncomfortable
about that amount of personal information.

My lowest point was at the end of 2000 and the beginning

of 2001. I had to miss important meetings in New York
City because I could not even think of driving or sitting on
an Amtrak train and still be functioning.

In February 2001, the symptoms were so bad, my

urologist had me go into the hospital. They were going
anesthetize me for an aggressive look by performing a
cysto ureteral catheterization to see there was something
else going on. Perhaps there was a kidney stone that was
not showing up in some of the prior imaging I had.

I remember two things vividly. A woman in her late

twenties was in a gurney next to me in the prep room and
she was getting ready to have a leg removed I was not
sure of the reason. That gave me some perspective. I think
about that morning often.

The second thing I remember is that I was wheeled into

the procedure room and was surrounded by my urologist
and five or six interns from Brown Universitys medical
school. I wished them luck. They searched and searched,
thankfully I was asleep, and filled my system with water
and emptied it to detect and blockages.

The doctor spoke to my wife in the waiting room by

phone that they did not find anything but that my flow
was magnificent.

9
She later told me what happened and I remember saying
Great! Im fine but I still have prostatitis.

I am pleased to say that those problems are no longer

part of my life, and have not been for years.

Now, I actually seek trans-ocean plane travel. I like car

trips and can drive for hours without calculating how
many minutes the next rest stop might be, fearful I might
not get there in time.

I believe that other CPPS sufferers can achieve the same

results I did through regular exercise programs. In my
case, it was the study of karate and a new interest in
martial arts that was the catalyst for change.

In the process, I rediscovered the peace that prayer can

bring, an appreciation of the little good things in life that
occur every day, and the support of new friends and fellow
students who made the entire effort so rewarding.

Suffering can be a great motivator, even a motivator

toward success, but it is not something we should seek. It
tends to find us! But having this kind of condition can
enrich our understanding and empathy for others, even a
sense of gratitude for what goes well, and a sense of
optimism that carries you through tough times, an
appreciation of what you have and the people who are
close to you.

10
Its hard to be optimistic when youre coping with CPPS.
Your symptoms are nebulous and unexplained, its constant
presence can give you a sense of defeat and not
empowerment. But it can be overcome.

How I Started with Karate

As a consultant, I worked in my home and at a desk. That
desk was usually a daily 8 to 10 hour location. When you
work at home, its important to get out to stay mentally
fresh. A change of scenery seems to help. I always noticed
it was easier to be creative or to review work when I had a
break and looked at things with fresh eyes. It was
important to find ways to do that.

I started karate at the same dojo where our then-ten year

old son attended. (Dojo is what a karate school is called,
and it means a place to learn the way). I was familiar
with the people who owned it and with some of the
parents who also brought their children there. The dojo
had a Tuesday morning adult class that fit in my schedule.
I didnt realize how out of shape I was until I got home
from that first class. Just walking around hurt a few days
later! I had barely done anything in the class!

During those early months, I was a bad karate student. My

only interest in karate as recreation and entertainment.
This meant I had no reason to practice. This frustrated
(and disrespected) my teachers and other students. They
were too kind to say it.

Six months later, still not serious about my martial arts

11
study, I realized that my CPPS symptoms had diminished.
It took a while for me to be convinced of the link between
karate and my decrease in pain. CPPS has peaks and
valleys, so I figured I was just in a valley of reduced pain.
I continued along with what was going on in class, but I
usually didnt practice any karate until I was in the next
class. I was busy, after all.

Then my schedule changed. I had been taking classical

guitar lessons. Im not talented at that either, but it was a
topic I had always been interested in, and I did practice.
My young teacher decided to move to another part of the
state and open his own school. Lacking a teacher, I
thought that since the people at the dojo were nice, Id use
my newfound free time for more karate classes instead. A
few weeks later, I started to see it: my CPPS was getting
better faster. Even I was smart enough to see that
participating in a productive activity more often yields
greater benefits.

I started to attend more often, three or four times a week,

and I even started to practice at home. When I was
traveling on business and missing class, I was practicing
in empty hotel conference rooms, hotel rooms (after
rearranging the furniture), on hotel rooftops, fitness
centers, and any place where I could find open spaces. I
was in an empty plane once, and did one of the kata (a
pre-designed combination of karate movements used for
training) in the empty aisle.

My symptoms kept improving, and any painful setbacks

12
were shorter and shorter. I finally warmed up to the idea of
martial arts as a hobby. I began to read about it and
research it, and it evolved into an abiding interest. I
practice every day now, sometimes for five minutes,
sometimes for an hour, and look forward to every class.
Now, the next class cant seem to come soon enough.

Stretching is the Secret

As I became more involved in the studies, I came to
realize that the exercise was important, but the first fruits
of the process was the pre-class stretching. Going to class
regularly and practicing on my own meant that I got some
warm-up and stretching of critical pelvic floor muscles
and the inside of my legs that made the symptoms
diminish.

Stretching helps relax the muscles, especially the pelvic

floor, and exercise strengthens the muscles. You need
both. Well-toned muscles stretch better and retain their
flexibility.

At the time Im writing this, I am past 60 years old. Even

when I started in my mid-forties, I was usually the oldest
person in class, older than my teachers, sometimes by a
lot. (Ill discuss the age issues in the dojo, and some dojo
selection issues, later).

Just to be clear: karate cant cure anything. Its the process

that can. That process has many facets. The importance of
those facets change over time the more you learn, the
more you stretch, and the more you exercise.

13
 Why did it work?
There are many reasons why my karate classes worked.
The most important ones are:
regularity
discipline
stretching
variety of movements
hard work sometimes until exhaustion
stimulation of mental concentration

There was a period of time in the 1990s when I tried

swimming a few times a week to get in shape. I felt better
but my CPPS did not improve. I also tried exercising in
gyms and on equipment. I found it boring and it was
lonely. Fitness centers sometimes feel like big rooms filled
with people exercising alone, ensuring their solitude by
listening to music on headphones or watching TVs built
into their treadmills. Other than being cordial and friendly,
no one really interacts with each other in their exercise.

Martial arts classes provided a better and richer context

for exercise, and its almost like the exercise is secondary.
Learning is primary. It engages your interest and
encourages interaction with others, and cultivates a sense
of mutual encouragement. Focusing on the learning and
exploration made the diligence and frequency of exercise
easier. Youre learning new things. Classes are always
different. Exercise is a small part of a grander purpose.

14
 Chapter 3: Right Expectations
It is possible to manage prostatitis symptoms and CPPS
with stretching and exercising. You dont necessarily need
martial arts.

I did.

You might, too.

Though the symptomatic relief seemed like magic, it

really wasnt. You can do it on your own in your own way.

You will never eliminate all of the CPPS conditions, but

you can get your life back. Over time, the condition
subsides, retreating to a dull pain, occurs less often, then
seems to disappear. Your optimism returns. Your first goal
should be to get better.

Luckily, I have never had to deal with a devastating

problem like alcoholism. The one-day-at-a-time approach
that many recovery programs use is the kind of discipline
you need to overcome the CPPS symptoms. There is a
prayer that is often used in addiction recovery, known as
the Serenity Prayer. The lines are:

God, grant me the serenity

to accept the things I cannot change,
courage to change the things I can,
and wisdom to know the difference.

15
Think about it. Serenity is an opposite of stress, an
acceptance of your condition and what happened in the
past that may have contributed to it, a focus on making
things different, and an openness to work on what you can
and letting go what you cant.

You stop looking for quick cures, you realize that you
need to follow an approach that requires dedication, time
and patience. It cant be found in a pill or a treatment.

CPPS is not as devastating or as critical as overcoming

addiction. These elements of recovery, a day at a time,
accepting things as they are, working to change what you
can, are all good ideas that can put the work needed
against CPPS in perspective.

For me, the courage was to be in class as an older student

with no athletic ability. I was certain to fail more often
than others. I quickly learned the necessity of deferring to
others again. I had forgotten that in business, because I
was usually the one in charge. I needed the wisdom to see
what was really happening to me, and to know that I
always needed classes and practice.

It dawned on me: the evenings I did not feel like going to

class were the evenings that I needed it the most. That was
my first brush with wisdom and martial arts.

