Aqabah Karate Welcomes Home their Black Belts

After a long awaited, intense test in North Carolina, Aqabah Karate welcomed home 3rd Degree Black Belt Muhib Rahman and 1st Degree Black Belt Hernan Guadalupe on Sunday, June 13, 2010. It had been years since Brother Muhib had tested for his next belt, and it was a much deserved achievement. Even more so reap the fruits of his labor: watching his first Aqabah Karate student promoted to black belt.

Brother Hernan was by his instructor’s side during their long 6 hour journey by car to and from Grandmaster David Sgro’s school San Kil Tang Soo Do in Fayette-ville, and throughout the whole testing sequence, which lasted a grueling 2 days. In the end, both prevailed and were awarded with their new ranks by the Grand-master himself and congratulated by numerous other Karate masters that were there to judge and score the candidates. Brother Muhib and Brother Hernan re-ceived many compliments and learned an array of new things that they have brought back to Aqabah Karate for the benefit of their students, insha’Allah.

Their chronicles were even recorded in history by way of YouTube and Facebook, where they posted a video blog of their trip for eager students and colleagues to see. It was a trip to remember and one that will surely be celebrated for years to come.

Earning a black belt is a great honor and privilege. As Brother Hernan described, “It is reaching the mountain and now begins the climb to make it to the top: to mastery.” Earning a 3rd Degree black belt is being recognized for the sacrifices you have made as you strive to reach the top.

Aqabah Karate congratulates their black belts for all their hard work and dedica-tion. May Allah continue to grant you success. Ameen.

This Issue

What’s new with Aqabah P.1 Health, Women’s Corner P.2

Fitness, Director’s Desk P.3 Delicious Health Recipes P. 4

Upcoming Events P.6

FINAL MEDAL TALLY: Islamic Games, NJ 2010

Aqabah Karate made their presence known at the 4th Annual Islamic Games held in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey. The total number of participants was 22 and the total medal count was 31!

Congratulations Team Aqabah!

Here is the final tally:

Gold: 11

Nadia Ali

Maryam Muhib

Ayesha Akhtar

Musfika Hussain

Sayeemah Ahmed

Yusra Eberle

Kamilah Abdul Wakil

Aisha Korme (2)

Zakaria Korme

Arbaz Khatib

Continued on page 3

Aqabah Karate Newsletter Black Belt Edition!

Your Source for Aqabah Karate News, Health, and Fitness

ISSUE 02 JULY/AUGUST 2010

Br. Muhib (left) and Br. Hernan (right)

The Next Karate Kid: Could it be your child?

With all the talk that is going on about martial arts due to the recent surge of block buster movies like ‘The Karate Kid’ and ‘The Last Air Bender’, people’s inter-est in martial arts has again sparked, but is there any real benefit for children and adults? Putting Hollywood aside with all its jump-ing kicks and flips and

theatrical stunts, martial arts has serious benefits to offer. Did you know that Martial Arts training is 10 times more effective than any other team sport in developing a child’s self-esteem and confidence? It’s not just about kicking and punching, rather it’s about developing a child’s inner and outer character and giving them the tools of confidence and discipline which they can use for the rest of their lives. When a new student enters our school, I don’t think about him being the next world champion or the next black belt; instead, I am thinking about how he can become a better person through martial arts. We want to develop leaders and role models for our community; and martial arts, along with our unique way of life (Islam) are key factors in this process. There is no question about it that Islam is our fundamental basis for our belief and way of life. Islam gives us the instruction and martial arts is the vehicle to implement what we learn. We teach our children that they should live healthy and moderate lives. Martial arts is the means to maintain a healthy way of life through exercise and dieting. We teach our children to be confident and disciplined. Martial arts is the means to build a child’s confidence and develop discipline in their lives. Martial arts is a great compliment to being Muslim. Based on our rich Islamic heritage, we know that Muslims were strong, brave, and confident people, especially the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him). We see through their examples how they lived their lives, con-stantly exercising, maintaining a healthy way of life, balanced diet, and they were disciplined in pleasing Allah alone. Living in today’s society, we don’t have the luxury of developing certain characteristics like they did. Because of this, many of our children become overweight and obese, they involve them-selves in activities that don’t benefit them much like video games and they have low self-esteem and a lack of confidence. These problems have long-term effects on children. Islam teaches us to be strong not only in relation to emaan, but also physically. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said in a hadeeth: “The strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than the weak believer, but in both there is good.” (Muslim) Many of the scholars mention that the strength here refers to actual physical strength and con-fidence. This is so because the physically strong Muslim has more strength to stand up in prayer and worship Allah without tiring. He also has the confidence and courage to call people to Is-lam and face adversity. Continued on page 4...

Attention all Women!

Aqabah Karate

in conjunction with

Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) Systems

presents…

WOMEN-ONLY

SELF-DEFENSE SEMINAR

Did you know that 90% of Self-Defense is education? Come find out what you can do to protect

yourself against sexual predators and other attackers.

