JR 137

Join a rec dodgeball league for some intense cardio. Or basketball, etc. I hate treadmills and the like.

Please don't spend a large amount of time stretching out daily. You can overstretch your body and doing so will cause you to not perform as well; especially when it comes to static stretches, which a lot of martial arts studios practice. I recently saw a video that used a good metaphor for this: imagine that your muscle is a rubber band. If you put a rubber band in a freezer and then take it out cold and stretch it then the threshold to it breaking is going to be quite low. However, if you stretch that rubber band while it is warm then it can stretch for much longer before breaking. This is true for your muscles as well. When we prepare for any exercising we should be doing dynamic stretches. That is, stretch out while moving and even then we should not be doing this for much more than 5 minutes because, again, when we over stretch we actually create a bigger chance of hurting ourselves. So be careful with your stretching practices. Tension can come from stress and other areas as well. I suggest looking at some relaxation techniques, yoga, or changing the way you stretch if you're just doing static stretches. Static stretching isn't the devil it's been made out to be in other threads (I've contributed to its evil perception). Static stretching is very good when you're not looking to do any real activity afterward. Sitting at a desk for 8 hours? Get up and stretch periodically. Same for if you're driving. And so on. It definitely has its benefits. The thread issue... I think the tension and tightness will go away after you're comfortable in the dojo. New physical stuff, people, expectations, requirements, and so on. Be conscious of it, and keep it in your mind that easing up will help. There's no need to be so stiff.

First and foremost, there's a lot of fake experts out there. Everyone's got some sort of nonsense certification. Personal trainer certification overall is a joke. The better ones are weekend long courses, and all they teach is anatomy. And they do an awful job of it. I say this because I actually unwillingly sat through one. My former boss thought it was a good idea for the athletic department to all get certified as personal trainers. She researched the various agencies, and chose the most respected one. No instruction on how to put together a program, let alone tailor one to specific needs. No instruction on proper lifting technique for any specific exercise. Nothing. I felt that much stupider for having sat through it. The credentials you should respect here in the US are CSCS, PT, OT, ATC, or an exercise science, exercise physiology, human performance, etc. college degree. If they don't have a mention of any of that, skip it. Now to realistically answer your question - trial and error. Be willing to try an approach from a credible source for a set amount of time. Be it 4 weeks, 30 days, etc. Listen to your body. Be methodical as possible.

I took a graduate exercise physiology class about 6 years ago, and my professor had 2 studies confirming that static stretching before competition decreases performance. They were long, professional journal articles. Those studies were submitted by university professors. I can email him and ask him for links if you'd like. But people have varying understanding of what is actually implied by that. The 3 articles linked to above aren't very clear to me. Two of them state/imply don't static stretching before warm-up, and the other says to static stretch after warm-up and before dynamic stretching, thus static stretching before actual competition/performance is good. Let the head scratching continue... What I've found in the research presented to me was any static stretching done before competition/performance decreased performance. It wasn't like short distance sprinters were minutes slower or powerlifters dropped 20 lbs of their max by any means. But static stretchers consistently did worse than when they didn't static stretch before performance. Everyone is agreeing that static stretching should be done after the body is sufficiently warm. What's sufficiently warm? Forget degrees; if you're sweating, you're warm enough. If you're not sweating, you're not ready to stretch (talking about pre-performance stretching, not stretching after a few hours at a desk). I worked in sports medicine for 15 years, most of those years with NCAA Div I men's soccer and men's basketball, with a few years of football thrown in the mix. Anecdotally speaking (not empirically), static stretching before performance (game or practice) was a waste of time. Guys didn't get more flexible, and didn't decrease injuries. Working up a bit of a sweat with things like jogging, high knees, butt-kicks, straight legged kicks to the hands, then doing dynamic stretching was far more beneficial. Flexibility increased, and muscular injuries were less. Add cool-down and finish with static stretching, and the results were the best. Again, that was strictly my observation. I didn't keep statistics. I didn't pay much attention to it until an old boss pointed it out, then I watched for it for a while. Different coaches do different things, and they have their ways. I didn't interfere with what they did. I offered advice when asked, and didn't dwell on it. So to make a long post short... Break a sweat, do some dynamic stretching, practice/compete, cool-down, then static stretch to finish. I know a few strength & conditioning coaches at the professional level (NBA, NFL, NHL), and they all follow that routine in their unique ways.

