bushido_man96

People who are interested in training like this should try to approach it a bit more tactfully. If I go to another school, I'll ask if I can train with them, not ask if I can spar someone. If you trundle in and ask for some sparring, it tends to get people's attention, and not necessarily in a good way. But if you ask to train together, then there is more of mutualness about the encounter. I'd build a rapport with a school training with them for a time, and then let them lead into anything to do with sparring, or bring it up after such a time that there is a bit of a comfort level between you and the school. I think that would be a more respectful way of approaching it.

Why did they make her leave, is there some kind of law preventing practice in public? As long as nobody is getting hurt, then to me there was no harm in what she was doing. Although, I would probably not practice in public. Where I live you're more likely to get hassle from the general public (mostly young neds) seeing what you were doing and try to have a go, all for the entertainment of their friends. M. In her case, the two officers advised her that the park she was practicing had a heavy gang activity, and when the officers advised her, she shrugged them off. So, the two officers, for her safety, instructed her to leave immediately because they couldn't guarantee her safety while she was practicing. One of the officers said that she was in full gi, and that that would just not work should a gang member(s) were to see her. She told me she didn't have anywhere else to practice that day. I told her...FIND A PLACE, any place other than that park, and please don't wear your gi because it invites the wrong elements. I was curious on your first post about this, but the elaboration makes sense. A good call on their part, I'd say. They probably didn't want to have to do that, but better that than working an aggravated battery or worse later on. Working out like this, its important to know where you are and what's around you, before you make the decsion to attract attention to yourself like that. I'm sorry that her training got cut off, but glad that someone cared enough to attempt to keep her safe.

I don't go round shouting it, but I don't hide it. If people are interested, then I talk about it - this is also a way to get people interested I am the same way. I don't announce it, but if someone like minded asks about it or brings it up, I chime in on the subject, because I love to talk MA with those in it or interested in it. As far as practicing goes, I like to do most of that in-house. I will practice outside occasionally, but I try to keep an eye out for on-lookers, and tend to clam up when others come around.

I would agree with the others here. Really work on engaging your hips with your movements, like you would with your empty hand movements. andym's idea of really breaking things down will help you a lot; its a great training tool to use, and one of the simplest ones to use.

Even if you are leaning, your punches probably still aren't that strong. Stop leaning, and learn to use your hips to generate power. This will help make your punches stronger. Make sure you get good penetration on the strikes, too. I'm guessing here you mean switching from right leg back to left leg back. I can see his point, but I don't think a lot of Thai fighters switch their stance that frequently. Try to check the kicks by lifting your leg to block them. When the kick comes, circle away from it, perhaps. If you do want to switch stances, then you really have to force yourself to do so. If you are right handed, start your sparring sessions in the opposite stance, and force yourself to attack from that stance. It will get more comfortable the more you do it. Learn to cut in angles. If a back leg round kick is coming towards you, blocking while backing up doesn't do you a bit of good. Instead, block, and step at a 45 degree angle towards him, circling in toward him. Here's the scenario: he is right leg back, you are right leg back. He throws the back leg round kick. Instead of backing away and blocking, get the block up and step at a 45 degree angle forward and to your right with your right leg. This defends the kick, and puts you closer to him, instead of farther away where his range kills you. It should put you in a good position to follow up with punches and kicks. I hope that makes sense. If you guys are in open stance, alter the steps accordingly; you may have to take the step with your front leg to an angle. Experiment. Conditioning. Spend some time doing some wind sprints or some cardio. More sparring will help, too. It comes with time. I've never had great endurance, either. Just keep working hard, and it will all come together for you in time.

I think it would be better as a dual major, or even perhaps a minor, with the major in business admin or something like that. I know I've got something like 6 semesters of TKD credit on my college resume, so I wouldn't balk at taking a few more classes related to the MAs if they had been available. I don't think there would have to be a degree/dan equivalent. It would depend on what courses you take, and how your progress in them. If a student is taking actual TKD classes along with their curriculum, then progress should go like it would in the regular classes, based on performance and how you do on the tests. Instead of written, they would be physical, of course. In four years, a student would have plenty of time to attain some rank.

I think you are correct here. Very narrow field of study. However, if you go alongside general athletic training and similar courses, it can augment your knowledge to cover more than just martial arts curriculum. There are some good possibilities. But narrow still.Bob, I understand your concerns. Think of classes covering physical training, philosophy, class design and management, etc. There are lots of sports management programs, athletic training programs, etc in many colleges. Why not some with an MA focus?

Congrats!

Best of luck to you and keep us posted!

