bassaiguy

Best of luck

Thank you all for the responses, especially CreDoTe - you've given a lot of time. If the new job comes to fruition I'll be moving and switching styles. You've eased a bit of my insecurity, for now I'll keep training and try to move on with as much fitness, flexibility overall as I can.

I'm a Shotokan person and I've done a bit of full-contact training/fighting over the years. I'd say that if you're going to maintain Shotokan rules and fight full-contact you MUST wear protective gear. It is far too easy to hurt someone permanently when you hit them full-contact in the face. That's why Kyokushin doesn't permit face strikes in competition. That said, it is my belief that every Shotokan person who wants to maintain the martial aspects of the style should try some full-contact (with adequate protection) by the time they are brown or black belts. If you want to see how quickly matches end when Shotokan is used as a full-contact style look at the old JKA kumite of the 1970s and 80s. There are plenty of clips on-line.

I may be relocating due to my job and in the area there is no Shotokan karate. However, there is Matsubayashi Shorin-ryu. I've been interested in Okinawan karate for a long time, but I have to say that after 20 years or so as a Shotokaner (and several years in TKD before that) I'm nervous about making the swtich. What should I expect in terms of technical similarities and differences? I have several months to prepare, what should I work on to hit the ground running?

I'm a karate guy, but this looks pretty legit to me:

Wrestling is back in the Olympics! http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/24009517 One of the original Olympic sports, which was unceremoniously dropped by a bunch of panty-waists who decided to keep dressage, has been reinstated. I'll be interested to see what rule changes the IOC insisted upon, but I think the re-inclusion of wrestling is fantastic. (I'm also glad that karate is nowhere to be seen at the Olympic level, but that's another thread...)

I teach a class through our local Adult Education program. We split the registration fees 80/20 (in my favor) and they give me the room for free. I have no pressure to increase my enrollment to cover rent, etc. If I'm happy with five to ten students, so be it. They would love for me to start a youth karate program with more students, but so far I haven't taken the plunge. Because I have a day job this works well for me. It wouldn't be the way to go if I were trying to make a career of it, though.

I second Danbong's comment. Beginner's need instructors. I'm currently trying to pick up a musical instrument and without a competent instructor my progress is s-l-o-w and my outcomes aren't likely to be great. Just think how that experience is multiplied when you have to learn to contend against another person under combat-stress. I also think the comment on McDojos is right on the money. I've met some great ATA competitors and others that need some polishing - it's all up to the individual student and instructor. Solid post.

Here's my stereotype from the handful of people over the years that I've had the pleasure of training with who claim to study JKD. Keep in mind that this is a totally anecdotal set of observations and in no way is true of high level lineage holders from the JKD world. 1. Most don't have a teacher, but study only from books and videos. 2. They might be fast, but compared to traditional MA don't have clean technique. 3. They don't hit hard, unless they already do another style like boxing or karate. 4. Their kicking isn't very well-developed. 5. On the positive side they can be really nice and creative individuals willing to try new things. Just my opinion based on limited experience with a few JKD guys over the years.

Have you ever fought? Put your clips on youtube? Trained people who have applied their techniques in real life such as LEOs (they'll let you know what they think of your style)? Train in a way that makes you happy, but my advice is to put the rubber to the road a bit before you jump out there and start to promote a new style.

From what I recall Vovinam is a modern martial art that combines Chinese-Vietnamese traditional arts with Shotokan karate and judo. It is similar to another MA called Vietvodao. Try it out and give us a report on what you find!

I'm always a skeptic of these ideas. Funakoshi wasn't creating a style as much as he was refining a teaching method. Mabuni wasn't creating a style, he was preserving and organizing kata. Ohtsuka created his system to integrate jujutsu waza in karate, not necessarily to create his own organizational-style. Kano created his own style, but he lived in a time and place that was unique (late Meiji, modernizing Japan). I know I'm not bigger than any of these men. Maybe your ideas are unique, however. If so, go for it. If you want feedback, put it up on youtube, or throw on the gloves and do some competition. I'm always interested in learning about new ideas.

