JR 137

As a side note, asking guys what they want to be when they grow up is a bit absurd... Guys don’t grow up; we just get older. Just when I think my father, who is 69 years old is a grownup, I see him with his brothers and his friends and watch him do the same stupid things and make the same stupid jokes my siblings and I do.

I want to be retired. A retired billionaire would be nice too.

Perhaps a stupid question... How long have you been wearing the New Wave gi? Do you consistently train in it, or do you only wear it for competition and a select few practices? I inquired about the New Wave line with Shureido USA. I was told it’s intended as a competition gi and/or a “dress up” gi because it’s not durable like the 100% cotton gis such as the K-10 and K-11. They told me if I wore it as a day in and day out training gi (I don’t compete), I’d get a year or so out of it, compared to the 5+ years customers typically get out of the 100% cotton gis. He said he stresses that because he doesn’t want customers not knowing exactly what they’re getting and being unhappy with their purchase. Just wanted to hear your first-hand experience with it. I was looking into a New Wave 1 because I want as lightweight and quality gi as possible. My dojo gets very hot (no air conditioning), and I sweat far more than average.

Sounds like a great opportunity. I’ve never been there nor know anyone well that’s spent much time there. I’m sure your girlfriend knows her way around. If you’re looking to train at a dojo, stop in and watch a class or just visit one, there’s a gentleman (Miguel da Luz) who coordinates dojo visits in Okinawa. I’ve seen him in a few documentaries and Jesse Enkamp has mentioned him several times in his blogs. Maybe email him and ask him about what dojos allow what you’re looking to do? Here’s a link to a Jesse blog about karate in Okinawa. It has a link to Miguel da Luz’s website somewhere in there... http://www.karatebyjesse.com/train-karate-okinawa-guide/ I’m sure you’ll have plenty of non-karate stuff to do and it’ll be more of a side thing while you’re there. Also, perhaps your girlfriend and/or her family know a dojo/teacher who you can check out.

I've been there before. It can be a conflict for guys at times, to either hit there and try not to feel weird for doing it, or hit them there, and risk someone taking offense. I was this way a lot more when I sparred without chest protectors. If the female is wearing a chest protector, then I don't feel quite as bad about it. Adult women are allowed to wear them but not required to do so. Teens and younger girls are required. Actually, I don’t think any women in the dojo wear them. I’ve overheard a few talking about sports bras they put plastic protectors in, but that’s about it. It’s just an awkward feeling I have. Thinking more about it, I feel far more awkward with a lower rank woman than an upper rank. I haven’t had any complaints nor have I doubled someone over in pain from it, so I’m pretty sure it’s just my issue. But I don’t want to be “that guy.”

I wonder when the whole “kata gi” vs “kumite gi” thing started. I understand the differences, but something about it just makes me scratch my head. Whenever I call someone to inquire about a gi, the first thing they ask is which type I’m looking for. I simply say “a good gi to train in.” Rant over. I’m a big Shureido fan. The 2 that I’ve owned (K-10 and K-11) fit right, are durable, and are comfortable. And they stay white for a long time instead of turning that brown/yellow/gray color. Which brings me to another point - I don’t get how people say a gi looks great. To me the traditional white gis all look the same, minus the non-canvas ones and the free ones that are so thin you can see through them. I understand that people like that snap sound. I used to as well. I’m pretty much over that though. I’ve worn a bunch of different gis over the years - Century, Ronin, KI, and a handmade Anshin. I tried a Tokaido Ultimate a classmate had. It was the equal to my Shureido K-10 in every way but cut. If someone removed the labels and told me they were the same gi, except a slim cut vs a regular cut, I’d believe them.

Welcome aboard, mevis. What martial arts have you trained in?

While even being in an impeccable organization (if there ever was one) is great and all, it won’t exactly be there when you’re walking alone down the street and stuff hits the fan.

Quite true. But in this day and age of the internet, social media and forums such as this, the prospective first time student has far more information than ever before. That information can be correct or incorrect though.

