scohen.mma

I'm 16 years old, my weight always bounces between 160 and 170, i'm 5'11 and i'd say i'm in pretty good shape. i've been doing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu since a little before my 8th grade year started, my 10th grade year is ending next month. BJJ is my absolute FAVORITE martial art of all, but i've been moving a lot so my training has been on and off, but i've kept up with it enough to the point where i dont look like a noob when i go into a new BJJ class. about 7 months ago, i started Judo at my new Karate school (my other passion). Personally, its too much stand up and takedowns for my personal interest, but it definetly hasnt hurt my ground game to know some Judo techniques. i've also been doing on season wrestling for my school for about two years, which i think helps with controlling my opponent on the ground, and helps me to stay off my back when i'm in a bjj match and dont wanna be on my back. over all, i want to continue my BJJ training more than anything. the possible schedule that i can have right now would be Monday: BJJ Tuesday: Judo and Karate Wednesday: BJJ Thursday: Judo and Karate Friday: Karate Saturday: Judo and Karate. the only bjj dojo that i'm close to now only has 2 classes a week. basically, i want to compete in BJJ and i want to (after many years to come) eventually earn my black belt in BJJ probably more than anything. would on season wrestling (about 2 months 5 days a week during those 2 months), 3 Judo classes a week, and 2 BJJ Classes a week be hurtful or helpful to my training in BJJ? Obviously, i would drop both wrestling and Judo if i could do BJJ more often but i dont even have my license yet, so i cant really do too much about that and grappling is my favorite thing to do (in life and in martial arts). I plan on entering into BJJ competitions as well. ANY thoughts, ANY reccomendations, ANY advice on conditioning, weight lifting, training, or anything that i talked about above are GREATLY appreciated. thanks in advance!

ok, so if anyone doesnt know Nick Diaz, he is very disrespectful to anyone he fights, does a lot of trash talking, giving people the finger, swearing at people, etc. same with his younger brother Nate. Nick and Nate were both in traditional martial arts like Karate, Sambo and Aikido when they were younger and they talked a lot about how they were taught respect. Now, their main training is Boxing, Brazilian/Cesar Gracie Jiu Jitsu, and a lot of cardio workouts. first, why do you think their so disrespectful after having a background like that? second, Nick said in an interview that in all honesty, made a lot of sense to me. he said if they're (him and whoever he is fighting) gonna fighting, then they arent friends. they arent gonna go out there shake hands, complement each other, etc. if your gonna be fighting the way their gonna be fighting, they wanna hurt each other and they are NOT friends. so he's "not gonna sit there and make friends with the guy." what do you think about that? I'm a huge fan of Nick, and in some of the small interviews that i've seen him in, he has a lot of street smarts and i can really relate to him on a lot of stuff. but i'm having a hard time dealing with teh level of disrespect he sends to people. just some thoughts for the day! OSU

I got into an argument with someone today about Boxing. I'm a big fan. I told this person that Boxing is a great Martial Art. They suddenly got defensive and called Boxing a SPORT, not a Martial Art. Now, Referring to Mixed Martial Arts, and how Boxing is a very famous part of MMA, i commonly refer to Boxing as not only a sport, but also a Martial Art. I told him that I think that Boxing is both a sport and Martial Art. I told him how Karate is clearly considered a Martial Art, but there are other people that call some forms of Karate "sport Karate." I tried to tell him that we're both right and that Boxing is both a sport and Martial Art. What do you think? is Boxing a Sport, a Martial Art, or both?

I may not give the best advice, because practicing good technique on the heavy bag and more sparring is definetly your best bet. but i would try to put high vollume into your training outside of the dojo. and as your Kumite approaches, decrease the vollume in your workouts and up the intensity. But thats just me

Thanks guys, both very helpful responses. I have looked into a Olympic Lifting coach and i'm also very familiar with Stronglifts 5x5 and Wendler's 5/3/1 (which bushido man showed me earlier). But what i was really curious was to which would benefit a Martial Artist most? i dont have any specific goals right now (like, i'm not trying to gain explosiveness or anything) i'm really just looking for something to keep me in shape, maybe bulk up a little bit until i notice area's that i need improvements in. Something that would be good to follow in my "off season" or whatever it is in Karate. However, i also liked the suggestion that i learn to do all the lifts correctly and then look into adding Plyometrics to my routine. Thanks again guys!

