bushido_man96

I agree. Well said.

I don't wear anything under my uniform, and I never have a problem with rashes. Do you have more of an issue with rashes, from the nature of practice of BJJ? Perhaps due to more contact?

I don't think that the Gracies were trying to earn respect that way. I think that they just wanted to prove a point with their system, and they did that. In the process, their attitude that they would play in anyone's house ended up earning respect for them. They didn't say "respect me," they said "fight us, then say and do what you will." Welcome to the Forums!

In this case, I would not necessarily respect them, if I didn't feel that they deserve it, no matter their rank. However, because of the "necessities" that the practice of Eastern Martial Arts usually dictates that you bow to higher ranks, then I would most likely do so, but only if I absolutely had to. Even then, however, it would not be out of respect. If I am at a tournament or some large gathering, with lots of black belts, I don't spend a lot of time just bowing at every high rank that I see or that walks by me. Agree. Basically my sentiments above.

Thanks, all.

Well done!

This name is new to me. I had not heard of it before. See what you can find out about it for us. That would be cool.

This may be more due to that practitioner's skill level, in comparison to the amount of time that you have been training, and the level that you train for (if he is an MMA fighter, he is probably getting a considerable amount more training). So, don't get discouraged.

I didn't think that Tai Chi was a type of Kung Fu, really. On the other hand, doesn't Wushu mean "Martial Arts?"

Haha! Me or any submission grappler would be licking our lips at seeing lapels that big - aloha collar chokes! You vultures, you!!!

I agree. When I bow, I don't even really think of it as respectful; just more like a handshake. One thing that I can't stand is when someone expects you to bow, and if you don't, they get all red-faced, and then want to attempt to make you bow, somehow.

I got the official word at class tonight: I passed!

I agree that he didn't want to compete. However, this kind of competition may have been more geared to Lee's ideals. But, that is neither here nor there, and we are left with what he has said: most likely not.

Well, some are ambidexterous, and can use both equally well. As far as the dominant side is concerned, I think you can train yourself to not be so reliant on a dominant side. It just takes time. The younger that you do this, the better, and the easier it is as an adult.

Personally, no. But if you watch the movie Budo: The Art of Killing (1978) it shows a guy split an apple core the long way with a spearhand strike Cool. I have never heard of that movie before. I broke one of those really flimsy 1/4 inch thick boards with a spear hand once. It felt cool, but it really wasn't anything to be impressed with. It would probably look cool in a demo, though.

I agree completely. It is not a good idea to force those who cannot teach well to do so. However, I do believe that everyone should get some training on the nuances of teaching, and experience it at least once, as an assistant, of course. After that, the student should decide what they can or want to do. I do know that some styles require teaching to be done on some level for higher rank promotion. I am not sure that this is a good thing or not, but I do kind of agree that those of higher ranks should be able to relate their skills to those of lower rank who need and ask for assistance.

This is exactly what I'm getting at. Martial arts, at their core, are about being able to defend yourself. Having respect for oneself or others does not dictate how skilled or good one is at martial artist or not. Now if you were to say, "I believe a good human being is. . .", that would something I completely agree with. I agree as well. I had been thinking about these quotes below as well: I think it is also possible to respect someone that you do not like. There are people that I do not care for at all, but I do respect them for a level of knowledge that they have, or for being a certain skill level, and for the work that they have done to get to that level, etc. You can also be polite to someone without liking them or respecting them.

Yes, very important, indeed!

Hey, its all good! It stimulates a natural conversation. We could go anywhere with this. On a related technical note, has anyone ever broken a board with a spearhand strike?

Watching the first episode now. This is pretty good, too. I really like seeing these indigenous fighting styles. Learning a bit about these cultures is kind of cool, too. Whoa! The scraping the bodies, and then rubbing in salt and peppers, would hurt like hell! Crazy! I actually like how they selected guys from all kinds of different disciplines. I can't wait to see the stick fighting episode next week.

10-4-07 Traditional Class: 6:10 - 7:15. A good class. I learned all of my new form tonight. Sparring also went well. I was pleased. The instructor told me to quit backing up, and to stay and kick in more combinations. It worked well.

I have done this for years, and have not had much of a problem. Tumble dry on a medium heat. No worries.

Yep, you are right.

Also known as knifehand strike, swordhand, edge-of-hand attack. I am sure there are others as well. I think that at some point during the initiation of the Eastern Martial Arts into Western culture, the "chop" must have been one of the first techniques witnessed as a board break, and it snow-balled from there.