returning_wave

I actually would say the opposite: altohugh the pinan and heians look different their applciations (arguably what defines a kata) are essentially identical. when a wado-ryu practitioner does a pinan shuto-uke he implies the same attack as a shotokan practioner doing it in heian. And i wouldnt call wado-ryu practioners 'shotokan offshoots' to their face

Ive never seen kickign with the knife edge, weve always kicked with the heal in our dojo, but i can see kicking with the knif edge if you were wearign heavy shoes - tried it in my raf boots and it gave more of an impact. Also harder to land awkwardly in big shoes.

theve always been heian to me. altohugh i accept pinan is arguably the more 'correct'.

Id agree with Kanku-dai as a self-defence kata, probably suggest enpi for show. that kata can look very impressive.

Its not so much the black belts at a young age that I object to (altohugh i do disagree with them - I dont think a kid can posess what a black belt represents) but I am strongly agaisnt training kids under 14-ish in MA at all. I think it instills them with a misplaced confidence which can damage the important sranger-danger lessons, and as they are too young to understand fully the mental/spiratual aspects they will not know how to use it responsibly even against people they can take (ie their schoolfriends). A MA is a commitment they should make for themselves at least as an adolescent.

In my experience black belt kata have included: Bassai-Sho, Kanku-Sho, Tekki Nidan & Sandan, Sochin, Gankaku, Gojishiho, Rohai and Chinte. Although technically a black belt grading kata Nijishiho is usually taught lower.

one word: website you may be generating interest by ads etc but you need an easily accessible source of info and so on which doesnt involve people ringing you, which they wont do if they're only marginally interested. a gd informative website can pull in the 'maybe' crowd you might otherwise miss.

100 bucks a month? thats *does quick maths* nearly 60 quid. how mny lessons do you get a month? we pay (strictly paid. i quit last week) £2 a lesson so £16 a month. gadings were £15 a time which was a rip-off as we didnt get belts or anything included. but still lessons were cheap so we didnt grumble.

Ok, my choices. i dont know much about kyokushin so general karate best buys: Bunkai-Jutsu by Iain Abernethy. Legendary work. 75 Down Blocks: Refining karate technique by Rick Clark (i think ) . will get you thinking. The bubishi translated by Patrick McCarthy. Solo Training by Loren Christenson (sp?) the Bunkai-Jutsu video series also with Iain Abernethy.

double post sorry

My choice would be Tekki (Naihanchi), as it was a favourtie of the masters who made karate what it is today. Although Kanku-dai would be a close second. Note that the heins are derivative from kanku not the other way around. and similarities to tekki are coincidental - they evolved almost compeltely seperately.

also disagree im afraid - the eyes arent gonna hit you. if you watch the solar plexus area you have the actual weapons - arms, legs and head all in view - if you watch the eyes its almost impossible to see a kick/knee attack coming. Plus as someone said higher up people can drain your confidence with stares or make you laugh/lose concentration.

double post in error. apologies.

'Welcome to McDojo, do you want a black belt with that?' hopefully karate can survive this, but at least a sizeable chunk will go under into tournament-range point-scoring karate. such a pity.

yeh id go with the truth, altohugh i would tell your instructor personally not announce it to everyone. It will help your instrutor to point out dfferences between karate and tkd if he sees you doing them if hes aware of your experience.

Does anyone know anything about the seido style or has anyone done it? Im lookign for a new karate dojo within my area and this looks promising. But I know next to nothing about it. any ideas? org's website is: http://www.seido.org.uk/

no thanks. olympics = standardisation + loss of martial application in favour of sporting tournaments (which is happeign enough already). with most sports, olympic status would be the best thing that ever happened to them, but i think it would be karate's death blow.

thanx for the link. interesting read, good ideas.

Its an interesting idea that I hadn't really given much thought. As i am part of a small multi-style splinter group of martial-arty friends we could make up a form based on what we come up with. You've got me thinking now

you can strangle someone with the sleeve of your sweater. do you register that? above any other considerations registerign your hands as a deadly weapon in the UK would make you a prisoner in our own home. No weapon may be carried in public in britain

The move is also foudn by accident if you try the round-shoulder throws seen in Heian Sandan (among others) wiht someone too short - harmless-ish throw becomes arm breaking technique if you want to practise it, learn the system of tapping out when you feel a lock or choke - you partner taps you when they feel it and you immediately release.

All moves can be better spotted if, during combat, focus on the opponents solar plexus area instead of teh eyes and head. This means all their limbs are fully in your vision and you can react more quickly to any incoming threat. be especially wary if they turn sideways to you, as then a backfist is an extremely likely technique

my net name will tell you how i do mine if youve studied Tekki/Naihanchi in any depth. The swinging the lower leg up from the kata I extract and use as a sweep from a one-to-one standing position. also useful for getting the front leg in front stance to move it into line with their back leg, makign their balance waver. follow up with a push or arm bar to send them oer. The same mvoe can be sed as a forceful kick/sweep to the inside of the knee, which can cause nasty ligament or even bone damage if their foot is down firmly

i dont know what katas you do in goju ryu. i find the same forms crop up in every style in slightly altered versions. If you do do any katas the same as shotokan http://www.ozwebart.com.au/kua/kata.htm does videos of them. sorry im not more help!

I would actually say the same. leave. It seems drastic, but if your instructor is as bad as he sounds he probably has nothing more to teach you. I am in a very similar situation and I have stuck with the instructor (who seems to know astonisingly little about the art beyond the basics of green belt) while learnign on the side from books and videos. I will be leavign as soon as I can drive to get to another club.