JR 137

There's just way too many 10th dans out there IMO. I don't know the teacher in question, so it's not a knock on him personally. I don't think the founding fathers of various martial arts were even 10th dan holders while they were alive. Most were awarded 10th dan posthumously by the organizations they started or by bodies such as the Dai Nipon Butoku Kai. Sorry if I'm being cynical. No matter how good I got, how long I was in the arts, or how much I accomplished, I'd never accept one. Posthumously is another matter. But that's another thread for another day.

The karate world has lost a true legend - Shigeru Oyama. Along with Kaicho Tadashi Nakamura, Shigeru Oyama was sent to the US by Mas Oyama (no relation) to teach and spread Kyokushin karate. For a while, he and Nakamura WERE Kyokushin in the US. Shigeru Oyama left Kyokushin in 1981 and started World Oyama Karate. By all accounts, he was a class act and truly one of the best Kyokushin practitioners and teachers of all time. As far as his fighting prowess goes, he completed the 100 man kumite. According to an interview with Shigeru Oyama, Mas Oyama required anyone going abroad to teach to complete the 100 man kumite first. Shigeru Oyama actually defeated 121 opponents before Mas Oyama put an end to it, due to Mas Oyama finally receiving a phone call that he was waiting for. Note: Sorry if this is in the wrong section. I wasn't sure where to post it, and figured karate fit best.

A quote from Sensei John Kreese of the Cobra Kai. My warped sense of humor. It's been there for a while; I honestly forgot about it.

I'd say get a feel for the different sparring partners. Don't go all out offensively nor defensively. The new guy trying to show everyone up is never a good vibe to put out (not that I think that's what you'll try to do). Observe all rules, get a feel for everyone's individual comfort zone for contact, and stick to the basics. It's a marathon, not a sprint. It's training, not competition.

Thanks buddy, I thought it was a really good remake though so that's why used it because I happen to own it Haha! Now that you mention it, the remake is more fitting. Remaking the dojo, with a remade song in the background. I see what you were after with that. Very poetic. Even if that was pure coincidence, just go with it

Progression is everything. Doing the best exercises with the best techniques is only a part of it. If you do too much too soon, you're asking for problems. Even if you have perfect form, if you've never hit a heavy bag before and decide to hit a 150 lb bag as hard as you can for an hour straight, you're going to have issues.

Mirrors are an invaluable resource in the dojo, especially for beginners. I use them all the time during kihon and kata to make sure my posture is correct, I'm not over doing things or cutting things short, and I use my reflection as a target. Is my face punch at face level? Is my roundhouse kick's point of impact at my ribs? etc. Mirrors were crucial when I was teaching kids (and when I assisted the other day). Kids' techniques are all over the place, as is their posture. I'd have the kids focus on their reflection as their target. A kid throwing a roundhouse kick in the air is looking god knows where and aiming at nothing. They've come close to kicking the next student in line beside them, or falling over due to a lack of balance, sometimes almost falling into the next student. When they're looking in the mirror and using themselves as a target, all that stuff gets corrected very quickly and effectively. At least it made a huge difference when I taught. As effective as mirrors are, video is can be far better. You're not watching yourself; you're performing the way you should be. You can get different angles, and your view of yourself is the whole motion rather than mainly your start and finish. Coach's Eye is a great app. Speed up, slow down, fast forward, rewind and draw on your video.

Kenpo is a very broad term. It's pretty much as broad as karate. Forget styles. Even within the same organization, never mind same style (such as Shotokan, Goju, etc), there's going to be variation between the emphasis of teachers. I study Seido Juku. There are some dojos who do a ton of point fighting and the majority of the students are kids. There are other dojos (such as the one I go to) that are predominantly adults doing a padded version of knockdown. And there's everything in between. Shop for a dojo, not a style. The right teacher and student body will make the training effective for you. TKD gets a bad rap by a lot of people. All dojos definitely aren't little kids in full body armor doing the kangaroo sparring. All BJJ schools aren't cranking out UFC fighters, all Muay Thai schools don't have Tong Po from the movie kickboxer calls by the shots. Find a dojo, not a style.

