Spartacus Maximus

Unfortunately private or semi-private instruction is not the norm for training in martial arts. When it is available, it is usually at a considerable cost. Either way, those who are ready and determined to train will find a way. It makes more sense for an instructor to focus on who is training rather than worry or speculate about who is not joining or why.

A head butt is one of the very best close-range techniques. It even works when the enemy is to close for anything else or when it is difficult to use hands or elbows. Like everything else, it is something that should be trained and it would not be considered a waste to train and strengthen the neck and shoulders which give the head butt most of its power.

An instructor of that age claiming to be competent in several arts is, by personal experience, at best a dabbler jack-of-all trades with mediocre or passable skill or, at worst a liar with questionable motives. Common sense says that quality instruction is more likely to be given by someone who is dedicated to training and teaching a single system. 5 years is a very short time in martial arts. In many arts that is just enough time to be considered a serious student, but never experienced enough to teach. At the end of the day it is a personal choice and in that case, the best way to find out is to observe and go try. Compare the instructors at said school with those of schools offering the same systems exclusively.

A child that age cannot be expected to grasp more than gross motor skills and things like coordination, balance and basic movement. That is what she must be evaluated on to mark any progress rather than any specific techniques or finer points. It is important to give much encouragement and praise as well as keeping a good level of energy so that the child enjoys doing it. It must be a game. Every part of training has to be fun and adjusted to the appropriate level. This is difficult with a group, but easier to do at home with one's own child.

The best advice ever heard in any dojo: find the one who knows what you want to learn and watch, then question and listen and then do it over and over again and finally try it yourself. Beginners are often told this, but it is when one is no longer a beginner that one forgets this and needs reminding. The only way to gain experience and knowledge is to constantly look for it and then put it to use to make it stick.

It may be a cause for caution and suspicion if it is a school where a single instructor claims to be qualified and experienced enough to teach so many different systems. Schools run by several instructors of different systems are not uncommon and that alone cannot be taken as an indication of questionable motives. The one thing to keep in mind is that becoming competent in a single system, and understanding it enough to train others takes many years of serious training under the supervision of an expert instructor. Doing so for two different systems is already quite exceptional, never mind more. This is why someone who claims to be highly competent and teach several systems is likely either lying for profit and/or grossly overrating perceived skills. Even more so if they are less than 65 years old. All the true experts of traditional systems have spent decades training one, rarely two systems for decades. They usually also have a specialty within their chosen system to which they didicate their training and are likely modest about their skills and knowledge.

For training nunchaku, a heavy and dense wood is best. Personally, I find maple, ash or ironwood is a great choice

Formalities are few and far between. The only time any sort of formal protocol is used is at the end of a training session where the dojo creed is recited and everyone bows first to the instructor, then to each other.

Has anyone ever taken time to think about what they might be doing or where they would be if they were not training in martial arts? Personally, martial arts training has been an anchor of sorts, without which dangerous and self-destructive habits might have lead to serious problems. Ill health or incarceration due to bad choices might have been a consequence without the focus and dedication of karate

There are those who are driven by fear and who started to train because of it, and continue because of fear. This is a good thing, however it is very easy to allow fears to grow, take over and become involved in a cycle where one type of fear just grows into another.

As someone who has experienced the effects of the both policies in schools and various karate dojos, it is very difficult to accept that students are given anything just for attendance, let alone any recognized standing. Doing that effectively and completely removes all standards, as well as defeating the purpose of teaching. Evaluation is pointless if everyone and anyone can expect a reward without any work, patience or effort. In the end, what matters is whether or not the students make any real progress. They either have the skills or they do not and sooner or later those who lack the real skills will understand the value of hard work. Sensei8's anecdote about the company karate lessons is a great illustration of this inevitable outcome.

The most widespread way of determining who is senior between equal ranks is whoever was promoted first. If two shodans were awarded the same month or year, then age is used. Every school uses this or a slight variation of it

Other people's opinions about grades should not be of any concern. What matters is skills and nothing else. Switching from one instructor to another cannot be accomplished without first accepting and trusting the new instructor's evaluation of one's skill level.

Training and practising martial arts as and improves physical skills. The mental part, is much harder to work on and fear can be a difficult obstacle to overcome. Learning to use it as an advantage requires specific training, which is often neglected. The most common things everyone is afraid of, regardless of skill or experience is getting hurt in training or skills failing when they are most needed. Beginners are usually more inclined to freely admit being afraid, but what about instructors or more experienced people? Can you admit to being afraid? How do you deal with it knowing that you might never know for sure unless you have the misfortune of being forced to defend yourself with what you have been training?

