bushido_man96

WTF TKD, now called WT, is a style, like ITF is a style. The Kukkiwon is not a style, although WTF/WT is sometimes referred to as "Kukki TKD." Honestly, I could see the Olympics holding both form and kumite competitions, and perhaps the opportunity to compete in an "overall" category, as well.

The word 'art' is slightly misleading these days because it is a word with multiple meanings, one such meaning having become archaic and fallen into obscurity. Nowadays, art is as you say, most widely taken in the context of creative expression. But it also means skill set. Art is the expression or result of skill. I love your observation though that art is not a sport. Art can be presented through sport, if a strict and objective rating system can be devised, but by definition, as soon as something becomes a sport it becomes restricted. For example, for martial art to be used as sport, we have to say, as a minimum, don't snap your opponents neck or rip his gonads off. Straight away then the art is limited. A good thing in this example, but limited all the same. Whereas the art, if practiced against an imaginary opponent can still have all its full expression of technique and principles. I'd go further and say that even in training the art has to be restricted. You still can't snap necks and rip off gonads in the training hall. You can try to simulate it to the best of your ability, but it still isn't real. Hence, the reason Jigoro Kano altered his style from Jiujitsu to Judo, for more continuous and realistic training. Nor do I think the spiritual/philosophical aspects are necessary for something to be an "art." More often than not, the spiritual aspects we find in many eastern arts are the direct result of the cultural influence of the person who founded the style. Nothing like that is an inherent part of things like neck-snapping or gonad-ripping.

With this noted, and continuing the devil's advocacy that seems to be defining this thread, then when does a white belt become a Martial Artist? Is it when the student decides to dedicate themselves to learning the system? Does it require a certain amount of training time? Is one not a Martial Artist until they can display proficiency in a style? I know these questions aren't for me, so please forgive me. Imho... A person is a MAist from the moment they step unto the floor for class, aka, that white belt, for example. Proficiency achieved through training isn't a parameter for BEING a MAist, not in the slightest. As in any endeavor pursued, there's a plethora of levels of proficiency, aka, beginners, intermediates, and advanced. That beginner, on their first day, are just as much of a MA as I am, per the manner of which I believe what a MAist is/isn't, after my 53 years on the floor. The question wasn't, What is a proficient MA?? Just, What is a MAist??!! Back to my mechanic thingy, the mechanic that replaces one part after another until the car's fixed, is just as much of what a mechanic is as a mechanic that fixes a car expeditiously through proper diagnostics; mechanic 'A' isn't as proficient as mechanic 'B', however, they're both mechanics. These questions are absolutely for you, Bob, and anyone else with a take on them!

I see. I only get to the KC area once every few years, so I'm not familiar with instructors in the area.

Lots of good comments here. I think I'll take this from the instructor's point of view. For one, I would not be angry with anyone who quit attending my school. Life happens. Now, if I had someone that was a 2nd degree, and had committed significant time and hard work in training like that, and they just up and disappeared, I'd probably want to get into contact with them to check in. I'd ask how they are doing, how things are going, and ask about the training. If they'd say they just aren't into it anymore, I'd wish them well. But, I'd also mention that I'd hate to see them give up on their training, especially after investing so much in it up to that point. If the student mentioned that they were going to train in another style, I'd wish them well there, too, and support their efforts; at least they are still training. I'd also offer to them that the door is still open for them to train at my school if they wish, as well. That's my take on the subject, from the instructor's point of view.

Bob, I empathize with your pain here. Your organization has been punched in the gut quite continuously over the past decade. To the bold above, I would say this: it is true, you are not Soke or Dai-Soke. But, I would say this: YOU ARE ROBERT MITCHAM!!!!! AND FOR THE BETTERMENT OF THE SHINDOKAN, YOU MUST CONTINUE TO BE ROBERT MITCHAM, AND IMPRESS THE MARK OF ROBERT MITCHAM ON THE SHINDOKAN, AS SOKE AND DAI-SOKE WOULD EXPECT YOU TO DO SO, THE ONLY WAY THAT YOU CAN! I say this with the utmost respect to both you and your former Soke/Dai-Soke, in that they probably never expected you to be them; they expected you to be you, and they knew that you were more than good enough to lead after them. You just have to do it the way you can do it. And I KNOW you can and will do this. I'm very sure the absences are noticeable, and like any, they will be for some time. But, time heals all wounds, and these will heal as well. If you feel that you have failed, that's fine! We all get knocked down once in a while. You just have to get up! Knocked down 7 times, get up 8! Use the memory of your fallen comrades to drive you forward in honor of their memory, and prepare to take the Hombu forward the way I know that you can. You've got this, Bob!

Happy belated Birthday to you!

Well done! A fantastic milestone!

I've not been able to bring myself to watch this series yet. Is it enjoyable?

I do love that movie. It is quite moving at the end. Part 2 is watchable, but I haven't seen any of the others.

I do want to see this. I'm interested to see how the interactions are going to change or be the same between Johnny and Daniel. We were considering getting YouTubeTV, which comes with YouTubeRed, but it isn't available in our area for some reason, so I don't know if or when I'll get to see it.

Years ago, my old TKD club in my hometown trained at the National Guard Armory. Its a big area, but concrete floors. That might be another option to consider.

