KickChick

Those cramps that you can get in your side below your ribcage are called "stitches". They are usually caused by shallow breathing. Take very deep breaths so that your stomach expands each time you inhale. Also eat at least 2-3 hours prior to exercise to allow for digestion. Recent research shows sports drinks with a similar particle count to that of blood, like Gatorade is better than juice or soft drinks which may cause stitches. When I get a stitch attack I bend forward while tightening my abs or exhale through pursed lips. ...(like you're whistling)

Okay ... she is the one that wrote the book for "idiots" and Lawler wrote the book for "dummies" Has anyone heard of these? Are they still being published? Site seems to be under construction. http://www.martialartsinprint.com/

Hey JaseP welcome! Could that instructor and columnist be Jennifer Lawler (I love her books!) http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=5307&start=0

Back in Oct. of last year a North Korean Taekwon-Do delegation visited South Korea. The leader of the delegation, Chairman of the North Korea Taekown-Do Committee, Mr. Hwang and the members of the delegation (comprised of 13 male and 8 female martial artists) were warmly welcomed by the president of the South Korea Taekwondo Association and their people. They successfully impressed everyone with their demonstration. The performance was comprised of patterns, sparring, special techniques, breaking and self defense. A North Korean manager of the group explained that the practitioners of Taekwon-Do in North Korea have kept the traditional techniques of the art. Their sparring looks like actual fighting. Knees and elbows can be weapons. He explained that South Korean Taekwondo is one of sports now, but ITF is one of the martial arts. If you are interested in viewing two movies which show the demonstration of this North Korean ITF team ...you can go to http://www.taekwondo-web.com./eng/Index.htm It takes a long time to load ... but well worth it... Awesome !!!

Well here are just a few tips that might help you out. I had to literally force myself to eat before each of my tests.... (but then again they weren't 9 hours long!! ) I also tend to lose my appetite when I am nervous .... and you will be I am sure. Make you are well-hydrated before the test as well as during (500ml of a 6% sports drink one hour before is fine) Empty your bladder beforehand! Drink small amounts regularly A solid meal should be eaten about 3 to 4 hours before your test...(allowing for the stomach to be relatively empty before you begin) Choose high carbohydrate, low fat foods Try a liquid or low fibre meal if you suffer from nerves. Liquid meals have some advantages over solid meals. They are well balanced, have a high carbohydrate content, have little bulk. Some of these liquid meals are Ensure, Ensure-plus, Nutriment, Slim Fast, instant breakfasts, etc. For extra energy bring a package of Carnation Instant Breakfast mix it with a carton of milk duriing one of your food breaks. Stay away from foods like chips, beans or spicy foods ...these foods may cause heart burn or stomach upset. High sugar foods & drinks also lead to stomach upset and diarrhea. Not something you need on the day of the test!. Large amounts of sugar and soda may even cause the you to have less energy. The typical person will runs out of their stored carbs after about 90 minutes of continued activity, so you you need eat of 25 to 30 g to retain what you lost during that time. Sports drinks will meet this need and help to hydrate. Quick energy carbs are those with a high glycemic index, carbs that raise blood sugar quickly, such as orange juice, bananas, raisins, and carrots. There really is no need for you to carb load days before the test to ensure that you have the required energy for endurance but I do suggest that you eat more nutritiously several days beforehand.

Many Tae kwon do dojangs to not teach the use of weapons although there are some styles of TKD that do train and incorporate many traditional weapons used by other martial arts into their practice. We have had staff (bo) and nunchaku training at our school offered as special training "worshops". Training with weapons does give the students an understanding of body dynamics, alignment, and how to generate power and increase reaction speed.

Exercise can cause low blood glucose levels so your problem could be from lack of food. If you are doing your workouts in the morning, without having breakfast, it may be 10-12 hours since yo had a meal, then you can easily get dizzy & nauseous from lack of fuel. You need to eat a snack if it's been several hours since you've eaten before a workout. Half a bagel, a banana, oatmeal, or toast 30-45 minutes before the workout and you may see a difference Sounds like you're eager to get started quickly, you may need to take it a bit slower until your body gets used to training. You will reach your goal but you need to pace yourself. Cool down slowly after exercising to also avoid feeling sick. Vigorous exercise in non-conditioned people often leads to dizziness or nausea. Overtraining and lack of warm up can also cause it. If your problem continues, then you need to contact your doctor.

... out of those 87 books, do you have a speilling dictionary ...J/K Kensai! You asking for "the world's leading publisher of in-depth, well researched martial arts books from related disciplines around the world?" http://www.cfw2.com/dept.asp?dept_id=9 I'm nothing special (believe me!)