Something to keep in mind is that if a case you are involved in goes to court, and the defense attorney finds out you have Martial Arts training (and any attorney worth his salt will find this out), then you can almost guarantee that the idea that you are "held to a higher standard" than the layperson in self-defense will come out. So be prepared to deal with this.

Great question, Bob. At our academy, we have a "survival week" towards the end of the academy. It entails a lot of simunitions drills, which means everyone is getting shot at, essentially. You wear protective gear, and you get right down into the thick of things. Active shooter scenarios, traffic stops that go bad, etc. Our department does this kind of training regularly, as well. Its very valuable training. Loads of fun, too.

To the bold type above...Solid post!! I wholeheartedly concur!! The sooner, the better, imho. I agree as well. Get the authorities involved. You should be able to go to your district courthouse and see what you can do about setting up a no-contact order or some kind of protection from abuse/stalking order. You will have to substantiate your claims when you apply, so be ready to write down reasons for your application. Now, as for the self-defense steps. Not all of us do Tang Soo Do, so we don't know what they include. You need to ask yourself, or tell us, how you practice these. Do you practice in a realistic way, or like a one-step format? Have you tried to apply them against a resisting opponent? This will go a long way in answering your questions. Keep up posted, and let us know how it goes and what you choose to do. Stay safe.

it is always a good feeling to have that white belt around your waist once more. I found when i started doing BJJ (after i already attained my black belt in karate) and got my white belt it reminded me that everyone is still learning and to be humble in what i know and not to be cocky about being a black belt I agree. Its always fun to be a beginner again. No expectations as to what you should know, and having a clean slate. Enjoy your new beginning!

I like the sound of this idea, but I would love to be able to see it in action. I think it would have some real value in applying footwork and leverage.

Everyone knows I'm not a huge form guy (altough my new exposure to FMA might be changing this a bit) that said, this makes the most sense to me as a method of successfully utilizing kata as a learning tool. One of the big factors of current adult learning theory is that adults like to know the "why" of an action and this helps in retention. They also want to see how skill work relates to performance. This is the common failure of kata as it's often taught (and the way forms ARE NOT done in FMA, hence by slow modification of stance on this issue.) By teaching bunkai in this manner, you're satesfying those learning objectives that adults perform best with and utilizing the kata to sharpen those once learned. We don't do forms applications in my school. But, I have spent time reading and looking into possible forms applications for my form set, and on how to apply them. If I were to begin doing this, this is the approach I would take a serious look into. I feel that self-defense should begin on day one, and this approach satisfies that ideal for me. Learning these applications first would also help to form an association with the moves in the forms, thus enhancing the learning experience of the forms.

Offer different types of privates. Perhaps a forms private, to help shore up little areas to trim things out. Offer self-defense or bunkai privates to those looking for that. Offer sparring privates for those wishing to get to that next level in competition. What you might consider is setting up some Privates Time Slots on the schedule, and make some for each of the subjects I listed above. I don't know how you price it, but do whatever you do for them, and then see who signs up for them. It will give you a pulse as to what the students want to do, and you can tailor it from there.

I agree with you here, Bob. Children at that age learn through play, and that's what the approach to the classes at that age should be. A strict, regimented type of class won't have many kids left in it. There should still be some discipline, for sure, but its going to be a different atmosphere than that typical MA class.

It is Shotokan (JKA) with a very traditional approach in the lower grades, and more sport oriented in the higher. Serious when it should be, relaxed when it can be. Great group of instructors ranging from shodan to godan, and the adult classes has a great variation in the age of the students (I am 37 and far from the youngest beginner). The dojo has lots of social activities besides training , so it is really easy to feel welcome and a part of the dojo right away (very motivating those days when dragging oneself to the dojo seems like a heavy task). In few words it is serious, traditional, competitive and very social. Sounds like you did find a great place to train. Keep us posted as to your progress, and we look forward to reading about your journey!

Very well put. I agree. I would say that "conditioning" is the exercise process used to build stamina/endurance. Conditioning is a big part of what wrestlers do in training to sustain energy in a match. Body conditioning has more to do with "toughening" than anything else. Its a good question, Safroot. There are lots of different terms for different types of activities out there in the exercise world, and we as Martial Artists, are part of that world. Its important to understand the pedagogy of what we do, so its good to ask!

