bushido_man96

Yet another topic idea retrieved from Redmond's book, Kata, The Folk Dances of Shotokan. On pp 107-108, he is discussing one of his principles of excellent kata, and is elaborating on strong, flexible stances. In this section, he refers to how stances tend to be viewed as the platform, or launching pad, from which we deliver techniques. The example he uses is the reverse punch in the front stance, driving off the rear leg, turning the body and engaging the hips to fire the fist. This idea makes sense to me; how many of us as instructors set students up in a stance, and then proceed to teach techniques from the stance, fist on hip, use the hip, fire the technique out. Punches in front stances, often time knife hand strikes or middle blocks in back stances, etc. In forms, every technique has a stance. But, Redmond likes to refer to the stances as a landing gear as opposed to a launching pad. He said he takes his view from watching two Karate experts spar one another. He said "the very best Shotokan sparring champions of old" didn't assume rooted positions, but rather put their weight on the balls of their feet, and moved swiftly into stance after stance, like landing gear. He goes on to explain how the body moves forward and backward or sideways, and the feet have to move to catch us in this new position. It makes sense to me; after all, walking is nothing more than controlled forward falling. So, Redmond sees the stances as the result of motion, as opposed to a posture from which to launch a technique. I think he has some good thoughts on this, and it makes sense to me explained this way. Other thoughts on the matter?

Perhaps getting a bit off topic but a lot of people seem to forget that Gen. Choi's TKD was originally for the military and I think it'd be a good explanation for why the training (and the use of standardized forms) is the way it is. You learn the forms in a set order and set way and also don't really find a parallel to the idea of bunkai in the training because it was about training up a platoon as efficiently as possible ready for combat. I agree. Very good points.

The BJJ blue belt deal came to my mind, as well. I knew it was ok for non-black belt BJJers to open a school, but didn't know how many BJJ schools were in the UK.

Thats a point that Redmond has made in his book, and I know in the Encyclopedia that Choi referred to he forms as "platoon training." Standardizing made it easier to teach in the relatively new idea of these larger class sizes, where there was only one way, everyone (supposedly) knew the same way to teach it, and therefore, groups could come together en masse and train together, providing training consistency.

10/23/2012 Treadmill: 20 min walk/jog, covering 1.3 miles. Bike: 1 mile cool down, 5:09. Stretch Bag Work on BOB: 3 rounds, 1:30 and 1:30 rest between, kicking only. When I got tired and felt I couldn't do more, I just kept burying body round kicks into BOB. Stretch Forms Bo Chuung x5 Songham 3 x5 Bo Chuung is unique to the TTA, and I've been told it literally means "extra form." It follows basically the same I line of Dan Gun, and has the 3/4 turns in it as well. The strikes are to the mid section, and this is the first form in the TTA curriculum that has kicks; 2 front snap kicks. The back leg front snap kicks are each followed by a punch, from the same arm as the leg that kicks. Many of the forms later on contain double punches after a kick, and the first punch is usually with the same leg side, and this helps to ingrain that idea, as it can be a bit awkward. This form also is used to teach students to get their hips into techniques by "twisting" the hips for each strike. Songham 3 is the 3rd ATA form, and follows the opposite rectangle of Songham 2, starting in the middle of the right long side, moving up to the top, turning and going right along the short top side, then back down, over, and back up to the beginning. This form starts with a strike as opposed to a block, showing that at times, the best defense can be a good offense, and a preemptive strike can be necessary in self-defense. This form also adds jump kicks; jumping front kicks, #3 jumping front kicks in the ATA vernacular.

But, did you still have certain kata you only learned at certain ranks, or where they introduced on a per-student basis?

But a 20 year old brown belt could open a school, because he is old enough to open a business of his own. But could this brown belt grade his own students? So now we aren't even talking about the belt, just age. Aside from that, I know some styles don't grant instructor status until 2nd or 3rd dan are reached. My style doesn't grant instructor status until 3rd dan, at age 18. And as sensei8 and others have said, not all black belts can teach. Not too sure if its accepted where you're from but in the UK, Black belt or equivalent is the minimum grade you can open a Dojo. I've known many 1st, 2nd ad 3rd Dans who's teachin skills surpass those of higher grades, I knew a guy who'd remained 1st Dan for 17 years before grading for 2nd. so its also about time in grade too Is that requirement set forth by the UK government for MA business requirements, or is it in regards to the NGBs of the MAs there. Is it universal? Does GKR have instructors at level below black belt? I'm not citing them as the model to follow, but just trying to establish where the rule comes from you stated. As mentioned before, the case for promoting any student, regardless of the age in question, to black belt should be done on a student by student, case by case basis. Not all students are alike, and not all will advance at the same rate. But just because one 10 year old doesn't demonstrate the maturity of knowledge to advance to black belt rank doesn't mean all 10 year olds should be held to the same standard. As far as kids, like a 10 year old, teaching adults, isn't something I have advocated here. Our society, any society, just won't tolerate kids being in charge of the adults in any situation. So, I would avoid putting black belt kids in charge of any section of an adult class. But, that doesn't change how I feel about ranking a kid of that age in regards to their knowledge of the curriculum and grasp of the style. Now, I would feel comfortable putting a black belt kid in a cooperative teaching situation with other kids. Allowing the child black belt to assist in class drills, be an example for others to follow along, etc, are all good things to help bring a new black belt along in the teaching process. I would feel it would be my job to lead the class, as responsibility to my school and students, but would absolutely allow assistance from 10 year old black belt in a kids class. As far as having control of a class goes, that's hard for any new teacher in any new capacity. We are all aware of the substitute teacher syndrome, I think. When I first started teaching, all my buddies still wanted to be buddies, and pal around during teaching time. Its a hump everyone has to get over, not just kids. But, kids can be more prone to peer pressure, and it can be tougher for them, in any capacity. So, its important as the head instructor for me to help foster that transition, for any new black belt helping to teach. Neither does earning a black belt automatically make one a teacher of Martial Arts. Like anything, its a skill to be practiced, learned, and honed. That's what makes us awesome!

