Kuma

I'd be all over them like a spider monkey. In all seriousness, as mentioned, way too many variables. My mindset though is you do whatever is necessary to survive.

Ask your instructor and get tips on your form. It's virtually impossible for someone to give useful information on what could be wrong about your technique through words alone. Once you understand the proper form, practice it slowly for many, many reps to get the feel for the form down. Make sure you are stretching often as well.

I would disagree with saying the Kyokushin system is not focused on lifelong practice. Yes, our training is very hard when we're on the younger side, but as you advance in the Kyokushin system you evolve from the harder, linear practices to the softer, more circular practices (Go and Ju, both from Sosai Oyama's Goju Ryu background). This is why Kyokushin continues to place a big emphasis on kihon and kata as well. Kyokushin is a Japanese karate and Oyama very much wanted it to be a budo karate. Many of the senior Kyokushin instructors are now up there in years yet still train and spar with the young bucks. One of my instructors did a 50 man kumite for his 50th birthday. Our head instructor is in his 70s and is right next to us for all our training, from the bowing in to the kihon to the kumite drills to the calisthenics at the end. Kyokushin tournaments are only a portion of what the actual art of Kyokushin is itself.

Research dynamic stretching. Throwing a high kick is very differently from a stretched position where you're not moving. Dynamic stretching helped me get from kicking just at chudan/middle level to now being able to throw a decent kakato geri/axe kick.

I have a couple dozen parachute jumps under my belt from my days in the US military, and for a time my knees were bothering me. After working squats and various strengthening exercises as well as lots of joint mobility sessions they rarely bug me at all. It's only when it's really cold or I'm not warmed up properly when they remind me of my younger days.

I hug my family and that's about it.

I was hoping you'd chime in, Dobbersky. Thanks for your insight (and Wikipedia's).

Tai sabaki is more than just footwork. It's more about using angles and body movement to simultaneously avoid an attack while putting yourself in an advantageous position for a counterattack. As I learned it, you are also moving to your opponent's blind spots and attacking from there. Some of our Ashihara or Enshin karateka can explain that even better.

Roundhouse kicks are some of my favorites, especially low kicks.

Nice break. I've actually seen that video before, and almost posted it on this thread as a good example. You can see a jagged edge on the handle afterwards which shows there wasn't any real trickery with yours.

If kickboxing is an option, perhaps you could supplement it with one day a week going to the Kyokushin dojo. For a while my own Kyokushin studies were limited to just 1 class a week, or sometimes even just every other week. I supplemented with Muay Thai for several months until training opportunities opened up again, and it made me a better fighter for it.

Photos are of the bats. Looks genuine enough to me, but I don't know about baseball or demo bats.. One of the photos shows one with the store sticker thingy with the barcode on. Without seeing them I can't say. Demo bats look like the genuine article but are made of soft wood so they break much more easily. Some do look legit in this video on second glance, but some of the breaks are a bit too clean.

I don't have Facebook so I can't see those. I've seen a lot of bats broken in my day and those look suspiciously too clean. Some of them broke a bit higher than the weakest point too. Maybe it's the skeptic in me but I'm not believing it.

I can definitely say the baseball bat ones were faked. The breaks are way too clean and they're hitting on the fatter, more solid end. Those are demo bats too, which aren't nearly as solid as the real thing. Watch Kiyohide Shinjo Sensei, 9th dan Uechi Ryu, and you will see the difference. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=im9NzBciths (Starts at about 6:45) I have no experience with coconuts so I can't say, but those did look tough to break open.

That was the first time I've heard it referred to as dojo yaburi, but that makes sense as well. The first time I heard the term was reading Joko Ninomiya's autobiography when he shared how he participated in dojo arashi for a time. I think dojo arashi is more a kenjutsu term but I could be wrong. The idea's the same though.

In our system, that's correct. Kohai is any colored belt. 1st and 2nd dan are Sempai. You don't become a Sensei until 3rd dan. That's the formalities at least. Realistically, it's just a title.

I'd have to say it depends on the technique. For a lead straight that I'm using like a jab, it seems I let the fist lead. If it's say a rear straight though, I tend to follow the body.

Work on holding a high chamber every day for about 30-60 seconds, a handful of times throughout the day. Add in dynamic stretching and relaxed stretching (ones like straddles, butterfly, etc.) and you should be good to go. First exercise is described here:

You can try out something we do from time to time in my dojo we call the "Eight Directions Drill." Inside the dojo or room you're training in, assign north-south-east-west in the room. From here you will then take a step in each of the eight directions, using whatever stances and techniques you like (start off with zenkutsu dachi and one of the four basic blocks, with a gyaku tsuki as a counter): (1) Northwest (2) Southeast (3) Northeast (4) Southwest (5) East (6) West (7) South ( North Each time you turn in stance, you'll improve your agility and stepping as well as stance shifting and a number of other nice little benefits. So once you step towards NW, you would then turn around SE, for example. Hard to explain, but I hope you get the gist.

I vaguely recall being told by someone the reason why Oyama adopted that type of seiza for Kyokushin (i.e. closed fists) was to show they were prepared for a fight at all times. Not sure how true that was, or even if it's true at all, but it's an interesting theory and would be along Oyama's thought process.

With adrenaline going, you'd be surprised. I've encountered guys who broke their hands assaulting somebody yet still kept using that same hand to continually pound their victim. You usually don't feel the pain until afterwards.

Look into sectional training. You basically break down a kata into smaller, more manageable chunks and work repetitions of each of those. Google "kata sectional training" to learn more.

Since you already have a bag and makiwara, a BOB would be a good addition for many of the reasons already mentioned. I enjoy working on a BOB for time to time simply for working on accuracy and targeting.

Well stated, sensei8. I have the knowledge to perform Sanchin kata. However, because he has way more experience than I do, I cannot perform my Sanchin kata like Morio Higaonna can perform his Sanchin kata.

Hopefully someday when you're in trouble, someone who doesn't have this mentality and has the courage to step in and help does. Apathy is the coward's way out. Hopefully someday when you get older you'll learn that lesson.