Martial Arts

[FullAuto]

https://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNjE1MTQ2NTY0.html

 

A fight between a Chen-style taiji chap, and a Muay Thai fighter. Interesting.

 

Well, training has suffered under the regime of a new girlfriend, I won't lie. I've managed to keep my regular schedule, mostly, but any kind of drop off was bound to have a effect. I'm only training twice this week, for instance, and due to dojo politics and a few other reasons, I've been less and less inclined to go. A recent dan preparation course left me knowing absolutely I wasn't ready for my black belt yet, and after almost six months of girlfriend this didn't come as a surprise. I can taste the frustration coming off my instructors when they talk about my training, I timed getting a girlfriend completely wrong, in a way that basically capped the peak of my training and I'm now falling down the other side of the mountain I climbed. There's no rush from my side, but the urgings I'm receiving make me feel like if I hadn't picked up a lady, I'd be testing for my black this month.

 

That aside, I'm going to get back to aikido at least 4-5 times a week, and look into taiji and Wing Chun too. Taiji may not work out (£6 a lesson or £25 per month, when I can only make a maximum of four 1.5hr lessons per month), but Wing Chun is looking good, even if it is only once a week. Hopefully I can go twice, and pick up my striking a bit more.

 

Zombies, Run! has helped egg me on to improve my aerobic fitness, and although I'm fitter by far than I used to be, I'm also aware of just how unfit I am, and especially of putting on weight over the last couple of weeks. This can be a vicious cycle, so it's best to break it with training, plenty of exercise, and just avoiding the crap a lot of people eat altogether. Sadly, this also means dropping beer for a while, too, which is a harsh thing to have to do to yourself. It's quite amusing to see my slim, football-playing, regular-running gf complain about how fat she's getting when it's the first observable fat I've seen on her, and then look at myself, who never met a pie he didn't like.

 

Speaking of which, milady passed her orange grading recently, and not too shabbily either. Teaching her things has helped me improve, and knocking aside the kiddy short-term stuff for more important things like principles and developing good foundations will hopefully circumvent problems a lot of beginners encounter. She always pays attention, and always tries, which is rare enough, but she also happens to be clever, and does her best to be methodical. Her training is always mindful, and it's a joy to see someone pay attention to what you say and what they are doing.

 

On the injury side, my broken finger is healed, I think, which is good. Sadly, at an aikidoka wedding, much alcofrolics ensued, and I've injured another finger, and although it isn't broken (I hope) I must have dislocated it or strained it badly, because it still hurts weeks later. My shoulders, too, are not improving, so I will need to begin a good regimen of physiotherapy for them beyond doing lots of press ups.

[Thorondor]

The prodigal son returns!

 

Greetings, FA-san.

 

Again it is proven that that which does not kill you makes you stronger. We register with satisfaction your proficuous journey and the continued, steadfast ambition to better yourself.

 

If you stay your path you shall no doubt proclaim one day, as another famed one before you did, "I know Kung Fu!"

 

The beer deprivation regime sounds harsh indeed, but you no doubt have enough proficiency in the drunken master fighting style already, as your latest injury attests to.

 

We forget not too to grant you extra marks for tenacity - having a companion of the female persuasion speaks volumes of your current vigour.

 

::

 

Parting thought: meditation will render you weightless. The pie is a lie!

[Space Voyager]

The thread lives once more!

 

Really great to see you around, FA!

 

I timed getting a girlfriend completely wrong

 

He he he, after all this time without one he complains...Besides, a girlfriend is never late, nor is she early, she arrives precisely when she means to. Would you be prepared to delay her given another chance? https://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b348/SpaceVoyager/Smiley/hmmmmm.gif Black belt will not keep you warm at nights.

 

Could you explain the reasons for looking into those other fighting styles? What politics are they trying to catch you into?

 

Do tell, does that Zombies, run! app actually help any?

 

EDIT: Those two fighters sure know how to take a beating and stay on their feet. It was obvious who will win, but the opponent was surprisingly still standing.

[FullAuto]

Expansion into Wing Chun is a simple one. I'm looking to sharpen up my striking skills. Striking in aikido is freeform and opportunistic, so it's not actually done very much, and I need to improve it. Although some of the methods are different, WC also has simultaneity (e.g. you attack and defend at the same time, never block in isolation) and 'attacking into the attack' so parts of the mindset are very similar to aikido. It does incorporate locks and throws too, but a lot of it is very fast, linear striking, and that's what I like. Taiji simple because it shares a great many principles with aikido, the flowing circular movements, use of posture and balance, body form etc will all help (hopefully) to improve my aikido.

