JR 137

As Lupin1 stated, different organizations do kata at different ranks. You're judged by the execution of the kata that's performed, not which one you're doing per se. A more difficult kata will potentially score higher, but potentially doesn't mean will. I competed in a few open tournaments a while back. My organization at the time did certain kata at higher ranks than most others. My current organization's kata list at ranks is virtually identical. We do Gekisai Dai at 4th kyu, whereas most Goju schools do that kata at 8th kyu or so (I think). We do Saiha/Saifa at 1st kyu and Seiunchin at 1st dan, whereas most that do those do them a few ranks earlier. The relevance to your question is at one tournament I did Pinan 1 and scored higher than a person doing Gekisai Dai; at another tournament I did Saiha and scored significantly higher than a person doing Seiunchin. Both kata I did were significantly lower difficulty than my opponent's kata, yet I scored higher due to doing them better. With that being said, what does your teacher have to say about it? While a lot of us here have a lot of experience in karate and the martial arts, at the end of the day we're just a bunch of people online that you don't know and don't know you. Your teacher sees you perform and knows what you are and aren't capable of. His/her opinion is the one that matters most. And he/she is the one who'll teach you the kata you'll perform. If you're thinking about learning them through video, don't! Let your teacher teach you what he/she thinks is appropriate. He/she is the expert you've chosen to teach you and pay for, not some people online or someone putting a video online. The person in the video could be a legend in karate, but that doesn't mean they're truly teaching you anything.

Keep up the great work. Keep the new shirt size in mind when you're feeling like you've plateaued or feel like you're getting nowhere. It's those small victories (no pun intended) that really keep things in perspective.

Uechi Ryu is all about Sanchin. While I prefer the version I know (Miyagi's closed hands and with turns), I love the way they train it. I worked out at a Uechi Ryu dojo for a semester while in college. I could only make their open mat night once a week, but it was a great experience. The way they "check" your stance, posture, tension, and breathing is the way the kata was meant IMO. We don't do enough of it in my dojo. If you stick with Uechi Ryu until the day you die, you'll be doing Sanchin until the day you die. Don't get me wrong, you'll do other stuff too; but Sanchin is the basis for everything they do. Or at least it is in the old-school Uechi dojos. Another thing I really like is less is more. They only do about 8 kata total, and if I'm correct, the last two or three are relatively new and not practiced by every dojo. While they only do a few kata, the practice the bunkai every which way. They have very few kicks; one Uechi guy told me there's really only one kick in Uechi Ryu - the front kick with toes. To be honest, the first night I was at the Uechi dojo, I hated it. The blocks were these shortened and awkward versions of the way I was taught. The sparring hands position was weird. Then I learned Sanchin and thought it was a stupid way to do it. I tried keeping an open mind, but I thought these guys were out of their minds. Then we took our CI tops off to "check our Sanchin" which I thought was dumber. Then they started nudging me here and there - shoulders, arms, fingertips (it's all open hand), legs. About 2 minutes into that, I realized exactly why they do what they do; it all came together. If fell in love with it. A few weeks later they had me try the Sanchin jars. Talk about difficult. Mine were empty. Then I looked over at black belt next to me (no idea what dan rank he was, as stripes on black belts don't start until 6th dan) who's jars were filled with sand. Those guys and ladies were tough as nails. You couldn't hurt them, and they could put a serious hurtin' on you. Coming from a Kyokushin offshoot at the time, I honestly felt like a weakling that was made of glass. It was a great eye opener. Sorry... I just had to share my Uechi experience and love for it. If that dojo was where I lived after college, I'd be a permanent student.

