# Brian Johns Ajax • Durham Region • Self Defense/Personal Safety - Site: https://brianejohns.com/ ## BrianBrief #8 (Setbacks) - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/21/brianbrief-8-setbacks/ - Published: 2026-10-21T18:15:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## Setbacks can clarify and, in bold relief, point out your weaknesses. Was it your preparation? Or did you ignore potential weaknesses? Or [did the setback/loss expose unknown weaknesses](https://brianejohns.com/2023/10/11/all-your-losses-lead-back-to-you/)? For example, several things became glaringly obvious during Notre Dame’s loss to BYU last Saturday. CJ Carr had an off night and faced coverages he didn’t read or recognize. In addition, ND’s wide receiver corps is lacking, and BYU exposed it. Also, unlike in the past, ND doesn’t have a great tight end right now. They need to treat all of the above as a four-alarm fire and use the off week to make some changes. A tweak here and there won’t do it. ## Obviously, this is from the perspective of competitive sports where weaknesses are exposed. ## But what about non-competitive endeavors such as martial arts/self defense? Obviously, it would be better to know your own weaknesses or potential vulnerabilities before a potential self-defence situation. For example, if you’re 62 years of age, do you still train for speed and raw physicality? There is nothing wrong with those two attributes. But would it be better to work on timing (rather than pure speed) and deception? Deception can include guile, the element of surprise and manipulating the attacker into letting down his guard. We’d all agree that we want to survive any self-defence situation rather than have to learn from a severe setback, as happened to a friend who ended up in the hospital after a mass attack. He replayed that situation for a long time after that and knew what he should have done. ## Anyway, what adjustments have you made as you’ve gotten older? ## BrianBrief #7 (A Wise Doctor) - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/16/brianbrief-7-a-wise-doctor/ - Published: 2026-10-16T19:25:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## As it turns out, I wrote yesterday’s 󠀁[BrianBrief](https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/15/brianbrief-6-why/)󠁿 at the ophthalmologist’s office for my regular checkup. Long story short, my eyes are stable glaucoma-wise. My only complaint was cloudiness in my left eye’s visual field. It turns out to be a common byproduct of cataracts years after the surgery. My usual ophthalmologist (Dr. K) was off-site, so one of his interns, an Israeli doctor ( Dr. Z), examined me. He performed a thorough examination and determined that I had a posterior capsular opacification. The question was whether to treat it with a simple laser procedure or surgery. Here’s a link to explain what I’m talking about: [Posterior Capsular Opacification.](https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/24737-posterior-capsular-opacification) Anyway, Dr Z said to “_I’m not sure whether laser treatment would work in your case. It’s possible you need surgery. Either way, we will clean things up and get rid of the cloudiness in your vision. I’m going to take a picture of the inside of your left eye and text it to Dr. K. We’ll see what he says._” At this point, I said to myself, “_Dr. K will opt for the laser procedure first._” 20 minutes later, Dr. Z returned to the examination room and told me he and Dr. K had discussed my case. “_We decided to go the laser route first_.” I think it’s likely that Dr. K decided on that course of action himself. Sidenote: Dr. K is a world-renowned ophthalmologist who attracts doctors and interns from around the world to study under him. I’ve met residents and doctors from South America, South Asia, and the Middle East. I have a sneaking suspicion that many of them were at the top of their classes or close to it and want to learn from the best in the field. Anyway, how did I know that Dr. K would choose the laser option? Early in my time as his patient, he described his medical philosophy: “_My approach is to get the most benefit with the least amount of work_.” I wanted to interject and ask him if he practiced martial arts. His quote was remarkably similar to “_Maximum damage with as little effort as possible_.” Anyway, my knowledge of his philosophy made me certain that he would choose the laser option first and reserve surgery as a last option. As I get older, I’ve become more focused on efficiency and training, doing the most damage with the least amount of work. Why throw multiple punches when you can poke them in the eye or execute a throat strike? You get the idea. ## Have you encountered anyone with a similar philosophy outside of martial arts? Drop a comment! ## Have a great weekend! ## BrianBrief #6 (Why?) - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/15/brianbrief-6-why/ - Published: 2026-10-15T18:00:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## Why have I decided to do BrianBriefs? Three reasons: 1. Instead of spending time on long-form posts, I’ve decided that short posts I can compose on the fly are fine. 2. To get around the Facebook algorithm. I need an outlet outside of Facebook. Their algorithm is terrible for bloggers. Blog posts are essentially throttled into non- existence. Hence, I’m changing my strategy to build an audience outside of FB. 3. The last reason is that my current workload doesn’t leave much time for long-form posts. I will still write long-form posts when the time permits. ## I’m writing this in a doctor’s office waiting room. Just an illustration of what I can do when out and about! ## Stay tuned for more! ## BrianBrief #5 (Reality vs