bushido_man96

At this testing we had a white belt, a high orange belt, a low blue belt, and a recommended black belt testing. Overall, I saw good things from all the students. I saw good technique from top to bottom (rank appropriate, of course), and improvements are coming along as I would expect. White belts: all kids, and they were pretty nervous. I’d seen them all do their form in class well, but here at testing the nerves showed up. Their first run-through of Chon Ji hyung was all over the place. We reset them, talked with them, and I had them all take a deep breath and let it out, and had them go a second time. In their first run, they all botched up the second half of the form. On the second go, they all did much better. And they all handled the one-steps pretty well. Their memory is good, they just need to be more confident in themselves. High Orange belt: I saw a need to get more fully into stance, especially after turning into a front stance. Just stepping a little too shallow. There was also some confusion on crossing arms inside or outside based off whether the technique was a block or a strike. Otherwise, good technical execution. I’d like to see more power. On a side note this was one of the twins that tested. I was surprised they both didn’t test, as I figured they’d hang together in rank. But this may be good for both of them. Low Blue belt: Good technique. It will get better as the student learns to relax the shoulders and hips more to generate power in the strikes. I saw knife hand blocks that looked more like strikes (extended too far). In both the forms and one-steps, I saw points where foot position was not quite right for side kicks and follow-up kicks in combination. Pre-pivots can help here, along with focusing on where a kick lands and how the foot lands to be in better position for the next kick. In sparring, she was getting more kicking worked in, better combinations. Great to see! Recommended Black belt: lots of good stuff here. To start the testing off, the student had to read aloud the essay required for the rank, answering three questions. I was encouraged, as the student stated he did not plan on quitting after getting his black belt, as he had previously told me his plan was. I’m encouraged, but we’ll see what happens. The low rank forms looked good, done the way a black belt should do them. I saw some shuffle stepping, or “sugar-footing” on stance transitions, but this can be worked on. He got all the forms done, and all the one-steps. For board breaking, a lack of body alignment showed up, and this has been addressed in class, so it’s up to him now to start fixing it. Observations for the overall testing: when doing the 270 and 180 degree turns, the higher ranks especially need to not stop-step when turning. They need to focus on the whole transition happening in one step and keeping the stepping foot close to the base foot when turning in order to retain balance better and make foot placement much easier. Sitting back in back stances more is needed. I told the students when they are sparring, if they keep doing the same thing and getting blocked, it’s time to change it up! For final comments, the main point I made was that I enjoy testings a lot, because they not only show us where the students are in their progression, but it also shows us as instructors what we need to focus on in class in order to correct the things we see. It tests us as well as them. Finally, the CI handed out new rank, and all the black belts came up and addressed the new black belt on our experience in hitting that rank, and how it was kind of a new beginning, and what was in store going forward. Me and the CI kind of both had the same thoughts; I told him he now had to make the decision to either be someone who got a black belt once, or he could say that he is a black belt by continuing his training. I also mentioned that he was at a point where he could say he’s someone who does TKD, or he could become a Martial Artist, and told him to think about that. Overall, another enjoyable test. Unfortunately, my work schedule shifts to afternoons with weekends off, so I won’t be getting to TKD class for a couple of months, unless something weird happens with the schedule. So I’ll be the absentee instructor for a while.

Congrats, @Wado Heretic! Your posts are always informative and inciteful.

The draft was something else, wasn't it? Honestly, other than the Shedeur Sanders slide, I don't think it was too nuts. I'm pleased with the Chief's haul.

I think it's a combination of things; the desire to pass things onto others, along with having the time and resources available to do so. Possessing the ability to teach well is another strong point.

Those were the good ole days.

I would add a little subtle comment to this; figure out how to train around minor injuries and not make things worse.

I think the evolution of stances as the way we see them in forms/katas now has more to do with aesthetics than actual practicality when using techniques. I agree that stances should be seen as the means for transitioning between techniques or generating power in techniques. I see more and more applications of this as I train in Aikido, which is not concerned about static stances, but the movements required to get from point A to point B.