I get where your family is coming from. There are a few legitimate concerns when the CI is older (sorry ). None of them having to do with the CI's abilities though. A question that's been on the back of my mind is when will my CI decide to retire from running the dojo, and who will take over? He's 64 and retired from his day job about a year and a half ago. I'm sure it won't be for several years, but I'm thinking long term here, as I plan on being there for a long time. There's a person here who I've conversed with privately who's CI is pretty close to retirement and he/she has concerns about what'll happen when the CI retires. They're similar to my concerns at my dojo, but mine are further down the road. What if I'm nearing sandan and my CI decides it's time to retire? Who'll take over? More importantly, will anyone step up? What if the person that takes over isn't who I consider the best choice, to put it in a nice way? When a CI retires, wherever it is and whoever replaces him/her, there's going to be changes. People will leave simply because "it's not the same anymore." In our case, in a place with about 20 adults training day in and day out, if 5 leave that changes the dynamics quite a bit. I've played out some scenarios in my head recently; admittedly unfairly. I hope my CI's right hand man takes over. I think the atmosphere he'd bring would be a great change, along with keeping the essence of the dojo currently. But I'm not sure he'd be able to make the commitment without help. That opens the door to who I think his right hand man will most likely/should be. With the two of them co-running it, I think it would be pretty close to a perfect world. Then there's one or two others who I wouldn't be surprised if were named a successor. I'm quite sure that they'd do a great job, but my heart definitely wouldn't be into it. I don't think I'd last very long. If that happens, where do I go? Do I start over at a new dojo? Do I take up a new art? Do I stop training altogether? I'm quite sure my CI would be around in some capacity until he's no longer physically capable, kind of like a CI emeritus, if you will. Long story short, IMO it's a legitimate concern. That being said, you already have high ranking students. I'm pretty sure you have a few people in mind that would be worthy successors. Have a conversation with them and make it known to anyone who asks. You're definitely not too old. But some people think beyond the here and now. And you aren't exactly starting a dojo from scratch; you're re-opening. There's a difference.

I love it. Thanks, Noah. Made my day. And I completely agree with the rest of your post as well.

I've been taught and always done both feet pointing straight ahead. At least I'm pretty sure that's what I was taught. The biggest mistake I see, and of course I'm guilty of it myself is in kiba dachi. Both feet are supposed to point straight (straight in front of the knees), yet pretty much everyone has them turned out somewhat. Turned out is shiko dachi, aka sumo stance*. *Why is sumo stance called shiko dachi rather than sumo dachi? As far as I know, sumo is a Japanese word, commonly used by Japanese people. It's not like we call it sumo while they call it shiko.

Whisky147's iPod Nano is a solid recommendation. I used to use an iPod Classic until I lost the arm band, and bought an iPod shuffle because it was cheaper than a Classic armband. I think it's about $40 if my memory serves me correctly. The iPod shuffle is very small and light. It has a clip built onto it. It doesn't hold as much music and doesn't have the touch screen, or any screen for that matter. And it doesn't have the amount of memory the nano has. Regardless of all of that, I actually like it better. I don't compress my music beyond Apple Lossless, so my file sizes are significantly bigger. I still get well over a workout length's music on it though. And without the screen I find I just let the music play and forget about fooling around with it. The biggest disadvantage I see with it is no apps. I like my interval timer app when I'm working out. For that I just set my iPhone down in a place I can see it.

Canadian company Satori makes custom gis. I've never seen one, so I can't vouche for them. I've seen a few people discuss them online with good things to say. http://www.satori-gi.com

The rule we have and follow is don't hit anyone harder than you're willing to be hit. It you're hitting someone hard, and they're not returning the favor, lighten up. After you've sparred with someone a few times, you get a feel for how hoed they want to be hit. At least that's how it's been in both dojos I've been a part of. Both dojos were on the smaller side though.

This is why many styles like Uechi Ryu do the hard Sanchin body conditioning. Bare knuckle styles like Kyokushin "give and take" as a regular part of their training. Being hit and being hit hard is something every MAist must experience. The first few times people are hit moderately hard, everything they thought they knew goes out the window. Once they realize they'll survive, it's not that big a deal anymore. People who train like they'll never get hit and every hit they dish out will be a killing blow are living in a fantasy world. It's just not realistic to think you won't get hit. That doesn't mean you need to train bare knuckle everyday; but you need to be hit harder than your comfort level every now and then. Funny thing about it is if you haven't been hit in a while, you forget how it feels. I know that sounds stupid, but not getting hit every now and then makes us softer. As Mike Tyson allegedly said "Everyone's got a plan, until they get punched in the face." Truer words haven't been spoken very often.

