bushido_man96

very excited about it. Whoa! Snapped it in half! That was something! Do you suppose that had to do with the quality of the bo, or more to his power?

Would you say that you weren't properly prepared for the test then?

Like any style, what you get out of it is really dependent on the instructor and his/her philosophy and approach on teaching and learning.When I briefly attended the Aikido school in my hometown, the sensei there knew that of my TKD experience, and the fact that I would kick and punch as a warmup didn't bother him at all. Likewise, most of the students there knew I was a local TKD guy anyways, so it was never an issue. As for learning the techniques....the sensei is worked with described it as "giving" or "providing good energy." There is a learning curve that is heavily involved in trying to learn how to receive the techniques and then flow into the throws. I found at times that if I wasn't given "good energy" then I needed to produce some extra of my own, usually by pulling them along to get their momentum going. I think as the practitioner gets better, these things get figured out. Now, I don't necessarily like this way of learning, and think it definitely has it's problems. But I think once students start to really understand it, they can see the training benefits of it.

Sorry for your loss Spodo Komodo. Congrats on MOM.

Wow, 20 years! This is so awesome! It's so great to see how this community has changed, grown, and excelled over these past years as a bastion of quality Martial Arts conversation. Onward and upward!

Sounds like an awesome opportunity!

I have not seen it yet, but sounds as though I may need to add it to my list.

I'm with you, Danielle, in that doing online testings would be quite tricky. In order to pull it off, I'd want to have each student submit testing videos, or get online and do the testing over Zoom or something like that, on their own, so I can focus on that student and not try to squint around and check what every student is doing on a small video screen. If I decided to try it, that is. There is also the issue of the partner practice, like one-steps, sparring, and self-defense that is very difficult to determine the efficacy of without a partner. This is where family members that train together could benefit, but not every student may have that opportunity.

Blind Fury is a very entertaining movie. I need to find that one somewhere.

I would go have a talk with the instructor about it. Tell him your training history and rank, if he doesn't know it, but tell him you want to enter the school at the rank he determines you should work from. I've been in a similar situation, and started over in a new school from scratch, at white belt. The instructor then evaluated me as I went along, and moved me up in rank accordingly throughout certain testings. It worked out well, and it didn't really change much for me, as I was still learning and getting better. Either way, I think it'll be much the same for you. Best of luck!

The Last Dragon is a fantastic movie! Anyway, onward. I agree that training using online resources is limited at best, but, in a pinch, is better than nothing. Two things I would recommend: 1. Research the sources, and find good quality production and teaching material, and stick with it for a time. It'd be really easy to find a Muay Thai video one day for knees, and a TKD video another day to learn some sweet kicks, but in the end, I think what will benefit you most is to find a style to latch into for a time in order to learn some basics and get these basic movements down. It will help you establish a base at least, and when you feel more comfortable in your ability to acquire technical proficiency, you will benefit more when you expand your searches into other venues. 2. Find a good training partner! Talk to some friends, and try your damnedest to get at least of them to go all-in on this project with you. You can provide each other with feedback, and open up your training opportunities to partner drills, which are much needed to gain proficiency in the Martial Arts. Here's a great article written by Zaine in regards to online training: The Perception of Online Martial Arts Training. I've also got an article on training using media-based supplements (yes, shameless plug): Martial Arts Training Through Media Supplements. Hopefully these will help you out. I would also highly recommend that once you are able to do so, look into joining a Martial Arts school with a good instructor. This will get you by for a while, but a good instructor will be able to take you so much farther.

Welcome to KF, champ!

