scohen.mma

Hey all, just a random question. Personally, I like Okinawan Karate. But I've always been a big fan of Jackie Chan and Jet Li. For those who have seen the movie, what are your thoughts on the movie? And how do you think it's display on Kung Fu and Martial Arts was?

Hey everyone! It's been a long time since I've been on this site. About 2 and a half years ago, I moved away from Long Island, NY to Mt. Lebanon, PA. I haven't really done Karate since. I joined the Marine Corps Reserves and I'm waiting for an official ship date. Now why I'm writing this. Matsubayashi-Ryu is my life. I love it more than anything. The only bit of it that I've been able to do is what my Sensei in NY taught me. He was also kind enough to send me a DVD where Takayoshi Nagamine demonstrates the Fukyugatas and Pinans, as well as their Bunkai. I still remember most of what my Sensei taught me, but I don't practice as often as I'd like to, nor do I have someone to help me in all aspects of the training I'm able to do alone. There are two Karate dojos near me, one teaches Taijitsu and the other teaches Shotokan. My question is, which one (I'm leaning toward Shotokan) would be more beneficial while I'm away from NY, and is it even a good idea at all to pick up another MA, even if they are similar, if my ultimate goal is to continue my study of Matsubayashi Ryu? Thank you so much in advance!

I agree with Ueshirokarate. My Sensei tells us to "explore" what he teaches us and sometimes he'll show examples. "just because i blocked with a down block doesnt mean thats all i'm gonna do. look at how off balance he is now, maybe i can do this and that" and he does some really cool stuff! In my opinion, these pre-arranged sparring drills are just general techniques, and that if/when we ever use them, we shouldnt just use whatever Yakusoku drill we're using, we should get creative with it.

Thanks Evergrey! that definetly makes me feel more comfortable about getting it. i've also noticed other martial art styles using it. Even some BJJ schools! except their changing the spelling/pronunciation or something like that, but i'm going to go with the origonal one. Dobbersky and Sensei8, at first i just wanted a tattoo for the heck of it. then i told my Sensei's that i wanted one, and they told me that i should wait and think it over. so i did, and i decided not to get the tattoo. but recently i started tihnking over it again, and my passion and love for Karate and other martial arts is just continuing to grow, and i have been using Oshi Shinobu as a motto for a while now. it never gets old and i love it!

i'm no pro when it comes to lifting, but i think i know the basics. you need to work your legs and your core (in my opinion) more than anything else. and when you work other bodyparts, it should be through compound lifts (working more than one muscle group). Not only that, i saw no Olympic lifts (Snatch, Clean and Jerk, etc) which i understand are the best exercises when trying to build power. but other than what was already said, you need to work your legs a lot more. you had no leg days at all in your 4 day split, when most of your power comes from the legs and the hips. good luck with your training

thanks so much!

we do some kind of drill in my Matsubayashi Shorin-Ryu class. lets say i'm facing a partner. we bow, i begin with a head punch in a natural stance. my partner block with a head block. then, i step back and do a down block in a side horse stance position, because my partner threw either a kick or a lower punch (i dont remember, this is why i wanna know what this is so i can look it up!) then, at the same time, both partners face each other. one throws straight punch to the partner, and the partner throws a rising punch/block and "wins" the drill (its pre-planned, i dont know what else to call it). when both partners throw that final strike, both partners are in some kind of forward stance as if we were doign a down block in kata. i'm sorry if i wasnt very clear, i'm not too sure what to call all of this. every once in a while (not very often) we do things like this, but i dont remember what this is called, and i'd really like to know because each time we do it, i forgot since we dont usually do it and i'd liek to be able to practice at home so i can remember. thanks in advance!

I want to get the Japanese Kanji for Oshi Shinobu meaning "Push to Endure" tattoo'ed on my left part of my chest, kinda over my heart or where a symbol on my Karate Gi would be. but i ahve a few questions. i love the style Kyokushin, but i dont train in it and i dont expect to even be able to train in it for a while, or atleast until after i recieve a blackbelt in Shorin-Ryu. I'm noticing that Oshi Shinobu is more commonly recognized as a Kyokushin Karate phrase, but i absolutely love it! is there anything poser-ish about having this as my first tattoo? i love what it stands for, and it honestly is my life motto at the moment or atleast when it comes to any kind of working out/training, or even when i face a struggle in my daily life. can anyone give me their honest opinion? thanks!

Hey everyone, some of you have suggested that i try Wendler's 5/3/1 program, which i will be officially starting on monday next week. my only problem is, i'd like to have a weight lifting journal. It sounds easy, but i am SO unorganized on everything. can anyone reccomend how i can put together my lifting journal, and make it look neat and organized? it will be SO much easier to use if its nicely organized. thanks again! oh, i forgot to mention. my journal is basically going to be a three-ring binder with note paper in it. OSU!

