Dragn

In Japan kickboxing has had a big influence on the training methods of full contact Karate schools. Virtually all use thai pads just like a kickboxing gym. Kyokushin rules fighters also use a full body shield which is like a wall of foam that the partner holds around him making him something like a moving punching bag. I dont think traditional schools do this kind of training though. I think Thai pads are the most valuable training tool for power, technique and stamina.

Since I train in Japan, yeah we use alot of" Karate terminology". There are still times when I dont understand what my classmates are saying ,so I just nod and smile. I've learned to really closely observe the movements of my teachers and imitate the most subtle movements to make up for the times when I cant fully understand verbal explanations. Its funny when I go back home to train though, and I hear instructors speaking butchered Japanese terms.

I cross trained in Northern Shaolin Long fist for a couple of years when I was competing in wushu, because I wanted to understand the applications of the moves in my wushu forms. I found the philosophy of the art to be quite interesting, but technically I found many of the applications to be over complicated and difficult to apply against a resisting opponent. Perhaps it was just the teacher I was with. We did no free sparring at all and most of his students were a tad on the soft side. The most usefull things I learned were the elements of chin na and shuai chao contained in the system. As with any style, quality varies radically from school to school .So give the school a look. If they dont do any sparring I would be a little cautious. But thats just my personal policy.

Yeah I dont think there are any Daidojuku dojos in the States yet. It was only started in 1981 so its still young. Its getting pretty big in Japan, and has spread to many countries in Europe. The Russians have a really strong team .But not only Daidojuku competes in the Kudo tournaments. Its open to anyone willing to fight by our rules.

I WON! KO in the 2nd round. I dropped my opponent once in the first round with a right cross. Then again in the second with a spinning back hook and then again with with a left middle roundhouse that left him doubled over on the kanvas. YEHAAA! To top it off I got the best fighter award for the B class. So I'm pretty happy Still got alot to work on though. I was dropping my guard alot, and throwing some wild punches. I was also lacking in spirit at one point of the fight. I'm going to have to make alot of improvement to make the Japan KUDO finals next year. Real fights are soo different to sparring in the gym. I learnt I've still got a long way to go. Cant wait to get back to training. Once my swollen shin heals up a bit......

To be honest I dont know off hand. Here in Japan Muay Thai and Kickboxing are almost identical.There are so many different groups and organisations its rediculous. Some fight K1 type rules but full Thai rules is just as common. Ammature competition is often divided into different classes. The tournament I've been competing in is relatively new operation called RISE. Ammature comps are divided into A B and C classes. B class, where I've been competing, allows knees but no grabbing and kneeing at the same time. A class allows clinching and kneeing, and I think the pros fight full Thai rules. I should really be competing in A class but because I've been taking alot of time off from injuries I want to get 1 more win in B class before I step up. I've got a fight this Sunday Cant Wait!

Continued..... But now that I reread your first post and realised you've only been together 2 months, forget it.Haha. A year in Africa will probably change you so much you'll likely loose interest in her anyway.Whats the bet you do and up with some African girl. Regarding competition, I know it is an integral part of Kyokushin, but you made it sound like there is no point in training without competition. This is something that no Japanese Karateka would agree with. It reduces it to a mere sport. As was mentioned, competition is a means to an end. NOT the end in itself. Just a part of the deeper journey that is Budo. Good luck in Africa .Adapting to a radically foreign culture is a real mind openning experience. Just remember to look for the positive things that can enrich your view of life.If you dwell on the negatives ( which there will be) you may miss out on a potentially rewarding experience . OSU

My wife and I were apart for a year before we got married.We broke up and she went back to Japan.We both saw other people for a while ,but realised that we just couldnt replace each other with another, dispite our various problems .Sometimes time apart can help you realise just how much you mean to each other. I came to Japan and proposed and we've been hapily married for the past 7 years. If your relationship is really strong then it will overcome whatever barriers.

Crazy ol dude!

Your right. But I dont take BJJ classes often enough. At my present level of amature MT competition Grabbing and Kneeing isnt allowed so theres not as much emphasis on neck wrestling as if I was fighting as a pro. I know some conditioning exercises but its usually left up to us to do our own ab/neck/back exercises after class. Foolishly I didn't do my neck work often and now its too screwed up to do alot of conditioning, so I'm kind of caught in a bad cycle.

