DWx

Martial Arts, like a lot of things, requires diligent practice in order to cultivate both the physical ability and to retain the knowledge. I suppose it comes down to whether a blackbelt is something you have or something you are. IMHO if someone has hung up their belt and has no involvement whatsoever in that particular style, then they are no longer an active blackbelt. OK you still have the actual belt and maybe certificate in your possession, maybe you also still have your gi, but IMO unless you step on that floor and can show that you still have the knowledge and skill level appropriate of a blackbelt in that martial art, you were a blackbelt. As you are fond of saying Bob, "the proof is on the floor". IMO you have to still be involved and training someway. Sure as we get older or in extenuating circumstances we can lose our physical ability but the mind still needs and can be trained. In all honesty, if my master or instructor quit TKD altogether and no longer trained, taught or studied, then yes, he would be a former blackbelt. He would agree with me on this.

The story behind the first ever televised MMA fight - Gene LeBell vs Milo Savage: Great little mini-documentary about Gene LeBell and his background

42 Secrets I Learned From The World’s Greatest Kata Coach - KaratebyJesse http://www.karatebyjesse.com/42-secrets-of-inoue-yoshimi-kata-coach/ Thoughts on the 42 points? Agree or disagree with them?

This is why I prefer to use the term "inactive" blackbelt. Personally I say you have to be practicing those skills and keeping both the knowledge and physical ability current otherwise I'd agree with mal103, they were a blackbelt but not anymore; or at least not until they start training again.

Should the ref not have stopped the fight if one fighter was majorly outclassed? TBH I wouldn't necessarily agree it's bushido either. Maybe I'm just a little cynical but I'd rather have seen him sit back and coast. A little humiliating to the other fighter maybe? Is there anything with Rasner's reaction to the "win"? They were barely halfway through the first round, he denied Rasner the opportunity to try to come back in the second round and have a fight. It's an amateur bout so he was only there to have a fight and get some experience.

A belated congratulations Patrick. Hope KF has another successful 13 years

You can't doubt that the so called McDojos are often excellent businesses too. That's one of the things that differentiates them from "normal" dojos. They also tend to have excellent marketing strategies. They often go after these types of awards because it's a great thing to advertise to pull in more students. I don't think it's really fair to complain unless you also put yourself up for the award and entered the competition too. Sure they may not teach what you regard as good martial arts but as Patrick said, the school may be preferable to some people for other reasons. Maybe it has a great team and family atmosphere - a lot of them do. Maybe it's some other reason. I totally agree with CredoTe's post. The only way forward if you want to compete with them, maintain standards and integrity and just stay focused on your own training and teaching. As they say, got to be in it to win it. If you do want these kinds of recognition awards, make sure you're ready for next time.

Congrats what was your chosen form? Good luck for your grading.

I'm ashamed to say in a teenage bad temper I once slammed my bedroom door and then kicked it for good measure. My foot went straight through it needless to say my dad (who was already mad) was furious. Must be about 10 years ago now but it was the first moment I though "wow I could really do some damage with my training". Made me really focus on not losing it so often. Funny enough from that moment onwards, tameshiwari clicked for me.

So this is also the basis for my reasoning. Any technique; punch, kick or even a tackle can result in a serious injury or in the worst case scenario, death. I try to impart to kids and adults alike that every action has a reaction. Everything has a consequence. If I punch someone they will feel it. It may (should) cause some damage. It may knock them over so they crack their head open on the concrete. They may have an unknown underlying condition which is triggered by the head trauma. We just don't know what's going to happen. Should you need to defend yourself, pick an appropriate response level, no excessive force, and be ready to own any potential negative outcomes. (I also think this is a good life lesson too. That everything we do affects someone else in someway. Sometimes it's a small effect, sometimes it's life changing.) I'm not sure what constitutes an "deadly" technique exactly as I consider all of them deadly to some degree. We don't specifically omit any from the childrens' curriculum though for that reason. I suppose things like eye gouges and the like aren't covered in great detail with the kids because it's more practical to focus on basic but effective simple strikes.

