joesteph

How does that saying go? I remember now: "Deadlier than the male . . ." or ?

Copied, pasted, and run off to read. Thanks, USCMAAI!

You've identified something that many martial artists likely also do but don't think about, DWx, and when I say "think," I don't mean it doesn't occur to them at all, but it doesn't have a true impact. It's always been "safe," so a false sense of security comes into play. You're truly aware, but there's only so much time someone has to train for self-defense as well as a tournament (or, in my case, it's non-contact sparring), the ingrained rules dismiss the real danger of not guarding your body properly, and a real-life situation doesn't have your attacker following the rulebook; he won't be penalized for that "illegal" shot. I try to imagine the situation to be real, and so my guard is up while my opponent's may not be, but it's the right guard for a real-life situation. And returning to time, members of a dojo/dojang are also working towards belt level promotions, meaning time is really at a premium. I believe that one (either tournament or self-defense) will simply wind up being emphasized more than the other, but not necessarily that one, such as self-defense, need actually suffer, especially if it's a person such as yourself, DWx, who's aware. Bushido Man made an observation: This seems to be the way of martial arts in general today.

Did anyone see "Bangkok Dangerous"? There's a segment that has Nicolas Cage and his "student" doing what reminds me of sticky hands, in that it was filled with excellent parrying as each worked to get the advantage over the other (although the YouTube video Zanshin posted shows getting past your opponent).

I hadn't thought of this. I'd just been thinking of it as an "entry" and not an "exit" shot. And that's why they call it the "sweet science."

So long as you've identified the feeling as muscle soreness and not a joint ache, Bushido Man, you've got a green light on Aikido. A few more weeks of this, and you'll have, what they used to say in the "olden days" of bodybuilding, cannonball delts. My workout? Class at night with my sons. David, Patrick, Dad

Your posting makes good sense, USCMAAI, and if you can locate those blocking techniques, I'd definitely be interested. Thanks!

This is what I think myself, James. I don't actually see the need to kill the opponent; the idea is to neutralize him, meaning anything from that he's hurt and backs off to knocking him out.

This is how I feel as well, DWx, and is likely the cause of times of friction in the past, when I did Tae Kwon Do, and in the present, doing Soo Bahk Do. Combining the two experiences for this posting . . . There's no grabbing, so you can foolishly leave your hands hanging out there, and since there's no grabbing, you who recognize what you can do--but may not--give up on it. If you're chided for using open-hand blocks, even though they fit the situation and you know how to use them, or that you spar like a boxer and not what is in the art, or if you practice tournament-style kicks with regularity, you have spent so much time in this mode that it becomes the only way you can think and react. Unless you break the rules. Only if you practice what is contrary to the rules when outside the dojo/dojang, and if you try what works for you whenever possible inside the dojo/dojang and risk admonishment, will you be able to defend yourself in a real-life situation. You won't do as well in tournaments, because your mind is not set that way, and it is possible you will decline to enter them as foreign to reality.

In Soo Bahk Do, the Pyung Ahn (Pinan) forms are credited by Grandmaster Hwang Kee to "Mr. Idos," who is interpreted as Mr. Itosu (especially after reading the article by Brad Reynolds that I cited in an earlier posting). When I first learned of Pyung Ahn, it was not through GM Hwang Kee's Soo Bahk Do, but GM Duk Sung Son's "Korean Karate" as his art was called when I studied it years ago, and is the title of his book. There in the book is GM Son's rendition of a Pyong Ahn hyung, not exactly the same, but similar to, GM Hwang Kee's. My instructor explained to me that there are interpretations of what the originator, Mr. Idos/Itosu, presented. However, nowhere in GM Son's book, Korean Karate, is there mention of Idos/Itosu. I had thought until recently that all hyungs in GM Son's art were his own. It's entirely possible that, when Grandmaster Son presented his art in the US, he simplified it not only by using virtually no Korean (so he would not say "Sang Dan Mahk Kee," but simply "high block"), but also not going into the origins of the forms (he did not call them hyungs).

