red dawn

Very well said. I hate what i'm spending for college right now and I don't even feel like i'm getting the education I'm paying for. Because I know a degree is something that will help me get a good job to support my MA hobby. But like you said, it'a about the worth you place on it. Take care, -Jess

Thanks for the pic! I see what it is now. It looks a little complex to do right, but I think it would be worth learning.

Honselty I don't think $6,000 is worth it for a $12 dollar belt. I am not against the belt system but I think there comes a point where you just have to draw the line. When I first started training in the MA my father would always tell me "the belt means nothing, it's the skill that matters." And in my time I have come to believe it. I've seen good BB and I've seen bad BB I've seen yellow belts win matches against brown belts. It's not about the belt, it's about the skill. If it were me,(and I don't mean to be rude) I wouldn't pay it. I would walk away from the school with the knowledge I know and be happy that I was able to learn it. Or I would just contuine training at my rank. But I think this decision is ultimately up to you. I don't know how they run the school or the skill level of the owner, but if you feel it's worth it, then of course you have my support. take care. -Jess

I sometimes get close to going all the way down...but I've always been really bad about stretching . So I always lose it and then have to get it back...but I'm working on stretching everyday now, so hopefully I'll get real close to the splits again.

I agree...hips play a big part in high kicking. Though, I would say being able to do the splits would help with making your kicks smoother. But I have also noticed that when I am really warmed up and my muscles are lose I can kick fairly higher and easier, then when I'm tight.

Hi there! Everything is going fine here...I have Aikido class in 30 min...totally excited to see what I'll be learning today. armless triangle choke?? That sounds instresting. I would like to see that done...I'm not even sure if I know the triangle choke. I think I might though from one of my JJ classes...armless though? Now how is that done?

Hey there! First of all I'm so glad to hear you are willing to learn something despite the fact it takes years to master (wich of course most good arts do.) I myself have just started learning Aikido so I can get in touch with a more spirtial martial art and learn to train my mind as well as my body. I have only been practicing for about 3 months and have achieved the rank of yellow belt. (my first colored belt.) From what I have learned so far, at first aikido moves very slow..speed is the enemy and it almost looks like a dance. The techniques are all gracefull and calm. But what you are learning is how to off center your opponents balance and you learn to keep yours. And not everything i've learned takes years to master...there have been a few techniques that I have been able to apply right away. You can comapre some of aikido's techniques to other MA...most people are not going to learn a tornado kick over night. IMO, i think it's worth training in or at least trying it out. It's not the 100 perfect for self-defense...but no one style of MA is and MA is not just about fighting and self-defense there is also the spirtial and mental side as well as the art of it. Hope I was some help. And feel free to ask me any questions you might have if didn't answer them for you.

Cheers to that!! I don't own the school I teach at and I work with the kids...but I think we have given a few BB outs... more than 10 I guess.

awsome video! For me, I usually always hold mine at the top. It makes the Nunchaku faster and easier to control for me. Plus, release techniques are almost impossible inless you hold the nunchaku at the top.

yea, that's good. I always hate leaving something before I get to get good at it! I hope it works out for you!

I think you can also buy like a practice dummy...I've seen something like that in some martial arts magazine...kinda like the grapplers version of a punching bag...not sure how well they work though...

do you mean when practicing with a partner or when actually preforming the breaks and locks one someone? I'm no doctor, but along with hyperextension, alot of strain is getting put on the joints and over time can wear them out. (But i'm going to guess that takes a lot of extreme pressure on paticular joint when doing to technique.) So, always a good idea to tap out early when you feel the pressure... I'm not sure if I answered your question or not...Sorry if I was no help.

Of course, you have to follow with what suites you the best. Though, unfortunately I don't have any Hapkido schools in my area or know enough about hapkido to compare it to Aikido. I just recently found out about hapkido. If a good school every opens up close to me, I might look into that. I really like the grappling too, I think its extremely useful. I have hapkido dojangs here, but I don't think none are close to me and I also have a job that takes up time. yea, my job is always getting in the way of my training. (Classes are same time I have to work :b), but the Aikido dojo I go to is right down the street for me. It's nice to have so close, but they are always moving around (Because of rent price.) So I hope they stay there for awhile because I really don't have any good dojos in my town. All the good ones are at least an hour drive both ways....

so true. The uniform has nothing to due with technique. It's all skill and practice.

