KarateTips

Thanks for your reply, bushido_man96. It's definitely worth a look - some good stuff in there. The thing I like about John Graden's work is that he's studied hundreds if not thousands of successful schools and found common successful traits amongst them. And like I mentioned it doesn't mean you have to change your system to follow his, however you might pick up one or two things that might make a HUGE difference. That's the way I look at it...

Hi, I find that my reaction depends on my "state" at that moment. If I'm having a good day I usually laugh on the inside and say something like "Step forward with your OTHER left foot..." which 99 times out of 100 makes the student laugh too, which is important... I know some instructors get really angry when a student doesn't make the connection between what they hear and what they want their body to do, AND the instructor expresses their frustration. Some even punish the student for "not listening" with pushups, etc. What does this do? First it makes the student feel inept and secondly makes them feel bad for trying. Not a great learning combination! How long would you stick around with someone who made you feel bad for trying? If I'm in an unresourceful state, I find my reaction is more serious and it's very challenging to keep my patience, especially after the 10th time in a 5 minute period. At this point I try to change my state to a positive outlook by forcing myself to smile and encourage the student. I think as instructors we've got to remember that most people ARE trying. Congratulate them when they do well, and nurture their development, instead of stifling it with anger and frustration. It's also important to realize that different people learn in different ways. I have one kid in my program right now who totally just "doesn't get it" in regular terms. I was explaining to him how to do a pushup, and asked him to lie on his tummy and bend his arms... His response was to lift up his shirt and point at his tummy! So I had to SHOW him what a push up was and then he could do it no problem. Some people learn better visually, some through actions, some through auditory commands. I believe our role as instructors is to teach on all 3 levels to increase the learning rate for all students rather than dismissing someone as "slow" or having "A.D.D", etc. Quite often it's the teacher in us that isn't communicating in the most effective way for that student - kinda like trying to plug a European appliance into a US socket. - Jason

Hi, Somehow when I was a member of MATA, I ended up with a copy of John Graden's book - The Truth About the Martial Arts Business. I don't think I ever actually ordered it, but I received a copy anyhow. Lol. Anyway, it's a good read whether you buy into his system or not. I don't outsource my billing to a 3rd party company, or teach the way MATA promotes, etc. In fact I do a lot of things very differently. However I did discover some creative ways to structure certain parts of the business - and if I had actually purchased the book to begin with I think it would have been worth the money. Hope this helps!

Hi, There are many versions of Shitoryu ... and the katas also. Mabuni Sensei had many fine students who developed their own versions of Shitoryu and those instructors had students who have developed it further. Tani-ha and Hyashi-ha are probably the most well known versions of Shitoryu, while Kimura further developed Tani-ha Shitoryu which is commonly called Shukokai. Shukokai isn't really a style in itself - it was the name of Tani's school which means "way for all". I've been teaching and practicing Shitoryu for over 15 years, but I'm not familiar with the name of the kata you asked about. Perhaps we call it something else. What organization do you belong to? Anyhow here is a list of the W.K.F recognized Shitoryu kata as per the W.K.F rules which can be downloaded from http://www.worldkarate.net. SHITO-RYU KATAS 1. Jitte 2. Jion 3. Jiin 4. Matsukaze 5. Wanshu 6. Rohai 7. Bassai Dai 8. Bassai Sho 9. Tomari Bassai 10. Matsumura Bassai 11. Kosokun Dai 12. Kosokun Sho 13. Kosokun Shiho 14. Chinto 15. Chinte 16. Seienchin 17. Sochin 18. Niseishi 19. Gojushiho 20. Unshu 21. Seisan 22. Naifanchin Shodan 23. Naifanchin Nidan 24. Naifanchin Sandan 25. Aoyagi (Seiryu) 26. Jyuroku 27. Nipaipo 28. Sanchin 29. Tensho 30. Seipai 31. Sanseiru 32. Saifa 33. Shisochin 34. Kururunfa 35. Suparimpei 36. Hakucho 37. Pachu 38. Heiku 39. Paiku 40. Annan 41. Annanko 42. Papuren 43. Chatanyara Kushanku Regards,

Hi LoneWolf, Thanks for the recommendation! Glad you like the site...

