Meguro

Landing on the heel is facilitated by cushy running shoes. According to some biomechanic stuff I ran across on the net (sorry for the pun), the present human form did not evolve (if you subscribe to evolution) with the latest technology from Nike or Reebok in mind. The physiology of the lower leg, including calf muscles, arched foot, etc. were intended to aborb the shock of landing and spring the leg forward for the next stride. Landing on the heel and rolling forward cancels this out and makes for a less efficient stride. Muay Thai boxers, I've heard, do their daily runs on the balls of their feet. Supposedly, it's what gives them powerful calves and great kicking strength. Personally, I land on my heel and roll forward, just as you say. I've ran many miles and a marathon this way, but it never feels right, especially in my knees. Lately, I've given up running altogether and instead skip rope, which as you know is done all on the balls of your feet. I've also been using a rowing ergometer, which is great for getting your heart rate way up and burning your quads, abs, back and arms. If I do get back to running, I'll be running on the balls of my feet.

No, impossible, won't work. You can't switch from the rocket science that is shotokan to the mumbo jumbery of shukokai!!! Seriously, style has nothing to do with your enjoyment of what ever it is you're going to be doing. Don't look at Shukokai from Shotokan colored glasses. If the folks at the new dojo look like you might enjoy training with them, join them. But do so as a white belt and leave all your preconceived ideas at the door. Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Shotokan originally marketed to the Japanese military and educational establishment as a form of exercise. Rather than budo, you might think of it as the original Tae-Bo.

Avoid pounding the pavement with your heels. Try landing softly on the front part of your foot rather than the rear.

I think I liked it Because it was so different. It took me out of my comfort zone and forced me to look at things in an entirely new way. I hear what you're saying, but would like to point out that since judo and tkd are also sports with strict definitions as to how points are awarded (in competition), aren't you still in the same comfort zone? At least with aikido, you are practicing something that truly isn't a sport. My recommendation of Muay Thai, while also a sport, is that it allows you to take your TKD striking skills to levels unknown in TKD- it's like entering the family mini-van into Death-Race 2000.

I did Judo long before I did ITF TKD and I find them too dissimilar, like doing tennis and golf. Why not augment your TKD with Muay Thai? This way there's a little overlap and enough diversity to make your training interesting.

Thanks. Not too over the top I hope.

I don't think the v-necks look good on anyone, fat or skinny. Stick to the traditional cross-over type if you can.

Congratulations to all who just got married and courage to those about to take the leap! Good luck on your weight/health goals! I eat pretty much as much as I want anytime of the day and am anywhere from 7-11% bf. The 7% was measured by caliper, the 11% by those electronic scales that pass a current through your body. Could be genetic, or a very big tapeworm. I think it might be the beverages: I mostly drink water, no juice, soda, nothing processed. I do enjoy the occasional beer or wine, and of course coffee and tea, but water is my drink of choice.

Not sure I like the idea of dropping water weight right before a competition. Obviously it works for a lot of competitors. I just imagine myself tanking right out of the gate. Plyometrics is a good idea, and I've incorporated a lot of that: jumping squats and clapping push-ups. When I bench, I've reduced the reps and upped the weight. If I don't change my diet, perhaps I'll gain strength without weight. My current thinking is this: lots of body weight squats(300 reps), lots of sit-ups & back extensions. Not sure about the arms and chest. Which makes sense: maxing out on reps of an intermediate weight (140 lbs.) or maxing out on weight? Maybe bag the weights, so to speak, and just hit the heavy bag?

The competition aspect of Kyokushin Karate is greatly misunderstood. There is no denying the spectacle aspect of the big tournaments. Understand that this is all to defray the costs of hosting the events and paying bills and businesss. Beneath the glitz are many, many karateka who will never make it to the winner's podium, yet train full time, sustaining and overcoming injuries, overcoming fear and doubt, putting their karate on the line. It's not the destination, it's about the journey, isn't it. Training for the competitions is a forge where the future leaders and instructors are made. Virtually all Kyokush blackbelts will have competed in a knockdown tournament. Without doubt all uchi deshi, compete. The branch chiefs and seniors in the organization are the most accomplished of fighters. What they teach, and what is passed on, isn't pretty kata, nor is it quick tag techniques. I recently watched a lightweight fighter from my dojo make it through a vast field of open-weight competitors, with some competitors easily 50 to 100 pounds heavier. He didn't win. A middle-weight fighter took the whole thing. When these guys take leadership of their own dojo not all their students will find success on the mat, nor will they have encyclopeadic knowledge of martial arts trivia. Their future students will share an important lesson of Kyokushin: digging deep and taking your best shot. This might not jibe with what others might think of karate. Fortunately there are other styles of karate to satisfy everyone.

None of the above. I vote for TKD with OB beer and bulgogi, to stay.

Well put Tommy. The problem with some people who post and compare different styles, particularly Shotokan and Kyokushin, is that they often know only about one style and make broad sweeping statements that reveal their ignorance about the other style. Your postss show that you are well grounded in both. Would you decribe your Shotokan training to be typical of Shotokan or a more extreme version?

