THE 1ST PILLAR OF BUDOKON:

THOUGHTS

THINKING IS SUFFERINGIt has been said that the average person has over 60,000 thoughts per day, which equals 2,500 thoughts per hour or 41 thoughts per minute. Many of these thoughts occur subcon-sciously. They spring into action as a response to stimuli in our environment and can be very useful in our everyday lives. Automatic thoughts can help us avoid injury by signaling us not to touch a hot stove. They can provide relief by sending a signal from our brain to our hand telling us to scratch an itch. But what about those thoughts that leave us feeling angry, frustrated, sad, depressed, or even physically ill?

The dilemma is that most of us live under the control of our limiting thoughts. Researchers estimate that about 80% of the 60,000 thoughts we have per day are negative. That’s 48,000 thoughts! Imagine the limiting effect that 48,000 negative thoughts a day has on your life. These disempowering thoughts are bad for both our emo-tional and physical health. They cause stress, anxiety and depression, raise blood pressure and lower immu-nity. Our limiting thoughts determine our patterns, attitudes and behaviors and ultimately shape the world for ourselves and others.

How are we going to be abundant if we keep thinking, “Money is hard to get.” How are our relationships going to flourish, if we keep thinking “No one understands me.” How are we going to find lasting happiness within ourselves if we keep thinking, “I’m just not good enough.”

Our goal in Budokon is to get our brains to work for us not against us. In order to break free from limiting thoughts and beliefs that cause dis-ease and suffering, we must first understand where thought comes from by taking a deeper look at how our brain develops and functions.

THE BRAINOur brain is a truly incredible organ, capable of doing things light-years beyond even the most advanced computers. The adult human brain weighs approximately 3 pounds (1.4 kilograms) and only makes up about 2% of our body mass, yet consumes 20% of the oxygen that enters our bloodstream. Made up of more than 100 billion nerve cells (or neurons) with branches that connect at more than 100 trillion points (synapses), an adult human brain is capable of processing up to 30 billion bits of information per second and is truly an evolutionary wonder. It keeps us alive by regulating our automatic functions such as body temperature, heart rate, and respiration. It coordinates our movement, houses our memories, guides our emotions, and is the site of language, thought, creativity and consciousness.

THE 3 LAYERS OF THE BRAINThe brain is divided into three basic layers:

1. The Reptilian Brain (also known as the R-Complex)2. The Mammalian Brain or Limbic System3. The Human Brain or Neocortex (also called the

cerebral cortex)

These three parts of the brain do not operate independ-ently of one another. They have established numerous interconnections through which they influence one another. The brain’s nerve cells are known as neurons, which make up the organ’s so-called “gray matter.” The neurons transmit and gather electrochemical signals that are communicated via a network of millions of nerve fibers called dendrites and axons. These are the brain’s “white matter.”

“The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven.”! ! ! -John Milton! ! ! Paradise Lost

Your brain generates as much energy as a 10-watt light bulb even when you’re

sleeping.

THE REPTILIAN BRAINThe reptilian brain first appeared in fish, nearly 500 million years ago. It continued to develop in amphibians and reached its most advanced stage in reptiles, roughly 250 million years ago. The Reptilian brain is mainly defined by the brain stem and lower parts of the brain. It controls all the automatic functions related to keeping us physically alive such as body temperature, heart rate, and respiration. It also operates all of our involuntary reflexes.

Functions:! !

• Temperature! ! ! !

• Heart Rate !! ! !

• Respiration• Involuntary Reflexes

THE MAMMALIAN BRAIN (OR LIMBIC SYSTEM)The mammalian brain or limbic system first appeared in small mammals, about 150 million years ago. It is made up of the Fornix, the Septum, the Hippocampus (responsible for pairing incoming info, level of arousal and emotional input with similar circumstances in memory. It is involved in emotions, spatial orientation, and memory), the Mammilary, and most importantly the Amygdala. The Amygdala is the Grand Central Station for emotions and instinctive behaviors. Its job is to regulate emotion and guide emotion-related behaviors. In essence the Limbic system helps us survive as part of the food chain. Its unique role is also to add in the emo-tional content of our everyday experience. This part of the brain is for learning to survive by using emotions and memory. It is automatic, self-preserving, and reactive.

Functions:! ! ! !

• Controls Emotions!! !

• Emotional Responses! !

• Hormonal Secretions! !

• Mood! ! ! ! !

• Memory! ! ! !

• Conditioning! ! !

• Perceptions!! ! !

