bushido_man96

9/9/2025 Aikido: 6:15 - 7:45 pm. Head was feeling funny today, so I didn't know how class was going to go. I only took a few falls; lots of taking techniques to a stretch point. We did aikitaisos, then technqiue. Yokomenuchi sokumen iriminage (5th kyu): I'm making improvements on this, flowing better. I worked on not standing up tall when entering with arm across chin. Also worked on drawing the other arm back (hikite) and getting it twisted to break balance. The finish is the aikitaiso sayu undo/sayu choyaku undo; key at the end is not a drop but a thrust/downward thrust across the shoulders. Then we did a variation on it using a pass-through block/intercept (I likened it to a block/pass/pin minus the pin), then to the iriminage or gokyo. We also hit lots of tangents on different approaches and applications.

There was a lot going on with this testing, even though it wasn’t one of the bigger testings. Here’s the big one: We had a 2nd dan, who is the daughter of the CI, managed to get herself bumped from 2nd dan back low brown belt due to some…respect issues; not with everyone in the school, but more along the lines of father/daughter dynamics. When your are father/daughter at home and then come to class, it can be difficult for kids to switch to the instructor/student dynamic. I never got the exact story of what took place to cause the rank stripping, but that’s the gist of what caused it. That 2nd dan in-a-brown belt had to test on the three brown belt levels to get back to her 2nd dan rank, and today marked her finish of that journey. She was basically doing the 1st dan testing all over again as a skunk belt; all forms, all one-steps, sparring, board breaks, and writing the essay again and reading it aloud before testing. She has matured a lot, and it was great to see. Ok, onto the performances. When I mention the 1st dan recommended, she’s the one I’m referencing. 1st dan rec: good power in Do-Gons. She made her low rank forms look like black belt forms. Great power, technique, focus, etc. She had a few brief memory hiccups, but nothing terribly egregious. During a sparring match with an orange belt, she worked with them, helping them out. White belts: good stances, transitions, and power in their form. In one-steps, their distancing was pretty good, but their stances needed focus. I see this often in one-steps at the lower levels; the students are worried about blocking a technique, where their targets are, and everything going on up high that they forget about what their legs are doing in the stances down low. The group of white belts looked very good sparring. Orange belts: needed to clean up stances a little bit, along with some transitions to front stances. The forms have some more difficult transitions, which add to this. The square blocks needed some correction. I told them not to rush their one-steps. In sparring, the orange belts need to work on their blocking skills some more. I’ve had them working on drills in sparring class to help with this. I see too much “fencing,” where low rank students are trying to block everything with their lead hand. One of the high orange belts is quite flexible, and it I asked her to show that more in forms, one-steps, and sparring. Overall, all the students showed great power in their forms, and I told them to keep it up. I asked them to add focus, and to concentrate on the stances and transitions. At the end of testing when handing out belts, the CI got a bit choked up giving his daughter back her rank, and didn't quite have his thought sorted yet. I stepped in and told her that when something like that happens, a person can handle it a couple of ways. One, they can just quit and not deal with it. Or two, they can take responsibility, hold themselves accountable, and get better. She chose the latter, and that has made all the difference. The CI was able to gather his thoughts and summed up how proud he was of her, and they both had some tears. I made them hug it out before breaking the testing.

9/8/2025 Strength Training Bench Press: 45x5x2, 95x5, 105x3, 135x1, 135x1, 135x1. Deadlifts: 95x5, 135x3, 185x3, 225x1, 250x1.

9/5/2025 Trying to get back to some form of strength training. Squats: 45x5x2, 135x5, 185x3, 185x3, 185x3. Press: 45x5x2, 65x5, 75x5, 75x5, 75x5. I'm going to play with the rep range and try a 5/3/1 approach. I want that last set to be somewhat heavy, but doing heavy 5's makes pressure build up in my head.

Congrats @Revario!

I like this book as well. Lays out a lot of good thoughts to consider. I also think that many young men are confused about what self-defense actually is. Yapping with someone and getting into a fight at a bar is not really self-defense. Sure, you have to defend from attacks, but it's much more along the lines of mutual combat than an unprovoked attack.

These are great thoughts to keep in mind for everyone, not just MAists. Most people don't realize how complicated things can become once they enter the legal system, let alone do they consider the mental health considerations after the fact if seriously injuring or taking someone's life.

I've seen something similar to this. A guy that was in our TKD college credit class actually had quite a bit of experience in Olympic style TKD, and was from Greece. He was very quick, a good sparrer as far as the Olympic rules went. I don't recall exactly, but if he wasn't a black belt he was a very high colored belt rank. But, our TKD organization uses the Chang Hon forms, and he had to learn them, so his rank was dropped to white belt (he did skip some ranks as he went along in the colored belts). He competed a few times at our national tournament and some others we went to. So he was usually sparring below his actual experience level, and shockingly, he won. I also had to start over as a white belt in this organization. I was a 2nd dan in my prior organization. I never competed as a colored belt rank in my current organization, as I thought it would be disingenuous to do so. Once I got to black belt, I did compete. The scenario you mention, if I was running a tournament and found out afterwards, I'd make a call and let them know they were not welcome back to my tournament.