16
 Before You Start
Before proceeding with my experiences and my advice,
there are two very important statements that must be
made.

The first is a reminder to be sure that there are no other

medical conditions and that the prostatitis and pelvic pain
symptoms have been thoroughly investigated. It is likely
that you are reading this because of the frustration of that
process. Doctors can only speculate after many tests and
different treatments. Some will tell you the symptoms are
in your head. But there are severe medical conditions that
can have the same symptoms. It is important that they be
ruled out.

Secondly, I am not a doctor. I have a Ph.D. in an

industrial education area, which has nothing to do with
medicine. My only claimed qualification in writing this is
to convey my experiences as a chronic pelvic pain
sufferer, and what I learned along the way. I also have
some statistical capability that allows me to understand
many of the medical statistics related to symptoms and
treatments that I pursued, but I am not a medical
statistician.

17
 Chapter 4: Diligence,
Persistence, and Commitment
The word chronic in chronic prostatitis and chronic
pelvic pain syndrome is there for a reason. Its a
condition that persists for a long period of time.

Remember this: it took a long time for you to get sick, and
it will take some time to get better. CPPS changed from an
occasional twinge to painful and near-constant
debilitation. You should not expect those symptoms to
disappear quickly. Things change for the better a little at a
time.

That may seem to be disappointing and pessimistic. Any

chronic problem can sap ones strength and dampen ones
attitude. The worst problem with CPPS is that it can crush
your spirit. Remembering the Serenity Prayer can really
help at those times.

As you start your work toward exercise or martial arts,

start with the assumption that CPPS will not go away, but
that your ability to cope with it can improve. If you feel
defeated going in, and expect a rapid reversal of
symptoms, you will not tap into the courage needed to
persevere. You will also not realize that small incremental
improvements are really important achievements that
slowly build on each other.

18
 Are Some Men Wired for CPPS?
From what I have read of the literature and the
experiences of others, there is speculation that some men
have a tendency to develop urological or muscular
conditions that predispose us to having prostatitis
symptoms.

Some men get it, and some men dont. Not everyone gets
it at the same age. For me, it was about age 35. I hear from
many men in their twenties and others in their forties and
fifties.

This is why having the condition can make you feel alone
or that others dont understand it. In my general discussion
with doctors, about one-third of men will get prostatitis,
not everyone will get CPPS. The age and circumstance of
the sufferers vary so much that you may never know of
someone who has it at the exact time you do.

There are always bacterial cases of prostatitis that can

originate from urinary infections; many of these are cured
with antibiotics. Others are viral, and it can even be a cold
or other virus that finds a very happy place to be in your
prostate. At my worst, I called it my early warning
system as it seemed that I would flare up and then get a
cold. Is that true? Ill never know if it was coincidence or
an effect. It seemed amusing at the time. If its a virus
sitting there, it has to run its course. A virus can just be in
your system and not express itself for a long time.

It is likely that other men you know have prostatitis or

19
CPPS, and just write it off as just the pains of getting
older. They may not be comfortable talking about it. Its
urological and involves the reproductive system. Thats
embarrassing enough for some to keep quiet about it. I
only told friends about it when I had no choice.

How Some Habits Create CPPS

These were my habits that made CPPS worse:
Sitting: I was at my desk and it was always on a hard chair
with little padding; I had to sit to get things done
Lack of activity: I worked at my desk; I ate sitting down; I
watched TV sitting or laying down; walking or swimming
was not enough; but I was tired from working
Soreness and pain are always a good excuse to do nothing
Weight gain: everyone gains weight as they age, so whats
the big deal? Being sedentary adds to your weight because
you dont burn calories; the more your weight rises, the
sooner and more tired you feel during the day.

All of these perfectly natural situations grew to a case of

CPPS. While a bout of true prostatitis with a general viral
origin started my condition, there is a chance I would have
gotten CPPS because of these habits anyway. If the
prostatitis started the inflammation of the pelvic floor,
these habits converged to promulgate and perpetuate that
inflammation without me being aware of it. Once I
realized each of these bad habits contributed to the
escalation of my symptoms, I changed all of them.

Aim for Successful Management First

A very important step is recognizing that your symptoms
may never be fully cured, but they can be managed. If a
cure comes, fine... but if youve had severe prostatitis, you

20
already know that just getting through just a single day
feels like a giant leap forward.

While that may sound depressing, its probably the

healthiest attitude to have about it. It leads to acceptance
of your present condition and dismisses unrealistic
expectations for a quick fix or a permanent cure, which
are highly unlikely. Wishing things were different only
takes time away decisive action. Time is of the essence.
Replace wishing it will get better with actions that can
make it so.

You should have hope that the condition can be overcome

and managed to the point of feeling like the person you
used to be. I have received e-mails from people in their
twenties, thirties, forties, all the way to their sixties. They
have had the problem for anywhere from three years to
twenty years, and have survived medical tests, frustrations
of dealing with doctors who are frustrated themselves, and
numerous homeopathic treatments that have no logical
reason to work.

Because the condition of prostatitis or CPPS did not

suddenly develop, but did so little by little over time until
it reached a threshold point (the avant garde term in recent
years is tipping point) where the pain became
noticeable, its likely it will go away only in the same slow
way.

21
 The Placebo Effect
Shows that Attitude Matters
How do we know that changing your attitude and
accepting the condition can work? Its actually the upside
of what medical researchers call the placebo effect. The
downside of the effect is that it means we have attributed
an events outcome to false causes.

The placebo effect is critical to determining true

causation. Does a pharmaceutical really work or not? This
is why, in medical trials, one group gets a real medical
treatment and another group does not, and no one knows
which group they are in. The researchers then compare the
results of the two groups. Some people in the placebo
group always get better just as a natural course of things,
even though they may be getting sugar pills. Placebo
group members even complain of side effects such as
sleeplessness or nausea from their fake treatment.

The worst part of placebo effects is that many

homeopathic treatments are promoted as worthwhile when
they actually do nothing. This is why its important to look
at the tables in the back of medical studies where they
compare results to placebos that is, if that study even
included a control group. Many studies of nutritionals
do not include placebo groups because of the budgets
required to run them, or they are seeking a positive result
in the study. They are counting on the placebo effect in
their results to make their treatment look good. That
means that having a placebo group will make it less likely
they can make the claims about their product.

22
Why do some sufferers insist that some of the
homeopathic treatments work? It might just be a matter of
timing. The natural course of CPPS and prostatitis
symptoms is to ebb and flow, some days and weeks they
are terrible, and other days and weeks they are less bad. If
you happen to be taking one of these treatments and the
symptoms subside, it is falsely attributed to that treatment.
All that happened was that the treatment was in the right
place at the right time. When youre feeling good you
dont seek some of these approaches. You would have
improved anyway.

Prostatitis sufferers are easy prey for anything that

promises relief. No one can blame them. I was one of
them, too. Home remedies, saw palmetto, and any variety
of nutritionals have failed to improve prostatitis symptoms
in the best medical experiments and clinical trials. Saw
palmetto was tried for many prostate problems, and did
not work.

For many years, zinc supplements were popular for all

kinds of prostate issues. But your body expels the zinc it
does not need. As one urologist said to me some of my
patients were taking so much zinc I thought they were
going to turn into those old metal zinc-colored garbage
cans.

In placebo studies, the subjects who receive harmless

sugar pills, often do just as well as those taking the actual
drugs or remedies, and can sometimes do better. Why?

23
The participants are so convinced that what they are doing
will relieve their symptoms that they actually feel better
because they are supposed to.

Dont Deny the Pain

There may be a cascading effect that makes the pain
worse. If the placebo effect in treatments can make you
feel better because you think you should be feeling better,
the opposite can be true.

The depth of the symptoms may come from thinking too

much about them. Its not that the symptoms are not real,
but they can be pushed into the background by replacing
your attention on them with something else.

Youre not denying the pain youre making a choice

about where to focus your concentration. What is pain?
Your body is telling that something is not right and
alerting you to that. But you knew that already. Its time to
move onto the next thing, as best you can. Its a matter of
what you do with it.

Stay mentally occupied. When you feel like youre falling

into the pit of CPPS depression, occupy your mind with
something else. Stay busy with something that requires
concentration.

