singularity6

Even with my lack of flexibility, my round and side kicks are approaching (my) throat level. Slow-kicking exercises have been instrumental in this. I'll do these exercises while holding onto something (stair railing, chair, wall, etc.) You'll be crazy sore at first, but it's worth it!

I kinda thought that... And now I feel dumb! Well... public humiliation builds character! Now to answer the question: I don't think most TMAs are all that practical. Our stances are really long and low when doing forms. When sparring, we take a "fighting stance" which is much more natural.

Um... I've never heard of a TMA stance. What is it?

I think we all need to remind ourselves to show up to class with "an empty cup." Students typically expect to learn from their instructors, but instructors can (and should) also learn from their students. “Throughout your life advance daily, becoming more skillful than yesterday, more skillful than today. This is never-ending.” ― Yamamoto Tsunetomo

As a math instructor, I find that my biggest challenge in the classroom is convincing the students that they CAN do it. With that, I've been exploring the idea of Mindsets, and injecting those concepts into my lectures. Sure, everyone will have limitations at what they can realistically do (I'll never be a center for the NBA, or a lineman for the NFL - yes... I actually had to look up positions online.) We can all do a lot more than we typically think, however. If one lacks interest in something, there's a bigger tendency to give up after only a few unsuccessful attempts. My advice to everyone (in my classes, and in life): Push yourself outside your comfort zone, embrace your mistakes, and be patient!

I didn't start seriously practicing MA until my mid-30's. That started after about a decade of sitting on my rump playing a whole lot of WoW. Needless to say, my hips weren't happy. My flexibility is still relatively limited, but improving, as I work on it regularly. Due to my lack of flexibility AND weak hip flexors, I have been battling injuries. Here are some things that helped me: Leg lifts in 4 directions (lifting up while on your back, on your stomach, and you can get 2 directions when on your side.) Stretching my hips with specific stretches on a daily basis (you can look these up) Simple leg stretching machine (link isn't intended as an advert... ) https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B001QVN0X6/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Jesse Enkamp has some decent videos about how one can improve their kicks. He's a bit hyper, but the content is solid.

I only burn bridges while I'm on them.

I use a pretty simple principle to help me make decisions: "If all I see is headlights, then maybe I'm in the wrong lane." Staying in the wrong lane for too long takes a tremendous amount of energy, and frequently ends disastrously.

Interesting thread, and solid posts! Meditation is something I haven't tried very hard at, but should. This thread might help inspire some more action!

I had about 2.5-3 hours of shoveling snow yesterday. Does that count?! In all seriousness, I was probably burning 400-500 calories per hour while doing so. I slept pretty well last night!

We train to strike the vitals - eyes, nose, throat, temple, groin, knees, as well as other pressure points. Hap Ki Do is also blended in our style of Tae Kwon Do from the white belt level on, so for us, it's not really "I'm gonna use HKD instead of TKD." We are trained to react. As a green belt, I'm really only supposed to use TKD when sparring, for now. But as my training advances, HKD is expected to be used when appropriate during sparring. (That being said, some of my instructors still put me in choke holds or throw me down if I make mistakes!) That being said, I've never had to use it, and I hope that trend continues!

Meh, moving it just adds to the workout

After beating on this thing for a couple weeks, I really do think its a keeper. I hit it pretty much as hard as I want with hand strikes and round kicks. It'll move a bit, so I do have to re-position it from time to time. I can knock it down fairly consistently with my side kicks, jump kicks, and almost topple it with my front kicks. Due to its girth, I find myself needing to readjust my position for particular techniques. Spin hooks, hook kicks, back fist, ridge hand strikes, etc all need me to be slightly off-centered when facing it, as I will not be able to complete the technique (spin hooks actually get me to spin a second time once I connect!) The first time I trained on it, I went to town without gloves, and ended up missing some skin on my middle-finger knuckle. So now, I do most of my training with some fingerless bag gloves that have minimal padding, then a few minutes without gloves to toughen my knuckles. Overall, the bag seems fairly pleasant on the hands (being made of smooth vinyl instead of canvas.)

I did buy a floor model. And yes, I think it's that bad. It could be suitable for young kids for a while, but overall, I think the kids WaveMaster or the Versys V1 would probably be better moves (first being cheaper, the second being more versatile.)

Not long before I ordered the Torrent T2 Pro, I picked up a floor model of the Reactor from Century. It looks like a baby version of the Versys V1. At first, I thought it could be somewhat useful for working on strikes and round kicks. The thing topples over too easy with any strike that has a lot of "torque" (spin kicks, hook kicks, etc - I'm also questioning the use of torque, but nothing else better comes to mind.) Initially, it worked a little bit, if you were patient. After a few weeks of use, it developed a weak spot in the core. Since it flexes at this weak spot, it no longer bounces back. I didn't do too much with it, either. I knew it wouldn't hold up to hard hits, and thus I didn't even try. It looks like Century is discontinuing the item. So, if you see it on the clearance rack, leave it there.

Welcome to the forum!

Congrats, man. It's been a pleasure reading your posts!

Heh, I see I'm not the only one suffering from maladies! My joints are all a little loose, but my shoulders especially so. They have a tendency to pop out (at least partly) whenever I overuse them. Mat work and some of our blocking/striking techniques take a toll on them. While my hips are relatively stable (all the muscle keeps them in place,) I tend to strain my hip flexors (adductors and/or illiacus and/or sartorius) when I do jumping round kicks and round kicks. I also am struggling because I didn't do too much physical activity outside of walking/hiking for most of my life, so I had almost no upper body strength. This has left me more vulnerable to injury. The running joke in my school is "what part of you is broken today." There have been substantial improvements in my physical shape, but I am pushing 40, and I suspect those gains will be more difficult to come by/maintain before too long.

Welcome to the forum!

LOL! Ouch... I'm also wondering if these things actually sell!

There's a huge difference between kumite and kata to develop martially applicable attributes and the same for point scoring. I train karate with seriousness as a budo, not a sport. I train with the intention of learning life saving skills, not for shiny baubles. My TKD school is the same, and I think it's great!

While it's not as common as others, HEMA is a Western martial art.

I've got my hands and feet. Weapons are mere extensions of the body. One can be disarmed (by rules, or by an opponent) when wielding a weapon. It's a lot harder to take away hands and feet. That being said, the cane is about the only thing that won't be confiscated when traveling through the airlines, at the ball park, etc... So in that light, if you're gonna train in one, that would make the most sense.

IMO: Always restomp the groin.

I agree that kata do seem to be an integral part of most karate schools' curriculum. Doesn't the focus on sparring really depend on the school one belongs to? The type of sparring will also reflect the school. (Kyukoshin Karate is a form of Japanese Karate, though I'm not familiar with how the affiliations with WKF work.) Also, if done correctly, kata with bunkai will help those in self-defense situations, as they've honed the manuvers over time.