May Newsletter

Hi Everyone!

So, it seems like there’s finally a bit of light at the end of the tunnel, although we don’t yet know exactly when. I’m sure you guys are climbing the walls just like us, looking to get back to training with the rest of Kraken squad. We want to give a massive thanks to the continued support from many of you guys – thanks to you, things are now looking positive. Seriously, we can’t tell you enough how humbled we are by those of you who have stood by and supported us to ensure that Kraken survives this apocolypse!

Plan

Although things are now looking hopefull, we’re still at the governments mercy as to when we can get things going again and reopen the doors. We have done a lot of thinking to give us various options enabling us to reopen and adapt to whatever criteria the government sets and to keep everyone safe. Whether we’ll have to initially reduce the timetable to reduce the traffic through the gym, mark out social distancing areas on the mats or even have a temporary class booking system, we will make it work until things are back to normal! Obviously our hygiene standards and cleaning schedule will remain a priority of ours and we’ll still, as per usual, be tempted to shoot anybody who dares to hinder the germ count on our beloved mats!

We wish that we could give you a clearer view of what our plans are but unfortunately, as Boris didn’t exactly speak with precision, we are in the dark as much as you guys. Just know that we are prepared to adapt and do whatever we possibly can to make it work, no matter what they throw at us.

In the Meantime

For now, we hope that you are all staying as fit and healthy as possible and winning the ongoing food battle!

As the majority of people haven’t a training partner, we know that it is extremely difficuly or even impossible to practice many techniques. However, martial arts aren’t just about the punching and strangling each other. This is the perfect time to work on flexibility, cardio, technique studying and health in general (e.g diet changes, decent sleep patterns etc). These are all things that are often overlooked in general and many people struggle to make the changes in their day to day routine. BUT these will have just as much effect on your performance in the gym as the actual training/workout itself that you usually do!

If anyone needs any pointers or has any questions, then feel free to reach out to any of the Kraken coaches who will be more than happy to help (free of charge – of course!). We’d love to hear from you.

We’ll be posting a grappling specific stretching video later on today to detail many of the specific stretches that will help you with the grappling aspect of your game.

Realistically, becoming more flexible is easy and IS possible for everyone. Everyone has a different current level of flexibility but it can be improved to whatever level you want regardless of age etc. The only requirement is consistancy. Dedicate perhaps 10 minutes a day and you’ll soon start seeing results. I personally believe that this is more important the older you get and is key to keeping your body young and reducing injury susceptibility! The reality is that most people just don’t bother or use the false excuse of they’re too old…You’re not!

Kettlebells

We have decided to sell all of our kettlebells giving members first dibs. This is two-fold – firstly, as kettlebells are currently like rockinghorse poo having sold out at all shops, it will help you guys to obtain some sort of training aid for the following weeks. Secondly, it will allow us to order a new matching set of cast iron kettlebells with amended quantities to help ensure that there’s always the required weight available for all of our members.

There will be a further 10% discount off of the following prices for all of you that have supported us and have continued to pay membership:

• 24kg (x2) – £35
• 20kg (x3) – £30
• 18kg (x3) – £27
• 16kg (x3) – £24
• 14kg (x3) – £22
• 12kg (x4) – £19
• 10kg (x4) – £18
• 10kg cast iron (x2) – £30
• 8kg (x4) – £15
• 8kg cast iron (x2) – £25
• 6kg (x2) – £16
• 6kg cast iron (x3) – £20
• 4kg cast iron (x2) – £17

We’ll give you guys until the end of the week before we advertise them online. For those that are interested, please contact Rod on 07340 747402. All kettlebells will be thoroughly wiped down and left outside the front door. Money can then be posted through the letterbox ensuring social distancing is in place.

Final Thoughts

So, at the moment we haven’t got too many options as far as opening goes. Let’s all keep our ears to the ground and all of our fingers and toes crossed in the hope that we will soon be back to normal!

Again, we can’t stress enough how greatful we are to those of you who have kept up with your membership payments. Things were looking very bad to start off with but with the help of you guys and finally managing to get a small helping hand from the gov we will now hopefully be through this mess once and for all and come back more eager than ever!

Stay safe and healthy,

The Kraken Team