I found that this is one of the reasons why karate classes

and practice sessions worked. You cant multitask. You
must concentrate in class and in practice. Youre trying to
coordinate your body and its extremities in manners that

24
are not familiar, with force, strength, with repetition so
they become natural. Thats a lot to think about! And, you
eventually start to visualize an opponent. Theres no room
left in your mind for CPPS!

Bacterial? Viral? Something Else?

Prostatitis symptoms cannot really be measured. Lab tests
can pick up true bacterial conditions. Bacterial organisms
can be seen in prostatic fluid under a microscope. Its then
that the infection can be treated with antibiotics. I was told
that this only in about 20% of the cases. Because the blood
flow to the prostate is limited compared to other organs,
its hard to get medicines into it, so two or three rounds of
antibiotics might be required. Some antibiotics are better
than others in being accepted by the prostate; which ones
seems to changed based on which antibiotics are available
at the time.

So if not bacterial, the prostatitis or chronic pelvic pain

symptoms originate somewhere else, such as viral.
Doctors might be able to see elevated presence of white
blood cells, but that can almost be from anything. That
virus itself may not have anything to do with the prostate;
it could just be a cold virus, of which there are more than
200 identified so far.

Why is the Placebo Effect Important?

Sometimes people get better just because they are taking
medication, any medication, even sugar pills. That is, just
the act of intervening is more powerful than anything else.

25
The placebo effect can be very strong. There have been
studies of patients with depression who have been given
placebos and their conditions improved. Placebos even
made their properly prescribed medications more
effective! The results were so striking that doctors
wondered if some patients should get placebos as part of
their official treatment.

In one study I read many years ago, when the depression

patients were told they received sugar pills, many patients
quickly returned to their depressed states. But some
realized that their minds had actually overcome their
condition in the study, and it was not the effects of the
drug they were told they they were receiving. The patients
did not return to their original medications, but instead
decided to change their behavior and move ahead on their
own. Other patients actually needed the medication, and
had no choice but to return. But the results surprised the
researchers.

In 2015, a National Institutes of Health2 study noted that

placebo administration changed brain function, especially
in regions of the brain where emotion and stress are
regulated and provided new clues into depression and
other illnesses.

2 Association Between Placebo-Activated Neural Systems

and Antidepressant Responses: Neurochemistry of Placebo
Effects in Major Depression. Pecia M, Bohnert AS, Sikora
M, Avery ET, Langenecker SA, Mickey BJ, Zubieta JK.
JAMA Psychiatry. 2015 Sep 30:1-8. doi:
10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2015.1335. [Epub ahead of print].
PMID: 26421634.

26
This is not to say that the pain is all in your head. There is
actual pain in your pelvis where a labyrinth of nerves and
muscles surround the area of the prostate and other organs.
The prostate may not actually be the culprit. A prostate
inflammation may have initiated the process, but physical
conditions compound over time to worsen the symptoms
and build up to CPPS.

The inflammation in the nerves of the pelvic area are so

intense they become non-specific the whole area hurts
so doctors have trouble narrowing down the causes of the
pain. It gets to the point you cant even rely on your urge
to urinate it always feel like you do even if your
bladder is not full.

Dont Fall for Saw Palmetto

and Other Treatments
Why should saw palmetto work? The idea is that it has
similar chemical properties as cranberries. Cranberries are
often used in juice form to encourage a healthy urinary
system. Some have postulated that creating a more acidic
urinary system will discourage the growth of bacteria, and
also inhibit viruses that create the symptoms of prostatitis.
Thats fine, but were left with the problem that most
cases of prostatitis are neither bacterial nor viral. If many
of those are muscular-related, then no matter what you
ingest beyond a healthy diet will make any difference.

I have read many books about various cures that publish

clinical study tables which include reports of how many

27
patients got better from taking the medication compared to
how many got better by taking sugar pills, or placebos.
The difference between the two would show whether or
not the cure was real or imagined.

The placebo effects in clinical studies Ive reviewed are

sometimes over 40% which means you might as well
take sugar pills when the clinical effect was supposedly
over 50% which means the true effect was only in 10%
(50% minus 40%) of the patients. This probably means
that there was no effect at all and the 10% may just be
random variation. Even at that, so many patients in these
studies are uncured that it should cast suspicion on their
recommendations anyway.

The symptoms of prostatitis are sometimes so severe and

so variable that it is easy for any sufferer to attribute
improvement in symptoms to the last thing they tried.
Prostatitis symptoms always come and go in irregular
flare-ups. Only when youre free of it for a long period of
months can you really suspect that something worked. I
still get flare-ups now and then, but its for five or ten
minutes that it is noticeable, often occurring weeks or
months apart. I no longer get the debilitating pain I used to
endure for days and weeks at a time.

Symptoms
This whole area of prostatitis (and CPPS) has been
understudied for many years because concerns about
prostate cancer had research priority. Thankfully, the
efforts against prostate cancer have had much notable

28
success. Detection is better, and the advances in prostate
surgery mean that it no longer has the serious post-surgical
risk and effects it once had.

Prostatitis and CPPS, however, are not really fatal. They

remain enigmas, and there appears to be more research
being done in these areas. They are not likely to have the
research urgency that fatal and more common diseases
have.

The symptoms may actually be a collection of different

conditions that have similar symptoms. It may take years
or decades before the causes and proper diagnoses of these
conditions can be sorted out. Its unlikely there will be a
medicine or a treatment in time for you to be cured of the
problems. We are therefore left to seek other means.

That does not help the person who is suffering today.

Mental Diversion is Essential

This is why exercise and activities like martial arts comes
into play. Mental diversion and concentration reprioritizes
what you are thinking about. The CPPS pain is pushed
aside in favor of something else for that time. Ive often
told people that the reason martial arts worked for me was
that if you dont concentrate, youll get hurt! If you start
thinking about CPPS and not the person in front of you,
you open yourself to being injured at worst or executing
your techniques badly, or just being embarrassed. Your
fellow students train to not get hurt during class and to
look out for their karateka (fellow students). But someone

29
can always slip if they expect you will react in a proper
way, but you dont.

Your mind should be fully occupied with what you are

doing at that moment. Theres no room in your mind for
anything else.

Getting your mind past the CPPS problem is an important

first step. Improvement in your mental discipline may
come first. The pains may be the same, but youve
replaced them with something else, so they matter less.
The gradual improvement of the physical nature of the
problem will come next, as you stretch and rebuild your
muscle.

30
 Chapter 5: Other CPPS
Considerations
While there are young men who get prostatitis or CPPS,
most times it is men in their late 30s and early 40s who
encounter them. In their emails to me, they write about
their setbacks, sometimes in great personal detail in a too
much information kind of way. (Thats okay, because
theyre so happy to find someone who knows what theyre
going through).

They often wonder about their condition and report that

they had STDs which required treatment. The most
common one reported in the emails has been chlamydia,
which sometimes has no notable symptoms, but also can
have the same symptoms as common urinary tract
infections. Unfortunately, many of the symptoms are the
same as prostatitis! In 2015, there were 1.4 million cases
in the US according to the Centers for Disease Control. It
is a dangerous disease, because it can affect fertility.

STDs is an aspect of diagnosis that I thankfully have not

had to deal with. I come from a religious tradition and
background that I will describe as marriage first, and then
only; and I will leave it as that so as not not burden this
book with theology. This has always been part of my life.
As I have gotten older I have a greater and different
appreciation for the wisdom behind it than when I was
younger.

31
That tradition has fallen by the wayside for much of
todays culture. STDs add extra steps to an already
complicated process of diagnosis. Its another variable that
makes it all the more essential to be totally open with your
medical professionals and to be certain you have
exhausted all of the possible causes of your symptoms.

The urological and reproductive systems are complicated.

Urinary tracts can be prone to carry and hold infections
because of their winding and circuitous nature.
Reproductive systems have similar issues. In the cases of
both, treatments have improved and cancer detection is
getting better. Detection and diagnosis are getting better
with new tests and new tools. Relying on self-diagnosis is
not a good idea. Its better to eliminate everything else
before settling on CPPS as a diagnosis.

