bushido_man96

Very cool. On a side note, I didn't see that many of those kids were much more impressive than putting together that many American kids.

Boy Tony, you said a mouthful there. Sparring can appear so intricate when you really start to elaborate on it like that.

I think it is great to teach your sons like this. My dad taught me and my brothers like this for a short time, and I loved it. Now, as for finding a place for your son to spar, I think you can find a place, but you need to approach the situation delicately, and respectfully, and make sure that your son knows, understands, and abides by all the rules of the dojo you go to spar too. I'm sure you already know this, but it is something to keep in mind. You already mentioned that there are no quality schools in your area, in your opinion, and should keep this in mind when you take your son to places. It might not be something you want your son to mention at the class when asked why he doesn't just sign up there (kids say the darndest things! ). All in all, your not in an insurmountable position. I remember when one of my ATA instructors knew some guys from other styles, and after one of the classes during the week, those guys would come in, and have some friendly sparring sessions using different rules and stuff. So it can be done. Its just finding the right people to do it with.

The Rays are going to make it close in that division. I am keeping an ear to the White Sox/Twins, the Phillies/Braves, and the Cardinals/Reds races. They are all close, and could go down to the last week of the season, for sure. My Royals are down and out, but they have shown some sparks, and I think Ned Yost can get them headed in the right direction as long as management doesn't keep giving away the talent. Alex Gordon had been looking pretty good since coming back, and hopefully they can keep building. I would also like to see Pujols win the triple-crown this year.

Chiefs play tonight. Hopefully I get to see the light at the end of the tunnel....

Welcome, Jones. I live in Hays, so we are in the same neck of the woods! Hope you enjoy it here.

Hello there! Are you back for a while?

You might try to roll your hip around before trying to stretch. As for why it catches and pops, I would consider talking to a specialist that might be able to answer why.

Sorry to hear about this. I hope you can get it back together soon. You can always work on one-arm push-ups. That would be impressive to do.

This week went to hell in a handbasket really quick. Only got two days of training in. 8/24/10 Weights: pull day: back, doing assisted pull-ups, seated rows, and upright rows. Also did some leg extensions and curls, and my hams are still sore from the curls. Got some jump rope in, too, doing 4 sets of 50 jumps.

It looked like in the video he shifted his weight a bit to get the kick off. I think I end up pulling the kicking foot into the knee, but I don't recall. The way we do the form looks SO much different than his video, though. I will be honest, though: I hate this form.

There is no harm in learning and trying. And yes, there is a difference between "learning" and "mastery," but one can never master if one never learns.

I have this book, and am in the process of reading it now (although my diligence in reading through it has faltered a bit as of late). Its a great historical reference, and from what I can tell so far, that is all it is; a history book as opposed to a training manual. The book is LOADED with information on different Karate masters that contributed to Karate in different ways, but Shotokan is the main focus. Although pricey, I am so far pleased with the product.

I think those are more along the lines of the typical throws they learn in Muay Thai, as opposed to being "Judo" throws.

I liked the way the throws were set up. Getting to practice something like that would be a lot of fun. On another note, I wasn't impressed by his celebratory actions after scoring a point. How is that different than from what many run down MMAers for doing? Anyways, back to the topic at hand.

I used to just got to the local lumber yard and get some #1 white pine, have them cut them into 12"x12", and go smash some wood.

I do think that most of the grappling that comes out of Karate is stand-up, like sensei8 mentioned. Finding extensive grappling systems seperate of Karate would be better if you want to learn grappling, I think.

Be that as it may, it still does not change the truth, that most modern Korean MAs came out of Japanese styles.

We do jo and bokken.

I think all the points that have been made are good ones. The sparring ideas are right on. Those should help you in figuring out where you are.

I wouldn't say that kata has no benefits. I've written an article on the benefits of forms training. What I would question is the relevance of forms training to self-defense training, and whether or not there is a better way than forms training to train in self-defense.

One for each event...smart-alec comment, I know, but I don't do math. I'm not in the mathematically elite 3%, thats for sure. As for the OP, I'd say 3% is probably right. Its that way in all things, from kids playing sports up through high school and college, businessmen that you mention, teachers that become great teachers, and on and on. I also think you nailed it with the thougths people have of missing out on certain things. Teenagers, I think, are especially subject to this, and I think most of it comes from peer pressure and the want/need to be accepted by their friends. Great thread, with lots of good things to think about.

The best way to prep for it is to get to the mountains two weeks early and start acclimating yourself to the thinner air. Other than that, perhaps up your cardio and intensity, because that altitude can drain you fast. Good luck on your test!

Whew. Good thing I'll be sleeping then! j/k.

That's a good point, Bob.