Keep it interesting by keeping it fast paced. Kids rarely appreciate a whole lesson on the intricacies of a shuto. You can have a common theme throughout your lesson but keep changing the activity they are doing. If their attention goes and you can't get it back, I think stopping and doing a load of (fun) fitness works well to get them excited again. Stuff like relay races or tag or something. Better if you can tie these into what you were teaching. Like tag but they've got to use the footwork you taught earlier. Or dodgeball but they can use their blocks. There's a few older threads you might want to look through: http://www.karateforums.com/managing-behavior-in-children-s-martial-arts-training-vt36828.html http://www.karateforums.com/karate-exercises-for-children-vt45049.html http://www.karateforums.com/new-instructor-teaching-kids-vt44580.html http://www.karateforums.com/teaching-kids-vt40325.html

Happy Birthday Ken

It depends how you learn as to how best you'll absorb the language. Keep at it though. Eventually you'll absorb itm I know when I have to learn stuff like this I like to break it down. Do something like pick 5 words you will learn each week. Like this week learn the names of 5 different stances and next week the names of five different punches (but only techniques you actually know, don't get ahead of yourself!). Or maybe learn the terms relating to the kata you are currently learning. Have a notebook or something of terms you've learnt and compiled.

Sorry to hear this Bob.

Great topic Bob and great posts thus far. In the style of TKD I do, instead of deflection and blocking, we talk about impact vs non - impact blocks: 1) Impact blocks are hard like strikes that smash into the incoming attack and not only stop the movement but cause damage too. Almost always with the forearms, knifehand or sometimes with the palm heel. We can further categorize these blocks as those that meet the attack at a right angle to the trajectory and those that meet it head on. 1a) Meeting an arm or leg at a right angle is preffered as the risk of damage to you, the defender, is lower. So for example the front punch to the head. The high block connects at a right angle to the direction the fist is travelling, smashing the arm upwards. Similar to a , the intention being not to lift the punch yourself but to left the force of the strike do so. 1b) The other type of impact block intercepts the movement and almost jams it before it reaches extension. Like using a block on the inside of an arching technique like a front hook punch. In a way it's a type of cover movement. 2) I suppose our non-impact blocks would be very much similar to a deflection rather than a true block. They have to meet an attack at an angle to the trajectory but instead if smashing, make contact and stay in contact to move the attack out of the way. Alongside the forearm and knifehand, it's much more common to use the palm to do this type of block because it can also turn into a grasp or grab. It's a parry type movement. For completeness we also have covering or guarding movements. Not really blocks but they are the last line of defense. Crossing the arms or covering up like a boxer would.

Not that I don't think it would be a good movie.... But why do they have to always remake the classics instead of developing their own story. Sounds like we're getting more than one.

That's a pretty awesome story Bob. Sounds like you have a great local community.

Well yes of course that is the 3rd option alongside those that I proposed. Good points nevertheless Martial Arts are a pastime that someone (or someone's parents) make the choice to do. The dojo choice is totally open too. Choice being the key factor here. If you choose to send your child to a martial arts school or indeed any other hobby, you choose to accept that the school may have certain rules in place that you have to adhere to. If you are made to feel uncomfortable you are perfectly free to choose a different school that does not have such rules. No one is forcing you to put yourself or your child in that situation if you do not want to. Likewise you should not force a school to bend the rules for one if you don't like them. Like I said above, you have choice if the school has closed testing: a) accept closed testing, b) delay testing until the child I older or c) choose a school that does open testing. You are right in that no parent should be made to feel uncomfortable but they also have the right to choose their own school and the situation they put themselves in. FWIW we choose to do our's closed not because it makes our job easier. There are many reasons. To us its a truer test of the child; no parent to prompt and reassure or conversely criticise. It also preserves the candidates privacy and the proper testing environment for them free from distraction. Privacy is important in case they fail or something doesn't go to plan. The examiner then has the opportunity to debrief student and parents privately without 50 pairs of eyes gawking. Parents and spectators can also be very distracting, even unintentionally. Preserving a proper testing generally results in a better performance from student and better focus from examiner. In any case, we also don't allow parents or spectators to sit in on classes.

