ryanryu

I’ve been digging through some old books in the attic for re-reads. I just started Star Wars: Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn. It’s the 20th anniversary edition so they had the author put in footnotes about what he was thinking for each of his decisions. Really fun idea! Has anyone else seen that before?

What do you think you'll use the bag for? My favorite bag ever is the Versys 3 - Versys VS.3 – Century Kickboxing - it's very hard to topple so you can really lay into it with striking techniques. The legs are useful for low kicking or working some entry techniques. But I was looking for a heavy bag that I didn't have to hang from the ceiling and this fit the bill (and more). It is very very pricey... but I was able to get one for 1/2 price on Black Friday a few years ago. If you are looking for a more general freestanding bag, the Versys 1 is also good, imo- Versys VS.1 From Century Kicboxing – Century Kickboxing - didn't fall over easily, but could still be used for striking and even throws. Sometimes I would stand behind the bag to hold steady while my students hit it, basically like a kicking shield. They do make a BOB/Versys hybrid... I think it depends on how important "arms" are for you on the dummy. If that's the goal you may have better luck with a muk jong or other wooden dummy.

I wasn't too surprised. This was my first time acting as a Chief Instructor and in the organization only Godan and above were allowed to promote independently. Since my Sensei was the head of the org, I figured this was the standard they would uphold. Looking back, I still see value in the recording and sending, but I would have pushed to promote students myself and just consulted with my Sensei after the fact. It would have made the timeline much easier, still given me mentorship opportunities with my Sense, and given Sensei some oversight of the branch dojo. I was just excited about the opportunity and naïve about the workload, so didn’t think too critically about the “process” stuff. And then never revisited it when I should have a year or so in. Spartacus, best of luck with this. It sounds awesome and truly a great opportunity – for you, your teachers, and your future students.

I would say karate taught me about goal setting and incremental progress. It's like an antidote to the instant gratification of so many other things. Being able to grind away at something slowly over time has served me really well. Since I started training as a kid, I'll also say that karate taught me my left from my right. That's been pretty handy...

I’m in agreement with the short, sharp kiai. I think the longer kiai are usually performative, which is fine for a tournament or a demo, but it can really descend into parody. My dojo had students say “Hai” when they kiai. I’ve drifted from that, but still find the “h” sound is easier to get from the gut than the “k” sound. Anyone else feel that? Or maybe there's some other letter/sound I should try out... I'll echo this thought too. Kiai helped me get comfortable with being LOUD, which is an important self-defense skill as much as anything else we train. For that reason alone I like using and teaching them, especially when a lot of people (children especially) are often taught to be quiet or that being loud is improper. Sometimes you have to make noise! I think in this instance the short, sharp kiai is probably better than a drawn out one because it's more like shouting. For example - shouting GET BACK or HELP ME are kind of like kiais.

Congratulations, Spartacus! This opportunity is a big deal and reflects a lot of trust and confidence in you from your seniors. I ran a university club as a branch school of my old Sensei’s organization and there are a few thoughts I have that may be useful to you– • What do the conditions imposed by the Honbu tell you about what this relationship will be like? Do you think they’ll be unnecessarily restrictive? Or are they reasonable? Are there other conditions you can think of that haven’t been made explicit that you need to discuss? • What do YOU get from this arrangement? Specific training in martial arts instruction? Private lessons or more facetime with the head honcho? Yes, it is an honor to be asked to do this… but it’s also a boon to the organization as well and they should have an interest in fostering your growth in tangible ways. • Will you be permitted to test and award rank to your students? Does the HQ need to certify those ranks? • Where does the money go? Does the Headquarters of the organization have a “licensing fee” or something similar to teach under their name? What about ongoing expenses paid to the HQ, related to testing or something? Are you going to need to pay (federal, state, local) taxes? How does sending money internationally complicate things? • Does the HQ provide any insurance policy to the branches? What liability insurance do you need, for yourself, in your own name, vs what is covered by the organization? For context, my university club was free, non-profit and got most expenses covered by the university – we met on campus at the Rec center, insurance was covered, there was no fee to start a club, I didn’t earn any money from the club, all finances were run through the student center, we had a website from the university, etc. – so I’m not really sure what you’ll run up against business-wise. But teaching-wise, I ran into one major problem – my Sensei wouldn’t allow me to test my students, at all, for any rank. I was a Sandan at the time (still am) and was required to record the testing sessions with a video camera, upload the relevant portions to a USB flash drive, and FedEx it across the country to my sensei along with my written comments for each student. She would review the video, determine who passed, print and sign certificates and send them back. There are much easier ways to do this (even 10 years ago there were), but my Sensei was tech-illiterate and this was the system that worked. But it meant 1) the bulk of the testing fees went to Fedex and the Honbu with our club not really able to afford new equipment or any swag, 2) the timeline of the test was at least 1 week, more often 2, which limited when the test could be scheduled and 3) Much more work fell on me to record, edit, comment, package and send everything as soon as possible after the test. Even when it was pretty clear that the student passed their 8th kyu test. We were limited to a single test each semester because of how long it took to run the testing process and the need to avoid holidays and breaks. I also couldn’t work around any single student’s schedule to test them separately. My teacher never countermanded any of my suggestions for promotion and we did have interesting conversations about teaching and evaluating students that probably helped me improve as a teacher… but as a whole it was a negative experience for me and I vowed to never run a dojo like that again. Just remember that, regardless of being a branch dojo or not, you are your student’s Sensei. The broader connections to our HQ were mostly meaningless to my students because I was the one training them day in and day out. Unless your students are also getting a direct link to Japan and to your teachers, they will look to you for leadership and instruction. Yes, you will have a responsibility to your Headquarters organization as a branch dojo, but be aware that you are also taking on a responsibility for your students.