This year I've been getting severe pain in my neck, shoulder blades, and down my arm. When it gets really bad I can hardly turn my head. I've had to take alot of time off training because of it. I finally got around to getting it x-rayed last week and found out that I have a mild neck hernia from taking too many blows to the head. Because we usually wear head gear in sparring we can use fairly powerfull contact without getting hurt. But the head gear dosent protect your neck. So take this bit of advice from me : If you dont do any neck strengthening exercises, you better start now! Beleive me this condition is a real pain in the neck! Since I found out my conditrion I've mentioned it to some of my peers and found out that its quite common amoung kick boxers. One of my trainers has it. So do 2 pros I know, and another guy in my BJJ class. So take care of your neck guys.

I can vouch for that. I just had a guy hit me with a couple of those last night. Caught me by surprise cause I just wasn't expecting it. I've been limping around all day because of it!

Kyokushin is a Budo art. Theres alot more to it than just fighting in comps?Comps are a great learning opportunity, but if thats the main reason for your training, then you havent yet understood the true value of Budo. It shocks me to hear a Kyokushin blackbelt speak like this. It shows just how far things have deteriorated in the west. While there may be the odd fighter who still wants to compete at 50, its not really very healthy or wise at that age. My guess is he didn't start till his 40s. Most Thais retire in their 20s. But true MA training is for life. it dosent end with your retirement from competition, or when you go on a holiday. Its a way of living. I've been traveling most of my life. You can usually find some kind of dojo. Even if its not exactly what you want it can still be a valuable learning experience.

Depends on what you are used to I guess. Its not as hard core as NHB. We dont allow ground and pound from the mount pos. We also wear plastic faced head gear which really protects you from getting your face mashed up. A few really dangerous strikes and locks aren't permitted. Its like an ammature version of NHB without gloves. But ,It has a Budo philosophy at its core so it still retains the traditional values ,while allowing the freedom to explore the full spectrum of techniques, with an emphasis on realism. For me its just perfect. I've trained with some Kempo guys who were more hardcore. Training with them was just PAIN PAIN PAIN! I could hardly walk after each training session.

Obviously a tournament with no rules at all is just not feasable. We dont practise MA to learn how to kill each other for personal glory. If you practise MA only for the purpose of street survival then winning competitions should be of no concern to you anyway. But If you want to test your skills against other MArtists, then MMA is a relatively ruleless option. There are also other amature comps around. I just watched the world KUDO championships here in Tokyo. An open tournie that allowed for all strikes(including elbows knees headbuts), throws, locks, and chokes in a bare knuckle knockdown style. Of course there were rules to keep it as safe as possible while allowing for as much freedom of technique as possible. Head gear was also used. It was very interesting. A number of KO'S and tap outs. Its held every 4 years. While such comps dont completely portray a realistic street fight. They do get pretty close, and the skills gained from such intense full contact fighting is of great value to prepare a MArtist for a real street fight, should he ever find himself in the unlikely situation. I think we're pretty lucky to have such tournaments available. In the old days all we had was point fighting and Kyokushin rules. Make the most of it . Its a great learning oportunity. I'm planning to compete in the Japanese prelims next year.

I've been travelling between 1 and 1and1/2 hrs by train 3~4 days a week for a few years now. I found 2 dojos that I really liked and I was willing to make the sacrifice. But unfortunately its too easy to find excuses to skip training when its so far. So I'm presently looking for a good Muay Thai gym closer to home so I can train everyday. It was a tough decision to leave my old MT gym though. I was getting instruction from 2 ex Thai champions and 2 Japanese champions. Plus getting some BJJ training as well. Dont think I'll find anywhere as good.

I was once in a san shou fight against a guy who was really killing me with low kicks. The fight came to a draw and went into an extra round. . I was really tired and new I couldnt handle another round of getting my legs hammered. I had to do something fast to drop this guy. I had noticed he was dropping his left hand when he threw the right kick. So as soon as the round started I began circling to my left enticing him to throw a Rt low kick. As soon as he moved I threw a jumping round house which clocked him right on the temple dropping him. TKO! And the crowd went wild! What a great feeling that was.

Some more about Japan....... I'm noticing that the impact of K1 and pride are really having a big impact on the Karate scene here. Throughout the 80s and 90s Kyokushin was the most prominent karate style, boosted by its reputation as " fighting Karate". Since the rise in dominance of Muay Thai however, more and more dojos are incorporating kick boxing techniques and training methods. Various new organisations are opting to use gloves and fight under K1 type rules. My own dojo is more Muay Thai than Karate. My teacher often goes over to Thailand to fight, and one of my sempai competes as a pro kick boxer. The rise of BJJ is very strong too. More and more MMA gyms are popping up all over the place. MA has become very full contact fighting oriented. Traditonal dojos are becomming rarer and rarer. I sometimes find myself shocked at the lack of respect for the traditional aspects of MA training. Its becomming more and more ego driven and competitive.To me the MA has always been so much more than just fighting skills. Thats really just the surface. Particularly in the case of the Japanese Budo arts. I intend to open my own dojo here in the not too distant future and combine the practicallity of modern fighting arts with the depth and wisdom of traditional Budo.

