Charlotte

I have a couple of degenerated discs and I'm using a combination of weights and resistance bands. My doctor just informed me that the prescription of rest or inactivity for back problems is no longer considered appropriate. My resistance bands are Bodylastics and Lifeline, so I'm able to actually use some significant resistance with them and both have door anchors. bushido-man's routine is excellent and the foundation for my weight routine has always been 3X6 Military Press, Curls, Bench Press, Bent Over Rowing, and 3X20 Squats. A one arm dumbbell row is easier on my back than a bent over barbell row and I place my other hand on a bench for support. Note that I said that this is the foundation of my conditioning program. The 20 rep squats are brutal and the rewards are great so my only variation in the squats is the inclusion of leg curls, leg extensions and one leg at a time straight leg kick back using bands or one leg hip lift on the floor. Cleans, clean and press and snatches are ideal exercises for martial arts conditioning and I swap them out for the military press and curls on a whim basis. Bench Press is either augmented or replaced with flyes and pullovers. I try not to do the same routine for more than 2 weeks at a time, but squats are the constant and the mental framework is always Press, curl, bench press, rowing and squats. My back seems to do better with rowing using resistance bands and a door anchor and a version of a dead lift using the door anchor in the low position I use the ankle cuffs on my forearms just below the elbow and then cross my arms. You will need to have a front stance for this one and switch the forward foot midway through each set. I have 2 medicine balls, 4 lb and 6 lb. I go to the local elementary school after hours and do a variety of wall slams and find that a great anaerobic training session. Remember to prioritize stretching as well.

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f60/22junkie/taichi_zps9oc9qiet.gifThis is tai chi, notice any similarities?

TKD, karate and Okinawa-te tend to be taught from the perspective of position. Even some chinese systems are position based and position is never unimportant, but there is a tradition of martial arts that places more emphasis on flow. The flow systems are really enlightening to someone coming from a position based system. The problem I see with your inquiry, (I like the question and I'm not being dismissive) is that the question is much bigger. The block does not exist in a vacuum, it comes from a flow from there to here. I never understood the X block until I got involved in Filipino Kali and realized that it wasn't what I thought it was. Any block is loaded from the previous position out of necessity and any competent system is going to be consistent with that. Position based systems obscure the loading principle, but it is there and once you see it classical martial arts start to look a lot more interesting.

I have to admit that something about the term "Master" has always irked me. I have no problem showing genuine respect nor am I against formal courtesy, but there is something about the "Master" thing that I've just never been able to reconcile. I have used the terms Sa Bum and Sa Bum Nim, Sensei, Guro, Guru, and Sifu and never felt squeamish, but "Master" tends to lock me down in a way that is difficult to articulate. You have been around people at some point that either didn't like you, or looked down on you and you knew it by feel. You would find it difficult to tell someone else why you knew, but there is no way you can deny to yourself that your perceptions are valid. I'm chiming in, not because I think I'm right and that the use of "Master" should be deleted, but to try and clarify to myself what it is specifically that makes me choke on the use of the term. I've done some serious training in my life, with some seriously good and intense martial artists and then seen people that I don't feel have done what I have, or achieved what I have achieved being called Master just because someone somewhere gave them another certificate. There is a difference between calling someone Mr. or Mr. Adams. Mister Adams is appropriate and respectful, but just the use of the word Mister without the name feels inappropriate. 'Yes, Mister' or 'Yes, Mr. Adams'. 'Yes, Master', or 'Yes, Master Adams'. To me, there is a world of difference in this distinction.

Hi folks, I spent the better part of 30 years in martial arts and got sidetracked by a combination of politics and family. I have been inactive since the mid 90's and I've spent the last 3 months just preparing my body for a modest return to the physicality of martial arts practice. I'm planning on being rather reclusive with my practice, but still have the twitch to socialize and miss the tournament scene. I have done some training with members of the Korean Army TKD Instructor Group and though I've been lucky enough to train in JKD, Tang Soo Do, Muay Thai, Savate, etc., the Oh Do Kwan system as taught by the ROK army in the late 1960's is where my heart is.