Spartacus Maximus

To increase grip strength it is necessary to first understand how grip works. The two main areas involved are the fingers and the forearm where most of the muscles controlling the hands are found. In general, anything that works these are effective and the examples in the OP are quite fine. On Okinawa some of the old karate instructors use a wads of rice straw tightly bound together for gripping. These are essentially the same thing as the modern grippers with springs. Besides the standard ones, many sports equipment stores have grippers that train each finger individualy. A roller can easily be hand made with just a strong rope, a weight disk and a section of pipe or a broomstick. Lastly, finger push ups are great.

A belt rack is good for when one has a lot of belts to show or keep. I prefer a very simple and sober design such as a board with pegs. I made mine in secondary school years ago and it still is in great condition. Just three pieces of stained hardwood (60 year old maple). The belts are folded as when they were new and simply stacked on top of eachother onto the pegs. Since I changed over to a new organization(of the same style) I have no use for a rack because there are only 4 belts including white, three are now hung in a closet. Either way the rack has always for storing and keeping rather than showing. I have always been very uncomfortable with the idea of showing any achievement.

Everyone who has considered it knows that teaching one's children is very challenging but I would put teaching a spouse above that in difficulty level. Teaching a few things here and there is not a bad idea but the husband and wife dynamic will interfere with anything more. There are only a handful of people who have trained their spouse in their martial art, but it is not impossible if both are equally willing and determined to train seriously.

Thanks to active moderating as well as the courteous and respectful contributions, this is the only discussion forum worth subscribing to. Martial Arts Planet sometimes has a few good topics to follow, mostly because of the presence of Mr Mac Young whose websites and publications are very informative. Not every forum can boast having such a reknowned expert among its members. Sometimes I hope he would post here, too. I lurk in at least five sites in 3 languages but only contribute to this one for the reasons I mentioned before and because it is easier to do than posting in five.

Just as any problem that gets only worse when allowed to continue, a lack of control must be dealt with immediately. The longer it is allowed to continue, the bigger the problem and the greater the risk. It is a good precaution for either the partners or the instructor to clearly establish the level of contact before starting the drills or kumite bouts. Warn everyone in advance and remind them of the goal. Nobody ever made progress by injuring all their training partners.

As far as discussion forums go, this one is by far the best one I have ever found. Just as in the real world, martial arts always attracts some weird critters. From the very beginning Internet newsgroups, chat rooms and forums have largely been polluted by endless style wars, violence geeks with paranoid fantasies or immature keyboard warriors. For every serious post or attempt at discussion, there was always nearly ten times as many post consisting of negative judgement, accusations or other non-constructive immature comments. Some of the boards I have come across are so infested with trolls and rampant stupidity that it is impossible to have any discussion at all.

This topic is intended as an information thread, so the more different answers the better it is for everyone reading it. One more thing to add as a general requirement is the difference between owning a space and renting one, such as in a sports centre. In using a rented space, the owner will most likely have some insurance policy offering some coverage for users. It is advisable to verify this when searching for a dojo space.

The less one has contact with one's instructor, the more one should train at home. The trick to practising alone is to focus on improving what is already learned and review whatever was done at the last session with the instructor. Making a schedule also helps structure solo training. Writing it down in a planner or calendar is also very helpful.

I would also recommend Shureido because all their gis are very good quality canvas. The middle weight is great, even when training in Okinawa's humid semitropical summer. It costs around 120$ so it is not as expensive as a heavy weight. That is a great deal for a 100% cotton gi but if 12oz is still to heavy the light weight ones are also very good. They go for about 100$ or less if there is a sale.

Some countries have specific insurance packages for martial arts on both the individual level and for dojo/facilities. I have seen these advertisements in several places but it seems to be from USA. I wonder if these exist elsewhere. In my locality, certificates to work with youth or children are strongly recommended but only if one expects to teach youth or children. Obviously it is not needed for someone dealing with just adults. There are many highly recommended certifications but all of them are optional. Insurance seems to be the only thing required by local law. As far as qualifications are concerned, anyone wishing to be a trainer, coach or sports instructor of any kind must have passed a short seminar course. This completed over a week or so and includes training for emergency first aid, CPR and AED machine use. Unfortunately it is very easy for just about anyone to teach privately in their own space with none of these things.

Police records and background checks are a very good idea, but they remain mostly optional. The countries and jurisdiction where it is mandatory are not as numerous from what I found. @NidanMelbourne: do you know what is mandatory in Australia? For safety reasons, there really is no such thing as too many qualifications or paperwork. For simplicity's sake I would like to have an idea on what the minimum mandatory requirements. Things without which it would be illegal or extremely risky to teach the public. Martial arts specific insurance policies exist, but not everywhere. In my locality, both the individual participants and the place must have insurance for maximum coverage for extreme contact sports. What about everyone?

There has probably been several topics on opening a dojo already, but for the sake of sharing information here is a question about administration: Teaching experience and martial arts skills aside, what kind of requirements are needed for someone to publicly teach martial arts? Are there specific permits, certificates or licenses for this purpose? What is the process in your area of residence or familiarity?

No doubt braces would help but as some here have suggested, they are probably intended for stabilizing after an injury. Thankfully, I have never had an ankle injury serious enough to need any bracing or support. I have sprained my wrist once or maybe twice and I dread hurting my ankle the same way from kicking with a loose ankle. The always seem to give at the last instant of a kick, very frustrating. The exercises seem like a good idea.

