DWx

Well that is up to the individual school or organisation. FWIW, if the criteria is purely based on purely on physical skill and not knowledge then maybe what I said about having a physics degree but no longer a physicist should be applied. I think in most instances like this, the criteria will be graduated based on age, so a 50 year old wouldn't be required to perform to the standards of a 20 year old. Seems to be the case with most dojos. In a hypothetical situation though, if a dojo did require blackbelts to be at a certain physical level, they could retire students when their skill level drops. As harsh as that seems, it's up to the school what they do and how they award (and take away) rank and if they really wanted to they could choose to strip rank because that's their prerogative.

Yeah its like the difference between a piercing kick and a pushing kick. Different purpose and different actions so they're 2 distinct kicks, hence consecutive and not just double. Pressing kicks are weird anyway. Intended to put pressure on a joint whereas, personally, I'd just strike it if I had the opportunity.

Although it is a good analogy I don't think university degrees should be the standard for how we deal with blackbelts. The vast majority of degrees are knowledge based and not skill based whereas blackbelts should require some sort of physical competence too. Interesting thought on the Ph.D as I was actually talking to my boss last week (has a Ph.D in Chemistry), he has 2 business cards, one with Dr. on it and one with Mr. depending on the situation and who he's presenting his card too. Maybe it's a cultural thing but I also have a several friends who choose to omit the Dr. titles and letters after their name and stick with Mr/Mrs unless it is relevant to the situation they are in. I would equate it to titles like Sensei, Shihan, Kaicho etc. and only using them when in the martial arts and not signing anything else off as them. Well that is up to the individual school or organisation. FWIW, if the criteria is purely based on purely on physical skill and not knowledge then maybe what I said about having a physics degree but no longer a physicist should be applied.

I think it depends on your personal views but I myself would say I have a degree in physics but I'm no longer a physicist. How can you be when you've not kept yourself up-to-date and your knowledge and skills current? In our dojang we've never had a situation where someone who was training was slacking for an extended period of time but when someone stops training completely, we call them and "inactive" blackbelts until they start training again and work their skill level back up. I think that's fair comment and in the real world of work, qualifications have to be updated regularly if you are stay up to speed with your career requirements. However, the obtaining of a qualification at University for example is more than just a measure of someone’s expertise in a particular field. More importantly, it demonstrates a person's capacity. As Masterpain points out, we all have our "shelf-life" when it comes to athletic ability and perhaps this is where we come to the fork in the road when it comes to comparing sports (like boxing) to Budo!? K. Capacity alone isn't worthy of merit. I agree that there is only so long we can physically train hard but even when our bodies start to wear out you can still be mentally training and be active in your chosen style that way.

We don't do it slow but for us the low pressing kick is a different type of kick to a low side kick so in Kwang-Gae we call it consecutive. We target the side or back of someone's knee and it's done without that piercing action... like a press down onto the joint. Not slow but without that acceleration and with more weight down. One of the few times we specifically don't turn the standing foot.

Welcome

Good luck

Good Luck

I think it depends on your personal views but I myself would say I have a degree in physics but I'm no longer a physicist. How can you be when you've not kept yourself up-to-date and your knowledge and skills current? In our dojang we've never had a situation where someone who was training was slacking for an extended period of time but when someone stops training completely, we call them and "inactive" blackbelts until they start training again and work their skill level back up.

You're welcome The only point I'm unsure about, is whether a middle roundhouse then high roundhouse would count as a consecutive kick or not? I'd be inclined to say they aren't different kicks so they're not consecutive but I don't know for sure.

Congrats Nathan! Pretty awesome how much everyone got behind him and then he goes out and scores 8 points? You must be so so proud.

I have to admit that I'm somewhat guilty of doing the things you guys are talking about. But I train, at the minute anyway, for sport TKD. At higher levels of competition you'd be a fool to walk onto the mat without having trained or at least considered some of these things. You'd lose to any competent fighter. These people are athletes and sportsmen and you can bet that they'll be using the rules set to their advantage. At that level it's less about martial art and more about playing a game. Would I recommend you throw a 360 roundhouse in a street confrontation? No. But in tournament sparring, if you can pull it off, something like that will win you a match. As long as you recognise that you're crossing the boundary into sport and away from martial art I don't think there's anything wrong with that.