I dont think anybody does XMA specifically for the purpose of showing off. They do it because they love doing it. Of course every performer has a bit of a show off in him. But I dont think thats the main reason he trains so hard. How is doing something you love to do unhealthy? How does it differ from any other extream sport?

Gidday Andrew, I enjoyed reading some of your posts in MT. Look forward to hearing more of your thoughts over here.

WW nice post! I know what you mean. Its always been about the skill rather than the belt for me too.Thats why I never minded donning a white belt time and time over in various dojos over the years. I just wanted to learn. Lately though in my dojo I'm finding that the belt system does have valuable motivational effects. There is a constant pressure on senior belts to go that much harder than their juniors. We are expected to be able to dominate ranks lower than us in sparring and show unshakeable fighting spirit. We all have days when our motivation isn't exactly booming. The pressure of being a certain rank can give you that extra little push when you're down. A little psychological ploy to get us to train harder. Some of us need all the motivation we can get:)

I got my first dan when I was just 16. In retrospect I guess I deserved it. I trained with dedication and hard work for 5 years to get it. Compared to my class mates I had superb technique, speed and power. The problem is that the dojo ( and probably the whole organisation) I belonged to wasn't of the best calliber.Compared to what I do now my previous level of ability was pretty sad. In my present style I'm a green belt (again!) Soon to test for brown. I feel thats a pretty good representation of my ability according to my standards. I can beat most of the black belts in my dojo at present but I still dont think I have neverdie fighting spirit of a full contact karate BB . I Know when I do wrap a black belt around my waiste again there won't be any question about my skills from anybody. At one stage I lost interest in ranks.I was just interested in knowledge. I had seen so many hopeless BBs over the years. But since starting my present style I've regained a certain respect for the belt system when Its applied realistically. I dont think much of guys with blackbelts unless I know their dojo, or in some casses their style. eg:BJJ and Kyokushin BBs I regard as being the real deal.

I found the main difference in training in Japan was the attitude of the students. Generally they're alot more serious about their training. And the training is harder. If we trained with the same seriousness and strictness we have here in Japan back home, I dont think we'd get that many students. There is a very strong heirachy in the dojo. Guys who are above you in rank are shown respect. They will often order you around.And talking back or argument is unthinkable.Its almost militaristic in nature. After training we all wipe down the floors by hand. Much of this is for the purpose of character development. Learning humility and respect is an essential part of studdying Budo. I really enjoy training here in Japan. When I trained back home I found it just too laid back.I saw guys with green, brown, and even black belts who were just terrible! Over here you really have to earn the belt. Guys who have poor technique will get drilled and drilled till they get it or they dont get promoted. Of course I know there are some good dojos back home, and some poor ones here too. I'm just speaking in general terms based on what I've experienced.

Being a performer myself I really enjoy watching XMA. Although sometimes it comes across as being a bit shallow. I think its the fact that they call themselves martial artists and issue belts that gets the traditionalists fired up. And rightly so. I think they need to make a clear distinction that what they do is performance Martial Arts and not intended for SD. That way there would be less misunderstanding. I trained in both TMA and performance MA for many years. I honestly dont think I was much of a decent fighter though till I started doing full contact Karate and Muay Thai. The guys I did wushu with couldn't fight to save themselves. They had great technique, co ordination and body control but absolutely no understanding of how to apply it in a fight.

I agree with most of the answers already given. Spinning a bo and fighting with one are very different. MA movies portray a very flashy style that isnt practical. But I'm going to suggest a different option. Why not look into wushu? If you like to spin then Traditional kobudo will probably just bore you anyway. Chinese staff has alot more spinning.You're probably going to get more forfillment from performance oriented MA. And lets face it. How many of us carry a 6 foot pole around? Maybe if we were living in Japan 100 years ago, but not a very realistic weapon for todays world. Oh, and dont listen to those fire spinners who say you're style is too MA oriented. I've been combining MA into my fire staff and fire knife routines for years and I can put most fire spinners to shame.