Sohan

Very true. Unfortunately that's the way it is with any youth sport where the child succeeds at a high level so young. Swimming, baseball, etc, the kids get bored and move on to something else. Respectfully, Sohan

I too, am looking forward to it. I enjoy the training and find it motivating for my own workouts. Ortiz and Shamrock should bring an interesting angle to this edition. Respectfully, Sohan

I too, am looking forward to it. I enjoy the training and find it motivating for my own workouts. Ortiz and Shamrock should bring an interesting angle to this edition. Respectfully, Sohan

I have never competed in karate (though I have in boxing). Never had any desire, because my experiences as an adult in real life satisfied any desire I might have to prove myself. Now a little older and hopefully a little smarter, I see the need for some to test their skills in a safe environment. But it does dilute what you learn and soften it. What you practice is what you will do when you are threatened for real. If you practice to look pretty or score points, then you'll likely look pretty in a real fight for about, oh, 3-4 seconds. Then boom. Reality. Respectfully, Sohan

Beverly Hills Ninja. I used to think it was hysterically funny, but I think I've grown out of it. Respectfully, Sohan

Also: It's really a hoot to listen to the kids' kiais. They get so serious in their little faces and let out as menacing a shriek as possible. I really get a kick out of them because I know they love doing it. Respectfully, Sohan

Do you eat energy bars? I love Clif Bars because they don't have too much fat, have 10 gms of protein and plenty of complex carbs. They are easy to carry and taste great. Walnut raisin are my favorites. What are your favorites? Respectfully, Sohan

You don't have to keep a meal below 400 calories. You need to know your entire caloric intake needs for a day, then divvy those up into different meals. The 5 "meal" concept is a bit of a misnomer. It generally equates to breakfast, midmorning snack, lunch (Which should be about your biggest meal of the day), midafternoon snack, and dinner. Also, you need to know your conversions. Carbohydrates and Protein are about 4 calories per gram. Fat is 9 calories per gram. This especially comes into play when you look at calories from fat versus percentage of fat. If a serving is 100 grams, and only 2 grams of that come from fat, then they can claim "98% fat free". Then you look and realize that it only has 40 calories per serving, 18 of those calories from fat, so almost 50% of calories from fat. It shouldn't be more than 15-20% calories from fat. Bulk grain/coarse carbo for breakfast, such as oatmeal, whole grain cereal, whole grain muffins with some ham, things like that. Midmorning snack of some fruit and cheese, along those lines. Lunch should have chicken/fish/lean beef, veggie and anotehr carbo/starch. Midafternoon snack (Most people stick a protein shake type thing here), and the evening meal, again, lean beef/chicken/pork/fish, veggie, and another whole grain carb (Brown rice, etc). To lose a pound, you need to eat approx 3500 calories less per week, which is around 500 calories a day. So, take your basal calorie needs, add the calorie needs for any exercise, and that is what you need to eat to maintain weight. Add calories to gain weight, subtract calories to lose weight. About 1 lb a week is a safe, permanent type weight loss. You'll lose more in the beginning, and less as you get leaner, then you might gain weight depending on how much muscle you gain. Indoor exercises include situps, pushups, chair dips, skipping rope, shadow boxing (Watch the lamps! I've ruined 3 with hook kicks ), things like that. Low impact aerobic activity includes swimming, cycling, rollerblading, x-country skiing, rowing (Crew), then your traditional higher impact activities such as running. Aodhan The reason I say 400 calories is that it gives him some structure. Most people aren't able to determine their daily caloric consumption. If you eat 5 times in a day, for example, that equates 2000 calories, which for most physically active people is sufficient to lose weight. A good rule of thumb for me is take your weight in lbs and multiply by 10 for total daily caloric consumption. Women should stay above 1200 and men above 1500 calories. This is for weight loss, not maintenance. Also, it's breakfast that should be the largest meal of the day, IMHO. Seems to work well this way for my clients. I agree with everything else, though! Respectfully, Sohan

No problem. If nothing else, it really points out how knowing the nerve positions for strikes can be very effective for self defense without really harming someone permanently. Of course, there are chi practitioners that claim a nerve strike in the right place can disrupt enough to kill, but that's a discussion for another forum. Aodhan That reminds me of the old joke about "I got struck by a nerve strike and I expect to die at any time in the next 50 or 60 years." Respectfully, Sohan

Thanks for the vid, David. Respectfully, Sohan

Yikes. Tough night. Teaching cute wealthy housewives to do butt blasters is a lot more fun. Respectfully, Sohan

I love my keychain belt! Sensei gave it to me and I always get asked about it. It gives me a chance to teach about my art. Respectfully, Sohan

A famous runner once said: "Running is a little gift I give myself every day." Apply this to any exercise you enjoy. Respectfully, Sohan

Enjoy your spring break, young fellers. Business meetings, mortgages, and minivans are in your near future. Respectfully, Sohan

