Hitman

WOW...it's so nice to see people advising someone correctly. Muscle only builds after it has recovered, and you will not build strength without at least toning that muscle (and even that is actually BUILDING). You are generally trying to get your muscles to grow accustomed to a greater workload than it currently has (of course, you can continue this until your muscles are accustomed to a HUGE workload, but it's still the same principle.) As a beginner, you should find that ALMOST anything over and above your current daily activity will help you make SOME gains, but it's best to do things with as perfect a form as you can. Not only will this ensure that you are not usng other muscles to "help out" the weak ones, but it also helps avoid injury. However, even if your chest is as weak as a 9 year old, you should only need 3-4 days to fully recover from a decent workout. I would suggest doing push-ups once a week- perhaps 2 sets of 10 from your knees with a solid minute rest between sets. Then feel how sore you are the day (or second day) after. If you can move without pain, gradually up the repetitions and/or sets until you DO feel sore and then back down again. If you want to add some bench presses with a barbell or dumbells, do this also only once a week- and divide out the week, so that you can FULLY recover from the workout before you do the other exercises. In other words, do push-ups on a Monday and do not do bench presses until Thursday at the earliest. Start with VERY light weights and concentrate on proper form instead of trying to move around huge weights with bad form- your back will thank you later. Once this becomes easy, or you find that you are recovering fast enough to allow it, you can go up to a 3/week deal. You should not go more than this even as a beginner because overtraining will result. Also, after you have done this for perhaps a month, if you find that 20 push-ups still makes you sore after a 3-4 day rest, consult a doctor. An active adult should not have that kind of problem with what is considered a "light" workout for any length of time- it could be a sign of something more serious. That's enough of a lecture...sorry I have insomnia

There is also a nifty thing called the Superset Principle (Joe Weider's principles) which says that if you work opposing muscle groups one after the other (as in a set of bench presses followed by bent rows) the first muscle group will recover faster. This is a HUGE deal since your muscles must recover before they grow and become stronger. Simply follow one set of exercises with a set of exercises with the opposite motion- bicep curls followed by triceps extensions, quad extensions followed by hamstring curls, etc. ALSO, if this is lower back pain, you MAY be doing the bench press wrong. Bad form- especially on a heavy bench press- will KILL you! make durned good and sure that you keep your lower back pressed firmly onto the bench. As much as you'd like to arch your back up to pound that last heavy rep out, it is an easy way to hurt yourself in a big way.

Can I ask where you are getting the actual shafts from?? Are you actually making a pair yourself or did you just break your cord??

I can't actually see the videos because my WMV is geeked... However, I can tell you that I see a lot of people holding the nunchaku up toward the top (ie close to the string/chain. This seems fine, and does make the use MUCH faster because the wieght is counter-balanced by the length of shaft coming out by the base of your hand and the overall weight you are spinning is much lighter. However, this can be bad for many of the same reasons. First, this grip shortens the effective range of the weapon. Second, there is not nearly the amount of weight in the strikes nor is there as much leverage. And, third...well, it's sorta like holding a katana like a baseball bat- you know the user is self taught or knows very little of actual kabudo training. At least, that is what I have heard in my own VERY little kabudo training...

GENERALLY speaking from some research on the matter, the whole legality thing is a matter of psychology. People tend to look at a gun as a deadly weapon the INSTANT they see one. People do not do this with a nunchaku. Therefore, people using the weapon will not typically use a gun for just anything...they MIGHT with a "less deadly" nunchaku. Also, when someone is faced with a gun, they know instantly that they are facing a deadly weapon and SHOUD act accordingly. If facing a nunchaku, people do not give it nearly as much respect and so end up getting hurt a lot more. This happened- evidently- quite a bit back in the 70s and especially in the US states of New York and California. This started a wave of general bannings of martial arts weapons, including nunchaku. As for the nunchaku you gave a link for...they are SUPERB in a tourny where you want to look s flashy as possible (though the grip can get a little slippery when you sweat) but I would not suggest them for any kind of traditional kata or for everyday practice (ie, if you wanna hit something for real and see how to use them correctly). As for general situations against other weapons- remember that nunchakus are a very offensive weapon- they do much better attacking than defending. Keep the opponent on the defensive and you have a good chance. A much overlooked quality of the nunchaku is it's ability to wrap AROUND things...like, say a bo staff held in a blocking position....

