cheesefrysamurai

You can go to Meijin, get separates. I know they do have large sizes, If you wanted something. Ebay is another option. He will probably have to do separates - possibly size 9 pants

Practice twice as much on that side.

Impressive doesn't really cover it.

Great topic! I have been thinking about this a lot lately. With each progression, the wrinkles to explore get bigger. And then you test, you hopefully pass, and that kata you have done thousands of times is now different. With your new rank, comes a total different set of complexity. It seems like the pool gets deeper and becomes an ocean eventually. My point is this. Your sensei DOES NOT move the goalpost. Your students DO NOT move the goalpost. WE CHOOSE the goalpost. Its our own passion that drives us to look beyond the current goalpost to the next.

Yes, in a nutshell. No offence intended. K. As much as I think I understand the point, the exchange of information in this fashion is commonplace and its how martial arts was perpetuated. More so to have someone as esteemed (not trying to inflate egos here) as a judan and chief instructor of a system, its safe to say something that they have something to impart. If a known professional boxer wanted to give us a seminar on combinations, or a personal trainer, wanted to teach us better stretches to prevent injury, my teacher felt it appropriate and the price was right would may see value in it and let them do it. We don't say, "hahaha we have our junbi undo, we don't need you" or "hahaha we know how to throw a punch". Sometimes a visiting instructor highlights the differences in systems, demonstrates other theories. At the last gasshuku i attended a nidan in judo gave us a seminar on breakfalls and foot sweeps. Different instructors have different strengths. Is the instructor done learning? Doesn't he want to grow too?

kumite is a big part of okinawan goju ryu. I think it's irikumi go. Just today I fought- lots of fun! We spar with pretty significant power to the body. It's an exercise in conditioning as well. It's pretty much knock down sparring. My Sensei talks about the 3 k's of karate, Kihon, kumite, and kata.

What can I say? You are correct. It's not a matter of mistrust, more a matter of one considering themselves superior and therefore there is nothing to learn- in short arrogance. In the case of the ata school I would venture to say that it's in regards to their extremely comercial nature. I'm sure there's plenty of value there but They dont really exist for the same reasons. They are a business model more than a house of learning. My friend went there and said they modified all the kata slightly and copyrighted them so you cannot teach elsewhere. They also made her sign forms stating that she can't teqch within 25 or something miles. You can imagine that it's not really good for the business model to show how much is missing or how much there is to learn from outside their certified world. A good school in my opinion has nothing to be worried about.

I have the same problem. At my previous school I didn't really like it. It was a lot of pressure and sensei sensed it and I eventually did get more comfortable. At the school I am currently attending, My instructor is also a kyokushin practitioner and he completely changed my outlook on kumite. Its fun now, we have a good time with it. You have to see the shots as conditioning and take it. i do my best not to let them phase me. Its the only way to learn. eventually your strengths will come out.

And I wonder if the "new masters" are quite the quality of the old ones. Of course they are proficient but..... This is a new world, new times. The person who dedicates their life to the art is rare now. Im sort of concerned about the landscape - im not where I want to be and in the end my "destination" will be cheaper in a sense. I know there is no destination and there is no end, I just mean symbolically that my goal will be diminished by the changing landscape

I certainly do not envy your position. I think it's important that you express that you do like the bjj but not at the expense of your karate. Ask him what his intentions are for the future. He owes it to you to tell you that he's taking a turn and explain how it affects your ma journey. I dont even think I would have an issue asking. You are part of the club! One of the guys! You are simply curious about how this affects your journey for better or worse. If your dojo lost its appeal you owe it to yourself to do something about it. I would stay with a similar system, you have invested quite a bit and you aren't done cooking - keep in mind that if his focus stayed with karate you would be content. Of course if your feeling the need you gotta scratch the itch. It's your journey after all. Good luck and keep us posted.

Good topic! Many of us put our head in the sand, think about the here and now but don't consider the person who many assume is holding things together and the power struggles that begin when they pass away. All of the sudden you get 3 organizations all promising that Sensei told them they have the golden key and technique and lineage get diluted How do you keep something pure as possible? How do you keep ego and power seekers at bay? There are organizations out there formed around one guy. How can they prepare for the inevitable? and even if they try to do it right how does one make succession bulletproof?

There certainly seems to be something to riding that wave of frustration and and the constant uphill battle. Im sure its why so many quit, the get swallowed by the wave. They get sick of plugging away, succumb to the frustration of the plateau. Its so odd, how we are drawn to something so challenging. Its a testament to the rewards being so sweet i guess.

what he said. It seems that if you are truly comfortable and not challenged your doing it wrong. My wife thinks its fun because I rarely miss

I agree with the term replaceable. Some people simply don't have a need for a connection and some people have different standards. Some people ask themselves: Is he knowledgeable? Is he an effective instructor? Are his rates reasonable? Does it fit my schedule? While others ask in addition: Who is this person? What are his or her goals? What are their goals for me? Do they genuinely care about my progress and growth? The first set you can deem as replaceable - not necessarily inferior. The second set is way more rare and to me, valuable. I can answer every question there easily very very very yes A true martial artist who has a great lineage and is well respected To learn, grow and teach for me to be the best at my rank, to guide me to achieve what he knows I can achieve absolutely!

and great topic

Completely irreplaceable. He's a rare individual. Everything else would be just going through the motions. I consider myself lucky

25000 wow! Your dedication has made a difference and helped many of us.

Lol I never looked at the post date.

Welcome to the forum! I agree with much of what has been said. I know many goju ryu dojos also do kyokushin style kumite. My teacher often talks about the 3ks - Kihon, kata and kumite. But in all fairness he is a kyokushin practitioner as well. You can try to rule one of them out by looking at the instructors, see if there's one that sticks out, having trained with a reputable master and all. Or quite possibly one my be extremely well regarded and another a fake. Attend a class start with shotokan, if it doesn't call you, move on to kendo or aikido. There is true value in anything you practice correctly.

Wow congratulations- 4th Dan is huge!!!

Exactly- with every different rank, there is a complete new level of subtlety involved and complexity Gekisai dai ichi is very different for different ranks. There's an evolution for sure!!!! BUT not all systems are created equal. Some systems do have less of the inner art, less to master. There is not ONE technique, strike , stance, or kata that doesn't evolve. You master the form of the strike, then the fluidity, all the time working on the power, incorporating posture, and stance then after many years, your technique evolves. It's not as straight forward as these people think. But maybe we are lucky we chose a system with such an in depth understanding

Thank you and yes, impressive covers it. A rare individual for sure. I'm very lucky to be training with him.

Who speaks disrespectfully of high ranks? It takes a level of dedication very few have. My only issue is that it shouldn't be that hard to get your Sensei to talk about who he is. You only get one go around in this life. You have to be comfortable with who you are connected to. Yes a belt is only good for holding up your pants but I want to be happy with my choice of teacher, for me it's a very personal decision. At my age, I don't want to learn by trial and error. I wouldn't train with someone who I didn't research first. Just my 2 cents

First let me state that my intent to be disrespectful or hurt anyone's feelings. My particular view is that lineage is very important to Okinawan karate. It was important for me to know my teacher wasn't only exceptional but he was well regarded by others. I was impressed to see he in a senior instructor in a good organization. That's just me. It's not a 3000 year old thing. In goju Ryu it just goes back to Miyagi chojun sensei- not that long ago and he had only so many students and so on. That being said, I think there is nothing wrong with being curious about who your instructor is as he is part of your lineage. Who knows, maybe one day you will have students and you will need to explain. Sorry If I sound like a snob.

How about : My drinking club has a karate problem