shotochem

The more I do Jion yhe more I like it. Its one of those kata that feel right for me. The power, the bunkai it works for me. It is one of those kata if performed properly, looks like it is really gonna hurt something.

My kind of fighter. We have one just like him in our dojo. You really have to work to get inside his guard to land a good one its not easy and when I do get a good one in he always returns the favor.

Anyone can get a Black Belt it's only $8.88 at Wallmart!!! Gotta love those rollback prices. The real worth of a belt is what it means to you personally. What everone else says or does is irrelevent.

Hey KM, I agree, and I'd like to add that many of the old greats perform their kata very differently over the years. When you get older, train longer and get more depth and knowledge of your art it is a natural progression for you to evolve and make it your own. Hey, my Heian(Pinan) Kata are very different than they were just five years ago. I can't wait to find out what they look like in 20 yrs. All in all it still has to be the same kata. Without roots and tradition the style and essence of the art may become diluted and eventually die or become a mere shell of its former self.

Rank is irrelevant. If you don't want to be disturbed just politely say you are working out somthing on your own. Please speak to me later. In the case of higher ranking children, I do not accept discipline or take orders from children. I am the adult and I deserve respect as an adult. They can have it in return and I will not disrespect anyone. But, there are limits and athourity role reversal is where I draw the line. If the school or instructors have a problem with this I will gladly go somewhere else. I am after all a paying customer. You may think of that as an arrogant or unhumble attitude but I have 2 kids and I sure would not take orders from them why would I take them from someone elses? Yes you may now flame the mean old guy.....

How can anyone not use Sabaki movements? The older I get and the more I've trained the more Sabali movement I use. When an opponent is larger and or faster than you are a good old side step and parry will go a long way. Less banging and bashing and a little more finesse goes a long way.

Hello All, Patrick, I have been gone for awhile. I hope all are doing well. Sometimes life gets in the way of MA and posting in internet forums. Had a new little Shoto-cub and a few medical problems ect... Started to train again a couple of months ago and it's great to be back!!! I look foward to mixing things up a bit with a little friendly discussion with you all. -Marc-

Sad news. He was well loved by all. My God!!! I still remember Arnold from Happy Days!!!! Just showing my age......

A good read is a magazine called "classical fighting arts" a quarterly publication. Also The journal of Asian Martial Arts is and excellent read. It is also a quarterly. I pick them up at Borders bookstore as I get issues that interest me. I don't like to do subscriptions.

Hi Shorin, I am In the situation you described only married with 2 kids and you've got a couple of years on me. I find myself in agreement with what you have said. Prefer to study one art for many of the reasons you described above. I also dabble in other arts as I find them interesting and I absorb as much as I can from others. I still sneak into a friends dojo every now and then or beg my wife to let me take an occassional SD class or seminar. I can't do it as much as I would like but I'm not a kid anymore and life has its joys and responsibilities. Does that make me any less the martial artist? I don't think so. It may be a "way of life" but it's not all there is in life.

Just wear an orange belt with black stripes on it. It will certainly fit the occassion.

Actual real life fighting to a civilized human being should be a last resort. We are not in feudal Japan or the dark ages. It is not acceptable in modern times to duke it out and settle your differences. I could safely state that most of us who train in MA will thankfully never have to actually fight someone for real in a life and death situation. In unarmed encounters it is better to have some MA training than to have none at all. All that being said, not all of us take MA for the sole reason of self defense. To many like myself it is a hobby that I truly enjoy for many reasons. To others its the sport and compettition or some zen like feeling. To each his own may we all enjoy ourselves in the process. Marc-

That Mengro, is the best MA technique you can possibly learn. The best defense is to not be there in the first place. Its this practical common sense that many people neglect and it often leads to unwanted situations and confrontations.

Its not the age, Its the mileage...... I could use a new suspension, tires and a good tune up right about now.

Kheb, I'm The same size as you. Only I am 20? kilos heavier (40 lbs). The difference is I am built like a tank. Big chest, arms and shoulders. I can hang in with most aof the bigger guys and not be grossly out muscled. I still have to have a lot better technique than the bigger guy or I will get pounded. Us vertically challenged people have less room for error and have to find out how to adapt what will work for us especially against a much larger, heavier opponent. A little more muscle will help but we have to face facts. We can not go toe to toe with big strong guys in the over 6' range on a regular basis. We have to have better technique. Be smarter and faster. Do not attack head on work the angles and go in and out. Retreat when needed but do not get steamrolled over. (Big guys have long legs and much larger strides.) I tend to fight in close and move in a circular manner, I can't say if the same would work for you. It took a lot of time and quite a few good shots to the head to get me to where I am now. It's a learning process. It takes time. Keep trying and don't be discouraged.

I carry the usual gear & uniform. I also have elastic supports for every appendage, lots of tape, Ice packs, Asprin, Ibuprofin, Aleve, Hot rub, Cool rub, Tiger balm, and a few other crazy homemade herbal extracts. You just have to be prepared....