Hi everyone, i heard 2 different theories. one, i heard that i want to lift heavy. thats 5x5, 5x3, 3x5, 3x3 kinda lifting, and focus on an explosive movement, a rowing movement, and the main lifts. so what i had put together pretty much would be 5x3 Snatch, 5x5 Benchpress, 5x5 Bent Over Rows, 5x5 Deadlift, and 5x5 Squat. or any of the other rep ranges i listed above. Because i want to train for strength and power, since i should get my skill and endurance from running or just actually doing the specific martial art. Another theory i heard, is that i wanna focus on sport-specific workouts in either intervals or higher reps. for example, doing high reps of pullups, chin ups and dips. and then doing Plyometric exercises in intervals (30 seconds of one exercises, 30 seconds of another exercise, etc.). and plyometric exercises are like Clap Ups, Plyometric Pushups, Box Jumps, etc. this is an open opinion post, i'm just looking for ideas. thanks everyone!

honestly, i've noticed that some of the best fighters like Georges St. Pierre, Nick Diaz and especially Nate Diaz have GREAT boxing technique. When GSP was going to fight Josh Koshcheck, Koshckeck was talking about how GSP just wrestles people and cant really punch or whatever, so what did GSP do? he focused on his boxing training and completely boxed Josh Koshcheck and won the fight. Nick Diaz does great with the body shots and jabs, and Nate Diaz i've noticed has great accuracy with his strikes and combos. Same with BJ Penn. but when it comes to blocking, your right. now a lot of them will try and block a punch. i think that something that goes through most of the UFC fighters minds is "a strong offense is a good defense."

i agree with kansascityshuffle. some more advice that i would suggest to you is to try olympic lifting. Workouts such as the Clean and Jerk, the Power Clean and the Snatch all build explosive speed and power. and when/if you can apply those skills to your punches, you'll notice some good improvements. BUT, you absolutely have to listen to what kansascityshuffle said. good luck with your training!

hey i've noticed that! seeing stuff liek that on youtube BEFORE i actually started Karate made me think "ha, wow. i'm glad i dont do that." Now i look at some of that stuff and just think of some of the stuff i've learned in class on my own. I hope more people actually TRY Karate before judging it based on those videos. however, i'm assuming that some of those videos are just giving you an IDEA of what a Bunkai could be like, but not actuallly doing teh Bunkai's that they do in their real classes. thats just an opinion though

Wastelander, thankyou very much. its my fault that i didnt specify what i was talking about, although i wasnt even sure how to really specify it. i was going based off of some of the tihngs that i could remember my Sensei saying during class, so i apologise to Ueshirokarate. and yes, i am still just an orange belt at 16 years old

Ueshirokarate, Shorin-Ryu lacks Japanese mainland influence because its really not Japanese at all. its Okinawan. I dont know why, but my Sensei's tell us all that Shorin-Ryu was never Japanese, it was always Okinawan.

i'm starting to practice more with my Bo (or is it Jo?) and when i'm at home, i have a hard time remembering what we did in class. does anyone have any links to websites or videos that can help me with my Bo/Jo training in Matsubayashi Shorin-Ryu Karate? thanks in advance!

Yeah, Wastelander gave specific examples while i just went off of opinion and 6 months of experience! after reading all of that, i think he's right that you may have more of a harder time transitioning. also, thanks for the advice on the submit button xD sometimes i think my computer is just being slow so i think i need to click it mroe than once, but i'll just click once and entertain myself withs omething from now on.

