darksoul

Oh absolutely, but the fall I'm trying to get him to work on is the back fall. He'll be joining the group classes next month and will need to be able to take the falls when training with other students.

HEAR HEAR!

Great replies by everyone! I would like to point out, in response to evergrey and tallgeese, when I use pressure points, I strike them hard, so even if the pressure point doesn't do anything, it'll hurt. It's also not going to be my "go-to" technique in a defense scenario. That being said, very much enjoyed your responses @Wastelander - that's interesting. I've never been on the receiving end of that, but I have heard that it does work. I'd love to try it out.

Yeah, almost all of the techniques Yellow+ take to the ground. Just did quick head math, 80% of the techniques I have take to the ground, and that's not counting the black belt techniques. Falling is important That's basically what I did with him last night. Seems to be working

My current one is the Arawaza Topaz Gi, I prefer that to the regular Gi's more because it soaks up sweat better during class than the lightweight Gi's. I did use to have the Adidas Vented Gi (using "adidas's Climacool technology") but while it did improve air circulation within the Gi compared to other light weight Gi (as the one I had was the lightweight version), the Gi still ended up being drenched. Maybe the middle weight or the heavy weigh one would have been better??? But at the end of the day it does depend on how you train and what you're looking for in a Gi (after all what may suit one person may not suit another) Yeah, I love my Emerald. Nice, thick, heavy, and as you said - soaks up sweat well.

http://www.arawaza.com/arawaza_opal_karate.html

Kempo doesn't really do that

Thanks for the suggestions! I will do that!

Hi all, I have a student who is worried about falling. I try to tell him it's only scary the first time and explained the proper slap out technique. I even made him push me off balance to execute a sweep on me (this particular one I find to be one of the hardest falls.) What do you do with students that are timid about falling?

Hi guys, So I've been reading a discussion on another site about pressure points, Dim Mak, and One Touch KO's and thought I would start the discussion here. I don't practice Dim Mak, but I use pressure points all the time (a good trigger finger in the right place to numb an arm or just inflict ridiculous pain) but I honestly am not a believer in the "one touch knock outs." Any one here practice Dim Make? What is everyone's opinion on pressure points? What are some of your favourites? My favourites: Under the bicep or back of the arm. Inside of the thigh. Top of the bicep. Behind the ear lobe. Top of the spine just under the base of the skull (think about 2-3 vertebrae down.) Throat "hole" - where the throat meets the clavicles.

That's not a bad deal at all. I pay $130 per trimester. Equals out to about $4.00 per lesson if you attend them all. As for the gi and the sparring gear, I bought mine years ago (although my new gi was $100 - not a bad deal for a $200 gi) and my testings... I'll be lucky if I'm even considered to test for Nidan next year

Good luck guys. Come back in one piece, yea?

Hooray! Glad to hear it, Fang Also LOL @ Jaypo's story. That's pretty cool

I wear a 14oz gi and the dojo is warm. We get to drink, but we don't get to drink whenever we want to. Just going to drink whenever isn't the proper way either in my opinion.

See... I find this VERY strange. The testing fee is very high to boot.

To me there is absolutely nothing wrong with preventing someone from drinking. Obviously you don't let them get to a point of dehydration where they pass out, but the stress of slight dehydration does make the body and spirit stronger. I guess I'm old school that way? I tell my students to drink water before coming to class and after the class. I generally don't let them drink during.

Yup I was like that... funny thing about that, being an instructor kind of fixes that. I don't hurt my students... I will, however, "correct" them as my Master likes to put it. Doing that I've gotten good at knowing when to "stop" the punch or the kick. It connects, it hurts, but it won't devastate. Nothing bad in a little yelp from a student The fear of the unknown is exactly why sparring is important. In a self-defense situation, you can't expect the person to throw a "training punch." They'll attack you any way they see fit. What I can tell you to try to help you get over your anxiety is break your patterns. For one month, don't plan your dinner menus. Don't even buy your produce ahead of time. Go to your local farmer's market and see what's fresh. Pick what looks the best. If you go out of town, don't even pack a bag. Go with the clothes on your back. You have something planned a certain night? Break it, go do something else. Example - supposed to go to a dinner with a friend? Call them and say, hey, we're not going to dinner, you pick something else to do and where to meet you. Things like that. Force yourself into "unknown outcome" situations until you are free of your anxiety.

I don't remember a good portion of my black belt test. Almost nothing of my 1st Kyu test. Bits and pieces are missing from my 2nd kyu test. Don't remember ANYTHING about my 3rd kyu test. Some might be just time passing, but a lot of it is just... I don't know... the tests themselves. It's massive physical and mental stress y'know.

I love how my Master does this... "Oubliez pas de boire de l'eau!" Translates to "don't forget to drink water!" and he will say this throughout the class at random times. When that's said, everyone goes.

Does he have any formal training?

This is one of my favourite fight scenes of any martial arts movie:

Very well said

This is AWESOME! hahaha... I'd like to think I'm lower on the uptightness scale though I completely agree.

Exactly.

Right, but it's not designed and intended as a weapon, thus could not be used as such in a Canadian court.