“Smile and relax. You can’t demonstrate great power unless you are relaxed.” – Yoshimi Inoue Soke – Inoue-ha Shito-ryu (1946-2015) . “Smile!” When Inoue sensei thinks you are tense, he never says “relax!“. Instead, he says “smile!” – which is a psychological trick to make you relax. It’s hard to be tense when you’re smiling! […]
“Smile and relax.” Read More »
“I researched on my own and found the reason….. So I tried experimenting with my students….. I realized its true meaning…” – Tatsuya Naka 7th dan JKA Shotokan . The main goal of a teacher should not be to fill the student with knowledge, but instead to guide them how to obtain knowledge through their
“I researched on my own and found the reason.” Read More »
“We must be careful not to overlook the fact that kata, and the body positions that comprises them, are just templates of sort; it is their application in combat which needs to be mastered.” – Motobu Choki (1870-1944) . The term “bunkai” (分解), meaning ‘disassembly’, does not refer to a technique of any kind. It
Kata, IS the heart of karate. Read More »
In all professions and skills, there’s a certain point you reach after many years of work or dedicated training, when thoughts of going it alone come in to your mind. . Starting a new dojo is exhilarating. A world of possibility awaits, including the possibilities of incredible success…. or catastrophic failure. . There is
The Dojo. The place of the way. Read More »
Self-defense is defined as the right to prevent suffering force or violence through the use of a sufficient level of counteracting force or violence. This definition is simple enough on face value, but it raises many questions when applied to actual situations. . For instance, what is a sufficient level of force or violence when
Train hard, yes; ….. but train right. Read More »
What motivates fake martial artists? . These so-called “instructors” earn a fair amount of money by simply lying to their students. In every class, they are selling a fake story about how great their fighting skills are, while in reality, they don’t know how to throw a punch the right way, and they move with
What motivates fake martial artists? Read More »
“My old ways of Karate was not readily accepted by everyone. They thought it was too outdated and too crude – I think it was just too hard or maybe my training methods were too severe. Whatever it was, it was the way I learned and the way I taught. It was only later, when
What makes a great martial arts teacher? Read More »
“It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.” – Epictetus . There are situations that arise in which we wish to influence other people and make them understand something that we believe to be important. . But no matter how hard we try, we cannot force people to
“It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.” Read More »
“I hope that the next generations will not only improve technically but also know how to share their knowledge. People must pass on the traditions and not lose them.” – Teruo Chinen 9th dan Goju Ryu (1941-2015) . What does it mean to leave a legacy? . In simple terms, a legacy is passed from
What does it mean to leave a legacy? Read More »
The truth of being a karate teacher is that students will come, and they will go. Karate training, in a good dojo, is not easy. It is demanding, exacting, you have to be determined, committed…… and not everyone is cut out to be a black belt. . When I accept a new student I usually
It’s never about you… it’s always about your students… Read More »
“From the moment we are born to the moment we die, we must constantly try to improve. If we do not, we die. It is our obligation as human beings…” (End quote) – Joon Pyo Choi 10th Dan SongMooKwan . We had a great class on Saturday. Those moments where a student has a lightbulb
…“ah, I get it now….” Read More »
Things have changed over the years. When I began my training in traditional martial arts, some of the instructors were mean. They went out of their way to inflict pain on you, many of them made you feel useless, being unable to grasp a technique or kata. They ordered and shouted at you like military
Physical punishment as discipline is ABSOLUTELY WRONG. Read More »