I almost posted the same thing! Were you too embarrassed? I personally have no shame. Well, ALMOST no shame

Student’s point of view here (not a teacher’s)... Belonging to a recognized organization will lend a degree of initial credibility to the teacher. Same as lineage, especially for the non-organization types like the Chinese arts. Side note: why are organizations far more prevalent in Japanese and Korean arts, less so in Okinawan, and seemingly non-existent in Chinese? Initial credibility is a good thing. It’ll get me to visit that school first, if it’s what I deem a credible organization. And I’ll have a better idea of what they do and how they do it. How much of a surprise would I be in for if I looked into a Kyokushin school? Knowing Shigeru Oyama’s, Tadashi Nakamura’s, Royce Gracie’s, etc reputation and having a good sense of their standards, someone who’s earned rank and teaching teaching under name holds some weight. Sure one or two may have slipped between the cracks, but they’d tend to be more the exception than the rule. How much credibility do you give an Ashida Kim or Frank Dux certified instructor? Fred Villari? With an organization, there’s a good chance the teacher is him/herself a student under the founder or higher-ups. If they’re someone’s student, they’re still studying and learning and less likely to be someone who’s just passing time and making a few bucks. Organizations can work the other way by keeping me far away from certain places, as there are several well known McDojo chains out there. I’m not going to name names, but there’s quite a few “no experience necessary” organizations out there. When I was looking into re-starting coming on 3 years ago, I googled a local MA school I knew nothing about. I came across an “open your own dojo; no experience necessary” video put out by that organization on YouTube. No way I’m even visiting that school. I’m in Seido Juku. It’s a large organization. One big benefit of it is there’s various get-togethers/workouts/seminars open to all students in the organization. Another benefit is I can drop in and take a class at another dojo. I tell my teacher I’ll be in the area of that school, he calls as a courtesy, and it’s a done deal. Sure I’m a guest, but I’m still a member of the organization; no questions about what I’m supposed to know, etiquette, what my motives are, etc. I’m not coming in off the streets and having the teacher think I’m dropping a challenge. But being in an organization will only get one so far. The teacher still has to know how to teach. He/she still has to be competent. There are some dojos within my organization that wouldn’t be a good fit for me for a variety of reasons. In this sense, there’s no difference between an independent teacher and one who’s affiliated. Being a member of an organization I’m interested in will get my attention. Running a dojo will keep it.

What about a can of Aquanet? Going through middle school and high school in the late 80s-early 90s, it was impossible to walk past lockers and not get a face full of the stuff. Destroyed the ozone layer too, but all in the name of big hair that was bulletproof Edit: I never used it. My mullet didn’t need it. A little mousse did me just fine.

Congratulations and best of luck with everything going through! As far a swinging a sword... that’s what yards are for.

Thank you Danielle for your follow-up posts to mine. It’s great to hear a woman’s point of view on the chest matter. As far as the early TKD ladies, I imagine their stories are no different than the ones I’ve heard. You put it perfectly; they had to really go above and beyond just to prove themselves.

Congratulations!

I’m probably going to get myself in trouble here, and maybe this should be another thread, but here goes... Between my first stint and my current training, I’ve got about 10 years of experience total. One thing that’s always made me uncomfortable is hitting women in the chest during sparring. I’ve never had a complaint about it and honestly can’t recall a single time when I caused obvious pain by doing so. I don’t intentionally go after it, but if that’s the only opening I have, I take it. I’m not any more comfortable with it today than I was with it my first time sparring. I feel like I’m taking advantage of an inherent weak/painful spot. I feel like if the only opening I gave was my groin, sparring partners wouldn’t target it, so why am I doing something along the same lines? And if it’s a repeated target during a round, I feel like that woman may think I’m either doing it to take advantage or grope, or something else that’s flat out untrue. But if they did feel that way, I’d completely understand why even though it’s not correct. Any women on the board want to weigh in on this? I don’t know. I have no idea what I’m truly asking. Nor do I have any idea if there’s a genuine answer. It’s most likely me making it an issue where there truly isn’t one. And am I the only guy who feels this way? I can’t be the only one, can I?

Everyone should be treated equally in (and outside) the dojo. My feelings mirror yours pretty much exactly. One thing I’ve heard so many times is how women in karate around the 80s and earlier were treated very harshly. I know quite a few women who came up in bare knuckle/full contact systems who were constantly intentionally hit harder than men were at the time. It was such a male dominated art that many men felt women had to prove they were worthy and tried to make the point that women couldn’t hang with the men. All the women I know who trained through that era are TOUGH AS NAILS. I’m glad we’ve moved on as a society and no longer accept that.

