bushido_man96

I don't get to watch much of The Ultimate Fighter series, so I don't keep up on all that goes on there. Most of the fights that I have seen usually have good sportsmanship involved. I can remember one of the earlier UFCs where Tank Abbot demonstrated some not-so-good sportsmanship, but that was a long time ago.

The Korean arts are usually known for their extravagent kicking techniques. Korea claims the rights to an art called Tae Kyon, which is an indigenous kicking art. I have never seen much on the style, but it may have been similar to what Caporiea stylists do, but without as many handstands and flips. At one point in its history, it was considered a game, and not entirely a fighting art. However, the high kicks of arts like TKD and TSD are said to spring from this style. General Choi began his martial arts training with Tae Kyon as a child, and Grand Master Bong Soo Han was known as a great kicker as well, which could have been attributed to his knowledge of Tae Kyon as well. I do think that Tae Kyon may have played at least some small part in the development of the Korean styles' high kicking and spin kicking. The usefulness and efficiency of these kicks will always be questioned, but these kicks do add a flair to these arts that make them Korean. Does anyone have any additional information on the art of Tae Kyon, what it consisted of, and how it was done? Does anyone else feel that Tae Kyon played a role in distinguishing TKD and TSD and SBD from Karate?

I have been doing some reading in Black Belt Magazine (again!) and came across an article that discussed the 3 facets of grappling. They were divided into pain-compliance, breaking, and choking techniques. I don't know why, but I had never thought to break them up like that before, but it makes good sense. Different techniques would have different levels of priority, depending on the situation. For example, with my job as a Jailer, I would be more likely to stay in the realm of pain-compliance techniques, in order to coerce inmates to go where I want them too, causing pain, but not damaging anything permanently. If I were to do upgrade to breaking and choking, I would have to be able to articulate why I did so, and be able to prove that the inmate was a danger to myself and others. In the UFC, I think that it is breaking, or more appropriately, the threat of the breaking, and choking that reign supreme. What is everyone's elses experiences with the these 3 ranges of grappling? Do you agree or disagree? Which would you find the most appropriate for what you do and why? Since I have very limited knowledge and experience in grappling, I always appreciate everyone's input.

Bunkai is one of the most prominent areas of Karate that I have been exposed to since I joined the KarateForums a little over a year ago. It may be hard for some of you to believe, but I had never heard of the term before I joined here. Fear not, however! Once I learned of the existence of bunkai, I endeavored to find out more about it. I have, and really haven't been disappointed. What I have learned has been mostly through the readings of Iain Abernethey, who seems to be the leading proponent of what he refers to as "Applied Karate." I have also stumbled upon some other stylists who seem to fall into this category as well, inlcuding Stuart Paul Anslow, who has done similar research in the art of Taekwon-Do, which I have found to be very helpful, being a TKD guy myself. It appears that there are some practitioners of Isshin Kempo that are in the same mode as the two men listed above. Apparently, there were some practitioners who decided to delve deeper into the forms of the style, in order to extract the self-defense interpretations of the style. William S. Russel was one who began exploring his art in this way (he founded Isshin Kempo in 1970), and seems to be a forerunner to the work that Abernethey and Anslow did for their styles. Do you think that delving into such intricate levels of bunkai is beginning to re-emerge in many to the "traditional" arts of which forms are a major part of the curriculum? Is the bunkai a legitimate translation of the forms we study, or is it a more recent product of extensive analysation of katas, saying, "oh, yeah, this could be this, and it could work"??? What is everyone's opinion on this? Either way, I think that bunkai is a good thing. I don't think it is detrimental in anyway to training. It is good to let the creative juices mix it up from time to time.

Welcome to the Forums!

No problem, Patrick. I'll check with my mother within the next few days.

4-24-07 Back/Biceps/Shoulders Wide grip pull-down: 100x10, 110x8, 120x6 Back hyperextensions: 3x12 Pull ups: 3 going up 1/2 way; 3 going up 1/4 way Dumbell hang clean and jerk: 35x6 Dumbell power clean and jerk: 35x10, 40x6 This was an interesting exercise, and I am going to try to evaluate it more, and see what I can do with it. Abs: Physio-ball sit-ups: 3x30 This was very different as well. Hanging knee raises: 3x12

Doing the ab exercises and push-ups will help you with your daily tasks as well as assisting you with your preparation with Karate, so doing them is not a bad idea at all. Also, hopping on that multi-gym will benefit you as well. I would do both of those, when you can. You can also use them to supplement your Karate training once you get started.

