SaiFightsMS

Do not push to far to fast or you will find your repair job was wasted. On the bike I would concentrate on the aerobic quality of the workout not how much work my legs were doing. Strength work? I think I would do light weigh higher reps. And stop when any pain dictates. Pain serves a purpose it prevents us from damaging ourselves.

I can say that I have gotten good use from my ab dolly. It really is good for core body work. And it provides a good variety in workout options.

Then there are those lovely times when you are sparring and your opponent gets their hand pad caught in the front of your gi.

I am going to move this to the comparative area. This type of thread is ideal for that area.

Welcome to the forum. You can put links to your sites in your signature. Since he was introducing himself I think this is not really a problem.

Welcome to the forum. There is really only one way to find out if you will like it or not. Just go give it a try.

A square knot is actually what you are supposed to end up with. Are you taking in through both layers around your waist? And when you thread the second tip through the first make sure it goes from the top down.

One of the first move to learn when using the sai is how to jump when you drop them. So they don't land on your feet.

This is a topic that comes up from time to time. Here are some other threads that pertain. http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=7742&start=10 http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=880&start=70 http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=6960&start=40

Welcome to the forum.

I am really no great expert. My choice of screen name came from my enjoyment of working with the sai. And I coupled that with what all of my martial arts training has done help me fight the effects of MS - multiple sclerosis. That was from the information Nishiuchi passes on. From the the traditional school of Matayoshi kobudo. Much of martial arts legend and lore is surrounded in myth and mystery. There is just no written history much before the time of Itosu.

The Sai theories Much has been written about what the sai is. (Sai being the singular, zai the plural.) In fact statements can be read that the sai is/was this or that. I would like to explain the theories of origin as told to me by Shihan Nishiuchi and Sensei Bolz, both of the International Okinawa Kobudo Association. As they explained these theories, the proverbial "penny dropped" and made the other theories I had heard or read less creditable. Before being educated by Shihan and Sensei I had been told or read that the sai was originally a tool for shifting hay. Now in Okinawa there is not too much in the way of hay farming as the main crop is rice (the penny drops). Another theory was the sai was used as a digging tool to plant seeds with by the Okinawan peasants. In Okinawa there are insufficient minerals to produce steel in vast quantities. Steel would have to have been imported, thus making it expensive and probably unobtainable to the peasants of Okinawa (the penny drops again). The four theories of origin. 1. The Manji sai is thought to have been developed by studying the Buddhist symbol, Manji. The Buddhist symbol resembles a reverse swastika and represents the philosophy of yin-yang. It is uncertain whether Chinese or Okinawans invented the sai. 2. Some think that the sai was devised by the inspiration of the kanji of the Japanese writing for "right" and "left". 3. Another theory is that the shape of the sai resembles the human form, which Okinawans believe to represent authority. Okinawan police would display the sai as a badge of office, much the same way that Western sheriffs and U.S. marshals wore the "tin star". Because of the expense of owning sai, only higher ranked (higher paid) police officers could afford sai. 4. The fourth theory comes from the sai being based on the design of the Okinawan ladies' hairpin, kanzashi. These are the theories that Shihan and Sensei explained to me. They made a great deal of sense to me, as did their other theories of the Okinawan Kobudo weapons. Because of the lack of documentation we have to rely on these theories, but the theories must contain an element of support to make them more substantive. There are two-sai kata practiced within the syllabus of the International Okinawa Kobudo Association. These are Ni cho sai kata (two-sai form) and San cho sai kata (three-sai form). In Okinawa it is usually considered that a set of sai/zai consists of three. A sai is held in each hand while the third is kept in the belt behind the back. Should a sai have to be thrown, the third sai can then be drawn and be available for use. One technique of throwing is called nusuru guhu (thief’s’ foot). This technique is used to pin the opponents' foot to the floor thus making it difficult to escape and make capture easier. Home Secretary please take note and consider the sai as police issue. This information is from For further details or information regarding Okinawan Kobudo, please contact me, Sensei O'Connor, by 'phone on 01375 640609, or by writing to the International Okinawa Kobudo Association (UK). 33 St. James Ave. West, Stanford - le - Hope, Essex. SS17 7BB.

We had this one test where some kind of a bug was starting to hit a large number of the kids right in the middle of the test. It was coming out of the upper opening and the lower opening. Fortunately no lower brown accidents occured. Unfortunately there were a few messy upper level accidents.

http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=7484&start=20 Here was that link.

Don't worry someone else was having the same problem here not long ago. One of the keys is making sure you start with the center of the belt on your center.

kchenault Generally wearing a t-shirt under the gi is a matter of personal preference. We have guys who do and guys who don't. Hey don't worry about a size 8 gi. My first gi was that size too. I have no thryoid function.

Interesting practice technique speedkick. I did a similar thing with a stack of chairs. As my technique became more confident I would add chairs to the stack.

I have had both heavy weight 100% cotton and 50/50 poly cotton. For test purposes I prefer the super heavy weight cotton gi. For general wear I prefer the 10 oz cotton/poly gi.

My nidan test came as a surprise. No one but Sensei knew it was happening. Over the course of the evening it actually started with the things I was asked to do helping others before class. Ran through the first class, continued into weapons and finally finished with an unexpected breaking demonstration at the end of the second karate class.

Yes everyone please remember that there will be differences in names for the same thing between Japanese and Okinawan styles. One of the difficulties those who research Okinawan karate encounter is that it is an old language. And those who still speak it proficiently do not have the martial arts background to understand what is being asked of them to interpret.

Don't lock your elbows out when you do dumb bell bench presses.

I have done some teaching. I find one of the most helpful things is to help junior students before class. Those who come early to warm up and practice are usually serious about what they are doing and enjoy getting a hand. It is also very rewarding to watch their progress over time. And places where we have trained that are multi purpose rooms I usually run the dust mop before class. And never forget little things like helping new students tie their belts or make sure the correct side of the gi top is the one on top do make a difference.

And remember any defense you learn with your obi practice doing with the belt you normally wear with your everyday pants.

I have heard older students passing on that bit of wisdom to new students before their first test.