Aodhan

When you first get up, do 50-100 pushups and 50-100 situps. If you get into it, you can add 50-100 squats. Takes maybe 10-15 minutes. Run up any stairs you have to go up, walk back down and run up again. Find a good book on isotension, you can use this even sitting at a desk/easel/drafting board. Aodhan

I'd have to agree that it's probably a ripoff. They are teaching 5 or 6 different styles, how much of each class is dedicated to each art? Or is it a single class per art? It sounds like you would be paying a lot for watered down or sporadic training in several different styles. Better to find a single style you like, reach a high rank in that, THEN crosstrain. You'll be much more adaptible that way, and get more out of the crosstraining. Aodhan

1) Look at some classes, and see who teaches. Is the the head instructor or a senior ranking black belt? Or do they turn it over to a senior student? 2) See how many people are in the low belt classes vs. the high belt classes. If you have a ton of low ranks and very few high ranks, it says not a lot of people stick around. 3) Conversely, does EVERYONE running around seem to be a brown/red/black? Could be a dojo that promotes willynilly. 4) See how the students treat each other, the instructors, and how the instructors treat the students. 5) Look around for rank certificates. Most owners proudly display legitimate rank certificates. 6) Take advantage of all the one and two weeks free. You may find a great dojang and have issues with the owners' personality. Or the floor. Or something. Try them all out. 7) Find a place that you will enjoy and have FUN at. Yes, even the hardest training can be fun if you enjoy it. Aodhan

There is another factor working here as well. Very few people who "skate by" on things like testings, etc. will join a group like this. I mean, it's a year committment, and it's not the easiest thing in the world to stick to and finish. The kind of people that join something like this are just the kind of masochists that will kill themselves in a test they designed themselves. Aodhan

1) Good advice 2) Almost good advice, you can actually work the abs almost every day without adverse effects. 3) Also good advice 4) There are numerous other posts on here on basic good nutrition, spend some time looking through them. Basically, the abdominals are a sheet of muscles that run from your lower ribcage area down to the pubis bone in the hips. Their function is to curl the torso forward (Such as trying to curl into a ball.) The old style situps where the body stays straight work the upper quads more than anything. Where you get the "6 pack" effect is because of the connective tissue that helps hold the abdominals in. There is one that runs straight down the center, and then 2-3 that run across the middle horizontally. That is what forms the depressions, and the ab muscle "sticking out" around the connective tissue gives you the pack effect. You might already have 6 pack abs, (Fairly likely since you are in MA), but you may need to strip away the fat covering them to be able to see them better. Spot reduction is a myth. Your body puts fat on in a certain order (Varies by individual), and takes it off in reverse order. So, if you get a spare tire first, then a flabby butt, then a 2nd or third chin, you will lose the chins first, the butt second, and the tire last. Aodhan

You are describing a regular bridge, the one that really builds up the neck muscles is a neck bridge, done without the hands on the mat. This is also used by wrestlers, since you often will have your hands occupied when needing to bridge to avoid a pin. Aodhan

Currently ATA (Songahm) TKD. In the past I have studied: Shotokan, Kenpo, WTF TKD, iaido and ITF TKD. Aodhan

My greatest personal achievement would have to be achieving my first degree. I went through seven moves, 9 schools, 5 styles before I got there. My greatest "Brag" achievement is a tossup between finishing top 10 World rankings, 2001 ATA, and finishing as an alternate in an Air Force TKD team selection tournament. Some DAMNED good competitors. Aodhan

Lets see-- 3 pair foam Nunchaku, 1 pair wooden 2 wooden 2 piece bo staves, 1 carbon fiber 2 piece 1 pair practice kama (We call them ssangh nat), 1 steel/wood pair 2 bangh mang ee (Escrima) out of foam, 2 wooden 1 foam three sectional staff about a dozen various stars 2 balisongs 5 different types of knives 2 katanas, 1 functional 1 decorative 3 pair sai 1 pair tonfa 1 manriki gusari 1 broadsword 1 rapier 1 pike 5 or 6 rattan "swords", used for SCA 3 different kubotan keychains. (That's an updated list, I got some boxes from storage in Colorado a couple weeks ago.) Aodhan

i think that if you drink milk you wont lose wieght and if you run it is bad for you.Uhm... I'm not sure what to say to that. There are a lot of misconceptions out there, to blanketly indict something like that isn't really a reasonable thing. Aodhan