Fantasy) - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/14/brianbrief-5-reality-vs-fantasy/ - Published: 2026-10-14T18:15:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## “The unexamined life is not worth living.” – Socrates Let’s apply Socrates to our martial arts lives. Early in my martial arts career, I attended a Modern Arnis seminar. I wasn’t a black belt yet. After Professor Presas demonstrated a technique, I approached a black belt to see if he wanted to partner up. “_No thanks. I don’t need to train_.” ## What? Another example: A Modern Arnis seminar was scheduled to pay for Professor Presas’ medical expenses after he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. A martial artist emailed the host, saying he intended to attend the seminar. He attached his martial arts resume. The resume claimed 50 years of martial arts experience and listed various styles he had supposedly studied. “_Oh wow! What an impressive resume!_” Unfortunately, the guy could not walk and chew gum at the same time. This wasn’t an experienced martial artist training in an unfamiliar style. It was as if he had barely trained at all. It seems to me that, while they are different, both were leading an “unexamined life” in the martial arts. Start with the first dude. Had he looked into the mirror and asked himself what his martial weaknesses were? Probably not. His ego is the biggest obstacle to further elevation of his skills. It all starts with examining himself with unsparing honesty. Ditto for the second dude. His self-delusion is an obvious tell that he never evaluated himself. How many of you have watched yourself on video? I have, and it’s painful to watch! “_Holy mackerel, I look terrible there. Let’s effing fix this!_” From a martial perspective, one couldn’t do better than this quote: “Honestly expressing yourself…it is very difficult to do. I mean it is easy for me to put on a show and be cocky and be flooded with a cocky feeling and then feel like pretty cool…or I can make all kind of phony things, you see what I mean, blinded by it or I can show you some really fancy movement. But to express oneself honestly, not lying to oneself…now that, my friend, is very hard to do.” How many of you have looked at yourself in the mirror? Perhaps by taking a video of yourself as you work out? ## Drop a line and let me know what you think. ## BrianBrief #4 (Foreseeable Crap) - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/08/brianbrief-4-foreseeable-crap/ - Published: 2026-10-08T21:45:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## “Self defense” often denotes an immediate situation confronting you. A stranger accosts you in an elevator or at a parking lot. Or a loved one throws a violent temper tantrum to the point where you fear for your safety. But what about life style choices that start out innocently enough but develops into a potential life threatening scenario? For example, imagine a person racking up a gambling debt that approaches hundreds of thousands of dollars? What if it’s the kind of debt that results in broken legs or worse? Is that person capable of realizing the long term consequences of their choices? I don’t know. On the one hand, they may be too caught up in the moment to step outside of themselves. On the other hand, they’re often suffused with fear but of their debt rather than their own safety. What I’m getting at is that lifestyle choices often have a great impact on our personal safety. ## Thoughts? Side note: I typed this entirely on my iPhone and didn’t have access to my laptop to clean it up. Hope it turned out okay! ## BrianBrief #3 (Miracle Exercise) - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/07/brianbrief-3-miracle-exercise/ - Published: 2026-10-07T18:30:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## Two years ago I suffered a severe case of tendonitis in my right shoulder as a result of my push-up training leading up to my 60th birthday. Long story short: I went through physical therapy located a short walk from my house. It helped a lot. I also supplemented my physical therapy exercises with a shoulder stretching routine at the ABS Training Centre. I had good results. All of the above brought 75% to 80% improvement in my shoulder tendonitis symptoms. Unfortunately, I still had lingering pain in that pain and was resigned to “managing” it for the rest of my life. Then, in May, after giving a private lesson to Rosh (the owner of the ABS Training Centre), we started talking about my dissatisfaction with training at the local gym and how I was stuck in a rut. He suggested I try the parallel bars and see if I’d be interested. I initially had some reservations given the state of my right shoulder. My wife expressed the same concern. “_How is your shoulder going to hold up?_” she asked. I responded, “_There’s only one way to find out_.” Then in early May, after a Modern Arnis private lesson, Rosh suggested doing the p-bars for the first time, focusing on 30-second holds with strict form. Let me tell you, it does a hell of a job on the triceps and the shoulders. I was quite stoked after this initial session as it was better than anything I was doing at the local gym. ![](https://i0.wp.com/brianejohns.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/img_8851-1.jpg? resize=768%2C1024&ssl=1) My first parallel bar lesson He also gave a set of mobile parallel bars that were in storage. He offered them to me to take home. I accepted on the condition that if he needed them back, I would give them back. ![](https://i0.wp.com/brianejohns.