JR 137

Very sorry to hear it, Lex. As you said, you live and learn. Doing the best thing for your family is always the best thing to do. Down the road when the time is right, I'm sure you'll look back at it and remember what worked and what didn't work when you open your next place. The next place will definitely be better.

I'm pretty sure it's roots are in Shotokan, with elements of Goju. I'm only guessing really, from the katas. They are: Kihon kata Heian Shodan Heian Nidan Gekisai dai ichi Gekisai dai ni Chokosen Gekisai Tekki Shodan Saifa Bassai Dai Tensho Seiunchin Sanchin Shisochin Empi I did Wado Ryu when I was a nipper, got my yellow belt but could not keep a temper when I received a whack in competition. So I didn't progress and then didn't really want to go any more. My sensei is keen on application, seems that way more than theory or classwork. So I'm making more of an effort to learn basics from multiple sources, so I don't slow others down. I'm the lowest grade in the class at the moment, after 5 or 6 joined earlier this year I'm the only one who's stuck to it! The school has classes all over the south west, gradings are done at regional centres and bigger gradings are done in Plymouth, where the school originated from. Only having had on grading so far I can't really comment much more than that! Definitely seems like a blend of Shotokan and Goju from the kata list.

Welcome aboard!

I trained with the boxing club when I was in college. Such a great workout, great skills to learn, and a tremendous workout IMO. Every place is different, but if a former champ is in charge, I'm sure it'll be great. I look forward to hearing about it.

Welcome to the forum. I haven't heard of Doryoku Ryu. What's it like? Does it come from any bigger organization, such as Shotokan, Kyokushin, etc.?

I think rolling is probably one of the hardest things to teach. It's not like a student can do it in slow motion and/or stop, correct themself and then continue on. Rolling is also one of those things like riding a bike. I hadn't rolled in years, then my CI had us do it in class about a month ago. Came back to me almost instantly. He had me try to explain it to others who weren't getting it, hoping I could provide some insight or cues that he wasn't getting across, but I had nothing. The more I thought about it, the harder it was to roll properly. It's one of those things I just do without thinking about it. Years of wrestling. We rolled up and down the mats - forward, backward, dive rolls, backward into a handstand push off, and a few more I can't recall every single day during warmups. To summarize, and maybe it'll hurt more than help, but don't try to over think it. Head down, arm down, go over your shoulder, and let your momentum carry you. Sorry I can't be more helpful! Edit: As stupid as it sounds, it's a lot like a cartwheel. Fall into it and let your momentum take you completely over.

Congratulations LLLEARNER!

My previous organization started bo basics at advanced green belt (one before brown), and the first bo kata at brown belt. My current organization starts bo at 1st dan. Weapons training gives a different perspective IMO. It forces you to move differently, and it improves hand-eye coordination. I think brown belt (if that's the one before black) is a good time to start. We saw huge jumps in performance after a month or so of bo basics in my old school. Some schools have weapons as part of the curriculum, some have an entirely different system taught with different belt ranks than the regular karate program, and some schools don't teach it at all. It all depends on the organization and/or CI as to when, how, and what weapons are taught. I don't think there's truly a right or wrong way. I'd prefer my old Sensei's way (after he left his organization and went on his own) - weapons are part of the karate curriculum, and there's an entirely separate weapons program. The separate program goes much further in depth with more advanced kata and kumite, and more weapons overall. The karate curriculum has some weapons kata and kumite by rank (starting at brown belt?). Students can do either program or both, and they're both taught by the same instructors.

You can go lower, therefore there's a wider range of motion. I used them in the rehab setting for "scapula push-ups" which are done with the elbows locked, and a push-up being done at the shoulder blades; hard to explain yet easy to demonstrate. The bar/handles made it feel far better to do. With the bar, people tend to do push-ups with their palms facing their torso rather than palms facing their feet. Think vertical punch rather than traditional. Then there's the "Perfect push-up" thingy. It spins, allowing the corkscrew motion while pushing up, kind of like punching. At the end of the day, some people love them, some hate them, just like every other piece of equipment out there. It's all about how it feels to you.

