lowereastside

This is my 3 cents on the subject - Can one learn Karate without Kata? - The techniques - I will say YES. But the inside ( Internal Development - The Breath ) you need the Katas. Example - Styles like Goju-ryu - Uechi-ryu have Sanchin kata - this kata goes beyond mere techniques. Whether you want to call it Kata ( Modern Day ) or a sequence of Chinese Chi Kung exercisers linking certain movements together - each movement ( or action ) stimulates or /and works the outside/inside - Each movement must follow a certain sequence - If that sequence is broken - the chain is then broken. Bottom line for fighting IMHO you don't need Kata. However, for certain developmental tools etc etc etc. - YES! you do need certain Katas. Now are there to many katas in some styles of karate? - Again IMHO - YES.

bushido_man96 - Says - " I think spending a bit more time in a JKD setting would be necessary" I agree with busshido_man96 - if your going to call it JKD - a bit more time should be spent in a JKD Setting. Look I come from a very Traditional Background - but more power to you Tkd&bjj do what it takes make it your own.

About 80% of my friends have done some form of Combative Training - some stayed with it others let it go. I'm trying to teach my Daughter - so far no Dice. My Nephew @ 23 finally asked me to teach him - he just became a Police Officer ( NYPD ). What is my job as a Martial Artist? To teach my students to the best of my ability. No holding back - when they are ready - I Take them to the next level. . The bad apples don't hang around long enough anyway. I try to keep the training real - The touching of hands is more Combative ( Example - about a month ago a 5th degree black belt came to watch my class - is a friend of one of my students - after class he said " You guys are not sparring your fighting". He came for his first class this Saturday. Like a good friend of mine use to say " things can get pretty nasty in the streets real fast ".

I have a Pair of Chinese ( Tonfa ) - It is pronounced Guai/Guau in Chinese. I think the Chinese Tonfa - Crutch is longer in length than the Okinawan/Japanese Tonfa.

JusticeZero says - " Many people who *don't* practice karate can take shots to the groin with little or no effect " Agreed - Karate was just an example. And Your Right on Point there is no magic move - Well said.

ps1 says " Sure...there's a reason they're not allowed in MMA. " Well Said. Let me add this - if any of you have ever been hit in the eye or groin like I have - and I'm sure many of you have - it will answer your question. And it also depends on the tolerance of certain individuals - many individuals who practice karate ( goju - ....) can take shots to the groin - with little or no effect. A poke to the eyes is another story.

I don't give any kind of rank - teaching Kung Fu - and I've lost perspective students ranked in other arts because of it. Some just need that Rank.

How many students you have? I have 1 student doing privates - could not make my regular classes. How productive is it for you or students working one on one? Its very productive - you can't beat 1 on 1 training - especially when its very hands on - But again I'm hands on with all my students. Is the progess really all that faster? It depends on the student - this student is picking it up fairly quickly - However he is no beginner in MA's - 4th Degree Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do - 3rd Degree Black Belt in Kendo - 2nd Degree Black Belt in Judo - 4 years Wing Chun - 10 years - Fu Jow Pai ( Tiger Claw ) Instructor's level. Do you train them differently as oppose to class setting? No - I train everyone the same in terms of the material - The 1 on 1 just gets more attention. Heres a weird question, do you guys offer private training and instead of money you get a helping hand with something? I traded my Praying Mantis for instructions in kali - Fact is we still train together - we've become Very Good Friends.

clfsean says " Now it's payable over a guaranteed contract price. " So True - So True.

The Mystery - Mystical is no longer what it use to be. Not just in Kung Fu but other arts - like karate....... Back in the 1960's a person having a black belt was considered a killing machine -Don't mess with so and so he's a Black Belt. Kung-Fu was even more Mysterious - with the Alter's and the Incense and the rituals........and the kwoon in some walkup or basement with barely enough heat in the winter and no fans or air-conditioners in the hot summers - Boy do I miss the old days. By the way Nice Post JusticeZero

What Is Your Biggest Headache As An Instructor? Trying to give the knowledge to my students - making sure they get it.

It's all depends on how one looks at things - what is not Traditional today may be traditional 50 years from now. MMA today will look very Traditional 50+ years from now. Look at the Karate Gi - many will say - Including the Traditional Okinawan"s that they train in the Traditional GI - However, they - karate copied it from the Judo Gi. Was Karate practiced in Okinawa in the mid to late 1800's in the Gi that is used today? - I don't thing so. Lets look at the katas that are practiced in karate today - many will say Oh! we do Traditional Katas - Traditional in what respect - what was done 100 or so years ago? I don't thing so. Anyway it's just my take on this subject.