Braves lost the 1st in the series to the Mets 4-3. Mets are 10-2. Braves are ugh and ugh. Thank goodness I'm from NY. My Atlanta brethren here are as apathetic as always. NYC, you've got some wild fans. Respectfully, Sohan

A good personal trainer can make 75-100k per year. It's a relatively easy job compared to the computer maintenance tech job at IBM I had after college or the bouncer job I had during school. Getting knives waved at you or working in a windowless room without adequate ventilation was not as much fun. No, the knives were not waved at me at IBM. Respectfully, Sohan

Tomcat, I think Chodan/Shodan is the kiss of death for many because they have achieved it too easily, and our society places the 1st dan at the pinnacle of achievement. Once most people have achieved this they can brag to their friends "I'm a black belt" and there really is no more training needed in their minds. It's really hard for me to imagine anyone getting a black belt in 2-3 years and really appreciating the value of receiving it or what it really means. As far as priorities go, you're right. I too enjoy spending time with family but I made a decision a long time ago that martial arts is a major part of my life. Too me, it is not a hobby, rather it is something that gives me the strength and confidence to succeed in all aspects of life. Everyone has a different focus for strength, be it religion, MA, etc. Mine happens to be my family and martial arts, in that order. I put my family first, but my devotion to my art is what makes me the man I am today that puts his family first. I do, however, try to maintain some balance in my life and never let any one aspect dominate. Respectfully, Sohan

There's a lot of truth to what DokterVet is saying, and he makes some great points that I completely agree with. Pretty insightful for a 21 year old. However, everyone does martial arts for different reasons. Obviously we all want to know how to fight, but even if you never master the bunkei in a kata it still trains the muscles to respond in a certain pattern, which can certainly manifest itself in real fighting. Case in point. I have had periods where all I trained was kata and I did no sparring, no two person work, nothing. When I came back to working with a partner, my movements were quick, strong, and precise. I've trained in boxing, MT, etc, and no doubt these offer a quick solution to winning a fistfight. But I think I've actually made my footwork better by doing Okinawan kata. My MT teacher has commented on my mobility improvement and balance since taking up karate-do. I think that everyone who does karate exclusively should spend some time learning MT, boxing, grappling, etc. And conversely I feel boxers and grapplers should do the same with karate, TKD, and kung fu. We all have so much to gain from each other. It may be time consuming to study many arts, but I am a more complete martial artist and more effective for doing so. Besides, what else am I going to do with my time? Watch American Idol? Respectfully, Sohan

Very nice! It's great to be able to make that connection to your religion. Thanks for the explanation. Respectfully, Sohan

Our dojo was at least 85 degrees tonight, and much hotter once 12-15 of us advanced students began training. We trained hard, and solid, for almost 3 hours, taking appropriate water breaks. Our gis were soaked, and there was little talking as the mood was more serious. I felt like I was walking on air when I left the dojo to go out in the cool night air. The way of the warrior. Respectfully, Sohan

Drithen, I was curious, what does your kanji represent? Respectfully, Sohan

I never go bare knuckled on canvas. I mix gloves and BN on the regular bag so that my hands don't get too used to gloves. I like the gloves, though, for more reps. I suppose you can condition them to withstand BN punching, but you are likely causing irreversible damage to the joints and nerves over time. Respectfully, Sohan

Hardly. I consider myself quite the beginner. The more you learn, the more you'll see yourself that way, too. Respectfully, Sohan

Does anyone have any quirky little tips on nutrition when you're on the run? Mine: Single serve plastic yogurt containers make great shakers for mixing protein powder when on the go. They're small and easy to carry and don't leak. Respectfully, Sohan

Great advice, Aodhan. A couple of minor points: ---Muscle and fat have different densities, so fat weighs less for the same cubic volume because it is less dense. A fat person of the same weight will wear a larger size than a muscular person. Also, I was disappointed to read several well designed studies recently on metabolism that indicated that the "afterburn" effect of muscle tissue isn't as pronounced as we thought. It's not keeping me out of the weight room, though. ---8 glasses of water daily may actually not be enough for someone who trains regular in MA. I weigh 192 and drink at least 12 glasses of water, gatorade, or green tea per day. There was a scare recently where several female marathoners have died from drinking only water during 5-6 hour slow marathon running which dramatically diluted their electrolyte levels. Because of this many lay fitness experts began advising people to reduce their fluid intakes when most people really aren't getting the fluids they need. So the advice about evaluating urine levels is right on target. Fluid needs are really more dependent on weight, body composition, and activity level anyway, but for most people 8 glasses a day gives them a good target. ---The 220-age equation is really not accurate for most people any more, and today more sophisticated equations are used by professional trainers. I personally prefer that a client use the "breath test": when you hear yourself breath, you are at your target heart rate zone (Works best in a quieter environment). Less scientific and more user friendly, and it has been proven to correlate. Getting in shape and losing fat is not a short term project. But with consistency and persistence, most people can achieve their goals. Respectfully, Sohan