Martial Arts

Norman Mjadwesch · May 14, 2019

RookieWriter said:
Well I think I am going to start a training log of dates and notes from each class. It's the kind of thing I tend not to stick with so we will see how that goes.

Another sparring class tonight. We had a different drill where one fighter was only allowed to strike with his hands and the other fighter his feat. We did two minutes of this then switched roles. I had never sparred like that before. Interesting exercise.

When I started I’d intended to keep a log of every technique but I never even started it and after a dozen classes I gave up entirely. It would have been an interesting way to keep track of what I’d learned, though.

That drill with hands or feet is something that we do from time to time (alternating who does what), but with the added extra of sometimes stipulating that one person may attack and the other defend. There are so many ways to teach people that I don’t see how classes could ever be boring.

One of my BB’s came back the other day and we had a really long roll on the floor. I’d left my mouth guard at home and inevitably broke a tooth (one that was already dead and had been repaired, so there was no associated pain, just another dental bill).

BlackKnight1974 · May 15, 2019

Norman Mjadwesch said:
One of my BB’s came back the other day and we had a really long roll on the floor. I’d left my mouth guard at home and inevitably broke a tooth (one that was already dead and had been repaired, so there was no associated pain, just another dental bill).

My friend who runs the gym that I train realised while at a tournament that he had forgotten his gum shield. Rather than miss out on fighting, he "fashioned" one out of a Starbucks cup (this was for show and I wouldn't recommend it!)

RookieWriter · May 15, 2019

edutton said:
Thanks. Attractive training space!

I just came across this demo they did.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D45JMkBcpso

RookieWriter · May 16, 2019

Since our dojo is closed to group lessons on Wednesday night (I think they do privates then) I decided to check out a Krav Maga school. I went back through this thread recently and was reading about what KM is and wanted to see what it's like. Had an awesome time and will be going again on Saturday. The first week of training is free. For those who have studied KM here, what do you think about cross training it with Karate? Would the two styles compliment each other?

RookieWriter · May 22, 2019

Krav is a great style and after a couple of classes I can see it being practical. That being said I have decided not to cross train. I need to get a better understanding of Karate before I try and take in a second style. Karate is my only martial art for a while.

Where has everyone gone? We can't let this thread die.

onesecondglance · May 23, 2019

Still here, still training, just not much to report at the moment. We've got a couple of kids grading for their first kyu belt tomorrow, so I'll be drilling them beforehand to make sure they remember everything. Their rolling ukemi are probably their biggest weakness, so I'll spend some time on that, though it'll have to be right-handed, since I seem to have completely lost my muscle memory for left-hand rolls and keep landing sideways...

Norman Mjadwesch · May 23, 2019

Hey there fellas. I’ve been busy, haven’t visited here much lately.

With the cross training, I’ve never been one to pigeonhole skills like that. If it’s useful I use it in my syllabus, if it isn’t I don’t. (Except hyung / kata / forms – those are still in there because if I had to learn them then so can everyone else, plus they look really good when done by a large group.) As to the other skills, I normally break them down either by how they work (e.g. arm locks or punches), which range they work in (e.g. grapple or kicks), or which degree of threat we are dealing with (e.g. life threatening or bullying). Which style these things are used in is of secondary importance. Yes, karate uses fewer kicks than tkd, but unless you are a die-hard of a given style then these are more degrees of emphasis than anything else.

For me it was always about what worked and what didn’t, and how easy those things were to learn was more relevant to me than how cool they looked. There will be plenty of people who disagree with that assessment, but it was a personal decision and I learned what I wanted to learn and founded a school that taught a mixed bag of everything.

edutton · May 23, 2019

Still here... not much mat time since the seminar, unfortunately - I went out of town last weekend, and have been stuck working late some this week. Hoping to go tonight.

BlackKnight1974 · May 23, 2019

Still around - just busy.

We had our 10 week "white collar" boxing fight night on Saturday which basically consumed my whole weekend (Sunday was spent recovering - doing the corner/warming up more than a dozen fighters is tiring and extremely stressful!).

It was kickboxing training last night, however it was a bit quiet and so there weren't many people to spar. Tonight it's weights and tomorrow it's boxing - and I am hopeful there will be enough people present for a decent sparring session to head into the weekend.

