After 24 hours of constant kicking, hitting, and moving, a 14-year-old boy in India made the Guinness Book of World Records last week (the first Indian to do so for Karate), New Kerala.com reported today. Apparently even as onlookers got tired, the boy, called only Srikanth, never waned as he practiced an imaginary free fighting style partially based on yoga. “It is an art, not something for a street fight,” his coach told New Kerala. Srikanth, who’s been practicing for six years, is already gearing up for his next challenge: 36 hours of the same.

This being India, not Japan, the story offers a succinct explanation of this martial art for the uninitiated; karate means “empty hand,” and teaches “mental discipline, emotional self-control, and, most important, how to harness ‘Ki’” (or life’s vital force, usually spelled “chi” in the U.S.; for yogis, it’s the same as prana).

To get started on your own record or ki-enhancement, check here for info on how to pick a martial arts school: martialinfo.com

Photo by Pieter Baert.