UseoForce

Glockmeister said: We should count our blessing though because history has shown that the more popular something gets, the more money making phonies show up to open up McDojos. True, but not always. Very seldom do you hear of a BJJ mcdojo. Also, the lack of formal ranking in most WMA would make it harder for frauds to sell the same promises they do with eastern martial arts. Of course, people would prbly come up with their own rank systems... I just wish WMA got the respect they deserve! You know what would be cool? A guy trained in catch wrestling, savate, and german grappling (plus boxing) goes into a UFC match and dominates his opponent. Then WMA would get the same respect that BJJ does! Some people wouldn't like that, but I think it'd be great!

yes, I often extend fingers when I strike. This makes it darn near impossible to hurt your knuckles, but, for me, makes it even harder to create a flat striking surface.

Btw, why 2'2' Bet that extra 2 dollars really helps turn a profit!

Use the JKD approach: Take what serves your interests from Shorin Ryu. Discard what doesn't. Train with the same mentality you have when you train Krav (which, I assume, you study for self-defense {Some study it solely for fitness these days }). You'll probaly find lots of stuff that won't help at all. But you'll prbly find some things that will. Don't forget the additional benefits of conditioning, coordination, etc.

I agree on all counts. Of course, with the popularity of "no nonsense" "street" martial arts for self-defense, wouldn't the western martial art philosophy be what people are looking for (Most western martial arts are/were extremely "hardcore." They train rigorously, and old medieval instructional texts depict the true nastiness of combat with blood and severed limbs. You don't see that in today's MA books) Not that you'd get attacked by a mugger wielding a longsword, but the dagger, knife, stick, and unarmed material would be very suitable, far more effective than most traditional Eastern MA would be for modern street combat. Oh, because of the surge of patriotism in America, shouldn't American MA be popular. Carch wrestling was developed in America .

With the exception of boxing and freestyle/Greco wrestling, which have seen a return to credibility since MMA became popular, there is a terrible ignorance of Western martial arts in the United States (I can't speak for other countries.) There are so many great western martial arts, including: Fencing Archery Savate Catch wrestling (I REALLY think this should be more popular) Pankration (No, it's not just another term for MMA) Various forms of stick fighting German forms of sword, polearm, dagger, knife, unarmed, etc. Various wrestiling styles, including some that strongly resemble judo and jiu-jitsu (Many scholars think jiu-jitsu is based on pankration techniques spread by Alexander the Great's troops) Too many to count...also, many are not named in the way jiu-jitsu is, rather by the creator (Such as Talhoffer methods) A huge part of the problem is availibilty, of course. But if these arts were in as high of demand as they should be, there would be schools all over the place. Why do you think there is such a lack of interest?

I like really light bag gloves over my handwraps. The handwraps provide support and shock protection, while the gloves protect from bruises and abrasions. Make sure you get advice from an expert.

He wasn't asked to create a BJJ program per-se. He was asked to create a groundfighting program. Therefore, he can combine everything he learned in Judo, BJJ, and other styles into a groundfighting program. Despite the lack of groundfighting emphasis, a Judo black belt would still know some good stuff right?

Here's your Osoto gari, and all of the other judo throws for that matter. http://www.judoinfo.com/animate.htm Me? I like the headlock hip throw and the ippon seinoge.

Ted said: If you can't get a good angle, slap. I do this often! G95champ said: I break with a palm a lot in fact its about all I use. Sure, I would to, because targetting isn't as hard when you're hitting something that dosen't move.

Don't put too much emphasis on rank. Actual skill (which rank may or may not reflect) and teaching ability (which rank does not reflect) should be more important to you. Furthermore, I'd rather train under someone who a 2nd degree in TKD and 1st Gup in hapkido than a fourth degree TKD instructor. Cross training, in my opinion, has benefits beyond just being a "well rounded" fighter. It helps destroys the ignorance so many instructors have about other martial arts outside their own. There are many other benefits, which I will not go into detail about. Go check out a class. Like Sam said, worth a look.

give us the website, we'll check it out

Help them create a program, it'd be fun.

Hey, Aodhan, lets hear how it went!

Depends greatly, both on the particular school and the art. For example, BJJ is expensive for 2 reasons. 1) There are very few groundfighting schools in a given area (except for large cities), so there is no competition. 2) BJJ is simply in high demand. Economics 101 Arts like Judo and TKD will usually be cheaper. Time spent training will just depend on the school.

It sounds like a great oppurtunity. Go for it! If you feel guilty about how your old school may feel, why don't you talk to your old instructor. Most likely he would be happy to see the proliferation of grappling arts. He may even offer advice on creating a program!

Signs of McDojo: Fast rank advance (Black belt in a year or two). Young kids (under 12) with black belts. Heavy testing fees and other hidden fees in addition to high dues. Promises of rank or skill level after X amount of time. Shady instructor credentials. People being promoted without requisite skills. May be some, all, or none of the above, but that's the general idea.

I guess other people have the wrist flexibility to pull it off consistently. Wish I did!

Kaminari said: Maybe your fingers don't have the capability to pull back that far? I know mine didn't when I was younger I'm sure thats part of it. Obviously, I try to strike with the heel of my palm, but that requires targeting which is sometimes difficult to to acquire in fast paced training. Subgrappler, thanks for your comments. I thought I heard Royce Gracie used it once (in UFC 1, I think) ?

The palm heel strike (curling your fingers back and hitting with bottom part of your hand) is used extensively in most combative martial arts. So long as you hit with your "palm heel," it is very effective. However, have you ever tried using it against a hard target? However, I often end up hitting my curled fingers panfully, and forcing my wrist back. This defeats the main purpose of the palm heel strike, which is to protect your fingers/wrist. Could this with the fact that the palm inflicts less trauma than a punch and reduces range slighly mean the palm heel is overrated? Having said this, I certainly would never eliminate it entirely from my arsenal, because, like I said, if you hit only with the heel of your palm, it is very powerful.

Cool...any interest in western martial arts is great in my opinion!

Whitebelt, you have fallen into a very common trap, especiallt for traditional martial arts. Many begginers think that good self-defense is the sum of "grab defenses," "choke defenses" "puch defenses" and so forth. However, these are much easier to perform on a cooperative partner in the dojo than an aggressive assailant. Secondly, most tend to be too long. A seven step grab defense is ridiculous when the same result can be achieved in 1-3 steps! I'm not saying you should not practice these defenses at all. I most certainly train these techniques. However, you must make the situation as real as posssible. Keep your guard up as much as possible. Let your partner try to hit you lightly. Make sure after learning the techique you add resistance. But most of all, make sure they are simple and natural for you. Combat Hapkido is devastatingly effective and I love it, but there are a few techniques I (personally) would not use on the street. They are either to slow, to complex, unatural, or leave me vulnerable in some way. If they work for someone else, that's fine. I'll stick to what works for me. I don't need 35 defenses to a cross wrist grab anyway! Finally, you do TKD. Focus on your kicks and upper body strikes. Train hard like a kickboxer. As you advance, try to do full contact sparring with neccessary protective equipment. Why go through a whole "grab defense" sequence if you can KO the guy with an elbow strike! Good luck in your training.

Sure, anyone can do anything. It doesn't mean your style will be combat effective. But if all you're looking for is a sport or game, go for it. Hey, it might even improve your conditioning, coordination, etc. Just be careful.

I made this same connection

can't wait till TUF 2!