Yeah it's been over a month since someone posted on this thread, but I had not seen the last couple of pages. Let's get real for a bit shall we? If you are carrying a bo, jo, katana, tonfa, or other traditional weapon on the street, and you are NOT going to or coming from a martial arts class- ie, you carry these weapons in your normal, daily life- you are a freak. The police where I live will pick you up and at LEAST question you thoroughly not just once, but every single time they see you carrying an obvious weapon like this. If you are seriously worried about someone with a gun and/or knife threatening/robbing you on a daily basis, you should go soomewhere else. Do not frequent these places, use other ways to get where you are going or MOVE! Living your life in constant danger is no way to live. If you are threatened by someone with a knife or gun- give the guy what he wants. Nothing you own is worth even the slightest risk to your life. Unless, of course, you believe they are going to hurt or kill you anyway...in which case, you have nothing to lose. If the situation occurs where a guy has a gun or knife, and you pull out a pair of nunchaku, throwing dagger, GUN of your own- whatever- you stand a good chance of getting killed or hurt anyway. PLUS you also have a good chance of going to jail for excessive use of force, assault/battery, murder, attempted murder, etc YOURSELF! A fight is never over until AFTER the legal trials! This does not apply to police officers, bounty hunters, bouncers or other people who are in a profession where they may encounter violence at any time. If you are a Sheriff, I fully expect you to carry a pistol, pepper spray, PR-24 etc, and know how to use it. If, however, you are a typical citizen and you feel you need to carry a nunchaku, daggers, razor edged cards, you either need to go somewhere else as soon as is humanly possible or seek therapy. Finally, is you feel is is NECESSARY to carry a weapon- as a post above said- you are in trouble. It certainly is not necessary- like owning a TV is not necessary. However, I ask you to really think about whether you feel that carrying a weapon is truly for self defense or whether it is just for ego. Maybe it's just to feel safe, and if that is the case- if you really NEED a weapon to feel safe- you should take a good hard look at your life and circumstances.

Man, you bring up some excellent examples, and I cannot argue with many of your points. It's like someone off the streets asking "what can I do about a side kick without knowing how to throw a decent block." This whole subject has way too many variables to deal with every individual case. Your mentioning the sprawl brought this up. It is one of the few defenses I know that works well and in many different scenarios, though that would be hard to try to explain to someone who knows nothing of wrestling and doesn't actually want to train in grappling. Since you obviously know quite a bit about submission wrestling or some grappling art, and I know quite a bit about stand-up fighting can we come up with something fairly simple that will explain to the original poster that will work against, say...a grappler with midrange training and skills and work more than half the time?? I can find no way to help this guy without describing about a hundred different situations and going into nuances. Let me ask you this question then...if you are fighting a stand-up fighter who is half-way good, what do you fear? Do you fear the sprawl out most? Or getting a straight jab while going into a clinch or what??

Sensei Rick...I wanna meet your instructor! We sound much alike My Father is my instructor, so I get to hear a LOT of things over and over. Once at a tourny, my opponent busted me with a spinning heel kick to the head and almost KO-ed me, and my dad came running. as I was getting up, hoping the guy was gonna get disqualified, he whispered a little bit of wisdom in my ear, "Learn to block." He's very fond of telling up to do pushups "until the dojo floor is 6 inches lower." He also likes using old baseball phrases retrofitted to Martial Arts...the old one by Yogi Berra is a favorite "you can't think and fight at the same time." Also, during sparring sessions, we often get REALLY lax with the discipline and just have some fun. Dad will thump you with a backfist (at about Mach2) and just say "how ya like me now?"

