bushido_man96

This is a great practice to get into. Being open and honest should be the hallmark of what we do, but not all business people see it that way.

10/17/2023 Firearms Training: 8:00 - 10:30 am. Had some fun at the range today. We did several different shooting drills, using both strong hand and weak hand, and supported and non-supported grips. We did some shoot and move drills, which will be drills we do when we make some changes to our pistols coming up soon. I felt like I had a really good day, hitting the targets pretty consistently.

I thought something like that was in place prior, but Steinbrenner just went ahead and paid it. I could be wrong.

The Yankees used to just go out and pay for pitching. What's the deal now?

Chiefs pulled off a win against the Broncos, but they really worked harder for it than I think they needed to. They stalled too many times in the red zone. Butker was a manimal, thank goodness. I don't know if it's really just getting this new group of receivers to click or not, but I hope they start doing so soon. The defense has been outstanding so far, but once we match up with the likes of the Bills and the Bengals, KC is going to need to be able to capitalize in the end zone. Rashee Rice is coming along nicely; hopefully he blossoms into the offense in the next few weeks.

10/16/2023 Aikido Class: Weapons Class: 5:00 - 6:00 pm. We did some 4-cycle Okinaga breathing to open the class. I did ok in some spots, and not ok in some others. Holding the breath after releasing all my air is still a very foreign and unnerving concept. After we were done, Sensei said the last cycle was a 40 second interval, so 10 in, 10 hold, 10 out, 10 hold. Very tough. Next, we got right into weapons work with the bokken. After some initial practice of the basic strikes and thrusts, we did want I think he was referring to as some pre-aikitaiso movements, with tai-sabaki. Then it was into partner work, which was fun. I think there were what he referred to as the main aikitaiso movements, which he likened to TKD one-steps. After the "preparation" movements were performed, and my partner attacked, I would do a blocking movement into a strike. There were three different "timings" to work at, but I stayed pretty basic throughout, focusing on the footwork and the strikes landing properly. After exchanging attacks with shomenuchi (straight forward/downward strike), we attacked with tsuki (thrusts). This was really lots of fun today. This is by far my favorite hour in the week right now. TKD Class: Black Belt Class: 6:30 - 7:30 pm. The CI was out with his daughter's concert tonight, so the class was mine to teach. We warmed up with Do-Kangs 1-4 (I sat out 4 due my head not feeling well, and it has lots of spinning in it), then we broke up to do forms. The 3rd dan rec and I went through Se Jong several times, and the second dans did their black belt forms, Kwang Gae, Poe Eun, and Gae Baek. Next, we did three-steps, 1-9, and tinkered with trying to recall 10-12. After the curriculum portion of the class was over, I freelanced. I taught them the block/pass/pin drill, one part at a time, against both haymaker punches and straight punches. After getting through all three phases, I went back to the first phase and began adding "inserts," which is placing a strike at the time of the block (or pass, or pin) or right after. It's an enjoyable drill, and I find it quite practical, as well. A good class tonight, I thought.

That sounds like a very awesome week of training! Getting all those little things shaded in are just as important as learning new things. Glad you were able to have such a great week of training and learning.

10/12/2023 TKD Class: T-Shirt Class: 6:30 - 7:30 pm. I was very conservative tonight, with the way I've been feeling lately, and I also had pain in my right foot, making it difficult to push off, plant, or pivot on the foot. Still, I got some work in. Picked up on forms where I left off on Monday, doing Yul Gok, Jun Gun, Toi Gye, Hwa Rang, Choong Moo, Kwang Gae, Poe Eun, Gae Baek, Se Jong, Yoo Sin, and Choong Jang. Finished going over three-steps, 1-9.

100% agree here. Tbh the size/weight is more important than the height. someone equally skilled, my height but decent amount lighter i usually feel i can 'bully' a little when sparring; someone equally skilled, shorter but same or greater weight usually feels a LOT harder (especially if they can take a hit) - it's why they have weight classes and not height classes Would you say then that reach advantages are overrated? Not challenging your opinion, just asking. I think reach can be advantageous, but again, it can be situational. Someone who is 6'3" with long arms and legs but only weighs 130 lbs....typically, I am not going to worry as much about their reach. I'll take a few tags to get inside that. Now, if that person is 6'3" and 230 lbs, then that'll be a different story, even though I would still have weight on them.

I saw that. Should be interesting.

