Aodhan

Best advice - Try out several different styles and see what suits you and your abilities best. If you are extremely athletic and agile, then an art such as wushu or capoeira may suit your abilities best. If you have a wrestling background or prefer that type of sport, then judo, bjj or similar may be best for you. Somewhere in the middle between all those fall the striking arts such as TKD, TSD, Shorin Ryu, Kenpo, Karate, etc. If you are fascinated with weapons, then one of the budo arts may be more your style, or perhaps kung fu. If you prefer indirect confrontation, then aikido might be right up your alley. Try them all, take advantage of the 1 or two weeks free, and find out what you enjoy and what fits you the best as far as style. Aodhan

I saw it, and I thought it was an excellent movie. It is more of a self discovery movie then it shows from the previews, but it does have its share of fight/action scenes. Very good movie about psychological conditioning, actually. And, I do have to say that the fighting was some of the more realistic fight choreography than I have seen in a while. The in close fighting in the bathroom towards the end was, bar none, the best in close fight sequence I've ever seen. I don't know when it (Unleashed) was finished, but I just read in BB magazine that Jet Li was in the tsunami, holding on to his grandmother and nephew? son? (Don't remember), and basically making the decision that he was going to hold on and they either all make it through or none did. He also talks about how it changes your outlook on things. Very interesting article if you are walking through the bookstore with an extra 5 or so minutes. Aodhan

I don't know specifically, but you use your legs in the stirrups to "post", I believe it's called, where you kind of use your legs as shock absorbers to keep a smooth seat. If you see someone riding and they are bouncing up and down, they aren't very good. If you see someone who can stay at the same level, they are a much better rider. Aodhan

No, there is a lot of work in keeping a seat where you use your legs extensively. Aodhan

That's true. As does getting your toes caught in the seam as you do a spin kick. Aodhan

Rage is right, the two most important elements for that style of a kick is balance and rechambering. You can snap the kick out incredibly fast, but if your rechamber lags, it will throw off the next kick and ruin the flow. I like doing progression kicks to help work on rechambering and form. To start, you can do them from a hands and knees position, later you can do them standing with support, then standing no support. Chamber for a kick (Lets say round), do one kick return to start. Chamber, do two kicks, return to start. Then 3, 4 and so on. Start with up to 10, and work your way up. When you are doing them with support, work on increasing your height (Turning your back foot will help some, as will flexibility drills.) Aodhan

Not sure what you mean by "Machine gun" kicking. Repeat kicks while moving down the floor? Repeat stationary kicks? Repeat kicks where you can touch your leg down between? I've got some drills, just narrow it down for me a bit Aodhan

Then that's all that matters. People think that anything outside of "traditional" is commercial, crass and shouldn't be used. Belts are used to define steps along the process. If I came across a school that had incredible martial artists, and all their belts were shades of violet, who cares? They only give a reference to a point along a path, anyway. Besides, TKD as such is 50 years old this year. It has older roots, but the current "systems" are only 50 years old, not a lot of time to have "traditions" rooted in stone. Aodhan

79 is the best I can manage at the moment. Aodhan

We have two classes a week that are devoted to sparring specifically. In the ATA, you can't do full sparring until the 4th belt rank. There will be partner specific drills and we do pair according to belt level, but we also have free sparring where ranks get mixed. Most of the time the high ranks fight at a level the lower rank can handle, although you do get the occasional machismo/machisma idiocy that has to be addressed. Aodhan