I like to use a tennisball tied to a string suspended from the ceiling and hit it as it swings back and forth. Use any techniques you like and move around while working it. Not fancy but it works for me.

Work on your blocking. You have to trust your blocking. It's an attitude, don't be the proverbial deer in the headlights. Distance, timing, it's all important. Stick to basics and don't do anything fancy. I try not to throw anything I know I will probably not hit you with. When attacking you need to commit. No half hearted attacks or swatting in the air in the general vicinity of your opponent. If hes in range attack don't wait for him to be all over you. If you can't reach him don't attack without getting in range first. And most of all what I am still guilty of ....Don't think too much!!!

It should be obvious to anyone watching as to who has more skill. On one night to prove this point to a few people with an ego problem, we all wore whitebelts. To a passer by or anyone who walked in the door you can easily see the difference in skill. You could see who is more proficient but I bet you could not line them up in their actual belt order. If you put my crude fingerpainting next to the work of a Rembrant or a Moet the difference would be quite obvious. The whole hangup is that people associate: Belt= Skill and knowledge. The darker and more of those cool looking stripes the better and more skilled the person must be. I can't totally fault people for this as a beginner I had thought of things in the same way. It's only after training a while you can tell which BB is more skilled than the other. Next to your average whitebelt I would look like Bruce Lee.

I believe the big chicken has his own personal method on this subject. It worked for me. Maybe Rob would be kind enough to share with you guys. He used to have an article about sparring on the old version of 24FC.

Hi Laurie, I've been down that same road after my testing debacle. I felt the same way. My remedy was to not concern myself about testing or perfection. I just decided to relax and have some fun again the way I did when I first started. I also cut down on the amount of training I do. My body thanks me. The result is I have never been more relaxed in my techniques I feel fluid confident and my techniques are more effective. If I decide to test again it will be the last minute and on a whim. No pressure no concerns. If it is no longer fun and becomes like having a second job, I will no longer do it.

Where I train the instructors do the teaching for all the classes just about all the time. There may be a rare occassion or 2 when one of them can't be there and a high ranking adiult BB will run the class with a few of the other BB assisting when asked. I can't understand why a lot of people train at places where the instructors are not teaching. I pay good money for the knowledge and experience of my instructors. I expect to be trained by THEM not a lesser quality substitute. We are paying customers after all. If you orderd fillet Minon in a restaurant and the served you a hamburger and payed the same price, you would not eat there again.

1. No, the 35 year old, because he is lower "rank", will not give tips to the 15 year old "higher" rank. 2. Knowledge gained to someone under 18 gets a certain degree of respect, but a kid is still a kid. If the 15 year old black belt is assigned to instruct, say, a new kata, to a 35 year old Orange belt, he may do so. And in that instruction he may make corrections as needed. But in this instance he is being assigned to do so by an adult black belt. However, if the 15 year old black is merely watching the 35 year old work out and notices he's doing something wrong, he needs to tell an adult brown belt or black belt and they will make the correction. 3. If the 35 year old asks a question, the 15 year old is certainly allowed to answer. At our school karate is not just kata, drills and sparring. There is a certain degree of humility and maturity that should go along with it. This is part of the tradition. Kids are allowed to train of course, but it's essential that kids understand that they are not adults yet. An unsolicited correction by a child to an adult shows arrogance and is disrespectful. I believe our rules regarding junior ranks and the rules that go along with it helps them. I find myself in agreement with Angus. I have seen too many cases where a child BB is left to instruct a class or has gone around disciplining lower ranks (ie push up sit ups ect....) Sorry, but at my age you had better be at least close to 20 before you ever expect me to drop and give you 20. I've been on the planet a lot longer than you and quite frankly I have clothing older than you begone little demon go bother the adoring children in your midst. I have also had a few big headed young BB come up to me and offer their unsolicited expertise as I work out a bit before class. This I find quite annoying. I start off politely thanking them for their concern and sometimes explain that an older persons body just don't do things the same way as a younger ones. Then if the little annoyance won't go away I move over to the heavy bag and blast away full power (this usually shuts them up as they then realize in a good 10 yrs they might be able to hit as hard and precise as I do.

Believe me any good instructor would know. My Sensei asked me what was up after less than a month taking another style. Multiple arts tend to bleed over into each other which is not a bad thing. Your regular instructor would pick up on the subtle changes in you without much difficulty. I also trained my son and 2 of his friends every weekend for an entire summer before they returned back to their TDK dojang. Their first class back their instructor asked who have you been training with and I see it's a Japanese art. LOL!!!

To me personally the organization doesn't matter. It is the instructor that matters to me. If he or she is teaching top quality MA and I enjoy learning from him, I could care less what hes' affiliated with. To some this is blasphamy. Some people just need a piece of paper with an organizational seal of approval to feel worthy and considered legit. IME, no all organizations are top quality and standards may and usually are quite subjective and often highly political. Good luck to you Mike. If you feel you are producing a quality product and your students are happy I don't see it being much of an issue. If you feel it can benefit you and your students then find a worthwhile org. and see what they can do for YOU.