Are you sure you didn’t tap my brain and steal my post before I could write it? Taikyoku 1 was by far the hardest kata for me to learn. It took me a solid month before I could do that kata without anyone telling me which direction to move. Then coordinate the blocks and punches with each step? For reference, I had Seiunchin memorized in about 2 nights. It didn’t look pretty, but I knew what to do. I was completely clueless when I learned Taikyoku 1. I tell all the new students white belt is the most difficult rank. EVERYTHING is new - stances, blocks, punches, kicks. Heck, even how to talk (Japanese terms) is completely new.

I say you deal with those students the same way you deal with every other student - this is what we do and how we do it; if it’s not for you, we completely understand. Have a nice day and the best of luck on finding what it is you’re looking for. Dojos shouldn’t cater to every demand every potential and current student has. This demand is no different, and it’s not a minor change that could make the dojo or art better. As for men hitting women... gulp... there’s a time and place for everything. Sparring/competing is one thing, aggression is another thing. I’ve never hit a woman outside of sparring, and I don’t foresee myself ever doing it. If a woman came at me with a serious weapon and intent to use it, such as a knife or bat, I’d defend myself as I would if a man did the same. If I could restrain a physically aggressive woman towards me, I would. If I or someone I care about was facing serious and realistic harm from a woman and restraint wouldn’t work, then I’d defend myself and/or the others accordingly. There’s too many “what ifs” to make a blanket statement. The only acceptable blanket statement I can make is use common sense. Although I question why it’s called common sense, when it seems so uncommon more and more often.

A friend of mine played football at Syracuse University. For big games, especially when they’d play in a very loud stadium, the coach would get very absurdly loud PA speakers and blast crowd noise during practice. It helped desensitize them to it, forced them to communicate better, and stay focused.

Why wait? Who better to experiment on than your own? Basic punches, kicks, knees, elbows, that sort of thing. Kids love hitting a kicking shield and focus mitts. They also like blocking pool noodles and those blocking bat things.

Congratulations! But wait, I thought you don’t teach children I’m sure you’ll make an exception.

I understand that we use titles that our organization or those above us use to designate hierarchy within the ranks. Believe me I get it. We introduced the title of Shihan many years ago and it's gone rampant as a status symbol. I personally do not use this title. I call myself one title and my students call me the same title. Shinshiii (teacher). I see no reason to call myself anything else except maybe student. I think most titles serve one purpose... to bolter ones ego. Sorry I'm a bit opinionated and set in my ways. Not much gray area in my views and I tend to express them even though it goes against the grain at times and no one asked for them in the first place. I totally understand your point. I also understand that some titles are forced based on the organizations wants rather than the individuals. Up until relatively recently (10-15 years), I’m pretty sure there were only 3 official titles in Seido - Sensei, Shihan Dai, and Shihan. I’m assuming Kaicho too, but that’s the head of the organization’s title. Senpai was used, but it wasn’t tied to any specific rank or the like. According to my teacher, as the organization grew and people started advancing in rank, Nakamura wanted to recognize and distinguish his upper-most students. His top 3 students have been with him for over 50 years, and he wanted a special way to show them the respect they deserved. He didn’t want everyone addressing and referring to people like them in the same way that they did with others who haven’t put in the time and dedication they did. At their heart, titles are a way to honor someone. The downside to that of course, is some people give themselves a title and demand to be respected without actually earning it, and/or trying to make people think they’re someone they’re not. Just as with a rank, a title doesn’t make nor define the person; the person defines the title/rank. I’ve got no problem calling my teacher shuseki shihan. He’s earned it. I think he’s genuinely humbled and honored to have been given and earned that title from his teacher, but I know he’d be the same guy without any of it. If he wasn’t the same guy without it, I wouldn’t be his student for very long. Please not there’s no angry, mean, defensive tone intended in my language here. Re-reading it, I think it might be interpreted that way.

I know a lot of people here don’t use gloves, but I don’t hit anything without them. My hands get scraped up, my knuckles swell up, etc. “Hand conditioning” isn’t too high on my priority list. And if someone has no or minimal experience hitting a bag, they should absolutely wear gloves. I wear Tltle World Gel Bag gloves. They’re expensive at $100, but they’re worth every penny. I’ve had hand issues with everything else I’ve used (not that I’ve used tons of different ones). They’re well made, adequately padded so I can hit as hard as I want to without holding back, and they’re heavy so I get a pretty good arm workout too. https://www.titleboxing.com/title-gel-world-bag-gloves They’re currently $120 on Title’s website. They were $99 a few months ago when I bought them. Look for discount codes, shop around, etc.

Ringworm, athlete’s foot, and jock itch are all the same fungus; just differentiated by where they are.