I really like when you say unless he dreads going AND BEING THERE. Just like with adults, the hardest part is getting off the couch. How many times have we made excuses in our heads to not go to the dojo, gym, relative's house, work, etc., but went anyway, and everything was fine once we got there? I've never made up an excuse in my head not to go to the dojo though. Actually quite the opposite; I try to make excuses to go when more important things come up. The right thing pretty much always happens; it's just a process. Another thing I've seen regarding keeping kids' interest: don't bring it home. Practice is over when they walk to the car. The game is over after coach has his post-game speech. Class is over when they leave the dojo. If they come to you about it later, address it the appropriate way in as short a time as possible. The exception is of course school. Just what I've seen in others and been through as a kid. My oldest daughter just started a week ago, so no true first hand experience to back it up, but I think it's safe to learn from others' mistakes here.

Best of luck to you. Enjoy the process as much as you can. Can't wait to hear about how it goes.

Could've been carpal tunnel syndrome. Most of the "conditioning" techniques aren't at the joints, but rather at long bones - shin, forearms, etc. The hands being the exception. What they're doing is causing micro fractures in the bones. The bones respond by laying down more compact bone to prevent it from happening again. And on and on. Same way muscle is built up during lifting. Muscles are hit too, causing them to "toughen up." In this type of conditioning, your body is also releasing less and less pain perception neurotransmitters. You don't feel as much pain because your body isn't releasing pain chemicals in the area. If done gradually, progressively and correctly, the chances of long-term problems is greatly reduced.

My former school came from my current school. The founders of my former school were Tadashi Nakamura's students when he was in Kyokushin, and they followed him to Seido Juku. When they left Seido, they kept the same basic syllabus up to and including shodan. They stripped it down, however. They put more emphasis on kata, and took out kumite strategy. I left to go away to grad school a few months before testing for nidan. 15 years later, I joined a Seido dojo. The biggest difference is it is very kumite heavy, and emphasis is on kihon and kumite strategy. We do our fair share of kata though. I could demonstrate 100% of the material I learned 15 years prior. It needed sharpening, but my CI was very impressed with what I retained. I only needed learn about 15% of the syllabus to reach shodan. I came in as a white belt (10th kyu). 9 months later, I'm an advanced yellow belt (5th kyu). Before I had the opportunity to ask, which I wouldn't anyway, he said "you can't wear your old belt in here." I didn't have any desire to, nor do I now. I've tested for every rank (double promoted twice), and feel like I'm 100% earning it. Had he told me I could keep my rank from the get go, I probably wouldn't have stayed. A different dojo offered to let me keep it (very close in syllabus), and I'm not there. Not solely because of that, but that kind of spoke to how they do things. That CI knows my former sensei pretty well and respects him, having been a student with him back in the day. So I guess I don't respect keeping rank. But there's an exception to every rule.

To the bold type above... Within the scenario... Everything is wrong with that scenario! If allowed, then I suppose that rank is the most important thing to the students! If rank isn't important to the student, than the student would be proud to wear the while belt. Experience will be respected as it's revealed on the floor; other students will know that said student(s) have experience/knowledge. Also, I feel that rank must be important to you as well, even though you're the instructor. Otherwise, you would've presented them [students] with a white belt without question and/or much discussion, if any. Those students have no rank in your style, so, tell them to wear the white belt and be proud to wear it because that's what they are in your style. Furthermore, you could be allowing this to pad the P&L's bottom line!! In a try to keep a respectable student body count, you allow them to maintain rank ON YOUR FLOOR, even though, they're not ranked in your style. Having said that, away from the scenario, the decision, per this scenario, is up to you. While I don't agree with your decision, which means I don't like your decision, I still respect you for your decision, and I still respect you both as a excellent MA/CI as well as a person; my friendship wouldn't have been waned, not even the slightest. Excellent counterpoint.

Thanks for sharing that one. In a word: absurd. Any weapon is as lethal or non-lethal as the user makes it. A shoe can be, and has been a lethal weapon. Even a gun can be non-lethal; shoot someone in the leg, hit them with the gun, etc. How long's the training? Not that they need years of training to be able to use it effectively, and not that they need to be kobudo experts to use it by any means. I just see them hurting themselves with it. Taser and/or pepper spray work just fine, as does a night stick. The people who complain about LEOs being too harsh are mainly the people who have no clue what they deal with day in and day out. Do some go too far? Of course. But that's the exception, not the norm. Trivia for the day: The standard police issued night stick is modeled after the tonfa. I read it on the internet, so it HAS to be true.

