bushido_man96

Thanks for the explanation. That helps with visualization a bit.

If I can just jump in on this, JusticeZero (perhaps unintentionally) brings up an interesting point. At the moment the only real arena where fighters are tested is MMA. So you only get experimentation with striking/grappling styles that will fair well under those rules. No Taiji practitioner or Aikido practitioner is going to do particular well in that environment as the styles aren't based around pain compliance and striking. So anyway, my point is because you're not getting that experimentation for competition purposes and apart from a few ambitious individuals, nobody is really trying to mix these styles up and cross-train them with other styles. Does this mean that styles like Taiji and Aikido are a lot more "traditional" because nobody has tried to develop them in a way that would work for a neo-MMAist? I think it would be quite an interesting experiment to take something like Taiji and try to work it into a fighting style. I think that the main issue in MMA competitions is not in trying to experiment with mixing and matching styles to see what we get; the interest is in winning, and naturally, competitors are going to gravitate to that which has been pressure-tested to work with the highest levels of success. In the early days of the UFCs, we saw more of this mix and match idea, and the "style vs. style" set-up. What we see now is what has been born out of that experimentation. I do know that there are some guys who have put different styles together to great effect; Lyota Machida has used his speacial type of Shotokan training mixed with some BJJ to good effect. He likes to fight by maintaining his distance, and assuming total control of distance in the fight. And he is good at it. We have also seen Georges St. Pierre, who I believe is a Kyokushin stylist that has also been doing a lot of Wrestling (he was going to try out for the Canadian Olympic Wrestling team). GSP is less likely to play the distance game, because he is big and strong, and good at ground-and-pound. So, he'll close, bang, and then pummell them. Its just about what you've been exposed to in your training. I have also seen that there is a guy who has done JKD for a long time, and is using it as his fighting style in MMA competitions. He hasn't made it to the level of UFC yet that I know of, but he could be on his way. So that's another perspective. Cung Le, with his extensive San Shou record, and his use of throws, slams, and his kicking repertoire has also shown a different fighting style. Its too bad that he may not continue his MMA career, because I'd really like to see what more he can bring, as far as entertainment value. In closing, you can see that there is plenty of variety in the MMA competitions, you just have to look for it.

That's a shame. From the sound of it, they were trying to make the wraps hard, to heighten the impact of the blows. That's the only thing I can think of. But with the gloves on, I wonder how much it could have helped?

That's cool that you get to work on stuff like that, tallgeese. I'd love to be able to get in on some training like that. I really hope to start getting some range time in soon, too. Just got to get that gun ordered. 2-9-09 100 push-ups Week 4, Day 1: 18, 22, 16, 16, 30 (needed 25) = 102 2-10-09 Gym Bench press: 205x6 Seated cable row: 170x6, fail Military press: 115x7, 8 fail Lat pull-down: 150x8 Machine curl: 50x6 Triceps push-downs: 165x4 Abs Cable crunches: 105x25, 20 Ab wheel: 10 Cardio: Bike for 25 minutes, stretch. TKD class: 6:00 - 7:00. There was an instructor seminar over this last weekend, and it appears that there are some different things that we are going to be doing with basics now. Some of them, I feel, would be more appropriate for higher ranked students, but we'll see how they play out. Being out all last week really showed up in class on Tuesday.

Using the same chamber position can be a good way to confuse an opponent. I also like how he used the same high chamber for both a low or a high kick. If the chamber is going to the same spot, then you can choose where you put the kick, as opposed to chambering only low, where they can be pretty sure that you are going to kick low.

Those are pretty good tips. Don't try to make things complicated, by trying obscure combinations or techniques that you have not yet practiced. Take what you have learned, and make it work for you. A good front leg front kick can help you maintain space. When you get close, the let those hands fly. And, most important, keep your hands up! Good luck, and let us know how it goes.

By "heavier hips," do you mean that they can keep their center lower?

I don't think that MMA will become like Boxing. The rule set give it more flexibility to allow fighters to be different. We will see different approaches at times, like with Machida's ideas and strategies, but I don't think that makes things "new." Like Bruce Lee had said, unless someone grows another arm, we won't see a "new" fighting style. We will see the same things applied in different ways, though.

Just wanted to remind everyone of this upcoming event. Picks are due by 12:00 AM ET on Sunday, March 1st.