Saturday, July 10th, 2010

2:00pm to 3:30pm

Davis Hall

9217 51st Avenue

College Park, Maryland

Open to all women ages 17+!

For more info or to register visit www.aqabahkarate.com

The Benefits of Martial Arts Training for Children by Hernán Guadalupe

WOMEN’S CORNER

Exercise of the Month: Push-ups FROM THE

DIRECTOR DESK

A message from Muhib

Rahman

Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahe Wa Barakatuhu.

Hernán and I tested for our black belt promotions in June. I was promoted to 3rd degree black belt and Hernán was pro-moted to 1st degree black belt, Alham-dulillah. No doubt, the promotions were significant personal accomplishments but the magnitude of our promotions goes far beyond us.

Our preparation, our journey to North Carolina, our two-day test, and finally our promotion have brought significance and credibility to Aqabah Karate. Many judges and Master Instructors at the test ap-proached us with praise for our excellent attitude and skills. This only encouraged us to work harder because we represented a Muslim Martial Arts school. It is my hope that this success will make us better teachers and that we are able to inspire our students to reach for higher success, Insha-Allah.

Continued on page 5...

Final Medal Tally

Continued from page 1...

Silver: 13

Nadia Ali

Talha Muhib

Maryam Muhib

Haajar Eberle (3)

Sakinah Abdul Wakil

Aisha Korme

Zakaria Korme (2)

Hernan Guadalupe

Uthman Eberle (2)

Bronze: 7

Nadia Ali

Talha Muhib

Hamza Muhib

Ayesha Akhtar

Mustabin Hussain

Kamilah Abdul Wakil

Hernán Guadalupe

Honorable

Mention:

Aisha Ali

Wendy Díaz

Tahmid Hussain

Adnaan Zaber

Samir Kabir

One of the most widely used exercises in the world is the push-up. Whether it is in

military basic training or in middle school basketball practice, push-ups have been

proven to be effective in the toning and developing of the chest, shoulders, arms, back,

and other core muscles. Because push-ups can be modified to fit your needs, for exam-

ple, by doing them with knees down at first for beginners, they are a great exercise to

do on a daily basis. They are also a fun challenge. How many can you do?

Target Area: Core muscles, arms, chest, shoulders, back

Difficulty Level: Moderately Easy

Repetitions: Varies

Instructions:

Step 1

Find a clear space. Either on the floor or on the ground; find a level space that is big

enough for you to lye down comfortably with your arms stretched out on each side.

Step 2

Get into a “plank position” supporting your upper body on your hands and your lower

body on the ball of your feet with toes pointed forward. Both of your hands should be

palm side down and flat on the floor placed as wide as or slightly wider than shower

width.

Step 3

Keeping the body straight, lower the body to the ground by bending the arms at the

elbows. Raise body up off the group by extending the arms. Repeat. Your goal is to get

the arms to bend to a 90 degree angle. This ensures best results.

Aqabah Karate challenges you to reach 100 consecutive push-ups before Ramadan. Join

our instructors and students as they try to reach this goal. We know that not everyone

will be able to do 100 push-ups. However, if you are only able to do 1 now, strive to at

least do 10 by Ramadan. But let’s try out best to reach 100! We can do it, Insha'Allah.

For more information, a complete workout schedule, tips, and progress tracker, visit

www.hundredpushups.com.

Watermelon Smoothie

By Angela Gracie

Ingredients:

1/2 Watermelon

4 Bananas

1/4 Cream Cheese (75g)

You have two options in how to make the

watermelon juice and probably the sim-

plest way would be using a juicer.

I personally like the traditional way that

my family used to do it and some still do,

which is by using the blender and pass the

blended watermelon through a cotton bag.

After you juice the watermelon put the

juice in the blender and blend in the ba-

nanas and cream cheese, and then your

smoothie will be ready to drink.

I normally eat crackers and cheese with

the smoothie, they make the perfect com-

bination.

Observations:

1. If the watermelon is not cold, place

some ice cubes in your finished

smoothie.

2. Do not save the smoothie for later.

Try to drink it fresh so you avoid fer-

mentation.

This recipe is taken from the legendary

Gracie Family.

A HEALTHY CHOICE

Delicious recipes with healthy benefits

Continued from page 2... Imagine your children having this type of strength. Tell me what other sport or activity can help give your children that type of strength and character- building? Martial arts is amazing. There is nothing more amazing than to have a new student walk into the school several weeks before who doesn’t smile, speak much, or interact with anyone in class, and after a short time is leading jumping jacks, counting out loud, and having a great time. Martial arts is that opportunity you and your children have been looking for to develop positive, strong, and healthy personalities. It helps pave a way to success. Ask yourself, how can anyone expect to suc-ceed in life when they have never succeeded in anything before? Understand that success is a habit that is planted, cultivated, and

