Hudson1984

HI all, i'm wanting to up my flexibility training, I work from home so was thinking of getting a DVD that has a stretching routine I could follow. I've got a kettlebell one I use on lunch break for strength development but want something for flexibility. Going for Purple belt next week and my aim is full box splits by black belt. really appreciate some recommendations. Don't really want to use youtube if I can help it, would rather stick to a DVD

Yeah but really very close, couple of hours drive each way. U have actually found one in Bury St Edmund which is about 90 mind drive but they have Sunday sessions so I've emailed asking if they'd mind me coming along on a fortnightly basis, after all I will still be practicing during the week in stye that are hopefully similar in some respects - I'm not expecting to progress as quickly as I have with shotokan however being as I'm looking for additions to shotokan it might work out well. This would mean crosstraining three styles, I'll get fitter for sure! And hopefully get the all round effectiveness I'm aiming for. I'll keep you all posted....have to start a blog lol

Cheers all have to drop.in or give them a bell. I'll do a bit of research on the style too. Hopefully I can tick my box off one way or another

Hiya. Areas pretty small to be fair it's only really a pain going form town to town like here to Norwich or into ipswich, trying to do that regularly is a right pain First suggestion I actually looked at too before I started shotokan but no one ever came back to me unfortunately but had dismissed it since as I don't know a lot about the style but if it adds what I'm looking for it might well be worth having another look Second is a no. Trained there before, my opinion is it wasn't great. People go certain enjoy it but it definitely isn't kyokyushin. It's many centred around the mma scene. I never felt a great trust in the instructor either to be honest.

I'm in Lowestoft. There are classes but unfortunately they are around 90 mins drive from me which mean I'd have to leave work early which I just can't do unfortunately. I'm prepared to travel for classes for sure but at the same time I have to be practical and 90 mins to and from class just isn't feasible for me. But haven't looked at Goju Ryu so that's another one to take a look at but judo is ideal if it pans out, class is twenty mins away and the sensei does private lessons which is perfect. But yes would love to give kyokushin a go, just haven't seen any classes that I could get to regularly unfortunately

east coast on England

HI all, yeah I’ve looked at kyokushin and it certainly appears to give absolutely everything I’m looking for – unfortunately the closest Dojo for me is 90 mins away which whilst isn’t really too far for me (I drive a lot for work so no problem there) the times make it impossible as I finish work too late to get there in time, which for training regularly makes things impractical. Oh well get those lottery numbers going and we’ll see!! Shindokan is unfortunately a worse situation – can’t find anything in my county or the neighbouring one so that’s really definitely out. Muay thai – there’s possibility here though, lots of kickboxing clubs around near me, and some have a pretty good rep for being great places to train – I’ll keep this as a maybe though as none of them are traditional. I practiced kickboxing at the start of the year and the local club I used is unfortunately geared toward the less educated members of society who want to learn something quickly and just have a brawl rather than spending time perfecting a technique, instructor spent majority of the lesson in his office and just had things written on a blackboard!! Was more like boxercise at the local gym. This kinda left me seeking a more traditional training style. I am a bit limited to what’s within suitable distance (which I should’ve stated at the start really….my bad!) and at the same time I want to ensure it enhances me as a rounded practitioner rather than teaching me contradictory techniques – as per Kendo as mentioned at the top TKD was the route I actually looked into first – unfortunately the instructor recommended against cross training and as such I’d rather not disrespect their wishes so that one is off the cards. Practical options for me are: (some are still a good drive but I’m looking more at class times and my work commitments) Ji-Jitsu – My friend teaches the class, he’s a great instructor however it’s geared more toward street defence and weapons which isn’t my cup of tea really Judo – This does actually appeal to me, no kicks or strikes of course but then I could speak with my Karate instructor (I take private lessons too) and just show patience and add more kicks, there seem to be a lot of kicks we do not practice at the moment which I could ask for – tobi geri’s for instance. But Judo would seem to complement Shotokan by filling in the gaps – and the gradings are geared around tournaments so it could be ideal. Kung-fu – as above really, tried it, doesn’t seem complementary to current training Ninjitsu – Don’t know anything about it other than ninja connotations, max class size is 10 so could be good training. Aikido – It’s at the club where I train Karate, good instructor, good class, but looks a little light and theatrical to me (feel free to correct me there) I think I’d take Judo over Aikido as it seems that your opponent doesn’t need to be willing to help lol, I like the idea of throwing someone who is trying not to be thrown. Hapkido/Kuk Sul – Again, I know the instructor here, very well respected. Don’t know a lot about the art though, from what I’ve seen it’s again a little theatrical? Freestyle Karate – REALLY not my cup of tea, I see these guys at tournaments, yes they win points and trophies but if they ever tried to use the techniques in anything other than a points match they’d be broken in tiny pieces – that’s not for me. Kickboxing/Muay thai – listed above SO! After some rambling, I’m going to have a bash at Judo and discuss my training with my Sensei with regards to kicks, I’ve also signed up for a 3Ks Karate seminar next weekend and a weekend seminar in November so this should ramp up what I feel I’m missing. Adding Judo also opens the door to different competitions too meaning at some events I can take part in multiple sections which would be cool. I am after all only Yellow belt in Karate and need to slow down with expectations – my concern was the lack of focus on kicks throughout the syllabus but I’ve been reassured that this is mainly due to the head instructor having knee surgery this year and is taking things a little easy until he’s back to health as kicking is his main strength too. I’ll keep you posted on progress though. I’m quite excited about the prospect of working through two systems at a time, seems a fun journey to me.

