sperki

I use power when I practice kata, but my speed depends on how comfortable I am with the kata. When I start learning a new kata I'll go slow, think about my next move, make sure the form is reasonable (as I understand it). When I get more familiar with kata I like to speed it up.

In my line of work we call that CPR! They always told me it was supposed to help people....

Really!? Isn't that sort of an assumed thing when you start with a martial art? I mean I expect the person that is teaching me to fight to be better at fighting than me....right? Maybe I'm just an optimist and more people are dumber than I expect.

I don't think you can adapt to prevent bruising. Well, I guess you can get faster, better, block, or get out of the way. Those are blood vessels that have broken, continued beatings don't lead to calluses in your vessels. I would think that contusions are a standard part of full-contact MA's.

To focus on your chest the dips will have to be on the backs of two chairs, not on the seat of one. In my experience it's pretty challenging to work just the medial aspect of you pectorals. You might even try mixing up how you do the push-ups: close, wide, down on the left, up, then down on the right, etc. Good luck!

Great post. In my limited experience, you've essentially summed up why I prefer sparring against an advanced martial artist. New people are out of control, and often, less predictable than senior students. Senior students tend to know how long their arms and legs are, and can (usually) dial their aggressiveness and tempo to match that of their sparring partner. It's not like my sensei needs to beat the snot out of me for me to know he can beat the snot out of me. When I started, he would stand there calmly and block everything I threw at him while occasionally giving me a swipe to make me block. It probably made me more confident in his ability both as a fighter and an instructor.

It seems like there is the matter of what came first: interest in Japanese / Eastern MA's, or interest in Eastern culture in general. I suspect that a lot of people are interested in eastern arts or culture and that leads them to martial arts in the first place. This is especially true for people that start MA's in high school or later.

I've always know plantar fasciitis as a running injury. It seems like the general treatment is RICE - rest, ice, compression, elevation. And of course vitamin I (Ibuprofen).

Alright, load a guy up with a steel suit, a shield, and a heavy weapon, say an axe, and my money's on him. Well protected from nearly anything you can swing at him, but with a weapon with some serious weight behind it so he can eventually crush through the other guys tin can.

Liver Punch, apparently I didn't read all the rules. Alright, no bows. This is why successful armies consist of a variety of types of troops. Ideally your army has a few rocks, some paper, and multiple scissors. And more of them than the enemy

I think you're right Bushido_Man. Tony hasn't said who'll pitch game 7, but that gives Carpenter enough rest. I think a game 7 is in the works. If you like baseball this has been a good series. Of course, since I prefer one team it's been bad for my blood pressure

Most of this thread seems to focus on 2 aspects of why people take up karate, or any MA for that matter, in the first place. First, from the customers standpoint, to learn to fight. Great, that's a legit reason to start a martial art. Probably not the greatest reason to stick with it though. Two, from the instructors perspective, to make money. That's a great reason to teach. You'll never get rich, but it can be rewarding and if it puts a few extra bones in the bank, even better. Why isn't karate obsolete? All of the other reasons people are there: self-discipline, fitness, stress relief, to make friends, etc. If the only goal is to fight, I might argue martial arts are the wrong venue. Join the Marine Corps - they'll teach you functional fighting. Or to test yourself take a stroll around parts of Detroit or St. Louis with a fancy watch showing and a camera dangling around your neck. This family vacation can teach you how effective your style is in the real world

Is this a one vs. one fight? If it is, I'd take the guy without armor, but with a long bow, 6 arrows, and 2 acres of space. We can watch the dude with armor hustle across the field and turn into a pin cushion.

I'll find out how well they teach it; there's no reason not to use this free certificate. My wife won it at a non-profit forestry event...yep, makes perfect sense to me too. Maybe what I should do is watch a class or two before I dive is myself, just so I have some idea what I'm about to do.

bushido_man, your prediction is making me nervous! I think it would be cool for the Rangers to win a world series, but not against the Cards! I feel two home wins comin' on!

First of all, unless you're particularly genetically gifted (or use some hormonal enhancement) you are unlikely to bulk up like a body builder. Especially if you stick with the penitentiary style (body weight) workouts. My ideal weekly workout would be 2 days of MA, 2 days of weight lifting (with weights) and 3 days of cardio. Of course work and life in general seem to take their toll on that plan. Ah, to be single and back in college when 2 a days were reality....

I recently won a 15-week intro to Wing Chun package from a local joint. I'm going to be giving it a whirl, but my background is in Shotokan karate. I know what karate is like: short, fast, hard strikes. I picture kung fu as being sort of flowing, almost dance like. I would love some insight from folks in the know so I can prepare myself mentally prior to arrival. Honestly, I'm a little nervous; I'm a pre-middle-aged dude that's always leaned toward Okinawan MA's. But maybe this old dog will learn a new trick.

As a guy that grew up in St. Louis - GO CARDS!

And if you think those exercises are good with a sandbag you should try using a body...oh...that's judo.

Congrats, and I have to say that I make a point of reading your comments in the threads I look at. They are always intelligently crafted and often educational. Keep up the great work!

How can you beat Legos? They've got to be the most versatile option on the list.

Elizabeth, There are dozens of options out there for heart rate monitors. I've only used a couple of them, and then only for running. Be careful if you wear it during sparring. The one I'm most familiar with is Polar, and it's relatively comfortable - I tend to forget about it after a while. Women wear the chest strap at the same place men do: just below the sternum/breasts/apex of the heart. Good luck!

Bushido_man, is that during kata or sparring (do you spar in aikido?) or all the time?

In Salt Lake County it is required that EMT's be present at all high school football games. I think that says something about the risk involved. People don't usually die playing football, but they certainly get injured regularly enough. On the road people die every day in cars, but there are significantly more people driving than playing football. I don't know the numbers, but I would think, statistically speaking, automobiles are fairly safe, and get safer all the time. I ride my bike to work most days, but its only three miles. And when I have class it's just not an option to take a bike and / or public transport from class to work in a timely manner. When I am in a car I always wear a seatbelt. I don't really understand why somebody wouldn't; it's sort of like smoking - we KNOW these behaviors kill people sooner than life otherwise would, and if you survive quality of life decreases eventually. Of course the grim reaper catches up with all of us eventually, I suppose its a risk vs. reward question for folks.

I don't know anything about trademarks or registered titles, but it seems absurd that somebody could own the words "Kung Fu." The original "The Karate Kid" certainly can't claim rights to "the." But again, I don't know anything about that stuff and if I think about it too hard it frustrates me.