But dont forget: getting in better shape through

exercising and stretching does not have to be delayed
while you are going through the diagnosis process.

Using a Physical Therapist?

If CPPS is perpetuated by muscular issues in the pelvic
floor, it makes one wonder if a physical therapist might be
helpful.

A physical therapist could be helpful in working with a

CPPS sufferer. I suspect that it will not be covered by
insurance because the request would be so uncommon.
Getting a urologist to prescribe a physical therapist for
such a problem might not even be possible in some

32
medical plans. It is less likely that a personal trainer would
understand the issues.

If your urologist is not familiar with CPPS, it may be

worthwhile to talk to them about the Wise-Anderson
Protocol originally developed at Stanford University.3 It
was called the Stanford Protocol at one time. By putting
the CPPS condition in this context, it might be easier to
involve a physical therapist, and even a psychologist with
the blessing of your urologist.

The kinds of muscular conditions that Drs. Wise and

Anderson found are the same kind that exercise and
stretching can improve. If the CPPS case is severe enough,
using their approach might be the best way to get started,
and then exercising and stretching may be a good way to
ensure that the improvements are maintained and
sustained.

The CPPS diagnosis is still relatively new. Part of the

Stanford approach is manipulate the muscles of the pelvic
floor, which may be in a similar manner that a digital
rectal exam is done to check the prostate gland. Only
doctors can do this because they know the nature of the
anatomy in that area.

Most physical therapists would have a good idea about

how else to advise you after they see some of the exercises
in the Theres a Headache in My Pelvis book, written by

3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wise
%E2%80%93Anderson_Protocol

33
Wise and Anderson. The stretches and exercises are
similar to yoga positions. They might find the idea that
those exercises could improve a condition like chronic
prostatitis quite surprising.4

Those same stretches are common to those used by martial

arts practitioners to prepare for class and workouts. The
difference is that stretching in martial arts is followed by
an exhausting class that works out your entire body, has a
variety of movements, changing speed and intensity,
requires mental concentration. You learn self defense and
aspects of the culture where martial arts originate, in the
process.

Prostate Drainage Does It Work?

Related to digital exams, is the topic of prostate drainage
(also referred to as prostate massage or prostate
milking). The website www.chronicprostatitis.com has
good information about this. They are skeptical and
careful in its recommendation. There is more information
at the Prostatitis Foundation website www.prostatitis.org.
Drainage relieved temporary pain for me, but it never
solved the problem.

The digital rectal exam (DRE) is usually a screening for

prostate cancer. When the prostate is inflamed, however,
doctors can feel that, too. For cancer, doctors are checking
for an irregular shape, as best as they can, looking for

4 The Prostatitis Foundation website has a list of some

physical therapists who are willing to treat prostatitis. It is
worth checking to see if one is near you.

34
natural symmetry of the two sides of the prostate. Also,
the prostate should be soft, so any areas that are not,
become a reason for doctors to investigate further. They
can tell when the prostate is likely inflamed from
prostatitis if they have been checking that patient
regularly.

The Importance of PSA Tests

The PSA blood test, which measures the levels of prostate-
specific antigen, is another cancer screening technique. It
is usually added to the blood test for cholesterol screening
in an annual exam. A separate blood sample is not
necessary.

Prostatitis, however, can affect your PSA reading. So

getting PSA tests regularly, and keeping track of them, is
important. Over the years, doctors have been concerned
about false positives in the PSA tests. This is why once a
high PSA reading is found, they follow up with a schedule
of tests to monitor any further changes. If high readings
persist or get higher, a biopsy is performed.

It is important to keep track of your PSA readings and also

inform your doctor, and the person drawing your blood, as
to whether you are having prostate inflammation at that
time. Its another piece of information that helps them
make sure they have your results in the right context for
any next steps if needed. You may get a higher than
normal PSA reading because of the inflammation.

Lets be clear. Even though the PSA can have false

35
positives, it is still worth taking. It was not very long ago
that prostate cancer was detected too late for treatment. I
know many prostate cancer survivors who are grateful for
their diagnosis and the success of todays treatment
options, of which surgery is only one.

Preparing Yourself Mentally

As far as alleviating the stress that CPPS can create or
help worsen, martial arts has a special place. Its entirely
different that what you do the rest of the day. It helps clear
your mind greatly so that other thoughts get their fair
chance for occupying your neurons! The fact that you
have to concentrate on something so hard to execute it
correctly gets your mind off your CPPS. In the process
you become more active, and your entire body improves.

Family, friends, and long-time acquaintances are usually

quite surprised to learn that I study karate. I have known
my lack of athletic prowess and I am surprised, too. I was
always curious about karate. One of my favorite comic
books in the 1960s was JudoMaster. The artist and writer,
Frank McLaughlin, was a martial artist,5 and would
include some martial arts instruction in the issue. But
every time I watched karate on television or in movies, I
realized it was definitely not for me. There is not an
athletic bone in my body or in my genes (though in high
school I was on the varsity bowling team, but I guess that
underscores the point).

As far as karate in the movies, most of that is cartoonish,

5 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_McLaughlin_(artist)

36
with lots of choreographed but very exciting and difficult
stunts. Karate class is nothing like that. It was not until I
saw a class that I began to appreciate the possibilities of it.

When you consider something for your mind and body to

do something than your normal routine, figure out what
would be out of the ordinary and unlikely things you
might consider doing and actually consider them. Their
unfamiliarity is likely to be what makes them fascinating.

If you have not been active for a long time (and that might
be the primary reason for the severity of the
CPPS/prostatitis symptoms to begin with) you should be
very much aware of something.

Age matters.

When you are young, your body heals and rebounds

quickly. As you get older, your body responds quite
differently than it used to. While it is possible to stretch
and also to build muscle, gains can be lost very quickly.
This is why it is always essential to keep your goal in
mind and have a vivid mental image of what it would be
like without CPPS. This is why it is so important to find
something you can stick with over time. CPPS takes a
while to bring under control, and that mental image is
something youll need to nurture for a long time.

Is Prostatitis Stress-related?
I have never been a real believer in stress as the cause of
nearly every ailment. Its convenient that stress is

37
nebulous and unclear that it may excuse one to not take
direct action against a specific problem. Saying its just
stress dismisses a problem with a socially acceptable
cause. Getting rid of that stress, sometime in the future,
will somehow change everything. Unfortunately, it cant.
Treating the symptom of stress means that the problem of
CPPS goes untreated.

A treatment of stress is to relax and avoid physical

activity! After a hard day at work, why would you want to
have a hard class at the dojo? Youre tired, and want to
unwind and relax. That desire to seek inactivity can
possibly make CPPS symptoms worse.

Dont forget that stress is natural and good for you. Stress
is needed to achieve things. Stress on your body is needed
to build muscle and strength and to keep our bones and
joints healthy. Stress is what makes us enjoy sports. Stress
helps us protect ourselves and our families. Its not stress
thats the issue, its what you do with the stress when your
body incurs it that matters.

Its normal to occasionally feel overwhelmed by the

relentlessness of lifes many adult obligations. When
stress loses its proper context and becomes a situation
where your body and mind is always in high alert, it has
become a problem.

Clinicians can measure all types and amounts of the

bodys chemicals that are created during stressful fight or
flight situations. I know people who are high-strung, but

38
I have also known people in high stress jobs who show no
signs of stress and love their jobs (think of an airline pilot,
for example, or a cruise ship captain, who have the safety
of hundreds and sometimes thousands of people in their
hands). We want our pilots and ship captains to have some
stress, and for their training to be stressful. This way they
can be ready to act in dangerous situations with clarity,
competence, and confidence, and without panic. If they
cant handle the stress of their training, its better to learn
that then and not during an emergency.

What it seems to me is that high-stressed people dont

have a variety of things that get them away from what is
causing them stress or never take time to just do
nothing. Thirty years ago I quit my job and began
consulting, having no idea where the next dollar was
coming from for most of that time. The peaks are high and
the valleys can be deep.

Its been superb, and logically it should be more stressful

compared to getting a regular paycheck. A sense of control
is what researchers identify as a key role in perceived
stress. A sense of dependency or powerlessness results in
exactly the opposite. That is, realizing that you are in
control of an outcome can actually make your stress levels
lower. Feeling at the mercy of someone elses decisions
can raise some peoples stress levels.

