sensei8

Had the locks and the like been once removed, what's to stop the practitioner from adding them back in knowingly or unknowingly? I've added so much to what Shindokan truly is, as it was taught to me, because what I consider valuable to me will remain. It's the...absorb what is useful and discard the rest kind of thing, and in that, it's a personal choice as well as a personal decision that one makes willingly. Is it an act of dishonoring time honored traditions and the like? No! Because I value everything that my Dai-Soke taught me concerning Shindokan as well as the MA in general, but the journey is mine and in that, Shindokan, as well as with any other MA, isn't perfect across the board. Add the locks and whatever else as one sees fit, and this can be done without dishonoring anybody. Imho.

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!

For me, respected and proven research and all won't ever deter me from what I've dedicated my life to for 49 years; my journey will continue nonetheless!!

...Chessboxing?!?! Yes, that's what I said...Chessboxing!! Chessboxing is for all ages, but for a championship fight, you must be younger than 35, have fought in more than 20 boxing matches and have a chess ELO rating higher than 1800. The last Chessboxing Championship wasn't won by a TKO, but with a Checkmate. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_boxing Of course Las Vegas got into the ring with...you guessed it...Pokerboxing!! http://ringsidereport.com/?p=28516

This is not no catchy title to get your interest in this topic, well, not entirely. MAists try to remain in top physical conditioning and all, but I found one that might even test beyond anyone's capabilities more than one can even imagine. Travel to the Green Mountains of Vermont to compete in a challenge of physicality that will test your mettle in ways that you can't even fathom. This isn't a race for the weekend warrior, not in the slightest. http://www.youmaydie.com/ The site's banner says..."THE DEATH RACE", and from what I know about it, it's been properly entitled. For example, 95% of entrants NEVER finish a Death Race. Last year's winner finished in 67 hours. The Death Race website says, "Please only consider this adventure-style race if you have lived a full life to date. The same co-owners of the Death Race, Joe DeSana and Andy Weinberg also developed the Spartan Race Series. It's an obstacle race for a broader range of those who want to test their mettle. http://www.spartanrace.com/#. For both of these extreme races will draw quite a lot of entrants but only a few will actually show up. For example, one year, 255 signed up, but only 155 showed up. Last year, more than 300 showed up for the Death Race to see if it would break them, and according to what I've read, many, many were broken. Except one, Joe Decker. He's won the Death Race not just once, but twice!! Decker isn't your average fitness athlete. Guinness World Records certified him as the world's fittest man in 2001 after he successfully completed the 24-hour Physical Fitness Challenge. Joe Decker has competed in most of the world's toughest endurance challenges, from the 520 mile race over the Himalayas to running across the Sahara Desert. In a 24 hours, he... *Biked 100 miles *Ran 10 miles *Hiked 10 miles *Power walked 5 miles *Kayaked 69 miles *Skied, on a Nordictrack, 10 miles *Rowed 10 miles *Swam 2 miles *Did 3,000 abdominal crunches *Did 1,100 jumping jacks *Did 1,000 leg lifts *Did 1,100 push ups *Lifted, cumulatively, 278,540 pounds Ok...and WOW...and MAN-OH-MAN...and WOW [again]!! Are you willing? Are you brave? Are you physically ready? Are you mentally ready? Well...I'M NOT!! Not even in my prime, however, in my prime I surely would've tried it at least once!! *First of all, I'm not affiliated with any of the links found in this post, therefore, I'm in no way advertising for them either.

It's all about transitioning huh?!

...Is like... >Motor Crossing Racing while you're sitting backwards on the seat! [Everything's out of control] >Salmon fishing with the other bears, except, you're not a bear! [You're quite out of your element] >Parachuting without a reserve! [You know ONE so-so technique] >Driving an 18-Wheeler truck, except you don't know how! [You just can't get it in gear] Try to remember the very first time you every donned all of your protective gear and engaged on the floor to spar, and your sparring partner was much more experienced than you, like, your Sensei/Instructor. Your turn...what was sparring like for your very first time?

Well... Here's what's been decided about the whole thing. I'm to be tested for Kudan by a panel of 4 Hachidans, 3 Rokudans, and 2 Godans this year. Yes, this year!! Just as soon as our annual testing cycle is completed, which is held the last week of June and the first week of July. The contents of the testing are under lock and key, as they should be because it's, well, it's a test and it's not an open book test. Who came up with the testing criteria, and one that our Dai-Soke would've approved of? The Administrative Team, The Executive Team, The Technical Team, and The Regents. I was quite shocked that they came up with the criteria so fast, but, I suspect that they've had this in the workings for quite some time. I'm quite content with NOT earning Kudan, but, to shut them up, I'll test and I'll do my best. Even though I've a track record of failing my testing cycles; they usually take 2-3 cycles before I pass. I did entertain the idea of walking away from Kaicho and the Hombu for 1-2 years and then return but in a much lower capacity within the hierarchy, but Greg, our Kancho, said that would be, well, as he put it..."STUPID because you assume you'd be allowed back into the Hombu!!" Hhhmmm!! I should've stayed retired!!

Yes, by all means, GOOD LUCK!! You'll be fine!!

