DWx

What this comes down to is whether we have an innate Fight or Flight (or Freeze) response. With training all you are doing is teaching the person to recognise stimulus and to react in a certain way. "Fight" is the body's response when it believes the perceived threat can be nullified. "Flight" is when the body thinks that its best chance of survival is to get the hell out of there. The trick is to stay in control. And you teach people to do this by endlessly drilling every stressful scenario until you develop an instinctual response. Ideally you want to build in "good" instinctual responses.

I think the IOC rules are pretty good in this regard. Testosterone is an advantage so if you are a trans-male, the IOC say you start at a physical disadvantage so it is OK for you to compete in the male category. Trans-female athletes do start with an advantage (i.e. testosterone), so the IOC says they have to compete in the male category until their T levels are below 10 for 12 months. If I was a girl in the category this kid is competing in, I would be arguing that he should compete as a boy as it would be unfair advantage really.

To play Devil's advocate here, does that not mean that you might need to use different teaching methods to reach this group? One size doesn't fit all. One teaching method doesn't work for all.

As other's have already said, it can be a good idea to hang up your current license or certification for current or prospective students so they know you're legit. I also see it as something for the students to aspire to and train towards and to be proud to be associated with. How do you all feel about displaying competition achievements of the school, instructor or students? I suppose medals and trophies will largely depend on whether you market yourselves as a competition school and want to promote that. But for my instructor's school for instance, has had very good success on national level and have many students selected for the national squad winning international medals. It makes sense to promote that by displaying awards.

Not all TV shows are bad surely? As a kid I used to love watching Sammo Hung in Martial Law. Sure some of it was goofy Jackie Chan-esque stuff (Hung and Chan trained at the same Opera school) but a lot of the fighting was entertaining and he did all his own stunts. Nothing wrong with a bit of Walker, Texas Ranger either

I've always liked Wuxia films, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon was the first one I watched followed by Hero. Wasn't bowled over by the Crouching Tiger sequel Netflix released, I found it a bit flat. To add to the two Jet Li films you mentioned, I would also say House of Flying Daggers should be watched too.

Welcome mandarin

Welcome to KF Liam

Happy Birthday Devin, have a great day

Won't happen for a while yet because they can't agree on the money. Someone always wants more. The UFC are naturally reluctant to let McGregor do it. Honestly, if it's a boxing match (I can't see it being MMA), McGregor will be beaten easily. He's a good striker by MMA standards but average by professional boxing standards. An average pro boxer would be on a par. And Mayweather is no joke either. He's widely considered one of the greatest of all time, probably the best pound for pound boxer and has never lost a pro fight (over half by KO). If it's a boxing match McGregor doesn't stand a chance. Heck even if it's an MMA fight I'd still put money on Mayweather.

I guess my question would be, how do you know they have a pre-existing condition unless the student is forth coming. I would imagine that if they told you this and you allowed them to train without their doctors release you would be held somewhat responsible. I have had students come to me with a doctors note stating that they were limited in certain activities in which case they were allowed to sit out while performing these activities but I've never had a student come to me and say "if I do this I could die". The way these forms are worded is that by signing the student has disclosed all information (to their knowledge) and they understand what the class entails. If the individual is worried about their condition, it is on them to go check it out with their GP and abide by their advice. The risk is on them not the instructor. As long as the instructor isn't doing anything atypical of what one could normally expect to see in a martial arts class then it's down to the student to ensure they are fit and healthy. The instructor cannot be expected to anticipate an individual's medical condition as long as they take reasonable precautions.

In a similar vein to the Martial arts research library I thought it would be fun to have a topic on what you consider essential viewing for the Martial Artist. Movies, documentaries or tv shows. What should everyone watch? I just finished watching "The Real Miyagi" about Fumio Demura and how he came to America. Really interesting, not only just about Demura sensei but about Martial Arts in the 60s and 70s in America. Lots of interviews from other martial artist and movie stars.

It might sound harsh but I think it's negligent to make a student free spar on their first session without prior experience. You haven't given them the tools needed to be successful in that situation and might as well be throwing them to the wolves. Of course they are going to get hurt without knowing how to defend themselves. Traditionally in my association students don't fully free spar until 4th kup. Before that they can do drills or 1-for-1 or take it in turns to do combinations. Personally I think it's a bit too long before sparring but I would still start with a controlled scenario first. If a student were to free spar on their first session, especially a child, I would pair them with someone I knew had great control. Even then I would set the boundaries such that the new student was taught one or two attacks and blocks to use and the more experience student was to deliberately create opportunities to practice those movements rather than just spar them. Better yet I would have them "tag spar" which is how I teach movement to students by getting them to forget kicks and punches and just try to tag the other person on the shoulder. It teaches distance management and evasion without worrying about getting hit.