• Pain & Pleasure Sensations

The Limbic System (also considered the “Child Brain”) is fully developed by the time we are 3-5 years old. Primarily concerned with survival, the Limbic System is emotionally reactive and incapable of making thoughtful decisions.

THE HUMAN BRAIN (OR NEOCORTEX) The Neocortex or “Human Brain” began its expansion in primates 2 or 3 million years ago, as the genus Homo emerged. It takes up roughly 2/3 of our brain and is where our highest order thinking takes place. It includes the Cerebral Cortex and prefrontal lobes, which are responsible for the development of human language, ab-stract thought, imagination, and consciousness. The frontal lobes take up most of the area behind our fore-head and eyebrows and is considered the adult brain, where planning and decision-making happens. The pre-frontal lobes control and guide our social orientation. Their functions include short-term memory, focused attention, concentration, and motivation.

Functions:! ! ! ! !

• Language Abilities!! !

• Vision! ! ! ! !

• Hearing• Perceptual Learning• Abstract Thought• Imagination• Planning and Decision-making

Structures:• Brain Stem, which includes:

- Pons- Medulla- Midbrain- Reticular Formation

• Cerebellum

Structures:• Amygdala• Cingulate Gyrus• Fornix• Hippocampus• Hypothalamus• Mammillary Body• Olfactory Cortex• Septum• Thalamus

Structures:• Cerebral Cortex• Prefrontal Lobes

Brain Stem

RIGHT & LEFT HEMISPHEREThe Neocortex is separated into the Right & Left Hemisphere. The Left Hemisphere controls the right side of the body and the Right Hemisphere controls the left side of the body.

Left Hemisphere Dominant Functions:• Language• Math• Logic

Right Hemisphere Dominant Functions:• Spatial Abilities• Face recognition• Visual memory• Music

Left Hemisphere Characteristics:Rational

• Responds to verbal instructions• Problem solves by logically and sequentially

looking at the parts of things• Looks at differences• Is planned and structured• Prefers established, certain information• Prefers talking and writing• Prefers multiple choice tests • Controls feelings• Prefers ranked authority structures

THE PRE-FRONTAL PARADOXUnfortunately, the frontal lobe, responsible for our highest cognitive functions is the last part of the human brain to evolve, the slowest to mature, and the first to deteriorate in old age. The pre-frontal lobes don’t start dramatic wiring until we’re 5-7 years old, and they don’t fully mature until we are 20-30 years old. This means that the primitive emotional brain (limbic system) holds control over the more sophisticated adult brain for many years.

Have you been in an argument with someone (a co-worker, spouse, etc) and suddenly found yourself acting like a five year-old? Slamming the door, name-calling, putting your fingers in your ears, or even throwing something? The reason we’ve all acted like this is because the part of our brain that controls our emotions is literally stunted at five years old. Our adult brain is being hijacked by our child brain, which controls our thoughts and actions with its childlike perception and strategies at a moment’s notice.

According to psychologist Dr. Mark Waller, the Limbic System hijacks an entire hemisphere of our brain and this hijacking can happen five to seven times a second! Scientifically speaking, our brains have evolved in such a way that they have far more connections running from our emotional systems to our cortex (the locus of conscious control) than the other way around. Breaking free from this hijacking requires us to create new neural connections and patterns through mental conditioning. The ultimate goal is to get out of limbic and into our neocortex.

Right Hemisphere Characteristics:Intuitive

• Responds to demonstrated instructions• Problem solves with hunches, looking for

patterns and configurations• Looks at similarities• Is fluid and spontaneous• Prefers elusive, uncertain information• Prefers drawing and manipulating objects• Prefers open ended questions• Free with feelings• Prefers collegial authority structures

Children have less control over their emotions, because the axons that send information from

the cortex to the limbic system are not yet fully developed. In addition, the neurons of the

prefrontal cortex that provide much of our rational control over our emotions do not

mature until early adulthood. In contrast, the amygdala is mature at birth and thus exerts a

heavy influence on children.

MENTAL CONDITIONINGThe brain, like any other muscle in our body needs to be regularly conditioned for optimal performance. The good news is that the brain stays plastic and malleable throughout our lifetime and reorganizes every 2-4 years so we always have the opportunity to re-pattern it and undo early damage. According to Dr. Thomas Perls, professor of medicine and geriatrics at Boston University Medical School, “cognitive exercises may translate into the production of new connections between brain cells.” Critical thinking can literally help re-organize the brain.

FIRST-ORDER & SECOND-ORDER CHANGEChanging our patterns through critical thinking requires us to “think outside of the box.” Psychologists refer to these patterns of thinking as First-order and Second-order change. First-order change involves solving the problem from within the system of the problem. Second-order change involves getting outside of the problem system in order to find the solution.