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/img_9694-1.jpg? resize=768%2C1024&ssl=1) The mobile p-bars in my garage I’ve been doing the p-bar workout religiously since then. The one day last month I noticed something strange. My right shoulder had no pain! What?! It felt like a miracle! Rosh and I theorize that the p-bars probably addressed some kind of muscular imbalance in my shoulder. Either way, I’m happy that I found something that significantly addressed the tendinitis issue. ## If you’re struggling with a physical ailment, don’t give up! Never give up! You might find the miracle exercise for what ails you! ## BrianBrief #2 - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/06/brianbrief-2/ - Published: 2026-10-06T18:30:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## In one sense, I have two different kinds of private clients. Both concern the willingness to slow down their training sequences. The first kind consciously slows down their technique (often prompted by me) to smooth things out. For example, I have a brother-sister duo who are particular about slow, smooth technique. I learned that their acting training and background informed their approach. For example, they both took body movement classes. Guess what? The emphasis was on slow, controlled movements. The second kind rushes through their technique, particularly when learning new material. Some don’t realize that they are going too fast and that their technique is deeply flawed. Verbal prompting often fixes this issue. The more difficult clients are those who do not perceptibly slow down after my request. This type of client is either unwilling to slow down or has no idea how to dial back. It’s as if they are stuck in one gear. In this situation, I will take control and move at super slow speed to make my point. Most of the time it works. ## Some subscribe to the “Slow is smooth, smooth is fast” mantra. ## I prefer “Go Slow, Learn Fast.” What do you think? ## Old School Workouts - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/05/old-school-workouts/ - Published: 2026-10-05T11:30:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## Lately I’ve been digging into old-school 19th-century physical culture. Specifically, I’m looking for challenging exercises that fit my Modern Arnis. The above video showcasing 19th-century Swedish calisthenics is fascinating. To backtrack, I have shifted away from weightlifting and more toward bodyweight/ calisthenics routines. They are more fun and, in many ways, more challenging. Also, the fact that I’m now 62 and have had my right hip replaced is a factor in my shift away from weightlifting. The right hip replacement was the result of years of Tae Kwon Do kicking, and I have no interest in damaging any other joints. ## Four other factors drive my interest in old-school training: 1. One of my clients is a former world-class gymnast. He has impressive strength and build. He has influenced me by showing me a variety of challenging bodyweight/gymnastic exercises. 2. Next are my observations of some older folks at the local gym who are still lifting heavy weights. It’s easy to tell that they’ve damaged nearly every joint in their bodies. It’s as if they’re blind to what they’ve done to themselves. I don’t want that for myself. 3. I need more variety in my workout routine. The number of bodyweight exercise variations is mind-boggling. That is quite appealing to me. 4. I’ve had to re-evaluate my workouts after my push-up challenge in 2024, which left me with severe tendonitis in my right shoulder. I have slowly changed things up to the point where I dropped my membership at the local gym and moved entirely to garage/basement workouts. I am still fine-tuning and tinkering with the routine to benefit my martial arts base and skill level. Anyway, I tried out some of the exercises from the video at the top of the post. The leg exercises were challenging and left me pretty sore the next day. I have already incorporated them into my garage workout! In the next long-form post, I will describe how parallel bars literally cured the tendonitis issue in my right shoulder. I have a set of bars exactly like the one in the featured image above. ![](https://i0.wp.com/brianejohns.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/img_9694-1.jpg? resize=768%2C1024&ssl=1) Parallel Bars In My Garage Also, a recent purchase of 2 sets of Indian clubs will be the topic of another long- form post! ## If you haven’t done so, please subscribe to this blog! ## BrianBrief #1 - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/02/brianbrief-1/ - Published: 2026-10-02T19:30:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## All right. I’m slowly getting the hang of typing out short posts on my iPhone. The tricky part is formatting each paragraph, whether it’s a heading or a regular paragraph. I’ll get it soon enough. These may consist of quick thoughts or short training videos Some of these posts may be expanded into longer traditional blog posts. The photo? Those are 2 and 3 lb Indian clubs I recently purchased to add to my garage workout. ## Stay tuned for more! ## Blog Posts vs Mini Posts - Link: https://brianejohns.com/2026/10/01/blog-posts-vs-mini-posts/ - Published: 2026-10-01T18:00:00-04:00 - Author: Brian Johns ## Since I discovered I can write posts in the Jetpack app on my iPhone, I’ve been thinking about writing mini posts on the go. As you might guess, this is the first mini post. It might just work. I suspect I will need to do the final touches on my laptop. It looks like I can upload videos and photos directly to this app on my iPhone. Perfect for mini-posts! Right now, it feels a bit cumbersome writing this out on my iPhone, but with practice, I should get the hang of it! ![](https://i0.wp.com/brianejohns.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/img_9694.jpg?resize =768%2C1024&ssl=1) **Parallel Bars** Mini-post coming soon about how these parallel bars “miraculously” addressed the severe tendonitis in my right shoulder. ## Stay tuned!