3/31/2014 Defensive Tactics club: 2:00 - 3:00 pm. Instructed today, so I worked with the students on some striking focus pads. Worked the jab, then the cross, and then a combination. Added in a low round kick to the leg after the cross, too. Spent some time working the heavy bags with the kick. TKD class: 6:00 - 7:00 pm. Taught class. We have switched to our summer schedule already, so I lose the extra half hour of class time, which really sucks. Did do the regular basics, reviewed all low rank forms, then did some slow sparring, so everyone could get more in tune with making contact to target areas and blocking. 4/2/2014 Defensive Tactics club: 2:00 - 3:00 pm. Taught from the GRACIE curriculum. Two of the jailers were at the club, plus me and one other Aikido/BJJ/DT guy was there, so I just started from the top and worked through the curriculum. We got through standing punch defenses and disengagement, into the takedown from behind, did UMPA and UMPA with swim and trap, and Americana from mount. It was also a bit less teaching, and a bit more just repping here, so it was nice. One of the female jailers is also making it to the DT club every Wednesday, which is great to see. I'm wearing off on someone at least!

Congrats, and well deserved!

Thanks for the support, Bob and Patrick! Here are the highlights from Kendall's Kids State Folkstyle Championships matches, 3/29 and 3/30/2014. Match 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5Czxr7PnO0 One of the coaches said he was really tight before this match. I think the parade of athletes that started it off really kind of overwhelmed him, with all the kids that were out on the floor, and everyone in the stands. It was a lot of people in one place, and he was looking to get off the floor and up to sit with us pretty quick. But, next year he'll know what to expect. In this match, the other kid ties up his hands, then shoots and gets a leg. Kendall didn't get a sprawl off, and he didn't crossface or circle well enough to keep the kid to working to his back. After that, it was a matter of the other kid setting up a cradle and pinning him. He was pretty upset after the match, too, and we are trying to work with him on that matter. So, match one down, with a loss. After a while, he cooled off and recovered, settled down. On to match two. Match 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hp1YVyuqo20 They tied up early, and the kid tried to take him down with a headlock, but Kendall kept a good base, and landed on top of him for some points. Kendall got high up on the kids shoulder, still trying to work the head I think, and the kid got close to rolling him over. They go out of bounds and reset, with Kendall back on top. He gets him broke down, eventually rolls him onto his back, and gets the pin, for his first state win! I was really proud of him, coming back after being so upset about the loss, and really working it hard. I did see where had the ring been bigger, the other kid could have gotten a reversal and started to work on pinning Kendall, so that's something we need to try to address in the offseason. He has a third match, be we have to get it uploaded, and will post it up as soon as I can. EDIT: Ok, here we go, Kendall's third match at the state tourney: Match 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=616Dww-7ET8 This kid was a bit taller than Kendall, and I'm not sure he isn't at the top of the age bracket either, but that's ok. Kendall did a pretty good job against him. And from what I was told, this kid goes to the "big" tourneys for the most part, so he's a solid wrestler. Kendall is aggressive and goes after the kid, but he isn't able to secure a leg for a takedown, and the other kid circles around to get two points. I don't recall if its in the first or the second period, but Kendall is down 0-4. He starts period two on bottom, and switches out and keeps working to get into a better position. He thought he really had the kid, but he had him out of bounds. He was upset about that, but that's ok. They got reset in neutral, and finally worked himself to a takedown. He did tie the points up, bringing it back 4-4. He starts the third period on top, and almost gets the kid broken down and tries to get to some back points, but he gets the head wrapped up, and is too high on him, and gets rolled over, and almost gets pinned. He doesn't get pinned, but ends up losing the match, 7-4 if I recall correctly. He was very, very upset after that match, and I guess I can't blame him for that. He is very competitive, which is good and bad. After he finally got his emotions back in check, we talked about the weekend he had. I told him he did a great job, and had a great season. Another year in, he'll be stronger, he'll put things together more tightly, and he will improve. He just has to be willing to put the work in to get better, and hopefully, we will be doing that.

Well, no, not really. We aren't all equal. If that was the case, we'd all be the same rank all the time. But we're not. We all have the same opportunities, but that's not the same as being equal. All men (and women) may be created equal, but some work harder, some have more natural talent, and some are born into better situations than others. But not all are the same.

I think it depends on your rank and time in the organization. A new white belt coming in wouldn't really have a right to tell me which direction he thinks my school or organization should be headed. Those kinds of opinions should only come to the fore after some time in, and seeing how things are done and why. I think this is why we have seen the splits that we have in the Martial Arts world. After spending years training, we all start to see some of ideas as to how we would do things differently, and what our own approach would be to training and philosophy. Therefore, when one gets to the point that we ask for something to change, or go our own way, we tend to go our own way. I don't think this is a bad thing, either. We all have our opinions and thoughts on how things should be done, and as we mature to the point to put ourselves into a position to accomplish our goals, these things will naturally happen.

I'm with you here. My knees scream at me, and that's just when I drop into a stance while teaching, let alone actually being in line in a class, going up and down the floor. Its hell getting old.