Of course, you have to follow with what suites you the best. Though, unfortunately I don't have any Hapkido schools in my area or know enough about hapkido to compare it to Aikido. I just recently found out about hapkido. If a good school every opens up close to me, I might look into that. I really like the grappling too, I think its extremely useful.

Aikido has ground work...it's not it's focus...but after learning it for only a little over a month i've learned about 4 or 5 ground defences which i've found very useful...There ground work is close to jujitsu..not as painful though... karate kid 1: I love aikido...i've been doing it for a little over a month..and the only con I can find is it's not the best if going against a boxer or kickboxer...but Aikido can hold its own in self-defense...I transfered over after 7 years of a kicking art and jujitsu...but Aikido is an awsome art. But it's always good to be well rounded in all areas of self-defense...so learning aikido isn't going to hurt! But again, it all depends on what your looking for from learning a MA...aikido is a very traditional art but good!

I've noticed a lack of respect with kids...and I've never really inforced respect harshly but I am beginning to now...I'm not really the type to inforce punhishment such as push-up or sitting out on our "fun drills" but when I say I want you to walk back to your spot without talking and one of my students is still talking to another student and I ask him again to go quietly back to his spot and he is still talking when while he's walking away, I've had enough. Pushups and their out of my class..Though I think whats hard is trying to inforce discipline and not be mean and still get everyone to have a good time...but I think respect is a huge part of the martial arts...I would never have not listened to my Sensi like that. Kids today....

My first dojo offers three different types of martial arts...Krav Maga, Jujitsu, and traditional (for the kids) so we are big on cross training..but my other dojo I go to (because 3 martial arts training is not enough for me. haha. ) only trains in one art. Though, my sensi there is not opposed to cross training...he openly welcomes my other training and actually it's making my training there so much easier. He teaches Aikido, and because I've done Jujitsu and Judo at my other dojo I am already very much accustume to falling. But my Aikido Sensi just has a lot of passion for Aikido, and I don't think he has really done any other martial art (at least not enough to really know another art.) But he is still very good at what he does and isn't all "My art is the best" which is good.

I agree with you Sensei Rick. It's just cloth. Training with a gi doesn't make you a better than someone training in sweats. (Though a gi does look nicer. ) Though, I understand what everyone is saying about the colored gi...it's just the media and the hype of modernization...we always have to take the old and make it new again. To me...I like both...I've always fancied the white uniforms myself..because it makes the color of the belt stand out more than any other color...but a colored gi is also nice for a change evey once in awhile.

I've studied about 5 or 6...depending how you want to look at it. But my dojo taught more than one style...(but independenly) and we also switched styles from traditional Okinawa, to more of a Krav Maga, kickboxing, street fighting place...but also teaches jujitsu as seperate class...but I also do Aikido at a totally different Dojo with is it's only focus.

Hush was an awsome episode not a lot of things scare me, but the episode did.

the belt system used at my dojo has changed over time, and it's also different depending on what class your in. (little ninjas, karate kids, adult.) The belt system as it was when i was in training for black went as follows white orange yellow blue purple green brown student black (Black with a white stripe) black and the belt system for kids today white orange yellow blue purple green green advanced (Green with black stripe) red red advanced (red with black stripe) brown brown advanced (brown with black stripe) student black with white stripe student black with red stripe student black with yellow stripe black.

actually more times than not, when I say I do karate most people will say, do something cool, like a back flip and i'll have to explain to them that that's not karate, it's gymnastics. People confuse gymnastics and martial arts. Though, many martial artist can do gymnastic stuff, it's not something you learn through a normal karate dojo..in less your in xma or something.

it will be weird. I also teach my P.E. teacher's son.

I really like the nunchucks for show but the bo and boken for combat training.