It depends on the seriousness of the problems, but in some cases youth should be given a chance. This is not to say that infractions or breaches of confidence should be without consequence, but the age and maturity of the individual should be considered when deciding what to do. Fighting is prohibited by civil and criminal laws. Either he learns to control himself and realizes that being a violent hot-head is dangerous; or he will keep following that path until he is crippled or killed be people more violent than him or until he is in prison because of his stupid impulsive aggressive behaviours. The most important thing this hoodlum ought to be taught is that there is a world of difference between respect and fear. People who cannot control themselves do not belong in martial arts and should not be taught. Beating people up at the drop of a hat because of a look or words do not get respect or power. What they get is a reputation for being a thug. Thugs can only ever get along with others thugs whose only motivation is fear and selfish personal gains and cheap, fleeting insignificant glory or status. Who cares if highschool peers think one is weak or coward? Does it really matter what they say about one's mother and will it all matter in six months? Or six years? The answer is No, no without hesitation and second thought.

First hand experience confirms what Kusotare said. Serious instructors are always suspicious and wary of foreigners who come seeking training for a short time. Overall, Japanese and Okinawan sensei expect very little from "martial tourists". Worst case scenario, drifters are turned away at the dojo door. Most however, are at least willing to allow a training as a guest. One is a guest until one has proved to be able to make a real commitment and worth teaching. This takes time, endurance and patience and simply cannot be done in a few weeks or months. This difficulty is increased by other factors such as language barriers and cultural differences.

Why would anyone approve of a false, innacurate or negative portrayal of one's parent? If Lee's daughter disapproves of the way her father is being portrayed, she must have a good reason.

Historically, there never existed any sort of temple for Samurai. Samurai was just a social class that, among other privileges had the right to wear swords and the luxury of time to spend on training to use them. They were members of the warrior caste which, meant they were nobility and also bound to their superiors and lords following the rules and usages of the Japanese feudal system. A samurai was always born as opposed to a monk, which is as an accessible status for almost anyone. There are no similarities at all between monks and samurai, except perhaps the fact that both followed or was influenced by one of the many currents of Buddhist Thought. The warrior class of Japan, seemed to have favoured Zen or Nichiren. In actuality however, there were very few samurai who followed the Buddhist philosophy like a monk would, never mind the bushido code.

Forget the style or the origin. It should not be an important factor in the decision. Who has the best teaching method for your learning style and what you want to learn? Keep in mind that any system is only as good as the way it is taught and most of all, the effort put into training the lessons learned.

Teaching martial arts should be adapted to the students age group and their particular level of physical and mental development. Teenagers naturally much more impulsive than adults. Their mental capacities for judgment and reasoning are not yet fully developed. What will appear trivial or unreasonable to an adult mind often is interpreted very differently by a teenage one. This is why teaching them requires strict discipline with rules clearly defined and often repeated. Consequences must be immediate and final whenever applying them is required. However, individual characters and personalities should be considered, as well as the details of each side of a situation. With all this in mind, the use of martial arts skills outside training for reasons other than defense of self or others from a direct and unavoidable imminent violence is a very serious matter. The only suitable consequence is immediate expulsion

The shortest and simplest definition of a healthy lifestyle is one that is free of excesses. Anything in excess will cause a whole mess of problems and negatively affect one's physical and mental health one way or another.

A good quality cotton canvas dogi lasts quite a long time if properly cleaned and maintained. When no longer decent enough to wear, they can be shredded into strips and used as filler for striking bags and such.

Maybe it is not any coincidence that more than a few experts comparable to those named by the OP would prefer not to be reknowned. They are few and far between, but in most cases they are quite happy with continuing teaching and training without wanting or seeking to be known. Of those whose memory subsists in collective memory today, most of them became known through their students long after their time had passed. In their lifetime most of them were not so well known

Avoiding unnecessary costs is one of the most important things a new dojo would have to do. Third party management of the student fees is one of those things. The more an instructor has others handle administrative duties, the less resources are leftover for essential things such as dojo rent, utilities or basic training tools and equipment; never-mind any profit.

Diets do not have to be complicated or detailed with a precise calorie count. Simple is always best and it is the easiest to maintain consistently without having to think too much or plan meals. Here are a few very simple principles to follow that work surprisingly well: 1. Avoid eating seconds 2. Eat as slowly as manageable 3 Avoid or eliminate sugary food,sweets or deserts. 4. Never eat less than four hours before going to sleep 5. Drink lots of water, even when not feeling thirsty 6. Train or have some sort of physical activity everyday for at least 30minutes 7. Never eat so much that you feel heavy or too full.