Thanks JR 137.For the most, sports medicine is a grey area. The way I understand it, is that, as the general population will decrease in sports activities, the larger problem will not be from active people becoming injured but from those that are none active, developing diseases due to inactivity and poor eating habits. With this is mind, perhaps sports medicine is a more important subject than just helping the injured and preventing the overachievers from damaging themselves. Sports medicine could very well be the answer/cure, to helping people lead a more happier, healthier active life. I'd say wellness advocates rather than sports medicine to get people up, moving, and eating better. I earned a masters in physical education about 10 years ago now. We were discussing the state of physical activity and wellness today be previous generations and eras. It was a very eye opening topic... There's not much of a happy medium anymore. Some kids are pushed too hard to be involved in everything or are playing the same sport year round and parents are chasing some elusive full athletic scholarship. Most others are allowed to sit around all day and stare at a computer or tv screen, eating and drinking everything and anything they want. Physical education in schools has always served the same purpose from the dawn of time until quite recently (the last 20 or so years) - to physically prepare students for military service. Today's focus in physical education to get get them interested in anything physical. Introduce them to a variety of activities and teach them very basic skills in them so that they have a little confidence in their ability so they'll hopefully pursue something after they graduate and aren't forced against their will to be active for 30 minutes 3x a week. High school physical education tries to (or at least is supposed to try to) focus on the lifelong physical activities like yoga, golf, etc., or as a former student put it "old people stuff." I tried to focus on stuff like that and rec league stuff for high school seniors, and would make it a point to give them assignments where they had look up different activities and present where they could find them, how often they met, costs, etc. When I graduated, that would've been a waste of time because we already knew; today it's a waste of time because 99% of them don't care and are just doing it out of obligation.

Sports Medicine specializes in the prevention, recognition, and treatment of athletic related illnesses and injuries. I'm a certified athletic trainer. I view my job (when I'm working as an ATC) as a cross between EMT, physical therapist, and strength & conditioning coach. Those professions have more in depth knowledge of their respective field, and I have more in depth knowledge of mine. When you watch a sporting event on tv and see someone get hurt, I'm one of the guys that runs out and takes care of him/her. I'll assess the injury and will help them off the field when appropriate or get a paramedic when appropriate. I'm also at practices doing the same thing. If the athlete needs to see the orthopedist, I'll set that up. I'll do the rehab of the injury regardless of if they need a physician consult or not. If they do, I'll carry out their protocol. I also take care of illnesses that impact athletic performance. Stuff like diabetes, heat illnesses, asthma, etc. And managing head injuries. I work alongside strength and conditioning coaches to ensure their programs are appropriate, and I'll hand off an athlete to them for longer term strengthening of an injury when the time is right. Sports medicine for physicians is a specialty rather than it's own field (for the most part). There are orthopedic surgeons who specialize in geriatric injuries, cancer and infection related orthopedic issues, etc. There are also cardiologists, neurologists, etc. who specialize in sports medicine. Pretty much all sports medicine doctors treat non-athletic populations as well, but the sports medicine physicians know the demands of sports, the associated injuries and illnesses, and are usually better at treating them appropriately rather than just saying "take 6-8 weeks off and see me before you go back to playing." They're far better at coming up with a return to play protocol. If an orthopedic surgeon only took care of athletes, they'd be out of business in most areas and under most circumstances. Athletes have different demands (for lack of a better word) than the general population. People in sports medicine will balance treatment and athletic participation.

You can't be everywhere at once. And with your current health concerns, realistically speaking, what were you to do? The only thing I can see you doing is getting in contact with the (former) students and letting them know you're back in town. Let them know once your health returns to normal, you're looking to re-open. At least if that's what you want.

I can only comment on what I THINK my CI does as far as precision vs resistance... We'll start with precision - kihon (basics), forms, and standardized stuff like numbered "self-defenses," kihon kumite and yakusoku kumite (different forms of pre-arranged sparring). After that, we transition to resistance - situational/restricted free sparring (punches only, kicks only, minimum number of techniques in combinations, etc), then we'll progress into complete free-sparring. The precision stuff is the foundation of the resistance stuff - it's not supposed to be ignored just because it's free-sparring, otherwise why would we bother with it in the first place?

Welcome to the forum

Best of luck with the move. I hate moving. Actually, I don't mind loading and unloading the truck; it's the packing and unpacking I utterly despise. Nothing drives me crazier than seeing boxes all over the place and my home turned into an obstacle course. As for the box hunt - liquor stores. Wine can liquor case boxes are strong, and they're the perfect size to put enough stuff in, yet not too much stuff so they weigh a ton. And liquor stores are usually willing to put them aside for a short while rather than paying someone to take their dumpster.