Sensei8 - nice post. - This is my take - Yesterday the family went to my Brother's house for Easter - My nieces boyfriend came over for Dinner - he is starting a Chess Cake Business - HE MAKES 27 DIFFERENT FLAVORS OF CHESS CAKES. Martial Arts is not that much different then cooking or baking everyone is always coming up with new ideas on how to make it better or different. We all have our creative genes - some more than other's. Look - even Bruce Lee had his creative genes. But again we have 1 head 2 arms 2 legs and how many ways can we move them - BTW I like my Chess Cake Plain.

A few years back I took 2 of my Senior Students to meet my Teacher - He took both of them on the side and did 8 or 9 motions with his hands and feet - He then informed them that he had just showed then practically the whole system. They both looked at him like he had 2 heads - but out of respect said nothing - It took awhile - but they eventually understood . A few techniques but many different combinations. But again - things are looked at differently by different individuals.

ps1 says - "Additionally, Royce wore a gi in the old days. This made him a little stickier than they are now because both are without pants or shirt. Very slippery. This is why armbars are so rare from that position now." Point well taken - It does change the game a bit - also individuals start to know your game - BJJ is not as dominate - still very effective. Just like the Military - weapons are developed and then other weapons are developed to counter.

mal103 - IF your interested just don't look over the fence go over the fence and take a look - no style or system as all the answers. And you don't want to end up wondering - should I have done this or that - life is to short. Look I come from a very very Traditional system of Kung Fu very closed door kind of thing. That being said - a few years back I traded my Praying Mantis with his Kali. Not only did we receive each others knowledge - but a great friendship was formed.

Hmmm - It depends on what style of Karate and Kung Fu we are looking at. Some Karate styles such as Okinawan Goju-ryu - Uechi-ryu - Shorin-ryu - Tomari-ryu are closer or have more in common with Kung Fu than other styles of Karate. The differences IMO is not so much in the Techniques......It is in the Generation of Power - the Body Work - the Flow - the Concepts........- Lets not forget the Cultural aspect.........

sensei8 says " What do YOU call it when a "MAists" knowledge is voided of experience? " My thoughts - I've been studying for 50 years - and during that time of been hit and hurt - but it was all in a controlled setting - Boxing gym - Karate dojo - kung fu Kwoon..........During my adult life from age 20 on ( i don't count the fights in my teens ) I've gotten into 3 fights 1 in my 20's - 1 in my 30's - 1 in my 40's. - In all 3 I was attacked 1st - and they went my way. That is the extent of my real life street fight experience - no Friday night brawls at the local Bar - A couple of my students have had that experience in getting into a whole bunch of fights - but marriage and kids have changed that. My void or experience is that in a street attack - how will I react if someone hits me with a good right hand - hurts me ( no one to help or stop it ) badly - will I get up using my MA's or get up swinging like a wild man?. Either way survival is what its all about - going Home. Its a question I have always wondered about.

I started with Western Boxing then switched to Karate then switched to Self-Defense then Kung Fu. I dabbled in chinese wrestling with a very good friend-Kali with a very good friend.

xo-karate says " Sifu Wan Kam Leung is one of the first students of Grandmaster Wong Shun Leung. and could name his style as practical wing chun? " I see no problem naming it Practical Wing Chun - once your on your own you can call it what you want - and his teacher ( Wong Shun Leung passed some years back ) - he's starting his own legacy - organization. If memory serves me correctly - there is a School ( in my area ) New York City - teaching under his banner - I think 61st Street. See Google.

Basic Staff/Pole is a good weapon to start with.

IMHO - Chinese Martial Arts is not being forgotten - Look in the US before Judo/Ju-Jitsu there was Boxing/Wrestling then came Judo/Ju-Jitsu and the Pie got divided - then Karate became popular and the Pie got divided some more - then the Kung Fu Craze hit and the pie got divided some more and so on with the Ninja Craze then Brazil Ju-Jitsu and now Mixed Martial Arts. So the Chinese Martial Arts slice of the pie only got smaller but still there.

I try to nurture my students - my criticism is for the most part constructive. My students are all adults - so I don't hit them over the head with insults - and for the most part it works. What I look for is the progression of the students - so far its working.

My take on this subject is that - most know the Principles. I teach a Hakka system of Praying Mantis Kung Fu - The techniques are not that much different or similar to other Kung fu Styles and even some karate styles. Years ago I found a quote by another Martial Artist that goes like this - " The dance is not in the steps/movements but in...........THE BODY ".

Taking it into our old age - and effectiveness. Can't forget the healing - how to fix when hurt.