My Sensei's do Bunkai maybe once or twice a month. I attend a lot of the classes, so i've done Bunkai maybe 7 or 8 times, only for 2 different Kata's. And, they dont teach them every day (obviously) so it could have been that the orange belt you talked to (haha, i'm an orange belt too ) just wasnt there the day your Sensei's had the class do Bunkai or maybe you even missed a day that they had your class do Bunkai. you never know. Also, i think Bunkai SHOULD be used in every school, although as a lot of the martial artists above me said, its really okay if they dont. it just gives me a better understanding of how i should perform each part of the Kata, and so i can understand what kind of Kata it really is. also, it shows me what i'm really doing! some people know Kata, have it memorized, and dont even know what their doing (that was me a few months ago). For example, in Fudaygata Ni <-- i may have spelled that wrong, but anyway, theres a part at the end, where you do a double outer chest block, then bring both hands into the pocket, and then punch both arms out. When we did Bunkai for this, our Sensei had our opponent come at us to do a bear hug or push us so we did the double outer chest block to get their arms away from us, then pocket the hands, and launch both hands into your partners solar plexus area. before we had a Bunkai session for the Kata, i had absolutely NO idea why i did that part of teh Kata!

Also, i apologize for posting that comment 5 times -.- my computer doesnt like me

i came from Mixed Martial Arts and now i do Shorin-Ryu Karate - MY ULATIMATE LOVE. I love it. Shorin-Ryu is related to Shotokan, and is either a sister art or it came before Shotokan. All i know is, you see a lot of similarity in the Kata, the stances, and the a few other things. In Kung Fu, i'm pretty sure as Bruce Lee said, a goal is to flow like water? kind of do that in Karate. be loose. dont be tense. stay relaxed, but at the same time, keep a firm stance. i'm sure some of the movement in Shaolin (this is going by Kata) is somewhat similar. Not necessarily teh stances, strikes, etc. and how they are done, but HOW you move through the Kata may be similar. i'm only an Orange belt and i've been training for about 6 months, so thats probably the only advice that i should be giving. this is an OPINION, none of that is fact xD but what i can say, is do NOT be afraid to ask questions! When your Sensei demonstrates something, whether you think you have it or not, raise your hand and say "can we see that one more time?" just so you can benefit from it. If your having trouble with something, talk to your Sensei after class. Shotokan is a great martial art. Karate in general is amazing. Now, i'm a huge fan of Jet Li so i'm not ignoring what Shaolin is like and how effective it may or may not be. But i really do think that the transition will be VERY beneficial for you. and the fact that you have a Shaolin background may make your experience in Shotokan even better. good luck!

^above me is absolutely correct. I'm sure you entered into Wado-Ryu with an open mind, ready to learn. when you go into Kyokushin, you better have that same fram of mind, because the training in Kyokushin is very light. its not ilke some Karate where when they sparr, their only allowed taps to the chest and upper legs. in Kyokushin, you'll be doing heavy kicks and heavy punches all over the body, so go in there ready to learn, and pay attention. but of course, dont forget what you learn in Wado-Ryu. Karate is Karate, and although there are different styles, every one of them should be considered a privelage if your taking them. especially the Okinawan styles. as for Kata's, let me put it this way. i went from doing Muay Thai, Boxing, Jiu Jitsu, etc. to doing traditional Okinawan Shorin-Ryu Karate, and i struggled with it for the first few months. but as of about a week ago, i practice Kata when i'm bored, i practice Kata before AND after class, and sometimes i do it as a warm up before i go to the gym. i LOVE Kata, and its something that i hated at first, because i never did it before and found it completely useless to fighting. but this is Karate, not fighting. in other words, learn all you can, train hard, and have fun!

bushido_man96, i read that article and i gotta say, it makes a lot of sense! thanks a lot for sharing that with me

Ueshirokarate, thats some great advice! sorry about our earlier arguments, and i guess what i WANT is to be more explosive, but not that i really need it. So, trying to understand what you said in your comment, would it be wise of me to alternate from lower vollume, higher intensity workouts and then to higher vollume, lower intensity workouts? An "expiriment goal" that i'm going to set for myself is to do 4x25 pullups, and 1x100 pushups. For Pullups, i can do about 25-30 for 1 set, and in the next set (after a 1-2 minute rest) i can do maybe 15 - 20 reps. For Pushups, i start to slow down around 50 and then last time i checked (i havent done pushups in a while) i stopped around 70 pushups. Now, my 1 rep max on benching is 210 lbs. I know i'm not weak, i know i'm not freakishly strong, but i think i should be able to do more pushups since i'm able to do that much weight on bench. would it have been better for me if i had asked this question first?