Dieting is the perfect example of how first-order change can fail. When we start a diet, we feel deprived and begin binge eating as soon as the diet “ends.” Dieting actually burns up muscle tissue and lowers metabolic rate so people typically end up gaining more weight each time their diet fails. Yo-yo dieting becomes a vicious cycle where the attempted solution (dieting itself) becomes the problem. The cycle of eating, gaining weight, feeling lousy, going on a diet, and going back to eating is a solution that sets up its own problem system.

A second-order solution could be shifting the focus off trying to lose weight. Instead of focusing on losing 10 pounds, focus on gaining 10 pounds, with the catch being that you have to gain this weight by only eating foods that are healthy (fruits, veggies, whole grains, etc). People who are healthy and fit have a healthy relationship with food. Rather than viewing food as a problem, they view it as cleansing, nourishing, and energizing.

The Problem:Connect all the dots using four straight

lines without lifting the pen from the paper.

The Solution:Most people think the lines must fall inside the box, but that makes solving the problem impossible. To

find the solution, you must “think outside of the box.”

Think Outside The Box

Defining Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking is the intellectually disciplined

process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing,

applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluat-

ing information gathered from, or generated by,

observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or

communication, as a guide to belief and action.

! ! -National Council for Excellence in !!

! ! Critical Thinking Instruction

HEALTHY MINDSecond-order critical thinking can help keep our brains fit and functioning well into old age. As mentioned earlier, an adult brain contains about 100 billion nerve cells, or neurons, with branches that connect at more than 100 trillion points. Scientists call this dense, branching network a "neuron forest."

Signals that form memories and thoughts move through the neuron forest as a tiny electrical charge. Nerve cells connect to one another at synapses. When a charge reaches a synapse, it may trigger release of tiny bursts of chemicals called neurotransmitters. The neurotransmitters travel across the synapse, carrying signals to other cells. Scientists have identified dozens of neurotransmitters.

Neurons are the chief type of cell destroyed by Alz-heimer's disease. Alzheimer's disease disrupts both the way electrical charges travel within cells and the activity of neurotransmitters. It leads to nerve cell death and tissue loss throughout the brain. Over time, the brain shrinks dramatically, affecting nearly all its functions.

PREVENTION IS THE CUREWhile a cure for diseases such as Alzheimer’s may not soon be on hand, research shows that people who keep both their bodies and minds active by combining physical activity with regular mental activity such as reading, playing board games, or doing logic puzzles such as crosswords, have a far less chance of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s and can actually delay the onset of these diseases.

Delaying onset in patients by just a year would reduce the number of Alzheimer’s cases in the United States by 12 million as of 2050. That would save $1.2 trillion in healthcare and productivity costs, according to a study funded by Accelerate Cure/Treatments for Alzheimer’s Disease, a coalition of national organizations represent-ing patients, providers and caregivers.

THE ART OF INTELLIGENT MOVEMENTIn the Budokon system, we teach people to bridge the mind-body gap through intelligent thinking and intelli-gent movement. Research has shown that physical exercise strengthens the basal ganglia, cerebellum, and corpus callosum - all key areas of the brain (Jensen, 1998). Physical activity helps to increase the brain’s effi-ciency, alertness, creativity and memory as well as strengthen it against cognitive decline. Research shows that aerobic exercise just twice a week can decrease your risk of Alzheimer’s by over half.

The physical techniques you will find in section six of this manual were designed to maximize both our brain and body’s efficiency and effectiveness by focusing on strength, agility, flexibility, balance, and contralateral movement. Studies have shown that contralateral and cross-lateral arm and leg movement (opposite sides of the body moving simultaneously or movements that cross over from one side of the body to the other) can in-crease our brain’s learning abilities. Since the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, and the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, the two sides of the brain are forced to communicate when legs and arms cross over (Schiller, 1999). Contralateral and cross-lateral movements strengthen the brain by encouraging the right and left hemispheres to work together.

Through consistent practice of the physical and mental techniques taught in the Budokon System you will de-velop a deeper understanding of body mechanics and awareness along with critical thinking and problem solv-ing skills. By learning to master these techniques we can learn to master our body and mind. Our dojo is our sanctuary. If we can teach ourselves to problem solve in this safe, non-judgmental environment, then we can prepare ourselves to better deal with the problems, conflict and stress that we encounter in our daily lives.

“If I had to live my life again I would have made a rule to read some poetry and listen to some music at least once a week; for perhaps the parts of my brain now atrophied could thus have been kept active through use.”! ! ! -Charles Darwin