JR 137

Anyone using this app? I bought it a while back when I was teaching physical education. I'd record students' techniques and play it back for them. Especially useful during weight training lessons. It has a wheel that you turn to advance the motion as fast or slow as you want. You can draw on it using freehand, straight lines, etc. After owning it for about 3 years, I decided to record myself hitting a Wavemaster XXL. Lots of great insight on what I need to work on. I noticed when I throw hook punches, especially to the head, my hands actually drop below my waist. I over-turn my body during roundhouse kicks (I knew this, but the camera made it more obvious). I don't snap enough during front kicks. I actually close my eyes at the point of impact during full force punches. I could keep going, but I'll leave it at that. Oh yeah, and I'm fatter than I thought I was. The app is either $5 or $10. iPhone or iPad. Not sure about other devices, but I doubt it's not available. Give it a try. It's more than just a video camera for your phone. If you teach, your students will probably love the feedback it can provide.

My biggest criticism of Seido is the kobudo policy. Kobudo doesn't start until shodan. Bo, jo, sai and sword are the only weapons. Bo begins at shodan, I think jo begins at sandan, sai at yondan, and sword much later on, possibly 6th dan. My old school started bo basics at 3rd kyu, and official/traditional bo kata at 2nd kyu. I don't know if it was 3rd kyu or the bo, but we all saw a big leap in skill after a little time with the bo. I've contemplated buying Nishiuchi's videos and teaching myself, but don't want to get into the bad habits that can result from training without a person to correct me. And he holds the bo differently than I've seen done in Seido. In Seido, the bo is held under the armpit after strikes, whereas Nishiuchi holds it outside the forearm/elbow. I've done both, and strongly prefer Nishiuchi's way. My old Sensei now teaches Nishiuchi's weapons. He's trained with a few of his students. He offers a kobudo program, but it's an hour drive each way, and conflicts with my regular schedule. I've always wanted to learn the oar. My old Sensei used to practice it a lot before classes, and I've seen it performed a few times in tournaments. I don't know why, but I just think it's really cool.

I'd train a couple hours per day if I could. Just like 99% (figuratively speaking, not literally) of the practitioners out there, I've got higher priorities. Putting food on the table, being a father, a husband, son, etc. all trump my MA training. 2 dojo sessions per week and 3-4 one hour heavy bag sessions per week is all I can afford to spend in MA training. And some weeks, I can't get that much in. Doesn't make me any less dedicated than someone who can easily spend more time. Spending a higher proportion of my "free time" than the next guy doesn't make me more dedicated either. It's all about how serious you are when you train IMO and being consistent. Some people go through the motions, and some people "are in the moment." I think the biggest determining factor is the reason for training, not the time spent. Some people train to bond with their kids. Some view it as group exercise. Some view it as a social club. Others view it as a status symbol. None are bad reasons (except the social status one IMO). Just like some people are more dedicated to their jobs than others. I like what I do, but if I didn't need the paycheck, I'd find something better to do with my time. Doesn't make me a worse employee. I know several dedicated employees. Trust me when I say that doesn't make them better at their jobs than me.

Today was a great day. I assisted teaching in my daughter's class. She was one of 3 white belts around her age, and the rest were higher kyus and older. We broke into two groups, and I had her group first. Worked with them on basic kicks and blocks. Kathryn was very receptive to me and was proud her dad was in charge. The other kids get pretty silly, so I went with it. We were doing one step sparring (aka numbered self defenses), and I let them hit me. They had a lot of fun with it, but it was really to correct their technique - they (except Kathryn) were punching with their wrist bent, basically hitting with the heel of their hand. I stopped them after a few times and had them punch my hands the right way, then continued the drill. They were all fired up to be able to hit me. Those little fists of fury pack a lot of pressure. Kathryn has a habit of watching the senior students in class instead of herself in the mirror. I got her to face straight forward when she's doing her stuff rather than angle herself toward the seniors. Made a big difference. I thought she'd be silly and goofy with me teaching, and she was at first, but I put a quick stop to it in a positive way. It was great to teach again. I haven't taught a karate class in about 15 years. Even though the class wasn't entirely mine, my group was for the majority of the time. Hopefully the three of them will remember the corrections I made.

I highly doubt that the only bows used in Far East Asia were the long bows. I'm no expert, so I could be wrong. Any war derived activity/sport/whatever you want to call it could be considered a martial art. But when I think of martial arts, I think hand to hand combat or very short range weapons such as 6ft bo, sword, etc.

I'm in the dojo 2 nights/week. Actually, 1 night (typically Wednesday) and 1 Saturday morning. Having a job, a spouse and 2 young children (3 and 5 y/o) can do that to you. In the summer, I'm in about 3x per week. Time spent doesn't always equate to dedication, as Sensei8 put more articulately than I can. I think a more accurate way to state you case would be serious student vs leisurely student instead of fanatic vs hobbyist. But it's all semantics.

