Tiger1962

I agree, this is an excellent article and would be perfect for ANY style of martial arts school to hand out to prospective students. I also have to put my 2 cents in here - martial arts is a great stress reliever. I notice the difference in how I feel when I can not train (regarding the stress factor). If your doctor approves, I highly recommend it - I believe it could even lower your blood pressure but since I'm not a doctor, I can't swear to that.

Maybe there is something wrong on my end? I tried again to view it again and it says "this video is no longer available."

I don't workout to get large muscles, but rather to increase my strength for punches, kicks, etc., etc. in martial arts. The cardio is for endurance. You don't want to be huffing and puffing after one round of sparring, so improving your cardio is important and not just for m.a. training. And it's just healthy. Lifting weights (as in LIGHT weights, not what bodybuilders do) also burns calories, strengthens your bones, and prevents osteoporosis later in life. For me, I find it does help my m.a. training. I'm not training to be a bodybuilder or gain huge muscle mass. I'm talking about toning, tightening and strengthening.

Wicked Wanda Would Wink at Wolves With Whiskers

That's how I usually feel after testing. Sore, tired, starving but a tremendous feeling of relief and accomplishment. All I want to do is eat and go home and sleep after a test! LOL Congratulations to you!!

Besides practicing with your martial arts partner you could have a willing friend or family member pretend that they were going to attack you or mug you - think up of a few real life scenarios and what you would do if "such and such" situation occurred. You do have to take into consideration that your partner doesn't know martial arts and that you could seriously hurt them if for example you got them into a wrist lock or something else. In real life, that is what you want to do to protect yourself but when you're practicing with a "good guy" you gotta also be careful. Think of probable situations - i.e. someone coming at you, instead of actually body slamming your practice partner onto the floor.

Welcome - this is a great place for all styles to discuss!

As mentioned above, there is a wealth of information on the web but if you want personal examples here goes: For myself, I know I need to improve my cardio endurance so after spending about 20 minutes stretching out when I first arrive, I first started doing 20 minutes on either the treadmill or ellyptical trainer. Gradually, I worked myself up to 30 minutes. My personal goal is to increase increments slowly until I am up to doing a hour of cardio each time I go. After that, I choose between working on my upper or lower body. I usually alternate days with that unless I am really sore, then I will stick to the half that is not so sore to give it an extra day to recover. If I am working on upper, I will do my arms, biceps, triceps, shoulders - using machines geared toward that. On lower half day, I do my legs, calves, quads, glutes, etc. using machines geared toward that group. Everyone is different, and has different goals and abilities but that's the general gist. Most people I know alternate upper and lower halves of their body when they workout. Some save the cardio for the end, most people I know are like me and do it at the beginning to warm up and get the blood flowing. On all or any day that I go I always incorporate ab work into the routine because - well - I need it. LOL Hope that helped a little.

I use the equipment at my gym to supplement my training. I try to strengthen the areas that I know are weaker. Quite simply I just do lighter weights with more reps and once that becomes easier then I will do heavier weights with less repetitions. I mix it up a bit at the gym because using the same machines and doing the same routine bores me, so I stay more focused and interested when I change up my workout routine. I also read that personal trainers often do the same thing for their clients so they won't get bored with their workout routine. Most importantly is to allow ample time to stretch before and after, especially for us martial artists. I've pulled many a muscle from not stretching out enough prior to class or an outside workout.

Variety is good. If you have the opportunity to spar people of all heights, weights, male, female, young, older, the more variety the better. Personally, I believe that being good at sparring does not require many complicated or fancy moves. It's finding a few quick effective ones and knowing the right time to use them and catching your opponent off guard. Change things up a bit too. For example, if you find yourself sparring the same person in your class all the time, after a while, they start to anticipate your moves. Try surprising them by mixing it up a bit.

Excellent advice, in my opinion.

That's what I thought also.