Over here I think the general trend is to have them sign a waiver that says that their doctor hasn't advised them not to do this type of activity and that to their knowledge they are for and healthy. If they have a pretty existing condition then they should seek medical advice before pursuing.

Thanks for the thoughts so far. A good example I think is to look at flexibility. In the old methods people generally forced the stretch, usually via static or ballistic methods. Nowadays we know that these types of methods must be done carefully and are better at the end of a session whereas dynamic stretching is better at the start. We can use PNF stretching to increase the range of movement and understand how to get maximum benefit out of our time. Similarly if we are to talk fitness and cardio, rather than endless miles jogging or swimming at a set pace, we know there are benefits to HIIT type workouts so can choose to do those instead. We can even structure our overall training better as there have been a lot of studies into periodization training. If preparing for an event we can use macro, meso and micro cycles to peak at a certain point rather than just training the same day in and day out. "Modernising" isn't a new thing necessarily. Look at TKD, is full of modern things. When the hogu was introduced it was a huge departure from the traditional ways. Then the sensor technology they have nowadays is even more removed from the methods of the 1940s and 50s. We now have foam tatami instead of wooden floors. Foam sparring gear. Century BOBs instead of bags.

Or conversely, how modern is your training? If we look at athletes records and achievements over the last century, athletes are universally getting faster and stronger and performing better. We can attribute this to a better understanding of biomechanics, better nutrition and a better understanding of how to break down muscle and repair it. Yet within martial arts, especially the Eastern martial arts, tradition is king and there is an attitude that the old ways are best. My teacher did it this way, and his teacher before him. It worked for them so why won't it work for me? But the thing is, we are better informed now. We can learn from other athletes and experts in their field to make our training more efficient and get more from our time. So how modern do you think your training is? Do you use new training methods or stick with tried and tested ones?

The question I would ask is why would you want to do away with kyu belts? What are the benefits of a 2 belt or no belt system? We shouldn't stick with the old ways just because its tradition. To do so is to stagnate.

Students have different learning styles and it's important to realise this. Some do better with solo work and trying to figure out the movement on their own, some fare better in group work with targeted direction and so on. That's what sets apart a good instructor and a great instructor; sometime who can impart knowledge in a variety of ways depending on the needs of the student. Anyway, to the original question. I have to say yes you can have students who never get it. Some are just not physically gifted. But that should not be a barrier to them training and learning if they still enjoy it.

Nice analogy. Ultimately it depends what you want. If you want to actively grow your student base, you would benefit from a website. People don't look through the Yellow Pages anymore to find a school, they Google it. A web presence is your first chance to make a good impression on a potential student and unfortunately if people can find no trace of you online, you don't really look legit. Even if its just a landing page with your contact details on and directions, it is better than nothing. But if you are happy with your current student base and growth, maybe there's no need for one.

Good to hear it all went well for you Bob. What's the difference between a Nuclear Stress Test and an EKG Stress Test? How come one's so expensive?

Sorry to hear this LLLEARNER. I hope your doc can find out the root cause soon and start you on the path to recovery and rehabilitation. Most important thing is to look after yourself, the training can wait. You might want to give this a read: http://www.karateforums.com/my-journey-in-the-dojo-vt4858.html I don't think they've been on the forum for a while but SaiFightsMS was diagnosed with MS and continued to train Karate.

I don't think it's an issue as long as they are there to learn and train. I coach / teach people who are many dan grades higher than me and have been training longer than I have been alive. The majority of the time its a non-issue; if it is an issue, they know where the door is. I don't take criticism from any of them, but welcome collaboration. The only stumbling block I see in your scenario is if the higher grades want to be promoted. For that they'd ideally need to train also with someone of a higher grade.

Good question Spartacus! I suppose it depends on what we mean by "good"? To me a good instructor is someone who knows their stuff and can communicate it in a way that their students understand and can reproduce. I always like to look at their students to measure quality. If the students are good, then the teacher is good.

Welcome Wayofaswede

Great advice so far. I wouldn't sweat it too much as long as you've told your instructor that you might not make every session. People have lives outside of the dojo. I travel a lot for work which means missing classes - missed on tonight actually. I just drop my instructor a quick message to let him know I can't make it and will put the extra effort in next time.