TheDevilAside

Ah, well then I'm a true martial artist 'Course I researched the history behind my art, simply because it's interesting. What I thought you meant was if I embraced the martial arts not as a method of fighting, but for the principles brought forth by it. Of course I don't disagree with any of the morals that American Kenpo teaches (use it only as a means of self defense, is one), but that's not why I train in martial arts. I train strictly to fight, not to achieve inner peace or something like that. But that doesn't mean I don't recognize the heritage and history of my art.

After reading the entire thread, it seems that many people in here are modifying the meaning of the word Ki to suit their needs. I'm sorry, but how Ki is practiced and viewed in Eastern culture clearly and definitely conflict with Christian beliefs. You're giving it a new meaning but not a new name. Maybe someone should create a thread where we can discuss your interpretation of Ki.

Well, read the New Testament, and you'll find them shotgun wielding fundamentalists ain't so far off As a Christian, you're not supposed to respect other religions or accept their vailidity. If you accept all religions in the world as valid, why only choose one? Choose 'em all, get the best of both worlds. Tolerance and respect are two very different things.

I think that's exactly the problem Christians have with Ki. The concept that it comes from you. It's scattered all over the Bible (probably you'll most likely find it in one of the letters Paul wrote to Corinth) that everything we are and everything we do is directly due to Christ. The point is, without Christ, we don't have any power. That's why Ki rubs many Christians the wrong way. Ki is a power that is recognized to come from within and is unleashed by the one person alone. And next thing you know, people are arguing that Ki doesn't come from above, it comes from the earth (and Paul wrote that everything which stems from the earth and the dimension we live in, is Satan's little playground) and then Christians see it as paganism or *satanism. Then again, Ki is interpreted in so many different ways. But I'm just trying to explain a point of view that many people have, and I don't believe they're very far-fetched from the scriptures of the Bible. Now personally, I don't see Ki as any sort of energy, if anything, it's the ability to focus and control yourself 100%. As you put it, to kind of reach your full potential. But I wouldn't call that Ki. In the end, what I was trying to point out was that, as Christians, we are supposed to realize that everything comes from God.. that A you got on your report card? That wasn't all you, that was Christ working inside of you (just an example).. and anything that we believe to come from ourselves only (which I think the whole idea of Ki is, unleashing the power of one's self) we can conclude to be *satanistic. *Not as in, "from the devil", but as in the worship and praise of yourself. Yeap, satanism is an actual religious establishment where people worship themselves and no other gods or supernatural powers.

Why do so many people believe that in order for a martial art to be good and effective, it has to have fighters in the K1/UFC ring?

'Least you could do us give us a Howard Dean war cry. AAUURUURGGHH!

One's a type of japanese sword and the other is a type of japanese cartoon pornography? ... 'least that's what I learned from google.com

I Hate kata so much. I just wanted to learn some of the more advanced katas so that I could have something to show for when my friends asked me to do something.

Ever tried beating a rock with piece of cooked spaghetti?

ditto

What problems are you having with sparring? Give us a few R/D/F's and we might be able to help you better. But without much detail, I can only say that sparring makes you better at sparring.

http://www.fitday.com There's a pretty good website that helps you keep track of your diet and exercise. It's not 100% accurate, but it's fairly close. And it's free, just create an account and log on.

What everyone said is right on. I can't really add anything. But remember to track your progress.. if you have Microsoft Works, it already has pre-made templates for X type of fitness training. Also, if you would like, I'm sure many of us would be interested if you posted your progress every once in a while and kept us up to date.

Aaaaww crap, he has Ed Parker on his "Mentor's list".

I just finished watching Bloodsport for the second time again. Personally, I can't stand that movie, but I wanted to see what that movie would look like to me after being introduced to the actual world of martial arts.. I couldn't recognize much, except for the Muay Thai fighters. Aaaanyway.. at the end, it says this Frank W. Dux guy is actually real and holds several world records in the.. what's it called.. International Kumite Fighting Championship or something like that. Is this a joke? What kind of association (one called the IFAA, apparently in this movie) sponsors a tournament where people are deliberately killed? I mean, I'm sure there's underground fights where people get killed (like bumfights.com or something) but I always imagined it to be more of a Fight Club sort of thing. Anyway, I looked up on this Dux guy and the martial art he created and Ninjitsu Dux-Ryu can only be learned in Washington and.. haha.. get this.. a California college campus. And his website is kind of.. out there, he sounds like he has a superiority complex worse than that Chong Li guy did. So, what's the deal here?

Other than the fact that they'll probably pin you for excessive force, I see no problem with that. Why not kick him while he's down? It keeps him from getting back up and having to start all over again.

^What Wolverine said.. Also, Hindu Squats and push ups aren't better for developing strength, weights dominate that aspect. Foor endurance, however, asthetic exercises are better. For instance, a weight lifter might be able to bench 300 lbs, but he can't do over 40 push ups, and vice versa. Of course, you can train to be able to do both

start pretending like you have rabies or something, that would most likely scare them away. Seriously, if 4 guys are preparing to attack you and it's a life or death situation, I'd start singing voodoo chants.

Heh heh.. hm, I'll just keep my mouth shut.

My sensei is called master... and he orders us to sit... and "bark" whenever we punch or kick.. sometimes.. he even makes us play dead... ...hhhmmm... Naw, actually we just call him Sensei or Sir (in the dojo.. I don't know the instructors well enough, though, so I still call them Sir) ..but all the rest is true. Wuff!

"According to my calculations" I'm paying $6.25 per class, but when I'm not attending regularly I end up paying $12.5 since we pay monthly.

I'll check that out, multo graci.

Next time you might want to exchange the reverse combustors with a new set of engine decals so it won't create any friction with the dual over-head cams. Might wanna adjust the cylinder velocity too so it'll be synchronized with fuel injection regulators, that might amp your horse power and add some torque. ...okay, I have no idea what I'm talking about. An uncle of mine, who was a mechanic back in the 60's before 90% of the engine ran off of a computer and you had to actually grip a wrench to fix the engine instead of running a computer diagnostic, promised to hook me up with a '69 GTO under one condition, I fix it up with him.. I've got a LOT to learn, man! Anyway.. you have fun with that.. engine o' yours Oh yeah, and put Nos in there, that oughta make it go.. uh.. faster.

Jerk