evergrey

When learning Pinan 1 as a white belt, I punched myself in the head, hard. That was the day I learned that there is no winning in self-kumite. I got to tell a white belt that today after he punched his own knuckles, lol! Running laps, accidentally body-slamming the heavy bag, I went down. Managed to roll a couple times, pop back up, and keep running. Shihan said "well... I have to give you an A+ for recovery on that one. Next time go around the bag!" I've run my face into people's fists so very many times. They took me aside and said "stop blocking with your face. That's a really bad idea." Got a new belt, it was really long. Whipped myself in the eye with the tip practicing my falls. Had a discussion with my Shihan about how my arms are so short and my torso is so long, I cannot effectively block a groin kick with my hands if my back is straight. He didn't believe me. He opted to demonstrate. I got an unintentional pony ride on his shin, lolol!

Well to be fair that could stop a fight too.

LOL, don't worry, I'm thick too- I meant striking the head with hands, open or closed. Like, I am not sure I'd call an uraken or a shuto a punch, exactly... My dojo does controlled head punches with MMA gloves. I've had split lip soup for lunch there once or twice, haha! I mean in a street fight, of course people are going to go for your head. Body strikes can work on someone totally unconditioned and untrained because they don't know how to tighten to protect themselves, probably, but really it's a lot easier to take someone out by getting 'em good in the head. OSU!

Jodan hand attacks?

I really would like to spar with some good shotokan practitioners from a good school who can handle kumite with contact! The founder of Shotokan taught Mas Oyama, after all. I'm very curious. And I hear a lot of good things about it. Just need to not spar any more rubbish Shotokan people, lol. I need some who don't cry when a 7th kyu taps them. :/

Haha, yeah they do. I remember one time I bathed in a pool full of ramen noodles. True story. Also there was this one time... it involved a lot of nacho cheese.

Ewwww, yes I have seen poop on the mat, from a kid with psychological issues. Ugh. DX

OSU, So I've been waiting for the majority of a year to test for my new rank. If I hadn't snapped my ACL, I probably would have tested for it last June. They decided to have me go up for rank tonight! Unfortunately, I cannot go. Why? Because last week a kid's grandfather insisted that even though he was still sick, he went to school so he should go to karate class. Schools and children are walking petri dishes in the winter, as any parent or teacher knows. Some people will do anything to get a night off from babysitting. This applies to adults too though! Coming to class sick doesn't prove how tough and dedicated you are! It doesn't build character! IT GETS YOUR CLASSMATES SICK! It can get everyone who shows up at the dojo sick! What if it gets someone who is older? Swine flu at age 22 is awful... try it at age 60. What if there is someone there who has a weak immune system? Me, I don't get sick nearly as often as I used to. Before I started working out so much, and eating what is right for ME to eat, I would be sick for months at at time. Scary sick. It's better now, but still, when something does get through, it's easy for me to end up so sick I have to go to the hospital. Now, instead of testing for rank, I'm thinking about whether or not I should go to the ER tomorrow- my lungs are filling with fluid and my throat feels like it is closing in on itself. I cannot take a full breath. I'm sure as heck not going to ranking to get everyone there sick! I'm sure people might have something to add. Maybe there isn't much to add. This is more a plea than anything. Come on, please, have some sense, and remember that there are other people who go to class who deserve your consideration! Going to class sick is SELFISH! OSU!

OSU, I was meant to test for my 6th kyu last summer, but unfortunately I snapped my ACL. It has been a long, long road to recovery, and finally they have decided that I am well enough to go up for it! Of course someone brought their sick kid to class on Thursday, so I am now ill and cannot go to ranking... there's a "don't come to class sick" policy here, of course! I love my instructors though- the head instructor at my school is going to test me the following week after rank! Yay! I'm wondering about kumite. On the one hand, my instructors know best! Should they choose to simply hand me my new rank, it is because they already know where I am at. But still, it wouldn't feel right to test for my green belt without the required kumite, and with my knee all messed up still, I'm not sure whether or not they will let me. I guess I'll just have to see! Anyone here experienced non-standard ranking?

Ugh, horrible! Congratulations to your victory! What does a Soke do, and why should there not be one again? OSU!

So you'd be wanting to train in track and field, then? ;}

OSU Bob, thank you very much for this! It is helpful- I hope to teach someday myself, after all. :}

OSU, yes, I mistakenly approached her with the idea that respecting her as a martial artist meant not sparring her as if she had no skills and no ability to defend herself, heh! But that is more of a knockdown thing, and she did not come from a knockdown background. That is a good lesson for me to remember. Wear the kid gloves until I know for sure they can handle and want a different level of contact. OSU!

