Hoju

I've been working on doing a full split for some time now, and I'm almost there. Is it a show-off thing? YES! I want to be able to stick out my tongue at people and say "look what I can do!" The split is just one of those things that we all aspire to (even people who claim they don't). And those who can do it do have something to brag about. ....soon....

The way I've always seen it, hyungs/katas are really more to allow your body to learn and become accustomed to what you would do in sparring or a real life situation. My guess is that nobody went right into partner work on day one. You get taught moves to the air, from, grips to kicks, and then practice with partners to better the technique. Hyungs & katas allow you to learn to flow multiple techniques together.

I'm not a lefty, but I was taught very early on by some of my seniors the importance of being able to spar lefty. And I have to say, its one of the most effective things I've learned. Sparring righty & then quickly switching to lefty for attacks generally completely bewilders the opponent. Either they don't move, in which case you have an open target. Or they switch to match, putting them on their less effective side & giving you the advantage for that moment that they actually do the switch. Granted, one thing righties do have is that statisically righties live longer than lefties. So, HA!

On a sorta seperate side note about learning from books. Two hyungs (katas) ago, I wanted to try to learn some of it prior to learning it in class, which I knew I was going to the next day. So I found a book with it & started pratcticing & learning some of the new techniques. Well, as is probably apparent, when I started learning it in class, I had 90% of it wrong. When I went home and rereviewed the book, I saw that I had the final aspect of the motion correct, but I there was no way to really understand the execution & connection of the move without seeing done live. Now I only use books for review or combination techniques, rather than the initial learning.

I think you'll probably find more beneift at first in the stretching part of the daily routine, to get yourself back in shape. Kicks are rather pointless if the execution is perfect, but you can't get it above your opponent's ankle. From what I've heard of people who leave training for some time & then come back, you'll be surprised how quickly a lot of things come back to you.

Ah, we hear this advice at least once a month doled out to all different people. Hyungs/katas/forms are not just to be memorized & reiterated. They are to be done with purpose & spirit. Speeding through them also usually means that you're not performing the techniques cleanly & fully. This is sound advice for anyone from a white belt to through black.

Well, at the risk of sounding a little flip, I think ki is like many other things in life when it comes to religion. If you are religious & want to recognize ki, you'll find a way to incorporate them together. If you are religious & don't want to recognize it, you'll find reasons not to. But I really don't personally see how it would have a negative place in any religion. You're not worshiping ki in any way or using it as a substitute (like Lord-lite).

Rank isn't just a matter of memorizing forms and combos though. It is also refining techniques, increasing your reaction time and just general overall ability - much of which you never lose, period. I know a guy - second degree blackbelt - who hasn't trained in going on two years. But man, he is still as sharp as ever & although he's a little rusty, I'd put my faith in him in a second. I think extended absenses need to be made up for in terms of additional training & refreshers, but much of the stuff that makes your belt level your belt level are instinctual & practical things that you will never forget.

Apart from the apparent legal and ethical issues though, has anybody actually seen this stuff in action? I mean, I would think that some of the blows, even if you are completely in a state of "mind-over-matter" could still do some serious & permanent damage.

A large part of sparring is also muscle memory. The idea that if your body can just react without thinking - it sees a front kick coming, it knows to give a low block and immediately follow with a punch. It takes lots of training, but hey- thats why it takes years to get a blackbelt instead of 3 days. Keep it up, accept that EVERYONE (well, mostly everyone) has problems at the beginning, you will get hit (& its not as bad as you think in class), you will lose some sparring at first, and in the end, it'll make you better, faster & stronger.

I'll definitely secord this statement. I tried it tonight (after I was warmed up in class) and got up to 45 before my arms all but gave out. They were the 90 degree bends, back straight, proper kind. I was a little surprised; I thought I'd be able to do more. Another goal for this year: more pushups.

I would definitely go with the reverse punch. But like was said above, I think it has something to do with being told to punch straight.