Depending on the student, I'll occasionally put them across the mouth. Aodhan

You need to do some research on tapering and peaking. You have basically worked yourself to the point where your body is saying "ENOUGH!". Most people can do absolutely nothing for about 5-7 days, after that you start losing your fitness. I'd take 3 or 4 days completely off. Do nothing. Then go back, and work on touching things up until the tournament. Then next time, work out a training schedule where you hit your heaviest hardest workout a few weeks before the tournament, then a slow tapering off of the intensity until the tourney. A quick google search brought up this link: http://www.grapplearts.com/Tapering-Peaking-Article.htm Hope that helps Aodhan

good one So I have a question, a couple actually: 1) If it's a way of life and not a piece of cloth, then why are you trying so hard to convince us it's legitimate? 2) Why even worry about the videos? If you train with so many high ranks, isn't that good enough? I compare it to something like CPR. Sure, you can watch a video all you want, but the first time you actually do it and feel ribs snap, you'll be freaked out. Same thing here IMO. Sorry, but while it may be a useful adjunct, I persoanlly wouldn't think it's very legitimate. Oh, and I did a google search for JKD Unlimited, and couldn't find a home study course. Could you provide a specific URL, or is it http://www.ebay.com ? Aodhan

For sparring/intense workouts Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train Iron Maiden - Aces High, Bring your daughter to the slaughter, powerslave, run to the hills, oh heck, just about anything by them Guns 'N Roses - Welcome to the Jungle (Listen to the lyrics, perfect portrayal of a sparring attitude, IMHO) Sepultura Select cuts from Matrix and Blade Helloween Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy For forms/contemplation Pink Floyd Dire Straits Fourplay (Jazz) Yanni (Don't laugh) Shadowfax Aodhan P.S. Yes, I do listen to a huge variety...I'm just a fan of music in general

Sent you a PM. Aodhan

McDojo to me means it's like a McDonalds, you walk in, put your money down and place your order. Very soon you walk out with your order. If you can do that with a MA school, it's a McDojo. As an example, I was floor judge at a testing at an old school (Out of fairness I won't say what system I was in at the time). Two students could not complete their form. I'm not talking about them forgetting, or freezing, they simply didn't know the form. I had to walk them through the form move by move. They also could not do their board breaks. They passed. If your graduation criteria is nothing more than you attended x number of classes, McDojo alert. If you have a guaranteed time to make BB, McDojo alert. If your school doesn't use forms unless you join a certain club, McDojo alert. Basically, anything that says the BB is for sale rather than something to be earned, you're probably straying into the McDojo area. Aodhan

Congratulations, sir!! Well done! We look forward to hearing about many more in your future! Aodhan

No, but wearing dresses/belts that are too tight too often can result in what is called "Tight belt syndrome", which can result in gas, indigestion, and other unpleasant things. To have a "six pack", you would need to build the abs as well as strip the fat off of them. When you see men or women on the covers of mags, they generally have about 3-8% bodyfat. (Male average for "in shape" is 10-15 %, women is 18-25%). One side note, your body will take fat first from where it put it last. Simply put, if your waist was the first to pack on the excess and the face the last, it will come off the face first, and the waist last. Aodhan

You're going to get a ton of different answers on this. Your best bet is to sign up at a community college for a nutrition class, and find out what your body needs. Many times you'll end up doing your own nutritional analysis as well. In general, though: 1) More smaller meals rather than one or two large ones. 2) Plenty of fresh fruits, vegetables (Including leafy greens) 3) Stay away from processed foods and partially hydrogenated fats 4) Lean chicken, pork, turkey and beef are all good. Stay away from fatty cuts. 5) Include dairy and lots of water. Any excess that you take in is either wasted or converted to fat, so figure out how many calories you expend, what your recommended protein intake should be, and build your diet around that. Ignore fad diets. Any diet works in the short term, but can be unhealthy in the long term. Example, the "No fat but anything else diet". Fats are essential. There are vitamins that are ONLY fat soluble, so if you have no fat, there is no way for the vitamin to get transported into the body from your food. Eventually, you end up with a vitamin deficiency. Read a lot, take a class, and build a diet based on your needs and tastes. You'll be more apt to stick to it, rather than take a cookie cutter approach handed down by a "guru". Aodhan

