bushido_man96

Congrats, Patrick, and great job on running the show here. Its always a great place to come and contribute.

I haven't got through them all yet, but it was cool to see the Shredder at number 39. I followed the Turtles through the cartoons, and had a few comics. Reading these little bios, I am learning a bit that I didn't know about the comic villians. Cool reading.

Man, those truckers should not be on that road. Unreal. I'll bet the officers out there stay busy with traffic.

It sounds to me like they are reaching for some accredited advertising. Anymore, customers like to see that kind of thing, even if they have no idea what they are looking at. Like Chris Farley said in Tommy Boy, it makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside.

5-19-09 I wasn't teaching a class or even for an extended period of time, but after class, a student approached me about one of her one-steps, and I helped her address a few things in it. I explained to her that one of the unfortunate circumstances of self-defense is that of close proximity, so she needed to make sure that she used her stance and footwork to get into a good position to use her techniques. She was doing a rising x-block to divert a punch, after which she twists into an arm/shoulder lock, and follows with a front kick. Along with proper hand position, I worked with her on getting into a good back stance, getting the feet placed properly and comfortably, with the weight back a bit, but the hips still in good position, allowing for the flow of the technique. I guess it all starts with good stance, eh?

I agree. It is unfortunate, but as much as we want to reach out and influence those that we teach, in the end, it truly is up to the individual to make the right choices.

I don't know, you tell me. Can he teach it TO THE LEVEL he's attained? NO! Why? If he's only attainded Shodan in Shotokan then, by the by-laws of the JKA, John Doe can only advance his Shotokan students up to the rank of Ikkyu. After Ikkyu, that student would have to find a Sandan to promote this student to Shodan, yet, John Doe is certifying to Shodan in Shotokan under the Toma Banner of Seido, yet, the certs SAY...SHOTOKAN SHODAN. Now that you bring this up, I see what you are saying. Typically, at the testings that I have been involved with, the judges sitting on the panel must be at least 2 dan ranks above the highest rank that is being tested for. So, at least two 3rd dans should be present to test/promote to 1st dan, and so on.

5-19-09 TKD class: 6:00 - 7:30. Good, tiring class. I worked on some of the breath timing stuff some more, and I am learning as I go along. We did testing sparring at the end of class, which is with no pads, and the idea is to limit the contact level, and show good offense, defense, and footwork. I used some side-cutting, and I felt really good about some of the things I was able to do. Perhaps its a prelude of things to come. 5-20-09 Weights Safety squats: 225x10, 245x5, 5 TKD Testing: 6:00 - 8:00. We opened with a bit of a demo, and then got into the testing. Testings are starting to pick up a bit, which is nice to see. For the most part, testing went well, but there were a few more hiccups than we are used to seeing at testing. I think that some of the students got a little extra nervous. One of them is ultra-nervous anyways, and another was testing for her 1st dan, so she was a bit worked up. She pushed through it, though, even after rolling her ankle while doing some forms. We also had 5 white belts test this go-around, which is nice to see, especially if they stick with it. At the end of testing, our instructor had the black belts do some board breaking, as we still had some really sappy boards left to get rid of. I did 3 of them with my back leg round kick, and this time, I dusted them on the first try. After testing was done, the instructor said he wanted to see how much the sappy ones weighed in comparison to the ones that were a bit fresher from the lumber yard. We had some of each, and I weighed the two stacks, and the stack I broke was a pound heavier than the other stack; 5.5 lbs compared to about 6.5 lbs on the stack I broke. For what its worth, I felt pretty good about the break. It did sting a bit, and still stings a bit, but felt better than missing...

It depends on one's view point. I prefer to think that I had been learning from day 1, and that every lesson up the that black belt point is just as important as those that come after it. Nor do I feel that rank in one art has any relevance on the ability to attain skill and advancement in another art.

Well, its just another belt, right? I think it should depend on the organization involved (if there is one), and what the practitioner feels he/she should wear.

