Rich67

Where????The SF Valley? Thousand Oaks? Oxnard? Ventura? Name a city!!!!!!!! It's not like we'll hunt you down and waste ya!

If someone is running at you full boar, sticking a kick in his gut is a poor move. Look at the physics of that: you have a 185 pound person coming at you at "x" velocity. He has a great deal of energy coming at you, probably low to the ground. You put out your leg in a kicking motion, ONE LEG firmly on the ground. You may connect with the kick, and he may feel some pain, but in a real fight situation with adrenalin flowing, it may not be an immediate reaction. In the meantime, his MOMENTUM carries him right into you, pushing you over or severely off balance. This puts him at a greater advantage to attack, since he still has stability and you are trying to recompose yourself. The kick "stuff" will work only when there is little velocity involved on your opponents part (he is taking a couple steps toward you, for instance). Best course of action? Step out of his direct path, and help him continue his current course- trip him up or even push him slightly off-balance as he gets close to you. But don't stand directly in front of him and try to take the brunt of his momentum. If you do it right, you may be fortunate enough to get his back and have the advantage. Or strike or kick him as he goes to your side. KB has some good advice too. Also, as far as the headbutts go, make sure you use the top portion of your head and not the forehead to strike. The nose is a good target, since a small amount of force can cause a negative reaction for your attacker. But don't rely on the headbutt too much- there is a risk of neck injury or head injury if you do it in the wrong situation with the wrong technique.

It sounds like the Cabbage Soup Diet (CSD) is simply a different take on severe caloric restriction dieting. The theory of reducing calories so drastically so as to lose weight quickly has been shown time after time as a very poor and ineffective way to lose weight. The body goes into "starvation mode", and your metabolism slows. This is the body's self defense mechanism (which through much human evolution) that allowed the caveman to survive on fat stored in the body when food was scarce. The problem is, once normal caloric intake begins again, the metabolism does not fully catch up- instead, the body feels it is necessary to store excess calories and other energy in fat cells in case another event like this occurs in the near future. This is why most calorie restricted dieters gain the weight back AND THEN SOME when they resume normal eating patterns- the body's self-defense mechanism kicks in involuntarily. Best way to lose weight? Change your overall lifestyle. Get plenty of exercise and eat better for the rest of your life. Fad diets don't work, and people rarely are able to stick with them for a long period of time. But lifestyle changes can really keep the weight off and energy levels up for prolonged periods of time.

If you live in L.A., I know that there are numerous RCJ Machado studios scattered throughout the county including Pasadena, etc. Also try this link for a pretty thorough listing in the California area: http://bjj.org/academies/#CA

I always enjoy a good debate...no problem.

Red wine has antioxidants which can be beneficial. To be honest though, I think that a good high-antioxidant supplement or vitamin can be just as good if not better. There's nothing wrong with a little wine now and then, however.

vito.... That's about it!

I stretch lightly before a warmup (usually some jumping jacks, pushups and running in place), then do a full stretch. I hit the weights and stretch after certain cycles. I then do a cool-down stretch. Very important to use good form-no bouncing.

Disagree. I studied San Soo, and I second many of Warlock's statements. I am no thug. Furthermore, people say San Sooers don't fight fair??? Let me ask you this: since when is any fight (aside from tourneys) "fair"? Out in the street, anything goes! There is no "fair" in a real knock-down, drag-out, fight for your life brawl. And the people who feel this way have lived sheltered lives in the dojo where "light face contact" is warned by the ref, and they haven't been in a true fight for their life. Sorry. San Soo is a violent art, but it doesn't teach its practitioners to be "thugs". They are simply people who want to take training to the next level- learn to be more offensive than defensive, and cause maximum damage to your opponent before he can do the same to you. Hesitation will get you injured, and weak, ineffective techniques have no place in San Soo. Eye gouges, throat grabs, groin strikes, throat strikes, etc. are all stressed and encouraged. But to call it the tree trunk of other MA's may be a little strong of a statement. It certainly is a strong branch on that tree, but I think the trunk may be comprised of other styles first.