All this talk of kiai'ing reminded me of a funny situation a long time ago... We had this group of students around 8th-6th kyu. They kept saying the word kiai when it was time to kiai. My Sensei kept telling them not to literally say kiai, but to shout haia or whatever else they wanted. They kept yelling kiai. One day, Sensei was in a horrible mood (it was at the height of his divorce and custody stuff) and he'd had enough of the kiais. After repeating himself 10 times in about 5 minutes, he had us all line up and do single kihon techniques as a group, kiai'ing on every technique. 10 minutes into that, he said "if we're going to learn one thing today, it's going to be how to kiai properly!" We did that for an hour straight. Everyone in that class had a sore throat for a good 2 weeks. Me and another guy kept trying to get other people to say kiai again, just to see how he'd react. We never had the guts to do it ourselves.

Have you ever broken a middle brick without breaking the top or bottom bricks?

Welcome again gunner. It's interesting how a Kyokushin offshoot added the weapons your instructor added. I haven't heard of many Kyokushin schools using weapons until shodan at earliest. My former school which was Kyokushin based started bo exercises at 3rd kyu, and the first bo kata at 2nd kyu. Kyokushin usually does Kanku at 3rd Dan or so. Do you know if it's Mas Oyama's style of Kanku or the more traditional Shotokan Kanku Dai? There's absolutely nothing wrong with your instructor changing things up from the way Kyokushin is and was taught at honbu. One of my biggest criticisms of Kyokushin's syllabus is there's too many beginner type kata at the kyu ranks. Last I knew, kata like Saiha (or Saifa) and Tensho were shodan kata in Kyokushin, whereas they're usually 3rd-1st kyu kata pretty much everywhere else, sometimes earlier than that. Sorry for my rambling.

Same as JR137 welcome to the forum, i spotted a few of your posts and have liked what you've had to say so far. Also Gunner what do you mean by the wavemaster? I don't think i've seen it before or called it like that previously, but I know what BOB is though! I like using Punching Bags to work on power techniques, but for me I have a preference for working with partners because they will block in various ways the techniques I throw, in other words the unpredictability of it and that is what Punching Bags doesn't give me. For me technique at the end of the day is the number 1 thing to do before anything else. I like delivering brutal kicks and strikes but have injured myself due to incorrect technique. Iskrax often speed and power are developed over time, but in relation to self defence on the street you may already be on point because of the impact and skills you've learnt in the Dojo. I've been attacked a number of times (mostly on Public Transport) and how hard I hit was more than sufficient. Wavemaster- http://www.centurymartialarts.com/mobi/training-bags/century-wavemaster-black Available in many different forms.

Welcome to the forum, gunner. I saw a few of your other posts and it's obvious that you have some quality MA experience. Please drop by the introduction section of the forum and properly introduce yourself and tell us a bit about your experience.

I'm kind of mixed on this one. I can't speak for any dojo other than what I've seen in the dojos I've been a student in and associated dojos through the organizations I've been a part of... We've allowed women to cover their hair in religious garb (not 100% sure, but possibly Hindu?) We've allowed Seik men to wear their turbans Both of these contradict regular protocol Sensei8, you stated you did and do not bow to shinzen due to your Christian beliefs. I promise I'm not calling you out! I would not do anything in the dojo that contradicts my religious beliefs. If there was issue, and I was given the option to conform or leave, I'd find a new dojo. It doesn't matter what we perceive in the religious vs not religious argument; it's all in the eye of the beholder. If it's truly a religious thing for them and not fabricated, no amount of reasoning will change it. Are they literally following every other piece of protocol? Are they genuinely showing the respect that they should minus the physical act of bowing? Part of me says you could be losing a great student because of the refusal of an outward action that they express in other ways. The other part of me asks what type of precedent does it set. Whatever your feelings are, check with your legal team. In the real world, you should have the right to refuse service to anyone. In the legal world??? Localities have different laws. Not to mention, is there a contract present? If so, what are your contractual obligations? But the biggest question has to be why is this an issue all of a sudden? Shouldn't it have been settled before the students' first class? If they were told it was allowed, you (the honbu) made your bed. If the students claimed religious reasons after the fact, then it's on them. Talk about being between a rock and a hard place.

