sensei8

Dillman has lost credibility in the MA overall; it's his own making. For me, he really done his credibility in when he spoke about "No Touch", and in that, how he could move people in line at a Starbuck, hence, he was able to go from the back of the line to the front of the line.

Having trained with most of the Senior Japanese (older) Wado Sensei - I would agree it isn't really used. In fact, I was actually warned against using it prior to training with a visiting Japanese sensei for fear of offending him. I also train with a Koryu group - and the word "Oss!/Osu!" is NEVER used as it is considered vulgar. Funny how some see it as a sign of respect whilst others think it is totally disrespectful K. Solid post!! To the bold type above... I suppose that to avoid any misunderstandings, one should learn about the culture beforehand.

I've seen the opinion that, if you need to stretch before you can do a certain activity, you're not yet flexible enough for that activity. The advice was to improve your flexibility first and the go back to doing that thing. I have a feeling that won't go well in a TKD class though. While that might be true for some and not for others, the older one gets the more one might have to stretch more...I do. I'll be 58 this October, and I need to stretch more now than I use to. Is that just part of aging? I hope so, because if it's not, than I just don't know.

Good post. But it seems like now the question is What constitutes adequate stretching in the first place!? YOU/ THE PRACTITIONER constitute what is and what isn't adequate stretching; no one knows your body better than YOU/THE PRACTITIONER!! But if a you're doing is repeating the same thing over and over without trying something new, how well do you truly know what you're capable of or if something else could be of greater benefit? Again, that's up to you, and you won't know until you try something new, but who's to say that that new thing is for you?!?! Most MAist have an instructor, and the instructor has had a stretching routine for students to do as part of the pre-class warm up. So, use those stretches...they were fine then, so they'll be fine in the future.

I don't like, therefore, I don't buy all of the psyching before a break; just break the darn thing. You won't have time for psyching if attacked; defend yourself immediately. You don't have time to warm up, psyche out, measure if attacked, so why do all of that unnecessary stuff before the break? It's not a 1 and a 2 and a 3...then...break...on the streets; purposeful attacks/defenses. Boards DO hit back when you take FOREVER to break the darn things!!

Cool, thanks, Brian!!

Solid post!!

SOLID POST!!

I never thought about it like that. As far as actually washing my belt, I can't say I do it that often. It has never seemed to have become dirty enough to warrant washing it. In related news, I have a new found appreciation for my ability to use my mother's washing machine. Yeah, I'll wash the gi, and not even think about washing the belt because it's a belt. Nicely tucked in my bag or placed on a hat rack in the corner; out of mind.

For the most part, small joint manipulations. Students learning Tuite, especially while grappling, they forget that, for the most of the time, a foundation must be in the manipulation, or it just won't work; they'll just break free without any problem. But use a foundation for the manipulation, well, that'll be quite unpleasant for my opponent; not easy to escape from once set without experiencing some severe pain. I can utilize the Tuite in a number of ways. I can wait until I'm touched or I can initiate it, but for the most part, I will wait until I'm touched. Can't grapple unless you touch some part of my/their body. Standing or on the ground, the foundation, the support of the manipulation must be there. As a LEO, I'm sure the academy teaches some certain controlling holds. They're simple...direct...and the suspect isn't going anywhere until you allow it. Those are Tuite properties!!

Solid post!! The Hombu sends Senior Ranks to visit each and every Shindokan dojo for a wide variety of reasons, but the primary reason is to make each CI and its instructors accountable for not what they teach, but how they teach it. These type of visits were started by Soke, when he and Dai-Soke, then Kaicho. Greg and I, and other Senior Ranks have continued to follow their examples; it's all about ACCOUNTABILITY all across the board!! They hold 1-2 weeklong seminars, we students called these seminars, Dog seminars because Soke and/or Dai-Soke would constantly dog you until you got it right and you understood. Neither of them tolerated anything less than perfection from any student, especially from any CI and instructors. Do it right or go away until you do it right!! We have a very strong Hombu/SKKA. Since the passing of Soke and then Dai-Soke, some drama has infected the viability as well as the tranquility of the Hombu/SKKA. We've had more than our share of hiccups and potholes since the passing of them both. When they were alive and in charge, we NEVER had hiccups and potholes, of our magnitude, because either of them would simple squash the snuff out the fire while it was a spark, as to not allow the fire to grow. They were fantastic firefighters, in that regards. I try, and I'm still trying to honor them, but, with all of these bumps in the road, I question, past...present...future...my positive impact onto the student body; am I doing them justice, or am I harming them in the short and the long of it all?!?!? The last paragraph is truly what you need to ponder. Everything else is minor, relatively speaking. It shows that you have your organization's best interests at heart. The most difficult times require the strongest leaders. But even the best leaders are only as good as those they're leading. Solid post!! Not all BB, that can teach, and teach very, very well, can run a governing body!! My election as the current Kaicho of the Hombu/SKKA was unanimous. With that being said, I'm reminded of a John Lydgate quote..."You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time." I've made unpopular decisions, but I made them with the student bodies best interest in mind, and I didn't waffle in my decisions.