RookieWriter · May 24, 2019

onesecondglance said:
Still here, still training, just not much to report at the moment. We've got a couple of kids grading for their first kyu belt tomorrow, so I'll be drilling them beforehand to make sure they remember everything. Their rolling ukemi are probably their biggest weakness, so I'll spend some time on that, though it'll have to be right-handed, since I seem to have completely lost my muscle memory for left-hand rolls and keep landing sideways...

Rolls took me a lot of practice to get down. We needed them in Hapkido and I worked and worked on them. After what felt like thousands of right side rolls I finally was able to do them in a straight line and keep my balance when rolling up. After I finally got there I remember partying with some friends at the bar and I got drunk and started doing front rolls down the sidewalk on the walk home. It went on for about a block or two before I started to feel woozy. Woke up the next morning with my back feeling pretty sore. :Headbang:

Never did that again. In class we used to have fun with them, jumping over stacks of mats and then rolling out of it on the other side.

Left side was tougher. I got it for a while but then lost it and kept have trouble going in a straight line and/or keeping my balance when rolling up. I eventually decided to roll into a side fall instead of roll to my feet on the left side.

onesecondglance · May 24, 2019

RookieWriter said:
Left side was tougher. I got it for a while but then lost it and kept have trouble going in a straight line and/or keeping my balance when rolling up. I eventually decided to roll into a side fall instead of roll to my feet on the left side.

Good idea... I'm starting to get to the age where I don't bounce out of bad landings! :ROFL:

edutton · May 24, 2019

One of our guys got permission this week to hang up a "breakfall rope"... if you've never seen this done, it's pretty fun and a good way to figure out how to throw your legs all the way over without just slamming yourself into the mat the wrong way a thousand times. Like I did. :flag:

1. Hang a sturdy rope that reaches the floor.
2. Lie on your back next to it and reach up until your shoulder is an inch or two off the mat.
3. Grab the rope there, then get up and tie a knot right below your hand.
4. Stand far enough forward that your hand on the rope is basically over your hara (the "chi point", between navel and crotch). Make sure the rope is hanging straight, or you'll get a swinging motion added that is... not helpful.
5. Throw yourself over.

The rope allows you to control your fall.

edutton · May 24, 2019

RookieWriter said:
I got drunk and started doing front rolls down the sidewalk on the walk home.

Ow. I've had to roll out on concrete a couple of times when I tripped - not recommended!

In class we used to have fun with them, jumping over stacks of mats and then rolling out of it on the other side.

Yep! We also occasionally jump over people. Two people is actually easier than one, I find... three is doable, but I always put a bigger person at the far end in case of failure.

Left side was tougher. I got it for a while but then lost it and kept have trouble going in a straight line and/or keeping my balance when rolling up. I eventually decided to roll into a side fall instead of roll to my feet on the left side.

Whatever works, as long as an attacker isn't coming up right behind you... the trick to (front) rolling in a straight line is to remember that the direction of your roll is determined not by your knees, but by your shoulders.

RookieWriter · May 24, 2019

edutton said:
One of our guys got permission this week to hang up a "breakfall rope"... if you've never seen this done, it's pretty fun and a good way to figure out how to throw your legs all the way over without just slamming yourself into the mat the wrong way a thousand times. Like I did.

1. Hang a sturdy rope that reaches the floor.
2. Lie on your back next to it and reach up until your shoulder is an inch or two off the mat.
3. Grab the rope there, then get up and tie a knot right below your hand.
4. Stand far enough forward that your hand on the rope is basically over your hara (the "chi point", between navel and crotch). Make sure the rope is hanging straight, or you'll get a swinging motion added that is... not helpful.
5. Throw yourself over. The rope allows you to control your fall.

Sounds like it would be helpful. We did something with a rope once in Hapkido but I have no idea what it was. I had forgotten about it all together until reading your post. I think it might have had something to do with kicking but that could be wrong.

RookieWriter · May 24, 2019

BlackKnight1974 said:
Still around - just busy.

We had our 10 week "white collar" boxing fight night on Saturday which basically consumed my whole weekend (Sunday was spent recovering - doing the corner/warming up more than a dozen fighters is tiring and extremely stressful!).

It was kickboxing training last night, however it was a bit quiet and so there weren't many people to spar. Tonight it's weights and tomorrow it's boxing - and I am hopeful there will be enough people present for a decent sparring session to head into the weekend.

Have a good time. It's a holiday weekend here in the US so our dojo is closed until Tuesday.