I think you should weigh the pros and cons carefully before making a decision. I believe in being loyal to your instructor "up to a certain point". One of my pet peeves are students who are so loyal that they are "unrealistic" when it comes to their instructor. Meaning, they idolize them so much that they fail to see that they are human and makes mistakes and the world they live in is not to be seen through rose-colored glasses. It doesn't seem like you are that person. You see the deficiencies there and you see the positives. Now you are ready to improve and move on. IMO there is nothing wrong with that and it seems like you have a realistic outlook on your instructor and school. After a period of time when you have paid your dues and especially in your case that you've taught so much and helped him out, there comes a time when a student has the desire to break away and begin something new or start something on his own. I see nothing wrong with this in fact, to me it seems like a natural path of growth. True, it might not be an easy thing for you to do or for your instructor to accept, but as students aren't we supposed to grow and advance to become better or "more" than what we started as? There are some instructors who can not handle their students "leaving the flock" and see it as disloyalty. There are students who never advance and pursue other goals they desire and either become resentful of their instructor for holding them back, if not literally then feeling held back "emotionally." IMO, once you've weighed the pros and cons and whether you will be happier, then do what your heart desires because if you don't, you will probably regret it. That doesn't mean you aren't grateful for what your instructor taught you. I would just have a nice talk with him about what your plans are, rather than just pick up and leave. If he's got your best interests at heart, then he should be ok with it and if not, then what is the reason he would hold you back? Selfishness or ??? If that turns out to be the case, then its his issue not yours. Good luck

I love doing kata/forms best of all. I love the pressure of being forced to perform a kata in front of the class by yourself. No matter how tired you are from work, that forces you to put every last bit of energy into it - and to perform it as though you were right in the middle of competition. To me, that is most satisfying. Also, I enjoy weapon training tremendously.

Taken off the web from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1012804/plotsummary Is there room for principle in Los Angeles? Mike Terry teaches jujitsu and barely makes ends meet. His Brazilian wife, whose family promotes fights, wants to see Mike in the ring making money, but to him competition is degrading. A woman sideswipes Mike's car and then, after an odd sequence of events, shoots out the studio's window. Later that evening, Mike rescues an action movie star in a fistfight at a bar. In return, the actor befriends Mike, gives him a gift, offers him work on his newest film, and introduces Mike's wife to his own - the women initiate business dealings. Then, things go sour all at once, Mike's debts mount, and going into the ring may be his only option.

It can't be any old chocolate chip cookie. It's gotta be a crunchy kind. Not those soft, mushy, wimpy ones. The ones that are the best are the ones that hold up well in a glass of cold milk or hot coffee when you dunk them. I'm very particular about my cookies, ya know !

I would just keep driving around in my spare time in the neighborhood of where I'd want my school to be. Take down the phone numbers of any vacant spots for rent and call. It's a lot of car / foot work but if you are determined to do this, I think this is the quickest way - also checking your town's newspaper.

I agree with you 110% and have seen this also. I recall when I first joined martial arts and felt somewhat intimidated around the high ranking masters whenever I'd attend a public event or tournament. The funny thing is at these events you can see how some of them obviously *milk* that master belt and the attitude with it, as much as they can. Some are really nice and approachable. Others have that aloof & "look-down-upon you" persona about them. I often wondered to myself how they passed their test! As I moved up the ranks myself and saw these same people over and over again and observed their behavior, spoke to some and heard others speak of them, I made my own conclusion that indeed *some* of these people do not deserve to have the title they do. I am no longer intimidated by them, since I'm not a "beginner" - rather, I watch them with an amused look. I feel a really good, down-to-earth and humble master will try to be a mentor to the lower rank students and not walk around with the lofty attitude and throw their weight around while having nothing to back it up with. They will be humble enough to admit when they don't know a technique or are not sure, and aren't threatened or annoyed if you question them about something. Those are the ones who truly deserve to wear the title of sensei.

I've already gone beyond initial b.b. level and when I started out, I didn't expect to stick it out that far. Now that I have gone beyond that, I really don't have a specific goal as far as rank goes. I've decided that I will just keep training until my body lets me or cries "uncle" from pain. LOL

only if its chocolate chip !!

Some of these plants looks strangely familiar to me. Anyway, good thing I don't own any. I don't have a green thumb !

Ok, I don't want to give away the movie but I finally got to see this and I enjoyed the beginning of it but the ending disappointed me. I would not classify this as a typical "action" movie though. I guess I have mixed feelings / reviews on this. Would like to hear others opinions after seeing it.

I completely understand your predicament. You say the closest one to your home is 1.5 hours away - what about near where you work? Any places there? If that's not an option either, I would also suggest the local " Y " - I do think most of them offer classes in martial arts. At least that would be a step in the right direction of getting back into it. Good luck.

Welcome !!!