bushido_man96

What I am saying, is that we should just call a side kick a side kick, as opposed to yeop chagi, or whatever the Japanese equivalent is. What appears to have happened in the scenario here is that the Korean word for training hall, dojang, is used to address the school, but the instructor uses the Japanese nomenclature "Sensei" as his title. Instead of mixing two other languages, just call it a "school" and call himself "instructor." Makes things a lot less confusing.

This is exactly the point that I was getting at as well. (Great minds think alike! ). It is great that you addressed your instructor about your concerns. As you can see, this is a great course of action, because he was able to provide some teaching specific to your needs, and also helped out the rest of the class as well. Here is one other very small, simple thing that you can do to alter your fighting style....if you have a favorite side, just switch stances to the other side. Fight ONLY from that side. It will be a whole new world to you and your opponents/partners. Give it a whirl!

A friend of mine and I have been practicing some Combat Hapkido, along with a blend of some concepts from J. Hock Hocheim's self-defense system. We began discussing breakfalls, and Hock likes it when martial artists do a slapping, traditional breakfall, because they can then "die like a martial artist." What he means by this is that the breakfall has become so ingrained in the martial artist that when he is taken down, he will fall and slap (the traditional breakfall), stopping his momentum, and leaving himself in place to be attacked and taken advantage of. What my friend was talking about along with this was the idea of rolling out or away during the fall, in order to get away from the assailant, and keeping your body as far away as possible from an ensuing attack once you are taken down. After discussing it with my partner, and seeing some ideas of what he was talking about, I think I agree with him. Anybody else have any thoughts on this?

Welcome back! Get well soon!

It was made at Seoul National University so I don't think they're for sale. Probably not, but if it were.....

I would agree with you here, 100%!

I had not read that book, KarateTips. I may have to look into it.

If curls and biceps extensions are not conducive to MA practitioners, then what exercises would you recommend doing, Sohan? I still want to build some arm strength, and these are the exercises that I have been doing. Any advise is always appreciated! Thanks!

3-20-07 Did Combat Hapkido from 12:15 - 2:00. Shoulders, back, and biceps Back: Assisted pull ups: 5, 5, 5 Hang clean: 115x10, 135x6, 145x4 Back hyperextensions: 3x12 Shoulders: Shoulder press: 106x8, 111x6, 117x4 Biceps: 45 degree arm curl: 5 sets of 10 reps, 15 lbs. on curl machine. Abs: Decline abs: 3x20 Side raises: 3x20x25 lbs. Hanging knee raises: 3x12

3-19-07 Chest and triceps Chest: Bench press: 185x8, 205x6, 215x3 Incline bench: 125x8, 135x6, 145x4 Decline bench: 155x8, 175x6, 185x4 Triceps: Triceps push downs: 90x10, 105x6, 105x6 Skullcrackers: 70x8, 80x6, 85x4 Abs Decline abs: 3x20 Side raises: 3x20x25 lbs. Hanging knee raises: 3x12 Did Combat Hapkido from 3:45 - 5:00. My partner and I started our session here by him throwing straight punches at me, and I was attempting to slip them, and bob out of the way. I learned a lot in just a little bit of time, and I will keep at it. From 5:30 - 6:00, I taught Orientation. Then I had Traditional TKD Class from 6:00 - 7:00. I did 13 forms during the hour. Stretch: Seated splits: 3x20 - 30 secons. Reaching right and left: 3x20 - 30 seconds each side. Reverse hurdler stretch: 2x20 - 30 seconds each side. Butterfly stretch: 2x20 - 30 seconds.

Sohan has some good points there. I will add this: stretch to discomfort, not PAIN. Listen to your body; it will tell you when to stop.

I like good old red gear. I don't think any one color is going to offer that much of an advantage in a match....not enough to offer up that much consideration, anyways. I don't think I could name the color of the person's gear a day after the match, anyway.

I can understand your feelins, Tom. But, you have to take the good with the bad, I guess. You never know, mabe the guys had good reasons, as well. Perhaps they thought that they would not be doing you justice by being unprepared. Talk to them first, before you really let them have it.