Why not? A couple of my college classes had us make up our own tests. The teacher went through and approved them, and at midterm time, passed them out randomly. There were some bugger questions on mine! Our instructor will approve our tests. At a minimum, you have to do at least as much as you normally would at a testing. I am choosing to do a lot more. I know what it will take to stretch myself, and am designing the test with that in mind. As an exercise, you might let some of your senior students design their own testing. The results might surprise you. Aodhan

Congratulations, and welcome to the first steps of a gratifying and fulfilling journey. Aodhan

Yes, it was set up with different meanings relating to the belt as outlined below. Aodhan 9th grade White Belt "Pure and without the knowledge of Songahm Taekwondo. As with the Pine Tree, the seed must now be planted and nourished to develop strong roots." The student has no knowledge of Songahm Taekwondo and begins with a clean (pure) slate. 8th grade Orange Belt "The sun is beginning to rise. As with the morning's dawn, only the beauty of the sunrise is seen rather than the immense power." The beginner student sees the beauty of the art of Taekwondo but has not yet experienced the power in the technique. 7th grade Yellow Belt "The seed is beginning to see the sunlight." The student begins to understand the basics of Taekwondo. 6th grade Camo Belt "The sapling is hidden amongst the taller pines and must now fight its way upwards." The student begins to realize his/her place in the world's largest martial art. The student must now begin to spar in order to promote in rank. 5th grade Green Belt "The pine tree is beginning to develop and grow in strength." The student's technique is developing power. The components of the basic techniques are beginning to work in unison. 4th grade Purple Belt "Coming to the mountain. The tree is in mid-growth and now the path becomes steep." The student has crossed over into a higher level of Songahm Taekwondo. The techniques, forms, and level of sparring becomes more difficult creating a "mountain" that must be overcome. 3rd grade Blue Belt "The tree reaches for the sky towards new heights." Having passed the midway point, the student focuses his/her energy upwards toward black belt. 2nd grade Brown Belt "The tree is firmly rooted in the earth." At this point the student has mastered the basics and developed deep roots in Taekwondo. 1st grade Red Belt "The sun is setting. The first phase of growth has been accomplished." The first day (the period of time from White to Red belt) of growth is coming to an end. The physical skill has been developed but lacks control; therefore, physical and mental discipline must now be achieved. 1st degree recommended Black Belt "The dawn of a new day. The sun breaks through the darkness." The previous day has ended giving way to a new dawn. The student must begin a new phase of training; that of being a black belt. 1st degree decided Black Belt "The tree has reached maturity and has overcome the darkness. It must now begin to 'plant seeds for the future'." The color black is created when all the colors of the light spectrum have been absorbed into an object. That object has "taken control" of the colors and retained them. If one color was to "escape", the object would no longer be black. The student has mastered the nine grades of Taekwondo. He/she has "absorbed" all the knowledge of the color ranks and overcome or "mastered" that level of training.

I am a 2nd degree BB in the ATA, and my 1st degree kukkiwon is being processed. Aodhan

an index and a thumb. Nice!! Congrats, that's a tough exercise. Aodhan

You need to work the inner quadriceps. Here is one exercise: Lie on your side (Lets say the right side to start). Put your left leg slightly behind, so your right leg has nothing impeding it. Now lift your leg straight towards the ceiling. Hold for a second, lower it. Do 8-12 reps, 3 sets each leg. If you have access to stretch bands, you can do the same thing standing up against resistance. Aodhan