PRO WRESTLING (the televised and redneck loved variety) IS NOT REAL. It is a system of moves that was developed purely for show and entertainment purposes. Granted, some moves are rooted in martial arts, but PRO WRESTLING, as a whole, cannot be classified as a martial art. The moves are derivitaves thereof. It teaches no philosophy other than acting and choreographed moves, much like dancers and actors. Those people ARE NOT MARTIAL ARTISTS. Now to answer your question, if the wrestler left WWE and formed his own "martial art" would he now be classified as a martial artist? That depends. Is he teaching people how to be pro wrestlers? If so, then NO. Or is he teaching someone the art of combat so one may use it as self defense? If so, then POSSIBLY. I may be biased, since I find pro wrestling a complete joke. But that's my OPINION. You have some good points, and I see your position. But I think it all lies in what you (in your heart) feel truly defines a martial art. No book or dictionary can define it for you--it has to be something you feel. On that note, I will now avoid this post like the plague and refuse to voice my opinion any further.

You said it man! Heck, even Power 90's sweat routine is excellent. Don't knock the DVD products, some offer excellent cardio you can do in your own living room. The best way to run without burning out in 10 minutes is this: Run 2 minutes, walk 2. Alternate this intil you hit 30 minutes. Another week, run 3 mins, walk 2. Do this 6 times. Keep upping it gradually as you feel better until you are running for 30 straight. It can be done, but you have to WORK UP TO IT. The #1 reason many workout programs fail? People jump into them too fast, get hurt, get worn out, then quit. You'll stick with it longer if you take it easy to start, then work up to it.

I think this whole thing has been read into too much. I also think that the true definition of martial art is being skewed. Martial arts were originally developed as a form of unarmed combat in the orient as well as countires like Egypt and India. To quote: "Martial Arts: studies, styles, or systems relating to the ways of fighting or war. " Additionally, the term "martial" not only means a manner of warfare, but also means the mentality of the warrior him/herself. Therefore, the learning of a true martial art, means a style of fighting accompanied by the martial mentality (defense is a good offense, but defend honor above all costs). That's the basic definition of what an MA is. Let's look at PRO WRESTLING. Not Greco-Roman or the other TRUE wrestling ARTS. Although pro (WWE, etc. ad nauseum) wrestling uses moves and techniques found in real wrestling, PRO wrestling is NOT a martial art. It does not teach the discipline associated with MA's nor does it teach the philosophy and belief system. Some may argue that "Mc Dojo's" don't either...but I disagree. Most of the MA's taught in dojo environments stress self-defense and stress self-confidence, restraint and respect for others. They may not come right out and give a speech about it, but things like removing shoes whilst on the mat, bowing to people, etc. all teach this basic philosophy. What does PRO wrestling teach? Stunts and execution of moves, and over-the-top acting to develop stories and roles. Then the "actors" go on camera and stage and taunt, ridicule, and strut their steroid inflammed bodies around the ring. To call that a martial art is an insult to martial arts! To say that simply because the moves they use could be interpreted as viable fighting moves is a moot point. As a previous poster stated, do you consider tennis an MA if someone uses a racket to bash someone? Or baseball is becuase you use the bat to render someone to a bloody pulp? No. A true martial art stresses self defense, techniques rooted deep in history and philosophies developed for centuries. Pro wrestling is ENTERTAINMENT. Nothing more, nothing less. The pro wrestler, however, who looks deeper into the facet of what he is doing off the mat, is considered a martial artist (take Shamrock, who had the MA background first). But when the tape is rollin', the guys slamming people on stage are not practicing a martial art. This whole thing was about "IS PRO WRESTLING A MARTIAL ART"? Not "are pro wrestlers martial artists". We are talking about pro wrestling as a genre. And as a genre, it is ENTERTAINMENT.

Uhhhh...yeah. That's because we don't get paid to spar on duty. I'm pretty confident in my fighting skills, but I also have a gun, baton and taser on my hip in addition to the spray. That's why they give us all that fun stuff....so we don't have to get our uniform dirty. I don't mind the occasional scrap, but I also like to use the stuff I have at my disposal. The key word is LIABILITY in our field. It looks a lot better when we spray someone as opposed to putting them in a rear naked choke and knocking them out, or snapping their arm using an arm bar. Remember that movie, Indiana Jones or whatever it was called? Harrison Ford watches the guy spin that sword around for a minute, then he pulls out his gun and just wastes the guy? That's a lot easier in my opinion.