Control can and must be learned like all other parts of martial arts. Students with no control do not understand the purpose of kumite. They must be told firmly and reminded often that kumite is not a competition match or cage fight and the goal is most definitely not to "win" or "beat" the other student. Injuries can a will happen, but they must never be the result of intention. Kumite is nothing more than a drill where the goal is to train applied techniques and strategy. If after all this a student is still fails to excercise control, the instructor or an advanced student with good control should train with that student. When training with someone who is more skilled and has good control, a student with no control will be faced with that weakness. Once made obvious, the lack of control can be changed. Lack of control cannot be changed by attempting to counter it with the same thing. This type of reasoning is not only stupid, but irresponsible and immature

In the dojo as well as at the beginning of my home practise I do both static and dynamic stretching exercise. I also include rotations for the entire range of motion for the ankles. The issue I am struggling with is keeping my ankles stiff for impact for kicking.

Teaching in the dojo and at home should be different but in the dojo everyone must be treated equally whether or not they are related to the instructor. That way children know exactly what is expected of their behaviour and training. Everyone is there to train and although it may seem like a game, the dojo is not a place to horse about. In Okinawa I had a sensei who trained all his grandsons and he made absolutely no difference. He was as strict with them as with ebb the adults. They had to address him as sensei just like everyone else and if they failed to practise seriously he would immediately send them home. No second chance, no warning. Like all children they had good and bad days, but overalll they had no problem. The fact they were treated equally actually motivated them to try their hardest because they knew that when they left the dojo, sensei was just grandpa. Being strict is only beneficial when applied to everyone. Special treatment breeds laziness and resentment which are counterproductive to effective training and enjoyable practise.

As far as I am aware of the only gis with black trim are used in Korean styles and in that case it is the entire trim and lapel width that is black. Generally karate uses plain white or natural unbleached cotton. I have seen other colours but usually these were for tournament teams and such, not regular training. Also for your information there is only one brand made in Okinawa and that is Shureido.

Even with all the support it can be an intimidating role to take. Almost from the beginning, my sensei has expressed his hopes that I will take his karate style and school to a new area. Although it can be a motivating thought, these high expectations sometimes give me pressure and doubt as to whether or not I can ever meet them. Knowing these expectations, his approval of any improvement I make is more important than anything else.

The youngest full shodan level kids I have seen were around 12 or 13....except these kids were "credible" because they trained almost daily AND were from families heavily involved in karate. It was also in Okinawa were practically everyone have done karate for sometime in their lives, usually at school. I have heard of even younger blackbelts elsewhere but they were either not credible or some kind of gimmick to keep children in the dojo

From a prospective student's perspective it adds a boost of credibility if the chief instructor is also an active student under an instructor of his own within a recognized association. There is of course the opportunity to have the chief instructor's sensei or seniors coming in to do a special lesson or seminar. I hope it works well for your plan because I may well be in your shoes in the near future

The Japanese caracters read " karate" and "karate do". The ones inside the red circle read "karate" and in white thread under the word "tournament" it reads"Eikoku sei" which translates exactly to "made in England". The patch represents the okinawan karate style uechi ryu but there is no club name or organization name anywhere. There is also no manufacturer or brand name on the gi anywhere. Also judging by the quality of the embroidery for the Japanese character it is most definitely a European brand. Without a clue for the brand name, the only hope in identifying the gi is if someone recognizes the tag in the photo. Maybe a search for U.K brands and makers of martial arts supplies would get results. How many could there possibly be is also a very good question.

It is a well known fact in all martial arts and combative sports that failing to properly stabilize the wrist when punching can cause sprains and other more serious injuries to the puncher. It also means the loss of much of the strike's power. Assuming the same is true for the ankle when kicking, I have been struggling with this problem recently. After only a few slow, step by step kicks it is as if the ankle of the kicking foot flops outwards and failing to keep the attempted striking angle as well as its alignment.

Stretch marks will happen any time and at any spot where the body changes faster than it can repair itself. They are tears in the underlying layers of the skin. It is common in theses well known cases: 1: For women after childbirth when the body returns to its previous state 2: The result of repeated dieting to lose mass quickly 3: As a side effect of the excessive and prolonged use of several so-called muscle bulking products such as creatine, whey protein shakes and others To minimize the unsightly appearance of these and prevent them to some degree, coconut oil cream is effective. Rubbing it into the areas prone to stretch marks helps the skin maintain its stretchability and helps it keep up with the extra strain. For more information try to research stretch mark prevention in resources on pregnancy or ask a doctor or sports injury therapist

Teaching martial arts to one's children is no different than teaching them anything else. For nearly all children it is quite impossible to separate the role of parent from teacher. As a general guideline, the lessons should be short but focused. They should be done seriously, but also enjoyable like a challenging game. The most important thing is to never force or pressure the child to train. The only thing to do is to allow them to watch training until they can say for themselves what they think. Give the child all the resources and time to decide and if they show serious interest, encourage and support in every way. One of my dojo fellows has a son who has been watching his father train since the age of 3. The man let him watch and try to copy the moves. The boy watched and eventually asked to start but the man told his son to really think about it and then maybe....That boy practically begged to be taken along until finally at 12 years old, the father allowed him to join him. Now that kid is one of the higher grade students and the only child in the dojo. I cannot recall ever seeing a father so proud of his son. They are nearly the same grade now, and this child has no problem keeping up.

Personally I consider a branch dojo easier and more advantageous to start than a completely independent one. Especially if one is at a lower Dan grade. In either case the instructor must continue training in parallel to teaching. As a branch dojo belonging to an association, the new instructor already has a network of peers and seniors to call on for support, advice and training. It also makes it possible to exchange ideas for everyone's benefit. With few exceptions, the chief instructor of an independent dojo must take the time to find resources to pursue personal training or advice. This can be very time consuming and frustrating for someone trying to establish a brand new school.