bushido_man96

No, not all schools are like that. There are a few bad apples out there, though. If the sensei is not making himself available for the bulk of the classes, as you mention, then you might be able to look into a breach of contract. Something to think about. The unfortunante aspect of all of this is that it will cost you time and money with an attorney, unless you are one. I wish you luck.

I see. So you do the 8 Pal-Gwe forms along with the ones you mentioned above? Do you have to know 2 forms for each testing? I've worked out with a club like that before, too.

I don't disagree with you, but why wait until you have a brown or black belt in Judo or Jiu-Jitsu? Why not start as soon as you can?

That's true. I believe the Greeks even knew this when they had fights in the Collusieum. Pit fighters also learned to entertain a bit when they fought, and fights were often unbalanced to make them interesting.

Pocket folders are great. Maybe a big flashlight that is really bright would be something not suspected, but a bit more of a pain to carry around. Car keys, but not much use in a group melee setting. The only other thing I can think of is you are Bruce Banner, and you can chuckle inside...

I understand the Wal-Mart side of this, too, but it is kind of unfortunate that these kinds of policies become more commonplace. Its like defending ourselves is becoming a bad thing, and those who do it have to be punished, like those who brought it on them. At least Wal-Mart is consistent with the enforcment of the policy. I do commend the actions of the employees, too.

Yeah, it can still happen. Right circumstances can pop up.

I am committed to studying and bettering myself and my training. I look into what I am doing, and try to make myself better. As far as "committing" myself to a "master" or my instructor, no, not going to happen. The committment I have made is to my wife and kids.

You mention these as the Pal-Gwe set, but these are actually the Chang On forms created by General Choi, except for Koryo, which I think is a WTF black belt form. The Pal-Gwe set of forms was the first set used by the WTF, before the Tae Gueks came out. So, do you do both, the Pal-Gwe and the Chang On listed here?

Its definitely a lot more circular and spherical motions than I've experienced in TKD, and even in Hapkido.

I like your references here, brickshooter. I like what Aikido can give me in regards to what I can already do with my striking ability, and as opposed to cling to the Aikido ideology of absorbing and using energy and all that, and not being offensively aggressive, I choose to look at how I can make the two work together, like using strikes to lead into Aikido concepts and techniques, or, putting a strike or a kick into some slots in the Aikido movements.

I've run over small trees in a HUMVEE. Let's see your Caddy do that! I need space for me, my lady and a few guns...that's it. I would try to cobble onto one of those Chevy Suburbans that are refitted and modified to be security escort vehicles. I would especially try to find one with the gattling gun that pops out the top. They would suck on gas milage, but I'll take firepower over MPGs any day!

It depends on the extent to which the style was studied before the techniques are "taken." Several styles can be studied for years at a time, and then the Bruce Lee motto of "take what is useful, discard the rest" can be applied. So I'd say this can vary.

I haven't seen any of them, so I wouldn't know for sure. I've heard mixed reviews on them. It probably has more to do with finding the right Systema instructor.

I think you can plan a trip to train at a Shaolin Temple in China, if you do some looking. Keep in mind, though, that its likely to be more like current Wu-Shu training than what the Shaolin monks of old would have been doing.

Sorry I'm just getting back to this. Got side tracked a while back... The "gaps" can be filled in relatively well by studying through live training along with the translations. No, its not the same as having it passed on, and its a shame we miss out on that, but its still an effective way of finding out how it was done. The biggest thing to keep in mind is to realize that in a fight, using common sense and not getting hung up on fanciness or complications will lead to the effective way of combat.

I agree. Even though restraunts have to follow certain rules, you still get a bad experience every once in a while. Same with Martial Arts schools. Its up to the consumer to do the research into the product they are seeking. Its getting to the point where people don't want to do their legwork anymore, because its expected that everything will be good and plentiful in the land of milk and honey. The problem is that this is not the case, and milk does spoil over time. I don't like what McDojos and mail-order black belt courses do, either, but I know enough to understand that they are likely a scam, so don't fall into the trap. Its something others have to figure out for themselves. And likewise, they aren't a threat to me, because I believe in the product I can provide, and therefore, feel that is all I need.

The problem here is that you either have to standardize everything, or just make the only way of knowing who is legitimate fight. Winners go home and teach their thing, and losers don't get to teach anymore, and have to be students of the winners. That may sound extreme, but I'm not sure how else you could do it. What kind of written test would an MAist have to pass? Not all styles have the same history or criteria, or goals, so how would it be possible to figure out a way to find common ground? I have studied in 2 TKD organizations, and they both have different ways of doing side kicks! As for the government, I'm for the government being involved as little as possible. The standardization of Martial Arts is not something that we need to pay the government to get involved in. In my opinion, it would likely kill the creativity of those Martial Artists who can legitimately break off and put out a good product on their own, without organizational oversight.

02/11/2011 Weights: Push day: Bench press: 175x10, 185x8, 205x6 Incline dumbeel bench: 45x10, 50x8, 55x6 Legs: Hip sled: 405x10, 430x8, 450x6 Angled standing leg press: 110x10, 130x8, 150x6 Abs: Thera crunch: 25x12x3 I wasn't feeling especially good this day, and to top that off, I twinged my back on that angled standing leg press. How that can happen, I'm not sure, but I was able to find a way to do it. Now, the two days after, my back hurts, and moving is slow going. It sucks. But, I now realize how much I bend over and do things with my back. I also see now how much I could be using my legs, and working them out more just on a regular every day basis.

Part of the reason you see more grappling now is because of the increased popularity of it; it has to be dealt with. Also, LEOs tend to grapple more because we aren't allowed to strike in a Karate or Boxing sense unless we can justify it through the use of force curriculum. So if we can't strike, then be necessity, we are relegated to standing joint manipulation into arrest and detain positions.

That front kick was awesome! So cool to see a nice basic kick like that in a fight.

Agreed, on all points. Make sure to breathe in as much as you breathe out.

I hear you there, MasterPain. I have that problem with trying to work with my son, who is 5. I want him to do TKD with me, but I would like to get him into Kids Wrestling first. Its great to hear that your child is getting into MA, too. Its great when its a family affair.

Thanks for throwing that list up there. In the few times I've checked into the DT club at the college, I haven't seen that they have covered much more than what you have listed there, and I don't think it is mere coincidence. Most of what the DT instructor teaches is geared for more of a RBSD curriculum used by LEOs. And for me, I'd be more concerned with trying to gain that knowledge of being able to transition and apply those moves more than trying to attain any formal rank. Thanks for that post.

It is always easy to make a demo look good.