SevenStar

shuai chiao is great.

there are some differences, but there's plenty of crossover as well. you wouldn't have to forget EVERYTHING, I wouldn't think...

technically, muay thai has only been around shince the 1920's. other muay - muay boran, muay chaad cheurk, mae mai, muay lon lon, etc. were the predecessors of muay thai. These are the predecessors of muay thai, often referred to as ancient muay thai.

or you can check ebay.

hehe... present company excluded. Yeah, I'm only referring to the team that trains directly with chat - not all of the offshotts that joined the XMA.

single and double leg aren't necessarily easy to counter. as for kuchiki taioshi, I don't attack with it - I only use it as a counter.

definitely the military press. why are pushups on this list?

I'm a thai boxer, and I think XMA is great. They are at the top of their game in what they do. I'd bet money that none of the people bashing them on the net are winning any type of competitions on national and world levels. These guys are. The mistake people make is trying to compare what XMA does to what they (the basher does), and it's not always applicable. However, I'd take an XMA guy to have my back in a fight over many other guys here. Why? They compete HARD, meanind that they are conditioned. They are probably in better shape than most of the people here and are used to pushing themselves anyway. They have attributes that can be used in a fight and have those attributes finely tuned. All of the XMA bashing really needs to be put to rest..

I completely agree. However, within certain styles, different methods are used. In sport styles, it's fairly consistent. In TMA styles, that's not always the case. that's why I separate the two.

you can't... seriously. It's not recommended to teach yourself ANY style - you need the guidance of an instructor. If I were you, I would keep training TKD and drunken boxing, but on your own. Since you are already training it, you know about the styles basics and such and can train what you know. Put together a solid program and train until you have a teacher once again. Also, I'll keep your teacher in my prayers...

how far is that from vegas? master toddy has a school there.

like he said... time. part of the problem alot of people have today is they want everything instantly... conditioning takes time.

it's effective.

and because of the lack of venue, they were likely less conditioned. Not too mention that we have no clue how skilled their assailants were. Heck, in my days as a security guard, I had to fight for my life when an altercation ensued. that doesn't attest to how good/bad of a fighter I am. Not only that, but we don't have evidence of many of these death matches and such that these "old masters" fought in. Word of mouth is a funny thing... there's no telling how far out of proportion these stories may have been blown.

cuurently international, judo and thai. This year I may do some boxing and enter the FFC - an mma venue.

I hate it when people say that, mainly because it's a VERY oversimplified answer. If the knee is bent when you kick it, for example, you're going to have to kick it much harder, as you will have to get it to straighten before it breaks. Also, is the issue of anlge - which he mentioned in his post. he asked if you could break it by hitting it from the front or back. From the front, yes, it's possible, but from the back you are not going to do it. From the inside and outside, it's possible, but harder - and it's harder from the inside than outside. So, the best bets for breaking would be kicks to the knee directly or from the outside. broken knuckles aren't only due to improper punching. it can be due to lack of conditioning. Also, when fighting a resisting opponent, it's possible for them to move, causing you to connect with the wrong part of the fist. this used to happen with boxers alot - this is why a broken pinky knuckle is sometimes referred to as "boxer's break" Alot of fighters now throw the hook with a vertical fist as opposed to horizontal to eliminate that problem.

Not really. The problem there is not everyone realizes how adrenaline works and what it does to you. People tend to look at it as an instant source of limitless power, which is not true. Remember, when adrenaline is flowing, your body is more focused. The extra output you are capable of has to be fueled by something, right? Adrenaline rush will sap most people's energy within the first 30 seconds. This is where conditioning comes into play.

the triceps are pushing muscles - pull ups are a puling exercise. Any exercising of the triceps in this exercise will be minimal, if present at all.

the thing about MA and fitness in general is that not everyone has fighting or ma specific goals. Actually, in this case though, it can be specific. endurance may be the MA specific skill that he wants. If you are fighting in a ring and lack leg endurance, your legs get wobbly. If you are a grappler, endurance in the chest and tris will be very helpful, making a case for the 100 push up program.

I disagree. 1. sparring at 50% is fine, but in competition, you will be going at 100%. this increases the chance for head trauma, which is why in amateur matches, you must wear headgear. When training for competition, use headgear. the main reason being that you will have to fight in it anyway, so you may as well get used to wearing it. the second reason being for impact. You should be HARD sparring at least twice a month, go lighter on other sessions. On the hard days, definitely wear the headgear. As for shinpads, nothing wrong with those either. newbs tend to bruise easily, as they haven't been doing conditioning. As anyone knows, when it comes to conditioning, bruising is bad. It causes you to take a step backward, as you can't really train a bruised surface at 100%. Also, you will have a higher rate of developing a stress fracture as you aren't yet used to the impact. If you are new, wear shin pads - there is no shame in it. As you progress, take them off. Some people really shouldn't be giving advice...

the backfist is not legal in competition. you must hit with the front of the glove. that said though, when I trained kung fu and karate, I used the backfist. I like the jab better.

all of that mess is unnecessary. kick the bag, block kicks, take kicks, etc. Normal training will toughen your shins. trying to speed it up via other means isn't really helping anything.

yeah, agreed with tjs - bjj won't help your ground game much in wrestling, as bjj is very strong working from their back, which is a no no for a wrestler. the submissions they use are a no no as well.

capoeira can definitely be used for fighting. I've been hit plenty by the ones I train with and wouldn't take anything away from it.

No. not even in that situation, and especially with grappling, as you can't see al of the subtle movements in a mere picture. The ONLY time I'd suggest using a book is if you are currently training, already have a base and are able to understand what is missing. This is only used to supplement your training and should NEVER substitute it.