Just wanted to remind everyone of this upcoming event. Picks are due by 12:00 AM ET on Saturday, March 7th.

Hello, This event has come to a close. Here are the results of the matches: Joe Lauzon def. Jeremy Stephens, submission Cain Velsaquez def. Denis Stojnic, TKO Josh Neer def. Mac Danzig, submission Anthony Johnson def. Luigi Fioravanti, TKO Kurt Pellgrino def. Rob Emerson, submission Dan Miller def. Jake Rosholt, submission Matt Veach def. Matt Grice, TKO Gleison Tibau def. Rich Clementi, submission Nick Catone def. Derek Downey, submission Matt Riddle def. Steve Bruno, unanimous decision With these results in mind, here are the final standings: 1. pittbullJudoka – 22 (6-4) 2. ShoriKid – 19 (5-5) 3. bushido_man96 – 17 (5-5) Congratulations to pittbullJudoka! Full standings: KarateForums.com MMA Picks 2009 Thank you to everyone who participated.

Maybe he'll get a discount now, with all the publicity he is providing for the game manufacturers. What a deal! I have heard a lot about the game, but never played it.

Truly spectacular. It serves to remind us how small we really are.

None that I can think of, ever.....

It looked like he started that from seated on the toliet..... I thought the fooseball table was a nice touch.

These weapons may have an advantage with concealment, but I think that is where the advantage ends. I would rather use a tool that was designed as a weapon, as opposed to something that was originally a farm tool. The modernization of the kama doesn't make it more effective than a sword as a weapon of war. When it comes down to it, if a daimyo had to decide whether to arm his soldiers with a spear, or with kamas and said, they would have chosen the spear, without much thought. It was designed as a weapon, and is a very good weapon.

Ok. ... more stable to grip and not stable to survive... The two-handed grip/stance is very good to "survive" from. It has been used for years and years, and is still trained that way, from LEOs up through the military for firearms training. Even military guys who retired and now train RBSD systems advocate the use of the two-handed grip.

We started off with working on using the forearms as a form of striking, and worked it a little bit from the statue drill that Hock's system uses. We also did some striking on BOB. We were going to have everyone do a minute on BOB, but we nixed it for this time, but will revisit that idea later on. We also worked on a relaxed "fence" type of position, to get them ready to react. We did a towel-snatching drill, that helped to illustrate being behind the reaction curve. That opened up some eyes. From there, we worked on the wrist twist throw/takedown, the one commonly called kote gashi in Japanese MA parlance. Then, we did the arm bar. We worked both from a one-handed push and a two-handed push. We did a little bit from a strike, but not too much. After introducing both of these, we were able to show them that no matter which way that they end up grabbing hold of someone's wrist, they either have the wrist twist, or the arm bar to get to. We worked on the hammerlock after that. With each of the techniques, we made sure that they spent time just aquiring the grips on the hand. We did at least ten on each side, making sure that they were getting a really strong hold on the hand. Good for building the muscle memory. In the end, everyone got to take me down a couple of times, so everyone enjoyed that a lot. Coming back to work tonight, I got a few emails from some of the other officers, stating how much they liked the training, and they would like to see more of it. So, hopefully, it'll become a "thing."

I agree...it is about the options for follow up and the intentions of the situation that dictate which to use. Students will get more skilled at determining this as they gain experience but until then set drills and predetermined scenarios give them food for thought. Yeah. With the TKD sparring, the opportunity to grap anything isn't allowed, and the closed hands keeps me from getting my fingers jammed up by hard kicks. However, if I could seize while sparring, I would probably open them a lot more.

This is true. Open hands look a lot nicer in court, if things happen to show up on cameral.

That's a cool lineup. Its cool to see how some that wasn't always called Marvel or Detective Comics.

On a side note, I think something that should be taken into consideration is that these tools became weapons through necessity. Therefore, they don't represent the ideal when it comes to weaponry. If you would ever have the chance, using a utensil that is designed to be a weapon, like a sword, or knife, or firearm, is going to give you the most bang for your buck.

Many of the Filipino styles are the opposite; you learn with a weapon in hand first, and then work back to empty hand.

I agree. It is common to expect so much of ourselves. Good luck with the follow up session. Keep us informed.