9/3/2025 Taekwondo: 5:45 - 6:30 pm. Traditional Class. I taught this class. In basics I worked extra on the side kick chambers. I'm a real stickler on side kick technique, and the side kick is a big part of Taekwondo. Forms consisted of white, low orange, and low green blet. One-steps for same. Sparring: 6:30 - 7:00 pm. I did a few rounds of regular sparring to warm up, then changed it up. Next was one round of kicking only with the front leg, then one round of kicks to the head only. Next was situational drilling for three rounds. Students were set up in an open stance, and the attacker did a back leg round kick and defender would block and counter with a reverse side kick. I had them attack for one round and defend for the next. The last of these three rounds was more like free sparring, just limited to an attack of a back leg round kick and the defense of block/counter reverse side kick. I was trying to get the students to begin to recognize the attack and counter it. I had one adolescent girl break down crying twice in class. I tried to figure out what was wrong, but she wouldn't answer so I just had her sit out until she calmed down. She broke down once in basics and once while sparring, and sparring wasn't due to being struck. She struggles in class, and I'm trying to get her to move more deliberately, and I pace the class pretty quickly. I do this at times to get the students to think less and go more. I think this frustrated her.

My biggest regret is that I quit wrestling after my 8th grade year.

8/28/2025 TKD: 5:45 - 6:30 pm. Traditional Class. This is kind of silly, but I got angry with myself because my hands shake so much and I can't control it. I decided to just squeeze my fists together even tighter, causing them to really shake, very noticeably. This went on throughout basics. Stretch after basics. For forms, I did Choi Yong twice. I'm still having trouble with balance on a back leg round kick repeat side kick. One-steps were low orange belt. Sparring: 6:30 - 7:00 pm. Lots of working with kids and low ranks. Unfortunately, BJJ got canceled tonight.

8/27/2025 Aikido: 6:15 - 7:45 pm. Warmed up on our own then we got right into technique work. Yokomenuchi sokumen iriminage (5th kyu): Omote and ura versions. Ura was much more difficult, with a tenkan (a back turn) and then continuing to twist. On both versions I must focus on drawing the arm across my body (drawing my hand to my ribs). This helps with kazushi. We did the same technique against a knife attack (yokomen). I also concentrated on trying to fall properly, as the way I'd learned to fall in TKD and Hapkido was a bit different. I did a little video review of previous ranks before class.

8/26/2025 TKD: 5:30 - 7:15 pm. Several sessions overall. Bag Circuit: 5:30 - 5:40 pm. One of the rooms at the gym has been converted to a "Boxing Room," with several different hanging bags. I did a pre-class circuit, 1 minute on each bag, 1 minute rest, 5 rounds total. 1. Kickboxing on a standard sized bag. 2. Headache ball, or double-end ball. It doesn't work great due to not being tethered to the floor properly. 3. Kickboxing on a heavier bag. 4. Long, slender bag (I think they might be called banana bags?), focusing on low shin kicks and elbows. 5. Round bag, uppercuts and hooks. Traditional Class: 5:45 - 6:30 pm. Taught this class. Regular basics, then forms: white, orange, low green, high green, high blue, 2nd dan and 3rd dan. One-steps for same. Sparring: 6:30 - 7:00 pm. Taught/participated in this class. Two rounds of regular sparring, then two rounds of making them switch feet after stepping back to their fighting positions. They had to keep that other foot forward as much as possible. I wanted them to get more comfortable sparring from the other side. Then two more rounds where I made them keep their front feet inside the square (puzzle mats). They could kick with the front foot, but it had to go back down inside the square, or they had to switch the other foot into the square. This was to get them more comfortable with sparring in close quarters. Any techniques were allowed, but I told them I didn't just want them punching because they were close. My left wrist is really bothering me. The round of bag work with uppercuts/hooks really hurt at times. Made me focus more on form and rotating my wrist and arm the right way to nullify the pain. And something funny tonight; one of the green belt girls kicked me right in the face. She threw a round kick that I blocked, but she doubled it up (I thought she was dropping it to the ground). That repeat kick caught me right in the mouth! Keep my hands up!

Chiefs lost another receiver to injury after Xavier Worthy collided with Travis Kelce. Worthy has a dislocated shoulder with no time-table to return. Rashee Rice is on suspension for the first 6 games of the season, so the word is that Hollywood Brown's receiving role will be expanded. And once again, some younger receivers will probably be playing more often. I think they need to get Smith-Schuster some more targets. He was looking pretty good, and is a solid veteran.

The club actually hosts several camps per year locally, and they provide options to help with the camps at the Hombu. Many of the camps are free to attend, so that is very helpful. He runs a not-for-profit dojo, and will usually ask for donations to attend some of the events, but they are not required either. The longer I stay in it, the more I'll learn about other fees and what not.