I guess one needs to examine why professional athletes were allowed to compete in the first place. I believe, but don't hold me to it, it was mainly due to the USSR and their athletes posing as amateurs. They were pro athletes hiding behind the guise of military officers. One of the hockey players said (years later) that he was allegedly a lieutenant in the army, yet never fired a gun in his life.

That's one reason why no two cases are the same. With no risk, there's usually no reward. Just make sure you fully understand the risks involved, sort term and long term. Weight them against the the benefits. Sounds truly like a once in a lifetime opportunity to me. You're an intelligent and rational person; I'm sure you'll make the wisest choice. Best of luck!

Welcome to the forum, Brock.

Not exactly the most pleasant news I've heard today. Every case is different, so take my advice with a grain of salt... You're risking further injury and long term issues that may not be fixable. So much easier said than done, but I wouldn't take the chance. There will always be tournaments, unless of course you're talking about a once in a lifetime event like the Olympics. Missing a few won't end your career, but further injury quite possibly could. None of us are walking in your sparring boots; you've got to do what makes the most sense to you. My view is but one of many different views.

To me it seems like 99% of everything I see - videos, books, etc. start with the attacker in right foot back zenkutsu dachi, left arm gedan brai, stepping forward with a straight punch. I know this is the simplest and easiest way to initially learn it, but it seems like it stays there. In kumite, we (at our dojo) don't spar like this. We throw a good mix of straight and circular punches. We defend them pretty well. But all the standardized stuff we do is defending straight punches. We do 10 basic self defenses (all are done with right punch and left punch coming), 10 intermediate self defenses (right and left punch coming), and several yakusoku kumites. They're all standardized and are required for promotion to the next rank. Every punch is a straight punch. I have no problem, relatively speaking of course, defending hook punches. But why spend so much time defending straight punches? Hook punches are so much more common. Defending them changes the blocks themselves and even more so the mechanics of movement out of the way. It would be like defending nothing but front kicks and ignoring roundhouse kicks. Perhaps when I reach black belt. When I was a black belt in my previous system, it didn't change in this regard. I guess what I'm saying is if I started my own system, all the standardized stuff would be against a straight punch and against a hook punch. That's not going to happen any time soon though.

Reading Tallgeese's thread in the jujitsu section motivated me to start this thread. What as karateka do we continually learn to defend against straight punches? When we do standardized self defense techniques, prearranged sparring, perhaps kata bunkai, and so on. It seems like every video I see in pretty much any MA deals with straight punches pretty much exclusively. Ever see a street fight, bar room brawl, etc.? I've been in more than I ever wanted to be in, and through bartending and being a patron saw far more. But I saw very, very few straight punches, especially the type karateka are throwing when learning to defend. Is it just me, or are hook/circular punches ignored by karate and MA in general?

I've never practiced this, but I'd bet whatever type is taught by the instructor is the type he/she was taught, and on and on through the lineage. Thinking about Okinawan kobudo history, nothing was very standardized. People used what they had, and taught what they knew. One Okinawan might have worked somewhere that used a machete type sword daily, and turned that into his chosen weapon for practical purposes. He taught what he developed and knew to his students, and it was passed down over the generations. The only flaw to my argument is the other weapons such as bo, sai, tonfa, kama, etc are pretty much standardized.

I personally think the definition of style vs doctrine is more of a semantic argument than else. Being a school teacher, I view the curriculum as doctrine and the way I present it as style. We naturally (and often unintentionally) emphasize certain aspects of the curriculum over others; we have our own strengths and weaknesses after all. A major part of our job as educators (regardless of what you're teaching) is reaching everyone who walks in through our door. Teaching the exact same thing the exact same way our mentor(s) taught us isn't very effective. Furthermore, there's no growth that way. Our mentor(s) may very well have known far more than we ever will. But if we try to be them, we'll always be trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. We'll never be our mentor. But they'd have never been us either. My mentor's way of doing things definitely worked for him. It definitely didn't work for me. Trust me, I tried. And I kept trying until another mentor a few years later why I was trying to be someone else, when being myself was far more successful for me. Definitely one of my "becoming an adult" moments. Just my opinion. Hopefully I didn't steer the topic too far off.

To all the fathers out there... Happy Father's Day. Hopefully you get to spend some quality time with your little ones, even if they're not so little anymore.

Congrats Karate John!