I got two actually!! in the city I live in .... and have access to Yale University's library facilities

I agree with Laur on the Century uniforms and with Sai on the ProForce. I have the PF Instructors polycotton uniform (I think my pic is still in the photo album above under portrait section). Get this blend to insure that the uniform won't shrink as much .... however, the 100 % cotton is much more absorbant! I'll throw some more names out at you like Addidas (80.00 on sale for 57.00), Nike (very awesome! very pricey but worth it if you are only going to have just one uniform to use!), Meikyo, TigerClaw, Tekno, RheeMax..... ..... uniforms for Taekwondo, Karate, Hapkido, Kendo, Kenpo, Moo Duk Kwan, Tang Soo Do, Judo, Ninja, Master and Grand Master uniforms http://www.allblackbelt.com/index.html?1109 ..... awesome music to shop by ..... Oh and LOILOI44 ... dontcha just hate it when all you need are some "elasticized" pants and you have to buy the whole darn uniform??? They sell separates here too. ... and when you find that shopping for martial arts sucks .... where do you go??? http://www.shoppingsucks.com/listings/recreation_sports/martial_arts/

... actually the problem you are going to find with these "classics" , are that many of them are not yet translated or that very few are available for purchase. Try your local library .... (everyone seems to forget about those buildings that contain kazillions of those hard-to-find square objects filled with paper!) As far as Jiang Rongqiao, wasn't sure what book you were interested in but you may find a few here http://www.plumpub.com/sales/taichi_books.htm also books from Sun Lu-tang. In his lifetime he commercially published five works on different forms of martial arts that he was skilled in ... not sure if "the esoteric way of the martial arts" was book four or not Your best bet is actually to go directly to a publishing house (in this case in Taipei) which most undoubtedly will offer un-translated books. http://www.taipeipublishers.org.tw/engpq_result.asp?PRODUCT=40&trigger=1 OR Go to LION BOOKS....one of Taiwan's best martial arts publishers... http://www.plumpub.com/sales/lion_books.htm You may not find that particular book but I'm sure you will find something that catches your interest!

Well, can't give you my knowledge of "kickboxing" but as a female martial artist, there are many of us out there that train hard, and fight hard .... and yes you can handle it! As a cardio kickbox instructor, taking a class at your college is fine in fact I recommend that you do. It will definitely help with your endurance and if it is a class that utilizes the heavy bag and gloves, then you'll get an even better workout out as far as developing your kick/punch techniques. (There are some "kitchy" aerobic-style cardio kb classes out there .... just a word up ) Freestyler offered some real good advice as far as finding the right school. You seem to know what you want ... now it is ust a matter of finding the school that is going to give it to ya! Good Luck!

ah .... you're pretty good there ZR! Only thing that I would caution against is .... that the site suggests a hamstring exercise (the hurdler's stretch) in the treatment section, which I do advise not to do. The hurdler's stretch is the stretch where you are sitting down with one or both legs bent so the foot is next to the hip while you lean back) Well, this can cause damage to the medial collateral ligaments (the ligaments on the inside of the knee), compress the medial meniscus (the cartilage that separates the bones that form the knee joint), and may cause dislocation of the patella (the knee cap).

This just brought to mind the time when I was judging an open tournament and a young girl had her hair in a "scrunchie" (elastisized fabric ponytail holder) and it flew off during kata and her hair was all over her face and this totally threw her off...she kept putting her hair behind her ears and taking it out from her mouth...while trying to do her kata!. I felt like telling her to excuse herself and go fix her hair and come back. So they do pay attention! When I went to tournaments with my daughter as a coach I was prepared like a stagemother! I had pins, thread & needle, cold packs, first aid kit... water, hair accessories & munchies galore! Keep a "tournament bag" prepared!

Patella Tendenitis is also called jumper's knee, very common in basketball players also in dancers, runners really anyone who runs and jumps regularly may suffer from it. The pain tends to sneak up on you, first hurting after your activity, then toward the end of the activity, then during, at the beginning, and finally all the time. It's probably the second most frequent knee injury. The cause of tendenitis (jumper's knee) usually results from microscopic tears within the tendon and triggering an inflammatory response within the tendon. Here is more detail for you! http://www.lifefitness.org/qandapages/knee.html

Ditto what John said! and as far as the hair...... It as been my experience not to draw too much attention to your "appearance" .... most especially when performing kata. I know that is difficult especially for us girls!! :pony: Keep the hair tied back .... better if you can braid close to the scalp as in a french braid so as not to have the "pony" flapping" all over the place (mine does alot as you can see in photo album) .. and then it doesn't get in your face and distract the judges too.

... and they you can't teach an old dog "new tricks" .... and they say you learn something new everyday! (well, besides martial arts.... What new things have you learned? Here are some personal "learnings": I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life. I've learned that making a "living" is not the same thing as making a "life." I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance. I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back.... (and I do/did!) I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usuallymake the right decision. ... well, usually! I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one. I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, a smile or just a friendly pat on the back. I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.(most especially in martial arts) I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

Laur... I have been telling her actually ..... We have been in contact and Inquisitive will be doing just fine. She knows where to find me {right? } for further help!

That is indeed wat they say NidanWarrior... and I more than agree May it be the first of many for you!

Go over to Health & Fitness forum and check out the numerous threads regarding "martial art" injuries ...(whether it be grappling or not) I think we are all prone to the same types of injuries.

~~~"""Go on now, go walk out the door Just turn around now You're not welcome anymore Weren't you the one who tried to break me with goodbye? Did you think I'd crumble? Did you think I'd lay down and die? Oh no not I, I will survive""~~~~ --- Sure count me in definitely ... I now have alot of time on my hands!

.. better late than "never", thanks Mike! --the "Queen"

http://www.taekwondotimes.com/main.html happens to be my fav, and not only features TKD but other Korean Arts as well

More on Glucosamine here http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=1657 I too take a supllement with MSM and that is the first "side effect" I have heard (raising blood pressure)????? http://www.aabhealth.com/msm2.htm ( ... MSM is an incredibly awesome supplement ) that along with DHEA

hey there Leila ... thanks for coming by and introducing yourself! Welcome ... (hey I used to model too! )