That is a valid point. I would say however that don't these parents leave their kids at school, in playgroups, childcare situations where they don't stay to watch? As long as the relevant qualifications and background checks have been carried out on the adults involved and have been OK'd, the parent should accept that the school has chosen to do closed testing or make the decision to prolong testing until they feel the child is old enough to be alone with other adults. Part of the Clubmark recognition I mentioned earlier meant for us that all instructors and assistants have regular background checks, are never alone in a 1 adult to 1 child setting and that they adhere to our child and vulnerable persons protection policy. So strictly no touching (unless for first aid) etc.

You're lucky!!! It's never bad students that ruin my day but bad parents! Had my worse nightmare last week when umpiring a local tournament; got designated to the 5 - 9 yr old ring. Could've cried. Line of about 30 parents along the edge of the competition mat watching like a bunch of vultures with beady eyes waiting for you to screw up so they can swoop in and tell you they know better. Had to really put my foot down on at least 5 occasions because they weren't happy with how the draws had played out or the fact that their child deserves higher marks for his kata because he normally does it better than that in class. And don't even get me started on sparring - which btw for kids this age is no contact point stop - parents practically ripping their vocal cords to shreds screaming at their kid to punch the other one in the face! /rant

Congrats Devin

I love this idea!! I have to say the parents at are club are generally pretty good (aside from the parent in my original post) they know our instuctor won't hesitate in throwing them out if they disrupt the class, but some I've seen at competitions really take the biscuit. If only they could see what others see, that their kid wasn't as the best at kata/they didn't score a point in kumite (I'm sure you know the type). Parents Code of Conduct was one of the things we needed to get Clubmark accredited. We're one of a handful of TKD schools in the UK that has it. There's a whole load of templates for these sorts of things on the Clubmark website if it's something of interest to your school: http://www.clubmark.org.uk/clubmark/getting-clubmark/resources-and-templates/clubmark-resources On the whole our parents are generally alright too but we do get a few that turn into pushy parents who think their child deserves to be the best. Funnily enough it's always the ones that dabbled in martial arts in their youth. Must be trying to live through their kids...

Respectfully, I don't think it is the punching higher that would be the issues but learning to take the punch itself. I think you're right in that to deliver it you simply aim higher but defending it if you're not used to doing so might be another story. For fast hard legs and hands to both body and head look at pro kickboxing and to a lesser extent international ITF Taekwondo. Some wicked fast legs and punches. Avoiding and taking the face punches takes some specific and different movements than taking a punch to the body. Bobbing, weaving, even the parrying is different to how you'd defend against body punches and kicks to the head.

We used to allow parents to sit in but over the past few years we've changed it to students and examiners only. Even the students are only allowed into the room in the small testing groups (about 8 or so). Over time we've found that having the parents in on lessons or gradings is just not conducive to independent learning from kids as they just look to their parents for support and the parents can be overly critical. We do have a parent's Code of Conduct that must be adhered to along with the student's Code of Conduct. It outlines that parents at events such as gradings, seminars, classes or tournaments shouldn't criticise students (their own child or others) + other stuff. Any concerns should be voiced with an instructor privately.

Thanks for the answer How does your kumite factor into your training? I'd imagine you have to make some adjustments here and there. Hello DWX. I love kumite,, I have to go very steady now after just having the kidney transplant but prior to that I would do kumite just like any other student. I didn't feel I really had to adapt but I did have to learn control at first. Lucky for me I picked up the control quite easy and despite zero sight I can still block a fair amount of inbound strikes. obviously I still can feel vulnerable if its too noisy or if Im not concentrating to my best haha. I tell anybody who spars me to treat me as sighted and do what ever you normally would do,,because if I can get them, i will, so show no mercy both ways lol,, I have a few videos on my channel of me either sparing with my PT and blocking, also some kumite footage from my Shodan grading. I will try to post them here if anybody is interested in watching.. and.. Blind vs Blindfold Sparing and... ossu and bonsai ) That is incredible. Do you have 100 % vision loss or do you have partial vision? In the latter part of her life my grandmother was technically blind but could just make out large (body) shapes if the colour contrasted enough with the surroundings. Sorry for all the questions but your journey is interesting How did you learn the techniques? I think most of us rely heavily on visual demonstration and explanation and I can't even begin to imagine how you teach a roundhouse form start to finish without the student looking and seeing. Must have been quite the challenge for your instructor.