DWx

Welcome Davisonsensei

My parents used to just dump me and go home/shopping. Friday nights and my dad still sits in the car listening to the radio rather than sitting in the warm watching my sister train and at any tournament you can guarantee he'd be sitting in the back row reading the paper instead. Don't think either of us has been disadvantaged because our parents didn't want to be there in the class too. If anything it might have made us stick at it longer because we were training for ourselves and not just to please our parents. I also think we fared better compared to the other kids we went up through the ranks with whose parents watched. For starters I think we were a whole lot more attentive to the instructor; not looking over our shoulders to check if mummy and daddy were still watching because they weren't there to watch! And a whole lot more independent in the sense that we were fine being left alone with a bunch of adults and other kids not to mention also in the sense of independent study skills because our parents weren't going to remember the sequence or combination for us. You know its great if parents want to be involved and show an interest but you can't make them if they don't want to be. There's also becoming too involved. If anything, the one thing I hate is pushy parents and parents who try to run your class for you. Its up to the instructor and senior students to tell the kids to shut up and pay attention so it really irks me when parents try to do this.

The number of kata you learn is not not going to improve your ability to defend yourself (if that's what you want from your training). If your instructor teaches you well and applies what you've learnt in kata to other facets of your training, there's no need for more. Its the quality not the quantity that matters. Besides, years down the line, by the time you've learnt and spent time on the 8, other opportunities to learn more katas may arise such as seminars or a chance to train with your teacher's teacher.

Congrats!

Welcome back soclydeza

congrats

Delegate. Get people to fill captain, secretary, equipment rep, etc. positions then you yourself can just deal with the teaching aspect. I'd also suggest just sticking to your current school's curriculum.

Couldn't agree more Interesting topic sensei8. Think for me it kinda works the other way too. When I think I'm awesome I generally perform better Having the self belief that I can do it and can do it reasonably well makes me do it better. There is nothing wrong with self-confidence, that is for sure. Overcoming that doubt surely helps to build that up. Kudos to you, DWx!Yeah I just look like a total idiot if it all goes wrong and I end up flat on my back

Congrats to everyone.

Couldn't agree more Interesting topic sensei8. Think for me it kinda works the other way too. When I think I'm awesome I generally perform better Having the self belief that I can do it and can do it reasonably well makes me do it better.

Welcome Willsy

Yep definitely ask your instructor and/or look at the tournament rules. If they require dipped foam I second the Century and Macho stuff but they won't last that long so if you can use something better it'll be worth the investment.

Congrats

Good video, I agree with what he's saying. Although there is a little rigidity still in the way we do step sparring in the sense that the attacker remains static after they're finished. Having said that its not too big a deal as by they time they've completed their motion you should have finished your block/evade counter anyway and you should now be in a dominant position so if they were to come at you you could deal with it. The progression is to then build up to sparring drills (as in the video) and then ultimately free sparring. I guess we use step-sparring as a application exercise. At colour belt level its usually the type of attack that gets specified and you can respond with whatever you want, but at advance colour belt and black belt, attacker can do whatever they feel like straight off and its up to you what you do in response. Or sometimes as a strategy exercise we say that the attacker can do what they like but the defender must end up doing something specific like they must end up finishing in a joint lock or must finish up by using a certain technique. When I first started we had set sequences to learn but when I was a couple of belts in our master scrapped them and introduced this system which makes more sense to me.