RookieWriter · May 24, 2019

Norman Mjadwesch said:
With the cross training, I’ve never been one to pigeonhole skills like that. If it’s useful I use it in my syllabus, if it isn’t I don’t. (Except hyung / kata / forms – those are still in there because if I had to learn them then so can everyone else, plus they look really good when done by a large group.) As to the other skills, I normally break them down either by how they work (e.g. arm locks or punches), which range they work in (e.g. grapple or kicks), or which degree of threat we are dealing with (e.g. life threatening or bullying). Which style these things are used in is of secondary importance. Yes, karate uses fewer kicks than tkd, but unless you are a die-hard of a given style then these are more degrees of emphasis than anything else.

For me it was always about what worked and what didn’t, and how easy those things were to learn was more relevant to me than how cool they looked. There will be plenty of people who disagree with that assessment, but it was a personal decision and I learned what I wanted to learn and founded a school that taught a mixed bag of everything.

There is a lot of crossover in some styles. Taekwondo has been nicknamed "Korean Karate" by some. Though TKD does focus more on kicking, Karate uses a lot of the same kicks. So far we have done side kick, side blade kick, front kick, jumping front kick, back kick, mule kick, roundhouse kick, crescent and reverse crescent. Just not as much emphases, as you said. Hapkido, Japanese Jujitsu, and Aikido all have a lot of crossover too. I would think that if you are going to cross train it's best to go with opposite styles. One striking one grappling. The most popular combo in MMA seems to be BJJ and Muay Thai. They compliment each other well. So do Hapkido and TKD. Same with Karate and Jujitsu. I don't think training Karate and TKD together would be a good idea.

My biggest issue with cross training was the muscle memory. I trained TKD and Hapkdio at the same time and would make mistakes because the stances would be different. The stances in Hapkido are deeper and wider than they are in TKD, and the muscle memory of trying to do both at the same time just didn't work very well. I tried to tell myself I need to get into a TKD mindset when in TKD and a Hapkdio mindset in Hapkido but I kind of failed with that. It's the main reason I am deciding to focus on one martial art and get good at that before taking on a whole new adventure. The cool thing with the Krav Maga school is they offer a punch card where you buy ten lessons and you can attend anytime you want. The card never expires. I might do that.

It sounds like you mix up some styles for your belt tests. I also like the idea of learning what is practical more so than what is flashy. Flash might impress your friends and work in tournaments, so that's fine, but if I am in a real altercation I want the easiest and most effective techniques there are for those situations. I don't see myself using jumping crescent kicks or axe kicks when being attacked by a drunk at the sports bar. Flash and point sparring has it's place and it's fine if anyone wants to do that. Have no problem with whatever style people like to study.

RookieWriter · May 29, 2019

Got my testing papers yesterday and found out I will be testing for Orange belt. Not yellow. They are having me skip a rank. This is a major sign of respect but also adds pressure to my belt test next month.

edutton · May 30, 2019

RookieWriter said:
Got my testing papers yesterday and found out I will be testing for Orange belt. Not yellow. They are having me skip a rank. This is a major sign of respect but also adds pressure to my belt test next month.

Nice! Hope it goes well. Ganbatte!

BlackKnight1974 · May 30, 2019

RookieWriter said:
Got my testing papers yesterday and found out I will be testing for Orange belt. Not yellow. They are having me skip a rank. This is a major sign of respect but also adds pressure to my belt test next month.

I'm sure you'll do fine - it seems unlikely they would set you up to fail. As long as you prepare correctly (as you would for any exam), then I'm sure you'll pass with flying colours. Because it matters, you are bound to feel nervous - that's good as it means you care. Don't try and stop the nerves as you'll probably only make them worse. Relax and focus on the task at hand.

RookieWriter · May 31, 2019

Thanks for the support.

Snitchcat · May 31, 2019

It's a wonder I didn't see this thread earlier!

KM is cool. Only have to find an instructor here.
Tried Wing Chun, but not for me.
Tai Chi is for later; I want to learn the sword style.
Shaolin is current.

Good luck with your exam!

edutton · May 31, 2019

Welcome aboard!

