bushido_man96

I think that these statements are fairly generalized, and don't necessarily lend themselves to the proper answers. Case in point, my younger brother has not practiced MA for many years now, but I have continued. However, he has a different mentality and mindset than I do. He likes to fight; I do not. He is not afraid to get in someone's face, and tell them how it is. I, on the other hand, am more laid back, and would be less likely to do this. He has less training, yet he feels more comfortable in a fight scenario than I do. I believe that it really comes down to who you are, and what your personality is. Rank is not necessarily an indicator of fight ability. Fighting ability and experience is.

I have seen side kicks thrown and not scored, because they like the round kicks too much!

Good luck finding something. Since the wakazashi doesn't carry the glamour of its big brother Katana, I think you will struggle finding something that is even made up. But, hey, you could do your own.

I have put on the standing locks in class, but we haven't done a whole lot of resisting with them. I really want to work them against resistance, because that is what I will have to face at work if I want someone to be compliant.

Just make sure that you get to train in some street scenarios, with a resisting partner. That will help you learn how to be effective with your styles.

Just a note, if you are looking for competition, the AAU now accepts the WTF, ITF, and some Tang Soo Do forms in there competitions.

Very good point!! Also, not breaking is hard on the guys holding as well. First time is best!

Hey, you're only as big as you feel. I'll keep that in mind! Sometimes, I don't feel big, like when I get mad, but I feel puffed up, I guess. Like I swell, or something!!

Congratulations!

Good news, bad news. First, the good news! I finally won a fantasy game! 1-2, yeah baby! The bad news: Trent Green is still out for next week's game against San Fransico. Aye, if we lose to S.F., I don't know what I'll do.

They lost 2, no big deal. They will bounce back. Delhomme always manages to put it together. I gotta disagree,Jake I think is a very overrated QB,he has a horrible release at tha worst times.Lot of red zone picks. I don't think he is the greatest out there, but I think he manages the game very well. Trent Dilfer did this as well, and he won a Super Bowl!

Its good to stay motivated.

Thats a good point you bring up, Zorbasan. I think I would try to break it up, even if the girl was doing the beating. However, it would depend on the number of people involved, and how many are around. It would also depend on what I knew about them, like if one was a criminal, or what not. You have to be careful, though. You may be trying to break up a fight, and then the next thing you know, you are fighting them off of you! And if the cops show up, all they are going to see is one big fight, and everyone involved will get arrested. You wouldn't want that to happen, just trying to be the good Samaratan!

That sounds great, kenpo.stylist! I hope you enjoy your new school. Keep us posted as to how it goes!

In our kids program, we also dealt with things like integrity, respect, courtesy, and the like. It made the classes more fun for kids at times, and gave them something to think about at home.

The stars would probably go on a patch. We had a program like this in the ATA school that I ran. It was called "Karate for Kids."

Thanks a lot. All of the information given here is great. I really apprectiate this help. I am going to try to put together a curriculum of some kind, in case I ever run my own school again.

I think it goes back to the old days where a master would put a prospective student through harsh trials to ensure his dedication to study and character before he taught them. Standing in horse stance for an entire day, running miles and miles, hauling water up and down a hill... We live in a time now where it's relativly easy to find instructors and get into classes. By sticking through with your training and showing your character, you're proving you are worth teaching. Now this is just one interpretation, I'm sure there's many more out there. Also, I could study martial arts years and years and still not master the "basics" Because they're so fundamentally tied into everything we do, it's important to have a very solid grasp on them. Just my couple of cents. I do tend to ramble. That makes some sense, but I think these stories are not as popular as what people have made them out to be. I'm sure there are some that are accountable, but I don't think it happened that way all that often. I believe that most martial arts were born from drilling soldiers for war, and they would not have had the time to do all-day-long stances, haul water, and the like. There time would have been better spent drilling. However, I do enjoy those stories, and they are fun to hear. I just wonder about the legitimacy of them.

What you need to do is what patusai said. Go to the doctor, and have him put you on a diet. Then, go hire a personal trainer, and show up to workout every day that they tell you too. It is tough, and you have to make yourself stick with it. If you can make it through the first month, I would guess that the routine would be ingrained fairly well, and then it is just a matter of sticking with it. You can do it, but no one can do it for you!

This technique uses a lot of body leverage, and you would not want to confuse it with an axe kick, which would be a kick that is brought up high, but could be used to hit a high or a low target.

Shodan just means beginner, or first, or something to that effect. Heian Shodan means "First Step" or something similar to that. Also, the analogy that a black belt is the "beginning" is why the title of Shodan is given.

He was also very cocky when he was asked about the possibility of fighting in the cage during one of the early UFC's. When asked, he said "man, I would kill those guys" to which one of the other commentators said "get real Don, those guys would eat you alive." I had never heard that before. However, I was just trying to make the point that if the CMA trains properly, then they can transfer the knowledge of their style to a different venue, like kickboxing. All he needed to do then was start working on his ground game to get rounded enough to enter a UFC. Its just too bad for all of the CMAs out there that he was too arrogant to give it a shot.

Your last point is very solid, MizuRyu. The value of cross-training and making the training as realistic as possible is irreplaceable.

The type of training you receive will be the basis as to whether or not your arts will benefit you on the street. A small class can have disadvantages, because you will become used to all of your partners very quickly, and then you will get set into a pattern, and this stagnates learning. Having larger classes helps to prevent this. Best of luck with your new school!

This is an interesting note. I did not realize this, but it does make sense.