bushido_man96

We do ball of the foot, too, like you, Danielle. I think it does make for better change of direction, especially with all the moving between stances.

You could try to imitate Lee, but then, it wouldn't be you, would it? Think about the things he mentions, analyze what you do, and then come to your own conclusions. As time goes on, and you gain experience, and re-analyze, your thoughts and ideas may change. That's pretty much how it works.I'm a big Bruce Lee fan, too, but don't too caught up in the Lee stigma. I wouldn't necessarily agree with all of his thoughts on everything, but all of his thoughts are worth evaluation.

Tallgeese brings up a good point. I remember seeing a video of Oyama in his later years, and he wasn't able to move all that well, and he was known to put his body through some very hard conditioning. It may have served him well while he was young, but when he got older, the affects showed up. Whether or not the training was the result of that, who can say for sure? But I would be willing to bet it had something to do with it. On the other end of the spectrum, when I was still in the ATA in my hometown, we had a guy who was a pro Boxer in the 40s and 50s come to our school and work out with us on the weekends. He had the biggest sledgehammer hands I'd ever seen, and the guy could still hit hard, and he was nearing 70 at the time, I think. He ran a dairy farm, and his hands were still in good shape. There is also a guy in our organization that doesn't break boards with his hands, because he is a doctor, and can't afford to have a training accident put him out of his job.

I doubt punching bag helps, unless you punch real hard... A nice canvas bag can help to condition the knuckles a bit, especially if you like to twist your punches at the end. I think you're right here. I don't ever really notice that Thai fighters have really disfigured shins, but you don't have to question the toughness of their shins.

I know how that goes. Between work and family time, its hard to devote that much time to MA training. I'm lucky if I can get 2 days a week into a class. Otherwise, I'm on my own at home.

No, it isn't any fun to work out with someone who can't keep up with you. However, I think a 15 minute jump rope requirement before being able to join a class is a bit extreme, as well. I'm pretty sure I couldn't do it. I do think its good for an instructor to be able to express the importance of being in good shape for the benefits of MA training. Like I posted in another thread, though, how much of this kind of conditioning should be allotted to class time? Balancing class time between physical training and conditioning and MA training is hard to do, and one is usually sacrificed for the other. The secret is making the MA part of the training good enough and intense enough to increase the physical training aspects of the activity.

Very nice. How long does it take you to get through all of your forms usually? Do you do a certain number, then break for rest? 4/7/2011 Stretch - 20 minutes Footwork drills in the living room, working on advancing, retreating, and sidestepping. Side kick pulses: 3x15 each side. 1/4 mile jog, then walked out the rest of the mile. Stretched. 4/8/2011 Weights: Pull day: Hang clean: 115x10, 125x8, 135x5 45 degree arm curl: 25x10x5 Shoulder shrugs: 240x10, 260x8, 280x6 Cross body curls: 25x10, 35x8, 40x6 Overhead cable curl downs: 70x10x3 Forearm dowl machine: 45x2, 2

I think it just depends on who you hear it from. The first experience I had with it was in ATA TKD, and I was told it was called a twist kick. Some call it the twisting kick. If you are picking the verbaige here apart using ATA vernacular, then the "reverse round kick" is actually like a reverse side kick, but you do a round kick after the reverse turning motion. I've messed with it this way before, but other than a goofy point-style technique, it really hasn't a whole lot of application. Doing a round kick after the reverse motion is a completely counter-intuitive motion. In order to do the round kick correctly, you have to get your hips into the kick, and then the reverse motion becomes nothing more than a funky way to get the kick to where you want it to go. Now, if that's not what you are talking about, then I'll just wait for the video.

Speed is the major player there. I can't view the videos now for some reason, but will later on. When it comes to kicking high, having the superior speed to make them work is the major thing, I think. I do think strategy can come into play as well to making head kicks work, but its easier to put strategies together for the ring than it is for self-defense.

Yeah, its work!

I'd get up and get your homework there, if I were you. Get a crutch or a cane to support your weight, if you need to. As for the injury, I've done that a few times, and it sucked each time. Keep the brace on for a while, and after it heals, you might consider getting some ace wrap or a softer brace for your ankle to wear from now on, just to add support.

I would have liked to see that one. Are these just your Isshinryu katas, or all katas your learned through other training, too? Do you ever still practice your TKD forms? 4/4/2011 Weights: Pull day: Lat pull down: 140x10, 150x8, 160x6 Seated row (close grip): 130x10, 140x8, 150x6 Upright row: 75x10, 80x8, 85x6 Back hyperextensions: 3x15 Pre TKD class: stretched out, then worked on the section of Yoo Sin hyung with the inside crescent kick to side kick, and also on a combo from ATA Jung Yul form (2nd dan), doing back leg inner crescent kick to spin hook kick/round kick combo. TKD class: 6:00 - 7:00. Taught class tonight, and changed up basics a bit. Did some pad and bag work on kicking, and did some combo work with the adults using target pads. 4/5/2011 1/4 mile jog, then finished out the mile at a walk. With one of our dogs. I think the dog thought my idea of a run was pretty pathetic. 4/6/2011 Form work: crescent slap to side kick section of Yoo Sin, and the crescent to spin hook/round combo from Jung Yul. Weights: Push day: Military press: 95x10, 105x8, 115x5 Iso shoulder press: 45x10, 55x8, 60x6 Rear deltoid fly: 105x10, 120x6, 4 Deltoid machine: 130x10, 145x8, 160x6 Tried pull-ups: 2 sets of 2, struggling. Abs: Thera crunch: 30x15x3 Smith crunch: 30x12x3 Cable crunch: 150x10x3 Mile walk pulling the boys in the wagon.

Hehe...funny. That would look silly. I would have been interested in the rationale...after all, the competitors are getting ready to FIGHT for crying out loud...

Some styles require it. The ball of the foot is a nice impact area for the middle kick, as it penetrates the torso pretty effectively. Less useful in a real fight in my opinion, but any kick above the waist is (also my opinion). If you can do it right it can be very effective. Lyoto Machida sneaks in the occasional round kick with the ball of the foot. Our style requires it in forms and one-steps. In sparring, its usually the instep, but that's with gear on, so the tools aren't affected as much by the contact. I do board breaks with ball-of-the-foot round kicks all the time. I do 3 or 4 boards at a demo, and do 3 for my testings.

This is a great view of kata practice. I would love to be able to do that in class time.

Unfortunately, nothing right now. If/when my schedule cooperates, I hope to get back to doing some grappling at the DT club. When I get back to DT training with my old partner, I plan to at least work on some different takedowns and sweeps. It would be a start.

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?