bushido_man96

One thing about respect for me is that it is a two-way street. When I was in the ATA, the guy who became my main instructor would refer to the students by Mr. or Mrs. "Smith" or whatever, just like we referred to him as Mr. "Smith." So, what he expected of us, we also expected of him. I think that is how respect has to be. It has to be earned, and not commanded.

Well that's cool. How do you get so lucky?

Good job, tallgeese. I can't imagine going that many matches. I'd need a serious cardio overhaul. 2/27/2011 Se Jong hyung x 3. I looked at the version of Se Jong in Choi's Encyclopedia, and boy is the version we do way different. I'm not sure what our GM was thinking. 2/28/2011 Weights: Push day: Bench press: 175x10, 185x8, 195x6 Incline bench: 135x10, 145x6, 4 Dips: 3 sets of 5 Legs Leg extension: 130x10, 145x8, 160x6 Leg curl: 110x10, 130x8, 150x4 Abs Thera crunch: 25x10x5 Repeat round kicks: 5 sets each leg, 5 kicks each time, without setting down.

Oh yeah, done that, too. I actually went driving around checking out some near where I was staying once. Checked out a Chinese style school. It was cool to see something different.

Usually, an organization or group or whatever would have someone in mind for when this time comes. We may not always think its the best choice, but we have to believe that the person making the choice, did so for a good reason.

Agreed. High kicks can work, and can work well. They are not always what we might consider a "high percentage" technique. As per my style: 1. No. 2. No. All techniques must be above the belt in competition. 3. No. However, we do practice some of these things in our one-steps. The competitive side of things has a different focus on a different skill set, thus more kicking, and high kicking. As mentioned earlier, its tough to do sparring at a reasonable pace without some kind of rules in place. I do agree that some rule sets out there don't apply as well to self-defense, but training can be tailored to suit. This can be hard to pin down, as well. What is the safest, most reliable thing one can do under the circumstances of self-defense? Run? Sure, unless you're slow like me. Punches? Some guys can take them; some can't. Joint locks? Can be tough on resisting opponents. Grappling? Great, unless a crowd of baddies show up. How about a gun? Great, unless someone already has a gun on you. I do agree that there are some strategies that are likely to have a higher success rate, and that kicks above the belt are not always "high percentage" moves. But, its good to have the tool in your box if you need it.

Training from a street perspective still does not allow you to ignore those rules in training either. Using those targets, then you can only go through the motions. The beauty about sparring for self defense is then it simply boils down to target selection. A low kick to the outer thigh can now easily become a low kick to the outside of the knee. The push kick to the midsection can now become a front kick to the groin. Your jab to the nose can become a finger jab to the eyes. The attributes are all there, it's just adapting to the situation. In the reverse, if you only train techniques that are "too deadly" for the dojo you now have in essence actually limited yourself. Now you cannot respond to a situation that might involve a lesser use of force than what you have trained for. Also, once you realize that it's actually quite difficult to hit a person in some of the large targets while fighting, you realize some of the smaller targets that are often espoused as fight enders in self defense (in actuality, quite not as often as we are led to believe) are even harder to strike. All training boils down to the fact that we need to recognize the limitations of what we are training for. Whether you train in a "combat sport" or a "street fight only" martial art, both have already restricted what you can actually train simply by the nature that you, along with your other fellow students, are a willing participant and thus will not be maiming or killing each other that day. I think Kuma makes a valid point here. Its hard to train "hard" to all the target areas in an "alive" sparring arrangement, and retain training partners. At the same time, I think its important to drop the sparring rules from time to time, and visit training methods that do allow the groin shots, kicks to the knee, etc, to be trained, as well.

I agree with Montana. Check out your local schools, talk with the instructors, and find out what each offers. Travel time, price, and class availability will all likely consider into your decision, as well, so check them out when talking to the instructors. Welcome to KF, as well!

I've had several of these moments in Combat Hapkido and Aikido. There were quite a few movements I was struggling with in Hapkido, but lots of work really helped me get one of those "Aha" moments.