I've seen some cardio kickboxing. There's huge variation between gyms. I don't want to mix the Jane Fonda workout with tapping a Wavemaster standing bag. I want to hit stuff hard for the majority of the time, and break that up with push-ups, squat thrusts/burpees, medicine balls, etc. Hardcore cardio kickboxing, not the Billy Blanks stuff or stuff I see being "taught" at the YMCA to the 60 year old ladies. Maybe I'll develop my own program and sell DVDs. Now to find the motivation and follow through...

I'd have it evaluated by a rehab specialist. PT, OT, ATC, Exercise Physiologist, etc. It's impossible to diagnose/assess you on a forum, but you could have had a seemingly insignificant injury a while back that's forced you to alter your mechanics/compensate. More likely, it could be a postural issue that's being exacerbated by activity. Or other things. You've been treating the symptoms up until now. Seeing a movement and rehab specialist will treat the problem. It could be a quick couple of visits fix, a longer term rehab fix, or even surgical fix. Only one way to find out. None of us are getting any younger. The sooner you take care of it, the sooner it'll get resolved.

Playing devil's advocate, here's a scenario... You and I are professional and personal friends. You teach TSD, I teach kempo. We work out together every now and then. I own a part-time school an hour away. I fully respect you as a MAist and a teacher. We have the same standards, but different syllabi. We're on the same page as to what's expected from various ranks - attitude, spirit, dedication, work ethic, physical standards, and so on. You don't have any students who are ready to become a CI. Not enough experience, but one day they'll be there. Just not now, and not for several years. Life gets in the way, and you've got to move from Phoenix to NY because it's what's best for your family. You're dedicated to your students, and don't want to close shop and tell them to find something else. You ask me to take over the dojo. Having respect for you, your standards, and your teaching, I accept. I know your students have earned their rank and weren't just handed it. They didn't buy it. I allow them to keep their rank, even though it's a different system altogether. I teach them the syllabus as though they just started, and move on when they've shown proficiency. They don't promote until they've demonstrated they're worthy of the next rank in my system. If it takes a year or 5 years, they wear the same belt until they're promoted according to my system/syllabus. Anything wrong with that scenario? Again, I'm sure that rarely happens, but it may be the case. Just playing devil's advocate here.

Solid points, DWx. The students didn't willingly leave one instructor for another. Another instructor inherited them, so to speak. Kind of like teacher to student: "You came to me, therefore you follow my rules" doesn't necessarily apply here. It's more of students to teacher: "You came to us, if you want us to stay with you, you'll respect this one request." It seems like the former instructor told his successor that his students worked hard and earned their rank. If you start a new system, you hold a new rank. There's an exception to every rule, and I'd say this is probably the exception. At the end of the day, they didn't seek him out.

From a pessimistic point of view, you could look at it as money grabbing. From an optimistic point of view, you could view it as the instructor wants people who've proven they are committed MAists, and is doing what it takes, as trivial as letting them wear a different colored, to keep them in the MA. Perhaps this was a condition in the agreement between the instructor leaving, and the one taking over. If I ran a dojo and had someone who wanted to keep their rank, I'd have them wear a white belt for 3 months, then test them and rank them wherever I thought was appropriate, then give a rationale for their rank. If they didn't agree, they can find a different instructor who'll give them whatever they're looking for. By training for 3 months, the students and instructor have s solid idea of the students' strengths and weaknesses. Justification shouldn't be any surprise. My old sensei did this when people came from different schools/styles of karate. Most stayed, some left. There was no contract to cause any money issues. One that really sticks out was a 3rd dan from a McDojo. My sensei was generous with ranking him at advanced brown belt. He told the student once he filled in the gaps of the syllabus, he'd test him for shodan 3-6 months afterward (depending on when the test falls). The guy got a bit mouthy and said "I'm a sandan," to which my sensei replied "in my dojo, you're whatever I rank you; you can be a 10th dan anywhere else. Outside here isn't my business, in here is." The guy's skill level looked like he learned everything from YouTube videos without any feedback. This was before YouTube, so it wasn't the case. He did know sandan level stuff in other schools, but there wasn't much behind his physical memorization of stuff.