Well, for conditoning your forearms, i know that my most hated - but favorited exercise is pairing up with a partner, and having them throw any kind of overhead strikes, while i block using a head block, or if i throw hooks at my opponent, and they block using knife hands in a cat stance (i think its called knife hands once their in the cat stance). as for conditioning your elbows specifically, try and use a rough heavybag like some gyms have, or even going up against a tree and practicing elbowing the tree harder and harder. good luck! OSU

hmm, i do see the point your all trying to make. so then as UeshiroKarate said, i should be doing full body lifts trying to get as much muscle on me as i can, because speed will come with proper form, and my endurance should come from whatever martial art i'm doing. thanks everyone correct me if i'm wrong! OSU

hahaha, thanks xD thats a funny, but very realistic way to look at things! the reason that i wanted to focus on my endurance, because of the MMA fighter Nick Diaz, and how he fights. according to Joe Rogan, there are very few fighters that can match the pace he fights at, and they have such a hard time keeping up with him, that he hits them so much that they cant even breathe. I'm no power puncher, but in my opinion i can be fast when i really put the effort into it. So, with an "unlimited gas tank" at a fast pace, i figure that'd help me a lot! any thoughts??

Barbed terror, i checked and i am a Ro Kyu or Rok Kyu (i cant read my Sensei's hand writing very well ) and i think i COULD be whatever ranking is after, but i missed the first testing in my dojo. and in my dojo, we only have testing every 3 - 4 months, and blackbelt testing every 6 months (which you have to wait a year after you get your second stripe in brown belt i think). also, i would reccomend you go out and give a tournament a try if anything, definetly try the Kata part of the tournament, it gives you a big taste of what its really like and in my opinion, took the most focus. my advice if you choose sparring: DEFINETLY work on getting your kicks at or even above head level, and work on controlling your kicks more than anything. i got my legs up high enough to reach my opponents head, but i showed almost no control and almost got disqualified because of it. and definetly work combinations that include both kicks and punches at different levels. UeshiroKarate, i agree with you 100% but being my age, i feel more comfortable doing that with kids around 14 - 17 maybe 18 and most of the Karateka's in my dojo are adults from late 20's to even mid 70's! However, i do ask them for a lot of advice/assistance before and after class regarding kicks and if im' having trouble in a specific part of any Kata i'm working on. There are two friends that i try to train with outside of the Dojo, but one is in a Mini - Marine program which takes up most of his life :/ and the other is in college. Both of which do compete in tournaments. Dobbersky, thankyou so much! I was only competeing at beginner level, but it felt good to represent and demonstrate some Matsubayashi for Karateka's that didnt even know it existed! I was shocked they didnt know of it, but some of them even asked me how i did part of my Kata (Fukyugata Ni) and tried to figure out which Kata in their system was most similar which was actually a lot of fun. Wastelander, thanks! I do Matsubayashi Shorin-Ryu, which i hear has a bigger emphasis on Kata, which is probably why thats my Dojo's main focus. So with that being said, i think i'm going to somewhat compete regularly in tournaments always doing Kata, and probably every other tournament i do, compete in Kumite. The reason i'd like to compete more though, is because of how many people werent aware of the existance of Shorin-Ryu at all. I'd like to help my tournament team and my Dojo get more recognized and i figure the best way i can do that right now, is to participate in tournaments along with the other Karateka's at my Dojo Thanks everyone! OSU

Shorin-Ryu Karate-Do student here! i'd love to meet with other Karateka's via Skype and learn/share our styles! my Skype ID is: fightclub4ever50 sorry its childish, i'm only 16 and i made it a while ago. I'm shy though so someone with patience and someone who can talk please!

I know i'm just a beginner, but when doing a front snap/thrust kick, i think it feels so awkward to kick with the heel of your foot. can someone explain why some styles do that? i'm just curious as to why not to just use the ball of the foot like in a front snap kick?

i'd like to say that i went to my first Karate tournament yesterday (sunday, may 20th) at York College in New York and i placed FIRST in Kata and second in Kumite beginners level of course. And i have to say, i was SHOCKED at how many Shotokan Karateka's were there! i saw atleast 3 or 4 different styles of Karate, and for each style there were atleast 2 different schools of them there. My Dojo was the ONLY Shorin-Ryu dojo there and i can tell the judges didnt like us but apparently some of them are getting used to seeing Shorin-Ryu styles now (because of my dojo) and my dojo is so well known! anyway, i noticed that i did well in Kata and not as good as i wanted to do in Kumite (i like to shoot for first ) and when i would talk to the other Karateka's there, they all said they do lots of kicking drills in class, and work sparring/Kumite 2 - 3 times a week. My dojo works sparring 1 - 2 times a week and little to no kicking drills in class very often. What would you say the normal sparring/Kumite training should be done in class or during the week? I feel as though some of the Karateka's either lied to me or i feel as though they work sparring too much and not enough Kata. Now, my dojo's main focus is Kata which is probably why we did so well in that part of the competition! But do you think we should be working Kumite/sparring more times a week or is this fine? the main purpose of this post was just to let you all know how i did in my first Karate competition, this is after 8 -9 months of Karate training and i'm very proud to represent my dojo, the East Coast BLackbelt Academy and my Organization, the Shorin-Ryu KarateDo International (SRKDI) OSU!

haha yes Burnett did do that xD and i honestly was just curious about what all they did, how many times a week. but i really never considered the fact that they went into TUF like they would a week before a pro fight and how the workouts are kept generally light. thanks!

