Spartacus Maximus

Not particularly fond of the idea of wearing any martial arts clothing or martial arts themed apparel. Judging by the wide variety of items available from suppliers such as Century, the idea seems to appeal to some people. My interest in and practise of martial arts is not something which I care to advertise, flaunt or make obvious for all to see. I might wear part of a gi or something with the dojo logo, but only at specific times and never as regular clothing. Having said this, free range of motion and comfort are definitely how I choose my regular clothes. With obvious exceptions, I refuse to wear any clothes that might restrict my movement or get caught. I especially loathe tight collars, neckties and suits with jackets.

As a general rule, any kick aimed at a low target is both effective, difficult to counter or avoid and safer for the kicker. A low side kick to the outside of the knee is very effective. A low roundhouse aimed at the side of the leg just above the ankle can fracture or break the leg. There are many more, but kicking is more effective if it is used as a strategy in combination with hand strikes. Kicks should be used like artillery in that they support and are immediately followed by strikes using the hands. Relying on kicking alone is not a good idea.

A sixteen year old is not an adult. There are always some people who have a higher level of mental maturity at that age, but the fact of the matter is 16 is much, much to young to be chief of anything. There is absolutely no way a 16 year old can run a school or other business alone and idependantly. The skills or technical knowledge or talent he may have do not matter and change nothing to what the average prospective student will think.

I am somewhat able to breathe right when trying to cool down or relax. The problem is trying to do it while in action. It feels as if the breath will not go any lower than the solar plexus area, not the belly where it is supposed to go. After a while of intense effort I have trouble breathing deeply and unconsciously revert back to shallow chest breathing until exhaustion. That is usually when whatever I am practising falls apart. Mind blanks, adding or forgetting techniques or steps etc.

Quoth a wise man I met once in a past life: self-evaluations are always biased, even when done in good faith. Dishonest people will often elevate themselves with lies or exaggerations if there is any adavantage from doing it.

Plain as plain can be is my dojo. The floor is cement with thin office type carpet and covered with 2 inch thick hard foam puzzle mats. The only things on the walls are wood name tags for us students, certificates for sensei's rank and several framed photos of sensei's teachers and Okinawan masters of the lineage. As far as equipment there are piles of roofing tiles and 2 inch pine boards as well as baseball bats for breaking/conditioning. There is also two sand/pebble-filled bags and that is all. The rest is essential furniture because sensei works and lives there on weekends.

That was certainly the case while I was on Okinawa. Practically everyone has had some experience or exposure to it and gnarly hands only means karate. It is actually the first thing people would think of when seeing such hands. That is probably why nobody ever asked me any questions or gave me weird looks. Instead of asking about my hands, they would just asked how long and even encouraged me to keep it up. Different world/culture, totally awesome.

The present location is not on a main street, so there are no other dojos directly on the way there. In the general area within 2km or less, there are at least 5 dojo of kyokushin and offshoots, aikido and perhaps other less popular martial arts. My sensei knows most of them and is at least aquainted with the other instructors in the city. As for me, I took notice of the locations but my interest goes no further. Compared to the other dojo in the area, I would say mine is very private. Looking from outside there are no signs that identify it as a dojo whatsoever.

The idea itself is not a bad one or a new one. As others here have said, karate borrowed the idea from Judo and the founder of judo was himself inspired by rank or level markers used by athletes or school students. Swimmers, if my memory is good. Even nowadays Japanese schools use different colour uniforms for each grade or level. If some teacher somewhere wants to use a similar system for music or whatever else, it will work just as well to motivate young learners. If an idea is useful and works well when applied in practise, who cares where it came from or who thought of it first and where that person may have been from?

Whether or not people ask about it, gnarly hands are probably more likely to give a negative first impression. Only someone familiar with martial arts and the training methods would be likely to think "martial artist". Besides the curious or concerned inquiries I have never heard of anyone having any kind of trouble for having gnarly karate hands. Then again, this the first time I ever discussed this issue with other martial artists. The only stories known to me are about Okinawan karate students being cautioned against ruffians wanting to pick a fight by seeing their calloused hands. One story is of a teacher who prescribed a special treatment to minimize the gnarly appearance. The nature of this ointment, balm or solution is a mystery and I know no way to condition the hands or limbs without eventually developing at least some bumps, bruising or callouses.

