sensei8

When I was 7 years old, I use to get bullied, and have my lunch money taken from me everyday at school. Well, long story short, when my mom found out, she enrolled me in one of the local dojo's. Besides, my mom figured that it was cheaper to enroll me in karate classes before I hate her out of house and home. Fate brought me to Shindokan Saitou-ryu!!

Solid post!! I'm the same way, and so is our Hombu. What you speak about is almost word by word what our Hombu and I have been doing forever and a day. Students ALREADY have an instructor, and while some parents mean well, parents AREN'T the instructor. Testing cycles are for students and not for the parents!! Parents tend to voice their unwanted opinions whenever I've failed said student. "WHY?" None of your business; that's between student and instructor. Want to talk to me about it, then make an appointment so that we can discuss said concerns behind closed doors. However, my mind won't be changed, and I will control the conversation, and I will point out area's that the parents can help them with, but only if the parent will not undermine what it is that I'm teaching them; and that is Shindokan!! Our Hombu has a room that parents and the like can watch said testing cycle on closed circuit television, as well as an elevated viewing room, and that room has a very thick piece of glass in order to muffle any conversations emanating from that room. Parents want to watch, that's fine, but some parents can't help themselves, they try, but you can see it on their face before they speak. So, go to the other room until we're done. We'll let the parents be in the room for the salutations and the closing comments, other than that, watch from a safe and comfortable distance. During normal classes, we welcome them, until their conversations warrants them to leave!! Even if the parents a MAist, they're not an authority on Shindokan. Thanks, but no thanks!! Your instructor's settling the nerves of said student was excellent across the board!!

I believe that the pros and cons are not with the style or the methodology or ideology, but more with the practitioner, imho.

If he's the one you want to learn the MA from, then do what's necessary to learn from him. If he's not consistently on the floor to teach you, practice what he's taught you until he's more able to be on the floor. Is that frustrating? Sure, but it's minor to be taught by him!! Sure, you both should meet in the middle, but then again, you should meet him all the way. Now, if he finally walks away due to personal issue's, then seeking out another instructor might be a last resort. Good luck, train hard, hang in there, and if there's an ear to hear, we're hear for you.

Respectfully, I don't think it is the punching higher that would be the issues but learning to take the punch itself. I think you're right in that to deliver it you simply aim higher but defending it if you're not used to doing so might be another story. For fast hard legs and hands to both body and head look at pro kickboxing and to a lesser extent international ITF Taekwondo. Some wicked fast legs and punches. Avoiding and taking the face punches takes some specific and different movements than taking a punch to the body. Bobbing, weaving, even the parrying is different to how you'd defend against body punches and kicks to the head. Solid post!!

Imho, sexism can be found in pretty much any sport in any capacity where men dominate said sport; UFC and the like is no exception.

Chuck, Joe, and Bill are solid MAists, imho, in that, they'd do just fine in the UFC. As a matter of fact, and imho, any MAist that's solid on the floor would do just fine in the UFC.

To me, MMA means just what the title implies...Mixed Martial Arts.

Thanks for the video; very informative!! I think that what's happened is that the training methodologies/ideologies have become so much improved across the board. Approaches on how to train and get much more from ones training; more refined. The machines that one can be attached to is Frankenstein-like while ones training so that they can better understand the possibilities. We train, but if we're not training to improve, than there's no use to train at all, imho. Yes! We have to be! Change; the mother of evolution has to be embraced for it to begin. All instructors of the MA want to have their students and the like to improve, and become better MAists across the board. I do! I want my students, as well as the entire student body of Shindokan to improve and be much better than those of use who are reaching the end of their MA journey. To teach them to take what they've been given to higher platitudes. If the answer to the quote above is no!! Then we shame their legacies, imho!!

Torque!! Rotation of hips, relaxation of elbow joints to accentuate the technique, transforming rotational momentum into linear momentum...this amplifies impact!!

Both physical and mental can only take one so far!! Being honest with oneself is so very important; students deserve that!!

Rotational dynamics speak a lot to most karateka's. However, it's an often misunderstood principle while on the floor. I've seen karateka's overdo/over reaching, the dynamics thinking that is how said dynamic should be trained; and it's not. Frustration tends to push karateka's down the path of not making rotational dynamics all that important; the apex of the power curve is treated more as a numbing thing than as a helpful thing. Bad muscle memory takes over and it's a hard thing to erase, but not impossible. Does your style of karate teach rotational dynamics? OR... Have they turned their back from rotational dynamics? Your thoughts, please.