Once you start making rules, people are going to feel slighted. When people feel slighted, they start commiserating with likeminded people who feel slighted too. They they start taking up sides. And the cycle begins. I don't know much of anything about Seido Juku's rules nor politics of being a CI. As an outsider, it seems to be teach the curriculum however you want, kyu test however you want, and charge whatever you want. You'll be held accountable for your students' progress when they show up for yudansha testing at honbu by Kaicho. Or when Kaicho visits. Or when his son (Nidaime; second in line) or one of the 3 Hanshis test your students and/or watch them perform. Treat your students and everyone else with respect, and be honorable. Instill that standard in your students. Don't do that, and sayonara. Maybe I'm way off.

When I was a black belt, I liked candy. I'm not a black belt anymore, but I still like candy. Wait? Never mind.

To the bold type above... Wait...wait...wait...wait...wait a minute....I'm startled by this because I've a hard time wrapping my head around how a recognized green belt can become Judan in a span of 2 years. And this is an acceptable tenure from his Student Body and his fellow peers?!?!? Creating his own organization allow him to be GRANTED a Judan?!? Yeah, I'd bear that in mind, if it was me. I can understand his son being the heir to the organization. There's nothing wrong with "passing on the family business" to your own son. And perhaps their bylaws state the head of the organization must be 10th dan. Now getting that out of the way... There's far better choices that could've been made. He could've been a business leader/CEO type without being the head instructor. He could've been the one calling the administrative shots without being the one who's calling the "on the dojo floor" shots. For example, he could've been the one who's responsible to make sure the organization is heading in the direction his father envisioned. He could've been the one who's making sure the Ashihara brand is being represented according to his father's legacy. He could've oversaw the opening of dojos, appointments of CIs, etc. all the while appointing a chief instructor of the organization as a whole and remaining a student of his green belt rank on the floor. Yes, that's all easier said than done, and yes, he'd need people he can trust. But I'm sure they were enough high ranking students that someone would've been qualified to be the instructional successor while he was the administrative successor. Probably overly simplistic and ideal. The real world always throws curveballs at you. To the bold type above... There's something very familiar about that for me!! :shudders: Being the head of the organization is one thing, but, for me, going from green belt to Judan in 2 years is another thing, imho!! He could've just been the head of their governing body without assuming a rank he's not worthy of. Yes, I did say "not worthy of" because a green belt isn't worthy of Judan in just 2 years. Be the Kaicho [President] of that governing body as a green belt, and earn up to, and including senior rank the hard and old fashioned way...blood...sweat...tears...fail...pass!! Just why, nowadays, don't students of the MA want to EARN rank anymore?? The SKKA By-Laws STILL demand that the Kaicho be a Kudan, just by the proprietary fact of being Kaicho. HOWEVER, NO ONE CAN ASSUME THAT POSITION WITHOUT HAVING ALREADY EARNED A SENIOR DAN!! I fought and fought and fought, for years against that By-Law; I felt then, and I feel that now, and I'll feel that in the future, that being promoted to Judan simply by appointment kills the integrity of rank. The more I fought against the Higher Hierarchy, the more I believed that what I was resisting was the right thing to do. Yet, they still attacked me...insisting...threatening...pleading...plotting...until my resolve finally weakened them. That's when I insisted that they had to TEST me for Kudan, and that I will never assume Kudan without being tested for it. Not just any test, but a test that would rival the seriousness of both Soke and Dai-Soke...and they did just that. Then, and only then, did I accept the rank of Kudan once I passed their test!! Albeit, I had already earned my Hachidan many years before this, and this is what I'm trying to get at...I was much closer to Kudan by being an already Hachidan than a green belt being promoted to Judan!! I'll NEVER EVER accept Judan because I'm not worthy of it, imho!! Soke and Dai-Soke, and as much as this pains me to say this, San Dai-Soke [iwao Takahashi], were worthy of Judan...but NOT ME!! Besides, the SKKA done away with the Sokeship at its reorganization many years ago!! Ok...going back to my corner, sorry for the rant!! I know there's something very familiar about that to you, as you were exactly who I had in mind when I stated that And please don't take that the wrong way; I clearly remember you stating how much you protested it and demanded to be tested for it. And you were no green belt when you passed your kudan test. If it was 2 years between green belt and judan for Ashihara's son, maybe he protested and fought against it too until he gave up and said "whatever" for the betterment of the organization? Just trying to play devil's advocate here. None of us will ever know what went on behind closed doors, nor should we, nor does it have any effect on us whatsoever.