Even in Okinawa where everyone knew about karate it was never the norm at any point in time. The most extreme examples of "martial art hands" are those of Morio Higaonna and Pan Qing Fu. Of course these two are fully devoted to their system, but I wonder what it would be like for someone with hands like that working a regular job dealing with people. So far I have been quite good at dodging the subject but I loathe nothing more than getting into the subject of martial arts with people whose idea of it is based entirely on fantasy, popular culture and disinterested ignorance. Nothing is more tedious than talking to people about something that they do not and will not understand. Even if it is obvious and people may be making assumptions I still want to avoid admitting it or talking about it to anyone.

Strinking equipment such as the Okinawan makiwara and Chinese wooden dummy are a staple of many martial art systems. Regular use of these results in all sorts of very obvious changes in the appearance of the users hands. Anything from slight discoloration, to bruising and all sorts of bumps and callouses. What type of impressions would ordinary people who are not involved in martial arts have when seeing or meeting someone with these obvious scars? would the impression be negative enough to cause problems for the person with the markings? Such as in social interactions with other people or interfering with finding or keeping a job? My own hands are way past the point where I can hide the appearance and I have so far blown off questions as to why my hands have bumps. I change the subject quickly, but I know people (work and acquaintances)are talking. I have not been pressed to explain, but I am not sure I would know what to say. For now I would rather leave it be. Anyone have similar experiences?

Proper breathing is an important part of training, but I is not as easy to do as it seems. Without proper breathing the body cannot absorb the maximum oxygen needed to sustain strenuous physical activity for very long. My teacher explained that breathing should be deep and low(abdominal breathing) and not shallow as in chest breathing. Although I understand the idea, I just can't seem to succeed in breathing that way. My breathing always feels too shallow and there is a tightness in the middle of my chest(plexus area). When this happens whatever kata or drill I am practising falls apart because I have to pause to catch my breath. If anyone has any insight or tips on breathing it would be helpful.

Intimate knowledge of anatomy as well as healing techniques to treat injuries and common illnesses was once taught alongside martial arts. Nowadays they are considered mostly separate endeavours and the average martial arts instructor has only basic notions of anatomy and basic first aid training at best. There are very few exceptions to this, but historical accounts such as biographies of known experts show that it was the norm in East Asia. In those countries, trained doctors were few and often travelled so communities more often consulted a martial arts expert of reknowned teacher to fix an injury or heal a sick person. Many experts also made and sold herbal medicines, practised accupunture or other healing arts to make their living.

Answer only one question and the answer to the OP will be made clear: Can the teacher still teach and get his students to understand, practise and improve what they are taught? Wether or not the teacher is still fully capable of performing everything, if the answer to the question is YES, then that teacher is still able to continue. Students expect nothing more than to be taught in a way that helps them improve what they already know, discover how to apply it and progress to a higher level.

Karate is mostly striking and this is the aim of each and every technique. Physical conflict is very different from a competition bout and one of the main differences is distance. Non sporting situations are always at a distance that allows all manner of seizing, locking, trapping, throwing or otherwise unbalancing the other man. All these techniques are applied to facilitate a strike and as such they are always preceded or followed by a strike. An in depth look at kata shows that every single one has at least two or three such techniques. In Shuri-te based systems, every kata ends with some kind of throw. Perhaps one reason that the grappling is not commonly taught in karate is that those who have learned it and are able to teach it are few and far between. Teaching to large groups also makes the detailed teaching of these techniques very difficult. Add to that the popularity of competition karate where such grappling is avoided or illegal and one can start to see why these might have been cast aside.

