joesteph

When I first saw the OP, I realized I had to give extra thought to this one before posting. A belt, whether a particular color or a color that has stripes added to denote levels within the color, identifies the practitioner as having reached a certain level of proficiency in a martial art, meaning that, when tested, the requirements of that level have been met and something external, a recognizable symbol of that ability, is being worn. Symbols are very important in any society, from the nation's flag to a wedding ring. There are ten gup levels below dan ranking in my art, Soo Bahk Do, white belt being 10th gup. I've reached 6th, meaning a green belt and a green lapel on my uniform jacket. While others think of racing towards dan ranking, I've considered what it means to be a green belt/6th gup. In order to have become a 6th gup, my test actually demonstrated that I knew the requirements from 10th to 7th; while a 6th gup, I am studying what a 6th gup/green belt is required to know. Testing for a promotion, to be 5th gup (a green belt with a blue stripe), actually means that I've demonstrated required 6th gup knowledge. I believe that, in my experience, there is an official foible, in that certain techniques are to be learned, a simple example being certain self-defense techniques in which the opponent has seized your right wrist and you successfully counter, but the same technique is not required testing on the left wrist. I do not blame my teacher, in that she has pressed that we should know both, but time in the dojang, especially time to get in different lessons, prevents something as simple as this, but which must be practiced repeatedly for proficiency, from even being started on, let alone repeated. Does the pressure to have students be ready for the next test and the fact that only certain things will be on it count as a teaching-time factor? She does not chase us out of the dojang when class ends, but while I can stay longer on my training days, other adults simply can not and, other than forms, karate requires a partner with whom you can practice the many different aspects of the art. Not to judge others, but there are other proficiencies lacking, in my mind, regarding myself, and I have discussed with my teacher that I do not wish to move further up the belt ladder without spending more time at being proficient with what I genuinely believe I ought to know. I already feel capable of defending myself as well as an average martial artist can, and it simply isn't necessary for me to be far ahead of my children, who I help with teaching when it is their class time. I will be working on what is needed for my next test but not take it. That will place me where I am more comfortable in my mind regarding what it means to be a green belt, a 6th gup. I will be pressing to take time to cover what I believe are personal weaknesses. A belt, to me, is a recognized symbol of knowledge, of proficiency in a martial art, and I would rather live the part than play it.

Did you work out with weights in the past (or still doing so), Highlander? I did squats and then leg presses for twenty years, and while my legs grew in strength, tightness of the quadriceps increased as well. I haven't done weight-resistance training for several years now, but I know my quads are tighter than if I'd never trained them. BTW, Welcome to Karate Forums.

Welcome to the Forums, Shorinryu Girl. You'll get that orange belt soon enough and be cross-training to your heart's content.

Congratulations on reaching testing level, and good luck with the test, Brian. We know you'll do well.

If you do get caught, don't give your right name. Tell them you're Leonardo, or Michelangelo, or maybe Donatello, or even Raphael. And carry your cell phone with you in case you need to call Splinter.

I've found they are relatively easy to carry during winter weather, as a winter coat always has a pocket they'll fit into. Carrying them in pants can be done, of course, but they do weigh down rather than take up space because they're metal. Instead of bringing them along with me in my car, I have an old version of "The Club," which is actually broken, in that it doesn't lock anymore (but who's going to know?), and the rod part comes out like a stick would, acting as a short sleek metal club. I did learn from a police officer who taught Street Survival in the past that what you carry may be a factor in court. If you carry something you claim is for self-defense, it may not appear that way before a judge. I can get away with the Club. I've replaced the pocket nunchaku and staff with Sabre, which is CS Military Tear Gas combined with pepper spray. It's less likely to have legal trouble with a spray than a knife if you wind up in court. If you do order a spray, go into an open area and practice using it. Multiple shots should be done, thinking of more than one assailant. Warning: Keep moving from where you've sprayed as a simple breeze can disperse it in all directions, including yours.

I got these years ago: "Pocket" nunchaku, made of metal and collapsing one section into another. I have a set that will open to 8" each rod. "Pocket" staff, made of metal and collapsing sections like the nunchaku, above. It opens with a flick of the wrist.

Here is where I believe the instructor is making an error, Rateh. A group admonishment is not done with such frequency at all; it's done once, and then, if it continues, the wayward ones may be pulled aside individually, reminded of what was said, and asked to account for themselves. It can be that the instructor is addressing a group of twelve, really be speaking to four, and that only two need be pulled aside for one-on-one discussion later on.

A book I'd bought years ago and is still worthy of reading to peer into the mind of a genius is the "Tao of Jeet Kune Do" by Bruce Lee. It's not a long book at all, and the drawings are more for the reader to understand than to picture exactly, as photos would be, plus it's filled with common sense thoughts/observations, such as (p. 39), "[Y]our strike should be felt before it is seen."

