scottnshelly

I don’t think that one could be better because of their country. Anyone could practice just as hard in America as they could in Korea. I have sparred with Koreans that studied in Korea and was able to hold my own. I have also been badly beaten by a few. The main difference would be the language. Even though my Instructor counted and gave commands in Korean, it was quite different to hear the same commands from someone with an accent.

There are many more factors to be considered than body type. I have seen people of nearly everybody type in nearly every art. The biggest factor should be your goal. Are you into spiritual enlightenment? Do you want to punch someone in the face and get punched in the face? Do you want to roll around on the ground? Do you want to learn to swing a stick? Do you like the idea of jumping and kicking someone in the head? What kind of pace are you looking for: fast and furious or slow and melodic? Do you want to spend hours working on the same thing (stances, kicks, punches, etc) or do you want to be constantly learning new material? Most styles have characteristics, however, not every Instructor teaches the same. I have been to Tae Kwon Do schools that were very rigid and strict; while others were very fast paced and work-out-oriented.

Find out what’s available in your area. Then watch a few classes, talk to the Instructor and some of the students. Most schools will also offer a free class or free week to see if it’s something that you would enjoy. Also, try to think about some of the goals that you want to get from Martial Arts in addition to discipline. Any good Instructor should help your discipline. After finding out what styles are available to you, let us know and we can give you a rundown of what each style entails. Here are a few things to keep in mind when talking to Instructors: • Duration of classes • Number of classes per month • Tuition • Testing fees, testing schedule • Style/lineage • Class structure When talking to students, ask about • Length of time between belts • Number of under-belts (belts below Black) • Class structure • Instructor interaction • Instructor to student ratio Good luck,

Wax on, wax off… I agree with Orion. You should attend a class, speak with the Instructor and speak with some students. Jeet Kune Do (from what I’ve read) can be a great art that can adapt to just about anyone. To be successful in anything you need a method, leader or teacher and follower or student. Jeet Kune Do is proven to be effective. You say that you are a good student. The only remaining variable is the Instructor. After talking to the Instructor post the results here and we can give more advice. Good luck and welcome to KarateForums.

Congratulations indeed.

This is a question that I have recently begun to ponder as I am planning on taking up a new style after the holidays, so I am not speaking from experience. I think that we should always strive to improve and you can’t do that by “dumbing down” your skills. If you purposely throw sloppy kicks or pretend like you don’t know as much as you do, you are only cheating yourself. The others in the class shouldn’t be jealous of you if you start of with better techniques. When I take up this new style, I plan on telling the Instructor that I have previous experience but want to go through the ranks and be treated just like everyone else. I think that being completely forthcoming is going to be the best policy in this situation.

I competed in the NBL for a couple years, several years ago. Even then I was not too pleased with the amount of “flashy” non-traditional stuff included in the “traditional” events. I can imagine that it has only deteriorated further since then.

I don’t have any celebrity examples, but my Instructors used to give motivational speeches at seminars and demonstrations. My two Instructors at my last school were employed by the Chickasaw Nation to teach Martial Arts. As part of their duties, they went to several schools in the area and gave demonstrations and would speak motivationally. They both had very colorful backgrounds and were in some trouble as youths. They spoke of how they got started in the Martial Arts and how it has helped them and all of the many benefits that come with training. I was privileged enough to accompany them on some of these trips and it was a touching experience. It’s usually pretty difficult to keep an entire gymnasium’s attention but they were always able to. Maybe it’s because right before they spoke they watched us throw each other around.

Motivational speaker, using Martial Arts Teaching small groups, including corporate events, some self-defense moves. Demonstrations Camps Rank Promotions/Belt Tests Sell equipment Franchise a school

I’ve bought plenty of equipment from vendors at tournaments. Most of the local OKA tournaments that I went to only had one small t-shirt stand run by the sponsor. A lot of the larger tournaments seemed to have more equipment, uniforms and t-shirts for sale. I never went with the intention of buying something, but would be happy to buy a piece of equipment that I somehow managed to forget to bring. I used to have a whole collection of tournament t-shirts and patches and I still have a really nice leather jacket from one of the NBL Super Grands tournaments that I attended. I’ve never been really ripped off by a tournament vendor, but I was always very cautious. I know that some of those vendors are Martial Artists themselves, while others are simply there to make some money. It’s the latter that you gotta look out for.

What about Japanese, Chinese, Okinawan, etc? Thanks.

Occasionally I run into some goon at work that feels like he can be overly friendly with coworkers and give a quick jab to an arm or gut. It doesn’t happen very often and when it does it is always in good humor. I always see it coming and play along, but sometimes I wonder: what if I’m distracted by something else and just catch his fist coming in my peripheral vision and accidentally react. I’ve trained for roughly 75% of my life to react to a punch, what if that comes out at work. What if I block and punch him back, or put him in an armbar or clothesline the joker. Of course I would never do this knowingly and willingly but after all that is what we train to do. I think that we should try to differentiate between danger and play, but sometimes it’s hard to concentrate on that when so many other people are distracting you.