This is directed at all you guys and gals who must stay within a particlular weight class (wrestlers, boxers, weight class fighters). How do you maximise your strength without putting on weight? What types of eating and training routines do you guys use? Say I wanted to be the strongest welter weight, what type of regimen would you put me on if you were my trainer?

Don't know how close these dojo are to London, but below are IKO 1 (Matsui) official dojo in the UK. Hey, Superfoot, any of these dojo close to you? Country City/State Instructor Branch/Dojo Contact Great Britain Warwickshire Shihan Jose Claronino Branch Chief Tel/Fax: +44-1564-770-546 1 Hillmorton Road, Knowle, West Midlands, B93 9JL, e-mail: claronino@peoplepc.co.uk Cardiff Sensei Gary Bufton Branch Chief Tel: +44-29-2084-2782 Fax: +44-343-6487 16 Raven Brook Morgans Town, Cardiff, CF15 8LT e-mail: gary.bufton0@ntlworld.com Bridgend Sensei Paul Greenway Branch Chief Tel/Fax: +44-1656-651-148 14 Picton Gardens Bridgend Mid Glamorgan CF31 3HH e-mail: paul@greenway9247.freeserve.co.uk

hehe. It's called paying dues, taking your lumps. All beginners go through what you're going through, even, believe it or not, your seniors. I've found that my fitness has a great deal to do with my fighting. If I'm winded all the time, my defense sucks. Same with my offensive capability. Do some endurance and interval training beside going to ma class. The more you spar, the better you get. Good luck.

Depends on what you mean by making your kicks "better." The type of flexibility (static), and muscle control your sensei wants you to develop are great for holding a kick out at a high angle and for a protracted amount of time as in certain kata and for demonstration purposes. This type of strength and flexibility is less useful for powerful dynamic kicking as might be used in full contact fighting, real life applications or breaking. In order to develop the skills your sensei desires, practice the kicks slowly and do many repetitions. You can support yourself against a wall or using a ballet type bar for these exercises.

Are we talking about the same thing? Here's the thing, controlling for weight, body dynamics, endurance, etc. increasing one's strength will improve one's chances in competition, life, wherever. If you decide to increase strength using body-weight alone, how does one do it most efficiently (what exercises/routines), and what measure do you use to gauge progress? With free-weights, you count the number of plates you can put up. However, maxing out on the push-ups may only be a measure of endurance and not knockdown power.

Just caught a Shidokan tourney on late-night. That looks interesting, grappling, muay thai, knock down all rollled into one.

You can always come back. Hatsuo Royama left kyokushin for a little bit, took up kick boxing. When he returned to Kyokushin, he brought the gedan mawashigeri. Then he left and started his own group. You are only bound by your imagination, so cheer up. As for leaving a girl behind. That's a toughie. You can do the long distance thing. One year is not that long. Make it a goal to come back a success to keep the girl. Bon voyage.

How strong can you get using only your body weight for training? What would that routine be? After reading the various threads on weight training, I was wondering what kind of results you can get if you didn't touch a barbell or machine. If your goal was for strength rather than endurance, what types of exercises could you guys come up with? I started out doing 1 -arm pushs-ups, 5x5. 200 squats. 100 raised leg-sit-ups. Obviously, I need to work on the push-ups. But I also need to find a way to make the leg and abs exercises more efficient.

"That really hurt! Honestly, who throws a shoe?" Austin Powers

If you're struggling with the weight you're using now and have questions about benching, you should have a trainer or spotter at your side. I don't want to presume too much, but, your questions seem to indicate that you haven't much experience with these exercises. A trainer will be able to give you tips on technique and make sure you aren't doing anything that might cause injury. Someone to spot you would also be nice so that you don't drop the bar. I cold be way off on the next bit of advice, but, a gym rat buddy of mine recommends starting off your work out with squats. Supposedly some hormone is released by the body when doing squats that promotes muscle gain in other areas of the body (chest & arms). Maybe some other iron pumpers can corroborate.

I like the low round house to set up the spinning back kick. You can also follow-up the lead, low round, with a low wheel kick to the thigh. A heel to the thigh is more painful than a shin to the thigh because it's often unexpected. Straight knee when the opponent is pressing in, round or straight to chin when up close. Brazilian kick is also a good set up for the back kick. Crescent kicks are also great set ups for any spinning or back kick. A fake knee or crescent gives you good momentum for the spin.

Run. Do intervals. Hit the heavy bag for 20 minutes. After class, ask some senior students (5 or so ) to stay and spar with you one right after the other with no rest period for you.

People who have never cross trained in point sparring and knockdown will never understand the nuances of each style. When I got my black belt in ITF TKD, I never received any kicks delivered by my opponent's shin to my thighs. Nor did I have that opponent use knee kicks to my ribs or punch/elbow to the body as hard as they do in Kyokushin. After one hit, fighters don't return to the center of the mat for another face-off- it's all continuous till time is up or someone is knocked down. Your TKD dojang might spar this way. Most do not. If this is the type of TKD sparring you do, then you should have not problem fighting knockdown rules