Wastelander

All of the cons listed are the kancho's concerns, not the students'. The students want what they've earned to be recognized and have meaning anywhere in the world they go, not just the 1500 sq feet surrounded by four walls and a roof in the middle of Smalltown, USA. I saw somewhere else (either in another forum or on Reddit), a guy who earned 4th Dan in an independent TSD dojang, being told he'd have to start from white belt in a WTSDA dojang. IMO, owners of independent dojos should be required to warn prospective students of this. Otherwise, being independent and not disclosing this is pure selfishness. I don't entirely agree. The cons are the kancho's concerns in the sense that they are responsible for how the organization is run, but they are absolutely concerns for the students the moment they begin to affect the students--the only difference is that the students have no power to correct it, and simply have to suffer with whatever the kancho decides. For example, the political machinations and scheming can result in, as happened to me, being denied a rank exam simply for wanting your school to be independent while you personally remain in the organization. Friends trading ranks can result in the students of those people being harassed about their instructors being frauds. Locking down an exact curriculum stifles creativity and the evolution of the art, which impacts everyone training in it. High costs can result in students dropping out and putting both the organization and its individual schools at risk of shutting down, and then we could lose a great deal of knowledge.

I'm generally of the opinion that instructors should not date students, the exception being if they began dating before the student became a student. There is an uneven power dynamic between an instructor and student, making consent difficult to legitimately obtain, just as there would be between a supervisor and employee. Besides that, it can also make for an awkward and uncomfortable dojo atmosphere if the instructor is hitting on students, or if they break up and the student continues to train.

Welcome back!

Starting up is always difficult. Personally, my thoughts are that you aren't actually competing with those schools, because they offer something different than you offer. It's like if a dance school said it was competing with a gymnastics school--there is absolutely crossover, but in the end, they teach to different goals, and there are going to be people out there who have goals your school can help them achieve better than those other schools. Of course, there are some things that tend to be a necessity--childrens' classes, for example, are almost always required to bring in the funds to keep the doors open and lights on. You can absolutely still market your school for the discipline, exercise, and coordination benefits that it brings to everyone, including kids, because those are just natural parts of learning a martial art. The difference is that you can also highlight your self-defense focus, especially for women and children, because people definitely want that. You can also highlight the cultural aspects of training in a traditional art, because there are people who think that is cool. You can highlight the fact that you aren't running a for-profit school, because there are people who prefer to support non-profits when given the option. Don't try to compete; just show people the benefits of what you teach.

I'm hoping to lose at least 20lbs, get comfortable with a new version of Gojushiho to replace my existing version, attend at least two seminar events in person, and get the International Neoclassical Karate Kobudo Society fully operational, ideally with at least one seminar event scheduled for the year.

Thank you, all, and congratulations to all the winners!

I would consider things like this to be kata, because they are partnered drills converted into solo drills. Personally, I extract sequences from kata to develop drills, so I wouldn't necessarily consider my drills to be kata. Sort of a "all squares are rectangles but not all rectangles are squares" situation, if that makes sense?

I did consider posting it in the Instructors/School Owners forum, but decided against it because I, personally, had quite a bit of experience with the pros and cons of organization membership as a mudansha in Shuri-Ryu, Judo, and Shorin-Ryu. I did get to experience things differently as a yudansha and instructor, of course, but I hope to hear the perspectives of everyone, regardless of rank or position. It sounds like you're pretty well situated with your karate organization! Is there anything you think they should do differently that would make things better? I think I can guess that the kobudo organization should be more supportive of its member instructors in allowing for promotions?

Haisai, everyone! I'm curious to hear about your experiences with, and opinions on, karate organizations that you've been involved with, or looked into being involved with in the past. There are probably thousands of organizations out there, from competition-based organizations like the USKA and WKF, to style-specific organizations like the JKA and JKF, to style-agnostic organizations like the World Combat Association. These organizations almost always cost money to be a part of, like to have varying degrees of control over your curriculum and training methods, and sometimes even dictate your business practices. Essentially, I'm curious to hear the pros and cons from different peoples' points of view. From my own experiences, off the top of my head, I have this. Pros: Rank/instructor certification and validation as quality control Training and educational opportunities Propagation of consistent competition rulesets Cons: Political machinations and scheming High rank trading between friends Too controlling of curriculum or training methods Too expensive to be a member High testing/certification fees

