bushido_man96

Thanks, Josh. That information helps to elaborate further upon what I have read on the Moo Duk Kwan TKD/TSD connections. You also state that the Chang Moo Kwan was basically the evolution of the Kwon Bop Bu...right?

Have you looked into any of Iain Abernethy's work? He delves into katas quite a bit, and has done extensive research on the applications.

This is good advise here. I think often times we are too stuck on not wanting to look like the weeney in class, complaining too much about contact levels and whatnot. However, we all need to remember the adage: "check your ego at the door." By doing so, we can prolong our training time much more. We should all try to train hard, but also train smart. As above, give this guy a chance before speaking with the instructor. Some poeple don't know their own strength, and this could be a case of that. Its great to be able to see both sides here. Thanks for sharing your experiences, both of you.

Ok. Philospical time for bushido_man! Can you see the smoke? I can.....so here we go. Many styles of MA will tout the improvements in these 3 phases of your being. The physical improvements are obviously the ones that translate the most, and are more readily visible and noticeable. My question to all is to what extent have your received or sought out training to improve the other two areas; Mind and Spirit? Do you actively seek them out? Do you feel the need to get results in these two areas as well for your MA training to be fulfilling and acceptable? I'll stave an overly extensive answer for now, but will give a short "no" for the time being. What say you, oh KF community???

You make a good case for the rear naked choke, MMA_Jim.

I tend to agree with tallgeese here. I do think that mastering an art or system can take a lifetime; learning effective self-defense should not. So, in the end, your goals are what determine the route of your journey. If you would like to master Karate, then focus on it, and devote your life to it. If you feel it is one piece to the whole of your training, then branch out. However, I would caution for a bit of moderation here....I wouldn't want to really just take a piece here and a piece there and then put it all together. But, looking at a standup style, and perhaps a ground style, can help to even things out, and not spread yourself too thin.

Thanks for the response, ps1. With your response in mind, I pose these questions for you: Do you still carry the warrior mind set with you, ps1? Or do you leave it behind? Or is it really something that you can leave behind, once it is in you? Reading your statement above, do you feel that being a warrior has more to do with the situation that you are in as opposed to the mindset? Thanks ahead of time for your thoughts. I always appreciate them. I also want to note that I have the greatest respect for our sevice men and women. I applaud them all. I have always had respect for our soldiers. Now, I have been reading On Killing, by Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, and I respect them even more.

I call it pop here in KS. Although I do know what soda is.

Michael Vick as #1. Who would have thought. It really shows how much being able to run on Madden is worth.

I don't really think so. I think that MMA fans are tired of his attitude. I could be wrong, though; after all, Trump is no dummy. He must know something I don't. However, Ortiz is expected to work on the "back end" of things, too. In this area, I think he could be very knowledgable. He could probably set up something that is entertaining, to say the least. As a fighter, though, I think his day is done.

I don't know for sure. If they were paying monthly, and had a schedule like that, I would probably work with them. However, I would want to stress consistent class participation for best results. However, I too have a life, and realize that this isn't always possible. In the end, we should do the MAs because we want to, and love it; not because an instructor tells us we should have to. At the same time, if you have inconsistent class attendance, then you can't expect to be invited to every test.

I wish you well and a quick recovery.

I think that there are all kinds of possiblities with leg kicks for TKD. We have the high kicks down. Even for a heavy guy, I have pretty good flexibility, and can do a 4 board round kick break at head level. I would like to practice some of the Karate style leg sweep set ups for use in the Combat Hapkido system. With the close quarters in that system, I think that they would work so well.

I think you are right, DWx...not many side snap kicks in TKD. If you only kick waist high or lower, then you don't really need to pivot as much. However, the higher you kick, the more you need to pivot the base leg foot to open the hips more. If you don't pivot the base foot heel around, then you will find yourself leaning your body in the direction the base foot is pointing. At this point, your body is not behind your kick, and you will lose stability and impact resiliance. Pivot your foot around all the way; I think you will find that it works better for you.

Not as long as you properly condition your hands and fingers. It isn't something that I would focus on, but it is a cool feat to see.

I honestly feel that the difference between sport arts and combat arts tend to be more related to the training methodology than anything else. I think that many would view JKD as a very combative style, but there is a guy who now competes in MMA competitions (his name escapes me now, but I will find it) and trains in JKD. Its all about adapting the training to suit your needs, I think.

I don't think that not fearing death is what it takes to be a warrior. I do think that having to deal with the fact that you could die doing what you do should be a part of it. I think that police and firemen could fall into that category. After all, a fireman has to go into a burning building at times; very good chance of death there. Police can be faced with the same dangers at times, too. A few of the officers around here have faced things like this; my dad has, as well. Speaking of Gladiators, especially in ancient Rome, one of the combatants was almost certain to die. That would probably make them both warriors.

That's a valid point to make, but at the same time, I wouldn't want to dance with a guy that big, either. Taking a knee might be a safer bet.

Pretty cool. Kudos to him; he is pretty handy.

He did say no ranged weapons........so sword and shield would be your bet, I think.

I try to be aware when I am out and about, like when we walk as a family. If I see dogs out, I'll put myself between the dog and my youngest. I'll walk on the side of the walk that is close to the curb, and keep the kids on the inside. I try to just think of little things like that to just be aware.

That does look pretty good.

Not a good choice, in my opinion. He is really far from the best fighter out there; there are other fighters out there that are more worth the money. I wouldn't be surprised if he lost his first fight with Trump in charge. I just don't think he is that great, as far as MMA fighters go now.

Its just one of those things. You will see hyper-flexible people who can stretch beyond the splits, but don't have the leg and core strength to kick above their waest or head. Then, you see really strong-legged individuals who aren't flexible enough to kick over their waists. Everyone is a bit different, and will have to take a different focus when it comes to strength and flexibility training.

Anytime! 8-6-08 Today I spent around 15 minutes on a 40 lbs hanging bag, mainly working my hands. Combat Hapkido: 7:15 - 8:15. Worked on the yellow belt stuff a bit; around a half hour. After that, we did some mitt striking and low kicking, and I took some good ones off my legs. I liked it. We hit both the inside and the outside of the lead leg. Our TKDers don't get a lot of work on kicking low, so it was different for them. Later on, we worked on some really different leg sweeping stuff. I am not sure if I would use it, unless some guy was kicking at my head, but it was fun. Kind of tore my knees up, though.