I'm looking to become more of an endurance athlete. I do stuff like, Snatch (5x3) as a warm up before i do 3 to 5 sets of the Randy Couture Workout (8 bent over rows, 8 upright rows, 8 military presses, 8 good mornings, 8 lunges each leg, 8 squat and jerks and 8 deadlifts). after that, i'd do a variety of pushups or high reps with the benchpress. it only takes about 30 - 40 minutes and it kicks your butt! However, doing that three days a week leaves me bored. my next workout day, i warm up with some Pullups, and then i do the GSP Rushfit: Strength and Endurance workout - really hard and fun! Again, doing tihs 3 to 4 times a week would also leave me bored. So for my Next 2 workout days, i do a Push day and then a Pull Day.obviously all my pushing workouts in one day and all my pulling workouts the next. I figured doing tihs would be more fun of a workout for me, cuz i'm not doing almost the same stuff each day i go into the weight room. heres my schedule: Monday: BJJ Tuesday: Randy Couture Workout, Judo, Karate Wednesday: BJJ Thursday: GSP Rushfit, Judo, Karate Friday: nothing Saturday: Push workouts(including legs), sometimes Judo Sunday: Pull workouts Now, all of my workouts either involve high reps or circuits such as the Randy Couture workout (like in the Push and Pull workouts i do). Does this seem to be a good schedule, or is it too much? I also am trying to include running into this schedule, which i figured i'd do on days i have BJJ. any opinions or suggestions are greatly appreciated!

i was watching TUF: The Comeback and Dana White talked about how they have their schedules all layed out, and i heard fighters like Matt Serra say stuff like "well i know we have Plyo's tomorrow." I'm wondering what exactly their schedule looked like? Monday - Sunday, if anyone has any idea's, what do you think the schedule was that all the fighters followed?

just so if any familiar members see this post, my older brother posted this. I have made previous posts, and this is my brothers post but he used my same account thanks again!

i made a really bad mistake and dropped out of highschool to get a job so i could help my family with the money issue that we were going through. I've always wanted to join the Navy, but i know i cant do that without a high school degree of some kind. is there any possible way to join any branch of the military, no matter what the duty is, without a highschool degree? i know this is a dumb question, but maybe theres some info out there that i dont know of. please dont judge, please dont make fun. i didnt have much of a choice. thanks in advance.

I ordered a single dvd off of Amazon.com and it was GSP Rushfit: Strength and Endurance DVD. i just got it earlier today, and i recently finished the workout. What can i say? Not only am i one of the biggest fans of Georges St. Pierre EVER, but i'm saving up some money and i'm determined to buy to entire Rushfit series. That workout was fun, GSP and his trainer helped talk me through the workout, and it really kicked my butt. Personally, i strongly reccomend the entire series because i've taken demo's of the other Rushfit dvd's and they were GREAT. For Karate training especially, i feel as though GSP Rushfit would be a great, short, high - intensity workout that everyone could improve from using. has anyone else tried these workouts? i think their great!

a few months ago, i posted a thread that lead to me becoming very disrespectful to the people that read my post, and to my Sensei's, and to my Dojo. i had a terrible view on Martial Arts, and its something that i regret ever having. since i moved to New York and started training at the East Coast Blackbelt Academy under Jerry Figgiani and Tony Aloe, i've completely changed. I feel like i've grown up more, i feel like i've learned how to give people respect, and i feel as though i've really learned about REAL Martial Arts. My new passion is Matsubayashi Shorin-Ryu KarateDo. i love it, i want to see it live on and never fade away. If anyone is interested, here is a link to the SRKDI (Shorin-Ryu KarateDo International) website, and some videos. Enjoy! http://www.srkdi.com/video.htm

wow, great post! first, i completely agree with your theory that weight training will not make you slower, and i loved the comparison you used with the car and teh bigger engine - helped me to understand more. second, i also agree with your views on Olympic Lifting. a few months ago i had posted a thread about lifting, and you reccomended Olympic lifts for me which i did add to my routine - my sensei noticed after a few weeks that i was more explosive during sparring. i also wanted your opinion on Isometric holds for grappling arts such as BJJ. Sometimes, i find myself trying to hold a position with my opponent - whether its pushing or pulling. the kind of Isometric that i'm talking about (if this is the right kind or not) is for example with teh benchpress: holding the bar half way for 15 - 25 seconds, then benching 3 reps explosively - thats 1 set. Do you think that kind of Isometric lifting would be good for BJJ or other grappling? once again, great post!

thanks everyone! i'll train as hard as i can for the next few years. i'll try and get as much sleep as i can, and i drink quite a few bottles of water a day so i dont need to worry about that. unfortunately, school limits me on my sleep - having to wake up on time for school, doing things that i need to do after school and before i go to the dojo's, finally going to the dojo, etc. i do love my sleep and i sleep probably 12 hours on friday nights and saturday nights xD thanks again!