I think the people who would be willing to do this are practicing other styles/systems such as muay Thai, MMA, boxing, etc. They're basically the today's contemporaries to the people from the "golden age" of karate. If those schools didn't exist or have the popularity they currently do, I think hard-style karate training would be far more common. Or perhaps those people weren't getting that hard training from the average karate dojo and looked for it elsewhere. Which came first, the chicken or the egg? I also think full-contact fell out of favor because students were pushed into the deep end too soon. Society has changed. For the better, but there are still some things, such as discipline and sheer willpower that have suffered as a consequence. People view it as they view their health - they want a quick fix in the form of a pill or crash diet. Slow and steady isn't fast enough.

When teaching(or posting in this case) , i tend to speak to the the "MASSES". the masses can attain the concept of "straight line is easiest" while very few(talking 1% or less) can develop "shifting,torque,combo,angles,etc" to be an effective concept. Sort of like watching Lebron james and trying to teach everyone to do slam dunks from the free throw line, why teach it when a hand full of humans can do it out of 8,000,000,000 on earth. The concept of dunking from the free throw line is possible but i rather teach doing "layups" as everyone can accomplish it. I am sure a handful of humans on earth can catch a punch in mid full speed UNREHEARSED flight, but why teach that? Teaching unattainable concepts and techniques is honestly detrimental to anyone (IN MY OPINION). I can try and do my Lebron Free throw dunks for my entire life time and NEVER EVEN COME CLOSE to doing it. "I just wasted my life time trying to be LEBRON"..... Disclaimer: Listen to your instructor over a random person(ME) posting on the internet. I'm trying to understand what you're trying to say, but for the life of me..I'm lost! By "while very few(talking 1% or less) can develop "shifting,torque,combo,angles,etc" to be an effective concept."..are you sying that very few people can learn and use the fundamental techniques and properties of the martial arts??? In over 30 years of teaching the arts using just those concepts you mention, it's been my experiencve that the vast MAJORITY of people can learn, and use, those techniques. It just takes time, practice and effort. Yup, people can "learn and do" but can they actually be applied effectively is the real question. since you mentioned that you have 30 years of experience teaching and you started in 1975 in your profile. Really hate to do this(as you see i just put Karate and no rank on my profile) in 1975 i was a nidan and as a sandan in 1979 Kata and Kumite champion of a very large organization. In the early 1980's had coverage of big traditional Karate tournaments i have won covered by Major Martial Arts Magazines...... enough about rank and accolades..... But it seems that ones "dan/rank" is important to many here. Rank is important but not the only defining factor of ones knowledge. If one has great Karate and APPLIED it in competition,training and students success, the "dan/rank" becomes less important... i could care less about my rank, Karateka know what i did and what i do. that is enough. Does anyone know who holds what rank? I believe sensei8 is an 8th dan, and I'm assuming Nidan Melbourne is a 2nd dan, but that's all I know. Rank doesn't matter. Ability, experience, and the drive to improve are what's important. Even people here who are just starting out have valuable things to say that make me consider a different point of view.

Is this a chronic/recurring problem, or is it a new thing? If it's a new problem, chances are you can treat the symptoms with things like heat, ice, massage, etc. Chronic and/or recurring tends to get pretty tricky. Usually those in that area are caused by either poor posture, poor biomechanics, or both. One can lead to the other as well. In that instance, stuff like massage, heat, and even acupuncture are treating the symptoms, and not the problem. Fixing the problem can range from a few rehab visits to many visits followed by some long term maintenance. The best thing to do if it's recurring is to see a movement specialist, be it a physical therapist, occupational therapist, athletic trainer (not personal trainer), exercise physiologist, etc. Someone with formal training and experience with kinesiology/biomechanics and reconditioning exercise. Treating the issue symptomaticly is like treating pneumonia with cough drops. Yes, the cough drops will help ease your cough and sore throat pain, but it's not curing anything. You need antibiotics in your lungs were the infection is. Putting a heating pad and rubbing knots out of your muscles will provide temporary relief without correcting the reason why it's constantly hurting. If the problem is recurring, treating it symptomaticly will eventually not work anymore.