Or, as mentioned earlier, how do we know the whole thing isn't a hoax? We really don't.

I think the problem has arisen in the standardization of katas for rank purposes in various styles. When we talk about the classical use of kata, it isn't the same as it is today. Now the kata are as they are, and they do not change, because that would be a blasphemy. But kata used to be learned and adapted as the practitioner saw fit for them. There was a lot more exploration and tailoring of kata for the individual's training. The problem is now that things have been done this way for so long that either everyone doing it now thinks it has always been done that way, or to change is blasphemous as I mentioned, or the blind loyalty to whomever told them to do what they are doing and not question it has led them not to wonder what else went on. I'm pretty sure that the status quo won't change now, and standardized kata are here to stay. This has its advantages and disadvantages.

Learning how to control what people know about you on the internet is a good way to start. Turning off the GPS on your phone, avoiding "checking in" when you go to places on Facebook or whatnot can help. I think there are some companies out there that can help you limit your internet presence, as well. If you start to get the inkling that someone is stalking you, start documenting it. Dates, times, and activities, however miniscule they may seem. Then take the documentation to the court house, and apply for a protection order against the person. They will review the events you have documented, and decide accordingly. They may think you don't have enough to consider stalking at that time, but just keep documenting things. Also, make a report to law enforcement if you think something funny is going on. They should document the incident, and if they do, and several incidents get documented by them, then those can help in getting the order through, as well. The order is the first step. The next step is acting on the order once its through. The order is just a piece of paper; it won't physically stop any other action from taking place. But, once the order is in place, report any thing you think is a violation of that order to law enforcement, and then they can take action on the violation. Unfortunately, one of the main ways to combat these pencil pushers is through pencil pushing of your own.

Most likely not, unless he can some how articulate that he thought the guy was a threat to someone else. In this case, I'm not sure he could do that. Sure, the tweets could be used against him. At this point, though, have there been any charges filed? I would also like to point out that I did not site any facts to state they were muggers. In the reading, they were referred to as muggers, so that's where I get my labels for the thread. As far as I'm concerned, there aren't any discernible facts in the article, nor can we really infer any.

We don't even get a whole lot of bruising going on. I'd love to spar without the damn pads on; they mess with the way I move so badly.

I agree the sooner the better, and I'm glad to see your son has gained confidence. That's a good start.

I don't think we should confuse "facts" and "tweets." No crime was "reported" here. That doesn't mean there were no crimes, nor do we know the intent. Gracie felt there was intent on the other part of the others to mug him, so he proactively defended himself. I would rather be proactive if I saw all the signs there, than be reactive, and end up in an obituary or a hospital bed.

10/22/2012 Treadmill: walk/jog for 1.3 miles, 20 min. Had some pain in my chest that really kept me from running more. It subsided after a while, and did more running toward the end. Bike: 1 mile cool down, just over 5 minutes. Stretch. Forms Dan Gun x5 Songham 2 x5 Ge Baek x5 Bag work: 2 rounds of only kicks. Roughly 1 minute per round. Stretch Movement pattern for Dan Gun is pretty much an I pattern, with forward facing stances when moving forward on the l part of the pattern, and on the tops and bottoms of the I, more half facing in back stances, and then forward facing in the front stances. The forms starts and stops at the top of the I. Anslow calls Dan Gun the "throat striking pattern," with the punch and the knife hand strikes in the form in the neck area. I personally think its a bit tough to punch someone in the throat, unless you can get that chin to move up through some other application... Dan Gun differs from Chon Ji in the target area of the strikes; all are head level, whereas the strikes in Chon Ji are to the body (at least in my style of TKD). Movement pattern for Songham 2 is basically a rectangle sitting on its short side. You start in the middle of the long side, move up to the top, then to the left along the short side, back down the entire length of the other long side, where the form starts to repeat at the middle of this side, on down to the other short side, and to the right, then back up on the bottom of the left long side, and finishing at the start point. Oddly enough, or perhaps coincidentally enough, ATA's 2nd colored belt form also gears strikes to the head. In Songham 1, there are only two head strikes, lunge punches to the head. Songham 2 also moves off the one straight line to bring turns and direction changes into the form. And if I remember right, its the only colored belt form in the ATA that begins with a step back. The movement patter for Ge Baek, as shown in General Choi's Encyclopedia, is a straight line l with an x in the middle. I can see this, to a point, but I really feel this form, at least the way we do it, runs on a couple of parallel lines, going up and down the line, and you get into the parallels when stepping from front stances to back stances and then over to front stances. Also, Choi shows a flying side kick in this form, but we do a hopping side kick instead. This form also begins with a step back and block, like Songham 2 does.