I guess I'd have to define "our era" as the almost 40 years I've been alive... 1. Bruce Lee - a household name. Changed the way many MAists think. If you polled the biggest names in MA today, he'd get more votes than probably everyone else combined. Not sure he'd be everyone's #1, but he'd be everyone's top 3 at least. 2. Mas Oyama. The number of Kyokushin practitioners worldwide is astronomical. His former top students are a who's who of Japanese karate. Watching the movie Fighting Black Kings, Google search the Japanese competitors. They've all founded huge schools. The top teachers of those guys did as well - Tadashi Nakamura, Shigeru Oyama, Ashihara, etc. 3. Royce and/or Rickson Gracie. Not sure if you can say one over the other; the competitor or the mastermind. More people know Royce Gracie's name. Look at the numbers BJJ has put up. BJJ is a household name/term after the UFC. Personally say Mas Oyama as number 1, but he's not a household name, nor is Kyokushin. But I think Kyokushin numbers alone worldwide would back up my claim. Then add the students who broke away and started their own school, and their students who did as well. I'd say more MAists can trace their lineage to Oyama than anyone else after the Funakoshi/Miyagi/Kano/etc. era.

Looks great Lex. Glad things are taking shape. Very good choice on the music too. I like the original better, but that's just me. I look forward to seeing the next steps.

Be smart about where you are, and you shouldn't have too many problems. Going into gang territory and doing things like using trees as makiwara will most likely be interpreted as trying to be the alpha male. Going to a family park, keeping to yourself and training away from the crowd shouldn't get much, if any attention. Pay attention to your surroundings. I hit a bag the my local YMCA. It's on the suspended track in the gym, and the walkers and runners pass me by each lap. I've had 2 compliments - "You look like you'd be good at karate." Not sure how to take that one though; would I be good if I took lessons, or do I look like I know what I'm doing? Lol. The other was a guy got my attention from behind me and said "I just wanted to see your face so if I run into to you in a bar, I'll know to not to mess with you." Both guys were good about it. I'm just waiting for someone to criticize, so I can politely ask them to demonstrate. That'll be a win-win for me; either I'll get a good pointer or two, or I'll be able to say it's not as easy as it looks.

The internet has a lot to do with it now. It's easy to market yourself internationally, and it's easier to verify you are who you say you are. "Word of mouth" is a lot quicker. Is there someone out there gaining a lot of attention and your students are bringing up his/her name? Google that person. Watch some videos of their seminars on YouTube. Email them and pick their brain. Ask others who've hosted them. In the pre-internet era, I'm sure it was authors, champions, and very high-ups. If you're doing something along the lines of Shotokan, see if Kanazawa or his direct disciples do seminars. Attend one and if it's good, ask him to come to your school. I was in my former organization at the infancy of the internet. Our founder was well read and fond of Patrick McCarthy's and Seiyu Oyata's work. He went to a seminar held by McCarthy, and one held by one of Oyata's top students. What did he do? Invited them for a seminar at his dojo. My former Sensei has attended a few seminars with Taira Masaji hosted by a friend of his and has brought any students willing to go. I think the people who act like others don't exist and don't want their students attending are insecure in their abilities and knowledge, and insecure in their ability to retain students. Sometimes they don't want to admit that they don't know everything.

I was going to reply to the other thread where you were getting at this, but here is better... Have you thought about Physical Education? If teaching is something you're ultimately after, physical education is a field where there is day job availability, and there's a ton of crossover. The job market is pretty tough, depending on where you are, but also depending on where you are, the salary can become very good after a few years and the retirement system can also be (states vary, especially with unions). I'm a NYS certified Physical Education teacher. Learning what I did in school, I think all MA teachers should take a few classes in it. Teaching PE is all about movement. Breaking down a complex movement into the most basic parts and building up. It's also about knowing how to motivate and give proper feedback. So is teaching MA. Teaching any subject in any school isn't for everyone, and neither is teaching MA. And just because someone is a good athlete doesn't mean they'll be a good coach. Same as any other field. With PE, you can take what you learn in the dojo, take what you learn in school, and bring them together. It's far easier to be your own person rather than replicate what your teacher(s) do. Business training is also crucial if you want to own a full time dojo. You can be the best teacher ever, but if you don't know how to market yourself and balance costs and income, your doors probably won't stay open very long. University of Vermont offers a small business management major. The Bridgeport program seems new. Bridgeport is a good school (I used to live about half hour away from it), and I know some alums. I'd be weary of it because its most likely in its infancy.

