scottnshelly

Congratulations You are the best administrator we currently have.

I’m from America, so I’m not fluent with U.K. laws. I would say for your question about the law, call your local police department. As far as taking a weapon to school, that is a very bad idea. If you or someone you know is having a problem with bullies, talk to a parent or teacher. Don’t try to take this matter into your own hands.

Congratulations.

Welcome.

Thanks to everyone so far. I know how important the “soft skills” of martial arts are, and I know how to express that to new students. My biggest concern would be a student that is not interested in learning about martial arts as a whole, but only wants to know some “awesome deadly techniques”.

Excellent answers. Thanks to everyone so far. What about the issue of teaching from a curriculum or teaching what the student wants to learn? I know that this can vary and depends on circumstances. If a student comes in and is not interested in a lifelong journey to Black Belt, would a “good Instructor” turn him away or adjust to meet his needs and interests?

A few friends and coworkers have recently expressed interest in taking a martial art. I’ve heard some say that they’re not interested in the BJJ school in town because it is “too much rolling around, not enough punching”. This makes me think that they might be interested in letting me teach them some of what I know (Tae Kwon Do and Kenpo). The only thing that I’m concerned about is, if they are that gun-ho about learning to fight, how can I be sure that they are going to understand not to abuse their knowledge? I’ve taught many classes before, but all of my classes were either experienced adults or new kids. I know how to tell kids not to abuse it, but teenagers and young adults are “too old to listen”. Is anyone concerned about teaching inexperienced teenagers and young adults for fear that they would abuse their training? I don’t mean they might turn into a bully, but that they wouldn’t take it serious and might try to “play fight” with their friends. Thanks,

My opinion on what makes a good Instructor has recently changed. I’m interested to hear your definition. Are there certain characteristics that are required, in your opinion, to be a good Instructor? Training, belt color, school, quality equipment, etc? Thanks,

I know most of the cliché reasons that people decide to teach martial arts. My question is what was the actual reason that made you decide to open a school and/or start teaching? Was there any one specific reason or event that you knew for sure that you wanted to teach? Thanks,

Taken from the UFC website:

Moved to Entertainment.

Congratulations.

The fight was pretty good. I don't want to say who won yet, in case there are viewers out there that have not seen it yet. I was also impressed with some of the other fights.

Welcome!

Welcome!

Welcome to KarateForums. We have several different categories for conversations, including one for Internal Arts, which is where we discuss Chi/Ki.

Belasko makes a great point. I’ll also add that it is largely up to the practitioner. Most arts at one point were modern; some have stuck around virtually unchanged until they are now called traditional. A modern art these days typically consists of either a traditional art modified or a combination of two or more traditional arts. Using the list that you provided, I will do my best to answer traditional or modern. 1- AIKIDO – fairly modern 2- JUDO – mostly traditional, some modern 3- KRAV MAGA (I think it belongs to Modern, right?) – mostly modern 4- NINJUTSU – somewhat traditional, not really modern 5- SIPALKI - unsure 6- TAEKWONDO (ITF) (I think it belongs to Traditional, right?) – could go either way 7- JEET KUNE DO - modern 8- KICKBOXING (I think it belongs to Mixed, right?) - modern 9- MUAY THAI – traditional, but modernized 10- BOXING – boxing has been around for a long time, it is very modern in the way that we view it today though. 11- WING CHUN - traditional 12- KUNG FU SAN SOO - traditional 13- BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU – modern based on traditional 14- ASHIHARA - unsure 15- KUDO DAIDO JUKU – sounds traditional 16- KYOKUSHINKAI KARATE-DO – fairly modern, but based on traditional 17- HAPKIDO – traditional but modernized 18- CAPOEIRA – traditional but modernized Aikido, Kyokushinkai Karate-Do and some others are considered traditional, however they were invented recently (in the last 100 years). Because of the recent date of invention, they can also be considered modern. Disclaimer: these are my opinions and may not coincide with others’ opinions.

I studied Tae Kwon Do for 15 years. I just took my first Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class this week. It is a lot different. The hardest parts for me were: 1 getting used to not knowing anything and 2 not bowing all the time. After being in TKD for so long, I got used to knowing “everything” and being a teacher. I was weird to be called the new guy. I can’t remember the last time I had to say “go easy, I don’t know anything” and “this is my first class, can you elaborate.” I’m not sure if it’s common among BJJ schools, but no one in this class bows; I am used to bowing 25-50 times per class. There was also no formal start and end to the class. There are a lot of similarities, but more differences. By all means, if you have the opportunity, you should take some classes. It will make you a much more rounded Martial Artist. Disclaimer: I am in no way a qualified representative of BJJ as I have only had one class. The statements made in this post about BJJ were from my limited experience in one school; each school is different.

Keep up the good posts.

I’ve been to schools with color requirements and schools that encouraged multicolored uniforms; the quality of the teaching was no different. My alma mater was neutral in the color issue. Sometimes it was nice to wear black pants and a white top, blue pants with a red top or even white pants with a blue top. I never noticed a difference in the quality of my techniques or anything else.

Don’t completely loosen your arm: that might slow you down. Keep your fist loose until impact. Less tension in the fist means more muscle focus in the shoulder and upper arm. Make sure to tighten your fist before impact though!

My Instructor showed me a few moves with a cane. I’ve been playing around with it ever since. There are a lot of things that one can do with a cane. The hardest part for me is finding someone willing to let me try to new locks and strikes with it. Like Sensei Rick mentioned, you can adapt techniques that you already know for use with the cane.

My suggestion would be to either write more broadly than Kung Fu, such as all of Martial Arts or more specifically, such as a specific style of Kung Fu. As others have said, it is almost entirely dependent on the student and his/her Instructor. Another thing to consider is: will your partner/opponent have enough knowledge on the subject to debate you? Will he/she be given an opportunity to research before the event?

What is it filled with? Most people start with mung beans. I’ve been working with my mung bean bag for almost two years now. I have no formal training with the bag, so I don’t do anything too intense for fear of hurting myself. One exercise that I do everyday with it strengthens my hands and fingers. Just toss the bag back and forth alternating hands. Toss it from your right hand to your left and left to right, then repeat until tired. This will strengthen your grip and fingertips really well. You should do a little research or find a qualified Instructor for the best results. Don’t go too crazy or you could cause permanent damage.

8 1/2 years. I started when I was six years old. I obtained my first Black Belt when I was 14. It was a Jr. Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do.