3/27/2018 Strength Training Press: warm-ups: 45x5x2, 75x5, 95x3; work sets: 127.5x5, 127.5x5, 127.5x5. Lat Pull-downs: 135x10, 135x10, 135x10. Squat: 127.5x5, 127.5x5, 127.5x5. Barbell Curls: 61x10, 61x10, 61x10. 3/31/2018 TKD Testing: 11:00 am - 1:00 pm. We had a good group of testing candidates, and all of them performed very well. Our Grandmaster also came out as a special guest judge, which was great for the students.

I don't do crunches, sit-ups, or any of those kinds of exercises. I get my ab work in at the gym, doing the basic barbell exercises, which, when done properly, are used to stabilize the trunk during the exercises, and thus making them stronger.

What I think OneKickWonder is saying is that just training more doesn't necessarily means that you are training better. Also, I think its important to note that many people who train in Martial Arts are doing so by working Martial Arts into the very limited amount of free time they have in their lives. This is very difficult, and finding the time to add extra training sessions can become difficult. This contributes to the common student's lack of availability to spend time training.

....and you just broke it!

Higher Self, I have not ever trained with Steve Mackey, or under Bushidokan Karate. Where is he located at? Topeka or Wichita area? I live in Hays, more towards central/western KS. Where are you from?

With this noted, and continuing the devil's advocacy that seems to be defining this thread, then when does a white belt become a Martial Artist? Is it when the student decides to dedicate themselves to learning the system? Does it require a certain amount of training time? Is one not a Martial Artist until they can display proficiency in a style?

Tai Chi might be easier on my knees than TKD!

3/19/2018 Strength Training Press: warm-ups: 45x5x2, 75x5, 95x3; work sets: 127.5x5, 127.5x5, 127.5x5. Lat Pull-downs: 135x10, 135x10, 135x10. LTE: 54x10, 54x10, 54x10. MA Training Taught TKD Class: 6:00 - 7:10 pm. Basics (I performed about half of basics with the class, since it was a small class), forms, one-steps, and then, instead of sparring, I rolled the bags out to do some kicking and movement drills. After some kicking on the bags, I had the students working on side-stepping to cut an angle, and then follow up with a shuffle-stepping round kick. 3/20/2018 MA Training TKD Class: 6:00 - 7:15 pm. Basics (lots of different basics added in today, doing lots of inside and outside crescent kicks and axe kicks with the front and back legs), stretch, forms (Choong Jang), one-steps (white, blue, brown belt), and some sparring drills and sparring. I tried to work on my side-stepping and working angles. I was able to pull off some repeat kicking, and moved ok.

Great post, JR.

That's a good question. Like the similarity between Ki and Qi and Chi. I think they are different spellings for a similar thing, but I am not for sure, either.

Lots of good information here so far. I agree with DWx in that some research needs to be done in order to determine why attendance is down. It could be any number of factors, including, but not limited to, kids being interested in other things, classes being too long/too short/bad times (scheduling), adults being busy with other aspects of their lives (again, could be a scheduling issue), or your instructor's focus, teaching style, availability, etc. Any one of these, or a combination thereof, could be contributing to lack of attendance. I don't think a name change will fix anything. Is the instructor planning on changing his entire curriculum? If so, that could have its own problems, and he will definitely need a plan to implement the new curriculum. Does the instructor not teach self-defense at all? Many schools included the term "self-defense" somewhere in their description. This would usually suffice, I think. I agree with OneKickWonder that not all schools teach self-defense, but I'm of the opinion that self-defense should at the very least end up being a side-effect of Martial Arts training. If it is not at least a side-effect, then I think there is something wrong with the approach. But that is just my two cents worth.

I like and agree with pretty much everything you’re saying, but I have one thing to add... The inherent difference between wrestling and karate (and pretty much every belted MA) is while there’s no belts/ranks in wrestling, there’s a lot of competition. Wrestlers will use their competition as a measure of progress and success. And there’s an off-season. If karate had the same amount of competition and off-season, I think the belts could easily go by the way-side for kids. A record is a quick and tangible reminder/indicator of progress. Take away the whole or almost the whole competition aspect from wrestling where all they’re doing is practicing against each other week in and week out, and a lot of kids are going to get bored with it, regardless of how fun the coach makes it, how much they’re actually improving, etc. Adults like to see tangible and measurable progress in pretty much any endeavor. Kids significantly more so. Furthermore, kids in wrestling, and pretty much any other sport, who don’t see any success don’t stick around very long. How many kids willingly and excitedly come back after an “0-for” season? How many kids would come back to karate without being promoted for a long time? In their minds they failed. I think competition is a part of it, but I don't think its all of it. I've seen some pretty mediocre kids that just love it and keep coming back. The off-season could be part of it, too. But, with that said, Karate typically has plenty of competition available, and it doesn't really have a season, so tournaments can be found year round (the same can be said for Wrestling). Perhaps rotating MA seasons would help kids out?

They do enjoy it, although no one enjoys losing. Kendall's year has been spent on the bottom half of 12U, which means the top half is full of 13 year olds who are starting to or have hit puberty, thus they are more physically developed, taller, stronger, etc. So, its just a tough way to go. Next year, he will hopefully have grown and matured some, which will help him out the way its helped out others above him this year. Kenneth is still young and learning, and I'm proud of the progress he's made this year. He won't progress like Kendall, as they are two very different ducks. We'll keep working and improving, and things will fall where they do.