Fight for a Happy Life with Sensei Ando: Martial Arts for Everyday Life cover art

Fight for a Happy Life with Sensei Ando: Martial Arts for Everyday Life

Fight for a Happy Life with Sensei Ando: Martial Arts for Everyday Life

By: Ando Mierzwa: Martial Artist Teacher
Listen for free

About this listen

 Martial arts are a powerful path to fitness of the mind, body, and spirit… yet most people never even try a class! Join Ando Mierzwa as he shares ways to apply the wisdom of Karate, Kung Fu, BJJ and other martial arts to everyday life. If you are pursuing success in health, relationships, or business, you will quickly discover how even a little martial arts makes life a whole lot better!Copyright © Fight for a Happy Life 2013 Exercise & Fitness Fitness, Diet & Nutrition Hygiene & Healthy Living Personal Development Personal Success
Episodes
  • #129: Laugh in the Face of Death [Podcast]

    #129: Laugh in the Face of Death [Podcast]
    Feb 5 2026

    Welcome to Episode #129 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Laugh in the Face of Death.”

    How do you prepare to face the day? Do you have a morning routine to be at your best?

    Whether you rely on exercise, meditation, red light therapy, or coffee, once the day starts, most of us feel our power being sucked away… or given away. The insults and threats of daily life are relentless in their attack on our optimism, good will, and best intentions.

    But wait! Isn’t that what training in self-defense is all about? To defend our health, safety, and good vibes? Yes! We must become masters in managing our minds and emotions to maximize our power and optimize our chances at success in every realm.

    In this episode, I’ll share three simple actions you can take right now (and keep taking all day) to boost your fighting spirit. I’ll also discuss the advantages of facing threats with a smile and why laughing in the face of death is a smart strategy.

    Of course, I’ll be interested in what you have to say, too! If you’ve got a trick to optimizing your attitude and defending your heart, let me know!

    To LISTEN to “Laugh in the Face of Death,” just hit play below.

    • Play the audio podcast below… or download to your device.
    • Subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify.

    To WATCH the video version or READ the transcript, scroll down below.

    If you’d like to support this show, share the link with a friend or leave a quick review over on iTunes. Thank you!

    Oh—and don’t forget to sign up for free email updates so you can get new shows sent to your inbox the minute they’re released.

    Thanks for listening! Keep fighting for a happy life!

    Laugh in the Face of Death

    Here’s a video of the podcast. If the player doesn’t work, you can click this direct link.

    As always, if you’d like to comment (or complain!), feel free to leave a message here or through my Contact Page.

    TRANSCRIPT (In progress)

    Today on Fight for a Happy Life, Laugh in the Face of Death.

    The post #129: Laugh in the Face of Death [Podcast] appeared first on Sensei Ando.
    Show More Show Less
    21 mins
  • #128: The Nuts and Bolts of Martial Arts [Podcast]

