bushido_man96

12/16/2015 Strength Training Press: warm-ups: 45x5x3, 65x5, 85x5; work sets: 101x5, 115x3, 128.5x5. Assisted chin-ups: 135x10x3 (supersetted with press). Lying triceps ext: 55x10x3. 12/17/2015 Strength Training Deadlifts: warm-ups: 135x5, 165x5, 195x5; work sets: 232.5x5, 263.5x5, 295x6. Power snatches: 105x2, 105x2, 105x2, 105x2, 105x2. 12/18/2015 TKD Testing: 6:00 - 8:00 pm. We had a good night of testing, mostly kids. Our GM was also there to guest judge, so it was a nice evening! I was the floor judge for the testing, so it was especially easy for me.

There are good ATA schools out there, and there are bad ones. I wouldn't say that the ATA is "closed off" from the rest of the TKD world, but they do have a self-sufficient tournament circuit. You have to be an active member of the ATA to compete in their tournaments. The judges have to attain levels of judging certification to judge at ATA tournaments. They run a Top Ten points system that keeps track of eligibility for competing at the World Championships competition they have annually. They really have a good system.

We really don't have too much of an issue with this. If the instructor sees some of it going on, a quick tongue lashing usually puts an end to it. If that doesn't do it, push-ups usually follow.

Years ago, at my ATA school, after testings, we had a "fun week," waiting for results to come in. We'd do things other than the typical class formats of basics, forms, one-steps, and sparring. Sometimes, we'd have other instructors come in and teach, or work specifically on self-defense related stuff, or other things like that. Right now, we have a week off for Christmas, so nothing like that going on.

The ATA has its own tournament circuit, and there are lots of ATA schools, and lots of schools host regional tournaments. In TX, you probably wouldn't have trouble finding an ATA tournament to go to at all. The ATA has lots of competition venues too, since I have left that association. They have their "traditional" point sparring system, and I think they also started doing Olympic sparring tournaments. They also have forms and weapons competitions, both in a traditional and XMA style, I believe. Are there not any other open style tournaments in that area throughout the year?

Not all TKD schools are sports-centered. You can find some really good ones out there that aren't centered on competing, if you know what you're looking for. If you are looking for competition, though, then looking in the realms of the WTF and ITF sanctioned schools would be a good start. The ATA also has its own tournament circuit and yearly World Championships competition, but not everyone likes the idea of going with the ATA. If you're looking at the Olympic style sparring methods, go with a World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) sanctioned school. The International TKD Federation has a different sparring setup, but still a very competitive tournament scene.

Nothing is effective for every single person. If there was one universally effective method, there'd only be one art being taught at every dojo, the same exact way to every student. I agree with you here.

Sounds like a fun time!

I like the concepts you show there. I really haven't seen much of anything like that. Hopefully, I can retain some of it and try to work on it.

I'm glad you enjoyed it, Bob. I thought it had a nice message to it.

That...well...sucks; sorry to hear that, Brian!! Give Vicky and the kids our love!! I will, thank you, Bob!

Congrats!

That is an awesome accomplishment! Congrats!

Congrats, man! What a Christmas present, eh?

Good points, JR 137. Our DT club offers several personal defense seminars a year to women mostly, and they focus a lot on what you mentioned; choking attack, sexual assault situations, and the like. They need the tools to get away, and get help. It sounds like your course went well, Luther. Hopefully, you get to do some more of them, and get repeat customers. One of the most important things to impart on them at the end of the course is to seriously consider taking up some form of training or other on a regular basis. Its the best way to keep your body fresh in self-defense techniques.

Those are very good points.

Yep, exactly what I was thinking!

I think if you made contact with the electric company, they should be able to present some kind of average for you, based on hours used and amount used. You should be able to come up with a ballpark estimate. Another thought, and this is something the electric company does where I'm from, is you could ask if they have some kind of program they set you up on where you pay a set amount per month. I think at the end of the year, they refigure your average usage, and then refigure your monthly amounts based off that. Its a thought, and it could definitely help on a budget.

This video went through my Facebook feed the other day, and I thought it was an interesting commentary from Iain Abernethy in regards to the difference in Karate and Judo throwing, specifically, the difference in throwing for competition or self-defense. What do you think? I know not everyone gets on board with Abernethy's approach to bunkai, but I think this discussion is less about deriving applications from kata, and more about the environment these throws are applied in.

Here is a link to a story about a junior high wrestler in McCook, Nebraska, about his first loss of the season. Its a pretty heartwarming story, I think: http://www.mccookgazette.com/story/2259069.html

12/14/2015 Strength Training Squats: warm-ups: 45x5x2, 135x5, 165x5, 195x5; work sets: 228x5, 258.5x3, 289x5. These sets were tough today. 12/15/2015 Strength Training Front squats: warm-ups: 45x5, 95x5, 115x5; work sets: 140x5, 140x5, 140x5. Power cleans: warm-ups: 95x3, 115x3; work sets: 132x3, 132x3, 132x3, 132x3, 132x3.

Welcome to KF!

Welcome to KF!

My line of thinking here is that there is more than one way to teach TKD. A purely sport approach might not be very effective for someone that isn't naturally gifted as an athlete. So, that training might not be effective for everyone.

I've done forms in TKD for a lot of years that didn't have any applications for them. The ATA forms weren't designed with applications in mind like those seen from Karate kata. I've seen some application ideas for the ITF forms I do now, and have seen ideas for the Tae Guek and Pal Gwe forms. But these are rather recent innovations. My concern with the whole thing is, why should I have to learn a form, then learn its applications, to learn self-defense? I'm a big proponent of getting into applications work as early as possible in training.