Through my late teens and early adulthood, I trained in several different styles — Isshinryu Karate, Tai Chi, Aikido, Brazilian Jui Jitsu, and Kung Fu. Constantly on the move, I was never able to enter into a style with great depth. For two and half years, I studied Tiger-Crane Kung Fu, and then switched to Wing Chun, which I love. Below, I’ve put a couple of my Wing Chun videos on YouTube (@Dr. D.E. Osto).
As part of my martial training, I occasionally enjoy breaking bricks with my hands (in Japanese: tameshiwari). My fascination with breaking began in the mid-1980s, when I studied Isshinryu Karate with Grandmaster Ed Brown (who held several world records in tameshiwari) in Norwalk, Connecticut, USA. But it was not until 2020, during New Zealand’s first Level 4 lockdown due to Covid-19, that I began to teach myself how to break bricks. Some of my successful attempts I’ve posted on TikTok (@deeosto), and YouTube (@Dr. D.E. Osto) under my playlist “DIY Tameshiwari.” Enjoy!