I see a few issues with the gradings handled by both of the clubs you described. 1. If there is a high failure rate in the gradings, then it seems to me be because the instructors let any test, regardless of whether or not they are ready. I may be different than others, but I feel like it would be my responsibility as an instructor to be confident that the student is prepared to test, and should have a high likelihood of passing. If the student just blows a gasket at the testing and messes things up royally, then it falls on the student under the pressure, and this can and does happen. However, as the instructor, it's my job to put them in the best possible position to succeed. 2. If the students are testing at every grading and passing every grading, then it might have something to do with the curriculum not providing enough of a challenge. Martial Artists aren't performing quantum physics, but the material should still be a challenge, and should be progressing to the point of becoming harder and harder each time. I'm not saying every student should have a failed grading here and there. But, I don't find it unreasonable that a student may need to take an extra cycle to get some material down and refined, as in higher ranked students. 3. Both issues could be a money issue, if the schools charge for gradings. The instructor with the high fail rate might not care, so long as he gets the testing fees. The instructor with the high pass rate is the same. Both are an issue, especially if the testing cycle is relegated to merely a source of income.

I like both videos. Good stuff. I think the first link, although perhaps "form" is the best word to describe it, I think gets the idea across as a series of moves that I would refer to as a floor drill of basics. RW's video is definitely more along the lines of what we'd consider to be a form or kata. But both have value.

This is a good suggestion. You can pretty easily find instructions online to build one.If you've got a tree or some other kind of post or pole available (and it's sturdy), you could probably by some kind of kicking shield and use the handles in the back to tie a rope around the post or tree to secure it. It'd give you something to kick and punch, although not quite as good as a standing or hanging heavy bag.

This is really tough. As I've moved along in my professional career, I find more things have to take a back seat to the training time I'd like to have. Often, I find with my schedule rotating the way that it does that, at most, I might be able to get a few months of consecutive, consistent training in (by that, I mean two nights a week) before bouncing to a shift that totally excludes me from being able to go to class. On top of that, and I'm not proud to admit this, but it's true, is that fact that I just don't have a lot of motivation any more. When I have time off, I have either family obligations, or am taking time for myself for other hobbies that I enjoy, or am just taking a break and catching up on some shows I like to watch. That's mostly a me problem that I need to take care of, and I understand that. I would like to test at least one more time, but the financial burden of doing that is pretty sufficient in order to just attain another rank to keep myself ahead of those who've recently purchased our school. Committing the training time to it isn't a concern, because I'll make myself do that. But the monetary aspect of it really has me torn. Compound all of this with the recent pandemic, and the inability to meet in a class setting has also added to the issues. So, it's tough right now. I'm hoping for a sense of normalcy to return sooner rather than later.

Firearms Training 4/6/2020 An hour's worth of practice from the 25 yard line with my backup pistol. My accuracy from this range is improving. 4/30/2020 Thirty minutes worth of practice, again from the 25 yard line with my backup pistol.

I think the toothpick bo was designed specifically for competition, was it not? I think I'd rather build one that is the normal circumference, but that's just my preference.

For us, it's just Mr. Whatever.

I've had things like this come up. I'm always honest with them, and will tell them what I know, or what I understand about something from my own research, or otherwise just tell them that I don't know. I will often present this as an opportunity for them to research the subject matter, and let me know what they found out. It gives them an opportunity to expand their horizons.

I kind of agree with Bob, in that if your sensei won't listen and won't change, there probably isn't much else you can do, other than to continue to beat a dead horse. He might come around if it becomes very dire, as a last ditch effort. Otherwise, if you've already pointed out to him the benefits that you feel these other options offer, and he still doesn't want to try any, well, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.

I don't understand how becoming a vegetarian would unlock some kind of "superpowers," for lack of a better term. I think there is a lot of myth out there. I don't think there are any superhuman feats that the study of Martial Arts, or anything, for that matter, can unlock. Humans are already capable of great things. Some people are exceptionally athletically talented, and seem to have it come easily to them. The rest of us have to work hard to get there. That, I believe, is the true power in training in the Martial Arts.

Welcome to KF! Are you doing BJJ, or Japanese JJ?

RIP.

I took in a classic the other night, Lethal Weapon. Not what I would consider an MA movie, per se, but, an interesting note is that Rorion and Royce Gracie worked on the fight choreography for the movie. In the fight scene at the end, Riggs slaps Mr. Joshua in a triangle choke....this done well before we saw UFC 1.