bushido_man96

I can see what you are saying, and I don't think that it is wrong. I just try not to get too romanticized about the Martial Arts in general. We are all human, and we all have vices. We do need to find a way to attack these things and deal with them, and try to become better people. However, I don't look to one thing or another to "become a better person." I can do that on my own; then, whatever I choose to do, I look good doing it, because I try to be a good person. Does that make sense?

I understand your concerns here, and I think that they are valid. However, when schools don't spend some time on these things, we end up with Martial Artists that are not in good enough shape to hold a fight, which lessens the quality of the student. A happy medium would be if you can keep the warm-up "sport-specific" so that it ends up doubling as an applicable MA workout. That way, it serves a dual purpose. At my school, we spend between 15 and 20 minutes doing basics. These are very tiring, and I always get a good sweat going. However, we don't spend time stretching as a class, and I have noticed that this has hurt my flexibility to an extent. It could be related to the fact that I am just getting older, as well. I do stretch on my own while others do forms at times, or after class, which helps some, but I could use more.

I have seen and dealt with the Black Belt Club mess; I don't get too worked up about it. What I need to see is the content of the "club."

I think that around 15 to 20 minutes should be put towards a good warm-up session. Now, if you are good, you can make the warm-up class-related, as in a good session of basics/kihon.

Thought I would pull this one out of the cellar, because I have found a new interest in reading: One of my wife's co-workers bought a Clive Cussler novel, titled Raise the Titanic!, and once I started reading it, I could not put it down. Now, I have read like 6 more of his books, the Dirk Pitt adventures, and I love them. I have enjoyed them so much that I have put some of the MA reading on hold....

I picked up a copy each of Dreamsongs; both volumes. Looking through V. 2, I spied that The Hedge Knight is included in it! Hoorah! How do I include it in my blog now?

Man, that's rough, Kez. Some people just get thrill by committing crimes, and making things rough on people. I hope that it becomes easier to trap these guys eventually.

2-14-08 Traditional TKD Class: 6:00 - 7:00. A good class. At the end, we did a drill where we do 1 technique, back and forth (usually kicks) with a partner. This time, we put pads on, and made contact. In the process, I got a nice clean hook kick to the face! I thought I saw a round or side kick, and it transformed on me! Good stuff, though.

That sounds about right.

Hmmm, non-contact, non-fighting sounds a lot like non-Martial Art. I don't see how it can be beneficial. I am sure his movement exercises may be sound, however, it sounds like it may give people a false sense of confidence when it comes to self-defense.

Yes, I do think students & parents think a BB instructor is more qualified than a colored belt instructor. It's like having a teaching assistant teach a college course vs. the professor. And yes, hopefully the BB is able to teach. This is about the right track. The main thing is the perception. Many think that the quality is the difference.

I am not familiar with these. Can you explain more?Oh, something I missed on the last chapter...the Red Keep was mentioned to have many secrets, and that no one knows all of the secrets, except Maegor, I think. And he had all of the builders executed upon completion. Maegor, the Mad, I think... We learn this with Varys a bit later.

I have read several articles on this relatively new Korean style. Apparently, the moves are designed to be more efficient and easier for the body to perform, but I don't know much about it. Has anyone else heard of this style, or had any experience with it?

I prefer "TKD stylist..." hehe...

Congrats to your daughter!

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing that. The movements seem so subtle, but when they stand and hold the position, you see how far off line the defender really is.

I like this idea. I may play with this one myself.

This makes sense, as the kata names tend to be proper names, and so are referred to more often by these Japanes names.

I think that people fight differently. Some will be prone to longer combinations, and others to shorter combinations. Exploring and deciding is great for training.

I don't know if I would concern myself with making a blocking kata, or any other katas in general. Not that you can't, but I just don't think I would. I would prefer to use some basic floor drills to get the motions down, and then go directly to partner application drills. I think that will benefit the blocking aspects more than a kata would.

I had not head of the "poison hand" before. I would think that as long as you can keep your joints from hyperextending when locking the movements, that any excess speed would not hurt the body. As with anything, proper training is important.

What is important is what fighting actually looks like, when it comes down to it...and I don't mean in competition. It won't always be beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. It will most likely be ugly and brutal.

I agree with this. I don't think that it should be a requirement for an MA school to shape the morals of people. That should already be done. I don't think it is bad to do it, and I don't think they should teach people wrong, and to be pains to society. However, I do think it is over-presented at times.

I agree with Cross here. Many RBSD styles are very well oriented to providing ideas on training in small time frames to become proficient at self-protection. Instead of learning a form, and then applying the moves, just learning applications is quicker.

Did you mean me, Zanshin? Wow, maybe people are getting to know me too well.... However, I do feel very strongly about this statement. With this said, however, different styles can offer different methodologies and approaches to combat, which can be very beneficial. Seeing the same thing presented in a different way can be very eye-opening. I do like the idea of mixing styles, because, as many have said, many styles fail to be all-inclusive. I do think that a stand up style and a grappling style mixed together do a pretty good job of covering all the bases. However, an MMA style, or Pankration, usually cover both. With that said, if another style strikes your fancy, then you should look into it, to see what it offers. I think that there is a lot of truth in this statement. Sometimes, it is good to break out of the box that you may be in, so that you can see how some other styles approach things.