Sometimes a teacher avoids singling out individuals by reminding the group of the rules, or telling everyone as a group that they have to perform better. I realize that it's not the perfect way to get a message across, but usually it's a stepping stone to pulling individuals aside if they didn't comply with the initial warning. It's like a group admonishment to avoid individual ones, and it gives the teacher the opening to say, if there needs to be someone pulled aside, that everyone was told, so why aren't you (the now singled-out individual) on the same wavelength.

Bob, in the June 2000 issue of Black Belt, there's an article by Floyd Burk, "Joe Lewis Teaches Five Battle-Proven Strategies for the Ring." On p. 53, there's a series of four photos with Joe Lewis using a front kick as a "Stop Kick," setting his opponent up for the low roundhouse that follows. It's at: http://books.google.com/books?id=is8DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA6&dq=Black+Belt&lr=&source=gbs_toc_pages&cad=0_1#PPA53,M1 What do you think of the reference to a "Stop Kick"?

Thanks for understanding, Brian. He was the aggressor and he played the victim. Tiger, I think you acted in the only way to get through to a primitive mind like his.

This sounds like a description of an already-used kick, the instep instead of the ball of the foot for impact, and even, if close enough, the lower shin instead. Is this correct, OneHeart?

Hi, Oneheart. You mentioned "startle." That may be because of its speed, but also because so many expect the roundhouse, side, and crescent kicks that they keep seeing (and performing) when they spar. Do you use the front leg for front kicks as well as the rear leg? I've found that it just isn't expected that the front leg will be a front kick, while no one seems surprised at a front leg for roundhouse and side kicks. What I like is that it's a kick you can deliver and then re-deliver rapidly, and even switch between legs, so that it's like the "one-two" of a punch.

I got angry last night at the dojang. There's a tournament this Sunday, April 5, and a number of students are attending. Although they're encouraged to participate in forms competition, sparring is the big push. It's non-contact. The past couple of weeks have had an emphasis on preparing for the tournament. I could have cut class and missed very little regarding my green belt (6th gup) studies, but I've attended and enjoyed the "fun sparring" combos that my teacher has us practice. I've long since ended sparring with any gusto in the dojang for personal reasons, but I work on the many other requirements of the art. Last night was a constant emphasis on sparring work, and I was paired off with a red belt (3rd gup). When we did the different fun combos, he was perfectly fine. When we did free sparring in-between the combos, even though it's non-contact, each time he went overboard with his attacks. I became angry and focused on hurling myself at him. He was repeatedly coming at my face with his punches, so I did the same to him, only extremely close. He made many rapid kicks to my body, so I responded in kind but, when I could, I locked him up by infighting which included a raised knee against him. As the last sparring session was ending, he did a side kick that hit me in the midsection, but it must have hit me with limited power as I was so close to him. I crashed into him and time was called. He then told me that, when sparring, he thinks we should be "doing it soft." I began to tell him off. I reminded him that he's made a point of saying he doesn't like shots to the face because he's had his nose broken, but he fired them off to me. Then I said I knew that that kick to my midsection was on purpose, and he admitted it, saying he had done it to keep me away. It led to more argument, during which I told him that, if he goes after my face, I'm going after his, and if he goes after my body, I'm doing the same to him. When he protested that I had initiated the escalating level of sparring, and that he didn't want to, I reminded him he had a mouth and could have used words during sparring time that he wanted to tone it down. He's not competing in sparring. He's not even going to be at the tournament. My teacher and the assistant instructor were both present all along, but the assistant instructor is in the tournament himself, so I wonder if he actually saw the sparring sessions in particular. During the last two of these, my teacher did call over to watch out about the aggression, but it could be that everyone was aggressive, and perhaps we didn't stand out. I don't know. To put an end to the argument because we were all called to line up, we did shake hands, and I did say to him that we should consider it a misunderstanding. When everyone was lined up, my teacher said she saw that there was a disagreement and that one of the students (looking at me but not saying my name) had his hand over his stomach during it. She said she didn't know what it was about, but asked the red belt if, as the senior student, he'd called for contact. He said he hadn't. She then repeated the non-contact rules to all. I realize the topic is about anger affecting one's fighting prowess, but it can be that anger is larger than just trading blows. I don't what set him off. Was it because it was free sparring? I've barely ever sparred with him before but, for all I know, he's Mr. Nice Guy when he's walking, and Mr. Road Rage when he's driving. Was he too proud to say to ease up? What I do know is that I was angry, adrenaline flowed (sympathetic nervous system in action), and I focused appropriately to fight off an attacker.

