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is your son also a martial artist? if not this may be a good time to introduce him to this side of the arts, and it will keep him in shape for a return to the mat if he so chooses after a time off. good on you for not pushing him and letting him decide. guidance and support but at the same time respecting his decision can be a tough one sometimes, good luck to your son on whatever endeavor he chooses to pursue.

another thing to consider is that with a lot of people the goal of getting their black belt is the end game. task accomplished and they move on to other things they want to try to achieve. some will continue afterwards and see the lifestyle side of the arts but some will never go that deep and will move on to other ways of working out or staying in shape, which to a lot of people that is all this is, just a way to lose weight or stay in shape, not much different than cardio kickboxing class at the gym...lol... so there will always be those who drop the martial arts for the gym or other activities, im even guilty of that from time to time. ive taken 6 months or so off for just gym workouts, but i always return after a break, this is my roots, but for others it is just an activity

why do people quit the gym, or why do children quit baseball or soccer after playing for 3,4,5, or more years. its an activity for most people, especially children who at some point will move on to other hobbies or sports. i dont think it is because its too hard for most, quite the opposite actually, ive seen other sports and activities that require much more physical activity from its participants, junior high and senior high football, even cheer squads or gymnastics squads can be brutal in training, it takes dedication and commitment and for the majority that will pass and other life interests willl take its place. a small majority, like us, will make it a lifelong interest, a life style and those will become the teachers and instructors of the next generations and the circle will continue.

the last 15 years have been good thanks. WOW, cant believe its been that long, or that i am still active in the M,A's....lol.... the martial arts have been a huge part of my life and will always be a positive. good to see the forum is still here and active. Thanks everyone for the welcome back.

Personal Trainers get certifications in a variety of methods and training. from bodybuilding to nutrition and diet and everything in between, sports training and conditioning etc..... back in the day, I was a certified trainer and also had a senior trainer certification, along with staying current on red cross cert's and CPR. it is actually helpful as a martial arts instructor to stay on top of some certifications. search for a trainer who also has a senior certification or exp. with training seniors. sure a trainer is supposed to push you beyond what you would or could do as an individual or by your self, but your safety and current condition is first and foremost the most important cosideration. most trainers work with people in their 20's through the early 40's. senior training is a completely differant game due to health and age related conditions. just find a trainer who specializes in this.... Good luck with your search. you will find someone you are comfortable with.

Hi everyone, havent posted in a loooong while but have lurked off and on through the years. just passing through and catching up. hoping to return to posting regularly again and getting to know and re-know some of the members here.

that routine is fine, but on gym day it is better to take the second one just before the workout................oh btw, the loading period is not needed,. by loading you will notice initial gains faster but at the end of one month its about equil to the same gaines as not loading. (so basically you get the same gaines in a month if you didnt load, and you didnt have to re-supply creatine yet)

I started when I was 16, and that was 22 years ago,.....boy, time flies by, but I still remember the first dojo and the early days of training like it was yesterday.

I played baseball for 5 years before starting martial arts and wrestled in junior high, I think that the combination of these really helped out a lot, from baseball I had developed great eye/hand coordination and of course from wrestling I was already used to competition and knew how to read someone elses body movements and gained excellent balance, plus a lot of the moves were almost second nature due to muscle memory of being in similar positions before.

no, I doubt very seriously youre stunting your growth, 17 is a good age to be working out on a regular basis without anything to worry about. when I was 17 I did karate 5 hours per week, worked out with free weights 4 hours per week and wrestled in school without any adverse affects, as did many others. so you probably have little to nothing to worry about. actually if you would like to gain more muscle mass the next two to five years is the best time for that.

Back in the late 80's when I was really into competing in tournaments we used to design our own forms for competition and for demo purposes as well. In comp. a lot of ppl will create their own kata's, it gives the judges something a little different to look at and shows creativity as well as an understanding of how techniques flow together.

questions like this are always hard to answer because if or when something like this actually happens it will rarely play out how you imagined, example: if you are attacked, the attacker most likely isnt going to attack you in a way your training partner would. forcefullness is going to be 100% more intense, as will language, he will try to dominate you, demean you, belittle you, and so on. this is all meant to catch you off guard and shock you into not fighting back, and more times than not it works, even on ppl who think they have prepared themselves for this type of attack. so dont fall into a "if it happens this way or that way" trap, expect anything and everything to go wrong. train to be flexible and to adapt. also realize if the attacker has a knife and you must fight back, you are going to be cut. realize this now to prevent the shock when it happens. if you dont beleive me, just try this, have someone attack you with a magic marker( in place of a knife) and see how many "cuts" you get before you disarm him. I think the best advice for situations like this are to always be very aware of your surroundings. notice everything. if you see someone following you as you walk, then pick up the pace, if they do the same then run. try not to put yourself in areas where attacks are most likely to happen and if you do find yourself in an area where you feel unsafe then exit the area a.s.a.p..and never enter a vehicle or bldg. with someone you are not familiar with. be aware and be safe.