And many people inside, as can be seen here in this thread. If they "don't care about rank," why did they wait until after making shodan first before deciding that? I can see not wanting to make a grade that requires greater involvement than showing up to train x number of days per week like everybody else. But staying a shodan for life in order to show off fake humility does the exact opposite of that. Personally, I made the decision that I didn't care about rank as a brown belt, rather than after Shodan. I spent 6 years as a brown belt, and I had no complaints, because my late Sensei had no problem teaching you if you wanted to learn, regardless of rank. He did eventually insist I test, so I did, but mainly only because I love teaching, and I know that people want instructors to have a black belt. I think it's less about humility and more about a lack of interest in the testing process. I was more interested in training than testing--sort of like I have no interest in competition. I also see the value, though, so if someone I respect wants me to give it a go, I will. It's just not something I seek out, myself.

If we're looking at this from the perspective of complete beginners, rather than people with an understanding of martial arts, I think credibility is honestly almost impossible for them to discern. All most untrained people looking for training know is that the instructor should be a black belt, and they'll generally assume that the longer that person has been training, the better, and if they're part of an organization, they must be legit. Of course, we know that anyone can buy a black belt, print a certificate, or make outrageous claims about their training history. There are also plenty of organizations that are nothing but belt mills, and anyone can create an organization. Most untrained people won't look into any of it--they will simply accept what the instructor says, especially if there are certificates and trophies up on the walls. The easiest things that an untrained person can go on with any real reliability with regard to an instructor's credibility are reviews from their students. Of course, online reviews can be fluffed up, but it's at least something where they can get the direct feedback from others as to whether the instructor is a good person to train under or not. They could also have a background check run, but that costs money, and most people aren't going to go out of their way to do that. They could also call up any supposed organizations or previous instructors of the instructor in question to try to verify their legitimacy, but that takes time and effort that most people aren't going to go through.

It does depend on what you're doing it for. If you just enjoy memorizing new kata, go for it. If you want to use it in a tournament, go for it. If you're looking to actually LEARN the kata and its material, especially if you want to teach it, you NEED direct feedback from an instructor, and you usually can't get that from videos or most online programs.

With this being your introduction, what do you think? Something you'd like to explore more, or not your cup of tea? Do you have questions about it? Looks like it has practical applications. Seems kind of interesting, based on what little I know I would likely enjoy trying it. I certainly encourage you to start playing with it, and I'd be curious to see how you feel as you develop that skill.

With this being your introduction, what do you think? Something you'd like to explore more, or not your cup of tea? Do you have questions about it?

This Okinawan martial concept can be translated as "sticky hands," "heavy hands," or "springy hands," depending on the context, which makes it a little difficult to pin down for those who aren't familiar, but it's based of of mochi--a pounded rice foodstuff that is somehow all three things at once. I'm curious as to how many of you incorporate muchimidi into your training, and how you do it? If you practice muchimidi, do you use any specific drills, exercises, or training tools? Is it just part of your kata application? I'd love to know! To give some examples from my own training: Solo drills using a kakiya/kakete-biki - Muchimidi as part of a lock flow drill - Partner drills based on kihon -

Required? No. Recommended? Yes! I have a fairely extensive list: Karate 1.0 by Andreas Quast Karate Uchina-Di by Itzik Cohen The Study of China Hand Techniques by Itoman Morinobu An Overview of Karatedo by Nakasone Genwa Okinawa Traditional Old Martial Arts: Kobudo, Karate by Nakamoto Masahiro Okinawa: The History of an Island People by George Kerr The Bubishi by Patrick McCarthy Ancient Okinawan Martial Arts: Koryu Uchinadi by Patrick McCarthy History and Traditions of Okinawan Karate by Hokama Tetsuhiro Okinawa’s Great Masters by Nagamine Shoshin The Essence of Okinawan Karate-Do by Nagamine Shoshin Okinawan Karate by Mark Bishop Zen Kobudo by Mark Bishop Bunkai Jutsu by Iain Abernethy The Way of Kata by Lawrence Kane and Kris WIlder My Journey with the Grandmaster by William Hayes The Essence of Goju-Ryu by Garry Lever and Richard Barrett Unante by John Sells Ryu-Te no Michi by Seiyu Oyata The Secret Royal Martial Arts Of Ryukyu by Kanenori Sakon Matsuo Naihanchi (Tekki) Kata: The Seed of Shuri Karate by Chris Denwood Okinawan Kempo: Karate-Jutsu on Kumite by Motobu Choki The Art of Hojo Undo by Mike Clarke Comprehensive Asian Fighting Arts by Donn Draeger and Robert Smith Tales from the Western Generation by Matthew Apsokardu