It works best with the big DC-10 sticks, but now i'm getting into "you know you are an obsessive DRUMMER when..." Wish I had thought of it back in High School, cause our drumline was the bomb and we would have done something with nunchaku sticks during a drum break or 3... ANYway...you know you are an obsessive martial artist when you start thinking of ways to turn EVERYTHING into weapons...

I was meaning there in Australia...I'd like to see some numbers on a country that has gun laws and how many murders are then committed with blades...

I can't believe i haven't seen this one... When you wake up and find bruises and can't remember how you got them. When you wake up late for class, drive like crazy to get there only to have no one else show up because it's Sunday... Doing balance drills while getting dressed and undressed. I never sit down anymore when taking off shoes and socks... EVERYTHING in the house gets opened/closed or turned off/on with kicks strikes...leaving black marks on your walls above the lightswitch from tenis shoes will tick off your wife... Also, I actually drilled holes in my drum sticks and tied a small loop of cord through the holes. Now, I can put the end of the sticks through the loops on the other stick and make nunchaku...hard to get back apart though, so I started learning how to drum with them AS nunchaku...

How many Karate masters does it take to change the lightbulb? No one knows, our Ki is so strong the bulbs break before we touch them. How many Steven Seagall's does it take? Just the one...he holds it still and let's the whole world revolve around him. How many Bruce Lee's does it take? Just one...and he does it with just one finger- from 3 inches away. How many Jackie Chan's? Again, just one...and he does it with a chair, refrigerator, dust mop....

Gotta chime in here... IT'S POP...as in SODA POP! This subject is really killin me because I lived most of my life in Ohio and 4 years ago moved to Virginia. It was POP in Ohio, Soda down here in Virginia. OH...as for "down there" or "up to the store"...depends on whether we are talking about going North or South- if we are going North it's up...South is down. From Virginia, it's up to Ohio and down to Florida. Also works in smaller areas..."UP" to the Wawa (have 'em in Virginny too) north of town, and "Down" to the Walmart on Southside. A hoagie is a "steak sub" (like a slab of meat)...as opposed to a ham and cheese which is a sub. Finally...now coming from the South...it's the Y'All that KILLS me. Y'all can mean ABSOLUTELY ANY number of people. It can mean one person, "How'd y'all's family like that vacation?" OR it can mean several people, "Are y'all going down to the 7-11?" OR it can mean a HUGE number of people, "Y'all from Ohio talk funny."

To SubGrappler- thanks for your assessment and telling me about the schools in my area. I enjoy debates like this a LOT- especially if done in a respectful manner like you have. The problem I have with your remarks is that you are almost saying that BJJ is the "Ultimate Martial Art." Paraphrasing the old line in Billy Jack- I am gonna shoot your legs and there is nothing you can do about it. I do have friends that take Brazilian style jujitsu and others that are actual wrestlers (like college and such) and we do get together and spar and generally "mess around" learning from each other. When we are done with such a session, there are a lot of bruises on them and my joints are generally a LOT more stretched out than they previously were- in other words, sometimes I win, and sometimes I eat mat. That's how it works. I have, however, started wearing 2 (doubled up) knee pads on my left knee because I was leaving large red knots on people's foreheads. I think your comments are from the point of view of a grappler- I especially like the one about him actually HITTING you. People tend to forget that grapplers do not JUST ground fight. The problem with that is that I believe (remember this is opinion only) that since grappling schools teach grappling, you are going to be more worried about grappling techniques than stand-up fighting techniques. In other words, if you are sparring, and someone starts a clinch, you are going to do what you hae been taught- defend that clinch, reverse the hold, etc...grapple the guy back. You are doing what comes naturally as you have been taught. When I see someone starting a clinch, I am going to defend it in MY way- ie, a punch, kick, knee, throw, etc. Not that a grappler is not trained to deal with this, I am saying that... OK, darn it this is getting wordy and run-on. I am saying that what you do may be blazing fast- as in shooting the legs, double leg take down, whatever you like to call it. I am saying that what I do is also blazing fast- I can throw a front kick in about the time it takes you to blink. What you said about the grappler seeing that if a shoot is not possible, he can go into a clinch or whatever...that is also true of other Martial Arts. if i see you begin a clinch, I can move out of it, I can back off when i think you might shoot, etc. I have seen that if both people sparring are about the same training level, it all depends on who makes a mistake first- no duh right? If I get lazy with my footwork or fall to a particularly good feignt, I am down eating mat. If the grappler gets too close with guard held too low, or shoots a little slowly or if he shoots short (doesn't quite get there as I step back) then he ends up with little red spots on his face and chest. It's all a matter of exact instances. We cannot go through each and every possibility that can occur druing a sparring session. I am simply saying that I certainly CAN do something about being grappled. Maybe not if it is the head instructor at the school or Royce Gracie himself, but I don't think I'll be fighting them anytime soon. Your take??