How many of you are honestly getting sick of hearing this word?. I know I am. it seems that on almost every m.a. forum on the net theres someone asking "is this school a mcdojo?" or "is this instructor legitimate?." Now I understand that to someone new, trying to choose a good school or instructor can be somewhat confusing, but the only real way to find out is to get in there and try it out. Sure, do some research, speak with some of the students and so forth. but you cant go by a general label that someone else may apply to every style except the one he studies. Because guess what in one way or another everyone here belongs to a "mcdojo". yes I'm sorry to break the news to you but your school is a "mcdojo". you dont believe me? I'll prove it to you. If you train traditional its a "mcdojo", why? because according to some ppl, traditional wont hold up to an altercation in todays times, and besides, who needs all that philosophy anyways. Do you train for sport, well that teaches you to pull your punches, thats not good. must be a "mcdojo".Do you have to sign a contract? oooh, big sign of a "mcdojo". Dont belong to a large organization with links straight back to japan?, uh oh must be a "mcdojo". Do belong to a large organization and have many certificates and b.b. hall of fame affiliation?, still a "mcdojo"(too much info). small school/club with an instructor no ones ever heard of?,"mcdojo". Large school with many chains of smaller schools?, sorry, still a "mcdojo". See what I'm getting at ?. That word "mcdojo" and its many meanings just compounds the confusion already felt by someone new to the arts, so just forget that word and if you see a school/style you would like to learn something about then try it out. true, dont sign a long term contract right off, and you should'nt have to, most places will/should give you 2-3 months to decide if its for you, so jump in and try it out. if the instruction is good and you are happy training there what more can you ask for?. sorry for the rant and no offense to anyone here asking about "mcdojo's", I do understand the confusion you may have, but dont let the word "mcdojo" add to that confusion. just apply a little common sense to your search and good luck finding what your looking for.

I agree with this....if your attacked in an open area where someone else may be around or may at any time happen by, parking lot, etc... make a scene, fight back. scream, yell, do what you can to get attention. the simple fact is that when a woman is abducted, the minute she gets into the car with the bad guy her chances of survival are cut by about 75%. so in this situation your choices could be, A- fight back with all you have. or B- take out a want ad in the next days paper to fill her position.

jane doe, dont let nathanjusko's comment bother you, its sad but some ppl think like that, and you will run across comments like that from time to time. (it seems that some ppl see kids classes as just being a way to pay the bills and a waste of time that could be spent on "real" m.a. training.) you have to just shrug those types off......oh, dodge ball is usually fun for the kids, get one or two of the large oversized type balls. and if you dont have an asst. let one of the parents help out. they usually enjoy getting involved. rules are if they get hit in the body their "out", if they get hit in the arms they must play with that arm behind their back, if hit in the leg they must hop on the other until hit again. and so forth. have fun and try to play many games that build coordination.

shhh.....no ones cought on yet that after "headbreaking class" the announcement is made that monthly dues are being raised.

its not too late yet, but you must train hard and be "good" before april, 'cause everyone knows once you turn 24 its all down hill from there...lol just kidding. like stl_karateka said, second nature will come with practice. you still have many,many years before its too late. keep practicing and good luck.

it seems that most ppl who have responded are under the assumption that all aikidoka will just stand still and wait for the first punch to be thrown. that s not at all true, the founder himself was fond of saying "that if you stand still youre going to get killed" now it is true that aikido focuses on what leads up to a fight, shoving, grabbing, etc... but there are also ways to lead your opponent into making the move you would like.

5'10" 185 pounds, very low body fat.

I reached shodan about 15 years ago and havent tested since, I still continue to learn and beleive it or not sometimes still have an enlightening exp. (something will just "jump" right out that maybe I missed before.) but I dont have to continue testing to continue learning. its now just about growing in the art more than aiming for the next stripe. And I guess that I also see testing for 2nd, 3rd, 10th, or whatever as being an ego thing for a lot of ppl and to me that is something that should have been overcome before reaching shodan.(hope that doesnt offend anyone).

why do this?, I meen whats the honest purpose for possibly injuring yourself or doing unrepairable damage to your hands?.

couple of heavy bags, body/kicking shields for the TKD/karate. 1/4" mats for karate/tkd and throw mats for judo.(if your school has a wrestling team, that would be the best mat you could get). that should cover the basics, esp, since its at school and will probably be an elective course and not have gradings. right?

in most open tournaments,esp. in the b.b. divisions you will find that a lot of ppl create their own forms, that way you can add your own favorite techniques and movements. something that you will really stand out for. if you dont have time to create your own routine then try to stick with something you are very comfortable with, and if you do happen to make a mistake dont let it show,cover it up smoothly and continue on, theres a good chance the judges dont know your systems forms and wont even catch a small error.

neil, urinating blood is a sign of severe dehydration, not overworking. anytime you engage in any physical activity you must maintain hydration levels. you can never drink too much water. synaesthesia, you havent described your workouts but it sounds like you may need to split them up to only certain bodyparts each day, an example would be chest, abs, legs, on mon, weds, and fri,. back, arms, shoulders, on tue, thurs, and sat., off on sun. of course that is just a very basic ex. and you can experiment with what combo and what frequency works best for you. By splitting up your routine like this each workout should only take about one to one and a half hours to complete and then each body part has the next day to recover while you train another area....good luck

I know a lot of guys who dont like to spar with women and when they do have to they will only go with about 1/4 the intensity they usually spar at. I think most guys are afraid of hurting a girl during sparring untill she has proving to them she can take it,( not trying to sound macho or anything). the reason I say this is because I also know 2 girls who, once they hit the mat are considered just "one of the guys" (but they've also been known to lay a few guys out on a couple of occasions during sparring). but of course a lot of it depends on how you(as an individual) spar and how comfortable you are sparring a guy.