This is a good thought, but I think the early UFC's pretty much quashed this theory. And the body is quite resilient. I'd consider myself a rather decent puncher. I know how to generate power from the ground up, I know how to use my hips to add power to a punch, etc. But I've got too teenage boys that are experienced wrestlers, and are also offensive/defensive football lineman. They know how to close, how to take someone down, and how to keep them there. Assuming you can knock someone out with one punch that is actively in defense mode and skilled at takedowns is a recipe for humble pie.

I agree with @sensei8. To assume this is to assume many things, especially the skill of each stylist, and the nature of the encounter. There are too many variables to consider this blanket statement to be true.

4/17/2025 Got my head squared away enough to make a dojo session. Aikido: 8:50 - 9:50 am. Just me and the Sensei, so after getting the mats squared away, we did some internals work very briefly, and went into katatatori shionage omote. We worked a lot on the hand placement and getting the wrist secured properly, then focused on distancing, the level at which to keep the uke's arm up, and then the "cutting" aspect of securing the arm, and the cutting action in the takedown. Also focus on connection to center. One technique for an hour, and it was great work. I struggle with shionage, so this kind of focus was great.

I've had several lapses in training over the years. Some due to school, some due to family obligations, some due to what I perceived to be burnout. Each time I came back, I recalled how much it meant to me, and valued it even more. Now, due to health issues, I have been experiencing intermittent lapses, more like from week to week as opposed to months at a time. They still suck. But every time I get into train, I value it even more.

My concern is that I don't want a Martial Artist giving me thoughts and advice on "strength training." Unless they have certain certifications, I won't really respect their thoughts and approaches on what they consider "strength training." I know what it means to me, and if I really want to focus on strength training, I'll make the time to get under the bar at the gym and strength train. I don't want to go to a Martial Arts class where I'm paying money to learn Martial Arts and do 20 minutes of HIIT that I can do on my own time. Those are my thoughts.

Good points, too, @ryanryu. On a side note, at our recent testing when this kid I mentioned read his essay aloud, he stated he doesn't plan to quit, he plans to keep going. So we'll see what we've got now.

That might be a bit too far....but I'd love it!

That's great to hear, @aurik! Congratulations!

I wouldn't necessarily go that far; my guess is that you just haven't yet experienced the type and approach to Karate that you are looking for. There are some other styles out there that are more self-defense/bunkai oriented that might provide you exactly what you are looking for.

I think this is fantastic! Weight classes exist for a reason, and why complicate things more than they need to be?

This, exactly. I've heard it called "long-bridge" boxing, and seeing concepts of it some time ago very much reminded me of some concepts I've seen in the sticking hands exercises of some traditional Kung-Fu methods. I'd also agree that injuries would occur. Broken ribs, liver shots, kidney shots, all not great for continued training. Furthermore, it limits actual Karate even further, even more than the adoption of the sparring rules and focus in Shotokan, Kyuokushin, and even TKD. Although the sportive aspects of sparring can be very much fun to do, when they become the sole focus of application, then there's a rich amount of material that is being left out. With all that said, I commend you for thinking outside the box and presenting this topic. It really opens up things for discussion on approaches to training, which is always great. Welcome to KF, glad to have you here!

