Pacificshore

Welcome aboard

I've had minor injuries while training, but nothing to cause me to want to quit because of it. Recently I met a guy who had been training in Aikido for some time, and after talking to him, he stopped his training because of a philsophical dilemma. I can perhaps see that happening more than the injuries itself, unless of course the injury is so severe that stopping may be the only option. Just my opinion.

Age 14 and I'm 37 now

Like I've said before, I don't care how much training I have under my belt, or if I think I'm "bad", or others think Im "bad", I would not let a strike or any other strike come in unabated............unless of course I'm sleeping to any part of my body

Welcome Aboard!

Dosen't really matter how many stripes one has on their BB, what matters is how they carry themselves. Anyone could have all the stripes in the world or none, and can either be a egomaniac about it or not. In my style, we wear a BB with our name on one end and our style on the other. As far degree of BB in our system, well you gotta ask if you don't know, and that's usually only to pay proper respects to each other. So there's no way of telling who's 2nd, 3rd, and so on.

Karate like any other style or sport is only as good as you put into it. It all depends on what you are looking for and want to acheive from your training. Everything written here is as informative as all get out, but must be taken with a "grain of salt".

Stretch, do some cardio stuff, and work on some basic stances: front, horse, cat, etc. Work some basic blocks, up, down, out, and in. If you are not familiar with these basic things, look 'em up on the net and start practicing to get familiar and comfortable with each of them.

Well the Chat Room was functional. Thanks to Sai and Leaf!! Maybe we can try it again sometime soon and get more members to sign on!!

Still in Chat room......anyone?

Welcome aboard!

In Chat Room now, anyone care to join in??? Seeing if this will work!

I'm sure in different styles, the spinning wheel kick is referred to by other names, as well as executed differently. In my system of Kempo, we tend to always try to execute any spinning type kicks from a chambered position. One it's less telegraphic and the other, it's quicker than kicking from a straight leg position. Just a thought.

Brian: Kenpo/Kempo sounds like a great choice . Why...I'm just a little partial to it if you couldn't tell . Anyway, Kenpo/Kempo does have lots of hand strikes as well as kicks, and focuses primarily on self defense. They do have katas as well, but the self defense techinques usually are the primary focus. Well just my 2cents .

Undoubtedly this will be moved to the intro section, but nevertheless welcome aboard!

Well from the looks of it, it looks like a front stance, only it's too narrow. You may have decent forward and backward movement, but you loose the lateral movement based on the feet positions. Of course this could be because of the 3D animation. I suggest widening the stance so that both feet aren't on the same line, and shorten the depth of the stance by loading up the rear leg by lifting the heel up off the ground(if your program can accommodate that is). Also have both hands up near the chin with the lead hand slightly ahead of the rear hand. How's that for sound for a short sparring animation?

Kumite basically means to fight or spar, and kata means form.

Hi: Send a PM to Shortstick. He's up in that area and perhaps can guide you in your search. Plus he use to run a school with a kids program and can answer any questions you may have that'll assist you in your search.

Generally speaking most styles require you to perform all that you have been taught from the white belt level up to your 1st degree black.

Hi Dave: Welcome aboard. Would your Kenpo training be along the lines of the Parker system, or is it more along the traditional lines?

Shortstick and I saw Cradle 2 the Grave last night, and we say 2 . Very action packed, good fight scenes, ATV chase, and cool ring of fire. And Kelly Hu.............well whether a good or bad character, it dosen't really matter, it's Kelly Hu . Oh, and by the way, Mark Dacascos, also excellent in the movie...........Won Hop Kune Do vs. Wushu .

Books and videos are great reference material. But is it the best way to lean a martial art? I don't think so, unless you've had previous training in any martial arts. The best way obviously is to seek out a dojo/instructor. But if you are motivated to learn, and this the only way for the time being, then I suggest you go with video. That way you can see how things are suppose to be done, versus reading a book and looking at the pictures.

Welcome aboard

Many of my old training partners, as well as my old instructor, are as close to one another now as we were back in the day when we worked out together. Although we are all separated by distance or states, we still keep in touch and when we see each other it's like time has stood still. In my new system of Kempo, we have the feeling of being one big family. Last November, I traveled to Montana for a big promotion and seminar. It allowed me the opportunity to meet with others in the system, and I can say that I was welcomed with open arms, even though we've never met before. This aspect of a martial arts family is just as important to me as my training.

Ok, Here's the short on Kenpo. It's primary focus will be self defense. So they will have lots of self defense type techniques dealing with chokes from the front, chokes from the rear, one-hand/two-hand grabs, kicks and so on. They also have katas as well as weapons katas. But really it depends on the style of Kenpo that is there. Is it American Kenpo, which is also known as Parker Kenpo(Founder of the system)? Is it Okinawan Kenpo? There's also Kosho-ryu Kempo(Mitose system), Chinese Kenpo, Hawaiian Kenpo, and the list can go on. Many Kenpo schools can be considered traditional, meaning following in the footsteps of were their background originated from, and some considered modern or eclectic. Best advice is to go take a look and watch a class. I don't see why the instructor would'nt allow it, especially if it's a commercial school. That's the only way to attract new students. One last advice. Do a search on Kenpo on the net. It'll give you more information about the system.