I know Allen is a big guy, but man, I can't help but think he's going to take a shot that eventually that grounds him for a while. Mahomes doesn't look for that contact when he runs, but it seems Allen does at times.

I agree with all of the above. There are so many factors to take into consideration that it's impossible to answer this question. Ideally, I would say to train in something, and also work on getting bigger and stronger yourself while you train, to help even out the strength curve. Nothing you can do about getting taller, but everyone can get stronger.

Great thoughts by aurik there, and I concur. My initial thought, just to throw a number out there, would be maybe around $50 per month, per student. I like to offer some tiered discounts for family members though, to encourage families to do it together. I'd go something like full price for the first family member, maybe $30 or half at $25 for the second member, maybe $10 for the third, and then $5 for each additional family member beyond that. But, like aurik mentioned, you should start with what your expenses and overhead is going to be, and then work backwards to determine how many students you need at what price point to break even. The problem is dealing with the ebb and flow of student numbers, and making sure to keep a price competitive enough to attract students and cover the costs based on a minimum student number, or something like that.

I'd have to look into whether vertical are offered for the brand or not. I'd have to see if they have any boards made so the magnets line up differently. 10/9/2023 Aikido Class: Weapons Class: 5:00 - 6:00 pm. Opened with some two-cycle Okinaga breathing, where the emphasis became on really extending the exhalation of the breath. Difficult still, but not as uncomfortable as the four-cycle Okinaga breathing. After breathing, we did jo kata 1 (just on the right side), several times at count, and then kind of on our own for the last run through. Sensei pointed out a few things as far as posture and hand positions went, and the direction and trajectory of some strikes. Overall, I felt pretty good about it, but it will still take some time to get it memorized. Next was bokken kata 1. I feel like I've got it down; it seems much more straightforward to me, and it's quite a bit shorter. After doing that several times, we practiced a sword disarm, which was very Aiki in nature. I really enjoyed it. TKD Class: Black Belt Class: 6:30 - 7:30 pm. Pre-class warmup was going through Chon Ji, Dan Gun, Bo Chung, Do San, and Won Hyo. We had a freshly graded 3rd dan recommended who got to learn Se Jong today, so me and the other three students practiced Do-Kangs. We did 1, 2 twice, 3 twice, 4 twice, 5 and then 6. I had one student repeat 4 a few times so he could get it down.

My oldest son has been playing that. He seems to enjoy it. I hear it's quite a vast game.

I saw the Twins advanced, and there was some scuttle about the Jays pulling their pitcher.

I've been enjoying it. I really hope the Chiefs can get this new roster of receivers rolling. They've not been winning handily at all, but Patrick willed out a win on last Sunday night against the Jets. I have faith that Andy Reid will get things pointed in the right direction. I'm super glad Chris Jones is back in the lineup, and hope they can get him signed next off-season. The Bills really showed up against the Dolphins last week. It's crazy how things can swing from week to week. The Lions are a legitimate threat to win the NFC Norse division, and I think the NFC East comes down to a fight between the Cowboys and Eagles.

10/4/2023 TKD Class: T-Shirt Class: 6:30 - 7:30 pm. I warmed up with all 5 Do-Kangs, and then rolled out the heavy bag, strapped on the rebreakable board holder, and went back to work. I started with just one grey board, doing punches. I got it with the right hand, but not the left. Went down to a blue board the left hand and got it. Kind of the same deal with knife hand strikes. On reverse knife hand strike, I got one blue board on each hand. For kicks, I did back leg round kicks and spin heel kicks, using one grey board for each kick, both sides. One of the many things I don't like about this rebreakable board setup is that I can't rotate the boards between having the crease going horizontal or vertical; it's always vertical. Round kicks I prefer to have the grain vertical, as well as front kicks. I did not like the way the right leg round kick felt on contact with the board being horizontal.

Is this not quite risky though - a semester of varying arts is just enough for a lot of people to become a danger to themselves - erroneously believing they 'can fight' and getting into situations that they shouldn't? It's the instructor's job to hopefully explain this to the students. Also ideally, there are enough higher ranked students to help with the class that let's the others know kind of where they stand. In my experience, however, by and large, I don't see people thinking that way. I don't see it any different than a student who attends classes for a few months and then quits of his own accord. There just isn't much you can do about those people.