Lung capacity and endurance are two different things. Related somewhat, but still two different things. Endurance and fitness allow you to use the oxygen more efficiently. You can do more with the same amount of oxygen. Lung capacity just means you have more air, but if you still use it inefficiently, more won't help. As far as increasing lung capacity, that would consist of lots of deep breathing exercise, exercises designed to loosen/expand the rib cage, etc. Do a google search on tidal lung volume, lung volume and lung capacity exercises and you should find a lot of suggestions. Aodhan

Exactly! An elbow strike to the jaw is pretty much the same in almost every art. A knee to the groin is pretty much universal. There are tons of seriously damaging techniques that are common. I think of it as a painting. The basic painting (kicks, strikes, etc.) is pretty much the same, but the frame you put around it (Which art you are in) enhances the picture in different ways. Aodhan

I have a break that I got from ESPN, it's speed breaks of two brick paving stones with side kicks. Aodhan

Two fingers and a thumb? One finger and a thumb? Which fingers? Aodhan

Different techniques, too. Never heard of a chicken kick (Maybe a kick while you're running away? :D) For us a wheel kick is like a hook kick, except the leg stays straight and level all the way through the kick. This one REALLY depends on your rotational force rather than muscular. Thrust kick is kind of like a cross between a front kick and a side kick. You bring the leg up like you would for a front kick, but push straight forward instead of kicking up. It's designed to get distance when you are in too close to another person. Snap kick to me is just a short prep front kick. Aodhan

Heh...truer words were never spoken. Writing down goals and putting somewhere where you can look at them a couple times a day is an incredible personal motivator. Aodhan

Zee- Actually, if you keep your current training regimen and just switch to 4 or more smaller meals that are nutritionally sound, you will drop weight. From just after Christmas last year to mid Feb this year, all I did was eat a decent breakfast and lunch, smaller dinner with some snacks couple times a day, and no food after 8 or 9pm. I dropped almost 20 pounds without increasing any of my workout regimen. As far as cardio fitness goes, anything that raises your heart rate to 65% of max for more than 15-20 minutes increases your CV fitness. My personal favorites are bicycling, swimming and rollerblading. (I ran X-country for 8 years, I don't run much anymore ) Mix it up and vary it, and you'll be more apt to stick with it. If you want some more specific type setups/workouts, drop me a PM. Might as well use the kinesiology/coaching degree I have gathering dust on the wall. Aodhan

Well, you could say the same for most JKD, Judo, Okinawan Karate, Escrima, Wushu, Capoiera, Savate, Kung Fu, etc. Does this mean that the art is invalid? No, it simply means that they train differently. I would expect that muay thai and kickboxers would do much better "Out of the box" so to speak. A TKD practictioner like 90% of the other martial arts out there would have to do some retraining in the specific style to be able to compete. I hear this from a lot of people, and I always reply that it depends on the practictioner. There are some black belts in my school I would trust to defend against a chocolate pie. There are others that I would NEVER want to see if they were mad. Any art can be effective, and misplaced belief in any art can be deadly. I am fully confident that against 99% of the people that I might meet that would intend to do me harm I could more than hold my own against. However, EVERYONE can be beaten, so for me to go around bragging that TKD is the be all end all of MA would just be foolish. And as far as K1, there was a very large black guy (Forget his name, but he is also in the movie "Longest Yard" that was just remade, Bob Sapp maybe?) that I watched. He had almost no technique, got pummeled every time I saw him, but won because he could take an incredible amount of punishment until he could get in his one or two thunder shots. He was a football player, no real MA experience to speak of, just an ability to take punishment. Does this mean we all should play football? Just because a specific art may not do well in a specific arena, doesn't mean that the art is invalid. I've seen some capoeira maestros that could wipe several floors with me, yet would probably get their heads handed to them in a K1 bout. Aodhan

It's a personal challenge. It is going to take a lot of discipline and sacrifice, and at the other end, I will hopefully be a better person, with a greater understanding for things that I currently have no experience with. That's what it is all about for me. Aodhan