    #128: The Nuts and Bolts of Martial Arts [Podcast]
    Dec 12 2025
    Welcome to Episode #128 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “The Nuts and Bolts of Martial Arts.” Will your martial arts techniques hold up under pressure… or will your skills break apart and leave you lying in a pool of tears? Here’s the thing—it’s easy to get the BIG things right in the martial arts, but what about the SMALL things? You know…those little details that actually make or break your success? (Is it possible that you don’t even know some of those small things exist?) The devil is in the details, my friend. If you want to be effective on offense or defense, you have to look deeper and deeper into the mechanics of your art. Figuring out how all the nuts and bolts are put together takes time. It also requires asking questions, observing others, practicing, and experimenting. The good news is that if you keep an open mind and stay curious, you will slowly collect the subtleties and nuances that will lead you to your best chance at success. Join me for a discussion on how to solidify your martial arts training. To LISTEN to “The Nuts and Bolts of Martial Arts,” just hit play below. Play the audio podcast below… or download to your device.Subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify. To WATCH the video version or READ the transcript, scroll down below. If you’d like to support this show, share the link with a friend or leave a quick review over on iTunes. Thank you! Oh—and don’t forget to sign up for free email updates so you can get new shows sent to your inbox the minute they’re released. Thanks for listening! Keep fighting for a happy life! The Nuts and Bolts of Martial Arts Here’s a video of the podcast. If the player doesn’t work, you can click this direct link. As always, if you’d like to comment (or complain!), feel free to leave a message here or through my Contact Page. TRANSCRIPT Today on Fight for a Happy Life, The Nuts and Bolts of Martial Arts. Howdy, Ando here from Happy Life Martial Arts. Welcome to episode number 128 of Fight for a Happy Life, the show that believes even a little martial arts makes life a whole lot better. It’s been a little while, it’s great to see you again. Today, I want to talk about the nuts and bolts of martial arts, the nuts and bolts of self-defense. And, no, I’m not talking about kicking someone in the nuts and bolts. I’m talking about your training, your techniques, your habits. Are the components of your training, the assembly of what you do, strong and solid, will they hold up under pressure, offensively, defensively, or will it all break apart? The reason I want to talk about this is because of an incident that occurred to me a few years ago now. You might notice that in the background of some of my older videos, there’s a big red wall and four black heavy bags hanging up. Now I will tell you that that project made me very proud of myself. I’m not a mechanical guy, but I figured out how to get those bags put up on that wall, so it was a big deal. With the help of another Sensei, we drilled those boards into the brick wall. I found some wall mounts. We installed those. I had custom bags made, black leather, specific weight, and they came out great. They looked wonderful. And we hung them up. Kids of all ages loved hitting them. I loved hitting them. Other teachers loved hitting them. Adult students loved hitting them. It was a big success. That is until a couple of weeks went by. In the middle of a class, I’ve got some kids running a relay race, and a precious little girl went running down one of the rows, and she kicked the bag, she turns around, she starts leaving, and to my horror, the bag detached and just fell. BOOM! Thankfully, she was not hit, but I was in shock. Shut down the drill, got the kids away from the bags, finished the class, and then afterward, had to come over and face my failure, grabbed a step stool, and got up and took a look at the mechanism. Just like most heavy bags, the bag had a carabiner on it, the carabiner attached to a metal ring, the ring was attached to the wall mount with a bolt and a nut. Somehow, the nut had worked its way to the end of the threading and fallen off and let the whole bag go. So I figured, being not a super mechanical guy, Oh, I just didn’t tighten them enough when I first installed them. So cranked, cranked, cranked as much as I could, made them as tight as I possibly could, and thought, there, done deal, we’re okay now. Nope, nope. Couple weeks later, the same thing happened. A bag fell off. Again, thankfully, no one got hurt. But this time, I was really upset because I couldn’t figure out the problem. I hate that. So this time, I figured, well, it’s taken about two weeks for this to happen. This just needs to be a regular maintenance task. When you come in for the day, check the bags and see where the nuts are and tighten them up every day. I guess it’s just a design flaw in the wall mounts. That’s what I thought. But of course,...
    Show More Show Less
    18 mins
  • #127: Survival with Stephan Kesting [Video Podcast]

    #127: Survival with Stephan Kesting [Video Podcast]
    Mar 4 2025

    Welcome to Episode #127 of the Fight for a Happy Life podcast, “Survival with Stephan Kesting.”

    You might know Stephan Kesting from his impressive work as an online BJJ instructor. You may also remember him from our first interview together back in episode #62. But he’s far more than just an internet hotshot.

    Stephan is also a professional firefighter, founder of Grapplearts.com, host of the Strenuous Life podcast, outdoor adventurer, and now—with the publication of Perseverance: Life and Death in the Subarctic—an author.

    In this interview, I talk to Stephan about his grueling experience taking a 1,000 mile canoe trip through the great white north… ALONE! Our conversation touches on crucial topics for living a happy life, such as:

    • Setting priorities
    • Grit
    • Organization
    • Time Management
    • Solitude
    • Meditation

    Oh—and did I mention that Stephan’s survival tips have also been challenged by family tragedies, a kidney transplant, and a hip replacement? Believe me, the tips shared in this episode are the key components for survival on the mats, online, on a river, or in a fire.

    If you’d like to read the full account of Stephan’s solo adventure in the wild, here’s my Amazon affiliate link to buy the book: Perseverance: Life and Death in the Subarctic. Of course, supporting your local bookstores is cool, too!

    To LISTEN to “Survival with Stephan Kesting,” just hit play below.

    • Play the audio podcast below… or download to your device.
    • Subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher or Spotify.

    To WATCH the video version, scroll down below.

    If you’d like to support this show, share the link with a friend or leave a quick review over on iTunes. Thank you!

    Oh—and don’t forget to sign up for free email updates so you can get new shows sent to your inbox the minute they’re released.

    Thanks for listening! Keep fighting for a happy life!

    Survival with Stephan Kesting

    Here’s a video of the podcast. If the player doesn’t work, you can click this direct link.

    As always, if you’d like to comment (or complain!), feel free to leave a message here or through my Contact Page.

    The post #127: Survival with Stephan Kesting [Video Podcast] appeared first on Sensei Ando.
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 7 mins
No reviews yet
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.