jaypo

I took a class with a Kyoshu practitioner who is also a Chiropractor last night. I am also a "I have to feel it work" type of guy, and as of this morning, I'm still feeling it! He taught it in a very easy way to understand. He started with the radial nerve, went up to 4 points on the arm, then the neck, then the chin. We focused on those points all night. The first thing he did was knocked my arm off of his with his knuckles by hitting my radial nerve near my wrist. My whole arm went numb. I was hooked! As we went further, we started doing moving drills using those points, and he incorporated them into our Shorin Ryu katas. It was awesome putting it together. Just a side note- if anybody hasn't seen this, check it out, and beware of the knifehands!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOgFnlOmjKA

My first school was a strict Shotokan dojo, and we did a lot of basics, then kata, then 3 steps. That was a typical class. It gave me a solid foundation of basics. My current school is more open, and it is based mainly on Shorin Ryu and Shotokan. But the classes are more applications based. We focus on the katas, but there is more emphasis on what the katas can be used for rather than turning us into Kata competition champions. We don't do much sport based training.

I had always taken "kime" to mean the end result of the body mechanics necessary to create power. The perfect body alignment, tension, etc. to produce the most powerful strike. Think of lunging in with a reverse punch, body, hips, arms in the perfect position, with the tension of every muscle perfect for a split second. Kime would be precise for that split second. Anyhow, I think of "snap" and "power" when I remember a quote that I saw on this site- instead of using your arm like a lead pipe (which could generate a lot of power and pain), use it like an iron ball on the end of a chain! Also, think of baseball players- some smaller guys can hit the ball farther than larger guys- it's all about their bat speed and technique. I'm 6'0, 183 lbs and I can hit a ball farther than most bodybuilders I know because my focus point is more precise than theirs, and I get the bat around faster to connect with the ball in that "sweet spot". Just some things to think about. Hope it helps!

I'd say for our style, the mechanics would be based off of creating angles to attack. Tight defense and quick, powerful movements. Strategy would be close distance quick and overwhelming the opponent. Tactics would consist of blocks and grabs leading to counter punches to the face and body, strong kicks to any open target, and takedowns leading to finishing moves. Or something like that!

I remember being so nervous for mine as well. But because of that, I trained harder than I ever had for the months leading up to it. And by the time the test came, it was my best performance ever. If it were a written exam, I would have aced it! Just trust your knowledge and approach it as another training session. As far as being driven just by rank, realize that it isn't the "belt" or "rank" that you've been chasing. It's everything that goes into earning it! The knowledge, discipline, honor, etc. Not just the fabric of the belt. But all of the good things that go into earning that rank is what you're chasing. Be confident, and you'll do fine!

Kensei- that's exactly how I feel about Rousey. She's the most talented female fighter that I know of. She comes from one of the most respectful arts. Yet, she's one of the most disrespectful females I've seen. I don't see how someone that has studied Judo for most of her life can have that mindset. That's the difference between Bushido and "fighting". Bushido has a certain honor to it. Fighting to hurt people is what she's driven by. And that's why I can't stand her.

What's killing me is that the actual student is out of the country for another 2 weeks. She called in the other day to one of our students and said how happy she was with her current rank and how much she missed training. I won't have the opportunity to talk to her for another couple of weeks! I was actually looking forward to meeting with her, because she and I have had a good relationship in the dojo. I find that I can get thru to her a little better than the others (she made some comment to me once about having the most respect for me out of the others because of the way I interact with her). She seems to listen to me a little more because she doesn't have that friend chirping in her ear about me. I started the conversation after her test, but her daughter injured herself as we were speaking and she had to leave. I'm curious to see what she has to say when she gets back.

Say that the student trains for a few weeks, you do everything you can to verify his character and it all checks out, and his skill is equal or better than some Shodans in the school. What do you do then? That's the thing that has me on the fence. I believe that I moved up pretty quickly, and I did have some reservations about testing for black belt when I did. However, I did a lot of training with other black belts from other systems, did a lot of online research and watched a lot of videos, and by the time I was offered the testing opportunity, I really felt that I was ready and deserving of that chance. However, not everybody will have the same skill level as I did. I was a very good athlete, and I was 100% into martial arts. My attitude was never a question when it came to my training. So I was 100% committed to the training. I believe that this helped everything for me. For others, it all has to come together- physically, mentally, and emotionally. Some may not be able to put it all together without 4-5 years of training IN THE DOJO. For me, I believe that I could have. But that's just my belief in myself. This guy may be in the same position. I'm always skeptical of students that want to push rank quickly. However, with most of the ones that I've encountered, it was evident that they needed all the time they could to move up! It's ironic how the majority of the students that should move up quickly never push to do so. But the ones that shouldn't are the ones that always push for it!

