SaiFightsMS

Joe Hapkido is a Korean style. It includes joint locks and throws as well as kicks and punches. Here in the forum the best place to ask this question is to go into the tae kwan do forum.

In self defense applications it isn't neccessariyly the amount of noise being made as it is the forcefull exhalation in the process of executing the technique to strengthen it. Remember one of the things that happens when a kiai is let out is that the muscles tighten - also importand when executing a block. Conversely a large amount of noise might bring assistance.

It is a matter of making the best use of what you have to work with. Learning to use what you have is a very difficult thing to do. But it is very important and a lifelife process.

Hello Shotochem and welcome to the forum. Seems as though you are allready finding a place to feel comfortable. There is a good group of people here.

The best books are not speed reading contests. The best books you stop reading and just sit and see in your mind what you have been reading. The Lord of the RIngs is on of these books. It should not be read as a speed read. It should be read slowly and savored. Maybe as an introduction The Hobbit should be read first. That might take some of the boredom out of the beginning of the book because then you know what is going on.

Ad, Ram, there are some things we have to learn to live with wether we like it or not. My experince with 20+ years of multiple sclerosis and chronic joint problems cause by over use (and the disease) has taught me it is best to stay as active as possible. It is more important for some of us to warm up and make sure we are carefully warmed up. Our flexiblility is so important but cannot be overdone with out harm. Strength work is important too - but without over doing it. One of the harderst things is to find what the limits are. And sometimes the limits change from day to day. Or sometimes even during the course of the day. We are affected more by changes in temperature and barometric readings. We become weather forecasters. If possible learn relaxation and meditation techiniques that will help you get in touch with your own body. We need to be able to learn what our body is telling us. And to act accordingly. Personally I think martial arts training is the best thing I have ever done. There are a few things I do slightly differently than everyone else. And have worked out with my instructor so he knows why. Instead of sitting in sware on my knees and ankles I sit crosslegged. We have a few other's with arthritis who also do this. I am also usually the last person off the floor when we stand up. It doesn't matter. What matters is doing as much as you can as safely as you can. Sai

I am kind of wandering too Jack if maybe some of the knee and ankle pain you are experinceing might be the result of over training. Our muscles and connective tissues need time to recover after hard workouts and I think pretty much all of your work outs are hard ones.

Wind sprints came from track training. The idea is to run for short distances as fast as you can to increase speed. Intersperced with the fast intervals is slow jogging or walking to keep the blood moving at an aerobic rate. Interval type training like that can be done in a variety of ways not just on a track running. It can be done on a bike on the road or a stationary bike. On any piece of aerobic equipment really. Just go as hard and fast as you can for a short period of time and do it in sets.

Abusing the walls is generally frowned on by management here. And could be grounds for having to go find a new place to live. I quiet enjoy my punching bag. It is one of the best anger/frustration management techniques ever invented. An interesting note I started with a jr. model punching bag. As time wore on and I got stronger I started knocking it over and had to upsize to the standard bag. Having the bag fall over everytime I hit it during a session was not fun and even more stress producing. As you get older you find that anger/stress/frustration management techniques will periodically have to be assessed and modified. And as we grow internally our techinques and methods change too.

Both type of nunchakus make their own unique sound when swung with speed and good technique. It is interesting to note how much what is seen in the movies effects how a weapon or a maritial art is percieved and received by the public. Without Bruce Lee how many people would never have learned about nunchaku?

You know I just REALLY noticed what Ken said about learning weapons forms first. Because on a battle field you are as good as dead without a weapon. That is interesting. Most of us learned the other way round. The empty hand forms first with the theory being be needed to learn stances and blocks first or they would all go to pot with a weapon in our hands. (One of sensie's most common statements during kobudo.) I see the point and it is making me think. I enjoy very much coming in here and meeting different points of view.

Angus you are not old enough yet to be a dirty old man.

Oh to be young again. I enjoy your "dreams" and aspirations. This thread is a good complement to the thread in philosophy about dreams.

LOL Kicker, none of the rest of us caught that. I guess we were all busy thinking about what the guy meant. That is a pretty good joke on us. As for the matrial or martial arts I have to agree with to a great degree with Karateka it is not the martial at only but the way the artist uses it. Lol Jiggy the question can be thought provoking to look at from different angles at different times.

Angus I do agree a bit with your backfist technique. It is one of my most effective hand sparring techniques. Many find it hard to really get the hang of. I know I did at first. It is kind of fun to have someone standing in stunned silence "what was that" not knowing what hit them, or how.

This may sound a bit odd but, are you maybe setting yourself up to overtrain? Maybe include a bit of recovery time? Especially after the plyometric work you are doing.

I wish Jack, Joe, Ram, Kicker and everyone else the best in succeding with their resolutions. Yeah I know I am a party pooper Jack but that is just me. I have found I do a much better job at setting short term goals. For many of the things I have done there were many smaller steps involved in the process. That is how my life is. So I find I am much more content in general since I learned that and work accordingly.

Yes Jiggy please read the book. In fact I think everyone should read the book. It is a really great book. And Muay when you read the book you can sit it down periodically and hop up and do a few drills, throw some punches and kicks so your butte doesn't get tired.

I see Kicker and how I see. Msn does a particulary good job of disconnecting me right at the end of long downloads. Like in the last 15 minutes of a 6 hour down load. The first few times that happened I sent the support people nasty emails. Now when I want to download something that is important or going to be a long download I make sure I am signed on to AOL. They disconnect me much less frequently. In fact since I have upgraded to 7.0 I have not been disconnect at all. If I am working on things off line that are a bit more lengthy I stop and save frequently. I had an old 486 that taught me the value of periodic saving of a project while working on it. Better yet now that I have a cd-rw I back up the hard drive on a regular basis.

Thanks Rushman there are katas and techiniques for the Bat'leth it seems. And some others in the other site popped in with a few examples from actual episodes. I kind of really enjoyed looking at some of the interesting weapons and things I encountered on my own search. Isn't it fun looking at different weapons and thinking about how they might be used?

Yes Doug it can be much harder to explain something to someone else that it is to just do it. It totally amazed me the first time I taught white belts how much I was learning.

It is pretty cool to come in to look at this thread and see so much agreement. I believe when it comes right down to it most martial arts are built on the same basic moves and without them the rest is of little value.

LOL Joe. I have awakened many times at night finding myself tangeled in the covers because I was practicing kata in my sleep. Something only someone who appreciates kata would have happen, I imagine!

Hello MrDash There are many hundreds of types of martial arts. There is no one that is perfect for everyone has you have allready been told. Best thing is to visit the schools around you and see what they are doing. Most will let you watch a class - if not actually participate.

Not to be a party pooper but the only new years resolution I ever made and kept was one I made several years ago. Never to make new years resolutions. I examine how things are going at intevals through out the year and then see what I need to change at the time. For the immediate time I am working on increasing the actuall time I spend training and decreasing the time I spend researching. I have been working on that for most of advent.j For January I will work on making sure my neighbors see me more often so they know I still live here. This internet junkie needs to spend a bit less time on the net. For February I will sit down and see how things are going then and decided what the need for the time is.