jaymac

I was just very sick and was told to try this oscillo...stuff. I got it at a pharmacy and I couldn't pronounce it but they knew right away what it was. It did make me feel better. Good luck on your test. What rank are you testing for?

You know I was just watching a great documentary on Thai boxers and their training. They take their training very seriously. For some it is the only way they can provide a lifestyle for their family. Anyhoo, they trained in rings kicking bags and then sparring each other. Not once did I see any of them, even experienced ones kick a tree or a solid object. This would risk breaking the Tibia and fibula and possibley ending their Thai career.

Keep in mind dotc, that if you are having an allergic reaction to these, the reaction will get more severe everytime you expose yourself. Severe enough to cause respiratory problems that can lead to respiratory arrest!

Nice pics. Which one was you?

Dlove said "when we test our intructors will close class for the entire day, got to help cover that cost somehow..." My point exactly.

Thanks NidaninNJ, i was able to register from that link.

Didn't actually mean to quote Nothingsshadow. I was replying to Makushi.

(There are some very "successful" and highly regarded schools in the NW that don't teach any bunkai until after the shodan level.) But they eventually teach it.

I have not learned unsu yet. However, everyones bunkai is going to be different. In Kanku Sho, I believe that you are turning to kick an opponent from behind you and immediately drop to face the front for an oncoming attacker.

You know just recently a friend told me that she had swithched styles and gone to another school. She wanted to wear a white belt and the instructor complied, but stated because she had earned a black belt in another style, all her potentially achieved ranks in his style, he would give her a belt with a black stripe through the middle of it. This would indicate that she had achieved a black belt in another style. So she wears a white belt with a black stripe, then she goes to yellow belt black stripe etc.... I thought this was a great idea.

I agree with blackbeltblonde. Movies are probably the reason people are not interested in MA. Watch a Jet Li or a Jackie Chan movie and you think, "Wow that is awesome." Most people however probably think to themselves, it looks awesome, but I can't do that. People watching a boxer or a boxing movie see realistic fighters and realistic fights. There are no acrobatics involved. They know that they actually could train to be a boxer if they wanted. Best thing is to not even get involved with these conversations. MA is awesome and so is boxing. To each his own. Keep training and continue to be awesome! (Wow, I said awesome alot )

I like danbong's reply the best. Try them both and stick with the one you really like. If you really are into the fitness issue, both will be great. Self defense wise, I like Kung fu more as a choice. You will learn great tradition in kung fu. You will learn to use beautiful weapons. In capoiera, you incorporate self defense in a dance. You learn to play intruments in this and are expected to learn to play in order to advance in rank. Both styles do not focus on rank as much and it could take a long time to rank. Good luck in your decision, but for now, you should choose only 1.

You are right, beginners do fight linear. Advanced students will circle each other because they may be more relaxed. They are probably also watching for an opportunity to hit or to counteract their opponent, instead of just going in and striking over and over. Watch how a beginner will stand in close to the opponent and hit, hit, hit, there is no technique and they tend to get hit themselves. An advanced student may look for the opponents mistake and act on that. He/she will do a combination of strikes and move away from the reach of the opponent. As for roundhouse. High kicks to the head look nice, but you need control. A more affective roundhouse kick in my book is a mid level kick. It is more powerful and more effective if you were to use it in a real life situation, unless you were 6'5 and your opponent was not.

When I began taking classes, I received a student manual. It listed all the rules and regulations expected of the head instructor. It clearly stated that if hair was not long enough to pull back, then to prevent injury, hair must be cut and kept out of the students vision. I did not have a problem with this. However, had i already been a student for some time and this rule had not been told to me originally, I may have felt that forcing a haircut would have been unfair, especially if I could keep it out of the way with a bandana. If you love karate and respect your instructor, deal with it, but get a different barber. (Keep in mind that male barbers tend to cut men bald , maybe find a hairdresser and get a short but trendy cut).

Haven't seen it, but I think I will check it out. Thanks.

Ok, since this post was originally from Oct. 2005, what did you do mischieviousjoe?

Awesome job! I think tournaments are great for learning something about ourselves and our training. Looking forward to seeing the pics.

I know that if there was an aikido school in our area, I would definitely be a student. I think that aikido is extremely effective. I love shotokan and will always be a student, but find that there are some great benefits to the study of aikido.

Is this like "what came first: the chicken or the egg?" I do not know the answer, but I believe they must have developed together at the same time. I love knowing the bunkai of my kata. This way I can imagine what it is I am doing against my attacker. I can't believe that there are schools that would not believe that bunkai is just as important as the kata itself.

Supposedly Chuck Liddell did study Kempo because he has it tatooed on his arm, but I think that although I at times enjoy watching it on Spike tv, I still have issues about it being called Martial Arts. It is a Heinz 57 fighting style. Its sole purpose is to teach others to beat the crap out of each other in a ring. There is nothing traditional about it and that is ok for the person who is interested in that, but I am tired of reading about it in my karate magazines.

I just tried to get to shotomag.com and it said site was moved or temporarily out of service ( or something like that). Anyone else able to log on?

I like head gear mostly for take downs during sparring. Concussions are usually received when someone bounces their head off of the floor. Head gear has adequate padding that may prevent serious injury.

It is required in our school to have padding. I do not feel we get a false sense of security. The reason I say this is because I trained for years in a style that did not allow pads. There has been no difference in contact made or not made. Personally, I would prefer no pads, but have decided I love shin gaurds. Man, all those years of fighting without shin gaurds have made my shins bumpy, and prone for injury and bruising.

Mr. Miyagi was awesome. I know he has passed now, but did you know he had a heart attack during the making of one of those films. I am not sure which one though. The second one was ok, ibut it had great music. Which one was the one with Hillary Swank? That one was awful.

When you have great big windows and keep the class visible for the whole town to watch, then I think that the instructor does care about the individuals passing by. Windows are huge and large trophies displayed for passer bys to see. No, I do not think personally that as a Martial Artist, one should care about potential customers outside of the dojo. I care about the students inside and so does my instructor. That is why the head instructor of our dojo does not allow classes to be viewed from the outside. It is a distraction and good training is hindered by distraction.