Hi Killer, I like Chinto because it's difficult to do well. The crane stances and strikes really require you to have good balance and coordination. I guess you could say I like to try to master difficult things.... it gives a sense of self-achievement and continually pushes me to try harder. Thanks for your question. Regards,

I recently attended the US Open in Las Vegas and filmed the kata finals. You can see video of Annan, Matsumura Bassai and Kushanku at the following link. http://www.karatetips.com/video.asp Hope this helps!

I usually wear a white gi, sometimes black when instructing... I recently visited an American Kempo club where they were wearing black or blue uniforms. Some students had a mix of both and one girl was even wearing a denim gi jacket..... hmmmm?

Chinto for me.... then maybe Tomari Bassai....

The recent 2003 US Open in Las Vegas had prize money for all of the adult events... $2000 for first place in most events and $3000 first place in the men and women's open kumite. World Champion, Elisa Au, won both her weight division and the women's open... an excellent achievement... and what's more, $5000 for the day. There were individual competitors (and teams) from Japan, Azerbaijan, Norway, Morocco, USA and more. No doubt the prize money is quite an incentive for people to enter, but it could be argued that this takes away from the spirit of karate-do. What are your thoughts?

What I found interesting in his book was the whole philosophy of karate-do being about "not fighting". This is what Funakoshi lived by and promoted as the spirit of karate-do. However if you look at his masters, Itosu in particular, there are numerous stories where Itosu apparently had no problem giving someone a hiding if they deserved it! I wonder if it had been Itosu that introduced karate to mainland Japan whether the spirit of karate-do would have a different meaning! Perhaps karate would be about "fighting"?

I think it's a great kata... and I've always been taught it's to the solar plexus. Regards,

Hi Arys, Also check out this site. It has good information and plenty of links. https://www.kyokushin-australia.com Hope this helps,

If you haven't already seen this site, have a look at the following link... http://www.richardsandrak.com/ I'm not exactly sure what to say...

A good drill for improving the speed and power of your reverse punch is as follows. This method of resistance training builds strength, speed and power. Things you need - 1 ) An inner tube from a bicycle tyre. 2 ) Something to tie it to or a partner to hold one end. Procedure - 1 ) Cut the tube once so you have one long piece. 2 ) Tie the tube to itself so you make a loop at one end. 3 ) Tie the other end to something solid that will not move or have your partner hold it. 4 ) Put your punching hand through the loop you made and make a fist. 5 ) Make your stance at a distance where the tube is tight, but still can be stretched with your partner behind you holding the other end. 6 ) Make your reverse punch slowly with good technique ensuring you are driving forward so your body weight remains behind your punch. 7 ) You should feel resistance from the tube. If you don't feel resistance, move forward (away from your partner) until you cannot make the punch to full extension. Then back off a little until you can. The tension of the tube should provide enough resistance to make the punch difficult but not impossible for you. 8 ) Once at the correct distance, increase the speed of your technique and practice say 10 - 20 times. Repeat 3 times. 9 ) Practice this every day and you will build the exact muscles you need to increase the speed and power of your punch. Remember this is just one way to increase speed and power based on increasing the muscles required to punch. Hope this helps,

How much do you pay per month for your karate training fees? How much do you think you should pay? (yes, I know... $0 would be good) Do you think what you pay is reasonable or unreasonable?

Karate training can certainly let you know about muscles you didn't think you had, as the muscles you use tend to be those that aren't used all that often in regular life, the same way as used when training. Certainly it could be that... HOWEVER... nobody here in this forum knows how YOU feel.... we can only imagine. We are not you. Only you know exactly what the pain is like. I don't believe it's good advice for anyone here, who hasn't seen you and who isn't properly qualified (ie. medically) to say it will simply go away! While it might simply be your body getting used to karate, it might be a medical condition and you should certainly get it checked out asap if it's causing excrutiating pain that almost stops you from walking! I hate to think of all the injuries people put up with or develop because they think it might just go away. Look after your body and PLEASE go and get it checked out immediately. Better to ask the Doc, Osteopath or Chiro their professional opinion than to be injured permanently. Hope this helps!