Not 100% sure on the guys cats but for ladies its: <45, <51, <57, <63, <69, <75, >75 kg Think the guys cats are shifted upwards by 10kg (and might have slightly bigger gaps between?) so the top category is +85 kg (187 lb). Will have to double check that though. I fight at +75kg but I'm well into that What we've been focusing mainly on is 360 roundhouse, 360 axe and 360 reverse turning/hook kick. Its not soooo bad, would prefer not to have it but does give me some consolation to know everyone in my weight group will have to try to pull it off too so they're in just as bad a position. Only big worry is that the lighter weights that choose to fight in the heavier categories will be able to pull it off easy then have me chasing them round the ring desperate to get something in. Same problem for open weight fights. I've had some success in training with 360 axe, usually from within punching range. If it catches apparently hurts like hell because you've got 200lb bascially slamming down on your chest/collarbone, or so my training partners tell me . My problem is not getting caught whilst going through the rotation because at that range its easy for them to crash and be all over me and being able to set it up. Really not confident to try it in comps yet. Most of the stuff we've been working on is trying to adapt them for countering so with the rotation either going backwards or to the side. My sister who also fights at the same weight has worked out how to work the 360 backkicks into her game and that can be a nice counter when she does manage to pull it off. I really don't like it tbh, like you said, WTF gets it for being too fancy. At the moment most comps don't have it as a rule, its only really at the higher levels. And the veterans (over 40s) don't have to do it at all, probably worried about them busting their hips j/k most of the over 40s I train with do it better than me.

2nd that. Get awesome at the 360 first and then try to put the extra rotation in. Tons of vids on Youtube if you search for it though. Might also be worth looking at XMA/tricking videos.

Welcome to both of you

Very true, if you learn to golf with Wii, it will not translate to better performance in a golf course. BUT I have used Wii for my off season golf training. I do my normal swing and Wii informs me if my hands were in right position on assumed contact ( hitting the ball). It's not the same as hitting golf balls, but it's more fun. So there is a was to use xbox and wii and there are lot's of ways to get your technique messed up. Just wondering if you've played the golf game on Wii fit? Where you have to stand on the balance board and it records where you shift your weight. Is that any closer to real golf? I don't/can't play proper golf so was just wondering...

I learnt all my new forms this way when I graded. Don't have somewhere to train at uni and I graded halfway through the academic year so had 6 months or so with no regular classes. Learnt them all from video and then went back home and had my instructor correct any bits that weren't quite right and explain all the new techniques. TBH I tell all students I help out with to try to learn the sequence at home, then they can just come to class and learn the techniques themselves instead of be thinking about what move comes next.

See with step-sparring I see them as bridging the gap between forms and actual sparring and the attacker is just a moving dummy for you do target practice on. Not really as useful if everything is pre-determined. Most we'll say is that the attacker will attack with a kick, or they'll attack with a certain type of punch and its up to the student to match a block and counter to that from the techniques they've learnt and to work out what distancing and angle they need to use. Bit weird if its just a blackbelt requirement.

Yeah really really sucks if your above middle weight, we struggle to lift own legs, let alone jump, spin then kick!!! My strategy so far has been to throw it within the first 5 seconds and then get on and spar. I guess the one good thing to come out of it is that I have had to force myself to work on something to do and hope to score with, or if not just throw and still be in control after the technique. Has given us the opportunity to work with some interesting combos and tactics though as normally minimal class time would be allocated to stuff involving this.

At uni we had "martial arts mashups" where all the styles come together to do a bit of training. Sparred a couple Karate & other TKD style guys but most people there are beginners so its not really all that indicative of the style. I dropped out of the uni TKD club though and don't really have time to do much else. Kinda wish I did have the chance to get stuck in with some other styles, but maybe I will in the future. Am hoping to do a big all-styles tournament in Feb. Sounds like you had a good time evergrey.

Ha you do better than me! I get really bad ranks because I don't drive cleanly at all, fall off the edges, ram everyone else... I play online occasionally and be up for friend races, don't know my Wii code thingy though as don't bring it to uni, maybe during the holidays though

Think one of my favourite quotes sums up my thoughts on this topic nicely: To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge - Benjamin Disreali

Whilst not strictly zombies in the dead sense, the ones in I am Legend seemed perfectly mentally capable and they even try to rebuild some sort of society. Think the problem with zombies on the whole is that there's strength in numbers and their numbers really do grow exponentially. If you can't beat them, join them that made my day