Very nice, Ottman. The funny thing about the Sine Wave motion is that I have found out everything I know about it through watching some of the vids that show up here, and by reading about them. I have attended classes in 3 different TKD organizations, and spent more than 5 years with 2 of them, and neither one have ever done the Sine Wave movement in their forms. I don't know if this is because there are those that don't understand it, or just don't like it.

Why do you think they won't get into the Olympics? Could you elaborate on your feelings towards this a little more? I would like to hear your explanation. TKD, Judo, Boxing, and Wrestling are all Olympic sports. And the way the IFL is run, they are doing a good job of putting a really good looking product out there, and are giving it the more local, amatuer flair that the Olympic Committees could be looking for.

It most likely will be a uniform of lighter weight. It will be adequate for a time. As the others have said, you may eventually want a heavier one. However, they tend to be more pricey.

I had never heard of "tanking," Dave. However, I think you bring up a good point. Thanks for that post.

If sinking your stance works for you, then I would try to do it more anyways, even if the instructor doesn't care for it. Everyone fights differently, and that is the beauty of it. As for your punching while sparring, you just have to make yourself totally abandon your kicking for a period of time during a sparring match in class so that you can figure out ways to use your hands more (if that is your goal). That is a good way to make yourself adjust and adapt. Since you don't have other people to spar, then change the way you spar, and it may affect the way they spar. In the end, it benefits everyone involved, because everyone is learning something different.

This is a perfectly valid reason. No one is obligated to train in only one art or at only one school. Like it or not, students are customers of the dojo. If a school doesn't offer the services they want, they will find one that will. It's a simple marketing fact. Whether the loss of those students matters to the dojo owner or sensei is a different story. I agree with the Baron here. I don't feel that, as a student, I am obliged to continue my training with someone if I don't enjoy the training, or think it is beneficial to my training, or otherwise. Likewise, if an instructor doesn't offer something that a student wants to learn, then they should be able to seek it out elsewhere, if he/she can. I think that the hallmark of a good, capable instructor, is the ability and willingness to admit what they can and cannot do for a student, and offer his blessings in seeking help where ever a student can find it.

It is really hard to know where you are at, self-defense wise, if you have never had to defend yourself. I think that if you are enjoying your training, then stay with it. It sounds like your instructor has a good blend of things going. If you do want to train elsewhere, then do so. Look around, and see what is available. Watch the classes, and then TALK TO THE INSTRUCTOR! Find out what his goals are, and compare them to yours. Go from there. Although you may feel weird around your old instructor, it will pass in time. Don't let that kind of thing get to you. Life is too short.

Doing some plyometric types of exercises can help to build that muscles' explosiveness...thus improving your kicking speed.

I would have to agree with Shorin Ryuu about the goals of the martial arts being to fight. I don't think that means one should go looking for fights, but it does mean that being able to defend yourself should be a side-effect of the training. James, you make a good point about the mentality of being in a fight as well. It is a very important trait, and not one that is easily trainable. There are many good fighters out there that have no technique. However, they know what the fight itself is like, and know what to expect, and how to deal with it. This is very important when it comes to self-defense.

Maybe so, though I don't really have a place to do it. I checked one of those books out from the library, the one for beginners. It's pretty good, but it doesn't say exactly how to do the different moves and it stops short of some of those that I remember. It was a good refresher but I will look for the other book. Thats cool. Let me know how the next book is. I didn't really think about not having a place to practice. That is an inconvience.

I don't think that the McDojo should be the catch-all for everything that is wrong with the martial arts. Lets not forget that when fighting arts came into being, it was in a military aspect, and the goal was killing the enemy. Therefore, traits like agressiveness will have a place in the arts. Whether it comes down to arrogance or confidence has more to do with the individual instructor's attitudes and beliefs, and the person receiving the training. I think that Shorin Ryuu made some good points. Always being aware and ready has its advantages.

My organization uses 1 stripe on each side of the belt per dan grade. We use gold lettering.