I agree Brian. I look at it like any kind of physical activity or sport, if you want to be good you have to first have technique but then add in power and strength etc. Power and strength and speed can also to some extent make up for poor technique.

As far as I understand it, these descriptions are all for kicks where you don't set the foot down in between. Otherwise they would singular kicks. I don't have the 15 volume set to hand but in the condensed encyclopedia (volume 4, pg 284) it says about consecutive kicks: Consecutive kicks or yonsok chagi are when you do several different kicks from the same leg without putting your foot down in between. You can have double consecutive kicks (2 in a row), triple consecutive kicks (3 in a row) etc. For example moves 13-14 and 17-18 in Kwang-Gae, the pressing kicks-side kicks. Or moves 13-14 and 18-19 in Choi-Yong, hook kick-turning kick combos. When just saying "double kick" I've always taken that to mean doing the same type of kick twice without putting the foot down. Then combination kicks are kicking with both legs simultaneously in the air. Like a 2-directional split kick (as seen in Juche). Although the kicks in Choong-Moo are done one after the other in combination I don't think they are specifically called combination kicks.

Karate is bidding for 2020 along with baseball, roller sports, sport climbing squash, wakeboarding, Wushu and now wrestling. Golf and rugby union have already been chosen for inclusion in 2016. You're right in that it's only been recommended so far but IMHO I think it'll go unless FILA can show that wrestling will adapt and do something to address the issues the IOC has with it. Here's the actual IOC press release: http://www.olympic.org/content/press-release/ioc-executive-board-recommends-25-core-sports-for-2020-games/ And FILA's statement: http://www.fila-official.com/

As of yesterday the IOC have announced they're dropping wrestling as an Olympic sport. This article gives a decent analysis of the issues and suggests the impacts it might have on MMA: http://infinitemma.com/2013/02/13/a-detailed-analysis-of-the-iocs-recommendation-for-removal-of-wrestling-from-the-olympics-what-it-means-for-the-sports-of-wrestling-mma-and-just-where-this-leaves-the-sport-of-mma-in-relation-to/ Thoughts?

Congrats What were you competing in? Kata? Kumite?

This is great advice. Few kids will understand the bigger picture and won't really care when you talk about nutrition and hydration.. it'll just seem like you're nagging them. Make it fun to learn about or bring it down to their level and they might be more interested.

I've read the entire 15 volume collection of Encyclopedia of Taekwon-do, and he gives the same equations on force that I've seen elsewhere in MA writings on the subject of force. He also talks of reactionary force. The sine wave mentioned isn't the same sine wave I see in YouTube videos. Nor do I see the TKD way of doing things as more relaxed than the way Shotokan or Kyokushin stylists do their basic and forms work, either. I think part of the issue is that the General wanted so much for his TKD to be different (and better) from Japanese Karate and Kukkiwon TKD so I think he just took all the scientific jargon and equations relating to force without really having a total understanding of them or how to properly relate them to his martial art. I didn't start training until the 00's but even since then these things like sine wave etc. have been refined and retuned into something more useful whereas I think when they were implemented they were largely ineffective and there for the sake of being different. I suppose that's one of the things I've always liked about the style and of belonging to the ITF, things get refined all the time and improved (for the better?). The other issue when talking about all this stuff is the language barrier. I don't think the General's English was fantastic and he was giving all these scientific names to things without maybe totally understanding how they would interpreted by English speakers. As far as I'm concerned the idea of "reaction force" as it's presented in the books and taught by a lot of ITF instructors is a bit mixed up because he took actual reaction force (as in Newton's 3rd law) and then went and called the non-punching arm the reaction arm too. I only have the condensed Encyclopedia to hand but it says: The first bit is fine but by including the bit in bold in the same section and calling it a reaction force too, you generate confusion. There's nothing wrong with that statement on it's own but the reaction hand isn't adding additional force or power. Also, YouTube isn't always a good reference as a lot of the videos on there are competition videos where bigger sine wave is encouraged for artistic and aesthetic reasons.

I don't think it's just for that. I even if you aren't competing or grading shouldn't you be doing the techniques with realism and correct posture, breathing, tension etc.? Otherwise you might as well be flailing your arms and legs around any old how.

I'm not too hot on my dates but had sine wave been introduced at this point?

