Spartacus Maximus

Well then, there is the answer to how it should be on the DVD. Exactly as the kata or techniques would be taught. Film it as if it were a private lesson for one single imaginary student or those who will use the video in the future. Just one suggestion: it is very easy to get carried away with the volume of information to include. Filming and dividing the material into several discs may be the best way to go, thus allowing a more in depth coverage of everything. Plan the contents meticulously so nothing will be missed. Maybe one disc for basics and fundamentals and another for the first 3 kata or something similar. Whatever the choice is, best of luck.

Did he just leave embarrassed or did he apaogize and become a student? It is very understandable that Mr Shiroma would rather not discuss incidents like that. All the instructors whose stories are known to me would refuse to talk about them at least until several years afterwards. Sometimes never and the only way to know was from other people who saw what happened.

Mr Shiroma is quite well known as a gentleman not to be trifled with and the fool who does is indeed worthy of pity. If accounts are to be believed, the man has an interesting experience and had a reputation among his peers and seniors when he still lived in Okinawa. Maybe some of this followed him to the USA.

It is probably best to show both slow and fast if the intent is to create a resource for instructors and students. Execute the techniques as if teaching them to a student for the first time and then as an example of how a competent dan level student would be expected to do them. From a student's point of view this would be very helpful and it would also leave instructor a good example of a standard. The big question is, however, what do YOU want to produce? is it just for demonstration or is it instructional?

Sometimes, martial arts movies are very much like a good pizza pie. Cheesy is good, but not too cheesy because then you can't taste the other toppings. Very few martial arts movies are really about the action more than the story.

The first rule of training in the open and in public should be to know the area thoroughly. Things to consider like these: Is it in a safe neighbourhood? How many ways are there to enter or exit and where are they? How many and what sort of people frequent the area? Is there good lighting after dark? Are there stations, convenience stores or other such places around? Are there rules about what is or is not allowed there? Being thoroughly familiar with an area and its surroundings will spare one a lot of potential troubles when deciding to train outdoors in a public place.

No firsthand accounts here either. Only three stories from instructors over the years and the most recent ones date from the early to mid 1990's. The first challenge story is one heard from dojo mates returning from a training camp/gathering somewhere in the East Coast. Training was in some kind of public space reserved for the occasion but easily visible from the outside and in a somewhat seedy area. During a lull in the event when only a few students were there, two street punks decide to walk in and watch. Eventually they start making comments and their attitude gets increasingly annoying and beligerent until one of them decides it would be a good idea to prove to his friend that the diminutive instructor is nothing more than a dancing pansy. Unfortunately for him, the instructor is a 5dan ex us marine and teaches seminars for the police force. Being at least three kinds of stupid, this guy got angry from being knocked down and decided to attack again with a knife. Now being seriously threatened, the instructor knocks him down and turns the knife against him. During the incident students called the police and when they show up it turned out that the officers were also students of that instructor.

There is a huge difference between putting experts of the past and famous instructors on a pedestal and knowing from whom one's system was inherited. The important thing about lineage, is that the founders and one's predecessors trained hard for many years to develop their skills. They are were neither supermen or superior in any way, just ordinary men with uncommon dedication and passion(or obsession?) for what they did. They are just an example to look up to and inspire not to revere and put up as unattainable ideals.

Overall this sound like an urban legend or a thing of an age long gone, but are challenges really a thing of the good or bad old days? Does anyone know of reliable accounts of martial arts instructors or practicioners who were challenged to prove their skills in one way or another? Any of these in recent memory? A challenge can take many forms from the amical display or sparring match to the almost duel-like and serious "fight" or "dojo storming"which would, nowadays, probably have serious repercussions.

Maybe letting the floor do the talking is the only way when one lacks the skills or ability to express onself accurately. There are many more people who will accept something when they see it demonstrated or when they try it than those who do so just by listening to words.

Maybe it is because of habit of tradition, but for some reason a gi that is neither white or black just does not seem appropriate. Especially if it is of a very bright colour like blue or red. Worse still are those with flamboyant colours, loud design patterns or excessive patches all over like a bus station poster board. A gi ought to be comfortable and functional training attire, not something to draw attention or impress an audience.

While it is an interesting idea to entertain, chances are that it is just romantic speculation. This idea is similar to the popular notion that Okinawan peasants and fishermen developed what became karate. The historical truth is martial arts training was reserved for the aristocracy, the nobility or members of the Court. These were the only types of people who had the time and the means to train. Many of them going to Fukien China to train, where many reknowned experts taught several different systems of kung fu. It is very likely the situation in China was the same and common folk such as fishermen would not have had the luxury of resources and time to spend on developing or training a martial art. Consider the main figures of Wing Chun and look at what social class they came from. Ip Man, for example was quite wealthy and belonged to the upper economic class.

Being the first and/or only one to teach something new can be intimidating. One of the many possible issues to anticipate is dealing with resistance or hostility. Sometimes from the potential students or general public, but maybe also from other martial arts instructors already established in the area. This is already difficult by itself but even more so if there are additional challenges such as cultural or language barriers such as those facing instructors who immigrated to teach their native martial arts.