That sounds like a great training experience, too. It's funny what can change when the rules change. The KISS principle really does ring true. 10/3/2023 Knife Training Course: 8:00 am - 5:00 pm. This was a one-day law enforcement focused knife training course. The course opened with some classroom time, covering use of force, legal concerns, and the like, along with watching some videos of knife attacks that happened to officers on-duty. The instructor finished the classroom portion with a cutting demonstration on a thick roast on a stick. He showed what a sharp 3 1/2" blade could do, your typical tactical folder. After the classroom stuff was over, we moved to the meat of the class. We did unarmed knife defense, knife vs knife defense, and some disarms. Lots of drilling and lots of reps. It all had a very Filipino base to it, which was a lot of fun, and I'd had some work with some of the principles years back with a buddy of mine that had worked in another DT system. We trained with blunt folders, and my right arm is scraped and bruised from the wrist up to the biceps. I asked about some differences in dealing with longer blades, and the instructor provided me with some longer blunt blades (fixed blades) to work with my partners with, which I enjoyed even more. He had some book recommendations, too, so I'll be adding to my MA library soon. This was a very new concept to me, and I had an absolute blast at this class. If he comes back next year, I'll sign up for the training again.

10/2/2023 Aikido: Weapons Class: 5:00 - 6:00 pm. We did bokken kata 1 and jo kata 1 (but we did jo kata on the opposite side as well). The Sensei did some explanations of a few things, but he took what he called the "Eastern approach" to teaching; basically, a lot of watching the instructor and repeating, and getting quite a few reps in. Due to his nature, he did break down a few things here and there, but for the most part, I spent the time trying to mimic his movements. We did the forms all by count, which helped, and there was another black belt in the class to watch as well. The last few we did were done more in sections as opposed to a proper count, but still done piecemeal, which helped me follow along. In all honesty, I kind of enjoyed this approach to class, and I really think a solid hour of doing just one of the katas would be very beneficial in just getting the base movements down. Using the class the next week to start breaking things down and getting into the nuances would be awesome. I really enjoyed this class. TKD Class: Black Belt Class: 6:30 - 7:30 pm. Pre-class, I warmed up with Chon Ji, Dan Gun, Bo Chung, Do San, and Won Hwo hyungs. For warmup, one of the other students did some pretesting items, so me and the other black belt went through some random floor drills I pulled off the top of my head, and finished with a forearm conditioning drill. After that, we did what the CI likes to call "Ho Sin Sul sparring." We basically have all legal targets, grabs are allowed, etc. We don't go full speed (although we tend to speed up at times), and we start with one person going on the offensive first, and then it's counter and attack, then it kind of goes free-form after that. It gets interesting. If we get to far into getting tangled up, we reset and start again. I did pretty well, for the most part, protecting myself and countering and trying to move. My movement could be a little better, especially when it comes to checking kicks. The one time I got myself into a bad situation was when I foolishly decided to try a spin side kick, and gave up my back, and body locked and probably would have been taken down. So lesson learned, which confirmed what I already knew. For it's limitations, there are still some good things to be learned from this kind of sparring.

Congratulations Danielle!

Sounds like you'll have a nice little training hall there!

It sounds like seeking out another venue isn't likely, but if it is an option, consider it.

The Aikido sensei and I know each other pretty well; while he was climbing the ranks in Aikido, he also took our TKD classes as offered by the college for credit hours. He's well aware of my rank and experience, as I am of his. He mentioned while we were training that he was moving me along in some aspects, due to my already advanced training. I thought this was kind of cool. I also feel comfortable asking him to back things off and be more basic if I feel the need to. 9/27/2023 TKD Class: T-Shirt Class: 6:30 - 7:30 pm. Some pre-class stretching in The Rack, along with some pre-class kicking, focusing on my technique and base foot pivoting, especiall for the side kick. After getting through all six Do-Kangs, I decided to work on side kick board breaking. We have a board holder we can attach to something, along with rebreakable boards that attach to it magnetically. Unfortunately, the only thing to tie the apparatus to is a Wavemaster sanding bag. This is less than ideal, as that damn thing likes to move around a lot. It makes clean breaking a challenge, as do the rebreakable boards. I did some step-behind side kicks on each leg, 2 boards then moving up to 3. Next, I tried back leg side kicks, and that was just a mess. I couldn't tell if I was breaking, or if they were breaking on the rebound at times. I tried spin side kicks after that; left spin side went just fine, but the right leg was all over the place. Targeting was way off, not getting spun enough. Need to practice this more. With the bag flying all over the place like it was, I used another bag right behind it to try to stabilize it a bit. It helped some, but not much. However, I will probably continue to frustrate myself by working on it again next week, too.