bushido_man96

On Nov. 7, 2013, Col. Nam Tae-Hi, one of the pioneers of TKD, passed away. Col. Nam was instrumental in the development of what was to become known as ITF TKD. http://www.taekwondotimes.com/news/news_detail.php RIP

The Dolphins have had a rough go with this Incognito/Martin incident, and it can't be helping at all. And it sounds like its going to drag on for some time, continuing to be a distraction.

I agree.

Please keep us posted on his progress, and what action you decide to take.

This summer I posted a pair of fights where he blitzed five times for the five points needed and in the other he won 3-2 all off punches. That's what KILLS me about Zach. He sees he can score on something early...and holds onto that move like a dog with a bone for rest of tourney. This isn't a bad thing. If it works for him, then he should make them stop it. When I was in the ATA, I saw a lot of flexible people with good balance do repeating/sliding round kicks like Zach does side kicks. The rounds are good because they can change level more quickly. The downside to the repeat round kicks is that you don't get the stopping motion ability of the side kick. Something else to consider, but it would work better in a closed sparring position. If he misses the side kick, then spinning to a spin back or spin hook would be a good follow up. They are also good defensive kicks against round kicks. I don't recommend using a spinning kick offensively, unless its part of a combination. Generally, a spinning kick as your first kick has a lot of telegraph to it. The biggest downfall I can see as to how he spars right now is that when he comes across someone who is taller, or has a faster side kick, or both, then he is going to be shot. At this point, its who has the faster side kicks that tends to score the points. Also, if he gets someone that knows how to move off-line and work angles, that will probably throw off his side kicking strategy, as well. Having these things in mind, its important to train for these instances, and work strategies off of them. Just something to keep in mind.

Cool, thanks.

Me too, Hawkmoon. Still waiting for another Hulk movie....(think I will kept waiting, too).

I hope so, Bob. Now, they have this Dwayne Bowe incident. It doesn't sound like there will be any suspension yet, and someone else in the vehicle claimed the drugs. At any rate, its a distraction that will likley take its toll on Sunday. We'll see... Sorry about that game with the Saints, Bob....ugh, that was just a tough one to stomach.

Yep, sounds like a pretty faulty study to me. But, we did get some good discussion out of the subject here.

You have some options here. You can approach the parents, and the child, at the same time. Tell him and them that you want more committment out of him, less back talk, and you want him to work harder. This may motivate him to do so. He may be doing this against his will, too. If that is the case, then he may not ever be motivated to do it. If this is the case, then tell him and his parents that if things don't change, you will be excusing him from the dojo, and he won't be allowed to train. Tell them you don't have time for someone who won't help themselves. In my experience, you can't help someone who doesn't want to be helped. If you have committed students who will listen and pay attention to you, then you need to focus on them, and tell them that you will if he continues to not listen to the advise and instruction that you give him. Or, you could let him continue to plod along, but ignore him. Let him do things wrong. Let him mess up. Let him be lazy. Just ignore the fact that he is there. Maybe he will come around and ask for help. Maybe he won't. Maybe he'll drift out on his own. Maybe you let him test, and see what happens. Maybe he fails, and it motivates him, or he moves on. I know my last two suggestions sound kind of anti-what-the-arts-are-all-about, but in the end, what can you really do for this kid if he won't let you help him? That's my 2 cents, anyhow. Let us know what you do decide to do.

I think you've got some good ideas there. One thing to keep in mind is the time constraints that some people have, and how to ammend things for those that don't have the time to put in 20 hours of training a week. I think what many will like is to see the home/solo stuff, or minimum equipment stuff.

Good post, I agree. Take your time and heal up right the first time. Re-injury will only set you back further. I know its tough, but it will be worth it.

11/12/2013...this was a busy day... Solo TKD workout: 9:40 - 10:10 am. Chon Ji, Dan Gun, Bo Chung, Do San, Won Hyo hyungs continuously, then a break. Yul Kok, Jung Gun hyungs, then a break. Toi Gye, Hwa Rang, Choong Moo hyungs, then a break. Really made the legs wobble a bit, with all the stances. Flying side kicks x5 with right leg on heavy bag (prepping for board break). 20 alternating head level back leg round kicks on BOB (10 each leg). Kwang Gae, Poe Eun, Gae Baek hyungs, continuous. Stretch. Defensive Tactics class: 10:30 - 11:45. We worked with a Kempo stylist today named Mark d'Augereau, who is a friend of the club, and comes over around once a year to train with the class and club. I think he kind of threw some of the students off a bit, because he had us working a concept instead of techniques, and the students had to fill in the technique gap with what they had learned. He really showed a lot of striking options, a lot of switching hands back and forth, and switching levels, out and back, high and low, working at setting up a power strike. Really, kind of an overwhelm sort of tactic. I was working toward controlling the subject, so I geared my movements towards that, working towards flanking as I was setting up my strikes. I had a really good time working with it. Defensive Tactics club: 1:00 - 2:00 pm. More work with d'Augereau. We worked on some subject control tactics, focusing on three points of contact on a prone subject, 2 hip and 1 shoulder, or 2 shoulder and 1 hip. Basically doing a felony subject contact, and giving commands to guage compliance, and working on searching, and standing the subject up. After some of that, we worked on some weapon retention striking options. Good stuff the whole way around. 11/13/2013 20 minutes on the elliptical, hitting various inclines. Blah.