Some do. Also, seeing some of the applications he worked on in the first book, I started to see some possibilities in the later forms, as well. Some agree, and some disagree with his thoughts on the forms, and how to interpret them. What I like the most about it is that it gets me to thinking. He shows a different way to look at the forms, and that sets the wheels in motion for me to think of different ways to see things when I'm doing the forms, and gives me ideas on how to line up some of my Hapkido training with it. It isn't for everyone. He's kind of like Iain Abernethy; you either like his works or you don't. Abernethy actually wrote the forward for his first volume, and I've read and enjoyed some of Abernethy's books as well. I say read it, enjoy it, and take out of it what you want. That's all you can do with any work, really.

I think there are many of those who strictly cling to the idea of preserving all the forms feel this way. But before Funakoshi's standardization of the katas, it wasn't always this way. Its one of the notions Redmond points out in his book, too. I don't really think having a favorite will imbalance the art, either. I think by determining that one should not pick a favorite is in a way limiting free thinking. I disagree here. Like I mentioned earlier, Yoo Sin is my current form, and probably my worst black belt form, for sure. I do it the best I can, but if I have a choice, I won't do this form for any kind of demonstration. It does need more attention at this point in time, but that doesn't mean it should be my favorite. I'm not aware of this rule. Could you elaborate on it for us?

I've been waiting to see if this was coming out, because I did enjoy reading volume 1 so much, and found it on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Chang-Hon-Taekwon-do-Hae-Sul/dp/1906628475/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1350874677&sr=1-1&keywords=Taekwondo+Hae+Sul Can't wait to get it! I will be getting a copy in December, for sure.

I love watching my kids compete in sport. I'm always talking and hollering, and get some goofy looks from my wife from time to time. Its a great thing, I think.

Another TKD stylist I stumbled on: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZfzqCmt5W8&list=PLon1GNgZPzV4y3jAy9Z95lJaW1rz8vn3T&index=6&feature=plpp_video This guy's spinning hammer fist and spinning hook kicks make for a nasty duo. And when he spins, you don't know which is coming. Very impressed by this guy. Nice hands, too.

Just watch this fight with Paul Grima. Side kicks, front kicks, spin hook and jumping side kicks; so much fun to watch. He can take a hit, as well.

I think he did start with TKD, and then moved over. But if you look at the clips where he is TKD fighting with vests on, its pretty clear he wasn't afraid to make contact then, either. I think there are some differences between how he fought then and when he move to Kickboxing, but he definitely fights with a TKD flair.

But a 20 year old brown belt could open a school, because he is old enough to open a business of his own. But could this brown belt grade his own students? So now we aren't even talking about the belt, just age. Aside from that, I know some styles don't grant instructor status until 2nd or 3rd dan are reached. My style doesn't grant instructor status until 3rd dan, at age 18. And as sensei8 and others have said, not all black belts can teach. So are you saying its only us Korean stylists that are advocating this? I guess it could be. I'm not ashamed of that, though. I know my school does a good job of producing good Martial Artists, and I know that the kids we promote to black belt are very comparable to other kids of that age and skill level; we just aren't afraid to say that they have black belt skills as kids. This is the most common interpretation I hear of the black belt rank. Its "just the beginning." If that's the case, then why not let a kid who has demonstrated their ability to understand the curriculum make it to this phase? Here's another point of view I have. You only see this in the Eastern styles. My boy Wrestles, and by the time he's 16, he'll probably have a pretty good grasp of most of the system, given he sticks with it and works hard. I know this will likely bring on a "sport vs art" argument, but at the same rate, kids who Wrestle won't have to worry nearly as much about something such as this.

Really? Its not great but I don't mind it that much. Any bit of the 2nd half in particular? I can never get the U-shape punches through to the waving kicks to look any good. Yeah, starting with the U-shape punches, our style actually has a knee level side kick thrown in after each U-shape punch. From there to the waving kicks and blocks, and into those dastardly crescent kick-hand slap to side kick rot. It never has flowed well, and I don't know if I will ever get it to flow well. Its like I'm cranking along, popping and snapping techniques, and then, I go into clunky slo-mo once I hit that section of form.

He did know what he was talking about, the history with in his writings is still valid, but will anyone buy them now ? That's my point. Because his evil behavior totally invalidates his writings on the philosophy of Karate. But that's enough on him. If his books are cheaper now, then I would buy them. This one cost me around $150, and I wanted a copy of his book on the Karate Masters as well.