I've never had an issue with just drinking water, honestly. Sometimes I'll have tea, but that's usually it. On the rare occasion I feel like I need a hydration boost, I'll usually go for Vitaminwater Zero--typically the Rise flavor, which is reminiscent of orange juice, but without the bite. My wife likes the Liquid IV water additives, though.

Welcome to the forum!

Studies have shown that personal rituals can have beneficial impacts on a person's mental wellbeing, as well as their performance in tasks they associate with the ritual. The example I remember from one study was putting on a suit and nice watch before giving a presentation, and it makes me think of putting on a keikogi and belt before training. While most of my solo training is done in street clothes, I do feel that my karate is better when I "suit up," lol. As for my own routine, I'm honestly not a very routine person. I tend to do things on whims instead of plans (which drives my wife nuts). Over the course of my day, I will run kata, at random, when I feel like it. I will stop by the kakiya and drill whatever comes to mind. I will hit a bag or makiwara as I pass by, and sometimes stop for a while to work them. I will pick up a chi-ishi or ishi-sashi and do a few exercises when I see them. I find that this approach breaks up the monotony of the day, and keeps me in a more positive mental state. When I set aside dedicated training time, I will generally warm up with some junbi undo, then work with the chi-ishi, ishi-sashi, or other weights, before running kata. Again, I hardly ever plan to work something specific, so it might be running all of the kata I practice, or it might be spending an hour on one kata. After that, I'll usually hit the bag or makiwara for a while as a cool-down. In a sense, it's a routine because it has a consistent pattern, even though the activities in the pattern change every time.

Welcome to the forum!

While I do tend to believe you can derive multiple practical applications for any posture or movement in kata, to include the Taikyoku series, I just don't like to double my work, if that makes sense? Here's an analogy: Children learn to draw shapes before they learn to write letters, because knowing their shapes makes it easier to learn how to write letters, which they will later use to write sentences. The Taikyoku kata were purpose-built to be the "drawing shapes" phase of learning. Those shapes are absolutely all in the alphabet, and while you COULD attempt to write sentences with just base shapes, it would be missing a lot of material. The material in the Pinan/Heian series, on the other hand, is part of the alphabet, and is built to be used, like letters in a sentence.

My late Sensei was working on putting together a program for this, actually, but he obviously passed away before it was ready. He had trained with FBI instructors and DEA agents, in addition to his diverse martial arts background, and spent a lot of time studying these sorts of scenarios. He and I discussed the tactics and techniques for such a thing, but it's certainly rare in a country where, unfortunately, it is sorely needed.

I no longer practice those kata, so I don't have any of my own content to really help you out, but I can say that they can be pretty directly compared to Pinan Nidan (Heian Shodan), and if you search for videos of application for those kata, you can get some ideas. I would say that the Taikyoku kata really only consist of two sequences, each. One is performing an uke-waza, followed by a strike, to each side, followed by a spin. The other is performing uke-waza or strikes in sequences of 3 straight forward or to the rear. If you look at them in this way, there isn't a lot you need to work out. If you assume that the attacker is in front of you, then the first sequence is telling you to get to the side of them as you perform the uke-waza, then seize control of their attacking limb to follow up with a strike, and if need be, grab them and spin them around--preferably to the ground. The second sequence is telling you that if you fail to get to the side, you should still apply the uke-waza, but then drive the opponent back with the forward pressure of your techniques, and the kata has you practice them in a series of 3 so that you work the transition from right to left, and left to right. Of course, there are many more ways to look at kata application, and you could certainly derive many more than what I've suggested here. This is really just a starting point.

Welcome to the forum!

Welcome to the forum!