bushido_man96

I'm not familiar with them, but I think the DT guy at our college has been through it. It sounded like it was pretty intensive, and some guys didn't make it back for the 2nd day of training. But I've never heard him say he held any kind of rank.

I agree with what was said earlier as far as "faith based" principles. Anything like that is not likely to serve you well. And I'm not sure what you mean by "intrinsic" power. Power comes from good body mechanics and good body strength. If you are spending this much time wondering if the styles you are looking at look fake, and you say you have no experience, then I'd say you've answered your own questions already. Check out some other schools and gyms and see what they've got to offer. Is there a Boxing gym you can check out?

Basics Forms One-steps Sparring This was the traditional set-up we followed. Mondays are now a forms focus day, and one-steps aren't usually done. Wednesdays are the same, but one-steps are the focus and not forms. Tuesdays and Thursdays are hour and a half classes, and we do all, and spend more time on sparring. Monday and Wednesday are just an hour.

I've seen that. The DT club at our college has been guilty of that a few times, and it can be frustrating. I had to harp on the students at class the other day a bit about it, too. They did the reps I told them, but as I was getting around to help others, some were loafing. I told them to get more in.

Good heavens, thats beyond me at this point. Something to build up to, I guess. The only problem is that if I spend that much time running, it will cut down on my time with the weights...but that isn't even that consistent at this point, so I guess just getting into better shape would be the better option. I agree here, too. I like to train technique wise and learn Martial Arts in general; that's what I pay for. I pay for my gym membership for the other training.

3/28/2011 Squats: 50 Push-ups: 20, 10, 20 3/30/2011 Form segment 1 (moves 1-15) five times. My knees told me in no uncertain terms that I was pretty much done after that. Push-ups: 2 sets of 15 3/31/2011 Weights: Push day: Bench press w/chains: 145x10, 155x8, 165x6 Incline dumbell bench: 55x10, 60x6, 4 Triceps push-down: 110x10, 120x8, 130x6 Overhead triceps ext: 90x10, 100x8, 110x6 Legs: Leg ext: 130x10, 145x8, 160x6 Prone leg curl: 90x10, 110x8, 130x6 Bar stretches with front kick and side kick.

We kick the air a lot with the basics and forms we do. I try to focus on using the muslces in the leg to stop the kick, and not just the fact that my leg stops when its all the way out. But, this could be why my knees hurt like they do, too.

I thought the more common thing research showed now was to eat more like 5 or 6 small meals throughout the day, as it helped to maintain the metabolism better.

I agree as far as competition goes. Even just sparring in a setting using rounds and rest periods would be better for me. I know that when I have gone to tournaments and sparred in the past, I've died trying to get through one fight. But for my school, its more of an option than a requirement. But that conditioning will translate to self-defense, as well. How much road work do you do, or have you done, in the past?

I didn't claim that every tournament attended was for business purposes. What I did say is that some schools host tournaments because hosting a tournament does bring some extra income to a school. My organization holds a yearly tournament, and it does make some money on the entry fees.

Cool. Let us know how it works out for your training. Do you try kicking it at all?

Sorry to derail the topic slightly here, but double palm block? Its usually done with a knifehand guarding. Double palm would make for some interesting and different applications instead of a simple jump-spin-guard. Doh! You're right, Danielle. The double palm block comes before the jump spin, not after. I had a bout of dyslexia, I guess. Thanks for setting me straight. The double knifehand block does come after the jump spin.

In the kitchen today, I had two upper level cupboard doors opened; I closed one with a hook kick, and the other with a round kick.

How much physical conditioning do you think should take place in a Martial Arts class? I'm talking about general fitness type stuff, like push-ups, pull-ups, abs, jump rope, running, etc. I know there are some schools out there that are big on push-ups and the like, and some don't mess with it at all. My school just goes right into basics, and then into forms, one-steps, etc. All of our physical training comes from TKD moves, essentially. So, my question is, do you think an MA class should be focusing on some of these things to a certain extent, or would you rather your time at class went strictly to technique/strategy, etc?

Wow. Crazy. When doing push-ups are not enough, add pain. Makes me feel really self-concious about the whopping two sets of 15 I got in today...

3/25/2011 Weights: Pull day: Hang clean: 115x10, 125x8, 135x4 (almost embarrassed to post those numbers...) Barbell curls: 65x10, 75x8, 80x6 Shoulder shrugs: 240x10, 260x8, 280x6 Cross body dumbell curls: 25x10, 30x8, 35x6 Overhead cable curl downs: 70x10x3 Dumbell wrist curls: 15x15, 20, 20 Reverse dumbell wrist curls: 15x15x3 Lunges: 10 each leg x2

There's always a technicality to deal with.

Sometimes we have water breaks, but it usually comes after basics and we start doing forms by rank. Some nights, if we go straight into forms from basics, we might not get a drink. Our school doesn't allow water bottles in the room, either, likely for fear of it being spilled. Silly, really.

How about grappling and striking? Pretty generic, but states what you do. You could state something like: "Grappling and Striking learned from various sources."

I enjoy the search as well. I also spend quite a bit of time searching on my own, even in a class full of other students who "appear" to be doing the same thing. Sometimes, my search invovles crossing the path of another who is searching, as well. So, its not all necessarily on my own. Or maybe it is on my own, but with others around, too. That's probably about as deep as I'll get with that. But a nice topic!

If you could train all 6 days. I'm having a good week if I get two days in at a class.

That's what's nice about knockouts. Can't "not see" those.

You can always train in your head. When I'm not physically training, I think about things quite a bit, and then when I do train, I let those things come out.

Tallgeese and MasterPain pretty well summed that up. If you have to eat a kick to get to grips, do it. If the kicks tend to kind of hang out there after completion, you might by able to grab one, and then make a takedown easier. If you do grab it, though, watch for the other one to spin to your head. It would be a last-ditch effort, but watch for it. I actually did that to my brother one time. It works, but will likely put you both on the ground, which is where you will want to be anyway....just not unconscious.

One of the reasons schools hold tournaments is to bring in some income. There's no doubt that a large tourney can bring in some big funds. There are differing views on tournaments, as well. Some people don't like tournaments, and feel that making the Martial Arts into a sport like that cause its focus to shift, and detract from the goal of self-defense. Others view tournaments as an outlet for testing themselves against others. It just depends on how you look at them. They can be a lot of fun.