bushido_man96

Speaking of fast food, and healthy eating, has anyone noticed that it is cheaper to eat less healthy foods than it is to eat healthy? Is there something wrong here?

I always enjoyed speed bag training. I felt that it helped improve timing and coordination.

If you end up at a different school, you may have to start over. The best thing you could do is identify where you want to work out at, and then set up an appointment with the instructor, and talk to him about your situation. You can probably work something out.

I loved the Streets of Rage series for the Sega. Played all three of them endlessly. Crank on the hardest leve, and beat up street punks. Good stress relief. Also, the "Bash Brothers" series on the Super Nintendo, like Rival Turf and Tuff E Nuff. Fun games, too. Let's see, Final Fight was great. The Double Dragon games were fun. I think the best modern fighting games are the Tekken Games. Lots of work went into representing the fighting styles of the characters. Loads of fun!

That is food for thought, P.A.L. You have to always be ready. Glad this didn't happen to you, parkerlineage.

As far as the hamstring goes, more rest. Like, 2 weeks, maybe. As for the foot, start with your shoes. If your's are old, you may want to get some new ones. Also, analyze how you kick and strike objects, to see if that is what is causing your foot problems.

That's good advice, Bluetulipx. Too often, people will sacrifice technique to achieve height, and in the end, hurts their technique, and can cause injuries.

I guess, just from reading through the threads here, that there could be a couple of ways to execute the backfist. You could drive the backfist all the way through the target, during which you would have to get a good upper body twist to start out with. Or, it could be the quick, what would kind of resemble a "flick" of a backfist, that while would still have a decent penetration, and good speed, would not follow all the way through. When I compare the jab and the backfist, I am thinking of the latter definition of the backfist. These two are very comprable, in my opinion, with the major difference being in the angle of attack; jab straight, backfist from the side. Now, a spinning backfist, that would be powerful.

I am a TKD guy, so I will take this analogy to the extreme. When I think about self-defense, do I think: a. roundhouse kick to the knee, or b. flying 720 degree side kick to the head. My answer, and probably that of most, would be a. Simple techniques get the job done and keep you safer. This is kind of how I view this flying armbar. It looks really cool, but I don't think I would try it if I was defending myself, much like I would leave the 720 kick at home, too. Incidentally, I can't do the 720 jump kick anyway!

I don't really count front or back leg as a different kick. I just count the basic kick, the spin version, the reverse version, jump, jump spin, jump reverse, etc. Just differences in cataloging, really.

The hanging leg raises that Rich67 mentioned will help with those.

Here is a form resource page: http://www.paperwindow.com/tkd/ The Shamelessly Unofficial TKD resource.

You would need a different mat for each form, otherwise one piece of paper would get confusing. Incidentally, the ATA's form system follows a star diagram, called the Songham Star. In the ATA videos, the people demonstrate the forms on the star, so you can see how they all fall together. I think it is a good training tool.

Welcome aboard! Hopefully we will be able to help you out here. As for the school you mention, I have never heard of it, but I am fairly isolated as well, so that doesn't mean anything. Hope you child enjoys learning MA!

I have heavy legs, so I feel it is easier to chamber them, but sometimes I get off a little when I turn or spin. Been working on fixing it. My straightleg kicks are slower. I don't know that chambering wastes any motion, at least I don't feel that it does for me. I think it is more like the difference between snapping and thursting, maybe.

You could look into some Muay Thai programs, and see how exactly they do it. Maybe you could get some hints that way.

When I do most kicks, I pivot my base foot. I try to do the pivot as I am kicking, so it is still all one motion, and not a 1, 2 motion, slowing the kick down.

When you perform these kicks, do you do them straight legged, or do you use a chamber? I have done both, but prefer the chamber.

Congratulations!

I don't know. It is always risky to leave your feet in a situation. I would think that this is a move you would have to think about doing, instead of just reacting and doing it. If that is the case, I would lean away from it.

I've seen most of Kickboxer 2, and it was ok. I have only seen bits and pieces of 3 and 4, so I can't really weigh in on them. Is Master Hee Il Cho in the later movies, or is that the Bloodsport sequels I am thinking of?

Ok, Aodhan, I found a substitute for the one leg squat: Set on a chair. Extend one leg. Stand up. Sit down. Not a full one-leg squat, but I can feel it, and it will help me build up to it eventually.

atalaya, you make a good point. Perhaps these qualities can be identified by having the students write essays throughout the ranks, dealing with things like integrity, and perserverance, and other qualities that make people who they are.

There is some pretty good info in there that everyone should consider when joining a martial art.

It looks like something that would be great to break out every now and then for the class to check power levels and such, and see what kind of advances have been made. I wouldn't see myself using it everyday, though.