I have two tatts that were inspired by my life in the MA's. (I am also 1/2 Japanese, so go figure ) I have a dragon with my last name written in Japanese. The dragon represents strength and patience. I have kanji on my other arm that translates to "the way of the warrior" or "Bushido", the samurai/warrior code. This also has a meaning to me, since I try to live my life with honor, respect for others, but I will not let myself be pushed around and will stand up for what I think is right. Always get tattoos that have a personal meaning to you, and try to avoid putting too many "themes" on your body. For instance, if MA's are your main theme, you don't want to go putting cartoon characters (which are a bad idea for tatts, IMO) or gangsta related old english writing on it . Keep with the oriental theme, traditional style tat. Put tigers, dragons, samurai, and other similar styles. It makes your tattoo work much more balanced and in line with your key interest. Now if you have other interests, like motorcycles or a script you want, put it in another area of your body. Putting a motorcycle or HD logo next to a dragon and kanji would be a bad move.

Listen, 10lb weights are not "useless". All you have to do is up the amount of reps you do, and you can still get a good workout. Granted, you will need to invest in a pair of 20's and 15's to really make an impact. But it is healthy to workout with ANY kind of resistance.

Well put, Drunken.

Ahhh, pepper spray. The second great equalizer.... (first being Smith and Wesson).

Leave out the word "martial" when you refer to it. I don't even consider it "martial" in the sense of the word. Martial means relating to war, or a characteristic of or benefitting a warrior. This is a term that related ina way to the samurai and their code of ethics when it came to warfare and their system of beliefs and honor. It is not a word to be used lightly. It is certainly not a word that can be used to describe moves in pro wrestling. These guys are entertainers, pure and simple. Guys like Shamrock may be warriors in their own right, but the pro wrestling events themselves and the whole training and techniques regime is stunt-oriented and in no way translates into anything martial or an art form. If you were to call this a martial art, then where do you draw the line? Would stuntmen in the movies be considered martial artists? Would you call actors and actresses martial artists if they threw some kicks and punches in the movies? I agree that it may be a form of fighting if it is applied in a street environment. And with the size of some of those guys I sure would be wary about tussling with them.

No way. What is the true definition of a MARTIAL ART? The dictionary defines it as "any of several Oriental arts of weaponless self-defense; usually practiced as a sport. Contemporary interest in the martial arts often focuses on their spiritual aspects, as means of increasing self-confidence, assertiveness, concentration, and personal defense. The martial arts have also become popular as forms of self-expression, similar to dance". To compare it to pro wrestling (the entertainment and televised variety) is off base, in my opinion. First off, the "athletes" are so steroided out, you'll see a lot of them dropping dead of liver disease in the not too far off future. Granted, steroids are in MMA's also, but we're talking about martial arts collectively, not just competitive MMA tournaments. Second, I think martial arts also defines a discipline or mindset. This whole WWE thing is simply entertainment, acting, stunts, and choreographed movements. This, to be honest, doesn't fit the criteria of what I personally perceive to be a martial art. Some may disagree here, but I think a lot of people watch this type of wrestling and think it is actually real. I find it hilarious and severly overrated and overacted.

Sounds like you did fine. No one has to take abuse much less get punched and simply ignore it. You followed the course of self defense, and handled it properly. The way you described the situation, it sounded as if you really had no choice aside from running to an aide with your tail between your legs to tattle and you reacted properly. Have you had any problems with this guy after the fact?

