bushido_man96

This is more along the lines I was thinking. I think you and I are on the same page here; you did a very good job articulating this. It's going to take some time, for sure. Would you say it's more like a natural step forward in length, or just a bit longer?

I have some questions about the league. Mainly, how does it work When do we adjust our lineups? Do I need to pay attention to the pitching, or are all the pitchers just scored for the week? Do I need to pay attention to when guys start? What about the bullpen, how do I work those guys? Thanks for any help. It's been a long time since I played fantasy baseball, and when I did, it wasn't in a format like this one.

There will be good and bad experiences here, just like any human experience. I met my wife at TKD class, so it worked out pretty well for me. I think it's important for an instructor to be professional about it; if an instructor is trying to date every good looking student that comes through the school, then he/she should probably reconsider their motives. But many times, something happens organically, and everyone lives happily ever after.

4/3/2023 Strength Training Rowing Machine: 2 minute warmup. Squats: 45x5x2, 135x5, 195x3, 245x1, 285x1. Press: 45x5x2, 95x5, 115x3 So, today fell apart in a hurry. This is mainly due to the fact that I played baseball on the Sunday prior; my 13 year old's travelling team did a scrimmage against the parents. I didn't have any muscle soreness, but the next day, my knees hurt very much bad. To top that off, my head was bothering me, too. So my plan going in was going to do some heavy singles on squat, and try to press regularly. I got one of the singles done, then moved to press, and my right knee really went to pot...doing a squat unloaded made the knee feel compromised, so I had to scratch squats altogether. Then my kid called to get picked up from school, so the workout was a wash.

"Calm mind like water" I think I have a grasp of. "Mind like the moon" I'm not as sure on. What does it mean to have "a mind like the moon?" To glow at night, and still be visible in the daytime? To wax and wane? To hang above the world and see it from a different perspective? How would you elaborate on it?

I am really appreciating your reviews of the chapters here, Zaine. Like you, I think he probably tried a little too hard to explain that repetitions are a good way to practice. Just from what I've seen of Sanchin so far, I'd tend to agree with you in that I don't think it is a kata with much bunkai attached to it. I'm not sure if any is out there for Sanchin. I don't really think that I've ever done forms as a way to meditated. I'm not much for meditation; just not my thing. However, I do find value in finding the focus to work through a form with consistent technique, power, and proper stances for generating power. I guess, in a way, this is a kind of meditation. On another note, I started working my way through the kata for the first time the other day. I'm using the one Wilder does in the book. My plan is to memorize the movements first, then work on the technical aspects. One thing I am noticing is that I think I might be trying to step too far forward in sanchin dachi. A lifetime of stepping into front stances will do that to ya...

Its good to hear you are feeling better and getting back to class, aurik. And good luck to Zach and his testing!

This is very helpful. I'd look forward to reading some other reviews, too!

That's an interesting take, Bob. I like how you mention that even "mimicking" is still a creation from ourself. Here we get the moon mirrored in the lake analogy. I do like it; the reflection in the lake brings something so far away so close to us, albeit in a different form. Even so, it's still majestic. I'm interested in this idea of becoming a "past master of life." There sure is only one way to do that - LIVE! There are days when my existence seems meager, and there are days where I feel I've accomplished something. However, overall, every day I live, I become more of a "past master of life," for every experience teaches us something, even if it seems like a meager experience.

3/31/2023 Strength Training Squats: 45x5x2, 135x5, 195x5, 245x1, 280x5, 280x5, 280x5. Press: 45x5x2, 75x5, 95x3, 115x1, 145.5x5, 145.5x5, 145.5x5. Lat Pull-downs: 135x10, 135x10, 135x10. Iso-lateral Bench Press: 40x10, 40x10, 40x10 (20). Squats were wonky until the last set. I got them locked in then, and the technique felt pretty good. First two press sets were rough; rep 5 on each almost didn't lock out. Last set felt great though. I think I was a bit more explosive with the hips, and stayed a little tighter, and probably grooved them better, too. It seems like a wider grip might be the answer on the Iso-Bench machine; wide grip seemed to not bother the shoulder as much. I tried to do the incline bench press with just the bar at a few different grip widths, but it hurt the shoulder too much, so that's a no-go.

That's the way I would lean, too.

I can't see this as holding anymore weight than a psychology or criminal justice degree. Let's take criminal justice: I've heard many younger people talk about getting a criminal justice degree because they want to be a police officer. But most police departments require no college degree at all, and the ones that do don't care what your major is in. That frees up the young lad to get a degree in something else, so that he can spread his eggs across two baskets instead of putting them all into one. And that's what I'm looking at with a degree in martial arts. It doesn't give you qualifications that are not obtained in the dojo. And what would a shihan need with such a degree? Can confirm, as a deputy for 13 plus years, and being employed with a sheriff's department for 16+ years, there isn't much need for a criminal justice degree. I especially despise learning how to be a cop by someone who's never been a cop, and that's the big problem with the criminal justice studies departments in colleges; they are taught by teachers who have never worked in law enforcement, but have all kinds of theories and ideas about how to be better cops. All theory with no experience behind it.

