bushido_man96

Very cool. I like this idea of disruption in partner drills. I like his blending with Aikido, too. It's fun when you start seeing where the two styles can cross up a little. I've been really enjoying training with the jo and bokken at the Aikido dojo. I like jo better. The sensei also doesn't seem to concerned about how the testing requirements shake out; if he feels something is useful, he'll teach it to us.

Testing notes: 10/3/2024, Sun Yi’s Academy, Hays, KS This was a small testing (we have quite a few small ones anymore), only four testing: three low-orange belts and one low-green belt. We had three black belts in attendance as well (not counting me and the CI), so a brief warm-up of basics was done and then the black belts demonstrated their forms, some one-steps, and did some board breaks. Even though the black belts aren’t testing, I still use it as a time to evaluate what they do. We didn’t have enough wood boards for the breaking, so we used the re-breakable boards we have at the school. I even had a little fun and did a ridge hand strike, which might have been a first for me. As I mentioned, three low-orange and one low-green belt tested. It’s that awkward low-rank to just getting into the intermediate ranks phase. I find students either think about things way to much or not enough. Here are my notes (and I do share these with the students as a whole at the end of testing): Take time to target on one-steps (even the black belts). When we teach the one-steps, we show the vital points/areas we want the strikes to target. Some students get carried away with either the move combinations that they go fast and miss a target (like a knife hand strike going down to a hip and not into the ribs/side area), or in the case of lower ranks, they are not focusing on targets at all and are just doing the techniques. I implored the students to be more cognizant of this going forward. Completion/flow. I saw either too much flow, and techniques got run together and stance got sloppy, or I saw too much completion, resulting in deliberate and extended separation of techniques (too much pause). Too much completion results in no rhythm in the hyung. The orange belts were flowing too fast and not completing their techniques or finishing their stances. The green belt was taking too long between techniques, making the hyung look like 24 separate movements. I challenged the students going forward to go find the happy medium between the two. They have to go beyond just rote memorization of the material. The CI made a good point; he said, “you have to put some of you in the form.” Along the same lines on the notes on one-steps, the students need to be cognizant of where the targets are in sparring. During testing sparring, there were a few times where kicks were thrown to the back, which is not a legal target for us. Alongside this, is knowing where your technique is going when you execute it. I also emphasized the need to improve blocking and guarding in sparring. I see too much of a hand poking toward an incoming kick instead of performing a good blocking technique or getting the arms into a solid defensive guarding position. Body position was a point as well. I saw a few times where students would square their bodies to their opponents, giving lots of target opportunities. I emphasized staying more bladed to present fewer targets. Granted, a lot of this could be cleaned up when working on sparring in class, which needs to happen more often. The students have been sparring more, but I am of the opinion that more focused drilling needs to be done in order to help shore up these issues. Often times, the students will spar, instructors observe, then give advice when the round is over. This is ok for some, but not all students will just “listen and apply.” Some need the drilling to familiarize their bodies with the positioning and to see it play out in real time. The last thing I did notice, but the CI mentioned (I failed to do so) is that all the low rank student’s sparring offense was good. They were putting combinations together of strikes and kicks, and multiple kick combinations. So many times, I see lower ranks be more timid, and they tend to move in, throw one technique, and then fail to follow up and leave themselves open to being attacked, or they will bounce away or fall away after a kick, giving up the ground they just gained. Their offensive mindset was good overall. In conclusion, there is some technical clean-up I’d like to see take place between now and the next testing with these students. But their progress is good so far.

Thank you Bob! 10/3/2024 Strength Training Leg Press: 45x10, 135x10, 185x5, 225x5, 295x3, 315x2, 340x5, 340x5, 340x5. Bench Press: 45x5x2, 75x5, 95x3, 115x2, 145x5, 145x5, 145x5. Lat Pull-downs: 160x10, 160x10, 160x10. TKD Testing: 6:00 - 7:00 pm. Small testing, only 4 total, three low-orange belts and a low green belt. Overall, it went ok. I saw some things that I thought should have been cleaned up prior to testing, but overall, as lower ranks, some things I expected. I'll do another testing notes post over in Testing, Grading, and Promotions forum. The CI did start out with some basics and a demo by three black belts, and I got to do a ridge hand board break. BJJ: 7:15 - 8:15 pm. Due to testing, I was about 15 minutes late to class, but the schools are close to each other (about a block away), so I stopped in and found three of them training, so I jumped in. They were already doing ground work when I got there. 1. One person seated, other standing. Seated person's job was to try to get hooks in low, or get to a cross guard, grab an ankle, etc, and try to break their balance and get the hands to the ground or their butt on the ground (win). Standing person's job was to manipulate the legs and try to get both feet around to the down person's hip (I think he called it a J-step?) (win). They could do this by pushing one/pulling the other leg, shove the knees in do a leg-drag like you'd do an arm-drag, etc. 6 min. This was very tough. Made my abs tired! When the instructor (he's a blue belt) would put his hooks in on me, it's like he was glued to me. I did get a few takedowns, but man I had to work for them. When I'd set hooks, he'd get out real easily. I tried to stay active, but it was so hard, and he seems to move so effortlessly. 2. Same setup, but the standing guy's job was to get to knee-on-belly for a win. 6 min. More of the same, very hard for me. Lots of work trying to keep hooks in and turning to avoid that J-step. 3. This time, we started at knee-on-belly. Bottom guy's job was obviously to get out/get to guard (win). Top guy's job was isolate/lock arm/head or the far arm at the shoulder (win). x2, 6 min then 3 min. I had a hard time figuring out how to keep good pressure and balance in the top position. One might think being as heavy as I am, staying heavy on someone wouldn't be a problem, but it really is a skill all it's own (one my boys know well). Coach described it as a "floating pin" in which you need to be ready to move and react and keep that pressure down. Also helpful is using the hand to pressure into the far hip to keep them from shrimping and turning easily. There was a few times when I'd try to follow his movement and shove my outrigger out too far, and he'd scoop the heel and get to a win. I got a little better at controlling that as we went on by staying more active with that leg when adjusting. There was a few spots where he snuck out on bottom and I was able to scramble and re-establish the position, which was good progress I guess. When on bottom, it just sucked. He'd keep his hook tucked in right at my hip, making it hard to shrimp and make room. Part of it is I just need to get into better "grappling shape" so I can move and scramble when I need to. And work on shrimping out and moving back. 4. Working in mount. Bottom guy's job was to reverse/escape to guard (win). Top guy's job was to hold position and work the arms up to isolate head/arm or both arms/head. 6 min. I've actually done some static work from the mount and under the mount, so I had at least some idea of things to do, like reversals, sweeps, or elbow escape. I did get one reversal, which felt really good for a change. I tried to umpa and elbow escape, but he had a good base and a few times when I'd shrimp I'd end up caught on my side and lose. There were times when my partner was working up higher when on top, and I did a decent job of pulling myself back up under him more square, where I could try to work. I did the first few drills with the coach, then switched up. The guy I worked with for the majority of class, we worked well together and talked a lot about what was happening as it was happening. Kind of helped making some improvements. Super respectful guy and loves the game. This is kind of what this class was, too. It was tough, spending a lot of time in disadvantageous positions and trying to improve position. Wore me out, but a good class.