What would interception be, James? I follow the others, but I'm not sure about interception. Is it the same as redirect?

I'm now being introduced to takedowns at my dojang, ps1, and these videoed moves may be basic, but basics are what we build on. I was not unaware of the third takedown, but the first two, going backward instead of forward (and not being your opponent's cushion when you both land), were a pleasant surprise to me.

I'd have to say that my instructor's favorite/most used is "Freeze!" Either she's got more than two eyes, or has the world's best peripheral vision, and has used this term to do everything from saving a student from having his wrist broken in joint-lock practice to catching where you're making your mistake in a technique right at the split-second you're doing it. Sixth sense in there, too?

I hear you, Shawn. If someone is sparing in a non-contact dojang, as I am, the closest s/he can get to training in blocking, IMHO, is by open-hand blocking. You do have to "reach" for a punch, as stepping in may mean walking into it, but it does give you a reference point for practice, especially if you can block while the punch is in motion, not at its climax. Kicks are more difficult, especially since you may want to move in while blocking, but there's extra length to travel because that kick is non-contact, meaning its apex is already at least half a foot away from you. The best open-hand block may be, say against a roundhouse kick, the opponent's knee (as I've watched on an Expert Village Aikido video), but that means moving in. Walking into a kick isn't on anybody's To-Do list, but you don't have to reach for the kick (as opposed to the punch I described, above) to practice an open-hand block; a drawback is that you're blocking at the apex of the kick, not quite the same/as effective as slapping down a punch that's in motion. Open-hand blocking against a roundhouse kick, though, if it can be at the knee, I think gives you a greater chance of trapping that limb with the free, non-blocking, arm.

They don't fool around, do they? No body protection, including no face protection, and it didn't look like pulling punches (or kicks) to me. I even saw (in one slow-motion portion) a ridge hand to the neck. They were creative, too, using the chairs. We usually think of one person seated, and the other standing while attacking; interesting twist--and true to a real-life situation. I saw only one woman, but she might be in the military or a police officer; if so, that's pretty bold of her, considering that Japan, as far as I know, is still a male-dominated society. Thanks, Shinta.

Stretching exercises Ki Cho Hyung Il Bu Ki Cho Hyung E Bu Ki Cho Hyung Sam Bu Pyung Ahn Cho Dan

Looking at the references to pinan and heian, as well as Itosu, I remembered an article published online about this at: http://www.brotherhoodofmartialartists.com/ Once there, select Online Magazine from the menu, then choose Vol. 3: May 2008. The article is titled "History of the Pinan Forms" and is by Brad Reynolds.

A friend once showed me the high/rising block as what he called an "arm bar" (before the days when it came to mean an arm lock in a UFC cage). You rammed the horizonal forearm under the chin/against the throat of your opponent, and used the power of your legs to drive forward; you could also have it in that horizontal position against his chest (especially if he were taller) and, again, using the power of your legs, drive him backward, into a wall or just off-balance, by this "forearm shove." (Your other arm would be an auxiliary for control.) Non-anti-weapon moves like these should be shown early, when introduced in basic hyungs. It's not that these are complex concepts; I feel that the average white belt would have no problem understanding that this is simply another form of striking.

Each posting so far seems to build on the other. The open-hand block, as I gather from the responses, is practical and versatile. I have to admit that the block I like the least is the traditional down/low block against a kick; I think that I'm chancing fracturing my forearm/wrist.

I really liked that video. It went beyond envisioning in the mind's eye, and even corrected what an error would be (foot placement) in order to deliver a strong cross punch without overtaxing the rear knee. This video was on the shot itself, not a combination that would accompany it. You had mentioned using it as part of a combination, Adonis. Was there a specific combination you were thinking of, or did you meant that it's just in the flurry of exchange that this is suddenly done?

