Rich

The way karate is meant to be practised, which is basically to deal desicively and brutally with any attacker at the outset of their violent escalation, makes size a moot point. Size only becomes an issue when you engage in a struggle- end the fight before then if possible. Even after you engage, the idea is to avoid and unload your arsenal without giving them room to reply. There are many smaller people who have used these skills to prevail, sometimes repeatedly. Developing the right attitude, learning to overcome the adrenal dump and developing a few basic techniques under stressful conditions will enable you to stand a good chance in a 'self preservation' situation- which is NOT a fight. Rich

Please can I request that no one puts nails into trees that are alive- much better to wrap soft, thick rope around the tree and then you can train all different strikes and kicks. Cheers, Bob. Sounds like you have a good space. Mine is smaller so I am going to fit holders to the walls for bo , jo, sword and my weight bars. Free weights are an important addition to your equipment IMO- forgot to mention mine until Bob brought it up. Fireka- sounds like you have a good place. Being Taoistically inclined I think training outside in nature is great. You might want to try the rope around tree at different heights for striking and conditioning- please take it easy and build up gradually if you aren't doing this already. I have to disagree Sho-Ju on over training. It's very easy- in fact for some exercising more than twice a week is counter productive. Some can go all day everyday, others are the complete opposite. For body weight exercises (ie sit ups and squats and push ups) try doing a few less than what you can normally do, then further on in the day do the same again (make sure you dont get anywhere near failure at any time) , then again later in the day repeat. Do for two or three weeks and then see just how many you can actually do before failure of each type. This may suit your body and if so you will be very pleasantly surprised. LOL! Shu-jo. My beer consumption has gone up a bit too much of late too Regards to all Rich

I am converting a room into dojo at present- mats and a heavy bag would be the basics I would say. If you wish to reform, not deform, your hands one method I was given by an accomplished chap was to soak hands in vinegar, then have partner GENTLY swing heavy bag at your held fist and do many reps. Afterwards soak hands in brine- rubbing it in. Over about a year you increase the intensity of the impacts, but stick to about three times a week sessions. Remember to take this incredibly slowly, if at all- I would advise getting a conditioning instructor though. HTH Rich

You are a gentleman. Thank you Rich

Cheers Bob Knew I could rely on you PS where's the cudgel etc stuff, mate? Best wishes Rich

I remember a 100 person kumite recounted in which the guy testing was a small japanese fellow. he was up against large caucasian guys but he defeated all because his commitment, spirit, conditioning and technique were all good. You could do worse than follow him! rich

To means a dagger or a curved sword with a single edge. Other examples: shuto (knifehand) ura shuto (one name for ridge hand) LOL! Knew someone would bring up heel but my educated guess would be that there is another character 'to' or that the Japanese have decided to call it a 'sword something' although would beat me why. Anyone here know the answer to this one? Regards Rich

Notice 'mind like water' that each of the attackers were fairly passive, at least towards our friends here. A grab is passive, a punch not at you is passive (to you) and a headlock is fairly passive. If the attacker had laid in with strikes from the offset the outcome could have been very different. I'm not taking anything away from our friends just pointing out to you that aggressive action, pre emptively if possible, is your best way out of a seriously dangerous situation with the odds in your favour. I wont start relaying any of my stories as they are not clever or worthy of adulation. The one instance I will give was a huge guy I defeated psychologically as I am proud of that. He was kicking ten barrells of s**t out of someone when I implored him to stop. He ran up to me and then I realised he was my height 6' 3" and twice as big so I decided given his propensity for serious harm (the other caho was a bloody mess) that should he even flinch and lower the three or so feet between us then I was going straight for his throat etc. and I tried to 'project' this to him. I waited in shizen, weight slightly forward focussing on his throat. He had squared up to me but stopped and what seemed like ages passed although it could only have been a few seconds, looked puzzled all of a sudden and then legged it off down the road as fast as he could. An instance of 'sakki' or just plain ol' psychology? I couldn't care less to be honest. Best to avoid all violence if possible, cross the street and sit on your ego if necessary. Regards Rich

chh no, 'to' indicates cutting edge although I havent the exact translation. it helps to look at other jap words if in doubt to help with context. in this case you have tanto and possibly you may have seen ninja-to. there are some odd bladed weapons too with to suffix. soku, is used in reference to many foot strikes in different directions and with different parts of foot. sokushi ken and sokugyaku ken for instance. hth rich