I said I am extremely resistant, not that they don't work. I spent several years at university in China (Shanghai & Xi'an) and my colleagues took me to a couple of Dim Mak schools but all I saw was ultra-compliant students falling over, nobody managed to make it work effectively on me. The effects of the strikes were no more than any other strike of that power, aimed at prominent bones or weak cartilage, such as the xiphoid process. I also went to a dentist who used acupuncture, give me novocaine any day! My own take on pressure point techniques is that they make for good demonstrations but are not practical in real life situations for the following reasons: The practitioner needs to be really good to hit the right spot consistently The right spot varies by individual and some people do not react anyway YES!! To the bold type above! And when done Kyusho jitsu is done incorrectly, you better have a plan 'B' NOW!! The Tuite, makes up for the inconsistency of Kyusho jitsu.

Yes, BB is important to me, except nowadays since Sandan, I no longer proactively search for it, and yes, I'm sure that I smile humbly outwardly whenever I earned another Dan degree; the measure stick of how I'm doing as a MAist, I suppose. That BB acceptance can't be denied, it's in us, as human beings!! Some cover it up better than others, but, it's there!!

Solid post!!

A quite corner, those can be hard to find, but they're there. Once you find that quite corner, unwind to some soothing music. Some read a book, but for me, reading a book keeps my mind way to active when I'm trying to relax. Some find relaxation amongst friends; quite conversation. Some relax by watching the matches. Me, I like to relax to some relaxing music.

So true...so true!!

Perhaps!! Perhaps!! You know, Brian, I'm sick and tired of running into potholes; there's got to be an end to all of this drama.

JR137 and Montana...Solid posts, both!!

Maybe, while training, their belt became soiled and all that nasty stuff, therefore, giving their belt the appearances of change...RIGHT BEFORE THEY WASHED THEIR BELT. Then they'd do this whenever necessary. I'm only speculating!! I use to not wash my belt that often after learning the myth was indeed a myth, for two reasons. One, my mom forbid me from using her washing machine. Might've been because of the bleach incident. Two, I was tired of unwrapping my belt from around the agitator; it would wrap itself around everything like a dog would with its leash in the backyard. Then I learned about a new invention...the hose bag. It's the bag that held my moms pantyhose while they were in the washing machine; a necessity IS the means of inventions! After that, my belt didn't wrap around everything. Yes, mom STILL wouldn't allow me to use the washing machine...sheech, she can be so stubborn.

Solid post!! The Hombu sends Senior Ranks to visit each and every Shindokan dojo for a wide variety of reasons, but the primary reason is to make each CI and its instructors accountable for not what they teach, but how they teach it. These type of visits were started by Soke, when he and Dai-Soke, then Kaicho. Greg and I, and other Senior Ranks have continued to follow their examples; it's all about ACCOUNTABILITY all across the board!! They hold 1-2 weeklong seminars, we students called these seminars, Dog seminars because Soke and/or Dai-Soke would constantly dog you until you got it right and you understood. Neither of them tolerated anything less than perfection from any student, especially from any CI and instructors. Do it right or go away until you do it right!! We have a very strong Hombu/SKKA. Since the passing of Soke and then Dai-Soke, some drama has infected the viability as well as the tranquility of the Hombu/SKKA. We've had more than our share of hiccups and potholes since the passing of them both. When they were alive and in charge, we NEVER had hiccups and potholes, of our magnitude, because either of them would simple squash the snuff out the fire while it was a spark, as to not allow the fire to grow. They were fantastic firefighters, in that regards. I try, and I'm still trying to honor them, but, with all of these bumps in the road, I question, past...present...future...my positive impact onto the student body; am I doing them justice, or am I harming them in the short and the long of it all?!?!?

To the bold type above... *129 were tested! *All ranks; both Kyu and Dan! More Kyu's than Dan's. *3 for Godan. 1 for Rokudan...all passed, btw. I was the center chair on each of those testing's!! *No! Sprinkled from all dojo represented. *No! Various graders. Real quick. No one is allowed to sit on a testing panel that their student is in attendance. ONLY approved graders are allowed to sit on a testing panel, and even furthermore, ALL graders are from the Hombu, and each were awarded said credentials from our Soke and/or Dai-Soke after having attended a quite in-depth training course conducted by either Soke and/or Dai-Soke. In that, we've not any new testing cycle graders.