I got an email from Century (World’s Largest Martial Arts Supplier) about it, but that’s all I’ve heard. Is it kickboxing?

What is Karate Kast?

I know that there are a lot of different styles or “families” of forms out there. Let’s make an all-inclusive list of all of the different families. I’ll start; these are the three that I’ve learned from: -Chang Hon -TaeGuek -PalGye

Step 1: Avoid anyone who has been seen pushing and shoving. Step 2: If you can’t avoid the person, prevent them from getting close enough to you to reach you. Step 3: If you can’t prevent them from getting close to you, try to dissuade them from pushing and/or shoving. Step 4: If push comes to shove (some pun intended), control the situation. Step 5: After you have control, end the confrontation as soon as possible. Allow me to elaborate on steps 3-5 (I think the first two are self-explanatory). You can use many different methods for dissuasion, such as reasoning, ignoring, humor, intimidation and distraction. By “control” the situation, I mean stop the threat. If he extends his arms to push react in such a way to stop him from harming you. There have been several suggestions already posted for this. Once you reach step 4, step 5 follows immediately. Once you have controlled the threat of him pushing, end the confrontation; that means don’t keep kicking or hitting him after he’s stopped.

I think this topic has already been covered quite a bit, and there’s probably not a lot that I could add, but I’ll try anyway. Perhaps my favorite setup is a step backwards, using any technique or just a regular backward step. By retreating a step, you are inviting the opponent to advance a step. When he advances he might leave his midsection open. This is a great opportunity to spin one in. (For example, starting with a right-leg forward fighting stance, move your right leg backward in a clockwise direction to switch to a left-leg forward fighting stance. Pause for just a second to allow him to move, then continuing in the same clockwise direction, turn around and kick with the right foot.) There is also an alternative way to throw a back kick. On a regular back kick, you advance by one step; you pivot on the front foot and move the rear leg forward. There is a way to throw a back kick without advancing: Rather than pivoting on your front foot as normal, move your front leg back to your rear leg, then turn and throw your rear leg out in a back kick. If you can do this quick enough he won’t see it coming and won’t expect you to turn around on a retreat. (For example, start with a right-food forward fighting stance. Move your right foot backward in a counter-clockwise direction. Just as your right foot settles down into position, pivot on the right foot, continuing in the same counter-clockwise direction and push your left leg out in a back kick.) I hope that these directions are clear. Stand up and try them, and see if they make sense. If they don’t I’ll try to animate them more.

Welcome to KarateForums. This is a great, friendly community. Kick your shoes off and stay a while.

They certainly were some awesome fights. I’m glad that Rashad beat Imes. Imes did well for someone with as little experience as he had, but I’m glad that Rashad won. It just goes to show that experience and skill is better than brute force and haymakers. I was rooting for Luke, because he was so different. It was really ironic that the first and last picked were fighting each other in the finals. Great fight, even though I was pulling for Luke. I thought Diaz was going to win; he has more experience and seems to be a better fighter. I just plain don’t like how Sanchez was talking so much smack before the fight. I think that’s what separates fighters from Martial Artists. Nothing like some good fights and we got to see several on that show.

I’ve heard a Kung Fu Sifu make reference to a pressure point somewhere in the crotch area that may make one lose control of the bladder, but I’d tend to agree with the others that death is a bit extreme. I thought I saw an article the other day on a news site that I read that said scientists made a mosquito urinate to death, but now I can’t seem to find that article. Google brought me to this site.

Find out what is available in your area, then assess each one to determine which is right for your goals. After you have narrowed it down to the styles/schools that are available in your area, the members of this forum may be able to give you some additional insight or help you make a final decision. Good luck.

That looks very detailed. Looks like excellent craftsmanship. It must be hard to sell one of those after spending that much time working on it.

Although I haven’t tested this in training I just started listening to a new song that I think would be great to workout to. The band is Stemm and the song is “Face the Pain”. You may recognize it from the hit reality tv show “The Ultimate Fighter” on Spike. Great song.

The first time I learned Koryo, I thought I had it down pretty well. I performed it the same as all of the other forms that I knew (mostly Chung-Ji patterns). Before I tested, I met with an Instructor and he tore my form apart. I don’t think I have any advice that I could share over electronic communication without seeing you perform the form except, make sure that your kicks are right on target. Don’t try to kick too high; low kick usually means knee level (depending on school), high kick means your head level. Watch the other Black Belts perform and make note of every detail (especially timing) and speak with your Instructor(s) for details. After learning the form, observing others and speaking with experienced Black Belts, video tape yourself doing the form and compare it to others. Good luck. Koryo truly is a great form.

Sounds like a great exercise. I guess the really advanced students would fill the balloons with helium before kicking.