I think the answer to which is the right test is whether it is conducive to what you do or not as a school. Like, if you have testings where there is a 10 or 20 man kumite, or something like that, then a running fitness test might be a proper one, because its based on endurance. However, I don't think it is wise to have a student run 7 miles, and then fight in a 10 man kumite. That's a recipe for disaster.

Ok, I saw one back leg kick in what I've seen, a back leg round that seemed to work for him. You might have him concentrate on that more. He does a lot of front leg fighting, like Bill Wallace used to do. But Wallace had 3 kicks, and your boy has only one...a side kick. If someone figures out how to move at an angle to those repeating kicks, they are going to be inside him, and he will get scored on, especially with the way he holds his hands. Or, someone might just knock his kick to the side, throw him off balance a bit, and then be all over him. See if you can get him to work on some spinning back kicks, or spinning hook kicks as something to add to the lead leg kick. Now, just some thoughts on the style of sparring, in general. I don't like how the light contact sparring allows the evolution of these pawing attacks that are allowed to score with a touch to the head. I think your son is also developing a very bad defensive habit in how he holds his guard with his hands. Someone with a quick sliding front leg side kick is going to go under that straight arm every time. I thought the girl he was sparring had a better guard position with her hands, and that allowed her to stop his attacks and counter better, because he is just feeding her targets. Your son has some good skills to build on for these point sparring tourneys. He has that lead side kick down, so I wouldn't have him focus on that too much. Let him use it as his warmup, so that he keeps that skill down, but have him use it to set up the spin kicks, or the back leg kick combinations, and build from there. I hope this helps, and best of luck as you and your son continue!

I think he did most of his competing in the UK.

Danielle, thanks for sharing those links. I like the ideas he has in those. Some great ideas to focus into a sparring class. I like his thoughts on keeping the target pads close, too, to get used to hitting. I like this idea, and I want to use it in the future. But I want to get some drilling concepts down for the students (and myself) to get used to, that way when we do the random pad work like that, they will feel more comfortable with reacting. Harkon72 and Rateh, thank you for your ideas, as well! I am going to try to start putting some things together so we can work on things like this, and these will be very helpful!

Awesome post. My dojo is non-contact/Semi-contact. Part of me wants to do full contact but the other doesn't want to accidentally damage my opponent permanently. I have conflicting thoughts regarding this. There is value in learning how to hit and how to be hit. I don't think it should be done all the time, and safety must be factored in, but there is value in it.

I'm TKD, but I'll put in my order here: White - Chon Ji Lo orange - Dan Gun Hi orange - Bo Chung (an original form from our system) Lo green - Do San Hi green - Won Hyo Lo blue - Yul Kok Hi blue - Jung Gun Lo brown - Toi Gye Mid brown - Hwa Rang Hi brown - Choong Moo Recommended black - Choong Moo 1st dan - Kwang Gae 2nd dan rec - Poe Eun 2nd dan - Gae Baek 3rd dan rec - Se Jong 3rd dan - Yoo Sin That's as far as I am right now. I think 4th dan form is Choong Jang, but I'm not for sure.

Ok, cool. I noticed when you went to the omoplata, you had the legs still kind of over the head. When we go there, we kind of swing the legs over the head, locking up the arm in the near hip, and then sit around in what we call a "cheerleader sit." Did you not get there because your partner was posturing out of it?

There are some very interesting motions in there. I'd like to see how they apply. What are all the finger motions at the beginning for?

Amen to that Bob. As with most things in life, it's about achieving a good balance. K. I concur!! Everything in moderation, inlcuding moderation! Danielle, a great point on Gen. Choi's analogy. Live each day as fully as one can, in and out of the Martial Arts (but mostly in... ).

I'd say you are quite rich, indeed, especially the Western styles, in weapons and the bare knuckle, and the Celtic Wrestling. Those would be fun to work with. Nidan Melbourne, thanks for sharing your interview with us! May your MA journey be long and prosperous!

Onward!

That would be great, Alex. Thank you. I will also look into some more literature, and see what I can dig up. After all, its not like I need an excuse to buy more books...