from the Oxford Dictionaries Online:
empower /ɪmˈpaʊə, ɛm-/
v. give (someone) the authority or power to do something

Last night I took my first Krav Maga class.

Taking inventory of my body’s reaction to the class:

• left foot arch is sore and tight, making walking a little painful
• the tops of my right and left feet are bruised from front kicks
• pectoral muscles are sore as all get out from 2 minutes of non-stop sprawls
• random bruising on hands and legs
• soreness in wrists and elbows from holding the pads

Taking inventory of my mind’s reaction to the class:

• A year ago, I could not have kept up with the workout. Last night, I did.
• I am not accustomed to showing the kind of aggression necessary to perform these techniques.
• It is uncomfortable to be choked.
• It is uncomfortable to choke someone else.
• The first time I was choked, it took what felt like a long time to make my body do the right things to break the attack.
• After the third or fourth time, it got easier to make my body do the right things.
• I am still nervous about working across gender lines in this class.
• I am going to get better at this.

My instructor has been talking for a few weeks about the sense of empowerment he feels now, and how his training has been life changing. I can see why that is true for him, and I hope to feel a similar shift.