We had a session kind of like that last night. Really rough, but good stuff.

Thanks for the information. I'll review my article when I have time and make some adjustments. No reason to apologize, as I have no dog in the fight. I'm just a simple TKD practitioner trying to track down the history and determine if anyone is still around doing anything close to what the original Kwans were doing, or if they are still somehow tied into those family trees. It sounds like this organization is not.

Go Royals!

Good point as well. Kicking with shoes on tends to change up the dynamics a bit, especially if you wear heavier duty shoes or boots for work. It's good to know how you'll be able to perform when wearing those. Also, start kicking around without warming up. Being a bit older, I don't get warmed up very fast, and my resting flexibility for kicking isn't what it was when I was younger. It's good to know your limitations.

Tyreek back to KC, that would be crazy. But with Kareem Hunt back, it'd be like getting the band back together. I think if KC can offer good enough compensation, a "division rival tax" so-to-speak, I think they could convince Vegas to make the trade. I'd say a 2nd round and a 3rd round pick (maybe in 2026) should do the trick. I think the trade for Adams would put them back where they expected to be when the season started, and they assumed they'd have Hollywood Brown in the lineup.

I do hope you were buying a protein bar when you did that!

Yes, it's a very natural thing for the body to do when it is trying to exert force. Everything tightens up in order to stabilize everything. Exactly. I've expressed that to our students as well. That sharp exhalation at the completion of a technique is basically a "quiet kihap."

10/1/2024 Strength Training Leg Press: 45x10, 135x10, 185x5, 225x5, 300x3, 335x5, 335x5, 335x5. Press: 45x5x2, 75x5, 95x3, 115x2, 132.5x5, 132.5x5, 132.5x5. Lat Pull-downs: 157.5x10, 157.5x10, 157.5x10.

9/30/2024 Aikido Class: Weapons Class: 5:00 - 6:00 pm. Warmed up with the jo, doing low-4 for a while, and then some hi-4. The kid I was partnered with didn't know hi-4, so I got to go into teach mode a little bit. For the meat of the class, we did jo disarms where the defender didn't have a weapon. We did two defenses that went to the inside of the strike: 1. Getting inside and getting a grip on the jo between the attacker's grips, then tenkan around and get the stick horizontal and drop the hips to get heavy on the stick. From there, it was step and thrust/drive downward forward and kind of to the 45 degree directed to behind the attacker's outside foot. I can't find a video of the technique. I know I'm not explaining it well. 2. Then a shio-nage disarm against a yokomenuchi strike. We also did a defense moving to the outside of the strike by ducking low and moving behind. This is not the optimal way to do a disarm and is really dangerous. Sensei described it as an "oh crap" technique. Once getting to the outside, grip between their grips, tenkan, then step and do kote-gashi. Fun class, fun topic. TKD Class: Black Belt Class: 6:30 - 7:30 pm. Three of us in the class tonight. We went through Do-Gons, 1-6, but went at a much slower pace, maybe half-speed. I focused on good hip twist and power on techniques, and foot placement/pivoting while kicking. I made my movements deliberate. Doing jumping and spinning kicks in 5 and 6 at half-speed was very tough. After that, we did a round-robin format of the all the three-steps, so each of us got through them all. Nitpicked a few things in them to get them right. I took time to stretch after class in The Rack, getting up past 140 degrees.

I'll echo these sentiments. Also helpful is actually changing into your MA gear; do-bok, gi, whatever. Making the effort to change into the appropriate training attire helps get you into the right training mindset.

In strength training, this is an example of the Valsalva maneuver. Taking a big breath, bracing the body, and then exerting effort. It locks the body into a strong, stable column in order to move the weight. Once the weight is lifted, it's usually followed by a sharp exhale, much like a kiai/kihap is done (although these are usually a much shorter duration). I always thought a war yell was much akin to a kiai, too.

I'm 46 and have been making a BJJ class pretty regularly, but only once a week right now (and will probably miss this week due to TKD testing). Our instructor emphasizes the stand-up aspect in every class, too. My knees are always pretty achy, but I've been holding up ok in the classes. I'd say it's easier on my knees than TKD is.