mazzybear

I think Rika Usami is a fantastic Karateka. Although I think she's now retired from the competition scene, I love watching her on Youtube. Her katas just look amazing. Morio Higaonna too, a lifetime dedicated to Karate and, to me he seems a very humble man. Mo.

I agree. If someone has never been on a floor to practice MA, then, they are not a MAist. They may be knowledgeable in the theory of MA but, that does make them a MAist. It's like me reading books on sharks and having some knowledge on them but, this does not make me a marine biologist. Or passing the theory test for driving, without having had any lessons or passed a practical test, then, I am not a driver. Mo.

Well done LLLEARNER. Mo.

Welcome to KF, Gunner! Mo.

As I said in my previous post, I fail to see how bowing can go against their religious beliefs but, I myself am not religious, so, I decided to look in to it further. Google to the rescue!! Apparently there is a precedent for this exact situation from back in 2002, funnily enough involving 3 students, although they were Judo students from Seattle. The students argued that in bowing they were subjugating themselves unto others as according to Exodus: The Judge ruled against them, citing that they should be required to bow during competition. The students were to appeal but, I can't find anything on any appeal. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/606290/posts Very interesting to say the least. Mo.

Sounds quite cool, although just a twist on the home workout DVDs I suppose. I got myself the Wii fit when it first came out, with the fully honest intention of using it every day. The workouts were actually quite good and I felt sore the next day. I lasted 2 weeks and it just lay gathering dust after that. But at $20 for the game, then why not? Mo.

I find this bizarre to say the least, are they citing "religious reasons" so as not to be questioned on why they won't bow? Bowing has no religious significance as far as I know, it's purely a showing of respect, no? I think I read somewhere, back in feudal times it was to show the person you were bowing to the back of your neck, letting them see you had no weapons and to set them at ease. My instructor keeps things very informal, he doesn't like to be called Sensei, we don't bow on entering or leaving the Dojo, or to the black belts or Sempai (which nobody has that title anyway, no Sensei, no Sempai I guess) but we do bow on commencing and completing a Kata, when doing any Ohyo/Kihon and also before and after sparring. At the end of the class we form two lines (1 black belts and one Kyu grades) facing one and other and bow, that way everyone is bowing to one and other. But like I said this is my instructors call, if he wanted it more formal, then that's how it would be. His Dojo, his choice. I might be inclined to question these guys further, to get to the bottom of it, like I said, I don't buy their "religious reasons" excuse. Is the instructor happy enough to train them without them showing him the respect of bowing to him, or anyone else for that matter? If so by all means let them keep training but, let them know, until they start bowing, they won't be invited to any testing cycle, EVER. Which means they'll be 10th Kyu until eternity, no matter how on point their skills are. Would they be willing to show more respect if they knew they could not advance? Sure, they might leave but, it saves the CI a job from having to expel them. One phrase keeps springing to mind here, When in Rome........... Mo. Mo.

21/6/16 Pre class run: 2 mile road run followed by 20min HIIT track run circuit, then 1x timed lap of track time recorded 1min 20sec. Class warm up: 10kg sandbag slams passed up and down a line. (10min) Core class: Partner pad work, 3x variation on Junzuki for kumite, 3x 20 twist sit ups with 5kg medicine ball, sticked waist work: 1 min side bend for slips, 1min to and fro for lay back, 1min squats for ducking (repeated twice) Partner work to practice slips, lay backs and ducks while being attacked. 2x 1min rounds of partner pounding on midsection with hooks and uppercuts. 2x 1min round of static, hands only sparring. Warm down: stretching, light shadow boxing and footwork drills (10min) Mo.

You need to do more Ippon Kumite until where you can apply a technique (block) from reaction. Agree! Ippon or even Sanbomme Kumite. Sanbomme will help the confidence through repetition. Freezing is just fear of being hit, once you've been hit a few times and realise it's not so bad you'll relax a bit more and you'll see your reactions improve when you're relaxed. Also mix it up a bit with who you're sparring with, don't always go with the same person, spar with bigger, smaller, faster or slower people. When we spar in the club it's always just short of full force, very rarely do we do point sparring, just last week I was sparring with the biggest guy in the club and when I say big, I mean like the mountain from GoT he came at me fast and I kind of froze, well, shelled up and took some punches on my guard, but once I regained focus, I was able to push him back. Don't be afraid of being hit, relax and focus and the rest will take care of itself. Mo.