 

The politics is basically due to one black belt disagreeing with the way things are done, and refusing to train with the rest of us, taking a good handful of students with him. It would be one thing if he had split off and started his own organisation, but he has not, remaining nominally part of ours while at the same time not bothering to actually train with the rest of us, and of course telling his students how he disapproves of us. Sides have been taken, etc etc, and it's not worth bothering with. Noses have been put out of joint, and it just creates an uncomfortable atmosphere.

 

Zombies, Run! has really helped me stick to running at least semi-regularly, because it makes it interesting again. Pick some good music to run to, turn your GPS on, and get cracking.

[FullAuto]

A first-hand account of fighting a duel.

[Space Voyager]

What year was that? Seems like middle ages...

 

I can't imagine willingly taking a risk of death. Even the fights at karate were forced on me, as they were compulsory for advancement. So you risk a rib, a finger, a nose, perhaps even a tooth... but life?

[Pete]

So I know I'm derailing the topic slightly, why would you want to remove damning evidence from this thread unless your new(ish) ladyfriend frequents the forums? If she does we won't pick on her, honest!

 

 

Erm, I mean:

 

 

No, wait, this is it:

 

[FullAuto]

That duel happened in 1923 or 1924!

 

She doesn't but she might see me browsing and get curious...

[Space Voyager]

Just the damning evidence, though! There is too much awesome in this thread to kill it...

[FullAuto]

Very well then, a stay of execution it is!

 

In the meantime, here's some very nice indications of what I hope to gain from taiji.

[Space Voyager]

Bookmarked, thank you. Seems very much like the lessons from karate.

[FullAuto]

An interesting report on going to the ground in law enforcement.

 

This bit is excellent:

 

Subject takes a combative posture, but does not attempt to strike the officer. “6.8% Subject assumed a fighting, martial arts, or boxing stance but did not attack the officer; the most frequent second act was the officer striking the subject with the baton (38%) and this was also the most frequent final act (41%)."

 

So, had my first Wing Chun session and I'm happy to report it went well. The gf forced me out the door claiming something called "work" and lo I made my way to the gym. As it was on a university campus, there were lots of buildings, My Spidey senses became confused. I got the wrong gym. I set out again. I got another wrong gym. Third time lucky, I got the right gym (and not an actual gym, but a converted church or hall) but the wrong class (Tae Kwon Do). Lo, I went outside and cried for a bit, then when the Wing Chun class started I went in.

 

Things looked promising, in that it was a fairly well-used place, with several punch bags and various veteran pieces of kit, none of the regulars looked super-fit (although they were all annoyingly lean, as the only fat boy there I felt somewhat marginalised), and there were five other new starters. The class started off with an intense (but thankfully brief) warm up that left me sweating like an Israeli bus driver. We were led through the basic stance (behold the uncomfortable!) and first basic movements. No big deal. Actually, quite easy. My thighs are currently enormous barrels of hairy steel (enjoy!) thanks to aikido, so standing with knees bent is no problem. Standing square on, we then carried out an exercise where we tried to punch each other in the face, slowly, simultaneously, our wrists crossing. Upon this failure, as strike blocked strike, hands drop, roll back and cycle up into guard and ready to begin another strike as the other hands strike. This was easy enough, although surprisingly difficult to keep to your centreline, and I kept on adding "flowery" rolls (floury rolls, any one hungry?) to my arm motion as the wrists crossed, in an unconscious movement inherited from my aikido, seeking to prolong or manipulate the contact further. I was corrected gently, several times.

 

Shockingly, this was not the only occasion my aikido interfered.

 

A striking drill versus a pad seemed easy. Front foot remains the front foot for the whole drill as you step, front foot then back foot, and punch with each step, hands alternating in good old left-right tradition. I kept wanting to wade in, and step left-right with my punches. Oh dear.

 

The same happened on a similar drill versus a willing idiot in protective headgear. Just kept on wanting to change my footing. This was complicated further in that the default stance is a simple one, facing the opponent squarely with shoulders and hips, angled slightly, feet a good distance apart, no problems there, apart from the fact that it's 'shallower' than my default aikido stance. Automatically standing as I do in aikido makes Wing Chun stuff very difficult, so much so that I was dragging my back foot like the Hunchback of Notre bloody Dame. Or possibly Igor. I forget.