Glad you're Ok. Hope your grounding wasnt to do with smoke bomb experiments?!? Regards Rich

Ive just been 'playing' with some of the theories and bits derived from Chinese thought. We all know pressure points exist- although how easy they are to access is debatable in a real live situation. We all know correct body dynamics can make techniques appear 'magical'. Apart from that the rest is b***s. Because of my conclusions and experiments I searched for anyone else who had done some, and found that a Sussex Shotokan group had done some 'as near to scientific experiments as you're going to get'. The results were all based on expectation of the practitioners and students. As a keen amateur psychologist I was testing expectancy response in a much smaller, less rigourous way. I hadn't taken my own expectancy into account initially which proved interesting. Rich

Conditioning is not dangerous as long as you do it slowly amd carefully.As one wise instructor put it: reform not deform. It is also a very useful thing to have for the street- although I agree if you just practise for sport or fun then it is unnecessary. Rich

KA are you still about? Fireka- was looking forward to your reply to my post . Hope you both are OK. Rich

Not sure I'm too keen on pushing off with the supporting foot. As I train for self preservation balance is very important so the support foot must be very stable. The worst case scenario is slippery conditions ie mud or rain so I try to practise on polished floors when I can, in smooth socks- sure highlights problems with balance. If done properly squats should be fine IMO. Hindu squats are also fine if done properly, I believe, even though they break a few rules. In fact strengthening around the knee joint with these exercises can be protective. Remember proper form and training within your own limits. Rich

How about doing us a review, Bob? Regards Rich

Having said that there are still some basic errors in a post or two. mawashi geri is not side kick just for one. sokuto is knife edge of foot. if i remember correctly kekomi indicates thrusting in a side kick ie yoko geri kekomi. keage i seem to recall was when you snap it. tsuki equals thrust. gyaku indicates reverse. therefore gyaku tsuki is reverse punch. yoko is side(wards) and geri is kick. yes, kin geri is groin kick. uke means to receive so block is a bit of a simplistic translation and anyone who practices more realistic bunkai applications will have seen how gedan barai is many other things. for example the preparatory position can be a deflection and strike and the sweep itself a follow up that locks the arm and pulls the opponents head into a punch. just a quick example. outer and inner are omote and ura. we have a lock called ura gyaku which is inner reversal and omote gyaku is outer reversal (similar in some ways to kote gaeshi). HTH Rich

Hobz. Follow Radok and Andrew's advice. You want to be doing exercises that use a movement that either is the strike you want to get better at or is similar to it in mechanics. Some correct weight training is a good thing to add too. I wouldnt worry about static contractions or slo mo kicks. For example the slow kicks will strengthen your legs to a degree but you need to train the leg to activate quickly and powerfully. Weighted squats and jumper squats and lots of bag kicking are the order of the day. HTH Rich

What should I disgaree with in your post Fireka, as I missed it? In terms of traditional schools- all but two of the list I gave KA are traditional in makeup. The other two will have kept a lot of the original but updated some of it- how well I do not know. Its a great idea that martial arts are for perfecting character but in the real world you don't see a lot of it unfortunately. Amongst high ranking grades in many different arts you can find the same levels of pettiness, ego, bad impulse control etc. as you would in the general population. That doesn't mean there aren't decent high level people but there are too in everyday life. As you know I myself am primarily self preservation focussed but that doesn't mean I don't have an interest in tradition and culture. Taijutsu is a lot older than karate and has so many areas of study that it isn't really a martial art, more a way of life that contains martial arts. I know you can live karate as a way of life if you are a budoka but I hope you get what I mean. After 'Nin' can come 'Po/Ho' and 'Jutsu'. One signifies Eternal truth and one, as in other arts, the baser levels. 'Do' would come in the middle, as the 'way'. Regards Rich

