G95champ

Depends on you.

Block as strikes. Im a big fan of that. Nothing worse that punching a guy in the elbow. OUCH... We do a bit of that in Shotokan although we usually just block hard. Nothing to be proud of in breaking the rules. Accidents do happen but to do it on purpose is very dishonorable. As far as style we are all human and out bodies only bend and move so many ways so to say one style is better or worse IMO don't make much sense because the all teach how to kick and punch and blocks so take that for what its worth.

Very important. Its not how hard you hit lots of times but where you hit. Their are certin spots that just hurt more when hit. Just like finding the seam in a suit of armor. Hit them where it hurts.

Pretty much what Pacific said. The snap kick you hit with the blade of the foot as to where in the side you hit with the bottom. Snap kick very fast and good defensive or counter kick as to where the thrust is a bit slower and usually a better offensive kick.

Durring one of my first classes my teacher said their is only one Master and he wears a white gi in heaven.

Only teach what you have faith in teaching as long as you know your stuff they will respect and listen to you. If you try and show stuff you can't do well or don't know how to explain then you will loose them. Have confidence and teach slow. Remember a good teacher don't teach a lot of things he only teaches a few things right.

Welcome

Welcome

Welcome

If kata were only a dance then you would prob. do them to music much like the Capporia (sp) style does. Or any given African tribe. Kata has no drums, no music, nothing to force a beat so how could you consider it a dance. Its ofter called a dance because thats about the only way you can explain it to a NON martial artist. Kata holds all the techinques you will need for your given art. So its the teachers book is many ways. It holds the answers. At the same time there is much more to kata than just memorizing the steps like you do with a dance. Each step or move is there for a reason. Kata forces you do work on moves your not good at and it makes you work them both left and right most of the time. Thus its a great training tool. By doing kata correctly you get in shape because as you said it is a good cardio workout. Kata sort of combines 2 things at once if I have to work cardio and basics why not do them together and just do kata. Good way to save time IMO. Ready my article on kata for more of my insights.

I don't think the title is given until you reach your 5th Dan.

yeah but more of a emotional control than a magic power.

Just depends on the student and their age. In a perfect world only Black's or maybe even Browns but if I have a student who is mid ranks but is a very good speaker and knows what they are doing I have no prob putting them in charge. However not to teach on their own just to work with certin people.

Side step and let them fly by. Some grappeling arts may teach you to just roll backwards or even work a throw from it. Yeah they are attacks IMO. The only thing about a push that is odd is that its not going to do a lot of damage to you physically but if you stumble and fall it hurts your pride.

Just depends on the situation but the step behind side or spinnint thrust are mine. Im also a fan of pulling their spin out by their throat. LOL

Well you have to find what you enjoy but I would say the reason you did not like Shotokan is becuase of your age. Im sorry but young kids just don't catch on to it well. Yeah they are some exceptions but few. The kata application and the ability to think past the low stance as a training tool weed out a lot of people. Good luck in finding an art you enjoy. Come back to your Shotokan club in a few years and see if you like it better.

High kicks are fun and look good but for SD they are not a good call. However you need to practice them in class because it helps with your flexability, balance, and cordination. It don't hurt to have high kicks in your bag of tricks just in case but they should be deep in the bag and only pulled out if everything else fails. When I say everything I mean using the bag itself first. LOL

I always considered the traditional MA those that came from Japan, Korea, and China. Most have a multi focus in trining with kata being a key part to the developemnt. Maybe with the exception of Judo. As far as weapons go I was always under the impression there were 7 traditional weapons. The Sword, Staff, Or, Tofa, Karma, Spear, and Numchuck. But I may have just heard that somewhere.

I wish. LOL

Try not to use bad words in your post if you want them to be seen. Just a bit of advice not that (hell) is that bad its just not nice. As far as being called soft goes when I use the term and I use it a lot in football practice it means a person is not trying or is getting ran over because of a lack of effort. I don't know your situation but learn how to take things. If your being called soft then show them your not soft. You don't do this by getting mad however you do it by working hard. Again I don't know you or the situation but thats how I use the term soft on a daily basis.

Welcome Thats the same way I found myself here.

Welcome and your question has been taken care of. However I guess you could paste a yellow belt as your pic under your name.

It has to be done to survive. Dues must be paid and collected or the dojo can't stay open. I hate asking people for money to take class becaue lots of times I know they don't have it. However if your faced with rent, power bills, etc it has to be done.

Well don't judge everything by tournments. Those Bad Black Belts you saw may have just made Shodan and it been their first Black Belt tourney so Im sure nevers played into it some. However Im not taking up for them. As far as a person holding a black belt and being a poor fighter I really don't have a prob. with that as long as they understand the art and can teach the art if asked a question about a techinque, kata, move, history, etc. IMO fighting skill has very little to do with the color of your belt. Ive seen some great white belts you can't train to be an athlete if your not an athlete. BOTTOM LINE.... However I do think a Black Belt should be able to protect himself if attacked. This is the prob. I have with kid black belts. Kids by nature can do more jumps, flips, spins, rolls, combo kicks than a 30 year old can. So yeah they look good but kids don't undertand what they are doing and I would bet 99% of them could not explain a kata or techinque if asked. Not because they are dumb but kids don't think in that hypetical state. Heck not many adults do... LOL.... So to make the point its not about looks its about understanding. However I would be ashamed to wear a belt I did not earn.

On line I don't know. The Kenneth Funakoshi tapes you can order from Panther are good but its only the stnad up SD version. 24fightingchickens.com will give some insight to the kata. Their was an article in Black Belt Mag. several years back that went into the ground def. aspect of the kata's.