isshinryu5toforever

That all depends heavily on the school, not just the style. I can tell you to stay away from Kyokushin and its offshoots if you want to avoid sparring. I would say though, that you can't avoid kumite altogether. If you're that worried, contact the different dojo in your area and inquire.

Congrats

Congratulations! Nidan is quite an accomplishment.

Congratulations

I think you may be trying to sweep through the kick too much. If you're not chambering your kick at any point in the rotation, almost like a sidekick chamber, you may be simply trying to swing your leg through. This would cause a premature kick, or it as you described turn your kick into a wheel kick, which is basically a spinning crescent kick. The wheel kick is a precursor to the spinning hook kick. So, you're doing a technique, just not the one you want to do.

Happy belated birthday, and thank you to all the admins and site supervisors for all your hard work!

Thank you very much.

I would like an Isshinryu Karate dojo in my location. I have been studying for going on 17 years now, and just this year I moved to a place with no Karate. Iceman SK, message me. I live in Korea, my girlfriend and I will for the next two years or so, and I might be able to help you out as far as costs and such. The course is one thing, but Korea doesn't have to be expensive at all.

It is amazing what Bruce Lee was able to do in 19 years in the martial arts. Not many of us were so lucky to have the amount of time he was able to put into however. If you broke down how many hours he used on martial arts in those 19 years, I would be willing to bet that he used far more time than most of us. That's not to discount what Bruce Lee did. It's still amazing, but it does put it in perspective. When I was at my busiest during high school, I was playing football, working 2-3 jobs at a time (different days of course), and taking classes from 7:40AM-3:45PM. In all of this, I found time to train about a half hour a day. That's not much time. If I hadn't been doing all those things, I would have had much more time to devote to the martial arts, and I would be a much better martial artist. A prime example of time is Mas Oyama. When he devoted his life to martial arts, he improved his ability astronomically. He already had the tools in place, the build, the athleticism, the god given talent, to be a devestating striker, but his commitment is what pushed him over the top. If there is anything to be said about the truly great martial artists, it is their commitment to their art. Bruce Lee was extremely committed, moreso perhaps than any of us on this board could be. So, I would say that what he did is impressive, but you still have to look at the sheer number of man-hours put in, and the inability (financially, commitment to other things, etc.) that the average person has to give that kind of time to their passion.

Bushidoman, I agree with you to an extent, but not all black belts are meant to be teachers. And in some people's eyes, not all teachers are meant to be black belts. One black belt may excel at teaching, and that is the reason he was promoted. He may not be the most physically gifted, but he can gift the art to others. Other black belts are extremely spirited and gifted pratcitioners. The knowledge all came very easy to them, but they have trouble teaching others. I would say that neither one is good or bad. They are simply using the gifts they were given. It is true that the ultimate testament to those that came before you is to pass on the knowledge that you have received, but not all are destined for this. Black belts are given for many reasons. This is why I say a black belt is really given because you stuck around long enough. Different instructors have different definitions of what long enough is.

I move to Korea, and I'm still looking for a dojo. I may just take up TKD again. So for now, I'm doing things on my own, and teaching my girlfriend, because she really wants to learn. Today: Front kick, side kick, round house kick: 200 each verticle punches from seiuchin stance: 500 walking punches from seisan stance: 100 knuckle pushups: 75 regular pushups: 100 Additional workout: teaching my girlfriend the basics

Macho is a brand on par with Century, maybe a little better. They make good products, and not so good products. They're a bit mass produced. As far as the ones I was talking about, Satori, they're custom, so you can get them made for your own purpose. The one I have is traditional. It's extremely heavy, very durable. It's great for forms and full contact sparring. Not so great for sport fighting, but that's not what I need it for. What exactly are you looking for? BTW doesn't Ashihara have their own do-gi? just like Kyokushin.

The powers that be in the Taekwondo world should stop worrying about whether or not TKD will stay an Olympic sport. They need to go back to basics. TKD has become a big money maker due to name recognition. The problem with this, is that you have a lot of people labelling themselves TKD to get students on the floor and into contracts for 3-6 months at a time. It's become a money making proposition without much of a soul. It is a matter of pride for the Korean people that their sport is an officially recognized Olympic sport (I'm living here, I'm Korean, I understand), but I think they need to think about how much of the essence of the martial art they're willing to give up so their sport will survive.

Being a black belt is up to the person awarding the rank and the person receiving it. There are many aspects to being a black belt. The physical side is only one of them. You can be a master of the basics, so to speak, but they're just actions. If you can blindly do the basics, you can probably be a black belt in many schools. To others they want to see a more specific knowledge demonstrated. How to apply it, how to use it, when to use it, etc. Too many things. In honesty, to me, a black belt is a black piece of cloth that says you stuck around long enough. It's up to your instructor to decide how long is long enough.

Unless you go to a Goju school, what you have learned will be discounted until you prove otherwise. Don't worry about it. Think of each style you choose as a clean slate. You're a white belt all over again. You've got more going for you than the average white belt, but you're still at the beginning. Look at it as a way for you to learn more about yourself, your character, and yourself as a martial artist. Being a white belt again isn't that bad.

I don't find this to be practical advice. Nor do I think most Sensei would take you up on it.

The only dojo in my area was for Isshinryu Karate. The only regret I have is that it's difficult to find outside of specific areas.

I like a Canadian custom company called Satori. I have two of their ultra heavyweight traditional cut do-gi, and I have to say, they're the best I've ever used.

Isshinryu Karate

I think if they reinstitute it, you will see a significant change in the sport. Especially because it is easier to punch someone in the face than kick them. That's the whole key here. Taekwondo's status as a sport is what keeps the rules as they are. If you all of a sudden open up the head as a target for punches, things open up a lot more. The clinch game would change significantly if it survived at all. I can tell you this, I will immediately try to get into a grad program to take advantage of most people's (in the collegiate TKD world) inexperience with head punches if the WTF decides to bring them back into the mix.

Just dan stripes on the one I wear in my karate dojo on the one I wear for TKD, my Korean name (in Korean) on one side, and New York University in Korean on the other

Isshin-ryu: Seisan Seiuchin Naihanchi Wansu Chinto Kusanku Sunsu Sanchin and all the weapons katas I also know the Taeguk forms from Iljang to Keumgang.

Too many different ways to use this kick. All of them have their uses. For me, it depends on what kind of sparring I'm doing. If it's Olympic TKD, then I use the top of the foot. The delivery is such that the knee stays close to the body like a front kick, and the turnover happens as the kick is released. It's basically a front kick that near the end snaps over. Less powerful, but faster. If I am at my Karate school, they do full contact. I still bring my leg up like a front kick, but the turnover happens much sooner. I also like to kick with the ball of the foot in these situations. For kicks to the high target, it depends on the situation. Sometimes you can get away with the quick turnover kick, other times, it is beneficial to take a slower approach all the way around the outside. In either case, for safety sake, if it's not self defense I use the instep.

4th degree black belt in Isshinryu Karate 1st degree black belt in Taekwondo (registered with the Kukkiwon)

I just stumbled back into this forum after a couple years away. But I am just into the 22-29 category. I'm 23 and I've been doing Karate for, oh god 17 years now. I've been doing this longer than my middle school students have been alive...