Couple things that haven't been mentioned- 1) Clean and iron your dobok (Gi, whatever your term is). It may not seem like much, but all the little extra things that say "I tried my best" help. (Also, if you have a lightweight dobok, spray starch can help you get that "pop" sound on your techniques) 2) Make sure you have everything you need laid out and/or packed the NIGHT BEFORE. Make a list and check it off. Yes, I've shown up for a black belt competition without my belt. I'd be willing to bet most of us here have done something like that. Make sure you include things like extra money, change of clothes, deodorant, etc. 3) DO NOTHING DIFFERENT ON THE DAY OF COMPETITION!! If you don't normally get up and eat a huge breakfast, don't get up and cram food down your throat. (Although do eat SOMETHING before the competition...hehehe). If you don't normally drink a gallon of water, don't. Don't eat new foods, don't spar in brand new gear, etc. Had one student have to drop out of a competition because he thought sucking on lollipops would help keep his energy up. His competition got delayed, he ate 11 lollipops and ended up with stomach cramps. 4) Make sure you know what time your competition starts, and listen for any changes. That way you don't warm up too far in advance, or get caught without time to warm up. 5) HAVE FUN!! If you forget your form, turn the wrong way, fall on your face sparring, whatever, don't worry about it. Everyone here has done that at least once. (And those that haven't are lying. ) My first time at Nationals for the ATA, I did my entire form backwards, and that was about my 40th TKD competition. Aodhan

I agree. There is a thin line between bashing (which ppl on the internet like to call "flaming") and criticism. However, if a person has unique (albeit bitter) experiences with a system or organization, it is useful to post this not only to root out the fraud in martial arts, but also to inform the beginners of potential scams or cults in the martial arts. I apologize then, I didn't really see it in that manner when I posted it. I just have not heard of anything like that happening (Although I do know of some instances where contracts didn't transfer). usa, I am in region 118 (Pretty much narrows it down, the only state in that region is Az. ) Oh, and Paul...two excellent posts. I found some good advice in there. Kamsamnida! (Or however you spell it...heh!) Aodhan

Gheinisch- Not to hijack the thread, but I REALLY like your signature. Aodhan

1) I saw a movie called "The Octagon" with Chuck Norris and Tadashi Yamashita (Who teaches currently in Michigan, I think), and was absolutely fascinated. Add to this that I was an undersized, overmouthed punk in high school (I graduated at 5'2, 110 lbs), and I wanted to learn martial arts in the worst way. Wasn't until I was 21 that I was able to start. 2) I've found that I am fairly good at MA, and I get a lot of satisfaction out of teaching as well, so I am in the process of making it my career. Aodhan

Whichever one you learn the best. ANY martial arts has its own deadly techniques, so whichever art you learn the best will be the most deadly for you. If you are looking for what is advertised as the most lethal, I suppose some of the true knife arts, the "Filipino bone breaking system", etc. Just look for the lurid ads in BB magazine or the like. Aodhan

Couple basic ones: 1) Bring your arm straight across your body (i.e. Raise your arms to level with the floor, bring one over to the other side.) Wrap your other arm around the elbow (For support), and pull in and slightly across. This should stretch the posterior deltoid (Rear shoulder). 2) Raise your arm to level again, place your palm against a pole, door jamb, and start turning your body so your arm goes behind you. This should stretch the front deltoid. Alternatively, you can raise both arms level, palms facing forward, and have someone pull both arms back at the same time. I don't really advocate partner stretches (Too easy to injure someone), but this is a REALLY good stretch. Swimmers do this all the time. 3) Raise your arm straight overhead, then bend it until your hand is behind your head, like you were scratching. Reach up and grasp your arm above your elbow (Closer to your shoulder than your hand), and pull across. Especially if you bend away from that shoulder, you will really stretch the lats, and the rear deltoid again. Just be careful how much you do stretch. The shoulder is the most easily messed up joint in the body, because it's really only held together by tendons and ligaments, there is almost no supporting bone structure. I can't do olympic presses where my elbows drop below my shoulders because of impingement after swimming for so many years. Aodhan P.S. It just occurred to me that if you have a masters swim team in your area, they can also show you some of these stretches and/or others.