I first heard about hip-pointer injuries in 1991. Hip pointer contusion can be painful when walking or moving around. This type of injury is more common when a MAist is kicking up head high, and while this type of injury can occur to both women and men, I've never heard a complaint from any of my male students. That's either because men don't suffer that type of injury or men don't want to bruise their male egos. Hip pointer injuries aren't only for MAists. However, I've never suffered from a hip pointer injury.

My brothers older than me, by 7 years, and he thinks he knows everything, and he doesn't, especially when the MA is concerned. Your brother is a MA and he doesn't like kids sparring? As a MAist, he should know the vital importance of sparring; it's detrimental to NOT spar, imho!! Does your brother like kids doing football and the like? Kids are resilient, more so than adults, and by that I'm not saying that kids should spar without any protective gear, no, but, a MAist needs to spar, otherwise, defeat is eminent.

Well, Sparring is one the most vital tools in any form of the MA. One must learn to engage in live sparring under the watchful eye of a qualified instructor. No sparring is akin to learning how to swim but never wanting to get wet, and how is one going to learn how to swim unless they get wet. How can anyone, not just youth, learn how to fight if they don't engage in live and controlled sparring? How's one going to learn to transition and how's one going to learn how to react to someone trying to knock their block off and how's one going to learn what works or doesn't work for them? Your brother has some concerns, but, I believe that your brother can't see the forest because of the trees. Sparring is vitally important across the board; no sparring equals defeat, imho. Good luck!!

Wow...is headgear going by the wayside for good? I think that it's dangerous for the amateur division, especially for children, imho. Head injuries are a serious thing, and they shouldn't be taken lightly by any governing body.

Excellent, sold post!! I thank you for your thoughts. I believe, even though it's sad to think about, you're hitting the nail right on its head. I think Shindokan is solid across the board, even though it has it's obstacles here and there, like most any style has. Ideas shouldn't pass away with the founder of the style and/or the governing body, but, it's always a possibility. The mindset of..."Don't worry, just train!" is fine but it also lends one to sweep the immediate problem(s) under the rug, and to wait until then is careless of the governing body, imho.

Stances are everything, however, without posture, stances are invalid. The 4 postures of most karate [front facing, side facing, half-front facing, reverse half-front facing] not only speak about defense, but offense as well. I teach my students to not only ask what stances are the best for what attack/defense, but to also ask which posture should compliment the stance and vise versa. Beyond asking your instructor, self-discovering makes us accountable for our training as well. Hang in there!!

Very solid post!!

First of all, Welcome to KarateForums!! I'm unfamiliar with the gentleman you're speaking about...sorry. Good luck.

Are you in a cult? Not from what I've read and not from what you've posted. Train as though your life depended on it!!

Great post!! The bold type above, imho, speaks strongly just that...Kata is essential TO Karate, and I believe that that needs to be understood.

Solid post!!

Bruce Lee trained in Chi Sao extensively and it seemed to help him across the board, so, I'd say, yeah, Chi Sao can, imho, aide one in a real fight. Dabbling in it, well, that'll do no good; one will have to train with it quite a lot. Imho.

Great post Justice!! Possibly you could add Yoga and/or the like to combat the posture problem...possibly. No posture; nothings valuable!! I don't know if your posture problem is a girl only problem, however, I do know that only girl students of the MA complain about their hip-pointer when trying to do a side kick. Still sounds to me like you've got the pulse of your situation way under control and that in time, you'll find that final solution. Good luck Justice!!

I enjoy a good judo match!! There's nothing like seeing the chess game of judo unfold before ones eyes. I don't think IOC will throw judo out because it's a staple of the summer Olympics. Will TV ratings suffer if the Olympics aren't there?

Since the advent of the MA, no matter the genre, many of the founders, of either a style and/or its governing body, have passed away. Some, not all styles of the MA, have fared better than others, and in that, some styles have splintered, in some fashion or another, and some styles have faced their own mortality across the board. Question(s)... 1) If your style has recently lost its founder, what's the immediate plans for its continuation? 2) In your honest opinion, will your style be fine when your founder passes away? 3) Will your style, in your honest opinion, splinter slightly or splinter a lot? 4) Will you want to continue in your style if the splintering isn't kept to its minimal OR will you seek training in another style that's more grounded across the board? Depending on who one's asking, splintering and the like isn't a bad thing because more sound governing bodies emerge that provide greater betterment for its student body. Death is unavoidable, and in that, founders sometimes forget to put into the mechanics of the details that create the future of said style of the MA. Many, many noted founders of either the said style or the said governing body are no longer with us and those noted MAists are reaching the end of their journey. Has, for example, Kanazawa Sensei provided and established a more sound future for its student body? It's none of my business, but as a MAist, how we look at those around us, provides us a small picture of what not to do or what to do for when we're faced with it. Your thoughts!!

While I disagree with the possibility of wrestling being no longer an Olympic event for all to enjoy, even though, I do see the IOC trying to change the content of its brand which is what every business needs to do, and that is...change to stay with or ahead of its competition. I mean, the Olympics is big business in the tune of Millions, if not Billions!!