The key point here is the fact that all parties appear to have been intoxicated to some degree. The bottom line in any situation is, make sure you are aware of your surroundings and you handle the situation accordingly. Either way, if you decide to put yourself in an environment filled with unpredictable drunks, then you better be prepared to deal with the repercussions of what drunks do. It sounds like there may be a lot more to the story that isn't mentioned. You got a wife, who you have been with for a month, they argue a lot, she's getting drunk and out of control (read: alcoholic?), some other guy is very protective of her (hmmmm) and he is also drunk, and their 11 year old kid is at ANOTHER party while the adults are partying themselves, blah blah blah blah blah..... talk about a recipe for dysfunctionality. The 11 year old kid is the victim here, he has no real dad now, his stepmom is a drunk, and he knows no stable family environment. It all falls on the responsibility of the "parents", if you can call them that in this situation, and the adults in this world. We need to pull our heads out of our u-know-whats, and start being RESPONSIBLE role models for our kids by NOT letting them go out to parties when they're 11 unchaperoned, by not going out and getting wasted and getting into fights while our kids are somewhere else, and by not getting plastered and acting like fools in public. I don't feel sorry for any of the adults in that story. I feel sorry for the kid.[/i]

Listen, I don't debate style vs style here. Reason? It doesn't matter. My philosophy has always been: train in what makes you happy, and train hard. Furthermore, every fighter is different regardless if he is taking the same style as you. I've had to spar many lousy black belts in my TSD experience, and I whooped many of them..... When I was a red belt! What matters is your aggresiveness. I always emphasize a well-rounded martial artist. Someone who learns how to be aggressive while having a good defense and ground game. That's why I took a large amount of TSD (established a good defensive and stand-up game). I realized TSD didn't stress a lot of offense, so I took KF San Soo. I learned striking areas, how to be aggressive, and coupled with my defensive game, I was pretty balanced. Recently I saw I was very helpless when knocked to the ground, so I started BJJ to work on that facet. I consider myself a well-rounded fighter. I personally think someone who takes one style and shuts out any others is cheating himself, and will pay for it if they run their mouth too much. Some people, like the Gracies, can run their mouths, because they have the proof in the pudding, so to speak. The thing about BJJ, is it's a thinking man's M/A. Bring the fight to your level, and win it on YOUR terms. That's why it has been so succesful.

The reason for that outburst is......???

Here's some sites for the product: http://www.csmngt.com/secretagogue_stack.htm http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/mhp/secret.html Here's a "non-biased" review of the product: http://www.advice-hgh.com/ultimate-hgh.html HGH is a hot topic these days. Many products claim they can increase human growth hormone levels simply by throwing some legal substances together in a hodge-podge of powders and pills. I feel this is complete nonsense. Do you want to raise HGH levels? Then do plenty of exercise and heavy lifting. This naturally stimulates production in your body. Taking a pill or powder you buy in a store won't do it. Just another example of the supplement companies preying to people's desires to get big quick. Let's be serious here. If this stuff did as it promised, you could continually raise HGH levels in your body. Excess HGH can cause deformation of bone, particularly the bones in the skull, liver problems, etc. True HGH is given usually in injections and are doctor monitored. Done properly these EXPENSIVE treatments can help you look and feel younger. The same goes for testosterone supplementation. But for someone to tell you the same results can be had by drinking a combo of amino acids and L-glutamine and other derivitaves is ridiculous. Look at the ingredients in this stuff. GABA was supposedly hot stuff back in the 90's. They found out it had no effect. As a matter of fact, it is similar in composition to GHB, which can mess you up. Arginine and ornothine have been around for years. Good stuff, but it does nothing to raise HGH levels. Vitamin C? Good stuff. But you can get that by eating an orange. L- Glutamine? Good when taken with creatine, but by itself it does nothing to raise HGH. All this stuff has been around for years- and it DIDNT WORK THEN! It didn't work in "Hot Stuff", that supplement powder from the 80's and 90's that threw everything in it from the kitchen sink. It's the same stuff people have been supplementing for years. Don't waste your money. Buy some whey protein, a good multi vitamin and Fish oil supplements, and you're gonna be much better off in the long run.

Although size can be intimidating, it is not the deciding factor in a fight or kumite. The deciding factors are technique, execution of technique, and DRIVE. If you have the right mentality, you can intimidate your opponent just by the sheer power of your technique and determination. I've knocked around guys much bigger than me only because I refuse to lose to them. If they can't match my intensity, then I'll put a hurting on them before they have a chance to get mad. So don't worry about how big you are, just gain confidence, be good at what you do, and look mean!