nurtured. Earlier I mentioned that martial arts is 10 times better than team sports in giving a child confidence, do you know why? You see, team sports focuses on a team effort. The team works together to reach a common goal. However, there may be times where some team members shine more than others and they carry the weight of those who are not working hard or living up to their part of the deal. With martial arts, the goals are individualized which helps and encourages individual success and achievement. This helps build a child’s self-esteem and in return their self-worth grows. Children begin to see themselves for the unique and valuable individuals they are and can begin to appreciate others for themselves. Martial arts teaches them that you must respect yourself before you can respect others. Along with self-confidence, martial arts teaches children self-control. It shows children how to express themselves in a manner that is calm and cool and how to avoid conflict without the need for violence. Being part of a martial arts program, children also learn teamwork, respect, and re-sponsibility. Children learn to work together during exercises and drills, which helps develop their social skills along with their confidence to interact with others. Martial arts also stresses the aspect of respecting others such as the teachers and other stu-dents, as well as showing love and compassion for each other. It also stresses responsi-bility from the way you take care of your uniform to properly maintaining the facility in which your child trains. All of these qualities aid in developing leaders in our homes and in our communities. Originally martial arts was developed as a means of self-preservation, to defend oneself from attack or invasion; however, spears and swords are no longer a common threat. Rather, self-doubt, feelings of worthlessness, inabilities, and lack of confidence to deal with the conflicts of day-to-day life are far greater threats on our developing children. If martial arts can help a child see the true potential and beauty they possess inside; then why not give them that opportunity? Remember, there is no endeavor more wor-thy than the development and cultivation of our future ummah. Hernán Guadalupe is the Head Instructor of Aqabah Karate. He is a 1st Degree Black Belt in Tang Soo Do and has over 12 years of Martial Arts experience.

Br. Muhib helps Muhammad Zakariya with

his form during the Black Belt Club Class.

Exercise to Beat Depression and Anxiety Taken from HealthyMuslim.com

FROM THE DIRECTOR’S DESK A message from Muhib Rahman

Continued from page 3...

For the history books, Hernán is Aqabah Karate's first black belt graduate. He is also a head instructor and has set a high standard for others to follow.

We thank Allah for bringing this honor to us, our school and our community. We thank all of YOU: our family members, students, friends, and supporters who made dua for our success and safety. I am looking forward to witnessing many, many more black tests of Aqabah Karate warri-ors.

Exercise is a very effective way to overcome depres-sion and anxiety disorders. According to researchers who analyzed the results of numerous published stud-ies, they found that a work-out reduces stress and an-ger and boosts overall physical wellbeing.

They claim that physical exercise should be more widely prescribed as a treat-ment to tackle depressive or anxiety disorders.

Study Details

Researchers based their finding on an analysis of dozens of population-based studies, clinical studies and meta-analytic reviews related to exercise and mental health, including the authors' meta-analysis of exercise interventions for mental health and studies on reducing anxiety sensitivity with exercise. The researchers' review demonstrated the effectiveness of exercise programs in reducing depres-sion and anxiety.

"Exercise has been shown to have tremendous benefits for mental health," said one of the study authors from the University in Dallas.

"Individuals who exercise report fewer symptoms of anxiety and depres-sion, and lower levels of stress and anger,"

"Exercise appears to affect, like an antidepressant, particular neurotransmitter systems in the brain, and it helps patients with depression re-establish positive behaviors. For patients with anxiety disorders, exercise reduces their fears of fear and related bodily sensations such as a racing heart and rapid breathing."

"Rather than emphasize the long-term health benefits of an exercise program - which can be difficult to sustain - we urge providers to focus with their patients on the immediate benefits," they said.

"After just 25 minutes, your mood improves, you are less stressed, you have more energy - and you'll be motivated to exercise again tomorrow. A bad mood is no longer a barrier to exercise; it is the very reason to exercise."

After patients had a health assessment, they were subjected to either 150 min-utes a week of moderate-intensity activity or 75 minutes a week of vigorous-intensity activity.

"This isn't about working out five times a week for the next year. It's about exer-cising for 20 or 30 minutes and feeling better today."

The researchers presented their findings at the annual conference of the Anxiety

Disorder Association of America.

STUDENT OF THE MONTH

The staff and students of Aqabah Karate would like to recognize the following individuals as Stu-dent of the Month for JUNE and JULY 2010.

JUNE 2010

Talha Muhib

9 years old, Red Belt

JULY 2010

Muhammad Mavins

8 years old, White Belt Purple Stripe

Keep up the good work!

Aqabah Karate Newsletter

ISSUE 02 JULY 2010

Upcoming Events

AQABAH KARATE 5301 Edgewood Road

College Park, MD 20740

301.551.5119 ph

240.565.8709 m

info@aqabahkarate.com

www.aqabahkarate.com

Words of Wisdom

“There is no substitute for hard work. When you live for a strong pur-pose, then hard work isn’t an option. It’s a necessity.” - Wise Anony-mous Saying

Us Capitol Classics China

Open July 30-31 2010

For details visit:

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