Dobbersky

There was a BOX Set?????

2nd Attempt Welcome to the Forum! I would definitely look at sourcing a training partner, ask you DVD Sensei if there is any other DVD students in your area. Also I would look to see if there are any Kempo schools in your area that you could attend at least once a month or at least attend one of their seminars. Ask your DVD Sensei if he runs seminars too Note there is NOTHING better than training face to face with an Instructor and a room full of other students! As for my opinion, well to me learning from just DVD instruction is like learning to swim on the sand Good luck in your chosen path

Congrats, don't put yourself down, I guarantee you Sensei wouldn't have given you the grade if you didn't deserve it, OSU!!!

Totally agree with you there, my 2+ v 1 is to use one as a shield against the other till they become a hindrance,incapacitate them/discard them and move on

Tradition is only tradition if you let it be! Evolution doesn't allow for traditions as its natural selection, same as martial arts schools, only those that can adapt will survive! OSU!!!

"Real Karate" I love this Term! Wado Ryu is Far from being a Watered Down version of Shotokan, It is its own art. Yes it may have had some influxes on the kata Practiced but you could also say that Shito Ryu or Shuri Ryu Etc had influences too on the Style of Karate as Otsuka Sensei didn't just study with Funakoshi Sensei. I would actually say Due to the "jujitsu" influx of Wado I would say that it would have a better standing in MMA than Shotokan as the stances are shorter and the techniques involve also include ground work to a point. Real Karate, well its all real Karate unless its called Kempo as Kempo is a different style on its own. Kempo predates Karate in Okinawa. Kyokushin is a Modern Style of Karate as is Shotokan. they're less that 100 years old. Kyokushin follows a different rule set than other schools but Okinawan Karate can be as "hard" as Kyokushin in every way. Wado Ryu will teach you a lot more than you realise and it will take you a life time to find out what you have learnt You need to adapt to Shu Ha Ri to finally get the point of Karate and its Kata. I know what I'm on about as I have studied Wado Ryu and I am an Ashihara Karateka too (Ashihara is an Modern Jissen based version of Kyokushin).

to me Shaolin and Shotokan are opposite sides of the coin. Shaolin is fluid like water where as Shotokan is strong and hard. You will find that your Shotokan will be soft and fluid or your Shaolin will become harder and more rigid. Although most Okinawan Styles originated in China they became Regimented through the Japanese influence of the Samurai, just look at the Tea Ceremony!!

To a point, Ashihara & Enshin Karate are definately Japanese but we do love bunkai!!!

My friend, I would suggest, asking one of your senior students if they join you to open the new Dojo, the reason for this is that they will have the same Sensei throughout their training. As you know, students are loyal to their Instructor first style after, I have a few dojos but not as big a student base as you! I would use these days to move into the "Ri" part of ShuHaRi. Look at working on Seminars etc than another Dojo! I am sure you could have many ideas of what to work on, which kata etc for genuine application! Also why not write a book too? OSU!!!

Wado Ryu or Wado Kai is a Japanese Style of Karate as opposed to a Okinawan style! It wasn't until Otsuka Sensei trained under Funakoshi Sensei, in Japan, did it become Karate as Otsuka Sensei was a Jujitsuka before this! Many believe that Wado is neither Karate nor Jujitsu but something in between! I am sure Sojobo-san will be able to elaborate on Wado and in fact correct any discrepancies I have written, OSU

Its Strange as I am from Ashihara Karate, and we love Bunkai!!!

http://www.isshinryu.com/new/index.html I'm not too sure if this still works or if its any good as its an old link I had on my "works" system

OSU, welcome to the Forum

Bunkai - there is no wrong application to kata! If your school doesn't teach Bunkai that is fine, I am sure after a whikle you can find various techniques and see real applications to them I attended several Krav Maga Seminars and I could see practically 90% of the techniques from the Pinan/Heian kata being used in various guises. so don't be disappointed just create youi on bunkai and see if there are any seminars etc in you area that focus on this point

I'm surprised the Shotokan School didn't show!

