Fairfax_Uechi

Actually this may be true for your style but it's not true for all. In Uechi, you (usually) learn the first five Kata to earn Shodan, then one more for each rank until you've learned all eight. (some folks learn them earlier so this is more a rule of thumb) After that it's more about perfecting your art internally and then giving back to the art.

It can be done with proper conditioning. I know of several Uechi folks that can do it. The key is like any conditioning and building up over time. I'm still working towards this, and feel like another year or so and I'll be ready. And FYI, after my eyes, I consider my fingers one of the most important parts of my body so I'm extremely careful with how I treat them.

I agree with Shureido. I had one made to order and I love it.

Good for you on your will to keep going. But one question came to mind. why were you put up for testing if you weren't ready? Or more specifically why weren't you told to improve your kicks before the test? IMHO, testing should be pretty much a formality. Only in the rare case of a student just totally zoning out, or not taking the test seriously should they fail. In other words as an instructor I only put students up for promotion when I'm almost certain that they will pass.

In our dojo we have a large group of children under 12. Most of our adults are late 20's or older, and the number of teens to late 20's can be counted on one hand.

I fully agree. To me it looked like glorified gymnastics. Like other's said, she's excellent at what she does, but it's not my thing. As for the other video, I wasn't impressed by her punches, or hand position. Maybe it's too much Uechi training, but if you throw a punch mean it. And any time you leave your body open and exposed, IMHO you should expect to be hurt (badly) by someone who knows what he/she is doing. Now with all of that said, she can do lots of things that I can't even dream about, and I'm sure she can hold her own.

How about more of a Uechi view of Sanchin? We combine the hard and soft into Sanchin and use it as the foundation of all we do in our style.

I fully agree with this. In other words, not everyone will be a blackbelt or should be one. Only those who earn it should. And as you state, you have to want it. And I think you really need to want it bad enough to work hard for it to get it.

Isshinryu_heart, I can understand how you feel when others "pass you" in rank. Like you, I progress very slowly. I'm not a natural. And I've seen folks zoom through rank and others take forever. At first, it upset me. Sometimes I get bothered that others fly along while I have to work 10 or 100 times harder to go half as fast, but then I remember that my martial art is about me. In other words, I've earned my rank, and I'm good at what I do.

did you go to https://www.uechi-ryu.com? The dojo listing used to be public, but now you have to sign up to get there. Like this site it's free.

Can you explain this? I'd like to hear what ways you think are more efficient. BTW, I don't fully agree with this, and therefore would love to hear your view, as I think it's important to understand contrary points of view.

Like others, when I started, I really didn't like kata. But as I've progressed, I really see the usefulness and necessity of kata. Now that I teach, I find kata even more important (if that is possible). I do think that a good mixture of kata, kumite, and other drills are necessary to be well rounded. But if you could only do one, then kata would be my choice as you can simulate everything lese from kata.

Thanks. I don't understand the mentality of "I got my blackbelt now I'm going to quit, or go study something else". To me it just shows a lack of understanding of both martial arts, and of hard work. Personally, I think learning an art well and then supplementing it with some training in other arts would be great. Or even studying two arts if you have the ability (time and talent). But to quit just because you reached a certain point just doesn't make sense to me. Actually the more I think about it, the more I think what these folks are really saying is that they're burned out and tired of training. They have too much invested to quit so they get their black belt THEN quit. This way they can say they "finished". Maybe I'm wrong, but it's just a guess.

The show Deadly Arts did an episode on this. If you get FitTV you can see it since they rerun the episodes fairly often.

I wondered what you ment also. But your follow up helped. If you can, go to a University library and see if you can pull up case studies. I"m sure there are many out there. If I"m not mistaken, the Japanese incorporate martial arts in their primary education, and I think the Koreans do also. So it shouldn't be too hard to find research on this. Interviews with individuals will be good, but if you can find some formal research, to support it you doing great. Also, can you please let us know what you find.