I dont think that it's ever too late to get to the point where its second nature in any activity or MA. When I started training, I was 23 (a whole year and some months ago). I'm finding that it comes relatively quick. I think there's even an advantage to the fact that we're through our growth spurts and puberty, so you've developed & are comfortable with your body. I would say I'm learning a fast rate, but I've also fenced for so many years, that a lot of reaction times are relatively small and whatnots. But, the moral of this ramble - 24 is not too late at all to start training in a MA.

I've been training with shin splints. They come & go (unfortunately, my left leg have been here a lot more than it's been gone lately, and I think it may be close to a stress facture). But hey, it's all fun and games until someone loses an eye (or an ear or toe)

-Form (your current one & a previous one) -Sparring (demonstrate an ability that matches your current level) -Wood breaking (with a move matching your current level) -Various Combinations -Decision-sparring (where you are specifically given a situation to defend-counter) -Terminology (instructor calls out moves in rapid succession & you must match them) -And general improvement from your last exam. I think that's it, our testing has changed since I last took my exam, so I'm a little confused on it.

I love when things like this offer the "Money back guarantee," and the more they say it (in this case 4x) the less they mean it. Then you hit the bottom, where you have 30 days, and you get charges shipping+handling & the restocking fee (usually approx 15%, but I've seen eBay stores charge as much as 40%). And then you notice that it never mentions HOW you test? Probably you have to own a video camera & mail them (at your own expense) video copies of your test. Now, all you need is an online diploma, an online job and an online spouse & you're pretty much set in life. Yay internet!

Every art (& studio) has different grading rules, some extremely harder than others - but when it comes down to it, it is possible to fail. Some give more leeway to lower belts (I dont know where orange belt ranks for you, but for us, its the second belt), especially if they know that you know your stuff and seem to just be having a bad day. They also take into account that you aren't going to know everything perfectly (hence your belt being orange as opposed to black) Unfortunately, as another thread on here went, I think a lot of studios do not fail students for the fear of losing them & their money. Congratulations on passing though!

Ah, but so is Chinese Wood, as Shortround informed us in Indiana Jones & the Temple of Doom. Sorry, couldn't resist.

I just sit up in bed, take some deep breaths & stretch my wrists & ankles. The pressure points there get me through most of my day. I save the real exercising until later in the day.

Thanks Sorry, I guess my sense of humor (a cross between dry wit & obnoxious annoyance) needs a little (read: a LOT) of getting used to.

The best type of weapon depends on the duel that's being fought. If its for honour, the traditional & probably one of the best ways, is using a foil or epee, both fencing weapons. The sabre is actually designed as a mounted weapon (used when fighting on horseback). Something like a katana blade is more a martial arts weapon, since you yourself have to be fast and agile apart from the weapon. A katana isn't the best parrying weapon and you're going to need to avoid counter attacks. Even a rapier needs something with it for defense (usually fought as a rapier/dagger combo). Personally, having had my martial arts come from years of fencing training, I would be partial to the traditional fencing weapons as far and away the best for duels. But, as was said, really one solid strike from any weapon, landed first, is going to be fine.

It sounds like "triangulation" is the same thing that I've always heard referred to as "cutting the angles." Or in military terms, "flanking the enemy." Basically, taking into account that as an opponent is moving/attacking forward, part of your defense is shifting out of the line, throwing off their line of attack/movement & putting yourself in a better position offensively. Just look at some of the great military battles - Generally, this is a tactic used by the winning side.

There's always the Rule of Threes. Generally, if you do something twice, the third time people come to expect it. So, if you do a combo like front kick+punch, then a relatively short time later do the same combo again, the third time you throw that front kick, he'll expect a punch. That gives you two opportunities to know the opening that he's about to create for you when you follow up with something different, like front kick+roundhouse, etc... Doesn't work with everyone, may not with an experienced sparrer, but hey...anything is worth trying once (except headbutting a brick wall).

Hey there....Just wanted to give an intro, since it seems the chic thing to do...that and I get 1 post under my belt. One post down, a few thousand more to go.