I think the biggest part of their allure is their ability to communicate their thoughts in an easily understandable manner while carrying themselves in a humble and down to earth manner. Their knowledge and experience is sound, even if it's not the individual's cup of tea; disagreement with them is more of a professional and respectful disagreement than anything else. In sharp contrast to George Dillman's arrogance, even before he went off the deep end with his no-touch KOs.

Pinan 4 also has 2 side kicks (one on each side on the way up), and a knee kick (last count on the way back). Pinan 2 (perhaps your Pinan 1) also has a side kick (before going up the middle).

A kick is just a kick, a punch is just a punch.

I have no experience with any of the ones you've listed. The Shureidos you listed are a blend, and not 100% cotton. Not sure if you were aware of this or not. They're highly regarded, but I've never seen them nor do I know anyone who's worn them (in forums nor "real life").

I can't add much here, having not worn any of them, but a few classmates have the black, yellow, and orange label. They all (about 4 of them) like the orange the best.

IMO studying under someone is always better than studying alone (there's rare exceptions to every rule). Even I'd they're not close, you'd get experience with different things that could help a lot with what you studied before. Or you could find Chito-Ryu better suits you. It's about the teacher and classmates, not the art/style IMO. Go in with an open mind, and know that nothing is going to be the same as your previous school. Your previous school won't be the same when you return either. Students come and go, and teachers can and do change.

Some systems do a front kick in Pinan 3 before the slide into kiba dachi in the middle on the way back, others don't (Kyokushin and offshoots mostly do it). In some systems, Pinan 3 also ends with the right foot tapping the left knee like in Naihanchi, while throwing a left elbow across the body and chambering the right fist. Many systems do a lateral jump to the left instead. I think the jump is probably a more recent change to Funakoshi and Itosu's original. Pinan 5 has an sweeping-like outside-in crescent kick that lands with a low block into kiba dachi (I guess it can be called/viewed as a kick, depending on bunkai).

I don't know how available KI and Ronin are in Switzerland, where the OP is from. KI and Ronin are quite good for the money. I really like my Ronin heavyweight gi. Several classmates wear KI Mugen gi and like them. The Mugen gis are tournament cut though, which the OP more or less said he wanted a traditional cut.

Everyone's body is different, therefore gis won't fit everyone the same way. Then there's preferences regarding cut. Regardless of that, the 2 best gis I've been around are Shureido and Tokaido. Tokaido is the unofficial JKA/Shotokan gi, and Shureido is the unofficial Okinawan gi. Both are equal in quality IMO, the difference is cut. Shureido is a boxier, stocky guy's cut, whereas Tokaido is a taller and thinner cut. Both are available in traditional and tournament cut. I'm pretty sure they use the same material too (the Shureido K-10 and Tokaido TSA "Ultimate"). Hirota has a very good following. I've never seen one, so no comments. Those gis are the best, and everyone else is trying to be like them IMO.

Yeah, that hour is what did you in. I kid. Most of my time is spent chasing my 3 year old and 5 year old around. Sometimes in a fun way, like on the playground on Sunday, other times getting up 100 times to get them stuff. My most commonly used line is "everyone hates to see me relax."

A fellow Canon guy. I knew I liked you. My 40D is getting a bit old. I want to get a 6D, but I don't have the disposable income. Especially for what you do, you should check out coach's eye. However I'm not sure how much control you have over playback speed, drawing on the video, etc. Coach's Eye reminds me of instant replay on tv where they draw on the screen and fast forward and rewind a bunch of times. An iPad would most likely be less bulky than your 70D and laptop too. Pic quality wouldn't be as good, but it's not bad by any means. Not trying to push it on you; there may be a free trial version of it. During a physical education class, I used it when I was teaching the squat. It easily showed how far down they were going, and the common mistake of squatting not far enough and bending forward at the waist, making them think they were going further than they thought. I drew lines and said this is how far you should go down, and this is how far you're bending forward. They improved a lot from it. You're going to get a lot more technical than I did with a lot more stuff and a lot higher caliber athletes than I did, but the principal is the same. I got turned on to it by a track & field coach. It helped his guys a lot in the long jump and pole vault.

http://traditionaljapanesemartialarts.com/IOKA/index.html Who I consider THE source of traditional Okinawan kobudo.