What would the seminar subject(s) be?

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!!

Why Sandan? Generally speaking, Sandan can promote students to Shodan without the governing bodiy being directly involved. As the CI/Owner, it's a feeling of independence that has to be experienced to be understood. Promoting students to Shodan on ones own; nothing compares, imho!!

Those here who've created a style of the MA, congrats, it's a bold step to take, but a important step, so... Is you're style under the umbrella of any governing body? If not... Did you also find your own governing body? Having your own style, what challenges, if any, have you faced in general as well as with obtaining students? I ask because a lot of customers/students tend to migrate to more "solid" styles of the MA. A hurdle, no matter how small or large, is still a hurdle, nonetheless.

Solid post; I wholeheartedly concur!!

Ok...I'm not good with fractions...but... I'm 56 years old; 57 years old this October, and I'll have been training in Shindokan for 50 years this October consistently. I trained in TKD for 1 year, during my high school days. I've been cross training for 37 years. edit: 37 years cross training and NOT 27, as I originally posted; typo

That's not always the case, imho!! Physical reason(s) might force one off the floor. Emotional reason(s) might force one off the floor. And these two considerations might not allow one to train ever again.

Can we see it?

That's probably why Abe Sensei, who use to be with the JKA, highly encourages cross-training; no style is enough.

Thank you for sharing the video! At first I hadn't given the 3 a snowball's change in winning because of the large amount the 3 had to face. But, then I started to think that they might beat the 50 because they were not rushing the 3 as a mass but instead, the 50 went at the 3 one at a time. "The crowd, being a crowd, does not initially do what it should, which is rush the experts and take them out right away with little regard for individual survival. But pretty much every person fights for themselves. And instead of getting easier for the Musketeers near the end, it gets more difficult. The few remaining crowd members start working together more effectively."~ from same video It's that "individual survival", imho, that racks up the kill ratio amongst the 50. The instinct that's built in us to survive hinders the will to rush into the fray haphazardly because they might not survive. That thought should be respected because survival speaks loud and clear in everyone's heart; life is precious. Should I or shouldn't I. Either way, doubt over shadows possibilities. However, this is a test, and not a real life situation where many have gone into a fray before without being concerned with ones own life; the needs of the many, out weigh the needs of the few, or the one. In the hopes that one of the 50 can foil the 3, and if that happens, then entering into the fight is a forgone conclusion that they won't have to meander over, and they'll still have saved face without having endured an injure, or worse. As the numbers dwindled down, multiple rushes of more than 1 started to emerge. It's like the remaining of the 50 were tired, and they were tired of the 3 picking them off one by one at will. The remaining started to wear the 3 down, thus the 3, one by one, started making those little costly mistakes that the small numbers were capitalizing. The last of the 3's body language shouted that loudly because he just couldn't believe what happened to him; mistakes, no matter how big or small, they still end any altercation. Strength in numbers! Yes! The 3, even though a small number, were more productive and proactive, mixed in with some guile, they were a small force to be reckoned with. Right from the start, the 50 should've rushed the 3 with determination, and forgoing all concerns for individual safety. Easier said than done, imho. Having 50 is a intimidating number, but it's not that large or a number nor is it intimidating when the 50 are acting as a 1 for the sake of individual survival. The 3 fencing masters could, and did, easily dispatch of 1 opponent at a time, and the fencing masters had time on their hand as the 50 came at them 1 at a time. Btw, great topic Justice!!

No matter the style, no matter the practitioner, sometimes, the end of ones time on the floor ends, for one reason or another. I'm speaking about those who've been on the floor for 30 or 40 or 50 solid years. Then, WHAM. They're forced off the floor for one horrific reason or another!! My end is NOT at hand, at this time!! But when one has to walk away from the floor, what's for the MAist to do? Walking away, isn't a thing that one wants to think about, especially after having been on the floor for so long. Practitioners like this knows every inch of the hardwood, they know every smell, every nook and cranny of the floor. Quitting isn't in the paragraph of any long time resident of the floor. They've bleed, cried, and sweated buckets trying to answer that old question..."What's next?" Does one write, host, teach on the side, fish, bowl, golf, garden, rock on the porch, punt, or kick?? Age creeps up uninvited, and what once was polished, now needs polishing, more now than ever. The creaking is no longer that loose floor board in the corner, but it's ones aged knees instead. Does one fight on, or does on finally have to admit to a more lesser schedule, or bow off the floor all together for the last time?? Your thoughts, please!!

So much so that I bought it. Thanks!!

I'd say...yeah, a great example!!