Imagine this situation: you are qualified to teach what you have been training for many years and your instructor has given you his approval to do this. You have been asked to represent the style or school and tasked with introducing it to a new area. However, this style is unknown in the target area with no presence whatsoever. You are completely alone and will be the only person teaching your style in the entire region, perhaps in the entire country. Although you still have contact with your instructor, the long distance makes it impractical to recieve instruction more than a very short time once, perhaps twice a year. In such conditions, what challenges or problems can you reasonably expect to deal with as the only representative instructor of your style for a very big area or country? How would you deal with these?

Looking for advice for a student who is overly nervous about a test. This student is at the required skill level to be promoted and does reasonably well in regular training. Yet for some reason, as soon as there is mention of any sort of test this student completely freaks out and starts to doubt everything. It is not just karate as this issue has caused the student problems whenever going through any evaluation, even school exams. How can one help such a person?

A self defense situation becomes a fight when the defender does not escape despite having the opportunity to do so and continues to strike the attacker. To have a solid claim of self defense, it must be clear that the defender did everything reasonably possible to avoid the attack and only hurt the attacker in the process of escaping.

Recognizing what type of violence or agreesion one is dealing with is a very important skill to develop. Obviously, one cannot respond to all types the same way. If one does so, it invariably puts one in unnecessary danger as well as more than likely the wrong side of the law. There are two types of violent/aggressive behaviour. The first is social and the second is predatory or criminal. In social violence the aggressor uses it to get the victim to do something or stop doing something. There is always a choice and it is easily avoidable before the first strike. Criminal violence is much simpler as the attacker's sole purpose is to injure, maim or murder for its own sake, or to take something. This makes it much more unpredictable and dangerous.

The single major flaw with this and similar concealed weapon gimmick is that it fails to consider that an assault happens very quickly and if the victim is unable to reach, draw and immediately use her weapon, said weapon is useless. How in the blue blazes is a woman supposed to get her bra knife out and ready if she is wearing other clothes over it? Carrying a purse or other items in the other hand?

While it is true that humans all have survival instincts and are physically unchanged from the way they were in more dangerous times, the lifestyle and environment most people live in nowadays has caused theses senses to be repressed. This is why an ordinary, untrained individual is usually unable to react to danger quickly enough or even see it coming.

Internationally reknowned martial arts celebrities known outside the martial arts world? None. Heads of styles? a few including: Chuck Merriman of Goju ryu who was a bodyguard for celebrities and high profile people, even music bands like Kiss. The others were had reputations limited to the martial arts world or were simply not interested in being famous. They might not be as accessible as ordinary folks, but for the odd chance to have enough time to have a conversation, one finds that they are no different than anyone else who has had a successful career in something they thoroughly enjoy.

There is nothing really wrong about different instructors of the same system within the same organization having different opinions about minor details. What matters is that they agree on the core and teach the same thing. People naturally personalize what they learn and different instructors emphasize different aspects. The important thing is that they teach the whole system and ensure that the students learn it correctly to the best of their ability.

It is strange that no one has mentioned that their are some trainable skills that are essential for self defense before any physical techniques or running is required. Things like a good sense of observation to know when and where an attack might come. Signs of an imminent attack and situational awareness to know where obstacles and potential escape routes are located, as well as everything else around. Without any of these skills, all the physical techniques are unusable.

Following up a kick with a punch or other hand strike is a good habit to train. The kick is not guaranteed to connect with the target and without an immediate follow up, the kicker is open and vulnerable to a charging attack for the time both feet are not on the ground. Kicks are powerful with more muscle, but are secondary weapons most effectively used to set up or support punches or other hand strikes. Perhaps a sporting match could be won with kicks alone, but a strategy using kicks a a stand alone technique is ill suited for dealing with serious situations.

The best defenition of reasonable force or minimal force is whatever force is required to allow the defender to successfully break away from and escape the attacker(s). If this sounds ambiguous, it is because what it takes to escape can vary depending on the situation. The most important guideline is that one's goal is to escape at the first opportunity. It is not always necessary, nor is it justifiable to completely incapacitate the a attacker. It is better and more practical to think in terms of creating an opening to break and run, rather than stop the assailants attack. This should never require more than 3 moves or techniques.

In North America the situation is a freeforall as others have already described. As for most countries in Europe, there are national federations that issue grades and authorizes people to teach. However, in practice there is practically no way to stop anyone from instructing. If one chooses to teach in a public place such as a park, one has to consider the possibility of being disrupted or heckled. Being registered or recognized by a governing body is not illegal nor is it realistically enforced in any way anywhere. Neither is teaching without insurance or actual qualifications or skills. It is just incredibly stupid and setting oneself up for potential liability if an accident/incident happens. Some parks and public places have regulations about what sorts of activities are allowed on the grounds, thus may require a license or permission from the park authorities. As for Registering one's hands with authorities is a old myth that just refuses to die down despite being debunked countless times.