Getting into a physical fight is never a good idea, and every self-defense expert will tell you that if you can avoid a fight if at all possible, then you should. But, sometimes you can’t, if you’re attacked physically then you need to protect yourself. . Fighting is wrong. But sometimes it’s necessary, and if…
Category: Self-Protection
Do you want fries with that?
The martial arts are largely unregulated here in the US. There are seldom background checks carried out on teachers like there are in other countries. Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check or Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check (UK), you don’t need anything special to open a dojo or school. . You don’t even need to…
Find your own art, don’t be afraid to do your own personal study
When you finally find what’s absolutely right for you in your martial arts training and you internalize it, you don’t need to rationalize why you do it. . I practice every day religiously, I train for me. Not to fight anymore, not for how it looks and not for what others might think of me,…
Is traditional Karate just limited to imitation?
Change is the only constant in life and yet, it is the one thing we tend to resist the most, especially so when this constant is deemed to be traditional. . Okinawa is differentiated from the rest of Japan by its individual history and distinct cultural practices. One of the most recognizable products of Okinawan…
“GEDAN BARAI” IS NOT A BLOCK.
The modern labels attached to many karate techniques may have little to do with their intended function. These labels arose relatively recently in karate’s development and originate from the “watered down” karate taught in Okinawan schools, in the early part of the 20th century, modernized further on the mainland of Japan. Prior to this time,…
Don’t rely on the “label” of a technique. It probably isn’t the right one.
Many practitioners of karate have forgotten that its original purpose was self-defense. To quote Anko Itosu; “…. a way of avoiding injury by using the hands and feet should one by any chance be confronted by a villain or ruffian.” . Today the need for martial arts to be purely self-defense has diminished, and the…
The self-defense mindset at its core, is the fundamental belief that you are worth defending.
Martial artists often speak of having a defensive mindset; that your brain is your best defensive tool for keeping you out of trouble. . Being aware of your surroundings helps you identify dangers and possibly avoiding those dangers. Similarly, being distracted, and unprepared is far more likely to attract predators. Awareness of what is around…
Combative function or symbolic gesture?
I’m a strong believer in that if you are passionate about something, the martial arts or otherwise, you should also study its history. Understand the context to which something was created. . What can an individual learn from history? Through history, we can learn how past societies, systems, and ideologies were built, and operated in…
“In karate, the most important thing is kata.”
Kata are a library of self-protection techniques and principles in karate. Each kata creator encoded their specific knowledge into each movement of the kata they made. Kata are not simply a record of techniques, or a solo performance; rather each and every kata is designed to record the key principles and strategies of a complete…
“Karate has many stances; it also has none”.
“Karate has many stances; it also has none”. – Nakasone Genwa (1895-1978) . Fundamental to the improvement of your karate technique is correct and balanced form. . In karate, ‘stance’ refers to the position of the lower body, the hips and the legs, which literally carry the upper body. Thus techniques are at their best…