When do our basics, stepping into front stance and punching, many of our students will stomp, and I don't understand why. Then, when there is a stomp technique in a form, it isn't emphasized nearly as much as stepping punches are. This is a mis-comunication in proper technique, and I have tried to address it when I get to teach. It isn't the stomp that is necessary, but the step adds to the momentum of the punch. Either way, this is cool history of a great Martial Art. I love to read about the origins and evolution of Boxing. Thanks for these contributions, guys. I also feel that it is important to use the mechanics together, from the ground up through the arms, including the hips, to get the power into the technique.

We do some double forearm blocking in our forms and in basics, but we don't do them in our one-steps at all.

That's too bad. But, perhaps he did not have the time to dedicate, with the teaching of his own students? Or not...who knows?

Haha! I just placed my order! Can't wait!!!! :D:D

The morning slot might be your best option. I'd get some suggestions from interested parties, and see if it would work for them.

5-18-09 Push-ups 28, 20, 15 with hands on blocks. I thought I would start week 5 over, on the second column, but after the first set, and an attempt at the second, there was no way I was going to get through it. It doesn't seem like I have made the kinds of gains I would have hoped with this program. I don't know if I'll go back to column one of week 5, or keep trying at column two yet. We'll see. 5-19-09 Weights Bench press: 235x5, 6 fail Row: 200x5, 6 fail Military press: 125x6, 7 fail Lat pull-down: 170x5, 6 fail Curl: 60x5, 6 fail Triceps push-down: 180x6, 7 fail Cable trunk twists: 80x10, 10 Knee lifts: 15, 12

It appears to me, from reading your quote, that you examined things pretty well. I enjoyed reading your quote, and it appeared very informative. I think that part of the problem is that there isn't a lot really known about the roots of Taekkyon. It is said that it was enjoyed among the criminal element of Korea, and gained popularity in that stead during the 19th century. Prior to that, it was claimed to have been a folk game of kicking, and it may have been. During the Japanese occupation, it went "underground," and who knew it and taught it skeptical at best. When you start to read between the lines, you see that it has been used a political tool in Korea to promote the "Korean-ness" of TKD as compared to Karate. So, I think it would be tough to actually determine which Taekkyon is the real deal, and which is knockoff. Aside from that, I would doubt that there is any link to any Taekkyon style and any Capoeira style.

Yes, Karate and Boxing differ in respects to the amount of techniques that each has and uses, but principally, I think that much of the power application and use of combination movements is the same. Also, although the link is to a Boxing workout, I have also seen links of Mr. Rutten putting his hand strikes together with kicking techniques, and vise versa. Boxing and kicking can work well together, too. And before the advent of the heavier gloves in the Boxing of today, Boxing did utilize many more techniques. Even throws were common, and the strategies would have varied somewhat, due to the fact of hitting with bare knuckles rather than gloved hands. I think the body attacking strategy probably ruled more then than it does now.

These two versions here are pretty close to the way that I do it and teach it: 1. Here, especially the target areas and follow through.2.

At one point in time, TKD was exactly that - "Korean Karate." Most of the first TKD masters were teaching a Korean derivative of the Karate they learned while the Japanese still occupied Korea.

That's fantastic! I am going to show it to my wife, and I may order one myself! I still have all my games at my folks' house...

It might be worth checking out. The comic craze has really taken off lately when it comes to the big screen, so I'm not suprised that TV would try to pick up on it, as well.

I didn't realize that they make scabbards for bokkens. A bokken is so much more cumbersome than a blade that I can't imagine what a scabbard for one would feel like. I learned something new.

I think some people just enjoy seeing how much command and control they can exert over another and use the "study of the Martial Way" as their excuse for making them doing silly things like this. Sure, I can see where it would drive one to push through a difficult circumstance and succeed, but, there are more sensible ways of doing this than using curry powder. What if I am allergic to curry? Guess I couldn't be a Martial Artist then, huh?

Welcome to KF!