Sensei Mark

Osu, the belt loop does go at the front. It is used to stop the tied ends working themselves up your stomach and keeps it centered on the navel. The gi pants, has a back and front with regards to where the two ties go, so genrally you would stretch out the ties untill the back part of your pants are tight enough and then thread them through the front loop and tie as you please. This tends to stop the ties becoming too tight across the navel etc.

Osu, In the Kyokushin Karate system, we tend to follow the Japanese pronunciation for some of the techniques and we then add our own language interpretation for what they are called. One of the reasons why we use so much Japanese in our system and classes is so that what ever country one is visiting and training in, one can generally get a hold on hearing the Japanese names of the techniques and can pretty much follow along. This is not intended to discribe in detail, but more of a general gauge as to what technique is being taught etc. I could just imaging travelling to 10 different countries and training in 10 different dojos, with 10 dirrent languages to contend with. But when we hear, Chudan Tsuki, - We get it Jodan Uke - We get it Mawashi Geri - We get it Even if the person saying the name of the technique has a strong accent: 99 times out of 100 - You will get it. Got it?

Yes Simo, i am in Tamworth, NSW. My daughter is doing her Medical Degree at Coffs Uni. BTW: I love Coffs, nice and green lush in many parts. I had a freeride mountain bike film screened as a finalist at the Cool Banana Film Festival in Coffs last year, they screened my film at the Novatel, very plush.. cheers

Because training is so varied with regards to traditional formats, i will outlay a typical day when my boys & myself were training for Kickboxing and Muay Thai bouts when our Karate Tournaments are out of season so too speak. Start the day with: Stretch 6-8km jog Incorporating short Sprints Skipping 15 to 20 mins straight. (nice warm up) 5 x 3 mins shadowbox ( incorporating punchs, kicks, knees and elbow strikes) 10 x 3 mins Bagwork 5 x 3 mins Thai Pad work Shadowbox 5 x 3 min rds ab work (crunchs, leg rasiers etc) 500 Low Kicks right leg, 500 low kicks left leg to the long heavy bag Sparring 6 to 10 - 3 min rds Shadow again to bring the body back down, and stretch out. Alternate days we would swim, 1000, mtrs local pool Strength training with weights mountain running with medium weighted backpack. This does NOT include regular classes i needed to take 6 days a week. the result of this training can be found on my fight record at: http://marktysondojo.com/sensei.htm

Those well know Kyokushin names to progress to K1 Superstar Status: Andy Hug Francisco Fihlio Nick Pettas Glaub Fotosia Sam Greco Michael Thompson Peter Graham

Just found this site, but am not sure how far it is from you. http://www.loughboroughkarate.co.uk/

Osu RichardGregory Fun maybe not the word, but the ale's and company after the grading at the after part presentations certainly were. It took me a couple of weeks untill the bumps and bruises dissapeared, but fond memories indeed, (as i recall myself trying to walk down the stairs when the legs were smashed up). But this is when we learn that: "Ice can be your best friend!"

aaahh the memories of Gradings. Ok, lets go back to the middle of a super hot summer in 1987. Dojo is full and the temprature is draining, 3hrs30mins basics including idogeko (moving basics) then Kata (16 different ones) Tamashiwari (Breaking) Broards, Seiken and Shuto. Then the Gruelling Kyokushin Karate 40 Man Kumite: 40 Fights, 2 mins each with a fresh opponent every round, with no drink, toilet, or rest breaks in between the fighting rounds. Osu

The Style of Kyokushin Karate The Japanese refer to Mas Oyama's Kyokushin karate as kenka karate, meaning "brawling" or "brutal" karate. But Mas Oyama tells his students "Kenka karate ja-nai! Budo karate da!" which translates to "This is not brawling karate! It's budo karate! One look at a Kyokushin karate tournament reveals the answer. Kyokushin karate fighters in Knockdown style tournaments are among the fiercest in the world. Many Kyokushin Karate students consider themselves modern day Samurai, by following Mas Oyama's teachings encompassed the Budo / Bushido fighting spirit and attitude. This spirit which is seen in demanding training sessions, gradings & tournaments is very evident of this. At World level competitions there are no weight classes; a fight ends only when one fighter proves beyond doubt his superiority, which can mean his opponent may be flat on the mat and may need to be carried away on a stretcher. Kyokushin Karate is Power Karate! Why does Sosai Oyama refer to it as "budo karate"? Perhaps because kyokushin fighters personify the budo (warrior) concept better than any other karate stylists. Through his budo karate, Sosai Oyama has indeed revived the Japanese spirit in terms of the positive characteristics of bushido, the " way of the warrior," which was so much of the culture of feudal Japan. In a modern world of peace and unification, many have forgotten this ancient code and see no need for the old warrior ethic but in a time when it is no longer necessary to carry a sword for personal protection, the discipline of budo recreates in the hearts of its followers the do-or-die attitude of living life by the unspoken law of the sword. And that law is: Be prepared to sacrifice. Always remember that all Karate-ka, whether black belt or beginner who is totally ignorant to the teachings of Karate, train in the same dojo & on the same floor. All practice the same techniques and aspire toward the same ideals. Therefore, all are governed by the same requirements of etiquette.

Osu mid life crisis, Ideally organising your trip abroad to include contacting possible instructors which you intend to enquire about participating in their classes would no doubt be proper ettiquet. But of course, life being as it is sometimes makes this not possible. I would then locate the dojo, find out the class times and then visit and introduce yourself and i am sure that the instructor would welcome you into their club to train. We tend to be like that here in Oz!

ahhh, thats it, "freestyle/xma Thats the problem, freestyle/xma No one knows what the hell that is, its not a style or form but something created to look good but with not much substance. You might as well take up ballet, or dancing.

Yes it is easy to see the mongrelisation of the traditional arts. After reviewing quite a few so called traditional martial arts demos on cable TV recently as well as the format that is put forward, i tend to see that Americans seem to be the ones who do the flashy demos with a more gymnastical approach as opposed to tradition. I may be wrong, but Americans seem to like to change / alter / or edit the traditional martial arts content out of their styles and add / create / modify techniques to suit the competition. This long term approach to dialuting their martial arts no doubt contributes to the standard of actuale fighting skills. NOTE: This is not a pregidous statement but more of an observation as to how the world (from my point of view) views American Martial Arts when we see it advertised on Cable. This is also one of the reasons i prefer the Japanese Arts, as they see the benefits of traditional technique as opposed to some sort of strange so called martial arts competition which would look more comfortable in a Circus.

Possibly TV and the Media have contributed to what some may see as Martial Arts, but at the end of the day, i prefer to train under a doctrin which even though modifies techniques slightly and over a reasonable period of time, still keeps the "Traditional Art of Karate" in mind.

Osu, You are welcome!

Their are no secrets...