Wastelander

I like a lot of Iain Abernethy's material and, as sensei8 said, when I don't like it, it's usually just a disagreement on it's relation to the kata in question. His Kusanku material is, in my opinion, pretty good--some of it is even what we teach at our dojo. Thanks for sharing!

Well, if we're talking about "ideal," then I suppose they would be: Humble Patient Interested in martial arts Mid- to late-teens in age Healthy and fit Talented in physical movement In reality, though, I'm thrilled any time I get the first three things in that list

If you do not have any grappling experience, it would be best for you to wait for a normal training session. Open randori sessions are great, but if you don't have any grappling experience then you really won't get much out of it other than a lot of breakfall practice.

Congratulations!

I learned the basics of bo, sai, tonfa, and nunchaku when I trained in Shuri-Ryu, and learned some bo and sai kata. That said, I haven't really been focused on kobudo for the past several years. When you say "theory," do you mean how they adapt the weapons to empty hand techniques/kata? I might remember some, and I am still in regular contact with Shuri-Ryu people back home that I can ask about it, but asking your Sensei and taking notes would be better.

Welcome to the forum! I actually used to study Shuri-Ryu in Illinois

My belt doesn't have a label, so it doesn't matter which way I tie mine on, but I think most people try to put the label on the right. These days I tie my belt this way: http://www.karatebyjesse.com/how-to-tie-karate-belt-correctly/ We don't subscribe to the philosophical reasons that Jesse describes in that article, but that is the process that my Sensei and I use when tying our belts, and that's how we teach new student to do it. That said, I used to do a "full overlap" so you couldn't see the belt cross over itself in the back. I also learned a "lock-down knot" for the belt in judo, but stopped using it some time ago.

Welcome to the forum!

Typically, when I practice kata on my own, I will vary the speed. Sometimes, I go with a metronomic pace throughout every kata, but other times I will go faster or slower on certain movements, depending on the applications I'm thinking of. I also like to, occasionally, run through kata as fast as I can, and then go through slowly, with dynamic tension. If I'm having a tough time with a certain section of a kata, then I will break out that section and drill it separately, over and over again. When it comes to mistakes, if I'm by myself, I will usually either repeat the movement I messed up, but if I skipped a section or messed it up very badly, I'll start the kata over.

We certainly are!

I completely agree! I have done this throw against resistant partners, so I'm quite comfortable with it. The techniques you see in the "Walk the Line" drill video are fairly new to me, so I'm still working on them. Once I feel good about them against non-resistant opponents, I'll start working them on resistant ones. That said, from what I experienced working with Sensei Karlsson, I discovered that the harder you try to hit him, the easier it was for him to use his techniques.

It doesn't really make sense, to me, to strike quickly without power, or powerfully without speed. As with all things, there must be balance. When it comes to a self defense situation, though, I pretty much just have to go with how my body reacts, and with the openings my attacker gives me.

Welcome to the forum!

I'm afraid that what you're asking for isn't actually possible. Fast-twitch muscle fibers, which is what you need for explosive muscular power, are the largest form of muscle fibers. To become more explosive, you will have to build your fast-twitch muscle fibers, which means you will gain muscle mass. Even if you were going for endurance, which builds the smaller slow-twitch muscle fibers, it's likely that you would still build some mass over time. All that said, you aren't going to look like a body builder unless you train like a body builder. To build the kind of strength you want, you need to move heavy weights through full ranges of motion as quickly as you can, while still doing the movements properly, for 8 reps or less, for 5 sets or less. I will also point out that increased muscle mass doesn't automatically make you clumsy, stiff, and muscle-bound. If you balance out the muscles you are working, and stretch regularly to maintain flexibility, you will be just fine.

I just ask him about it in private--sometimes, things change based on how the organization or his instructor want things done, and sometimes he changes things based on his own experiences. As far as management decision go, I'll give my feedback to him in private, but even as an assistant instructor, I don't get to make the decisions

Judo and Taekwondo are actually the two most popular Eastern martial arts in the world. Boxing and wrestling are the two most popular Western martial arts in the world. Karate is not as popular as any of them and, as skullsplitter mentioned, karate is divided up into so many styles and organizations that it is very difficult to come up with a competitive rule set. On top of that, the average Olympic viewer will not be able to tell the difference between karate and Taekwondo, so the IOC has no valid reason to include it. Kata could be introduced but, again, the average Olympic viewer will have no idea what they are watching, and would rather see physical movement skills in the form of gymnastics rather than kata.

This is certainly an interesting topic! The trouble is that most kata were created so long ago that it's impossible to really know their history. As you found out, even when a kata was created more recently, there is sometimes information about it that is missing. My favorite kata is Naihanchi, which is so old that we aren't completely sure who created it. It goes at least as far back as Sakugawa Kanga, who was my teacher's teacher's teacher's teacher's teacher's teacher's teacher. Although it is a very short and (seemingly) simple kata, it contains pretty much everything you need for self defense.

Welcome to the forum, Andreas! As Zaine explained, there is no evidence that such powers exist. It would be very cool if they did, though! Typically, when you see a display of such powers, it is actually the result of a type of hypnosis, or mental conditioning. That is a very interesting subject, itself, but it isn't any sort of psychic power.

I don't keep my training secret, because it's a major part of my life and I'm a pretty open guy. I have trained in parks, beaches, parking lots, garages, and yards without any issues. I also wear martial arts themed t-shirts, and will talk openly with people about martial arts. Of course, I do try not to be obnoxious about it, and I don't wear my gi or martial arts themed clothes to places that wouldn't be appropriate. I suppose it could be the Generation Y in me, but I just don't see the need to adhere to the "karate is my secret" maxim these days

Welcome to the forum, rasputin! Unfortunately, there isn't a "single source of truth" when it comes to martial arts schools. Your best bet is to visit the schools in your area, try out classes and talk to the instructors, and decide which one is the best fit for you. If you want more information before you make your decision, you can ask the instructors about their history/lineage and ask Sensei Google about them

Congratulations!

1. Many dojo--particularly Japanese karate styles--don't do any weapons training. Some do, but it isn't as popular as karate. 2. Depends on how similar the weapons methods are to your karate, and how fast you are at learning, really. It isn't a rank thing, so much as the ability to learn the forms and techniques without getting it confused with your karate. 3. Can't really help you there, since I don't know anything about Australian laws--in my state in the US, I can own just about any weapon you can think of. I will say that techniques for bo, jo, hanbo, and sword all transfer over into just about any sort of long pole/stick-type object.

Yakusoku kumite. They are largely impractical, with one or two practical bits thrown in, so I'm not as interested in them as our bunkai drills that are more free-form and practical. We also don't practice them all that much, and you have to learn both the attacking side and the defending side, so it's a lot of material to try to memorize.

I can't speak from a Korean martial arts perspective, but from an Okinawan martial arts perspective, you are really too tall for a 4ft bo. The 5ft bo would work, but you should really be using a 6ft bo. I'm 6'1" tall and use a 6'6" bo, because your bo should (ideally) be taller than you. "Tapered" just means that the bo is thickest in the middle and then gets thinner toward the ends of the bo. That makes the bo lighter, which means you can move it faster, but it isn't as good for partner drills and doesn't make you as strong.

That is definitely very, very strange. I would like to think it is some sort of joke that has gotten out of hand, but it's still not very respectful of him to brush off the concerns of one of his students. I applaud you for leaving a situation that was uncomfortable for you! Is your new dojo also Tang Soo Do, or is it a different style?