I had similar problems after starting karate again after a 26 year absence, to be honest, I'm still not as flexible as I'd like to be. But, I asked some of the more senior grades in the club and they all hit me with the same answer...... Don't push too high, too quickly! You'll only do yourself an injury or pick up bad technique. Practice one kind of kick each night for half an hour or so (splitting the time between both legs) start off low to get the mechanics right and over time you'll find the height increases naturally by itself. Head kicks are now comfortable for me to do without pain or my hips locking, which was a big problem for me. Take your time, practice and stretch regularly and you'll soon see a difference. Mo.

Hello and welcome to KF!! My first day was hard. It was a Tuesday which is our conditioning night. After class I couldn't even take a drink of water because I was shaking after the exertion and spilt it all down myself. I was hooked from then on. Mo.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it springs to mind here. If the SEALs had been using CQD for a number of years without issue, then why change it? Because some bureaucrat tells them that what they are doing is of no use but, in reality he's awarding top $ contracts to his buddies? It all sounds a bit fishy to me. The safety of the troops has to take priority over EVERYTHING. Mo.

Welcome to KF Mo.

Congratulations on the milestone!! Here's to another 15 years!! Mo.

I have a Seat Ibiza Connect and I love it. Seat usually have really good deals on, I got £3000 off through various deals. They have 2 or 3 different ways of financing a new car and depending which one you go for, there is no initial deposit. I'm currently paying £270 a month for a 16 plate but, if you don't mind not having the extras you can get a brand new Ibiza for around £190 and that's not bad as the Ibiza has been voted the best value super mini on the market for a good few years. And as DWx said it's basically a VW under the bonnet, so you know it's quality. But search around for the right deal for you. Mo.

Not too bad, I didn't get the whole class, I got the warm up and the hand pad drills and some kicks done before my instructor had us all spar for an upcoming competition, so in all I got just about half a class. Everyone had a sweat on and a few said I'd done good, so all in all, I think it went well. Mo.

The camaraderie is definitely a big thing for me and, also the very informal nature, my instructor doesn't like to be called Sensei, so it's first names for everyone. Also the self confidence has really grown for me to which is a huge thing. Mo.

Thank you, I'll check it out. Mo.

Like you stated, it very much depends on the situation. Is a strike to the face, breaking the nose going to be enough? Is it only going to serve to anger them? Are they drunk/high? Someone under the influence of say, cocaine, will take a lot more to keep them down than someone who is sober. It might take more than one "not so nice" techniques to keep them down. Possibly a strike to the face as a distraction before a kick to the knee joint? Whereas someone who is sober and just being "Jack the Lad" a simple arm lock to control him and make him apologise in front of his mates, should be sufficient. Mo.

Hello Welcome to KF Mo.

Welcome to KF Mo.

I've been thinking about trying meditation for a while now and, a recent experience at a poorly organised competition has finally pushed me to try it out. The competition in question had a check in time of 08:30 so up at 06:00 to get breakfast and arrive on time. My category was to be on at 10:00 but we didn't get on until 14:00 but from 13:00 we were shifted from area, to area, to area. I'd warmed up and cooled down so many times my body was aching. The kumite part of the event had actually started by the time we got on, which normally is a completely separate event, so noise levels were kranked up. The upshot of it is, I let all the chaos get to me and couldn't get my head where it needed to be and, while I was on the floor, the dreaded brain-freeze hit me, I totally lost my concentration and forgot the kata that I'd been working on for months. I had to bow to the judges and leave the floor. I was furious, with myself mostly. So, I decided it's time to give meditation a go. I think it would also come in handy for keeping my head in the game and nerves in check for when I sit my Shodan in October. Trouble is, I don't really know where to start. I bought this book to try https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0749913282/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 But thought I would ask if you guys can give me any pointers or recommend any other books or audio tapes to try. Any pointers at all would be great. Mo.

Congratulations!! Mo.

It's a film I avoided for a long time because I thought it would be really cheesy but, I really enjoyed it. For me Tom Hardy really stole the show, a hugely underrated actor imo. The film now sits in my DVD collection and it's one I've watched countless times now. Mo.

I think it depends how you define spiritually? Does it make me want to sit down and meditate or chant to a particular Deity? Then, the answer is no, it doesn't. Do I come out of a class on a high and feeling good about myself and feeling connected to others in the class? Then, the answer is yes, it does. Also small things about me have changed since restarting my MA journey, I have a self confidence in a lot of things now, whereas before I was a very shy person. I don't find myself as quick to anger about things that would annoy me before. All in all, I find myself more personable in general. I've even been promoted at work and, I wonder if that would've happened if not for Karate. So, I think it all comes down to how one would define "spirituality" I'm not a religious person but, I feel my "inner self" has changed and, to me, ones inner self is their spirit. Others may disagree, that's just my two cents worth. Mo.