Congrats, Shotokan!

Being a bit serious isn't a negative, Fushin, especially if the Little Ninjas need to be introduced to respecting you as their instructor. As for referring to yourself as a bit tough on them, kids are very forgiving, and if you can balance firmness with them having fun (they love to race, jump/hop over targets, go through a tunnel made of two kick shields as walls and a roof by a third kick shield), things will work out okay. I've watched my teacher with regular kids' classes, and she seems to break things down into smaller bites, due to the shorter attention span of children. She's combined fun with the serious by having them crawl through a tunnel, jump over targets, and then, when they get to the WaveMaster, the kids must, for example, backfist with the right hand, middle punch with the left, and roundhouse kick with the right. So long as the Little Ninjas feel that you like them, and that you put "excitement" in your voice when giving directions, class with them will improve. If you have the time, and there's another children's class at a different time, why not observe it?

These are rather unusual roundhouses to me, the first being a roundhouse that hammers the knee into the opponent's thigh, and the second which moves the kicker along a diagonal to Muay Thai roundhouse the front (midsection) of the opponent instead of the side. Roundhouse knee strike: http://www.expertvillage.com/video/129479_women-s-kickboxing-roundhouse-knee.htm Roundhouse to the front of the opponent: http://www.expertvillage.com/video/131993_women-s-kickboxing-back-leg-3.htm

I did a small experiment with the natural movement of the striking hand. I stood in orthodox (boxing) stance, then threw a right cross to full extension. I was up on the ball of the right foot, my body twisted as it ought to, and the strike ended with what appears to be a full horizontal turn of the punching hand. Holding that extended position, I tipped back on my right foot to have the heel touch the floor. The fist was not horizontal; it was three-quarters. I redid it with the left jab at full extension and, with the left heel moving from its raised position to flat on the floor, the same occurred. I've mentioned in the past that, should you extend one arm straight out in front of you or even to the side, with your hand not in a fist but loosely open, the turn is three-quarters--the natural position the body chooses for the extended hand, which could have been a fist. My experiment leads me to believe that the apparently horizontal fist of the boxer's cross punch is actually a three-quarters turn.

Hi Tony. Welcome to Karate Forums.

This is an interesting observation. The only reason I do the bouncing and shifting of both feet at the same time is because one of the instructors favors it. Doing these contribute to me getting the same "burn" I used to get when doing calf raises. I wonder if they're counterproductive if done together. My teacher has us do this straight forward and straight back, one foot actually stepping, the other sliding. This is worth a try when I practice at home. Like the footwork of shadow boxing? Sounds like good advice, Tallgeese. Worth a try.

In Angels With Dirty Faces, James Cagney was "teaching" a wiseguy (one of the Dead End Kids) a lesson in obeying the rules. Cagney put up his dukes, which the kid did immediately as well, and then Cagney kicked him in the shin. You can't help but laugh when you see it.

I wonder if anger can be seen as a motivator, but also viewed as a liability if it leads to rash actions. Anger can be channeled into aggression, and being a focused, aggressive fighter is a plus.

Is it actually just that your body tires, or that you feel it in your calves, and that effect tires the body? I noticed this about myself that, if bouncing like a boxer, the calves burn first, and then the body tires. If I drop the bounce, which costs spring/speed, I can go much longer.

I don’t know how many times I’ve read about the horizontal v. the vertical fist, and how often the three-quarters turn has been the compromise. Well, in Chris Thomas’s “Power Punching: A Medical Doctor Examines Karate-Do and Karate-Jutsu to Find Out Which System Has the Better Punch” (Black Belt, March 2001, p. 92), it’s horizontal v. three-quarters, with no vertical fist in sight. It can be accessed by clicking HERE. According to the author, karate-do is translated as “martial way,” while karate-jutsu is “martial science.” He refers to executing the horizontal fist by aiming ahead to a point matching the center of the body, but the three-quarters is to a point aiming off-center, just inside the line of the shoulder. Within the article, the makiwara board is referred to as an example of body mechanics. The author refers to Ralph Buschbacher, MD, that the three-quarters delivery is actually “a more natural and sounder technique than the full twist punch.” The article goes into the radius and ulna of the forearm, and there are illustrations as well. Dr. Buschbacher is quoted as saying, “Most martial artists twist their hand to a full palm-down position when punching. This weakens the force dissipation from the radius to the ulna . . .” The author claims that the original punch was the three-quarters, but it was changed for a variety of reasons, which he explains. He ends by cautioning to use the three-quarters for when you mean business, and the horizontal for aesthetics. EDIT: I had incorrectly said that the author called karate-jutsu "karate science" when he actually referred to it as "martial science."