That sounds like a great idea, DP. I may have questions about how the roster needs to be set up going forward. I'm going to do some looking at it today.

That's nuts. Has anything occurred that these women could approach law enforcement with? If so, they really should. That's the only way predators like this get stopped. Good on you for getting out of there when you did.

In doing my shopping around, I did stumble across a Tang Soo Do dojang in my area that also has BJJ. They require you to get a blue belt in BJJ in order to get a black belt in TSD. To their credit, though, they tell you this up front instead of having you find out after you've invested so much time. Boy I'd love to find a school like this. I had recommended the idea of bringing in some basic grappling skills that each rank would need to demonstrate proficiency in, but the idea has not taken hold.

I've even become somewhat skeptical of the Bodidharma theory of MA promulgation, as well, over my years of study and reading. It doesn't seem like very much is actually known, but quite a few assumptions are made.

I think this is a rather typical view of those who haven't made it there yet. Those that have, the idea of the next dan grade tends to wane. The problem I've noticed is that once hitting the black belt level, there really isn't anything new to learn as far as techniques go. Sure, you can learn new orders and combinations of these techniques (forms), but to what end? It becomes more stuff to memorize as part of a testing curriculum that I can then memorize and choose to pay a $700 testing fee to get to the next rank.

Honestly, I wouldn't get too worked up over the idea that an instructor promotes when he sees fit. I do believe that is how the majority of BJJ schools have done it, and I really don't believe being socially awkward is going to hinder your ability to achieve rank, unless you choose to avoid working with partners altogether, which would be an obvious concern. Another thing to keep in mind is that horror stories are usually just that; an event that someone heard about, and may not have experienced, that happens outside of what we would view as the "norm," and then it gets focused on and almost sensationalized to the point that it is foremost in our minds, and therefore we think of that rare event as "the norm," or at the very least, as a common occurrence, which it is not.

I'm curious about the history aspect; is there actual history pointing to Bodidharma actually teaching Sanchin (or his derivative) to the monks, or is Sanchin just grouped into the possibilities of what could have been taught to the monks?

That's quite the journey, Sailor Sinbad. I'm pleased to see that KF has been such a big help for you! That's what makes this community so great!

I thought I'd get this started, so....ahem....HERE BEGINS THE DISSERTATION OF THE WAY OF SANCHIN KATA BY KRIS WILDER. Something that jumped out at me on pg xii of the foreword by Hiroo Ito: When I see statements like this, I almost immediately take issue with it. There are a few points I have problems with here. First off, is the use of the term "bodybuilding." Bodybuilding became a term to describe anyone that chose to pursue the increase of strength through lifting weights; it became a catchall term for many who didn't understand the concept of what they were describing. Secondly, this feeds into the idea that being strong is detrimental to the Martial Artists in general, and Karatekas specifically. I think it is irresponsible and dangerous advise to give anyone to avoid seeking out strength training as a way for people to improve their interaction with the physical world...because it is a physical world. Based on what I've seen as an instructor and martial artist in general, there is no indication that being strong is detrimental to martial arts performance; in fact, like any other physical activity, being strong is beneficial. A very strong man can learn to perform with the same mechanical efficiency as a weak man. The third issue I have is with the idea that there is no historical information that indicates that samurai lifted any kinds of weights. So what? I'll bet they didn't drive cars either....because they weren't there. This statement is not an indication that strength training would not have been beneficial to the samurai. Something I've noticed over the course of my MA career, especially early on, was that it seemed taboo for someone to want to get bigger and stronger, whereas if someone was already big and strong, it's ok. I've always seen this as a rather huge inconsistency. For these reasons listed above, I've made it a rule to never take "strength training" advise from Martial Artists. Those are some opening thoughts from me. I can't wait to hear others.

Yeah you do...and you have NYY Pitcher Cole...nice!! My team is full of...well...it's full. Yeah, I'm going to have to do some tweaking, I think. May need to look to DP for some of those trades...

It looks like the draft took place? I seem to have a roster, anyway.

3/29/2023 Strength Training Rowing Machine: 2 minute warmup. Squats: 45x5x2, 135x5, 185x3, 225x5, 225x5. Press: 45x5x2, 75x5, 95x3, 115x1, 144.5x5, 144.5x5, 144.5x5. Snatch Grip Deadlifts: 135x5, 185x3, 255x5, 255x5. Iso-Lateral Bench Press: 35x10, 35x10, 35x10 (17.5). Light squat, press, then snatch deads again, on a 10% deload. Sets felt good on reps 1-4; #5 is always a grinder. On the iso-bench, I found I've got to have that seat all the way up; too low and the angle of my arm affects my shoulder. TKD Class: T-Shirt Class: 6:30 - 7:15. Did some heavy bag kicking, and made myself move around it with some footwork. Also some speed bag work. I did not feel great today. Body just felt like it didn't want to move, but I made it move a little anyway.

A quote from Taken: Love IT!