Oops! Unknownstyle, this is something we needed to know up front. Going by the original post, it appeared to me to be a close relationship, a mentorship, the master passing his knowledge on to his star student. My earlier post was based on this. Your second post casts everything in this relationship in a new light--or should I say "twilight"? Is he, to turn a phrase, "burned out"? This seems to be a no-brainer; be grateful for the good he has done in your life, but don't make yourself into a victim. Good luck with your decision.

I realize the case presented is between a boy and a girl, and in martial arts, but I learned as a teacher of girl-girl bullying in a high school basketball game. The girls wear ponytails when on court, and when the referee wasn't looking, a member of the opposing team grabbed (from behind) the ponytail of a girl from my school's team, pulling her backwards to the floor. The ref didn't see, so no penalty was incurred; not exactly justice in action. The girl from my school got behind the aggressor during the game and, with the referee looking, yanked on the other's ponytail, sending her backwards to the floor. Of course, being caught meant being thrown out of the game (I don't remember if she couldn't play in the next game or next two games as well), but I had to hand it to her; there was no one to appeal to, and so she handled the situation on the "primitive" level her opponent (and perhaps others on her opponent's team) understood.

What do you know of his new system? (I'm certain he poured his martial arts knowledge into it.) Is he addressing martial arts matters that he sees are not being addressed by what there is in place now? (If so, good; we need people like him as leaders in the martial arts.) Is it that he believes that there must be a greater emphasis on moving with the times, and so intends to do it? (This may place him at odds with "the powers that be" right now, and yet it also identifies him as a man of vision.) Are you teaching only the approved methods now, or have you already incorporated the new with the old? (Perhaps you've already started the thousand mile journey with that first step the Chinese speak of.) Are you concerned about your martial arts career, in that there is something offered by this organization that you find indispensible? (Your instructor offers you "the road less traveled"; the organization offers you "the path of least resistance.") Can you envision yourself enjoying this pioneering martial arts adventure he is embarking on? (It sounds like an exciting one.) Do you feel your concern about this change is a fear of the unknown? (That just makes you human; no crime in that.) By "proper," unkownstyle, you're referring to things as they are now, and as you expected them to continue, in this martial art. Your instructor believes there is another way, a way he deems proper and, as the positive role model you refer to him as, you haven't said why, other than to stay a member of an organization, you wouldn't continue with him. I understand that there are people who leave a martial art to pursue another; they may decide to return to the first art at a future time, or to move on to yet another martial art. You aren't burning your martial arts bridges behind you by joining with your instructor.

My art is a non-contact one, and while the closest one can come to real life is by sparring, the dictate is non-contact. When I last sparred, I used open-hand techniques consisting of slapping down, or to the side, punches thrown by my opponent, and when kicks were delivered, I used open-hand blocks with more thrust against them. Although the punches need not even be blocked--they are not going to make contact; they are going to fall short by about six inches--I still keep my hands up in a high guard, like a boxer, so as to keep training to protect my face and ribs. Kicks fall short as well. When punches came in that sparring session, I did not wait for them to reach the climax of their power just short of my face; instead, I slapped them rapidly, during the movement from his firing position and my face, and frankly, it was without much effort. When kicks came, due to the distance he was from me (to launch the kick but come up short--non-contact), the blocks were at the apex of the kick, with no harm done to my hand. My instructor admonished me. When I learned the use of open-hand blocks in the past, it was not only to parry but to redirect, and I would also try to intercept the attacking leg, but within the movement, not at the apex, possibly catching it. I believe this is trapping if going further. How do you feel about open-hand blocking techniques? Do you believe they have a genuine value, or that they are really useful only on odd occasion? Do you redirect when sparring, or do you feel that that's only done in self-defense drills and have little application other than knowing this aspect of the art?

Thank you all for your responses. It seems that the best way to go is by each individual's size, as well as taking belt levels into consideration. So long as all involved know the rules of the dojo/dojang (light, moderate, or full contact; non-contact), then there's an "equal" playing field, an "equal" martial arts atmosphere for all to profit by. Thanks again!