Forget styles. Look at dojos. No two teachers, even within the same system teach alike. A good teacher is a good teacher, regardless of what style they're teaching, just as a bad teacher is bad. A teacher can also be a great teacher, but not be the right fit for you. You have some MA experience already, so you have a lot better understanding of what you're looking for. Keep an open mind and visit the dojos in your area that don't conflict with your schedule.

I'm not big on textbook definitions, but I'd define a hobbyist as anyone who's not getting paid. If you're paid (be it competition, instructing, or simply as a financial office type), it's not longer a hobby. If you teach for free, you're a volunteer. Now as to the end of your question... There's varying levels of commitment of the student (and teacher). The varying levels of commitment of the student are very closely related to the student's goals and reasons for training. Some view it as group exercise. Some view it as strictly self defense. Most view it as a combination of those and other factors. When is a student a serious student or even fanatic as you put it? It's all in the eyes of the observer. People can and will train outside the dojo very earnestly but still view it as exercise primarily. It's all about the mindset and goals. And that mindset and those goals can and will change. I love the martial arts. I'm very passionate about them. But I'm still a hobbyist. Why? It's not earning me money. I practice it out of love for it, not out of financial need nor any other true need.

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I've contemplated the Fitbit Blaze, but I don't need the bells and whistles. I just want to be able to see the time like a traditional watch (shown constantly instead of pushing a button). Being able to get it to show HR without a few button pushes would be great too. The wrist flick and tap feature don't work right for me. I don't care for the gps tracking and all that other stuff. If I were a runner I'd be all over it. I guess gps would be a lot more accurate in steps taken and distance walked throughout the day that the current design though. I think it gets a bit confused when hitting the bag, confusing my arm my arm movements during punches and kicks for natural arm swing during walking/running. I highly doubt I'm taking 4500 steps during my workout. I am constantly moving backwards forward and sideways though.

I despise running. No offense. I don't even run to my car when it's raining. I don't mind it at all as a part of sports, but running on its own is just dreadful to me. Something I found interesting was that the days I'm more kick heavy on the bag, the more time I spend in the max HR zone. Legs are a lot heavier than arms, so it makes complete sense to me. If I'm going to hit the bag 4 days during the week, I'll spend 2 days concentrating on kicks, and the other 2 on hands, alternating the days. The only downfall is there's a day or two that I hit the bag then go to the dojo a few hours later. If my teacher is the the mood to go harder than usual that night, it's tough.

My diet is pretty well balanced between protein carbs and fat. I'm not big on tracking that stuff, but I was tracking calories and what I ate to see if things needed to be changed. No one's diet is perfect, and neither is mine by any means. But it's realistic. I just eat a little less. If I hit a wall, I'll track that stuff closer. I've bet using my Fitbit and the app that goes with it. Mainly for heart rate and number of calories. Great work on the weight loss currently, and keep up the great work! Since your losing the weight, don't forget that you need to work on strength to stabilise your body. For your diet, i personally wouldn't personally count the calories but be aware of how much is in them. But changing your portion sizes is vital including what you eat. As I don't count calories, but i go for the food that is nutritional low GI. I normally keep a food diary to keep track of what I eat. Personally my diet consists of primarily fruits and vegetables, then some protein coming from meat. My carbs are lower than what I normally consumed, but mainly comes from bread and noodles now that I have once or twice every 2-3 weeks. I know majority of Americans these days are overweight or obese but is usually due to portion size and how much sugar is in everything. But congrats on cutting out the soft drinks out of your life. I have been trying to lose weight as well and doing well on this attempt. That is why I love using my Fitbit to help me see what I'm doing. Since I have the Fitbit Flex it doesn't keep track of my Heart Rate, but i do keep track of what I eat (they finally added the Australian Foods), and how far I walk everyday. Also keeping track of how much sleep I get. I'm keeping track of all the stuff you are too. My wife bought it for me for my birthday last year because I said "I wonder how many steps I'm taking every day." I also wanted to track my sleep because it's awful. She bought it without me asking for it nor thinking about it. Being a school teacher who never sits down and constantly paces around the room, I average 20,000 steps a day (on work days). Think that's a bit high though, to be honest with you. I wake up 2-3 times per night on average. I've been contemplating seeing a sleep specialist because of it (not because what the Fitbit is telling me). The Fitbit is a great tool. The app is a bit bare bones, and the "active minutes" is a bit inflated IMO, but nothing's perfect. I guess compared to a sedentary office worker it isn't inflated though. If you like the non-HR Fitbit, the Charge HR would most likely be a good investment. I just don't like how you can't get the time or anything else to constantly display. But I guess I'm used to it. Their app has friend challenges. No idea how to do it/set it up. If you're interested and know how, PM me. It could keep us both motivated.

