bushido_man96

Good to hear, Kez.

I can't tell from your post if you are for or against competition sparring or not. But, I will say that when you are being troubled by a certain aspect in competition, then learning how a specialist performs his trade is a very good way of helping to shore up a weakness.

Bob: TKD does help a bit, with the movements and striking techniques, especially low-line kicking. I do find it challenging at times. I used to have the darnedest time getting into Nikkyo in my current rank, but now....I LOVE Nikkyo. What do you define as demobilization techniques?

Martial Arts = "war" arts. Warrior = uses "war" arts in his trade.

I think Joe and algernon have good advise. Just take little steps that get you back to training, and having a support system to help will go a long ways.

I don't think your view of Boxing is accurate. It isn't, and never was, just standing there beating on each other, trading shots until the guy who couldn't take anymore fell down. I think that the Martial Arts have been a part of society since societies began to exist. There has always been a need to defend oneself from enemy combatants, whether at home or in other lands. Wrestling is probably older than Boxing is as far as the MA timeline goes, but who can say for sure.

Congrats on putting together such a great community, Patrick.

"IF" one gains "sense". Experience is nothing to do with it. In other words one can be getting the WRONG experience. Blind following and peers pressure takes its toll. I think that consumers tend to get wise to these things after a time. People aren't that helpless.

Indeed. Sorta like can't beat 'em, join 'em. However, a instructor with grand knowledge of hand tactics, and combat understanding, would have instructed one how to beat these kickers without having one go to them. For example, if someone comes at one with a bo, one would close the gap, evade, etc., to limit the extension. This is very simular to those kicking at one. Also, one cannot beat soneone, say who kicks, because one maybe following their rules of sparring, their environment. From my experiences and observations, not too may kicks, esp fanciful ones, are used in actual confrontations. It is a grand idea to train in multiple arts, though. Provided that there are qualified instructors. The obsticle in training this way, is that one has to "empty their cup" each time they start another art. It would be nice if it worked that way all the time, but it simply doesn't. So, going to find out more about how a kicker kicks, or a Boxer boxes, is a good way to shore up some weaknesses. When it comes to competition especially, learning what different specializations tend to lean towards can be a big help. Out of curiosity, Bob, did learning TKD help you to counter those kicks?

Mine as well. I hope he makes a full recovery, and makes it back to the ring.

11-18-09 Taught TKD class today. Was getting students ready for testing this Friday.

Absolutely right on, RichardZ.

And each person is their own judge as to when that is to be. I don't think Long was limping out of the ring. I don't think her face is busted up. Each individual makes this decision for themselves.

They are strong, whether you think they are or not. Even though they aren't in the same class of strength that power lifters are, they are still strong people, and likely still stronger than the average person who doesn't weight train, or just the average weight trainer. I know of a few guys who competed in body building competitons around my area, and they were all pushing around a lot more weight than I was.

Don't forget feinting's little brother, drawing...

That would be nice, but there aren't any other Aikido black belts around here. The closest might be 2 or 3 hours away. But, we are staying optimistic that we can figure something out.

Hey, me neither.

I don't consider them dorky. They make us think. Any little thing like this can really get us going, and take us in who-knows how many different directions. And besides, if a conversation never starts, than it can't be had.

It has been going really well, Bob, aside from the short hiadus I have been on lately. I have really grown in my confidence in the techniques, and we have been making jumps into the restraint and application of the techniques more and more. Really starting to see some good transitions.

Good point. Living that mindset, and thinking like one is important, and it is also important that your training fit accordingly. I think that it there is also a misconception of what the warrior is. I think I heard once that the average lifespan of a front line Marine in combat was somewhere around 4 seconds (this is during combat, though). That's something to think about. That one warrior moment may pop up in your life, and it might last 10 seconds, and it could include the fact that you step in front of a gunman to get killed by psychopath trying to kill another. And then that's it. Warrior career over. I think that a lot of people, especially Martial Artist training everyday, get caught up in an idea that they may end up "saving the day" and getting patted on the back, chest bumps, and get to swap warrior stories in the coffee shop on Sundays when they get older. Sure, there are some people out there who get to do that. But then, there are other warriors who get killed, just that quick. And that is the reality of it. Just some thoughts to add to the discussion here.

Way to go! Congrats!

Well, we've now got some bad news for the Aikido club. The sensei has terrible back problems, and cannot work out anymore. So, he is retiring at the end of the semester from teaching Aikido. This leaves the club without a black belt, which the university has liability issues with. So, as of January, the dojo will not be allowed to meet anymore. There will still be an Aikido club, that can discuss aspects of Aikido philosophy and conduct, etc., but will not be allowed to practice technique under the embrella of the university as a club. So, we are waiting to see what we can do about this. Crappy news.

11-15-09 Front leg side kicks: 1x10, 3x5 each leg 11-16-09 Front leg side kicks: 6 sets of 5 each leg, not setting foot down between kicks. Front leg front kicks: 3 sets of 5 each leg. Knuckle push-ups: 3x10 Aikido class: 7:30 - 9:30. Felt good to get back, but it sounds like we might have some issues arising. We may not be able to work out as a club after this semester is over. 11-18-09 Push-ups: 25, 20 Yoo Sin hyung: 5 times, and a few impartial run throughs. TKD class: 6:00 - 7:00. I taught class tonight, getting ready for testing this Friday.

Good points here. As for Wagner's quote, I never really fealt that way when training. I feel like I had a pretty good idea that I wouldn't be facing any of the weapons that he mentioned, and my dad had always instructed me in the art of "keep you damned hands up!"