I'm glad you found what you're looking for. As sensei8 said, train hard. As for Hussein Narker, I've heard very good things about him. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure he was on the kyokushin4life forum when it was around. If it was him, he was either AshiharaKaicho or AshiharaFist. I remember seeing his actual name in his signature, if I'm not mistaken. Very nice guy and very knowledgeable. Best of luck with it!

Master Newton once said "for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction."

Enshin was founded in 1988, 7 years before Ashihara's death in 1995, according to a quick Google search (I'm not that good with dates).

I know your doc wants you at a specific weight, but IMO forget the scale. Focus on how you feel. The scale is there to keep you focused, but it's not a be all, end all by any means. You know if you've cheated or shortcut yourself, and if you've stayed true. A scale doesn't need to tell you that. A scale can help you become more efficient, but it shouldn't dictate your failure nor success. I'm not sure if I've said this before, so sorry if I'm repeating myself (I most likely am)... Be consistent with when you're weighing yourself. Weigh yourself after you go to the bathroom, first thing in the morning. And sorry everyone for the visual, wearing nothing. Your stomach will be relatively empty, as will your bladder. If you're weighing yourself at 3 pm wearing clothes, shoes, and having stuff in your pocket, your weight will be all over the place. Different clothes and shoes weigh different amounts. A heavier lunch or lighter lunch and/or snack will change things. How much water you drank or didn't drink will show up. The only way to truly be consistent is how I said above. The differences all add up. A 5 pound or more swing from first thing in the morning wearing nothing to randomly stepping on the scale later on during the day isn't unheard of. Yet it's quite obvious you didn't gain 5 pounds in that time. Just an FYI. Consistency is everything.

To the bold type above... Wait...wait...wait...wait...wait a minute....I'm startled by this because I've a hard time wrapping my head around how a recognized green belt can become Judan in a span of 2 years. And this is an acceptable tenure from his Student Body and his fellow peers?!?!? Creating his own organization allow him to be GRANTED a Judan?!? Yeah, I'd bear that in mind, if it was me. I can understand his son being the heir to the organization. There's nothing wrong with "passing on the family business" to your own son. And perhaps their bylaws state the head of the organization must be 10th dan. Now getting that out of the way... There's far better choices that could've been made. He could've been a business leader/CEO type without being the head instructor. He could've been the one calling the administrative shots without being the one who's calling the "on the dojo floor" shots. For example, he could've been the one who's responsible to make sure the organization is heading in the direction his father envisioned. He could've been the one who's making sure the Ashihara brand is being represented according to his father's legacy. He could've oversaw the opening of dojos, appointments of CIs, etc. all the while appointing a chief instructor of the organization as a whole and remaining a student of his green belt rank on the floor. Yes, that's all easier said than done, and yes, he'd need people he can trust. But I'm sure they were enough high ranking students that someone would've been qualified to be the instructional successor while he was the administrative successor. Probably overly simplistic and ideal. The real world always throws curveballs at you.

I put "fighting kata" in quotes, because that's what I've heard them referred to as in Enshin and Ashihara karate. I agree, traditional kata are fighting kata, but I'm just using what I've seen said. A video is worth a million words. As for Enshin karate and Ashihara karate, both are Kyokushin offshoots. Ashihara karate was started by Hideyuki Ashihara. He was a top Kyokushin teacher back in the "Fighting Black Kings" era, c. 1976. He was a big proponent of tai sabaki, as he put it moving circularly and hitting from the blind spot vs Kyokushin's stereotypical straight forward and backward movement. When he broke away from Kyokushin (in the early 80s I think), he incorporated some Judo throws and principles (he had dan rank in Judo), eliminated traditional kata, and developed his own "fighting kata" which is far more akin to choreographed shadow kickboxing than actual kata IMO. Joko Ninomiya was Ashihara's top student in Kyokushin, and followed him when Ashihara left Kyokushin. Ninomiya eventually split from Ashihara and formed Enshin karate, which arguably went further into the tai sabaki of Ashihara and brought in more Judo throws. Ninomiya also holds dan rank in Judo. Enshin's big competition is the Sabaki Challenge. Ninomiya's kata are along the same lines as Ashihara's, just different moves, so to speak. Enshin "fighting kata..."