OSU or OSS this has lost its meaning to many Karateka especially. Many consider this as a derogatory term not to be used ouside the dojo, or see it as an abbreviation of Ohio Gazimashita, see the thread on the topic but to me and all the Knockdown Karateka Osu is more than just a word - Osu is a combination of the words: Oshi which means "Push", and Shinobu whihch means "to Endure". It means patience, determination, appreciation, respect and perseverance. Kyokushin training is very demanding. You push yourself until you think you've reached your limit. First your body wants to stop, but your mind keeps pushing you. Then your mind wants to stop, but your spirit keeps you going. You endure the pain. You persevere. That is Osu.

Scohen, Lol, don't worry about it I have Gi's older than you. And sometimes being "older" I forget what it was like to be young too. If you have a good Phys Ed dept at your school, see if you can spend time in the Sports hall on the Mat with the SlamMans when your "wrestling team" isn't using them Regards the Water analogy, its about reacting to situations, if you are soft and adaptable you will fit into the situation you're in without any obsticles. with regards to the "water can flow or it can crash" again this is how one reacts to situations, if one flows or moves with the current, one can adapt and pass through it without concequence, but if one crashes, one "faces up" to the situation thus causing friction and with all reactions basic physics always states that with every action there is an opposite an equal reaction OSU!!! - Osu is a combination of the words: Oshi which means "Push", and Shinobu whihch means "to Endure". It means patience, determination, appreciation, respect and perseverance. Kyokushin training is very demanding. You push yourself until you think you've reached your limit. First your body wants to stop, but your mind keeps pushing you. Then your mind wants to stop, but your spirit keeps you going. You endure the pain. You persevere. That is Osu. Your kata training -if you do this with every muscle in your body tense and very slowly, breathing in and out in conjunction with your movements I guarantee that you will be sweating buckets if you do it correctly (you'll have to do it a few times though)

Ueshirokarate-san Solid Post!!!

Schen, Try and look at other avenues for training. For most dedicated Martial Artists, its 30% in the Dojo and 70% outside the Dojo, with regards to training. Not too sure of the area you're from being from the UK, but if you are lucky enough to have a Garage, and your Dad is an Avid Martial Artist too ask him if you could convert your Garage into a Dojo. Puting Mats on the floors, and against the walls. get a free standing bag and a Grappling Dummy in a Gi to put in the extra training. In your Outside Dojo Training, take what your Sensei has taught you in the last class and apply it to your "Garage Dojo". I am sure you will find that your training and enjoyment of the syllabus taught at your current Ryu will increase. This is where Shu Ha Ri comes into effect!

nice, well done, I so hate the sine wave though!

They're calling it 'The Kung Fu Kid' in China. I believe it is to do with legality as to why it wasn't called 'KungFu Kid' in the west. But I suppose the Smiths were trying to monopolise the name that many generations of martial artists have come to love! What law would it break?Copyright Law!

They're calling it 'The Kung Fu Kid' in China. I believe it is to do with legality as to why it wasn't called 'KungFu Kid' in the west. But I suppose the Smiths were trying to monopolise the name that many generations of martial artists have come to love!

One of the good thing about having a "Chinese" based Martial Artist on the forum is that you can see the forms we love so much from a different angle and reinterpret them for us to show us the Chin Na behind the movements etc. Welcome to the Forum

I would love to meet a Black Tiger Sifu to teach me the Form and the Chin Na behind it

I would recommend a book by Lawrence Kane and Kris Wilder, both Goju Shihans and written many books on Martial Arts including 1 on how to run a martial arts school The Way to Black Belt: A Comprehensive Guide to Rapid, Rock-Solid Results Paperback: 320 pages Publisher: YMAA Publication Center (1 Nov 2007) Language English ISBN-10: 1594390851 ISBN-13: 978-1594390852