Stress may play a role in CPPS to this extent. Assume you

have a job where you are just swamped with work, and to
start getting it done, you decide to spend more time in the

39
office, sitting. The stress of the job made you change your
habits. The decision you made about using your time for
more work actually made you more sedentary. You might
be in a hard chair, deciding not to spend time exercising.
You believe your feelings of stress will be relieved by
working harder at your desk and getting ahead in your
work. That desire to avoid the stress of unfinished work
nefariously creates the physical conditions in which
prostatitis and CPPS thrives.

Its so contradictory! You work more to catch up on work

so you can relieve your stress, and end up sitting at a desk
getting more work done, making the problem worse.
Then, relaxing by becoming inactive to come down
from the stress of the day makes it worse still!

Part of the stress of prostatitis is not really stress but

absolute frustration that nothing seems to help. It feeds on
itself and makes things worse. This is why deciding to
accept it, and planning for the symptoms to get better over
a long period of time is so important.

It is far better to create time for oneself doing something

away from the stresser to allow one to confront it with a
fresher mind, body, and spirit. Working less can be
achieved by working better, smarter, and more
insightfully. Keep the stress at bay by creating a planned
time for the stressful situation, and decide to not allow it
to encroach on the other times.

I believe this is one reason why karate worked for me, but

40
I have other hobbies as well. Nothing, hobbies or my
work, require the concentration of karate. Your mind has
to get off family, finances, the to do lists, etc., and be
focused on something quite different.

Losing Weight
Can weight loss affect prostatitis? Not directly, but by
being more active, weight loss and improved muscle tone
can always be beneficial. So in the indirect sense, losing
weight helps your symptoms, but it is a byproduct of the
process. If you are heavy, thats probably a sign of being
sedentary, and it may be one reason to suspect that pelvic
floor muscles are definitely out of shape. Its not the
weight itself thats the problem, its how the weight got
there.

The more weight you have, the more pressure you have on
your joints, such as your knees. Your knee joint load from
a pressure standpoint can be reduced by four pounds for
every one pound loss in weight. That means that a 10
pound weight loss is a 40 pound reduction in pressure on
his knees.

Weight loss can also help reduce back pain. The less
pressure on your back, it is possible for the nerves leading
into the pelvic area may get get some relief, too.

Helpful Items
Sitting is always a problem for CPPS sufferers, and it can
make the condition worse. But you have to sit to drive, to
eat, to socialize, and so many activities. Its a natural

41
position. Theres a way to make it better.

In my case, the chair in my office was very hard, and

probably contributed to the condition. Any hard chair,
such as a church pew, can aggravate the condition. Sitting
in a car or plane for a long time can do it, too. Over the
years I have heard from truck drivers for whom prostatitis
and CPPS pose a serious problem to their livelihood. You
dont think of sitting as an occupational hazard!

I have used surgical ring or sometimes called a

hemorrhoid ring, on my chair for more about fifteen years.
I previously used it in my car and on long plane flights. It
made a difference. Because Ive gotten better, Ive stopped
using it in the car and I no longer travel with one. But
when my symptoms were the worst, I really needed it.

Many of my trips are long trips had a return flight the next
day, so my body did not have a chance to recover. I still
take ibuprofen before flights, and I make sure I get up
sometime during the flight to stretch my legs.

Most of my work time is still spent in my office. There, I

use the Carex rubber ring. Its about $15 and it lasts about
a year. Some pharmacies carry it, but lately I have been
buying them through Amazon. This is what it looks like:

42
Yes, it has a particular ugliness to it. I put mine in a pillow
case that is close to the color of my office chair. It also
raises me up in my chair and that seems to help with my
posture using the computer all day. Since the pillow case
is cloth, its also easier on clothes and feels more
comfortable. You have to reinflate it now and then, but its
very reliable. They can sometimes develop pinholes after
months of use, so I make sure I always have a new one in
reserve.

43
 Chapter 6: Before Committing
to Exercise
It takes time to improve CPPS/prostatitis symptoms, so
being diligent about it is really important, no matter how
frustrating it is. There is rarely a sudden remission of
symptoms, but you start to realize that you feel better
often than you did before. Flare-ups still appear, but they
are further apart and shorter in duration. You will find
yourself taking medications less often, and in lesser
amounts.

If your symptoms suddenly disappear, dont trust it. Keep

doing the exercises. I learned this the hard way.

Many times I have had symptoms just reappear with a

vengeance at what seems to be the worst possible time. I
learned my lesson. This is part of the wisdom to know
the difference, to discern wishing from reality. Dont be
fooled.

Even if You Feel Better, Keep Working to

Create a Muscular Reserve
Assuming that the symptoms can always re-emerge means
that you stay committed to your course. As one gets older,
your new muscle tone disappears at a faster rate than it did
before. Its harder to retain your gains, so you must keep
maintaining them.

I see that in exercising my arms and legs compared to

44
younger students. Younger muscles can retain strength
longer, but older muscles need to be regularly exercised.
Even in stretching for karate, it is common for younger
students to go straight into class and be as flexible as they
can possibly be.

I found in my fifties and now my sixties that I need to

stretch just to get ready for the stretching portion of the
class! My muscles feel like they can even tighten up
during class. This has improved over the years the more
that I practice. There is also a seasonal aspect its not a
surprise that in warmer weather it is always easier to stay
loose.

Developing the habits of regular stretching and exercising

the pelvic floor muscles creates a physical insurance
policy, or a muscle reserve. This is very important for
the times where, for good reason such as sickness or
emergency, you might not be able to exercise regularly.
This becomes critical as you get older. Gains from
exercise can disappear from neglect.

Improving muscle strength is very important. This is one

of the reasons why martial arts works. Repetition builds
muscle, even without weights. And if you have no muscles
to stretch, you cant benefit from the stretching of the
muscles in the pelvic floor. The more out of shape those
muscles are, the less flexibility they have, so they always
stay tight and contracted.

45
 For Those Considering Martial Arts
Some readers of this book will be satisfied with doing the
stretches and some of the exercises identified in these
pages. Others will be intrigued with karate and martial arts
not as a matter of self-defense, but as a means to gradually
improving their general health, especially endurance and
weight.

The exercise is often excellent. Theres no better feeling

than a gi (the karate uniform) drenched with sweat after
an hour or so of warm-up, kata, instruction, and practice,
with the support of your karateka (your fellow students).
(The shower when you get home feels even better, as does
the sleep you get after exhaustion).

Most teachers start with new students gradually, learning

the basics of punching and blocking and some kicks. They
watch how you move and the natural aspects of your
bodys frame. This helps them determine the kinds of
stances and body position you should have, what needs the
most development, and the way you learn.

As we get older, we tend to learn differently than we did

before. I have trouble learning long sequences of kata
unless I approach them just three or four movements at a
time. I have been in classes where teenagers are shown
20-move kata a few times and they can duplicate them by
the end of the same class. Its just different. Give me
something to read and I can learn it. Show me something
physically and it takes forever or longer.

46
Our tolerance for exercise and the years of use of our
joints or possible injuries and surgeries mean that we have
to know what we can and cant do ever and what we cant
do now but can work up to later. Theres that wisdom to
know the difference concept again.

If you are out of shape, dont try to be a hero. Strive to get

better a little at a time. Push yourself, but build up to
things rather than trying to do it all at once.

I found that I got easily winded in my early classes, and

had to step to the side to catch my breath. A process you
learn in karate is how to breathe to preserve your strength,
and focus your energy. This enhances the effectiveness of
your movements, and extends your endurance. Its a
surprise to many students how much difference the timing
of breathing makes.

The importance of breathing and health is scientifically

validated. This is why so many studies have shown that
meditation is effective in managing the effects of stress,
and removing that constant heightened fight or flight
that is common among sufferers. In karate, were looking
at breathing as part of the bodys physical movement and
effectiveness. The way you practice your kata is a good
opportunity to get the benefits of breathing, a topic to be
presented in more detail in the coming pages.

Starting martial arts and exercise is very important. If

youve never done hard workouts before, there are a few
things to be aware of.