Hi all, Thanks for the replies it’s certainly food for thought. It comes down to this: Deck: it’s 8m wide and 4.6m deep, so 36.8m2 of space to play with – the Mrs wants to still be able to use it for sitting on the garden furniture, BBQs and stuff like that so that really eat’s up a minimum of 4m of width – so I’m now down to 4m x 4.6m. A 4m x 4m Log cabin that’s comfortable is around £2000 roughly, which is double glazed etc (get’s cold here and I have to work there too) but add a desk and filing cabinet etc. and we’re getting less and less space to play with – but of course, it’s in my garden, I could train properly on lunch breaks and after work and whenever the hell I pleased so that’s a big plus. Rental: locally the shop I mentioned above is £250 a month, plus bills so probably another £100 on top as it wouldn’t be liable for business rates. So we’re @ £350 a month or £4200 a year – yes much more money, but opens the door to subletting it to smaller clubs or just people like me who want to train so could claw some of that back, a friend of mine teaches Jujitsu and I know he’d certainly like to use some of the space. The space provides 500sq.ft or 47m2. Which is certainly good for all options. SO… I think if I go deck option I’m committed to solo training really, maybe a bit of pad work but certainly no sparring unless I’m really clever with the space, but it’s much cheaper – especially if I build the thing myself rather than buying a log cabin type thing. Watch this space – by xmas something will have been decided (find out if the job situation changes 16th October)

Hi all, been practicing Shotokan a little while now and loving it. Recently though I've felt like I need more Kumite practice and also would like to add more kicks to my arsenal. so thought I'd add to Karate with other forms....Tried Kempo last night, now they are certainly a fantastic bunch and what they can do is amazing but unfortunately I'm left feeling that it's so far away from Karate that i'll never really be very good at it and it might be to the detriment of my karate training. So, what would you lot recommend? I want to compete in 2016, I've tried a couple of local tournaments and loved it - not the best tournaments but they've left me wanting to progress which is good - so I want to skill up more, become a more rounded artist so what mixes well with Shotokan? I'm not really interested in Freestyle type arts, I'd much rather learn something that takes years and has history and apply that to tournaments where applicable rather than learn purely "sport karate" etc. any help/advice would be great

hmm think i might end up going the rental route. the decking is 8m x 4.5m which is a nice size but the mrs wants room for table and chairs and we have a pretty big BBQ so I'd be left with about 4m of the width (at most) and the full 4.5m depth. I don't think that's enough once I put the desk in there etc. I have found a small property that might be a possibility though, 5m x 5m main room and 5m x 3.5m back room. Back room for office front room for training.... not too expensive either and I know a couple of small martial arts clubs that might like to hire the floor so there might be legs for this one

thanks for the replies guys. Will have to have a measure out. The deck is already made so it'll be a case of seeing if there is actually room to do what I want and leave enough deck space for garden furniture like the mrs wants if not i'll opt for the rental and have something a little larger

Hiya, I have an Rdx strike shield, focus mitts, hand wraps skipping ropes and a few other bits..... So I guess I've got some experience. I love it. Good quality/price now I'm sure compared to more commercial stuff that's intended for daily bashing it probably isn't as good but for my needs its all been perfect. I have the large curved strike shield and it takes a good bashing, but only had it a few months so not sure about durability, seems good though. I would say that I'd recommend getting the cheaper version of the two as the one I have only has small handles so you can't get your arms through them to hold it tight aghast the body....but I still like it and already looking at getting the other one Anyway, could ramble on, pros and cons to all of their stuff but in terms of quality it's a brand I'd have no problem recommending. If I want actual equipment I generally look to rdx first

Hi all, I'm in a bit of a transition phase with work. I've got the possibility of working from home coming up and need a place to be able to work properly....away from the TV and other distractions. So I'm contemplating making an office on the deck at the bottom of the garden. The could be big enough to house a desk and bits for work and also a bit of a training area. My query is how big do I really need it? I'd be training mostly alone but sometimes with a sparring partner. But mainly I want to have a space I can use regularly to work on flexibility and technique and some body weight exercising. The choice is really between building my own (or purchasing a log cabin type summer house) or just renting a local building. I'm in two minds, but would welcome thoughts. Obviously having something at the bottom of the garden would be great but I'd hate to put all my eggs in the build route for it to turn out to be too small to work and have sunk the funds into something that I don't end up being able to use...

Hey there, To be honest it wasn't really a direct comeback. I did shotokan as a child and we moved away I then tried taekwondo as a young teen, then moved onto jujitsu as my friend taught the class. I stopped when I joint the merchant navy and hadn't done anything since. Years of inactivity and desk jobs have taken their toll on my waste line and I joined the gym with my partner but to be honest I find it really monotonous so joined a local kickboxing class really out of dumb luck seeing a sign on the door. Fitness has been slowly coming back and I've found myself missing a traditional dojo (the kickboxing class is mainly an mma type thing which whilst it has its merits is not really taking me down the path I want) so I sought out a local club and have started having private lessons and will be attending my first class session tomorrow. It's been amazing to relearn old skills and I'm loving the prospect of working through the grades

Hi all, new guy here. I'm 30 based in the UK and just getting back into karate after a very long break (YEARS) I do shotokan and kickboxing (mainly for fitness) Hope to speak to you all soon