That is great. But i mean "MASSES". not 1x1 or small groups. To develop a large(1,000's - 1,000,000's) of followers, the Head of the organization needs to be politically correct. That is just how it is. He has great points, but the great ambassadors of Karate are pretty nice about what they say about other "KARATEKA". Anyone can open a dojo, but to become well known it takes a lot of sacrifices to what true KARATE / Martial Arts is. Sacrifices like "softening" ones teaching and requirements. He will learn later when he gets older and his "Dojo" has a ceiling of a handful of students. There are plenty of schools that didn't "sell out" and water down their arts because of numbers. Even in the US. While Kyokushin is more splintered than a windshield that was hit with a brick, they've got big numbers. World Oyama karate, Enshin, etc. Then there's a Muay Thai, kickboxing, boxing, MMA, and so on. I think that here in the US, karate has been stereotyped as a kids' point fighting art across the board. Wrongly so, but it is what it is. The people who would have taken full-contact or hard nosed karate are basically going to the MT, kickboxing, MMA gyms rather than karate. If these options weren't available, I'm sure it would be like it was in karate's "golden age." Not that I'm saying full-contact is the only type of karate that's worth anything or even effective. I study Seido Juku, and it's not knockdown like Kyokushin. The McDojos are what they are. But if you look around, there's plenty of serious karateka and dojos around. They're just not advertising and/or on every corner with huge signs and posters. They'd rather you come to them than them coming to you.

My strategy is very simple - hit harder than my opponent hits me, and hit him far more than he hits me. If only I had a way to implement that every single time. I'm trying my best to change up my timing (or lack thereof) by hitting my opponent before my opponent can finish his strike. I guess it can be summed up by punching them once I see them preparing to strike. I've been taking a beating lately because of it, but it's all in the name of improvement, so hopefully it'll pay off soon.

I'm right handed, and stand left handed in sparring. I thought it would be a disadvantage because my strong side is forward, but paying close attention to, I don't stand right hand forward all the time; throwing combinations and backing someone up, it's like I'm walking forward and alternating which hand and foot are forward. Keep me of hard to describe. I've tried to stay left foot forward, but I'm slower and don't move nearly as well. I guess I'm pretty much ambidextrous and ambi-foot-rous. My right sets up my left, which leads to my right. I rarely throw less than 3 techniques in a combo. It works for me. Or at least it does in my possibly delusional world.

The kinetic bands will definitely work. My issue with them (other than what I previously mentioned) is that I can't get a full range of motion with them. You need a very long band, and it needs to have some tension on it from before you start the kick.

Going too fast with this isn't going to end well IMO. The weight pulling back on you at the end will torque/twist your knees, hips and spine. Not a good thing. I do them at a good pace, but I'm not trying to get lightning speed in my kicks while the pulley is attached. I think it's all in that split second pause - knee up, extend the lower leg, bring it back, then back down into stance. As crazy as it sounds, front kick feels so much better out of zenkutsu dachi when the weight is attached. The biggest benefit I've felt during class is my balance has improved a lot. I'm not trying lean nearly as much to counterbalance. My center of gravity is so much closer to where it should be while kicking. I'm rooted more while throwing kicks and can concentrate the power into the target rather than trying to stay on my feet. No, I wasn't all over the place before, and my kicks were pretty strong; this has just taken them to the next level. Gotta figure out how to make roundhouse kicks comfortable with pulleys attached. I'm doing something wrong, but I'm not sure what.

Thanks to both of you. The hardest thing for me was not teaching from my chair. In the beginning of class when the students took turns counting to 20 in Japanese (during warmups/stretching), my CI said "let's all help Kathryn learn how to count in Japanese by counting with her." I wanted to tell him to let her count because she knows how, but I bit my tongue. During sparring, I almost walked over to her and told her not to make contact, but I told myself to let the teachers teach. It's her journey, not mine. I'll try my best to let her take it where she thinks it should go, but I'be got to guide her journey too. Kind of like reinforcing a tree so it'll grow straight and not fall over. I meant to post this the first time, but somehow forgot... In the car on the way home, I asked her if she knew what "no contact" means. She said no. I chuckled and told her I'd show her when we get home. Mushybees- Have you considered not teaching when your daughter takes class? Kids usually respond differently to others when it comes to teaching. Teaching anything, really. My daughter gets a bit silly, then whines pretty quickly when she starts to get frustrated when she thinks she can't do something. She gets too hard on herself when my wife or I are teaching her. She's totally different when it's someone else working with her. A lot of kids are like that.

The therabands just feel different. And the resistance seems to dramatically increase when they're nearly fully stretched. I could see some people hating the cable resistance feel and loving the bands. The downside to the pulleys is momentum. Therabands do a better job of minimizing it IMO.