bushido_man96

Congrats on the promotion. Sometimes, life little twists and turns have an affect on our training, and at times, this can be for the better. Its great to see that you have stuck with it, even with jumping around like you have.

Both ways are viable. I think that covering distance has a bit more practicality than jumping over something, but both are going to be risky to attempt in SD.

I think that the head punch is something that needs to be addressed in TKD training. If you don't train to defend it in sparring, then in actuality, we will likely get hurt. At least it would make Olympic stylists get their darned hands up when sparring.

I'm not sure I follow what your form of double blocking is. If you could elaborate a bit (in English technical terms ), I might be able to see what you are getting at.

I don't think Brian was referring to anything "singularly," Michi, but to what the OP was asking. I like this video (link below) by Bas Rutten on the boxing aspect (but I'd just call it the punching aspect) of MMA, and the stance he refers to as different from the boxer's stance, in that he has to keep his legs useful as weapons--and defendable against attack as well. I think that what he says does have its applications to karate. The URL is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_gq3s3FMsg Thanks for the link, Joe. It shall come in handy... WNM, when I talk about punching "from the ground up," it doesn't mean that one is rooted deeply into the ground, lacking mobility. Nor does it mean that every punch is "one-hit wonder." Although Bas's stance tends to be a bit more flat-footed than what I would use, at about 2:50 in the link above, you can see what I am talking about when I "punch from the ground up." Using the feet to pivot and drive the punches is a big key in developing power, yet one can still stay mobile and evasive. Boxing itself isn't a powerhouse type of art, I would say....just look at the jab, the core punch of Boxing. It isn't used to knock anyone out. Its the strategy shaper of the style. I think that Boxing and Karate might share more here than they do not.

No, I don't put many holes in walls. Just one so far....wife wasn't pleased with that one, either... But, by and large, I don't think it shows a lack of control on either of the emotions. I don't think that if someone should use emotional (or loss thereof) control as an excuse to say they lost control of their actions.

Yeah...Taekwondo-ka just doesn't really roll off the tongue, does it?

I don't buy into the Chi knockouts or "touchless" KOs. Concussions happen when the brain bounces off the wall of the skull from sudden impacts. I don't see this happening without some form of contact. And as far as using other points on the body to cause knockouts, I just haven't seen enough of to buy into them.

The article you have linked to states that it is excerpted from Tao of Jeet Kune Do. I recall the article from the recent issue as well. I also did some reading up on the whole "a punch is just like a punch" thing. The idea is, you learn, then train a lot, and then it is as if you have un-learned, and then " 'it' hits all by itself!" Teri Tom has authored a book titled The Straight Lead, but I have not read it. I am interested in it, though.

I would have liked to seen that fight. I think we will continue to see more and more crossovers like this. It was interesting to read how Cook got into his head, though. You can't discount that mental training.

That's cool, Montana. If you don't mind me asking, was it a larger organization school that gave you the honorary TKD certificate, or a smaller, independent school?

That is pretty cool. Too bad the project busted him...

That is awesome. Just some beautiful footage.

I like your commentary here, and I think that you make a good point. I think Liddell still has some damage left to do, and I would like to see him continue is career. I also can't figure out why the difference between the losses of these fighters. Perhaps the masses have come to expect a certain level of success from Liddell, and he has fallen out of favor with the fans. Maybe not. I say let him keep fighting.

Thanks for the props, Throwdown. I have felt bad lately, because I feel like I am not making enough gains. Its still hard to push up; I feel like it should be getting easier, but oh well. 5-13-09 Weights Power clean: 165x4, 3 Dead lift: 225x10, 6 Safety squat: 225x7, 6 2 partial pull-ups. Cardio Bike: 5@90, 5@100, 5@90, 5@100, 3@90, 2@120+. 25 minutes total. Stretch.

I'd buy that.

I usually experience the instances that you mention in the opening post just about every day that I go to class.

When it comes to breathing in my school, we are told to exhale upon completion of the technique. Other than that, it isn't covered very much. So, I should inhale prior to beginning the step of the technique then....right? In the Chon Ji hyung, the movements are not taught as combinations, and I think that this is because it is tough enough for the white belts to get the moves down, let alone put them into combos. In my explanation in the above post, I would inhale as I chamber the first move of the form, the down block, and exhale as I step out and block. Its a bit tougher to explain without the techniques as landmarks. The next move is a step and punch, so I would inhale quickly, and then exhale as I step and punch. But, as a higher rank, I could take a deeper breath to start with, and exhale as I step to block, and then punch; I actually worked with this on our high orange belt form on a section of 3 consecutive stepping punches, and I noticed a difference. I also worked on it during basics in class the other night, when I was going at my own count. I noticed that I started to outpace the class a bit. How does this sound? Do I appear to be on the right track?

I agree. Power comes from the ground, up through the legs, through the hips, then into the upper body, shoulders, and out through the arms. Also, punching the air will only take you so far. Get to a bag, and work on it there, too. The resistance that a bag provides will help to build strength in technique. If you have access to someone that is skilled in the use of the makiwara, this can be beneficial as well.

I have never been a fan of pressure points, either. They are hit and miss, whereas you know how the elbow works, and it is relatively easy to find as a joint.

It might have to do with whether one studies Aikido or Aikijitsu....just a thought.

In my experience, if you aren't selling what the people want, then they won't buy. I don't intend to use monetary terms here, because I don't think making money should be a sole concern of MA training. But, my point is, if someone sees grappling, and wants to learn grappling, then they aren't going to spend their time at a Karate dojo that doesn't teach grappling. If my daughter wants to run track, then I will put her out for track; not basketball, even though she can do plenty of running there. In the end, I think that these things ebb and flow all the time. A lot of people saw the productivity of BJJ in MMA competition, so many took to it like a duck to water. Now, with the onset of competitors with backgrounds in "traditional" styles, like Georges St. Pierre and Kyokushin, and Lyota Machida with Shotokan, I think people will swing back towards arts like this. Perhaps it shouldn't be this way, but it is one of many different things that influenc MA participation today.

I think that the style of Western Kickboxing that got its start with the point-based Karate tournaments of the early years here in the states. I think some of them tended to be a bit higher in contact level, and then at some point there was a branch where there was "kickboxing" and "point" tournaments. Joe Lewis was a full-contact guy, as was Bill Wallace, I believe. Chuck Norris remained a point fighter. Since then, the two have grown in seperate ways, with Kickboxing becoming its own animal, with more of a sport focus towards competition, but any stylist could/can compete in it.

Very nicely put, Bob. I think Aikido practitioners are called Aikidoka, aren't they?

Hell, I hit walls all the time when I am happy. But it isn't considered out of control then, is it? So, why would it have to be different when hitting a wall out of anger?