sensei8

An instructor...yes, I suppose, but the CI, NO!! CI as Blue Belt...ONE rank above White Belt, 3 Belts below Black Belt...NO!! How will testing cycles be decided? Who administers the testing cycle? Who authorizes ranks earned? How does a Blue Belt CI promote a student from White Belt to Blue Belt, providing that the CI was able to rank up to Purple Belt?? How often do the Gracies visit this school or are Instructor Representatives ranked BJJ Black Belts, or are they Blue Belts too?? I've seen an adult Ikkyu [brown Belt] become the CI of a karate school However, his Sensei was a Godan, and visited the dojo quite often. The Ikkyu sat on the testing panel because he was the CI, yet, the Godan administrated all testing cycles. For this Blue Belt CI in Gracies BJJ, what type of message does this send to the laypersons as well as fellow BJJ students/instructors/CI's, and so on and so forth. The age, for me, as the CI is enough, but to have a Blue Belt, the second rank in BJJ, as the CI...well...imho...that speaks poorly of the Gracie HQ.

For the moment, I'll say this, and go more in depth in a later post... Concept VS Technique VS Principle VS Memorizing; these are not stand alones because in the grand scheme of the MA, they're dependent on each other!! Versing this against that, only minimizes the goal: Effectiveness. Imho!!

Solid post!! As in anything MA, the end makes the technique, no matter what it might be.

Imho.... This 16 year old Blue Belt isn't qualified to be the CI. Why? A fair question!! Just the title alone requires one to be the HIGHEST ranked in that SCHOOL. The CI... 1> Supervises all instructors. 2> Administrates every aspect of any/every testing cycles. 3> Manages the curriculum/syllabus. 4> Is the final authority in that school; both technical and administration, and anything that might not fall in either of the aforementioned areas. 5> Is the authorized mediator between that school and that styles Governing Body. 6> Often times, but not always, owns the school out right. 7> That schools official representative, and official spokesperson. 8> Bears the brunt of the responsibilities of the brand/banner. Just because one can teach, and teach quite well, that's not a reason to be the CI; even if the parent(s)/guardian are the legal owners of said school. Of course, my opinions mean absolutely nothing because that school can do whatever they wish to!!

Which bag are you referring to? Kind of reminded me of the Right Guard commercials in the 80s - "Anything less would be uncivilized." Sorry, I'm slow...but I don't understand the question...trust me...it's me, NOT you!! I think he's asking what brand of bag is it that have that you like so much? I was asking which one he DIDN'T like so much. I think it was Outslayer. Because of my training needs nowadays, I don't like any heavy bag, no matter whomever manufactured them, including Outslayer. Please don't misunderstand me, Outslayer and many others produce excellent heavy bags across the board, but OKFighters meets all of my current training needs with their 500 pound bag.

Which bag are you referring to? Kind of reminded me of the Right Guard commercials in the 80s - "Anything less would be uncivilized." Sorry, I'm slow...but I don't understand the question...trust me...it's me, NOT you!! I think he's asking what brand of bag is it that have that you like so much? Aha...opps...sorry....I still messed it up...in that case, OKFighters is my favorite because it meets all of my training needs at the moment, and then some...OKFighters.

Believe me, your question isn't the first one I've received. Greg, our Kancho, asked that very same thing you just did of me. I understand the question, and I respect the question, from you, Greg, and anyone else who's asked. Why do I need a 500 pound bag for? Fair question! I need a bag of that magnitude to challenge me, and to satisfy me across the board. Sure, I've normal bags of all types, and I train with them equally in their context as well as in their content. The one thing that I understand are needs and wants; separate elements. I don't want the bag to fill some ego fueled desire, but I do need the bag to challenge me in every possible part of my MA training. That 500 bag will eventually surrender its fight to me; just like the ones before it has!! The 500 pound bag is 6' tall and 26" wide!! The many attributes that regular bags provide, the 500 pound bag adds the exclamation point to any reason(s) that one might have. Bags satisfy the need of contact; proportional penetration must be achieved. Bags will quickly reveal incorrect technique(s); injuries of various degrees are the results of incorrect technique(s), therefore, bags will develop correct technique(s). Bags will develop power and speed; these are the bottom lines of training with any bag. Over time, I've earned the respect from those MAists both in and out of the Shindokan circles that I've had the pleasure of training with concerning my power and speed. I say what I'm about to say not to brag and/or show off...I hit like a mule...and I've some uncanny speed. I can destroy a regular bag quite quickly. I can swing the heaviest bag and stop it dead in its track. I can cause a regular bag to nearly touch the ceiling with my kicks. I can fold a regular bag at will, and a regular bag also includes Biltuff's 350 pound bag. Bottom line...regular bags no longer satisfy and/or challenge my training needs; not anymore!! This 500 pound bag, for the moment, satisfies all of my training needs. If the MAists goal is to increase ones MA betterment, and I'm no different, than this 500 pound behemoth will help me become better. Better power...better speed...better proportional penetration...better technique understanding; these are important qualities I want to take to the next level. In time, that 500 pound bag won't satisfy and/or challenge my training needs anymore, and that time will happen, and when that time comes, I'll only have one thing to do... Buy the 1,000 pound bag, and OKFighters makes them as well!!