That is a good idea, ps1. By staggering the days that are taken off, it will also help to keep the body from getting into a rut. The change up in schedule will keep it fresh and sharp.

Our school also supports the "blocks are strikes, and strikes are blocks" maxim in our approach to training. However, you can also find the soft side of TKD in forms and self-defense training as well.

Which materials are taken from other styles? Which styles are they taken from? I think that this can be said about many Japanese and Korean styles, if you feel that the root of the Martial Arts in Asia is due to the influence of Boddiharma, coming from India to China and teaching the monks (I am not saying that I do believe that...I am just throwing it out there). The same could be said of Tang Soo Do. What theory and philosophy are you discussing here? The tenets of the Hwarang Do are prevalent in many of the TKD schools that I have been a part of. Would you be willing to share some of the traditions and philosophies that Tang Soo Do carry? I am sure that there are some differences, but that is to be expected when comparing any number of art forms.

That is a good deal. I am considering working on it as well. For now, I will just work on it with my brother and another partner in our own training sessions. Later on, though, who knows? Maybe I'll get the opportunity to share it with others.

Do you practice any Ho Sin Sul with your colored belt students?

Cung Le fights in the UFC? I had not seen his name on any of the cards lately. Or are you just talking about MMA in general. I know that he has been in some MMA competitions, but not the UFC ones (to my knowledge, anyhow).

I think that ps1 has hit the nail on the head. Oyama's influence on the Martial Arts can still be seen today. There are many aspects to the Martial Arts. Technique is one of them. There are many others, depending on your viewpoints. I know how bad my knees feel now, with only 14 years of experience in. I can only imagine how some of the older masters feel every day.

I agree, and that is just the way it is in life in general. I know that the Chiefs/Raiders games wouldn't mean half as much if the rivalry wasn't what it is today. The rivalrys are a good thing for the sport. It keeps fans interested, which is what helps to drive the sport. Good post, straightblast.

Oh, how things have changed, eh?

It really depends. The only problem that I see is that you won't be giving your body any rest and recovery time, by working out 7 days a week. This could lead to overtraining, which will not be very beneficial, as far as making gains goes. It is up to you. Who knows, maybe you will be able to handle it ok. You also say that this may not happen for a few years. Who knows what can change between now and then. What looks available now may not be available then. Just go with the flow, and then worry about the extra training after you get your Karate black belt.

That is an interesting approach, Lordtariel. Thanks for sharing that. It would help to make sense of things.

I agree. It kind of gets you into that training zone.

4-23-07 Combat Hapkido from 3:30 - 5:00. We worked on some ground fighting stuff, mostly defending from the bottom to try to work our way up from the ground. Me and a buddy then sparred for 15 minutes, working up a good sweat. Here, I noticed that I need to stay on my toes, and work on defending the straight-line kicks, like the front and the side kick. Then I taught Orientation from 5:30 - 6:00. From 6:00 - 7:00, I had Tradtional Class. It was kind of rough today, because my knees were hurting pretty bad. However, I did focus in on my stances and my hand techniques. My shoulders were pretty tired after class.

I take a very traditional form of TKD. We don't focus on sparring a lot. We do a lot of technique work, forms, and one-steps. The forms that I do are the ITF forms, the Ch'ang On system, created by General Choi. The WTF organization of TKD has made thier sparring system the more "modernized" sport that you see in the Olympics today. There are some ITF fighters who could compete with them, but it is just a matter of training methods and focus. Many people think that "modernized" Martial Arts are "watered down." Modernization is not always a bad thing...and "traditional" is not always a good thing.

Those are great explanations and demonstration videos, ps1. I couldn't have described it that well. Now, I think I can. Thanks a bunch!

Ding ding ding!!!! I think you got it right. MMA is just about fighting to win. There are alot of those guys who do it for the money and don't care about anything else. So yes! Budo/chivalry is missing in MMA as a whole. There are some good guys who add it in, but it's not a requirement of the sport. I agree that it is more fighting, and less of the budo. However, it is mostly sport, as well (thus, sportsmanship). I don't think that the MMA guys do quite as much jawing as pro wrestlers do, which is good. I just don't want to see it head that way. I don't say this because I feel that budo should be taught as part of the MMA style. I just don't want to see it because I would rather everyone did their talking in the ring. I think that the quality of the productions would go down if it became more like the WWE. Even if they do talk trash before the fight, I would be willing to bet that most of them are fairly nice people...they just play the hype game for the fans.

Sometimes it can take up to 2 weeks for results to be finalized, if your school is affiliated with an association.