tallgeese

Yeah, down right mean if you aske me. Gotta be against the Geneva Convention.

Not to mention that several older forms have movments that have largely been interperated as blokcks when in reality, they are intended to be training aids for other things, nerve strikes coming to most immediatlely to mind.

This is true, I'm certain that we have injected a great deal of romanticisim into the samurai/bushi history. Probibly in much the same way that we have idolized the knights of european history, by and large. I do think that you can certainly deliniate between do arts and jutsu arts, even as they are taught today. Perhaps we can get into lofty ligusitic and historical arguements, but at the end of the day what each school is teaching can usually be seperated between the two fairly easily.

Yup, rattan weapons. The length requirement will vary by your region of the country. They must be taped as to not allow splintering and the cutting edge will be maked by a different color tape. Thrusting is allowed with an extra foam "thrusting tip" built to the end of the weapon. Controled to the front of the face is key w/ thrusting. For sword and shield work, a basket hilt is usually mounted (an easy procedure). For great sword and two-stick I usually wore hockey gloves with some leather suppliments. Then again, I was always into the sport aspect. The authenticity people will build full gauntlets for this type of thing.

Well played, monk. Well played.

Experiance counts, for sure. It grants you quality movement that is difficult for a newcomer, even one with youth, to deal with. But it's the experiance, not the age that grant this. And eventually, age will overcome even that advantage. That being said, it's better to train than to not train. And to do that you have to start, no matter the age. Again, I think it's great that the OP is starting now. Keep at it.

By and large, probibly rarely. Still, I'd never discount it and would certainly never enter a conflict while taking the option off the table.

Just remember, there may indeed be times where a knife or gun are needed to defeat an unarmed attacker. Best be ready to use them under situational conditions, not just generalizations.

Ok, not bushido man, but I did fight in the SCA. I would still except for time constraints. In my opinion, yes, it's very worth the time. There are those who will throw the "historical accuracy" arguement out and yes, there are plenty of things that are disallowed. That being said, you get a good feel for what different weapons function like and it's a blast. Being a full-contact sport is pretty neat to. Be prepared to either shell out some serious time to make armor, or serious coin to buy it. Most groups have a starter set they will loan you to get you fighting. It's worth it, look for a good group.

Yup, no such thing. Dirty is fine and works well.

Don't forget to check the campus organizations as well. There are usually several clubs that encompas different arts on any campus. I was fortunate enought to find a couple of really good ones, and found one too. So check the rec center listings. Don't forget to poke around in the matted rooms occassionally as well. Lot's of guys doing combatives can usually be found at odd hours hitting and throwing each other around.

I vote in the no side here, ma's are about combative efficiency. Everything else gained is a secondary benifit. You might argue that mindset is something besides a physical benifit (maybe spritual), but I lump that in with combative efficiency not other, more esoteric concepts. You might also agrue that strategy and tactics development is mental. Yes, it requires mental capacity, but it is not a goal of the arts but an outgrowth of fighting. Not a mental training regime. There are other avenues that, I feel, are more approprite for the development of the spritual side of one's self and the intellectual growth of an individual. Not saying that they are not important, just that ma's are about combat above and beyond all else.

Great question! As it pertains to competivie ring ma's, I think it is about showing respect and class during the fight. It also invovles leaving everything on the mat and fighting to your upmost. As for self-defense, I think it is all about using ma's only when needed and then within the proper constraints of a proper use of force model. After that, it's agian all about doing what ever it takes to defeat the attacker. Defending that which you have chosen to protect, yourself included, to your upmost ability successfully is key. For me, honor in this sense is encapsulated within the arts themselves and proper use of them is what defines it. Not codes of conduct outside the combative arena. But that's just me.

Well put. We've probibly all see "that guy" a time or two. Still, there are some mighty good brawlers I've ran across that have just been beaten down in thier lives so much that it's almost a way of life for them. Technically, they are horrible. However, there is a strong advantage that comes from a high level of comfort with violent behavior and a willingness to hurt others.

True, it's not really about competition. However, most 70 yr. olds can't defend themselves the way that a 30 yr old can. It's the inevitibility of growing old. Our physical systems just don't work as well. For my part, I'm trying to stave that off as long as possible.

Yeah, bushido man, this thread got me poking through it again as well. Definatly good mindset stuff in there.

Ok, so not only are the wife and kids out of town today, but I didn't have to go to work either. So- started with a 2 mile run rest modifeid crossfit 3 rounds, 15- 12- 9 reps of: 95 lbs thruter pullups dips light legs rest 4, 3 min rounds -double ended bag -heavy bag -makiwaris -back to double ended bag last but not least- wish the hurting would stop.

I agree with throwdown on this one, you need carbs pre-fight. However, like anything else, you need the right carbs. Primarily, I tried to focus on carbs that would be longer burning (complex) rather than short bursts (simple, sugars and such). Lot's of people over do it here. There are very few athlete who truely need to "carbo-load". Balanced nutrition is the key for maintaining a perfomance diet through a full set of training cycles, however. There are tons of different thoughts on this. Bottom line, find a diet that works for your body and is getting done what you want done. Try to minimize foods that are bad, live off stuff that's good, train regularly. As to cutting weight, try to make certain that you are weighing in the night before the fight. This will allow you to rehydrate overnight, where you will actually gain benifit. If the weigh-ins are the day of the competition, consider not cutting as much. If you are cutting, consider depeltion training occassionally to teach your body (and maybe more importantly, your mind) to perform on minimal calories (Mark Twight is a proponant of this).

As many as you can manage at once .

That may be true....point tournies have never been my cup of tea. For combative purposes I think the answer remains no. No one is calling stops to the action in a fight. Better to make him confused with a flurry of shots that suprise him.

crossfit- 3 rounds 50 box jumps 50 good mornings 50 roman chair type sit ups back and bis

It's Mushashi's text on swordsmanship. There are tons of translations out there. To answer the OP, yes, it can be applicable. Not in the way of technical skills so much, but I highly reccomned it for the development of mindset and the "big picture" ideas that affect interpersonal conflict. Those who practice sword arts will certainly get more out of it than others, but it can still be very benificial to the ma practitioner.

Today crossfit (modified) 20 pullups 50 dips 15 pullups 40 dips 10 pullups 30 dips 10 pullups 20 dips 10 pullups 10 dips quick chest and tris to finish

Welcome aboard and it's good that you're back in the ma's. I'm a relitive newcomer to the boards here as well and you will find that it is an excellent community. As for starting back, I'd say just go for it. More people have fallen into the "when I'm in shape" trap than I can count. Just get into it and it will start to work itself out. I know how new family additions can seriously derail training. Try to set aside time to work out that's acceptable to you, signifigant other, and allows time with the new ones. That being said, be flexable and be preparded to adjust. You may have to get used to working more solo training (often at odd hours). Still, it's doable. Keep at it and keep us posted.

I'm going yes here. Someone who is knowledgeable needs to be present in that peer group. This person will inevatibly become the defacto "instructor". Yes, great leaning and training can occur in this setting, but someone has to be able to point everyone in the right direction. Hence, the instructor role needs to be filled. The exception, and of course there is always one, is a group of highly skilled individuals working together. Hiigh end competitors or black belts all working together might function well without a central figure teaching, but usually someone will guide even that group through certain movements that they are more comfortable with than the others.