Well, being able to spar well could count. ;}

OSU, In your opinion, should a martial artist who goes to teach be a good, accomplished fighter who has been tested and been successful? Do you think that they have to currently be a good fighter, or can their past experience stand for them when their own bodies no longer can? When, if ever, is it okay for an instructor to not be (or ever have been) a good fighter? *** My answer: I am coming from a knockdown full contact perspective, being a student of Kyokushin. I fully accept that it may be very different for those whose styles do not involve contact, and that's okay too! Just assume that I'm speaking mostly of styles with contact, or which tout having effective self-defense training. I think that it is important. An instructor, in my opinion, doesn't always have to still be able to fight well, but if they no longer can, I think that they should have someone there to assist in kumite practice who still can fight well. If an instructor wishes to teach people how to fight, I do not think they can do so as effectively if they have never learned how to effectively utilize the techniques they are trying to teach. I think that it is important to have experience to draw from, as well as a realistic outlook on what does and does not work. I admit that I personally am a little leery of instructors who have never fought, especially if they also state that there can be no alive partnered sparring because all of the techniques they train are "too deadly." Can they really be sure that it will work? There are a lot of myths in the martial arts world, from "this strike will kill a person in two weeks" to "pressure points will drop anyone" to "hitting a woman in the chest will cause her to get cancer!" I think that trying to teach someone how to fight without ever having really fought is kind of like trying to teach someone how to fly a plane when you yourself have only ever read about flying, and watched videos about flying, and maybe played some flight simulator computer games. I can see how it would be different in, say, a style that is all about kata and not at all about fighting. As long as they do not claim to train effective fighting. What say you? OSU!

Yes, I believe so. But I'm maybe a freak that way. ;}

Oh I would have, if she had said anything while we were sparring! But she didn't. Heh. Usually in my dojo it's the low rank who controls the pace and level of contact, unless the high rank feels it is too hard for them. But communication is really important! If you don't know, then you don't know. Heh. When you aren't told until the day after... it's like, well shoot. Sorry! Why didn't you say "please go lighter" at the time? I would have readily complied. :/

OSU, oh absolutely. We won't be sparring again, that is for certain, in my mind. There is certainly a mutual lack of trust at this point. But that's okay. We certainly don't have to spar one another. There are plenty of others for her to play with! And plenty of people who will happily wipe the mats with me! OSU!

OSU. I hit the person in the side though, on the floating rib. Still trying to figure out how that got her kidney. Maybe it was the force going through her, if she didn't tighten up at all?

From now on, when people tell me they want "light," I will ask them to hit me as hard as they think is the very top edge of their version of "light." Then I'll know what it means to them. Light for us can still lead to bruises, which for this person seemed to mean heinous abusive lack of control, heh!

OSU, yeah! Heh. I don't think she will though. She sent me a long scathing letter about how I need to learn control...

I've had my wrist grabbed. I think the fact that I am female probably had something to do with that, to be honest. Secret scary ninja technique #1: Stomp on their kneecap with the side of your boot, and then push down, scraping along their shin. Secret scary ninja technique #2: Punch them in the throat. If they go down, jump on their knee. Run.

OSU. Yes, yes it is the same nidan. I got a hold of a long term veteran of knockdown fighting (one who was very close to Oyama) and he told me that you can make someone pee blood even if you just lightly tap the kidney, and that it's nothing for me to beat myself up over. Heh, that finally let me sleep last night! Thank you for the feedback. :} OSU! *edit* I think I'm just going to spar people I haven't trained with as if they were small children until I know for sure that they can handle actual contact. It infuriates me when people do this to me, but if it will spare me drama, I'll do it with others, heh!

OSU, I have a question for you all, especially people who have sparred with contact. Is it easy to rupture someone's kidney when going light? Can you make someone pee blood from just one uppercut to their floating rib area on their side? A strike that's about 25% power, Kyokushin style... Say, a strike thrown by a fairly muscular and very stocky (okay very fat) 5'3" woman. Would this be likely with someone who tightens up their muscles and uses breathing and the like to protect themself while soaking a blow? Would it be easy to do accidentally to someone who doesn't? Is peeing a bit of blood always really serious? I uh, had a friendly sparring match with that nidan. Now I feel like a brute and a monster! I was hitting her like, three times lighter than the Kyokushin shodan I sparred before her, who laughed and said "well that's not doing anything for you" when I punched him. Man, I am a woman but I'm starting to feel like I just shouldn't spar other women. Not if I'm going to end up breaking them even when I'm going light (for me.) OSU

Elbow strikes do seem powerful. I'm afraid to use them on a live sparring partner though! But yes, I do practice them sometimes on the bag. I do push-ups and want to start weight training. And hips, yes! Hips add a lot of power. Especially if you have a lot of mass behind them. Elbows are devastating for blocks, too. So devastating! OSU!