Danielle, I love the brightness of the room, and of course, the wide openness as well. Your dojang seems to have all of the comforts of a very well stocked dojang. Your instructor put some serious thought as to what was needed versus what was wanted.

To the bold type above... I had that bag professionally installed. They came in the morning, I did some errands around town, and by the time I got home a few hours later, it was the most dominate thing in the garage!!

Whew...glad I'm part of the 20% range!!

Which bag are you referring to? Kind of reminded me of the Right Guard commercials in the 80s - "Anything less would be uncivilized." Sorry, I'm slow...but I don't understand the question...trust me...it's me, NOT you!! Which punching bag were you referring to? The Outslayer Muay Thai bag, the body bag, or the Everlast cardio heavy bag? I think you meant an Outslayer bag, but I wasn't sure. If it wasn't dense enough, they can reportedly be filled up to 300 lbs, by you or the company. I've a 500 pound bag from KOFighters; thus far, it satisfies me, for now!! Cardio bags bore me to death!

Nice! After all, blood's can be hard to remove!!

Not surprising because Phoenix, AZ isn't a small town, and it's been known to be one of the bedrocks of the MA. Indeed! There are certainly over 100 martial arts schools in the metro area, and with Trias starting his dojo here, the history is definitely longer than most in the US, outside of Hawaii. My Sensei actually has the kamiza from the Trias dojo, and we display it in our dojo. That's pretty cool, Noah!!

That's a very nice dojo you train at; well equipped!! I've no dojo of my own at the time; I'm in between dojo's because I just move from Oklahoma to Texas...I'm in the search for one right now. My last dojo had everything and then some, including retail space for my MA supply store. I'm lick my brother, Donald, he's a ASE certified Master Mechanic, owns his own repair facility in Tehachapi, CA, and if it's a new tool or equipment, he'll buy it, and use it. I'm the same way, if it'll help my students and myself, I'll buy it and we'll all use it. I'll see if I have any photo's backed away, if so, I'll try to post them. I say try because I still have no idea how to post a pic...dumb in that area, beyond dumb in that area. Enjoy the new dojo...train hard and train well!!

Thank you for your kind and supportive words; they mean everything to me, IcemanSK. I just love to talk about the MA, and not just Shindokan. Shindokan means everything to me, possibly more than one would ever know, but, like all MA styles, it has its limits, and I've been very fortunate to have a Sensei that allowed us to look outside of the Shindokan circle; that has made a world of differences in my MA journey. I've cross trained my entire MA life, and I've learnt many things from many MAists outside of the Shindokan circle; priceless!! My mom taught us that reading is the key that opens the door to our minds. When I can't formally train or cross train, I'll open a book a absorb what's useful. However, the greatest library on the MA is the floor! Nothing, imho, can replace what's absorbed on the floor, no matter the style, no matter the dojo, no matter the rank; learning waits to be learnt. The floor is very patient with those who are honest with themselves, and when someone's not honest with themselves, the floor will teach the price of dishonesty faster than one can imagine. Again, thank you, IcemanSK!!

Not surprising because Phoenix, AZ isn't a small town, and it's been known to be one of the bedrocks of the MA.

Solid post!! To the bold type above... Great point. Set ups increase the successful ratio; combo's and things like that open up different targets and/or desired targets.

Many laypersons are under the impression that if one's hands, etc. don't display some visual indications, then that person isn't a MAist or hasn't been training long.

Our new Hombu location within Van Nuys, CA is surrounded by all types of MA; it's no surprise because, and it's not intentional, from any compass point, one will find quite a lot of MA schools on the way to our Hombu. San Fernando Valley is literally a wash of MA schools, in short, they're EVERYWHERE!! One would trip over one without trying to.

Ice...ice...ice...ice...ice........................What an amazing thing hard frozen water is; what an invention that it is. Whoever thought of it...is a genius!!

Proper breathing techniques oxygenate your muscles, and this is important because if your going to perform your body needs to get oxygen to the muscles or they will stop working, and that's just not good for a MAist. Imho!!

Which bag are you referring to? Kind of reminded me of the Right Guard commercials in the 80s - "Anything less would be uncivilized." Sorry, I'm slow...but I don't understand the question...trust me...it's me, NOT you!!

Solid post!! The bold type above spoke in volumes!!

No, there's no mention of Kumite, but I was just mentioning it in my post what I consider a natural progression from one, Kihon to Kata, to another. This is what I was thinking while I read it.

Watch a JKA Kumite, match, like on YouTube, for example, and you'll see them in a Fighting Stance, a more upright stance, but when they execute technique, they'll transition into the more formal stances. Those Shotokan practitioners that I've crossed trained with for many years will do the same very thing...fighting stance, then formal stance at the technique.