Hi KA 45 miles if there is a train/ coach route doesn't seem too bad. Should take an hour each way roughly based on UK speeds, and numbers of stations on a local route here. Let me know if its that different. I used to finish work at 5:30. Walk home for 5:45. Scoff sandwiches until 6 and then travel two hours across UK for two hours training. I got home at midnight. You are under 18, right? So that would be unrealistic for you but 45 miles should be a surmountable obstacle. What about your parents driving you- you could pay petrol if their money is tight. An egg is a useful natural structure because it can hold things and breaks easily to release them. Martial arts should be living traditions so staying in the past isnt always appropriate. For example modern guns are a part of many black belt curriculums nowadays. I think the 'old' needs preserving but the underlying principles are what move forward and adapt what you do. Speak to you soon Rich

Hi KA. No problem. I know its difficult, are train prices not reasonable where you are- or are the distances that huge? No idea how far those places in Ohio are from you- can you give me a mileage for perspective? The site I gave does a lot of good videos that will give you a good taste anyway. With regards to smoke bombs etc, yes, some instructors will teach this- others wont know about them. It depends on the instructors interests- at a certain level though it would be expected for instructors to have at least a basic working knowledge of all aspects of the art. The blinding powders do contain secret ingredients, although it shouldnt be too hard for a dedicated practitioner to find out the sort of ingredients that go in from other sources. Best wishes Rich

OK. Given that Hobbitbob is dead right, and Neil has made some valid observations here's my extra thoughts. You need to avoid technique log jam. The generally accepted way to negate this as much as possible is to have only a couple of opening shots that you train over and over so that your conscious brain isnt too involved in the choice process. Stripping away is more important than building up collections of techniques. These choices must be able to be applied with gross motor skills due to the adrenalin rush and they must be good fight stoppers. The chin jab (palm heel) is a good example from the combatives people and I know someone who has used the palm heel to forehead to gain high knockout percentages on first strike and there are some others too. Having said that if you dont get these in first then you are in a free form situation which isn't a place I've enjoyed being in, given the possible outcomes. Here hopefully your bunkai will give you some options but again you need to keep it simple. and aliveness training is needed to give you experience in dealing with adrenaline so as to overcome this last point as much as possible. Also don't underestimate the power of aggression. The ideal state of 'no mind' the arts strive for maybe workable for the greatest artists but generally you want to tap into your animal instincts. I would like to emphasise that this post is intended for information purposes only and no martial techniques are to be used unless you feel your physical safety to be in serious immanent danger. Be aware of the law and how it affects you. Best wishes Rich

And the most truthful

Hey, its all in your mind but thats the point. If it improves your performance it is valid. Rich

KA-glad you've clarified your position. I know your first post said you didnt want to be a Hollywood ninja but then you make a daft post about smoke bombs- and that made you sound like the people we encounter frequently and groan about. Take a 'rule' from NLP which is 'the meaning of your communication is the response you get' and you will see that other posters got the same impression too. Plus I gave you a lot of contacts in your state and two days later you are posting, 'I want to take ninjutsu, but I cannot find a dojo'- no thanks for the assistance and no recognition of it either. That also seemed like someone who wanted everything on a plate. Now, assuming you didnt mean to convey those impressions I'd like to ask why those schools I sent you aren't suitable? Take care Rich

Apart from karate my other main love is taijutsu, including the ninja schools, if you hadn't already guessed. Its still got a glamourous image so people are attracted to its mystery. Like any art to be good requires hard training, common sense and intelligent analysis as well as many other attributes. Yes it has lots of weapons, yes it has survival elements, philosophy and more & yes it's great fun. However, any martial art studied properly has so many things going for it that you just cannot see until you reach a level of mastery so don't start writing off your own art necessarily and getting all 'grass is greener on the other side' because you'll miss much. Karate practitioners for example can find many levels of kata bunkai including learning that kata moves can actually 'make' the opponent respond in a certain way so the follow up becomes logical and obvious, and sometimes very dangerous- the chudan punch actually goes to the head as an example from one sequence. What about the Bubishi? Have you read and studied it? There is so much stuff that many don't know about that either training and/or master instructors will reveal as you go... I'm not trying to put anyone off studying taijutsu, far from it, but I want to rebalance things for anyone interested. Regards Rich