4/10/2025 Aikido: Morning Class: 8:50 - 9:50 am. We went right into technique work. Shomenuchi kokyonage omote: I did better keeping my center lower and pulling the uke's head to me. Getting the step deep behind on the entry was a helpful point of focus. I found I did not need a big turn to finish the throw, just a good step back did the trick. Shomenuchi iriminage omote: This technique has almost the same entry as the previous technique; the same depth of step behind, but not quite as close. I need to put the focus more on the striking arm, as it is hooked and pulled around (for lack of better description) and brought to my center. From there, its working into the tenkan/tenkan/tenkan, doing several of them to work them into that position of being off-balance and their head back behind their hips, and doing it smoothly. I tend to tenkan, stop, tenkan, stop, instead of keeping the smoothness and transfer into the next one. From there, we added the feed of the head into the crook of the elbow. Then, get the center pointed to them/across their shoulders to finish the takedown. So after going through these two techniques, Sensei talked to us about different teaching styles; the one above, where we really spent time breaking down and working a piece at at time, and the alternative, which is just getting demonstration on a technique and then going with less breakdown and lots more reps. My preference was that I liked a mix of both approaches. He said the advantage to the more break-down style is that he shows more of the expectations of higher level students doing the techniques. He's not concerned with us not getting it; if he thought it was beyond us, he wouldn't do it, but our small group was pretty attentive and good with working on the details. So the next technique we did, he just demonstrated and then we did reps with little discussion in between. Katatatori nikkyo: less focus on the little things. Doing it this way, we got a lot more reps of the technique done in a much shorter amount of time. And it kind of made me think of things on my own and not get them fed to me. So both approaches are great, in my opinion. TKD Testing: 6:00 - 8:00 pm. We had a little bit bigger group testing tonight, and the recommended black belt was testing, which made things a little longer. I'll delve more into thoughts and details when I post my testing reflections later. But I saw lots of good things, and as always, things to improve. One note I was happy about, is that the rec black belt in his essay that he read aloud to us stated he did not plan on quitting. I was very pleased to hear this, and hope he really does stay with it. We'll see what happens. At the end of testing, when I usually end up talking too much, I mentioned how I enjoy testings, because they not only test the students, but it also test us as instructors about what we need to do to help them make the improvements we want to see. So it's always a learning opportunity. When it was over, the CI presented the new rank to the testers, and we as black belts each gave a little nugget to the newly minted black belt about what to look forward to. The CI and I both had similar thoughts; now's the time to decide if you will be someone who was a black belt, or someone who is a black belt. I also expanded to think about being someone who "does TKD" or who "is a Martial Artist."

I know how that goes, @aurik, dealing with inconsistency in training. I've been fighting that the past few months. Every now and then I have a good week, but more often than not it seems I have bad weeks with a good day here and there. I have to pace myself in classes, too. As we get older, we just have to figure out how to manage our time and energy better. It's tough, for sure.

The competition committee has been busy the last few years, and I think some of it was sparked by some of the XFL rules; kickoff rules, for example. Then there were the gripes about OT and both teams getting possessions in the playoffs. Andy Reid was actually in favor of that change, even though they benefited from the previous format. If they league goes to an 18-game season, it'll be at the expense of another preseason game. I can see another bye week being added. But adding another playoff game would be a bad idea. At that point, the league starts to get watered down, and sub .500 teams will make the playoffs regularly. I also heard rumblings for changes in playoff seeding, where division winners with worse records won't necessarily be awarded a home game. I'd like this change, because I don't think a 6 loss division winner should be seeded higher than a 4 loss team in a tougher division. We'll see what happens.

4/4/2025 Aikido: 1:30 - 3:00 pm. We had a guest instructor in today, and it was fun to see his perspectives and class approach. We did aikitaisos, then we stood in stance and the Sensei would call out step forward or slide forward, then we'd do it back. Then he had us close our eyes while doing it. This affects me much more now than it used to. We also did some tai sabaki shomen strikes against the attacker coming forward with shomen. First two went outside the attack, to the head and then to the wrist, and the other two were to the inside of the attack, to the head then the wrist. Then it was lots of technique work: Shomenuchi kokyunage ura: I must remember to bring my elbow down to help finish. Shomenuchi iriminage with tenkan: I need to not step away as I feed the uke's head into the crook of my elbow. I also need to focus on keeping my center down throughout the entire technique. Shomenuchi Iriminage: This one was different. We stepped inside and at an angle did an arc hand placement on the chin of the uke, and push their head backwards to break their balance. I see the block/strike we do in our white belt #2 and #3 one-steps here. And I can either step in at the angle or back at the angle, and block with the shomen with the free hand if need be. It has a very intercepting vibe to it, and like it. I will play with this application in those TKD one-steps. Katatatori nikkyo with pin: From same side lapel grab. Here the guest Sensei talked about uke staying engaged and "in the fight" to an extent so that nage has to get the technique right and not have it given to him. This was a good class. I had to get up slowly from the falls so as not to aggravate my head and get dizzy. Made it work, and working with the guest Sensei and the other black belt he brought with them was fun. I really wished we would have had a chance to sit and chat for a while, but perhaps next time.

I don't think it's a lost art. I think it's just that fewer find the true meaning of it.

Congrats, @crash!

Welcome to KF!