Norman Mjadwesch · May 31, 2019

RookieWriter said:
It sounds like you mix up some styles for your belt tests. I also like the idea of learning what is practical more so than what is flashy. Flash might impress your friends and work in tournaments, so that's fine, but if I am in a real altercation I want the easiest and most effective techniques there are for those situations. I don't see myself using jumping crescent kicks or axe kicks when being attacked by a drunk at the sports bar. Flash and point sparring has it's place and it's fine if anyone wants to do that. Have no problem with whatever style people like to study.

Guilty as charged. I’ve copped a lot of criticism over the years from purists for it too, to which I simply recommend somewhere else for them to train. I’m afraid that I’m really very ant-fluff. If a technique has a reason for being then I would like to know that reason and if it doesn’t directly relate to something useful and practical then it goes onto the discard pile. That’s in a perfect world of course, the reality is that martial arts is to a large extent customer driven, which goes a long way to explaining the rise of MMA even though there are a lot more rules there than anyone likes to admit. Have I had to make compromises to keep my class intact? Yes. But at the end of the day if I can’t sell a skill set to my clientele without making too many concessions then the doors will close. Compromise only goes so far. I’m not about to let the mob dictate terms. Martial arts is not social media.

RookieWriter · May 31, 2019

Norman Mjadwesch said:
Guilty as charged. I’ve copped a lot of criticism over the years from purists for it too, to which I simply recommend somewhere else for them to train. I’m afraid that I’m really very ant-fluff. If a technique has a reason for being then I would like to know that reason and if it doesn’t directly relate to something useful and practical then it goes onto the discard pile. That’s in a perfect world of course, the reality is that martial arts is to a large extent customer driven, which goes a long way to explaining the rise of MMA even though there are a lot more rules there than anyone likes to admit. Have I had to make compromises to keep my class intact? Yes. But at the end of the day if I can’t sell a skill set to my clientele without making too many concessions then the doors will close. Compromise only goes so far. I’m not about to let the mob dictate terms. Martial arts is not social media.

Mixing styles together does seem to be a trend right now, at least in America where we have seen the rise of MMA in the last 15 years or so. However mixing styles together is not a new idea, martial arts have done it for a long time. Last night in class we spent the whole session on throws, falls, and rolls. Well we fall and roll the same way in Karate as we did in Hapkido. And JJJ. And when I took a BJJ and Aikido class. And from what I have seen from Judo students (when I was in Hapkido we had a former Judo student who was amazing at falling. Best falling I've ever seen from a colored belt and it's not even close. Our chief instructor said he was better at falling than any student he ever had at any rank). So the rolls and slap out break falls started somewhere and are now used in many styles. In Karate we do some of the same chokes, throws, and joint locks we did in Hapkido. We do many of the same kicks we did in TKD. So there is often a big crossover between styles and they have been getting combined for a long time. I think it's a good idea to incorporate practical elements of other styles into training. We would have guest instructors from other styles come and help teach class once in a while so we could learn some techniques that otherwise wouldn't be part of our style. We had an all day seminar where we had students from TKD, Hapkido, Tang Soo Do, Judo, and Jujitsu all work on techniques together. I'm a believer that every martial art has it's place and that learning from different styles is a reasonable way to train. I'm a traditionalist in the way that I am not looking for a sport style but I am not traditionalist in the idea that I want to do techniques that don't make sense just to keep a tradition going.

RookieWriter · May 31, 2019

Snitchcat said:
It's a wonder I didn't see this thread earlier!

KM is cool. Only have to find an instructor here.
Tried Wing Chun, but not for me.
Tai Chi is for later; I want to learn the sword style.
Shaolin is current.

Good luck with your exam!

Welcome!

Martial Arts

Norman Mjadwesch

vacuous eyes, will bark at shadows

BlackKnight1974

RookieWriter

RookieWriter

RookieWriter

onesecondglance

pretending to be awake

Norman Mjadwesch

vacuous eyes, will bark at shadows

edutton

Ni. Peng. Neee-Wom.

BlackKnight1974

RookieWriter

onesecondglance

pretending to be awake

edutton

Ni. Peng. Neee-Wom.

edutton

Ni. Peng. Neee-Wom.

RookieWriter

RookieWriter

RookieWriter

RookieWriter

edutton

Ni. Peng. Neee-Wom.

BlackKnight1974

RookieWriter

Snitchcat

Dragon-kitty.

edutton

Ni. Peng. Neee-Wom.

Norman Mjadwesch

vacuous eyes, will bark at shadows

RookieWriter

RookieWriter