Here's the thread where we discussed it before: http://www.karateforums.com/sine-wave-itf-tkd-vt42144.html I wrote a reply on there which hopefully goes some way to explaining how to do proper sine wave. However since I do ITF TKD and do sine wave, perhaps I can attempt a little explanation here. Instead of down/up/down, I prefer to think of it as relaxation/expansion/contraction. At the heart of it the idea is that relaxation makes for more natural technique and will also result in better weight management and drive behind your technique. The best way I ever had it explained to me was as if you were sighing with your whole body (down motion), drawing back your hip (upwards), then firing the technique by driving with the back leg (down again). Contrary to what Gen. I Choi said in that video, hip twist should also be used but it is used in conjunction with the stance movement. Also wrt to what was said above, I think it does manifest itself in sparring as it's all about relaxing and driving with the back leg and ITFers will spar this way. Obviously it's a more compact motion but so is pulling your non-punching hand back to the hip and doing "proper" blocks.

Congrats Tzu-Logic

Yes we use them. Saju Tulgi isn't an official ITF one though or at least it tends to be non-examinable. Typically most schools will stick to Saju Jirugi and Saju Makgi. I don't really know whether they offer any advantages over Chon Ji at white belt level tbh. I always saw them as a bit of a filler at that stage. I suppose the difference between them and Chon Ji is that in the 4-direction exercises you're stepping with the back leg to make the turn whereas in Chon Ji it's the front leg all the time. Most of the time people in our school will double grade the 1st two belts so they'll learn Chon Ji straight away anyway. I suppose the saju exercises are a bit easier to learn because you only ever move one foot at a time but other than that I never saw their benefit at white belt level. Having said that, 4 directional exercises are great when you want to practice specific techniques but don't have much room. Keeping the same "step back - step forward - turn" format, you can swap the blocks and punches and even stances for other techniques of your choosing. Can also do 4 directional kicking drills. Maybe that's why we teach them to white belts? So they have a compact framework to practice future techniques on.

I think these are a modification on the standards lain down by Gen. Choi for ITF practitioners. (See page 524 of the 4th edition Encylopedia). So they were said with the ITF patterns in mind and not necessary as a rule for all styles or all kata sets. Also online here: http://www.comdo.com/patterns.html Here's what's in the book: But anyway, wrt to the one's Mr. Anslow uses: 1. All patterns start and finish on the same spot. For ITF forms this should be a yes. They were designed in such a way that they should always come back to the same spot if your stances and stepping is correct. In gradings/competition this is one of the key things that you better get right otherwise it indicates that something is fundamentally wrong. But of course this doesn't hold true if you don't practice a form set that does come back to the same marker. 2. Each pattern should be performed in a rhythmic motion without stiffness. Again I think this should be taken in context of it being for ITF. I know Mr. Anslow doesn't do sine wave but when these points were lain down it was for people who did sine wave and good rhythm = good pattern for the system. In ITF we have set motions and set timings for everything and if it doesn't fit the correct motion, you're doing it wrong. I guess you can also take this statement to mean that there shouldn't be any stiffness or blockiness to your actions and that smooth = fast. 3. Each technique should be fully formed before moving onto the next. 4. Techniques should be performed with realism. 5. Correct breathing should be performed throughout each pattern. I think these are pretty self-explanatory and most people would agree with them. 6. Correct posture and muscle tension should be utilized in all techniques. This seems to be a combination of points 2 and 3 from the list I posted. Again I don't think anyone will disagree with this. I will add though that I also think that along with correct muscle tension, correct muscle relaxation should be considered. I may just be being picky with the semantics but it is not good to be tense throughout the entire thing. Relaxation is key too. 7. Each pattern should be perfected before moving onto the next. Again this seems to be taken from the original list. I think it's more to do with not rushing ahead and kata collecting. I always interpreted it as "perfect for the belt level you are at". So when you're a 6th gup and you're just learning your new pattern, you are expected to perform it how a 6th gup should look. So you do it with all the understanding and power etc. of a 6th gup. Not perfect it as such but do it as best as possible. Then when you're a 1st dan and you do that same form, it should be a perfected to a 1st dan level as your understanding and ability should be miles ahead. The original points I quoted from the book go hand in hand with the 9 training secrets ITF students are also meant to try to do.