It is well that the OP seems to have found an acceptable solution. The situation described was quite difficult and the best solution would probably be to avoid it in the first place. The simplest way of preventing this type of uncomfortable situation is to always stay open and only teach in groups at the dojo or any other place agreed upon by everyone. Refuse any kind of private teaching sessions or teaching outside the dojo. Make it a point that anyone may attend and insist that the concerned person(wife, girlfriend etc) participate and observe as many sessions or classes as possible. This will go a long way to ease any worries.

Comparing the title "master" with other titles does not seem fair or accurate. Titles such as "doctor" or "professor" or "Major" are used as forms of address in general everyday conversation everywhere or at least within their own social context. While attending school all teachers were addressed as Mr or Miz. In university professors were called "Professor" or "Doctor". This was during class and anywhere on and even off campus. It would not be out of place or strange to call one's physician "doctor". Likewise for active or retired military being called by their rank. "Master" on the other hand, is never used to address someone and those who would expect it or demand it are seen as very strange. It may happen in some places, but all of the people I have ever met who might deserve that title were never ever addressed as "master". Calling them that probably would have made them feel very strange indeed.

It seems that this sort of situation most often happens when students forget an important aspect of physical skill level evaluation in martial arts. First it is necessary to remind them that "standards" are very loose. It is more appropriate to talk of guidelines. Second, every individual student is evaluated and compared to themselves and not others and not to the previous cohort evaluated before them. Skills are individual and personal in that no two students will have identical skills or even the same weaknesses. Nor will they improve or learn at the same pace. If the new students meet the general expectations, they have earned recognition for their skill improvements and that is that. It is an ongoing process and does not end with a new belt or what have you. lastly, these students must be reminded that there is a time(never during training) a place(always privately) and a way(respectfully and politely) to ask questions or give opinions but that should be chosen wisely to be received or given consideration.

From the time I began karate as an awkward teenager, I have always been held personal loyalty in high regard. This to me was much, much more important than politics. As long as the sensei was able to demonstrate, explain and teach me in a way that I understood, I was quite happy. Afterall I trained under my teachers because of how and what they taught. I also followed them because I trusted them and valued their knowledge. My sensei is not the governing body. He may be at the top of it, but I follow him because he is wise and skilled and knows how to pass that on. An individual sensei is always more important than any governing body.

I wash mine only about once a month. Besides that I hang it indoors where it can be exposed to the light and heat of the sun. Gets the funk out just fine. A belt must be washed, but it not as much as regular laundry.

"Because they think it's cool" is how trends start, and this is what makes be think that those who use it that much have the least understanding of its meaning, origin and connotations. They probably do not care to have it explained to them either. Maybe I spent too much time immersed in Japanese/Okinawan culture, but nothing grates my ears like hearing people bark "oss" at every other word their sensei utters. Worse still if I hear women or girls "oss"ing. Anyway, it can't be expected that an ingrained trend such as this will change any time soon or on the account of an old dojo rat's feelings.

There must be all kinds of much better and meaningful ways to honour a foreign dignitary than handing out ranks and titles that have no value except to a select few people. If Putin has never practised TKD I wonder what the man thinks of being given an honourary rank. Perhaps it was just to thank him for promoting or supporting TKD in Russia or just because Putin is known to be a sportsman with an interest in martial arts in general.

I would wager that most of those frayed blackbelts seen tied around the waist of younger dans are those cheap satin ones that disintegrate after a year or so. Another stupid fashion trend that I never could understand. The only thing more rediculous is those who are so impatient that they will purposely damage a brand new belt, which they probably paid in spades. A plain, quality belt of any colour takes quite a long time to fade, let alone fray. Especially if it is properly cared for.

To me it is something I have never adopted to use. It was never used by anyone in the Okinawan karate dojos where I trained. In Okinawa I found several seniors and many old sensei who thought it was strange or foreign, and at least two to whom it was as offensive as swearing. This is because of the social connotations associated with it in Japanese culture. Personally, I am reluctant to use or adopt anything that I don't fully understand. "Hai" or whatever else is fine, the key is to be careful not to over use it otherwise it makes one sound like a yes-man. It can get quite rediculous in some cases. My present sensei loathes yes-men and will be quick to call out anyone who appears to be "sucking up" in that way.