It's pretty continuous. That includes a few minutes to warm up and a few at the end to cool down. The first few days were brutal. I learned how to pace myself pretty quickly though. It was pretty hard not to go all out. I pace myself by watching my heart rate. I have a Fitbit Charge HR which shows my pulse by pressing a button. According to my Fitbit app, here's what my last workout looked like... 20 minutes in the peak HR (heart rate) zone 30 minutes in the cardio HR zone 3 minutes in the fat burn zone 53 minutes total 148 average beats per minute 743 calories burned 14 cal/minute I don't do timed rounds. I'll do sets of 20 techniques, i.e. 20 front kicks each leg, 20 roundhouse, 20 side kicks. I go back into a stance each time, but I don't stop between kicks, sides or types of kicks. I'll get a bit winded and my legs will get tired after that, so I'll usually go to punches, say jab and cross while moving forward. Basically, I'll do sets of 20; either single techniques or combinations. If I need to back off a bit, I'll do 20 of something at a slower pace or not as hard. Once I'm ready, I'll increase the intensity. Not intentionally, but I'll usually start off concentrating on form, then I'll focus more on speed, then I'll focus more on power. When I get really tired, I'll slow down and really focus on form. If I'm exhausted, I'll just move around the bag concentrating on my footwork and hand positioning. I don't go in with a set plan, I just do what feels right. Looking at a graph of my HR, I'm doing a good job of alternating max HR with cardio zone HR. Basically, interval training. I don't know if the number of calories burned is accurate, but the HR is close enough. And my clothes are soaked. And there's drops of sweat all over the floor. Keep in mind you're probably hitting the bag as a station, not as the sole training. That'll make getting a good and long rhythm going pretty difficult. Sorry for the long post!

My diet is pretty well balanced between protein carbs and fat. I'm not big on tracking that stuff, but I was tracking calories and what I ate to see if things needed to be changed. No one's diet is perfect, and neither is mine by any means. But it's realistic. I just eat a little less. If I hit a wall, I'll track that stuff closer. I've bet using my Fitbit and the app that goes with it. Mainly for heart rate and number of calories.

One of my 2016 goals was to get under 200 lbs. On January 4th, I weighed 220.3 lbs. This morning I weighed 212.2 lbs. I've been hitting a Wavemaster XXL 3-4 times per week for 45 minutes-1 hour. I use combinations and at different points in the workout emphasize technique, speed, and all out power. My clothes are so soaked with sweat afterwards that I've actually been able to wring out a few drops of sweat a few times. My weight loss has been aided by one simple but major dietary change - I drink nothing but water. Since January 4th, I've had 4 bottles of soda total. Before that, it was 2-3 per day. Food portions have gotten a bit smaller too, but negligibly so. At this rate (I know I'll plateau) I'll have no problem getting under 200. So a new goal is necessary... Make my high school senior year wrestling weight by my 40th birthday on June 25. I've got a few days short of 6 months to get to 177 lbs. Going to have a friend check my body fat percentage to see where I stand.

To further my previous post... When exercising, you're actually damaging tissues. This damage is good, so long as you don't overdo it, and give it enough time to rest. The body's response will be to repair the tissue stronger than it was so that it doesn't happen again. This process brings inflammation. One or more of the chemical mediators in the inflammatory response blocks motor nerve signals as a defense mechanism; you can't move it, so you can't further damage it. The body doesn't know you're intentionally damage it. Instead of stopping when those chemicals are released (and it's not a total paralysis, only partial), we start compensating. The compensation manifests in poor mechanics. Part of "the burn" you feel during repeated exercise is lactic acid (a waste product of metabolic processes), and part of it is the inhibiting chemicals. These are perfectly normal, within reason. Passing out or the like there isn't. Everyone's line of enough and too much is different. The more you work out and push yourself, the better you understand that line.

Your body isn't recovering quickly enough. There are a few different processes the body uses to make ATP (what the body uses for energy). Glycolysis, Krebs Cycle, fermentation, and one or two others. Regardless of the process, oxygen is needed to convert stuff into energy, and to break stuff apart. The harder you work, the more energy needed. The more energy needed, the more oxygen needed. The more muscles you use, the more arteries and capillaries open up to oxygenate and feed those muscles (oxygen is carried by red blood cells). The more blood needed in the muscles, the less there is available to the brain. Aerobic and anaerobic exercise will cut down on the effect you're experiencing. Your body will make more red blood cells, and grow more capillaries (where oxygen diffuses out of your blood and CO2 diffuses into your blood) in your lungs and muscles. IMO the most effective way to get into "fighting shape" is interval training. Short bursts of very high intensity exercise followed by short bursts of medium intensity exercise. On a heavy bag, it could be maximum power and speed punches for a minute, followed by footwork with light punches for a minute. Lather, rinse, repeat. If running, or would be alternating periods of all out sprinting and jogging. Regardless of what you're doing, the key is to get your heart rate up near max for a short duration (that'll actually seem like forever), then let it go back down to a cardio rate to recover, then back up again. Experts will bicker about how long each interval should be. None of them who know what they're talking about will disagree that interval training is the most effective way to get results. Look up interval training and play around with the numbers until you find your optimum results. All of this assumes you don't have any underlying health issues, of course.