47
You might be self conscious or have an introverted
personality. I do and still do, but learned some outgoing
behaviors. If I didnt, I could never be successful in
business. It doesnt change your basic personality, but we
can change our behaviors which later changes our
attitudes about them. Your new classmates dont know
youre an introvert unless you act in that manner when
they first meet you. If this is a problem, go up to people
and say Hi, my name is ____. This is my first class. What
was your first class like? I dont know what to expect.
Most students will start talking with you, even if they are
introverted themselves.

Everyone in your class was a beginner at one time, too.

There are some who are naturally athletic, but they can
also have problems learning martial arts. There are so
many aspects to study of martial arts, everyone is always
working on something they want do better. Every teacher,
even at the highest ranks, is working on some aspect of
their karate about which they have had difficulties for
years, sometimes for decades. The best teachers are
always open about that. Thats part of the attraction to
keeping up with your practice. Its part of the courage to
stick with something that can be frustrating at times.

There are practical matters. As an older student, you will

have aches and pains that younger students wont notice.

Every person metabolizes food and pharmaceuticals, such

as pain relievers differently. The one I have used is

48
ibuprofen (some older students call it vitamin I). It
really helps for muscle pain and inflammation. I usually
take it before class. If I suspect I will have some problems
with muscle soreness during the night, I might take some
before bedtime. That seemed to ensure a continuous night
of sleep. Over time, as your body becomes accustomed
with the routine of class, that might not be necessary.

As for that sleep, there is nothing better than the sleep you
get after a good workout. It is a good idea to let your body
come down from that burst of activity. That shower when
you get home for class sometimes feels like the best thing
that could ever happen to you. Be sure to allow time for
your body to come to a relaxed state before trying to sleep.

The use of pain relievers like ibuprofen and others like it

does need a word of caution. I have learned that I need to
be careful using it because prolonged use of ibuprofen
causes headaches. How strange is that? As I researched it,
I learned it was uncommon, but it was a reported side
effect in the drug documentation. So use these kinds of
compounds judiciously. You will get a sense of whats
right for you.

If you have any joints that are not in the best shape, you
may want to care for them beforehand. Have a bad knee?
Heat it up before class to loosen it up. Wear a knee brace
until the knee is strong enough to not need it any more. I
waited too long before using a brace in class. Wearing it
helped me be more confident in class. I have since
strengthened my knees through exercise that I dont need

49
them very often and found it was impeding my
performance. Yet there are times I will use it when I know
it needs the extra protection. Ice your knees after class
when youre starting out. Its just a bit of caution when
you begin your new routine.

Some in the dojo may want to talk you into using some
supplements like glucosomine for your aching joints.
Double-blind medical studies have shown that any
improvement attributed to glucosomine is actually a
placebo effect. Take care of your joints with heat before
and ice after, exercise to strengthen them, protect them
with a brace when you think youll be stressing that joint.
Exercise and eating properly is a more important
approach. Like saw palmetto, save your money. Many
nutritionals cannot stand the scrutiny of testing, so they
are worth investigating first.

There are also many approaches to dealing with pain, and

it is not just supplements that are expensive placebos.
Some alternative medicine approaches are actually what
researchers call theatrical placebos. In this case a
medical or other practitioner is involved to provide a
certain procedure. The reason it is identified as such is that
they have used a fake theatrical method that they knew
would have no effect and compared the results in double
blind studies. The real and fake procedures would end
up with statistically indistinguishable results.

A well-trained massage therapist is often a better choice,

and less expensive. They have learned how to relax

50
stubborn muscles. I had shoulder surgery many years ago,
and have found that an occasional and aggressive massage
can help expand my range of motion and reduce its pain.
They loosening the muscles and break up scar tissue and
adhesions in the joint (adhesions are creepy because you
can hear and feel them break). The shoulder is a hard part
of the body to exercise, and most of the helpful
manipulation is at an angle and location in the back that
only someone behind you can see and reach it properly.

Some massage businesses will try to upsell cremes and

ointments to add to your costs. They are not clinically
effective. Some may also attempt to put you on a regular
schedule. Thats fine, because theyre in business and
hoping to get regular income. The therapist and the studio
share in the sale. I have never found it to be necessary.
Heat, stretching and exercise, and then ice are not sexy,
for sure, but they work. Tip your therapist, and be sure to
recommend them to others, especially in social media, if
they do a good job. Theyll appreciate it, and its more
valuable to them than buying ineffective products.

All of the aches and pains improve eventually. But what

about the CPPS pain? Remember, that takes time, but
there are important times to focus on it.

The most beneficial times in managing prostatitis pains

are during pre-class stretching but also what you do after
class. At that time, your body is warmed up and your
muscles are more pliable. Its a great time to do more
stretching. That stretching may help prevent cramping.

51
During the class, the stances you practice for kata and
punching exercises are also important. Keep stances
proper and firm as you are taught. Many stances are low;
keep your back straight that often helps put good stress
in the leg muscles that are part of the CPPS pain. New
students tend to fall out of stances easily. Most Sensei
look at your stances to determine how well you are doing.
Punches just have to be on target, and your eyes can help
you do that.

But stances are something you can have trouble seeing

unless you stop and look down. Eventually you develop a
sense of when they are right and wrong, so they take more
practice. Problems with stances are often fixed after a
teacher sees and diagnoses a problem. Practicing in front
of a mirror can help greatly; taking video is another way,
especially from different angles.

You can get great benefits from moving stretches. When

practicing alone, exaggerate the depth and length of the
stances. Performing kata with deeper than normal stances
look strange, but can make a significant difference over
time. Stretching alone does not give a variety of
movement and transition to another position that
practicing a kata. Most of the beginning kata are simple
and not as physically challenging as the ones you learn
later.

Kata should be practiced in different ways. The most basic

is when you are learning the kata, trying to remember the

52
sequences of the specific movements and stances. As your
ability to perform the kata improves, then you begin to
imagine an opponent and how those movements become
used in defense and in retaliation. The philosophy of
karate is never to initiate an attack, but to defend oneself
against one and to immobilize the attacker if possible.
Some have suggested that self-defense is not as
descriptive a term as it should be, but that self-
preservation is a better one.

Importance of Pace and Breathing

As you become familiar with kata, you learn more and
more about them and about your body. Most kata have a
natural pace to them where you keep your movements
loose but confident with a brief tightening in your punches
or blocks to deliver them with the most force. When you
practice, it is good to vary speeds. Performing kata slow
and loose with no stops between movements helps
practice deep breathing. These are usually exhales for
punches and kicks and inhales for blocks. That can be
very relaxing and helps you develop muscle memory for
the kata. Also, practicing kata slow with your muscles
tensed for most of the kata can have an isometric effect to
your muscles that gives them a good workout. These are
not the kinds of routines you would do in class but are
excellent for practicing at home.

As you learn more about the kata, you begin to sense how
the speed changes during the kata based in the hidden
nature of the defense and the attacks. You realize after a
while that kata are mysteries that can be experienced from

53
many different perspectives. The only bad speed of a kata
is the one that you cannot execute your movements
properly or that the movements are not clearly defined.
Movements may flow together, but they cannot merge to
be indistinguishable.

This is why karate is a lifelong experience. Theres always

something new to learn and your body is always changing
so there are always improvements and adjustments to be
made.

Its best to allocate your time in martial arts that you focus
on learning in the dojo and concentrate on practicing at
home. Part of learning in the dojo is to perform kata so
your teachers can see progress but also make you aware of
and correct problems, and for you to ask questions about
your improvement. As CPPS sufferers, we want to
practice at home anyway, just to manage our condition. So
its of dual benefit to us.

When practicing punches and blocks, have good low

stances, as low as you can maintain, for as long as you
can. Sometimes its a good idea to get into a good karate
stance and just stay in it for an extended time. Ive often
suggested to practice while watching TV. An hour long
television program can have 20 minutes of commercials;
when a commercial comes on, start practicing, or get into
a deep stance and hold it until the program returns. Thats
about three or four minutes in a stance. The positive effect
on your stances can be surprising. You develop muscle
memory about what feels right. Its a convenient way to

54
sneak your practice time into your day.