 

After that, and a stern talking to, my legs behaved a little better, and I got slapped around a little with the headguard on. Always fun. Seeing the regulars do more advanced stuff, and watching them block and strike, then go for an armlock made me squeee a little, and I wanted to go "I know how to do that! I do that all the time! Let me do that!" but I kept my cool and focused on the stuff I was supposed to be doing. The emphasis was on form and technique, doing things right, which is a good sign, it wasn't about hitting hard yet. The instructor gleefully told us Wing Chun is basic, it doesn't have flashy moves and 234 different stances, it works on chaining defenses and strikes together, so that one defends and then immediately flows into an attack. Punches are simple, fast and linear. I thought I wasn't bad, but I have a long way to go...

 

Sadly, the class is only on during university term time, so only two more lessons this year.

[Thorondor]

Muscle memory - messes with your brain...

[FullAuto]

Well, it couldn't stay away forever. Last weekend was another dan prep session, and it seems although I underperformed again, it wasn't that bad this time, and the supervising black belts recommended me to sensei, who promptly got me alone and said he would be keeping an eye on me over the next few months. There's a course in early March where, if I'm up to par, I'll be invited to test for my black belt. Feel a little unsteady just typing it, but there you are.

 

I've been hearing "You should have been a black belt by now." over the last few months, and it's started to get to me a little. Mainly because it's true. I hit a downturn in my training and got a girlfriend at just the wrong time, in terms of aikido progression, and it has cost me. I'm almost back to where I was, say, a year ago, when I was the dojo's big bad wolf, in terms of skill, and it's amazing the difference between people who are around the same rank is me yet the gap in skill levels is huge. Being looked upon as a veteran who should have all the answers is still a bit puzzling, but I could get used to it if necessary. Still don't feel like being an instructor, mind you. It's been frustrating, with a lack of money holding back my interests in attending other seminars and travelling to train with other organisations, and I feel my skill isn't as well-rounded as it could be. Particularly annoying to find certain areas essentially unaccessible, but they won't always be in future.

[Zombie]

An interesting report on going to the ground in law enforcement.

 

Not to derail this thread, but I found this hilarious and utterly baffling:

 

• 
  Subject flees and officer pursues. “10.5% Subject ran from the officer, officer chased the subject; the most frequent second act was the officer taking the subject to the ground (40%) and the most frequent final subduing act was also taking the subject to the ground (39.5%).”
  

 

 

- Zombie

[Space Voyager]

Particularly annoying to find certain areas essentially unaccessible, but they won't always be in future.

 

What do you mean by that? Are there techniques you can't learn as they are only shown in seminars?

 

Luckily you have a GF to hold you back somewhat, it seems you might devote your life to martial arts completely if she was not around.

 

@Zombie: He he he, nice catch!

[FullAuto]

What do you mean by that? Are there techniques you can't learn as they are only shown in seminars?

 

Not so much techniques (as I've been told so many times it seems my ears might drop off, "Techniques are not important. Aikido is not about techniques.") but an entire way of movement. Much like the taiji diagrams I linked to earlier in the thread, there is an extremely effective system of body mechanics there that aikido really no longer has, apart from a select few, for various reasons. These people generally travel a lot and have seminars in a lot of different places, but finding the time and money to train with them is beyond me currently. The results are pretty impressive, in terms of efficiently absorbing strikes, being able to throw from disadvantaged positions, or with very minimal movement. This 'internal strength' is rare, and I can only name perhaps a dozen people who have it. It's not mystical or magic, although there seems to be an analogy for the system of its operation in the concept of chi/ki.

 

Luckily you have a GF to hold you back somewhat, it seems you might devote your life to martial arts completely if she was not around.

 

I think you're entirely correct. It's a rabbit hole I could easily disappear down.

[FullAuto]

Well, with the breakdown of my relationship also comes a training hiatus; not the best combination of things. I'm putting off testing for black belt indefinitely, a combination of personal matters and internal politics has soured me on the issue. As for training, I can only make a paltry maximum of three sessions a week; my ex attends two of those. Therefore, motivation is currently AWOL.

[Zombie]

Sorry to hear that FA. If your ex wasn't in the same class would you test for the black, or not?

 

- Zombie

[FullAuto]

They are separate issues. There's been some internal politics and interpersonal hoo-ha lately, and I'm simply not training enough to pass the black belt grading in the manner to which I have become accustomed to passing gradings. The former I could overlook if I was desperate to get my black, the latter I cannot. I expect better of myself. Currently, practical issues (money, travel) make training more than three times a week impossible.