My sensei says I do the wong kata all the time!

I would say that most modern Shotoakn (at least in my little corner of the world) is non-contact. However, good, traditional Shotokan involves quite a bit of contact. Kyokushin is an intentionally heavy-contact style, but lately I've seen Kyokushin schools that offer non-contact programs to keep their more casual students from quitting. So, I guess the answer is check each school careully. There is a distinct difference in competition, though. Kyokushin has full-contact, no face punches, tournaments. Shotokan has point-based tournaments that usually allow very heavy, but controlled contact. Freestyle/Open tournaments don't normally allow much contact all, so again caveat emptor. I prefer the Shotokan way because people try more variety of techniques and it seems faster to me. Sometimes Kyokushin shiai just look like two guys slugging each other in the guts. Historically, Shotokan is based on Itosu-ha Shorin-ryu influenced by Japanese budo. Kyokushin is based on Shotokan and other 20th century karate styles (plus judo in its earlier form).

It seems like Chuck Norris tried an event like this a few years ago when he sponsored the World Combat League (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Combat_League). I like it, but it went under. IMO, as a Moo Duk Kwan BB, TKD needs to return to embrace it's position as the premier kicking sport in the combat sports world. Just like boxing has survived as the premier punching sport, TKD should exploit its niche and not try to become a copy of someone else's success.

Congrats! Great pic.

I hit the maikiwara and do some bodyweight exercises daily. I'm an occasional runner and swimmer, but don't devote enough time to either one. I go through spurts of three to four months when I'm able to hit the gym on a regular basis, but my schedule is a bit wonky and I frequently have lay-offs, too. About the only thing I can commit to with regularity is my martial arts time.

I was once on the mat with a member of the US Olympic Judo team. He was the most skilled judoka I've ever seen. I've trained with police academy instructors who were scary just walking onto the mat. I've worked out with sport karate champs whose speed was amazing. But the best martial artist I've ever met was a man named Al Gardner who was a Shotokan and Chinese martial arts master and a master musician - everything he touched was art. He had tremendous health issues and to look at him you might laugh, but the power, grace and balance he displayed was amazing. After meeting him I'll never again judge a book by it's cover.

If you are in Boston there is excellent judo, Yang's Chinese martial arts academies and high quality Shotokan Karate at JKA Boston and at Boston SKA Dojo. I don't know about TKD, but it seems like there is Tae Kwon Do everywhere. If you're looking for adult classes make sure that you are specific with the instructor about your desire so you don't get stuck in a mixed class with the eight year olds. I love traditional karate and if I were in your area I'd hit up either the JKA or SKA dojos, but that is completely a personal bias.

Amazed at how linear the fights are. Folks criticize both Western fencing (on the strip) and kendo with being too linear, but here where it's real it seems people instinctively move that way. So much to study from this vid in terms of movement and initiative - interesting.

I always recommend videos as a supplement to class instruction, but I discourage my students from learning new kata from them. I think you miss too many of the little details - at least I do. Lawrence Kane wrote a book called "Martial Arts Instruction: Applying Educational Theory and Communication Techniques In the Dojo" which begins to address this topic although I think he could have been more creative with the application of learning theory to martial arts. It's a good intro, but if you've been teaching awhile there's nothing too earth shattering in the book.

We start various 5-step, 3-step and 1-step kumite at white and yellow belts. But if you're in ISKF or SKIF dojo they may be more regulated. In my training I began learning some of the more dynamic kicks and unusual blocks at green belt level and above, but they were introduced as the instructor saw fit and were not part of the grading syllabus.

Remo Williams - the books, not the movie.

I think it should be up to each woman to wear what she prefers as long as modesty can be maintained. However, I remember back in my more hard-core days we used to snicker at the guys who would t-shirts under their gi. Nowadays I don't care as much although I think it is unnecessarily modest considering karateka a century ago essentially trained in their underwear. Also, in my judo days we would "skin up" at least once a month and try randori without gi tops. No women in that class though, so it worked at the time.

Wow...Um, here's a positive comment, the soundtrack was pretty neat as a free form jazz sort of thing.