8/24/2025 Women's Self-Defense Seminar Day 3: 12:30 - 2:30 pm. Unfortunately this year, the seminar didn't get as much publicity as it had in years past, and it hurt the numbers a bit. I didn't attend day 1 due to scheduling conflicts (I'd been working the night shift) and they didn't need as much help on day 1. I was planning on making day 2, but I hadn't been to sleep at all that morning and knew I wasn't going to remain healthy and make it through. So day 3 was the only I made it. This day is the ground defense day. We started by covering stand up in base, then moved onto ground defense: dragged by legs, reverse from guard, reverse from mount (more traditional), reverse from mount with the hands pinned to the ground at the wrists, two-handed choke from mount (pluck-and-buck, or just buck), and choke from guard (stretch hips out, make space, kick away to stand up in base). We had a unique opportunity to work with a gal who had recently been attacked. I was familiar with the incident due to my line of work. I spoke with her for a while after the session was over, and I told her that she was in a unique position and could tell us if she thought what we were providing was malarky or not. She stated that she thought our material was very helpful and was grateful for our work. That's a pretty good deal.

I remember seeing those before, and they are great videos. Even in their brevity there's lots to see. Thanks for sharing those @Wastelander.

My Aikido instructor is looking into getting some HEMA equipment to test out with jo and bokken. If you're going to start looking, HEMA would be the way to go, as they focus on re-creation of Western European weapons styles.

I think @Montana and @Nidan Melbourne both make some very good points worth considering in the case for and against children earning black belts. The prevalence of bullying is an important aspect to consider for kids, and is something to be considered by MA instructors. Great points by both of you.

In my current TKD organization, we run two month testing cycles. It's expected that students make at least two class days per week minimum in order to be ready to test within those two months. However, permission to test is only granted if the student is ready; it's not guaranteed. At the recommended black belt level, the student has three testing cycles to prepare, and must test by the third cycle, or they go back in rank. A different level of commitment is expected at this time. Once a student makes it to 1st dan, they must wait 1.5 years to test for 2nd dan rec, then in 6 months must test for 2nd dan decided. Then 2.5 year wait to test for 3rd dan rec. and so on. After 3rd dan proper, there are no more "recommended" ranks (although I have heard of the GM knocking some 3rd dans to 4th rec for various reasons; I have not seen this in my time in the organization). Here are the standards for the Aikido organization I train in: 7th kyu: minimum 2 months and 20 hours of training. 6th kyu: minimum 3 months and 30 hours of training after earning 7th kyu. 5th kyu: minimum 3 months and 30 hours of training after earning 6th kyu. 4th kyu: minimum 3 months and 30 hours of training after earning 5th kyu, plus prior attendance at 1 seminar or national Kangeiko. 3rd kyu: minimum 6 months and 60 hours of training after earning 4th kyu, plus prior attendance at 1 association camp. 2nd kyu: minimum 6 months and 60 hours of training after earning 3rd kyu, plus prior attendance at 1 instructor's seminar. 1st kyu: minimum 6 months and 60 hours of training after earning 2nd kyu, plus prior attendance at 1 association seminar since earing 2nd kyu. I went 10 years between 4th dan and 5th dan in TKD. I went 11 years between 7th kyu and 6th kyu in AKD.

There is quite a psychological aspect to self-defense that many don't learn. We all do the physical portion, but the psychological is just as important to train.

This is a very personal thing, to be sure, and it takes quite a bit of internal reflection to determine if something like this is the right thing to do or not. I agree that it is definitely symbolic, as the knowledge can't be taken away. I had trained to a 2nd dan rank in one TKD organization and then became a white belt in another. I don't know if I'd consider that "giving up rank" though.

Truer words were never spoken.

They are pretty fun watches. I think I enjoyed the second one better. The characters, brothers, had lots more interaction together, and it made the movie more fun.

8/22/2025 I had a nice long text string with a former instructor/colleague about law enforcement defensive tactics, and what some of his approaches to it are, and what he thinks of the state of law enforcement DT in general. Very informative, and we share a lot of the same opinions. BJJ: 7:00 - 8:15 pm. Three warmup rounds, got to work the same positions we've been focusing on lately (camping position, low head/high head pressure). We went at "walking speed," just getting loosened up and "reminding our bodies what jiujitsu is. Then we were back to working the camping position/low head/high head positions again. On top, we worked on keeping the hands busy and gradually progressed the drills to positions that would allow us to pass. I'm starting to see more, to recognize more. Then we did the standing/sitting pass/destabilize game for a few rounds, then moved to open mat. I had one good round with the instructor and spent most of the time in a position of disadvantage. But he said I did a good job defending some things, making him work more. I had to make some adjustments against a tall, long-limbed guy I rolled with, mainly in that camping position. I had to settle down with my head a bit lower on his body so I could control his hips better.