A sidenote that I forgot to include in my last post- the parent that was fabricating the story was apparently upset with the Nidan in question because during a class that her daughter was attending, he got "aggrivated" at their performance and "yelled" at the students. I asked one of the students that was there, and she informed me that the Nidan was a little frustrated, but he didn't even raise his voice. All he did was showed her the correct way to do the technique that he was demonstrating as he did with all of the students. I'm now under the impression that the student "K" had previously voiced her displeasure with the Nidan's grading decisions, and this parent, who is a friend of the student, is perpetuating the problem and holding a grudge for her friend against the Nidan. This really sucks because her daughter is a very good student with a lot of talent and drive. But they are the kind of people that will pull their daughter out of the school if THEY'RE not happy, even though it will hurt the daughter's training.

An update to the ongoing saga. And another twist to the story! The last update I had was that the student was threatening legal action because of the mild concussion that she sustained from a punch in kumite that she was being singled out in. What I found out last night is more disturbing. I've been posting on this forum about all the atrocities that I felt this lady has been putting us thru, and then I find out that the majority of it was fabricated. I mentioned that the student had sought out parents to black ball one of our Nidans, and that turned out to be flat out false. The parent that claimed to be "sought out in the parking lot" made the entire story up. She was having lunch with the lady on the Monday after the test. The student mentioned that her head hurt, and the parent said that it was probably from that punch she took in the test (she was there because her own daughter was testing). She then went to our M.I. and told him that the student was suffering from a concussion and she may need to press charges. She also informed the M.I. that she didn't want her daughter training with the Nidan because she didn't trust him. I still don't condone her attitude about her rank, but I am very concerned with this parent. From the day I met them, they seemed a little strange. They have a weird desire for their petite 9 yr old daughter to be a "fighter"- they have her in karate and make her spar with her 17 yr old amateur boxer brother to "toughen her up". Nothing unusual about that. I just think they push her a little too far about it. The girl is as sweet as can be, but the parents seem to want her to be a killer. So it doesn't surprise me that the parent has been stirring the pot. We'll meet tonight and figure out how to handle the situation from this point.

Man, you made my brain jump with the statement about testing vs. promoting based on knowledge. I tend to agree with you- if a student is in class 4 days per week, and you have 4 hours a week to "get to know" and study his performance, then he shouldn't have to go thru a formal test to show exactly what you've been observing. Good point. I'm still on the fence as well. When I started with my new club, I held the rank of purple belt. During my first class, I realized that my skill level was higher than most of the other students, but I remained in my white belt. The M.I. asked if I would rather wear my purple belt, but I refused until I was able to test in his system. When I did, I was promoted to blue belt which was fine by me. I didn't want to ruffle feathers. I just let the cards fall where they did, and everything worked out in the end.

I would liken it to a Shotokan student from school "A" showing up at a Shotokan school "B" and asking to be tested to see if his rank carries over. It should be up to the Instructor as to the amount of time needed to observe, but if the student proves (thru time, skill, whatever the case may be) that he is on the level with other students and the observations of the instructor are satisfactory, I'd give him a chance. It doesn't mean I'd automatically give him a black belt. But I'd give him the opportunity to try. And I'd hold him to the same standards that I'd hold my own students to.

It's kind of the same principal, but without the tags. Our M.I., for lack of a better term, will mentally "tag" the students. He'll observe them in training (and a lot of our students take private classes in addition to the full classes, so he is able to determine their skill level a little easier). I guess it's similar in principal but without officially giving them the tags.

Welsome. It's nice to see that you have that zeal! Keep it up. There are many great people posting here that can give you worlds of advice, so enjoy!

Not sure how I feel about that. On one hand, people like Joe Lewis were able to got to Okinawa and test for a black belt in 7 months because of his talent. On the other hand, Master Kanazawa took 2 years to get his, and he's now a 10th dan and a legend. IMHO, the rank (or belt color) that a student displays is a function of his skill level. His skill level should include the knowledge of his kihon, kata, and kumite. But if he's testing for Shodan, he should be able to show the bunkai of each move of each kata that is required in that system. I guess that if everything he does and knows is on par with the Shodans in that system, he should be allowed to try for the rank because if the rank is determined by the student's skill level, and his skill level is equal to a Shodan's, then he should be able to try for it. If it's a matter of time requirements, he said he put in the time, albeit not at your facility. The thing I'd look for is his timing in his techniques. It's one thing to watch 1 or 3 steps on Youtube, but it's another to actually do them properly with someone throwing a full power punch at your face. That and kumite. He may be athletic as Lebron James, but if he can't evade and use angles like a true karateka, he needs work.

