Here we go again. Every time I write about the benefits of kata – really trying to help people understand what it is and how it works – someone shows up in the comments to tell me to go and do ‘real training’. This time it was someone proudly talking about his ‘street-real’ jiu-jitsu and […]
Kata Isn’t the Problem – Misunderstanding It Is Read More »
Anyone teaching martial arts knows the student who talks about wanting to train but somehow can’t manage to show up on time, or may not show up at all. And when they don’t, there’s always a reason. There usually is. But it tells you something. It shows you where training really sits on their list
Showing Up: When You Can’t Train Read More »
Better than a thousand days of diligent study is one day with a great teacher. It sounds right. It feels right, and most people accept it without question. But taken as it stands, it isn’t quite true. There’s no doubt that teachers can change the direction of someone’s training. Most of us can think of
One Day With a Great Teacher? Read More »
Before I get into this article, here’s a question. As a child, who taught you to walk? Many of us want to understand the movements in kata, and there is an assumption that someone will show us what they mean. The reality is that being shown is not necessarily a requirement, and in many cases,
Applications – You Have to Find Them Read More »
I watched a 95-year-old Okinawan Uechi-ryu master recently performing Sanseiryu, Shintoku Takara, and it stayed with me longer than I expected. Not because of anything dramatic, but because of how little seemed to be happening on the surface. There was no urgency, no obvious effort, and none of the exaggerated movement that people often associate with
What Survives at 95? Read More »
In a previous article I wrote about the exaggerated movement you see in kata, the overuse of the shoulders and torso – that’s noise. If that’s the noise, then this is the signal. To understand the difference, you have to look at how weight is being used. Most people focus on what they can see
The Signal and the Noise: Finding Quiet Power Read More »
Do you watch a kata and, at first glance, it looks impressive – snappy, powerful – but something about the function just feels wrong? The techniques look powerful, but only because the body is being overused to make them look that way. Big shoulder rotation. Excessive upper body movement. A visible “back and forth” to
When Power Becomes Performance Read More »
I was asked recently what actually happens when someone steps away from an organization, goes on their own path. You’re part of something for years. You put time into it, help where you can, stand alongside people, and for the most part you don’t question any of it because it feels normal. It feels like
When You Step Outside Read More »
After decades in the martial arts, something changes. You’re no longer just repeating what you were taught. Is spending decades in the martial arts – learning and teaching across several styles – enough to shape your own method? I wonder why this is frowned upon. Much of it likely comes from the McDojo culture, where
When Something Changes in Your Training Read More »