I heard that Bruce Lee was a big fan of Isometric training (like for the benchpress, you hold it half way for 15 - 25 seconds then bench 3 reps immediately). I know he was more of a Kung Fu practitioner and then made his own style JKD. As Martial Artists, what are your thoughts on Isometric training for Martial Arts such as Karate?

Ueshirokarate, thankyou for the advice. and i think that my Sensei and you have both realized that Matsubayashi doesnt do too much focus on the grappling aspect of martial arts at all, which is why he also has Japanese Judo classes that are at a more fast pace. DOBBERSKY, I love that idea of yours! unfortunately, my father and I have already turned our garage into a gym (weights, pull up bars, dumbells, etc.). I am in very good shape, and i like to challenge myself. I guess thats why i soemtimes get impatient with the Kata's, because although i use as much effort as i can put into them, i never really find myself out of breath or anything like that. We do have another room in the house, but its really in the house and we live with my Grandma who gets really mad at loud noises. That being said, me kicking teh bag and slamming the grappling dummy or anything like that would probably make her mad 99% of the day. I really want to thank everyone for all this great advice even after the way i acted before. I also heard a quote from Bruce Lee earlier. "If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water my friend." What do you think he meant by "water can flow or it can crash." what message was he trying to send us?

thanks everyone, and MasterPain, i'm more than aware of that. I have been in a few street fights, i've gotten my butt kicked before, i know i'm not as dangerous as i could easily picture in my mind. i've only been training in Shorin-Ryu Karate for 6 months, but i have a big history in MMA. (Muay Thai, Boxing, Brazilian Jiu JItsu specifically). On a side note, i was very good friends with an ex-marine, who was also a Krav Maga instructor. he owns a place in Novi, Michigan. if you search "Krav Maga Novi" you'll probably find it. during personal times when we were just talking, i got some very practical advice from him on what to do in self defense, even war situations (i wanted to be a marine at the time). every once in a while, i would attend his classes. and before i moved, i had been training intensely (4 or 5 times a week, 1 - 2 hours a day) for about a month. during all of our side talking, personal training sessions, and regular class sessions, i did pick up a lot of advice and options that would be very street effective. some of which, if i knew i had to do it, i'm confident that i'd be able to do it. certain? no. confident? yes. but thankyou for taking the time to explain those things to me.

Ueshirokarate, i have not spoken to my Sensei about any of this. earlier when i first came here, i did tell him that i'm more interested in Mixed Martial Arts. He offered me 1 on 1 fast-paced Karate classes (30 minutes for 40 dollars) and he said its more like a kickboxing class if i'm interested. i definetly do not have enough money for that. Also, someone told me to look at the seniors and look at their skill level, and that iwll tell me if the training i'm doing will actually pay off. Yes, they are all very good at what we do in class. But the problem is they all have a backgorund in something. one, has a blackbelt and trained for years in Shotokan Karate and Japanese Judo. he's very good. another had a background in Boxing and Wrestling, and is also a member of the SWAT team in our area. even both of the main Sensei's have a background in something else. one trained for years in Kenpo/kempo Karate, Tae Kwon Do, and Japanese Judo. another is a master in too many different martial arts that i can even remember. i know he's a master in Kenpo/Kempo, Bugei, Shorin-Ryu Karate, Escrima, Tai Chi, Aiki Jiu Jitsu, Iiado, etc. everyone who is at a high skill level has had previous training in other martial arts, or even still trains in other martial arts. i dont have the money to drive out to Matt Serra's gym more than once every 2 weeks, or sometimes only once a month. I do however, consider myself very lucky to be training where i'm trianing. i'm susupicious about their teaching methods, but i do trust both of them with my life.

thanks for all the info guys, it was really helpful. i'll be sure to ask my Sensei's about them tomorrow after my Judo class.

If i were to get jumped by a gang, which is common in my area, i was told that i should "expect to wake up in the hospital." In my recent training, i learned a few very easy ways to severely injure and most likely kill someone. If i got jumped by a gang and i was scared for my life, would it be considered self defense and would i NOT be arrested if i used these techniques and was actually successful with it?