I don't really "fear" my instructor, or many of the higher ranks in our organization. I'm sure if many of them wanted to, they could whip on me, if they felt the need, but there are lots of people like that in the world, as it is. As for their ability to withhold information, and affect what I learn, I take with a grain of salt. I know that there is enough information out there to find out what it is I would like to know, if need be. I think the biggest thing about respect, at least for me, is that it has be earned, and not commanded. If someone commands respect from others, or holds sway over them with something they want or would like to learn in order to gain that respect, then its not respect. I do have to say I don't care for the "sir" stuff all the time, and I definitely don't like it outside of the school, either. As far as I'm concerned, outside of the school, there isn't anyone the rank stuff pretty much falls away.

2/23/2011 3/4 mile walk. Some basic kicking, mainly side kicks and front kicks, not much above belt level. Some mini-dips in a chair with wooden arms. Yoo-Sin hyung in the living room, 3 times, focusing on good technique.

I'm not sure that TKD is the only culprit. Didn't the early kumite competitions that were held in Japan between the various university clubs do more high kicks, due to the rules of the kumites?

We didn't "free spar" in Aikido, but did do some randori from time to time that was more spotaneous than some of the other work. There wasn't any kata work, either. We did our basic movments work, which were the movements that then were implemented into the techniques

I've also seen some TKDers turn the belt around for sparring, so the lengths are bouncing in the back.

We basically spar with Olympic/WTF style rules. No hand techniques to the head, no contact below the belt, no contact to the back. Techniques must cause "body displacement" to be scored (or are supposed to be). Sometimes we break at point, and sometimes we spar continuous for 2 minutes. Number of rounds depends on the tournament.

This is pretty good advice. The other time that I have noticed when it matters, is when someone under the age of 13 is awarded a black belt, too.

With that kind of outlook, you certainly won't improve. You've got to change that around for yourself. Kicking high isn't always a necessary thing, as most of the kicks you are likley to ever use for self-defense purposes will probably be below belt level. You can still improve; you just may have to find different things to improve yourself physically. You can always improve mentally, too. Don't give up on yourself so easily. Keep at it. You only fail when you stop trying. I'v had this problem at times. It seems like some days I can't get away from this. I try to think about gripping the ground with my foot a bit, and that helps at times. I also check my body alignment to see if I am leaning or shifting some, as that can cause the problem, too.

I see simple block/strike counters to start out with. The middle section with the front kicks is beyond me. I'm sure there is some movement point there, but I can't see it. The pull in and front kick could be a clinch and low kick, pulling the bad guy in, or could be a pulling motion into a reap. The jump and spin at the end...no clue.

I agree here that figuring out what one's tendencies and preferences are while sparring is just as important to developing the strategies that will go along with one's sparring. It will help when figuring out why something might not be working well. Its also good for guaging one's own strengths and weaknesses, and tailoring training to suit.

I like what I see here, except for the dropping of the hand completely after punching, but perhaps that just the training aspect of it for that exercise. Those guys are throwing a lot of power. As for the Systema vid, the way that guy is built, I can see that he might have some heavy hands, and can see what he's describing with the power there. I think the guys getting hit are reacting, or overreacting, a bit funny, but I'm not the one getting hit, either. The energy of his strikes does drive downward, thus why the guys do the jelly-knee thing when absorbing the contact. I'd hate to see him hit someone hard...

The man who taught the Gracies originally was a student of Kano's, so his style was Judo. What the Gracies did was focus more on the ground aspect, and the evolution lead to BJJ, in a nutshell, if I recall my reading properly.

One thing that I do notice about Martial Arts that especially use the rank system is that the lack of rank can affect what you are taught, and the depth of the subject matter taught to you. You will likely continue to be grouped with the rank you retain, and may not be shown other things taught to higher ranks, simply because you choose not to test.

Welcome to the Forums, and to Martial Arts! The best advise I can give is to work hard and focus. The rest will take care of itself.

Ok. It sounds like your instructor calls the Chang On forms the Pal-Gwe set, then. You may want to check with him, because that is pretty far off base. The Pal-Gwes were made by the WTF, and the Chang Ons were the set made by for the ITF by Choi and Nam.

I think at times, instead of using the term "full-contact," what I think of is more like "full-body targets." Not necessarily fighitng hard all the time, but using as many targets on the body as possible. That could just be me, though.