Obviously, when you are in class and doing kata with

others, you perform them as you should, and not in any
exaggerated way. You will find that the kata will become
more natural and you will detect errors yourself because
they dont feel right since you have started to develop
muscle and movement memory from the times you just
stayed in your stances or practiced kata in a soft way and
in a hard way.

More Breathing
Part of martial arts training is learning how to breathe in a
manner that both relaxes the body and increases the power
and intensity of strikes. Most of the time, you exhale on
punches and kicks, and inhale for blocks. Kata usually
alternate between strikes and blocks, but there are times
when there are two punches or two blocks together
executed in sequence. Being able to punch, punch, block,
block means you have to exhale, exhale, inhale, inhale.

This teaches you control your breathing to have enough

energy to punch twice with great force because your lung
capacity is both greater and controlled. Controlled
breathing makes your exercise better. Exercise and
stretching at high speed is not always the best way to tone
and stretch your muscles. This is why it is good to vary
speeds of your practice.

Deep breathing while performing a kata slowly can be

very relaxing while it exercises and stretches your muscles

55
further. You may have seen weightlifters practice slowly
and concentrate on their breathing. This is not very
different.

The purpose of the exercising and stretching is not to build

big muscles. Muscles will get stronger, and more
pliable. And, they will relax, which is a key part of
improving your CPPS symptoms. Getting the chronically
tightened pelvic floor muscles to relax and be more
flexible reduces the CPPS pain.

I found that prayer during the stretching was very helpful.

Its another way of pushing pain responses out of your
mind, rather than listening to music or being otherwise
occupied. The repetition and internal nature of prayer
became very relaxing and comforting, but also way of
timing the duration of stretches.6

6 For me, it was the Rosary with its repeated sequence of

prayers and its associated meditation and visualization.
Holding a stretch for one or two prayers in the sequence is
a good way of timing, and filling your mind with
transformative thoughts. Each section of a Rosary takes
two to three minutes, and can be done to match a sequence
of stretching movement. Most faiths have a devotional of
some kind that can be applied in a similar manner.

56
 Chapter 7: Some Exercises
These are some of the exercises I do on a regular basis,
usually before class, and often at home. When youre
starting out you should try to do them every day if you
can.

This is part of a routine I learned starting with my first

karate class with Sensei Dennis Branchaud in Rhode
Island. These were designed to prepare the body for karate
practice, to improve range of motion, and overall fitness.
Sensei learned many of these when he trained in Okinawa
decades ago. It turns out that they were great for relieving
CPPS.

For most of these, count slowly to 20 and hold them in

position to the depth and stretch where you feel your body
starting to offer resistance.

A key point: start in a position that is slightly

uncomfortable, and work from there. Weve had a saying
in the dojo: if it doesnt hurt, its not karate! Its the same
here. Start in an uncomfortable position, but not a painful
one. Every time you stretch, seek to push it a little further
than you did the previous time.

57
Legs wide and feet forward, back straight; lean to one
side with knee moving just past your foot on that side.
Count to 20, slowly.

Repeat in the other direction.

58
Shift to one side and squat down on one leg. Use the arm
on that side to push your knee away from your body.
Grab your toes on the other leg and pull back. Not
everyone can do this right away, so they usually reach to
the top of their foot or to their ankle. Count to 20, slowly.

Repeat on the other side. You can really feel the muscles
on the insides of your legs stretch with this one. Be sure to
push your opposite knee away from your body to make the
stretch more intensive.

59
Sit down and spread your legs as far apart as you
comfortably can, and then a little more. With your hands
behind your head, lean forward and attempt to touch
your nose to your knee. This is one that you dont hold for
longer than two seconds, but you repeat in that direction
ten times. You get a better stretch by pointing your toes up
and pushing your heels out.

Starting from the same position, lean forward for the ten
times.

60
Then repeat for the other leg.

From the original position reach down to one foot, and

pull back on your toes. Try to get both hands down to
your toes; when I cant I just hold my leg down to keep
from bending my knee. Count to 20, slowly.

Repeat on the other side.

61
Still sitting, spread your legs out further, then lean
forward as far as you can, reaching out past your feet.
Count to 20, slowly.

Then, pull your feet together so your heels meet, place

your elbows into your knees, then lean forward with
your back straight and pull the front of your feet back
with your hands. If this is uncomfortable, dont pull your
heels as close to you; over the weeks and months, try to
move your heels closer for a better stretch. Count to 20,
slowly. Bounce your knees up and down. Then count to
20, slowly as you push down more firmly with your elbows
than the first time.

62
Extend your legs together and forward. Reach for your
toes and pull back. If you cant reach that far at first,
reach as far as you can, and then a little more. Count to
20, slowly.

Get into a low stance, almost like youre sitting. Notice

how the knees are pushed out and are over the feet. This
feels unnatural at first, and thats okay. Count to 20,
slowly.

63
A forward stance is also a good stretch. Having your feet
turned in adds extra stretch to your legs. Count to 20,
slowly.

Do the same stretch as before, but this time turn your

feet out, and then get into a near-sitting position. Count
to 20, slowly.

64
Ive always liked this stretch and found them to relieve a
lot of my CPPS pain. One leg forward, the other back,
and lean slightly forward. This is especially effective
after all of the other stretches because the muscles are
already warmer and more pliable. But Ive found I can
use this as soon as I get a sense of CPPS pain and it feels
better soon thereafter. Count to 20, slowly.

This is even better when you can lift up, raising your
back knee off the floor by using your back foot. You can
really feel this in your front leg quadriceps muscles, too.
Repeat these two stretches for the other leg. Count to 10,
slowly; counting to 20 might be too challenging at first.
Increase the counts slowly over the weeks and months.

65
Getting on your back, pull your leg to the shoulder of the
same side. Repeat for the other leg. Count to 20, slowly.

Still on your back, repeat it but change it a little. Bring

your knee to the opposite shoulder, and then repeat for the
other leg.

Pull one of your feet toward your head; repeat for the
other leg, too. Count to 20, slowly.

66
This is a strange one. Put the bottoms of your feet
together, reach under the feet, then pull your feet toward
you. Count to 20, slowly.

Still laying on your back, place one ankle above the

other legs knee, then push down on the leg. Repeat for
the other leg. Count to 20, slowly.

67
Stretch your hamstrings by putting your feet together,
crossing your arms and leaning forward while keeping
your legs as straight as possible. Deepen the stretch by
pushing against your calves with your hands. For an
extra stretch, stand up and cross your arms, cross your
feet one over the other, then lean forward again. Count to
20, slowly.

68
Kicks are important in karate. A good way to stretch
your legs is to send your leg forward while it is stiff and
unbent. Start slowly, and dont push it. With each lift,
youll see how you pick up just a little bit more. With my
first kick I can barely get over my belt level. By the tenth,
Im almost at head level.

69
 Kegel Exercises
Kegel exercises are often prescribed for people having
incontinence problems, and it turns out that the exercise
works well for prostatitis patients.

The way to sense the muscles needed is note the muscles

you use when stopping urination. When voiding your
bladder, try to stop and it will become pretty obvious what
to do.

Whats good is that you can do Kegels anywhere. When

youre driving and are at a stop light, you can exercise
these muscles. Just hold them tight for about 10 seconds
and release them. And then repeat. These can be done any
time of the day, sitting or standing. The greater the variety
of positions, the better. They can be very effective.7

Other Resources
For some exercise or stretches, resistance bands can be
helpful. Holding light weights while exercising adds to the
challenge. They dont have to be heavy. Heavier weights
can accidentally make you lose your balance while
exercising. Light weights are fine because it is the
repetitions that help you build stamina and flexibility.

If you want to explore more stretches, the book Ultimate

Flexibility may be worth getting from the library. It was
7 Kegel exercises are used for a lot of conditions, no matter
your gender. To read up on them, enter Kegel in Google or
another search engine. There are many resources devoted
to the subject.

70
published in 2004 and was written by Sang H. Kim. It has
excellent photos and descriptions. Many of the exercises
are pictured and have beginner and advanced levels.

71
 Chapter 8: Other Important
Topics
Hello, I Must be Going
One of the worst parts of prostatitis and CPPS is the
constant feeling that your bladder is full and you need to
find a rest room quickly. Its part of the inflamed nerves of
the pelvic floor and usually a false signal.