Maybe it's all the Pinan and Kanku combined into one super kata that's about 75 steps. I'm going to have to say it's not though.

Yep...the adage says... "There's no such thing as a dumb question." I had a professor in college say "There's no such thing as a stupid question, only stupid people." I still chuckle every time I hear the first part of that one, about 20 years later. Every student will go through a time where they just "don't get it." Sometimes they don't even realize it; they've been doing something for a while thinking what they were doing is right, but in actuality it's wrong. But that's another thread. No teacher will ever be able to teach/explain every single technique and concept to every single student every single time. The best teachers will have a variety of ways to convey their lesson. The best teachers will also be confident enough in themselves to either have an assistant or senior student explain it in a different way, or ask a colleague for pointers.

I'm right handed as well. I still hit the bag right hand forward to work on bringing up my strength on that side. And I'm fully comfortable fighting that way, as that's the way I've done it since day one. If I needed to defend myself right now, I'd be right hand forward without thinking about it. During sparring, I catch myself trying to go right hand forward out of frustration. I immediately switch sides and force myself to stay left forward. That's the only way I'm going to get fully comfortable and confident with it. I've been taking a beating lately because of it, but it'll end. Hopefully sooner than later. I've noticed a few people switching up their stance in an attempt to throw me off. That's actually been easier to deal with for me. They quickly switch back.

Kathryn's been improving a lot lately. She had trouble with her roundhouse kick and basic blocks, but she's really caught on and getting quite good at them. The assistant instructor gave her a great compliment last week - she told Kathryn how she loves having her in class because she always tries her best, doesn't get distracted by a few of the others, and it's easy to tell she loves class. Today was her first "failure" so to speak. The instructors pulled out 1" pine boards and let the students break them with a downward heel kick. Kathryn (and one student a few years older than her) couldn't break it. She tried several times, but kept hesitating at the very last second, and didn't get through the board. The parent sitting next to me chuckled about how focused and determined she was. She kept her composure very well. After they bowed out, she started crying when I went over to her. I knew she was sad, but didn't think she'd cry. Before she started crying, I was getting ready to tell her how proud of her I was. I told her I was proud that she tried her best and didn't give up, no matter how hard it was. The kids all surprised me by how supportive they were too. She also thought I'd be upset that she didn't break it. I asked her if I've ever gotten mad at her when she tried her best and didn't give up. She said no, but it didn't still help much. All I could do was hug her and kiss her and tell her how much I love her and how proud of her I am. She wanted to keep the board to practice at home.

I've been working out hard using a heavy bag this month, as part of my 2016 MA goals. I've hit heavy bags before, but not consistently; it was more of here and there with no real order to things. I've been hitting the bag for 45 minutes to 1 hour 3-4 days a week. On my 3rd day, I had a real epiphany, or aha moment... I've been fighting right hand forward for all these years, when I should have been left hand forward. Right hand forward always seemed more fluid, natural and stronger. Hitting the heavy bag full force and at a fast pace (while still maintaining proper mechanics) right hand forward, I'm so much weaker. I've sparred everywhere from bare-knuckle and knockdown to tapping point fighting. The overwhelming majority of my sparring has been medium to heavy contact, and I have no idea why I never saw this. I guess I didn't hit anything full force often enough in a single session to really see it. I've been forcing myself to spar left hand forward every time now. It's like I'm starting over again. My timing is off, but the hardest thing is I have to consciously think of my combinations before I throw them. At the rate it's going, it's going to take a few months before I'm really comfortable. Talk about frustrating.

I hate quoting myself... I guess it was a delusional world. Had an epiphany, as in another thread.

I like the comments in places like YouTube about competitors wearing red and blue belts. Comments like "that guy is really good, why is he only a blue belt?" and "she's not that good, she's only a red belt."

I don't know if you'd be the first to do a 70000 degree spin kick. Most of the astronauts are military people (I assume), and I'd bet one or two are/were martial artists. Even if there weren't martial artists to ever go to space, people get bored. An untold stories of astronauts in space book would probably have some pretty weird things in it.