Do you have a moral obligation to call for an ambulance in the case where you seriously injure someone in a street fight? Or do you consider it to be their 'bad luck' as they shouldn't have attacked you in the first place? Before you answer take into consideration that your life was seriously threatened by this person. I've recently been debating this topic and am interested in your thoughts. Kind Regards,

Yes... A few times... here's a couple. First time was very scary... many years ago...(when i was young and stupid), I was approached by 3 teenage kids who were stoned. To cut a long story short, the first guy attacked me and I kicked him with a hard mawashi geri to his knee.... basically he didn't feel a thing at the time and then the situation escalated beyond my ability... In the blink of an eye, all 3 of them withdrew knives.... I had to 'eat some humble pie' and talk my way out of it. Second time at a party (not a street fight per se) but involved a troublesome guy who I had to take down with a left hand wrist lock accompanied by a right ridge hand across the chest/throat area. He went down pretty hard, wondered what the heck just happened. That ended the party pretty quickly. There have been a few others, not worth mentioning and many others that *could* have escalated into a dangerous situation, but through years of training to be aware, most of these threatening situations were diminished or avoided completely. I believe that is the most important part of karate training. ie. awareness. I could have avoided my first 'life threatening' encounter completely had I been paying attention. Another important point... If a situation escalates beyond your control or ability, don't try to be a superhero and let your ego get the better of you. You might wind up dead. Try other approaches such as verbal communication, avoidance, etc. I'd much rather swallow my pride than a knife. Regards,

I disagree. If you wait then you're giving your opponent an opportunity to harm or even kill you. Obviously you don't just go around hitting people because they look at you funny. You need to know the signs of attack and once you know them, as soon as you see them you must act first. Do you wait for the guy to pull out his weapon and then attack, or do you strike when he says, "I'm gonna cut you" and sticks his hand in his jacket? I'd rather his weapon be in his jacket than in his hand. If they were faking or calling your bluff, it's their bad luck. It's simply proactive self defence, not assault. "It is better to be tried by 12 than carried by 6."

I believe you must anticipate, or forestall your opponent. As soon as you read the signs of attack, such as the shifting of their weight, a big body movement, lifting of the front foot etc, you must cross the 'gap' and strike. If it is competition point fighting or if it's in the street the same principle applies. You must go first. You don't want to wait for the big guy to start... otherwise you are in trouble. You might block or weave a few techniques but eventually they will overpower you. I say hit first, hit hard and hit multiple times.

Hi, A while back we ran two surveys on our site. One to survey visitors and one to survey our members. The member survey gave more choices (8 choices) than the visitor survey (5 choices). Both the results were similar, though the member survey had over 12 times the number of responses. What we found was this... The number one reason why people begin Karate is for - Self Defence The number two reason why people begin Karate is for - Fitness. Here's a brief summary for you. ------------------------------------- Visitor Survey - 33 responses (which is hardly conclusive given the low response) Self Defence - 63% of the vote Fitness - 18.1% Other - 18.9% ------------------------------------- Member survey - 410 responses (probably a fair indication) Self Defence - 40% of the vote Fitness - 23.75% Other - 36.25% The other choices for the surveys included the following: Competition, Strength, Mental Aspect, Discipline, Confidence. Regards,

Most practical - probably the bo or jo simply for the reasons stated by other members here. The most fun - Kali/Escrima Sticks. They move really fast and can do a lot of damage very quickly.... Hey XpOiSoN FrEeX, follow the link below and you'll see some pics of various Kali/Escrima sticks. They're usually made of rattan, though I've seen some carbon fibre sticks too... nasty! http://shop.store.yahoo.com/tigerstrike-martial-arts/eskalstic.html Regards,

Your system is very similar to the one that I learned and now teach and I think it's important that students understand and become aware. So many times people are in the 'Green' when they should be in the 'Yellow' and that's when it happens! Suprise is a valuable ally to any attacker. Being able to recognise the signs of a potential attack and avoid it is the best defense no doubt. Knowing the 'animal' instinctual signs such as the puffing out of the chest, the bearing of the teeth, eye movements and changes in breathing patterns are just some of the things to look out for. However when it comes to the crunch, I believe controlling your fear is equally important as knowing how to do an effective technique. You might be able to hit really hard in the dojo when you're under little pressure, but in the street, when you're fearing for your life, it's a whole new game.

I practice and teach karate and teach awareness as a key part of self defense. I could have easily said TKD is useless or boxing is useless. My point is that you can be a 10th Dan in whatever you like and still get taken out by someone who has no martial arts training if you aren't paying attention. So my question is more focused on 'what is your awareness system'? "Karate is Useless" arouses more interest than "how do you stay aware?" That's all. I'm certainly not putting down what I've practiced for 15 years! Kind Regards,