Sohan

I know the ones that have been taught to me. With respect, Sohan

Well, you have. With respect, Sohan

In our school, testing is more of a demonstration of your MA technique and overall fitness. It publicly demonstrates your worthiness of the new rank to others. Nobody has ever failed a belt test in our school because you don't test unless you are absolutely ready. I like it this way. With respect, Sohan

Correct. According to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolo_Yeung Bolo says on his own website that he still practices tai chi. He began as a bodybuilder but was a Hong Kong powerlifting champion as well. With respect, Sohan

I completely agree. I teach much like my sensei does. With respect, Sohan

Actually, I'd prefer to just keep the 600 bench and improve his technique. It's kind of like being smart or being pretty. I'd rather be smart, because I can always do things to make myself more attractive. You can learn the technique, but strength isn't so easy to acquire. Ever been hit by an untrained guy with freakish strength? It's still like being hit with a ton of bricks. With respect, Sohan

Here's an interesting item on CNN.com about aspartame: http://www.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/diet.fitness/05/05/eu.aspartame.ap/index.html With respect, Sohan

That hasn't been my experience. I have taken two very different arts, Muay Thai and traditional karate, and I am able to switch forms without much difficulty. It enables me to adapt more fluidly to situations without being too rigidly fixated on a certain motor pattern. With respect, Sohan

It must be wonderful to be able to compete in a tournament with your children. Sorry to hear things didn't work the way you wanted, but it sounds like it was a positive experience. Better luck in the next one. With respect, Sohan

Good for him. He had good sense of his surroundings, and responded instinctively without unnecessary thought. It's a good thing, though, that there weren't weapons involved. With respect, Sohan

Say you can bench 300 lbs. Is it worth it to go for 400, when you could instead improve on flexibility, groundfighting skills, or taking the kids to soccer practice? It really depends on what it takes to get to that next level. To add 10 lbs to your bench is probably not worth the extra effort if you are already at your potential (which few people are). It really depends on whether you have been optimizing your training. If your training isn't at or near optimal, and you can make improvements without living and breathing powerlifting, then go for it. For example, Tank Abbott made a career out of basically being not much more than a devastating puncher, and he benched over 600 lbs (a pure strength lift for him--he wasn't much for technique). And I agree completely that working on MA technique is important. Spending time with family is even far more important. I missed karate this morning to attend my son's baseball game, so I think I've got my priorities right in that regard. But any strength gains you can make can make a big difference in a real fight, and it just makes you that more formidable when tacked onto your regular MA skills. With respect, Sohan

I appreciate the kind words, but I don't LOVE MA. I don't have anything against it and I find certain parts of it interesting certainly, but I don't and have never taken any martial arts. Thanks. If you don't mind me asking publicly, Patrick, how in the world did you end up developing and operating a website named "Karate Forums"??? I guess I'm just curious why this and not something else, though you certainly have an eclectic taste in web development. With respect, Sohan

Of course your shotokan helped. I feel I am a much better athlete because of my karate practice, and I've found I even dance better too. Good luck at your tournament! With respect, Sohan

More like about 1 percent, really. With respect, Sohan

Strength is like money. The more you have, the more you can do. As far as pushups go, pushups are relative to your bodyweight. The lighter you are, the better you tend to be able to be at them. The thing about the bench press is that it is a measure of pure strength. Note I didn't say power, though it is a so-called "powerlift". It really isn't an indicator of one's ability to produce power. But it is a direct measure of the strength of the muscles used in punching, grappling, and blocking. Don't buy the bit about the 400 lb bencher that can't do pushups and the 165 bencher who can do 200. I could do a ton of pushups when I benched big, and unless you're pretty light, a 165 bench won't translate to too many pushups. With respect, Sohan

No, I do not. With respect, Sohan

Easy one. My loyalties are to my sensei. I trust him for many reasons, but a big one is that he is not afraid to allow us to question things. He knows his craft well and approaches karate with dedication and integrity. No question where my loyalties would lie. With respect, Sohan

All the masters have masters. It is very difficult to create a truly unique system today on your own, and it seems today that certain new "styles" become more a function of the founders' egos as opposed to any real innovation in technique. IMO, you shouldn't even be thinking about starting your own style after such a short time. Learn as much as you can about your art, learn other arts as well, pay your dues, and by then you will probably change your mind about creating your own style anyway. With respect, Sohan

Regular sitting meditation (zazen) practice is a great help in remaining calm and controlled in a fight situation. You will think more clearly and things will appear to slow down around you--at least that's been my experience. I meditate 20 minutes in the AM and 20 at night before bed, trying to maintain a calm state of awareness. A sort of stilling the waters, so to speak. Meditation is really only useful if you practice it regularly. Even ten minutes each day will make a difference, IMO. With respect, Sohan

In order: Bruce Lee, Ankoh Itosu, and Chotoku Kiyan. With respect, Sohan

Well, after the cat thread, I thought dogs deserved equal time. With respect, Sohan

Nothing is inherently bad but thinking makes it so. With respect, Sohan

Yeah, she is from Englewood Colorado, which is near where my parents live now. But, when I graduated high school, she was 11, and 13 when I quit swimming. I saw her at a few of the high school meets I went to after that, but never anything more than that. My only claims to anyone famous are: Competed with Lance Armstrong as an age group triathlete (Yes, he started in triathlons before cycling as a main emphasis). He generally kicked my butt. Summer security guard for the Broncos training camp. I have photos with Rich Karlis, Vance Johnson (Absolute idiot), Karl Mecklenburg, John Elway and a few other minor Bronco players. Did an 11 board break at a demonstration in front of Bill "Superfoot" Wallace. I still have the board he signed for me. Currently doing agility training for an NFL signee for the Az Cardinals. Aodhan Meeting Elway had to be a blast. Superfoot too. But I still don't get how you ended up a computer geek. With respect, Sohan

Hurting sensei's daughter (a fellow student) during class drills, would not go over well. A violent crime conviction of any sort would likely get one removed. Deliberate and repeated disrespect of other students would be an issue for expulsion. Sexual harrassment as well. And following bushidoman, training in another style without asking sensei's blessing first would be a major insult and would lead perhaps to not being expelled, but certainly a much, much slower promotion rate. With respect, Sohan

Don't be afraid to teach. You'll learn so much more about TKD when you try to teach it to someone else. Just be patient, remember what it was like to be a lower ranking belt, and take your time in explaining things. You will not be expected to be an expert, and if you don't pretend to be one, you'll be well respected by your peers. With respect, Sohan