Use some common sense. You can train that urge away.
Look at the clock and take note of the time when you last
used a rest room. When the urge comes again, look at the
clock once more, and ignore it, especially if youve had
nothing to drink in the meantime.
Stretch out the time by 30 minutes, then an hour, then
more. Stay occupied during that time to get your mind off
of the sensation.

Eventually, you will reprogram the sensation to where it is

more reasonable and predictable.

Keep track of the amount of liquid you consume, and any

water-laden food (soup, of course, and pasta is packed
with water) and decide if that urge makes sense at that
time.

72
 Staying Hydrated
Drinking liquids is very important, especially for exercise.
Part of the idea is to sweat, and in that process, you can
become dehydrated.

Want a challenge? Once you feel confident, drink water

before class. That will test your ability to control bladder
issues, for sure.

Remember that your body needs to replace various

minerals after classes. I use Gatorade G2, the low sugar
version, after class.

Some dojos do not allow the drinking of water during

class. This varies by the tradition of the style and the
Sensei. Not drinking during class, after you are used to
classes, conditions your body and your mind to perform
under difficult circumstances. Its part of your training.

After class, you are hungry. Sometimes very hungry. Wait

before eating, sometimes it will pass, or the intensity will
subside. If you eat a lot after class, you may actually add
pounds. Thats not the idea, is it?

I started the habit of having some fruit when I get home

from class. That stops me from having cookies or other
tempting items. Since I get home after an evening class,
having a big meal before bedtime is not usually a good
idea anyway.

73
 A Quick Diet
Weight was always an issue for me. Im half Italian, and
we had food in the house all of the time, and some very
bad food habits. In my childhood, especially for older
adults who survived the Depression or had relatives who
experienced poverty in Europe during the wars, having a
husky or big-boned child was a sign of health and
prosperity they had not known. I was known for my good
and healthy appetite.

After deciding that losing weight would help my CPPS

and some other problems, I went on mainly a low carb
diet. It helped tremendously.

I lost 60 pounds over a year and a half, and it was a

combination of diet and karate. Ive kept 45-50 pounds off
for fifteen years by maintaining most of these practices.
Getting those pounds off were just great; I noticed quite a
difference in everything I did during the day by not
carrying that weight around.

My strategy was to get control of two meals: for me, they

were breakfast and lunch. Out with the carbs, in with the
proteins. Fats are okay. I loved oatmeal: it was supposed
to save my heart. Its also one of the most calorie-packed
meals you cold have. I have it once or twice a month now.

A typical breakfast a variation of egg white omelets with

no toast, or an occasional egg with extra whites, or Egg
Beaters (the southwestern flavor is my favorite).

74
When I get hungry I snack on Hormel turkey pepperoni. I
switched to diet soda. For lunch, a salad, no croutons, or a
healthy couple of pieces of turkey kielbasa, or some
chicken. No bread, no fries (Im shocked I didnt miss
them as much as I thought I would). If I have cold cuts, I
use one slice of bread and pile the meat up thick. If I use
wraps, Im sure they are the low carb grainy kind. Check
the carb counts on the package before buying.

For dinner, my family was not on my diet, and that would

have been a lot to ask. So I ate regular dinner with them. I
stayed away from the bread or cut it down a lot. I love
potatoes, but instead a full one, I have just a half, usually
with ranch dressing.

The best vegetables tend to be low carb ones, such as

broccoli or cauliflower, and peppers. Corn was always a
favorite, but I just have less. Rice is starchy and full of
carbs, so have less, and look for the really grainy kinds.

I lost 15 pounds my first month (its mainly water), 30 in

about 3 months, and then slowly the rest.

I stayed interested by always being sure to cheat on my

diet once a week for some treat I really missed. I would
have a cheat carb meal once a month. That was pancakes,
which I used to have weekly. Once a month was just fine.
I enjoyed them more by not having them often.

The big culprits are always bread and baked goods. Cut
back on those, and thats always a good start. We stopped

75
keeping ice cream in the house and just saved it for special
occasions.

Its hard to stay on a diet that makes you feel deprived of

your favorite things. You can have them, just less often,
and in smaller portions. Having them less often makes you
appreciate them much more. There are some items I
realized I was just eating them to eat, not to enjoy them,
and many of those just fell by the wayside.

The combination of diet and hard workouts cant be beat.

You will never be able to return to your old diet again, and
nor will you be able to go back to sedentary ways again.

You start feeling so different than you did before that

maintaining your weight and the healthier feeling becomes
habit and not a chore.

76
 Chapter 9: Should You Start
Karate?
I am often asked by people who visited my story on the
Prostatitis Foundation site8 how they can find a karate
studio or something similar for themselves.

I do take traditional Okinawan karate. Ive liked it because

many practitioners place less emphasis on fighting or sport
karate than some other styles do. The style I currently
study is Shorin-Ryu and the branch is Shorinkan. The style
I started with was Ryuku hon Kenpo Kobujitsu. I did
study Japanese style Shotokan for a brief time at an
excellent dojo, but it was not a good match at that time in
terms of other commitments. Some Shotokan tends to look
at karate in a more technical manner, seeking great
precision, even down to the physics of bodily movement.
It can be fascinating.

The teacher and the dojo make a difference. Some dojos

cater to children and do not have many adult
opportunities. Some have extensive adult programs,
populated with black belts of various ages and levels.

Some dojos are into martial arts for the business aspects,
and thats fine. Prices can vary widely. They have detailed
contracts and pricing programs for classes and tests.
Others go month-to-month with no contracts (I have found

8 http://www.prostatitis.org/ExerciseKarate.html and also at

https://www.prostatitis.org/iwfkarate.html

77
those dojos to be better). I have never signed a contract
other than to go month to month. Expect to sign some
kind of insurance release for each of the dojos; these are
appropriate, but read them.

There are some dojos that base their promotions based on

the calendar and the number of classes you attend, and not
really on your proficiency. Those are generally good to
avoid. Rank does not matter; getting better does. Rank
will take care of itself.

Dont always look for a big school. Ive had great classes
where you could add up the ages of three students and
they didnt add up to mine. Sometimes the Sensei is just
curious about teaching a middle-age or older adult, just to
expand the knowledge of martial arts to others, and to
deepen their own understanding of how to best teach
adults.

You need to decide what is best for you. Most all dojos
offer some free introductory classes, and they are worth
taking. When you evaluate them, be sure to talk to some
of the students, especially newer ones, not just the
experienced ones.

Korean styles such as Tae Kwon Do have lots of leg and

other stretches. I have met some practitioners of Tong Soo
Do and they speak very highly of it. Dont just limit
yourself to Okinawan and Japanese karate. There are
many martial arts styles and traditions.

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Yoga has many leg and torso stretches than can be helpful,
too. It obviously is not a self-defense method, and may not
have the physicality of exhaustive exercise that can be of
benefit.

Find a place thats right for you. It may take some tries,
but dont give up. Some dojos are better at handling older
students than others. Some will tailor programs better than
others.

Remember, I stumbled on my interest in martial arts. I just

wanted to get out of the house! You may join because of
CPPS and find you enjoy it for many other reasons.

My primary purpose has always been getting physically

better and improving my knowledge and skill every class.

In my experience, students who seek only promotions may

move ahead quickly and pass you in rank, but they often
disappear from the dojos, never to be seen again.
Remember the saying attributed to Confucius: It does not
matter how slow you go as long as you do not stop.
Theres always that fable about the tortoise and the hare,
too.9

Belt ranks are not just a sign of some incremental

achievement, they are also a sign to other students about
what you know. This way a brown belt will not use a
technique with them that they have not learned or are not
9 I once worked with an executive who used Post-It Notes
that said Old age and treachery will overcome youth and
skill.

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prepared to defend.

Also, a black belt is not the end of learning, its just the
beginning. Its a sign that youre ready to be a better
student, and that you are prepared to help your Sensei in
teaching others.

Remember your real goal: to manage and conquer CPPS.

There's no belt or reward ceremony for that. The award is
getting your life back and having new friends and a
confident outlook once more.

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