I haven't seen anyone in our club flat out fail. But I have seen a few reach a lower rank than they were shooting for. In our club, we have yellow, orange, green, blue, purple, red, brown, and black belts. We also have advanced yellow, advanced orange, etc. The "advanced" tag is given to those students that have progressed past basic knowledge of that certain belt, but have not been given enough instruction to get to the next color. The only problem has occurred when one student achieved green belt while the 2 students that she started training with achieved advanced green belts. They progressed a lot faster and retained what they've been taught a lot better than that student, but she felt entitled to the same rank as her peers. As most of you have mentioned, all students have pretty much been "pretested" before the formal test. They are invited to test only when we feel they are ready. Therefore, we see their knowledge on a daily basis, so if they mess up in the test, most of the time it's just nervousness.

That's the difference between a Martial Artist and a "fighter". He kept his honor while losing rather than losing his honor just to win. I can't stand watching professional "tough guys" that just enjoy beating people up. I'd rather see a warrior that displays honor and respect. I guess that's why I like people like Machida and GSP. The other fighter kept his honor as well by refusing to quit. But that was just an awesome gesture.

Yeah, it's funny how uncle Dana is pushing for a Vitor Belfort vs. Weidman fight because of the money, but he is admonishing Cyborg for 1 failed test. Belfort has popped more than Cyborg, and he's pushing for a title fight for him. He knows his cash cow would be turned into flank steaks!

The problem is that the UFC women's division is full of wrestlers, BJJ practitioners, or boxers. Not MMA fighters. Ronda is an MMA fighter. These girls she's been facing were all great at 1 thing, and not at all. The only credible MMA threat she faced took her to the 3rd round. I think Cyborg would destroy her. The other thing is that Ronda is a weight cutter. She's about double the size of everyone she faces. I know it's within the rules, but for years, she hid from Cyborg in different weight classes, and now she has the nerve to criticize Cyborg for not being able to make 135. Yet, it would be easier for Ronda to just cut less to fight at a catchweight, but I think she fears getting knocked out. Cyborg is stronger and hits harder than anyone she has ever faced.

Man, that was a great fight. I didn't realize how great Weidman is. His movement was unreal, and Machida, a master at counter attacking couldn't do anything for 2 full rounds. In the 4th and 5th, though, Machida turned it on and almost finished Weidman each round. But it took him too long to figure out the champ. Weidman said something to him after the fight, and although I couldn't hear it, it seemed like he was telling Machida that he and Weidman are the 2 best in the world! He handled it with class. 2 warriors in a great battle. While I'm sad that Machida lost, I'm happy that we have a champ like Weidman.

I agree that the boy should respect the wishes of his opponent, but in this case, it doesn't seem like she made her wishes known until her loud scolding. I'd feel differently if she repeatedly told him to stop, or if his instructor set a light contact rule before the session. But if she truly just took a few hits and got mad and scolded him after, she went about it all wrong. She should have asked him politely to tone it down when training with her and tell him the reasons. Not just tell him how he needs more control.

1. Forget about "justifying her rank",you just learned the hard way that you took to long and you have to get rid of her immediately There is a nice article about it over at 24 Fighting Chickens about the issue. http://www.24fightingchickens.com/2007/07/09/how-to-kick-people-out-of-your-club/ 2. While she is probably only annoying, make sure to have your side of the event documented, collecting the statements as mal recommended, get that video safely stored etc I wasn't saying that I want to justify her rank. I just meant that if she argues that she should be a higher rank, I would have video evidence to show her why she has not achieved that rank. I'm putting together a list of "evidence" for when the issue comes to a head. She is actually going out of town for a full month, so we'll have time to get all ducks in a row before the meeting.

Nidan Melbourne- I like that system a lot. I think that philosophy would have been beneficial considering the ongoing problem I posted about in the "Politics" forum. I agree with you about the quality. That's when it becomes a function of how well the instructor judges the skill level. If he is a poor judge, then his promotion will not be as meaningful. However, if he is good at judging the skill level of individuals, then the rank will hold merit. I am not experienced enough to call myself an expert, but I do participate in the gradings. I'm very strict on basics, so I tend to be a little more critical than some of the others. But my M.I. was trained in Okinawa and in the states by Master Okazaki (a direct student of Master Funakoshi), and he's been instructing for over 40 years, so I trust his judgment. But overall, I think that how the student retains and applies what he learns is more important than how many months he trains. If he's able to show the same skill level as someone that has trained twice as long, he should be on the same level as that person. Heck, Joe Lewis went to Okinawa and received his black belt in 7 months. I'd bet that some of the students that had been there for 3 years weren't happy. But he wound up being one of the best karatekas in the world.

I have to get it from a student's mom first. I'll see if I can get my hands on it tonight.

Very nice! I use some of them a lot in sparring. I love the Ko Soto Gari and the Suki Geri for sparring. I've never employed the step around throw entry with it, but I'll be working on that tonight! Thanks for the video!