I have come to the conclusion that I wanna meet you White Warlock- and Ninjanurse as well. We seem to have similar ways of thinking. I think that this involves the old "respect your elders" thing. I am in the sometimes unenviable position of having been taught by my father, so this topic hits REALLY close to home here. I am generally more atheletic than my father, a little bigger, a little stronger...MAYBE a little faster. But all you have to do is watch one of my forms, or watch me spar and you can see my father and his influences as plain as day. This is also true of the martial Artist who is not related to his teacher though- if you look at his form, his style of fighting, you will see a younger version of his teacher. AND NOW, that teacher has many more years of knowledge and wisdom under his belt (pun fully intended). It's really too bad that we, as a society, do not fully respect our elders as we should, nor do we fully tap into the valuable resource that is their entire lifetime of experiences. GREAT article...keep 'em coming.

Geez...where to begin. Martial Arts are not JUST about fighting. Quite frankly, if you come to my school saying that you just wanna learn how to fight, I will probably turn you away. I am not in the business of training bullies or street thugs. Street thugs fight- martial artists protect themselves. They may HAVE to fight to do so, but there is a significant difference. Martial Arts are also not JUST about defending yourself. If you really wanna feel safer, you buy a gun, learn how to use it and get liscenced to carry it. The Martial Arts do encompass these things, but they are so much more. If you train in boxing you will learn how to fight, but you will not learn a way of life that teaches you to avoid violent situations, nor the humility to be able to walk away from an encounter. If you learn marksmanship with a handgun, you will be protected but you will not necessarily be self confident enough to appear less like a victim. It all comes down to the question- are you a fighter who knows Martial Arts or are you a Martial Artist who knows how to fight??

Make the guy unable to fight back- break that nose and he has a hard time breathing, eyes start watering, etc...crunch that knee and walk away...snap that elbow... Now, if we are talking about school fights or something other than a street fight...a good side kick to the ribs is hard to get over- makes every breath a reminder of how well they DIDN'T do against you. Same for the old classic punch to "the button" or side of the jaw. Every time they open their mouth is pain. AND, it should also be noted that you should do it as quickly as possible. Don't go in flailing your arms around like a bad wrestling video, but when you see that opening (and against an untrained fighter, it WILL happen) hit it with the absolute most you can muster. Make the guy not wanna fight. Hurt him BAD on your first shot and it will be the only shot you have to throw.... Ikken Hisatsu (one strike kill) strategy...

So what I wanna know is how many murders or assaults are committed with regular butcher's knives and whether the Gov't is outlawing them...

OK guys...don't forget your shoes. My shoes have gotten me out of a lot of scrapes- by walking the other way or down a different street. And to many of you- what combat zone do you guys live in??