This topic was a big chunk of Noah's discussion on the Conversations on Karate podcast this month if anyone wanted to hear more: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/conversations-on-karate/id1453904970

This is a great thread and got me started again with some of the conditioning I used to do. We always practiced a series of partner-based conditioning drills, mainly for the forearms and abdomen, probably similar to what others have already described. For solo work, I have two main implements to do the same impact-type conditioning: An old gem known as the Iron Arm Conditioning Hammer that was gifted to me by my sensei. A quick google search has it retailing for a ridiculous price tag, in my opinion. Honestly, I get much more use out of the second implement - a hollow 1’’ diameter PVC pipe with foam pipe padding around it. The length is 3-4 feet and it is much easier to swing against your own forearms, shoulders, lats, abs, obliques, thighs, etc. I just vary the speed of the swing to increase/decrease the impact. All of this is just light conditioning work, imo, a few minutes at the end of a workout, and probably more for “mental toughness” than anything else. I’m just trying to maintain a baseline level of conditioning - not drive my fingertips 6 inches into the a jar of sand or break a baseball bat with my forearm.

I like it! I assume you timed this policy to coincide with Beyonce's new album release?

Congratulations Noah! Any insight on how you've seen the discussion change over the years?

I saw this trailer for a new adaptation of James Clavell's Shogun a few weeks ago: And there was a REALLY positive review in the Post too: https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/tv/2024/02/27/shogun-tv-review-fx/ It premiered earlier this week. I haven't watched it yet, but I am really excited to see it. I loved this book when I read it years ago, it is what turned me on to historical fiction in the first place. Even now, I can't keep the Shogun characters straight from the actual historical Japanese figures... Have anyone watched this?

https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/gargoyles-live-action-series-reboot-disney-plus-gary-dauberman-james-wans-1235758161/ Someone at Disney must be on KF!

I did the same thing a few years ago when I was flying out of LA! I just got a plain black belt from KI, but it's been exactly what I needed, especially with a heavier weight gi.

I like tracks with a steady bassline, drumline, or guitar rhythm. I want to get into sync with the music, especially if I’m hitting a heavy bag or lifting. That seems to keep me “in the zone” and working a bit longer than usual. I’ve had some good luck with – Tick Tick Boom by the Hives, Lonely Boy by the Black Keys, How You Like Me Now by The Heavy, Do the Damage by Noel Gallaghers High Flying Birds, No Roots by Alice Merton And of course the classics such as Eye of the Tiger, Danger Zone, Seven Nation Army. Those are pretty up-tempo so I try to put them in the middle of a playlist after I’m warmed up. For years I went to a fitness boxing gym where they played music every workout. There is definitely an art to choosing tracks and choosing the order, but I think it makes a workout more fun and gets a little bit extra out of you when it's done right.

This has been my experience as well. I really enjoyed running a club and it is a totally different experience when YOU are the Sensei. Even though I had taught often at my home dojo, when I was the CI I felt so much more responsibility for my students, like Luther said. I wanted them to be safe, I didn’t want them to misuse the art, and I wanted training to be a positive experience for them - nothing I had thought about when I was the student. It also made me think hard about the skill of teaching. What made sense to introduce at what ranks? What does progression look like? How do you connect new and old requirements? My old sensei used to say the best thing Miyagi did was organize Goju-ryu into a syllabus. For me, teaching Goju-ryu forced me to “organize” the style in my mind in a similar way. Huge perspective shift. I also got a lot better at saying "I don't know" and "Let me think about that more"! Those have been pretty handy life skills to have lol