An outstanding OP...thank you for it!! I chased rank when I was a child, but, I grew out of that hunt, in time. At Sandan, the rank chase was the furthest thing from me. I chased rank as a child because I was just that, a child full of untold and unfounded expectations. What solidified my rank hunt was being a prisoner of the JBB rule and regulation that forbid me from obtaining Shodan until I became 18 years old. But thank God that I was fortunate enough to have a Sensei with forward thinking sensibility that still trained me as though I was able to achieve rank. Therefore, when I turned 18, I tested and earned my Shodan. A year later, I tested and earned my Nidan. Then, a year later after receiving my Nidan, I tested and earned my Sandan. Why so fast? Was I still searching rank? To answer my own questions, YES, I was still searching rank because I was quite unable to understand, at that age, as to why a JBB couldn't earn rank. I was a capable as a JBB as those adults who possessed a Shodan, Nidan, and yes, a Sandan, but over time. My quick rise to Sandan from Shodan was because, and in the words of my Sensei..."You are more than ready; no reason to delay!!" Rank is a measuring stick, but depending on whom is holding and interpreting the stick, the analysis will be different. That's OK because no instructor is the same, even though they might judge per what the governing body dictates pertaining to rank and the like. Even those instructors within the governing body will have different conclusions as to how rank should be treated, and lastly, awarded. A Shodan in dojo 'A' will not be the same in dojo 'B' in different styles, in that, for example, the Shodan in dojo 'A' is equivalent to a 6th Kyu, at best. Why? Methodology and Ideology; they too differ from style to style, and from instructor to instructor. Therefore, I firmly believe that this happens because of this... Not all black belts can teach, nor should they try. Quality of instructions will drastically differ from dojo 'A' to dojo 'B'. Quality control begins with the CI, and is made accountable by the governing body. That's why I visit every Shindokan dojo just prior to the Hombu's Annual Testing Cycle to see just how that particulars dojo is measuring up to two measuring sticks. One stick is the Hombu/SKKA accountability of the CI and the instructors under that CI. The second stick is my accountability of the CI and the instructors under that CI; both stick are in concert with each other. We don't pass to keep students. They want to go to dojo 'A', go! Maybe dojo 'A' can get that student to grade at Shodan faster than dojo 'B' can. But you know what, I'm not in the business of awarding rank! I'm in the business of sharing my knowledge and experience; therefore, teaching Shindokan Saitou-ryu to what I understand it to be as taught to me by my Sensei. If it takes a student 10, 20 years to earn a Shodan, then so be it because I'm not interested in them achieving ANY rank, whether it be a Kyu rank or a Dan rank. BIG DEAL!! Yes, it's easy for me to say that now, considering my rank history, and now look at the rank and title I posses currently. But, my rank hunt became my ignorance for me not properly prioritizing my MA training where rank should've been my LAST, and not my FIRST responsibility. Yes, I still enforce the rules of the JBB, but with a more understanding as to why Soke was so adamant about it in the first place. I can help a student get through those years of abandonment feelings because I once was there too; I understand what it is like to feel moments of despair and how to get through those times of loneliness. The feeling of being punished for just being a kid, and not worth the value of an adult. The depth of rank is not at the same level as the depth of knowledge and experience! The depth of rank is quite shallow! The depth of rank is secondary to EVERYTHING that's not about rank! The depth of rank is for others and not for true practitioners of the MA! The depth of rank is measured by the practitioner of the MA! The depth of rank isn't to only measure the abilities of where someone is, but where someone once was; more mature and not lost in the sea of "wanting"! The depth of rank is an illusion! The depth of rank fades faster than a whisper! The depth of rank needs to be put in its proper place, and the proper place isn't on top of some pedestal! The want of rank must be replaced with the need for knowledge!! The floor is sacred ground; worthy of us to train where others have treaded honorably!!

check that videos poster's all videos, Dim Mak can work on all of people even the guy who are anti-strike. because, even you practise your body, you also can not practise your acupuncture points are hardly. i think maybe, that student was afraid of being hit hardly check all of videos of that poster, https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVEKAEX2LhqRia7Ry-HI1Hw all of them about the Dim Mak, even a science research about the Dim Mak japanese martial arts also came from china, about the Kyusho jitsu, i think they just learnt a little about Dim Mak. real dim mak should pour the chi inside of the victim's body. so, different dim mak sects have their own qigong practice way. but Kyusho jitsu just pressure points. maybe, they developed to different way with Dim Mak kung fu. For the moment, I'd say that we're of differing opinions about Dim Mak and the like, including Kyusho jitsu and the like. We've different backgrounds, none less than the other, nor as unimportant as the other. Even though I've trained in Kyusho jitsu for almost 51 years, I'm speculative about that art because, imho, it's inconsistent, and it's inconsistent because no one and nothing is perfect; we're all fallible. Therefore, Kyusho jitsu is consistent, but the practitioner is that which is inconsistent.

Good post. But it seems like now the question is What constitutes adequate stretching in the first place!? YOU/ THE PRACTITIONER constitute what is and what isn't adequate stretching; no one knows your body better than YOU/THE PRACTITIONER!!

Not every MA style NEEDS to be in the Olympics. Judo was fine. TKD was fine. Now wanting to add Karate to the Olympics, isn't fine because I don't believe that the Olympics should try to satisfy the masses by adding and adding and adding and adding and....good grief, Charlie Brown!! There are way too many MA's to be considered to appease every style and/or every governing body on the planet. Can't see them all on TV anyway, or in person because of scheduling conflicts with what people want to watch. Why? TOO MANY!! The more they add the longer the Olympics will be or the lessor people will be able to watch because of scheduling conflicts.