Well, depends... As has been pointed out, Bo is very applicable to everyday items like a pool cue or a broom. However, many Kama applications can be used with things like a fireplace poker, chair leg, or even a toilet plunger. In my opinion, I'd go with kama...simply because it is a 2 weapon thing. You should already be used to fighting 2-handed since you HAVE 2 HANDS! 2 weapons makes it MUCH easier for you to get a "feel" for your weapons as they more easily become an extension of your hands. I'm not exactly sure how to put it...the staff simply feels different. maybe it's that you can let go of the staff with one hand- you can get disconnected. If you let go of your kama...well, bad things will happen. The kama also have a definate aura of MEANNESS about them. They are a weapon that just seems to strike fear into people. Also, EVERYONE seems to do a staff kata at tournies...do a kama kata and you will immediately have people's attention. just my opinion...

Well, there's a lot of useful stuff for you here and some stuff that might not be so useful. Generally speaking, 2 martial artists should NEVER be fighting anyway, so you shouldn't worry about it much. However, since not everyone who knows a martial arts technique is a REAL martial artist.... We are talking about the AGE OLD question of whether a ground fighter will beat a stand-up fighter. I can't believe we haven't had more arguments about it It ALL depends on the individual. When the above poster said that when a guys "shoots" your legs, you wouldn't have time to kick him, he's flat wrong. It depends on the guy shooting and how fast the kicker is. Generally speaking, a shoot for the knees is VERY fast though, and you probably will not have time to chamber a good, pretty-looking kick and fire it off before you are down and pinned. Moreso, when you are throwing that slow kick, it is actually HELPING the ground fighter take you down- you are now on one leg. If you are gonna try to kick him, do it BLAZING fast. What is more effective is KNEEING the guy as he comes in- it's a little faster. Also...try stepping back. That sounds really obvious, but what I mean here is stepping back out of the way of that innitial shoot- preferrably stepping circularly- and kicking the crap outta his sides. The problem here is that most stand-up fighting styles are concerned with others who are standing up. What side kick is any good for someone who is lying prone?? Your main concern will be "going down" to get him while remaining upright. Hit and run works fairly well- again depending completely on the opponent at the time. As an above poster said- close enough to strike is close enough to grapple. BUT, not if your technique is in-does its damage- and back out again before the guy can grab it. Finally, dude...you REALLY need to learn some ground fighting techniques. I am not saying become completely efficient in BJJ, but at least ask your Sensei about ground fighting. Just as a good reverse punch WORKS, so does grappling techniques. If you cannot defend a reverse you could be in trouble. If you cannot defend a leg shoot, you could be in trouble.

Next thought is about modern weapons for self defense. Carrying sai, nunchaku and such will get you arrested and if you actually USE them in a fight, you will probably be seen as the criminal in court. This being said, the best weapon is something easily accessable that you can carry at all times, and that is as innocuous as possible. A pockt knife, for example, fits the first 2, but using one in a fight may well get you tossed in jail, even if you were simply defending yourself with it. About the best I've seen and used is the so-called Kubaton and other small, blunt objects carried in the hand. They are large enough to add some wallop to your punches, can be used to strike pressure points and best- they are seen as non-lethal and VERY defensive in nature. You will never be tossed in jail for defending yourself with a Kubaton, but cutting up an attacker with a knife will get you jail time. Personally, having successfully defended myself with a bundle of newspapers (comics inserts) used as a shield, and car keys, I will also have to say that ANYTHING handy works very nicely.

I have a couple different thoughts to add to this, so I'llmake a couple different posts. First, speaking traditionally, the best weapons I have found are either a longer weapon weilded in 2 hands or a weapon in each hand. As a member of the SCA ( the guys who do Medieval Reinactments and such) I have some practical experience with many weapons. A onger weapon hasthe first advantage of REACH- making the opponent come through your threat range. Spears, staves and such are even better because they are often quite quick, having both hands to power them. Finally, they can often attack and defend at the same time, or in rapid succession. For these last 2 reasons, I prefer a katana- fast, good reach, and can go from block to cut in an instant.

Here's a trick...just before you"launch" into the jump, twist your front foot heel to the inside (counterclockwise). It allows you to get a LOT more spring and torque into the jump. Hope this helps...