I sort of felt like you did. When they came out, I was not involved in martial arts, and felt that they were just cute kids movies. When I started training I watched them again. The first one wasn't too terrible. Well, after the awful beginning, at least. And some of the techniques I can relate to since Uechi uses circular blocks and wrist strikes, so the wax on/wax off is close to home! The second one was just bad, and the third one I shed tears as the destroyed a beautiful classic Cutlass! (isn't anything valuable anymore!). I think you're point about martial arts values is great. The one thing the movies do well is show the difference between those who train to be abusive and those who train for the right reasons. Overall, I'd recommend the movies with a grain of salt. Afterall, how many nice movies are made that you can show to your family that are martial arts related. Oh yea, and HBO shows them fairly often. One other movie that is pretty nice is Bullet Proof Monk. It's not for real small kids but any over 7 or 8 should be fine.

I fully agree, and you said it like I would have. Mirrors and going slow are great to really improve.

Actually this is totally opposite of the way it is in Uechi. The instructor can promote at whatever speed they want in their dojo in the Kyu ranks. Now at the Black Belt ranks the way you describe it is 100% accurate. Students testing for Shodan and above must pass a test consisting of a board of blackbelts. The requirements are pretty standard across Uechi dojos and organizations.

injured groin for a month? you might want to talk to a doctor Talking to a doctor can be a good idea, except most aren't very good when it comes to sports, or physical conditioning. I always suggest that folks find a really good doctor if they workout and are involved in sports and/or martial arts. Most people think they're doctor is pretty good, but if you do some digging and study you'll find that they're not. I finally found a pretty good one after a long long long search. What makes him good is that he's willing to work with me. He listens to what I have to say and he doesn't dismiss my comments. He knows I know my body well and we work together as part of a team. And he stays on top of fitness and is one of the few doctors that I've found that really worksout hard on a regular basis. Plus he's pretty cool also. Anyway, like martial arts training finding a good doctor takes time and effort and just the first one you find or the one your friend recommends may not be right for you. As far as groin injuries they take LOTS of time to heal. A month can be long for a minor pull, but it can be quick for anything more. Plus as I said, they are really prone to reinjury. But you're right, getting it checked out is a good think if the person hasn't done so and if things don't seem to be getting better.

Groin injuries are very hard to get over. They take forever to heal and they get (usually) reinjured several times while you heal because we all walk, run, and rush back. The problem is that even though they start to feel better they take lots of time. When I've had them and needed to compete in a sport, I've found that steam rooms, hot baths/tubs, massage, etc all help get you through, but don't make them get better. The key is to keep your body nice and relaxed. But don't say that folks didn't warn you that this is very risky. Know that you're risking possibly bigger injuries if you rush back and don't let things heal properly. Train at your own risk.

I'd say add a style that includes grabs, and strikes like Uechi or one of the other Okaniwan arts that include grabs, and you'd have a great combination. Your TKD is good for long distance when you can use those extended kicks, you're wrestling is great for the ground, and a grabing/striking art would give you the close standing you're currently lacking. Frankly, the combo would be quite scary if you master all of them.

Why? What's the point? I read an article in BB Magazine with Dr. Joyce Brothers who said she earned a Shodan and wouldn't test higher because she had to run up a wall to get higher rank. When I read this I thought "what's the point". I still wonder what the point of this is. Sure it can look cool, but what's the pratical point? BTW, I'm guessing that like most other skills it's all about technique and speed.

Keys can be a very effective weapon, and one that most folks have handy most of the time. But most pratical really depends on the situation.

I'd just like to point out that not all TKD is sport-orientated, but I'm sure you knew that. True, but in my area, finding a TKD school that isn't sport-orientated is like finding a needle in a haystack.

As others have said, it's just another term for Kung Fu. FYI, Uechi-Ryu comes directly from Paganoon a form of "Chineese Boxing".