So Rob's comment in the last post about me practising my choke-holds might have confused some readers who don't know that I train in the deadly art of... er, martial arts. Which is why you can see me in the picture above delivering a rather fine left jab to a girl. Serves her right for wearing pink gloves.

Kerpow!

Splat!

Boxing, kickboxing and JKD (Jeet Kune do) are just the best thing for unwinding after a day's work. Training affords a part of the day utterly devoid from thoughts of returns, sales, critical paths and cashflow: there's no time to think when someone's trying to hit you in the head. I thoroughly recommend it as a complete cure-all. The only thing it's not very good for is self-defence. I soon realised my capabilities only go so far, and if I was attacked by anyone much bigger than me I'd get hurt for sure. At least now I'm fit enough to run away!

I train at the Bob Breen academy. Do drop by if you're in Hoxton Square of an evening - it's a lovely gym, a lovely atmosphere (no one has any aggression left, or anything left to prove) and very good for your health. Plus you can try to land a punch on me, which you don't get to do every day.