fighting

Joint Lock Practicality

This entry was posted in bodyguard bubishi bunkai combat concepts fighting history oyo perception pressure testing push hands research self defense skills styles submission techniques tegumi ti traditional martial arts training tuidi tuishou and tagged fighting history joint locks kansetsu-waza self defense torite tuidi tuite on by

While many joint locking techniques (kansetsu-waza) exist within karate, there are still karateka who are unaware of them and, frequently, people look at the joint locks of karate from the perspective of other arts. We know that such techniques exist within karate, not only because of karateka who kept them in their curricula into modern times, such as Uehara Seikichi […]

Using Examples of Karate Methods from Other Arts

This entry was posted in change combat criticism fighting history intensity lifestyle misconceptions mma motobu muchimi naihanchi perception pressure testing reputations research sparring sport traditional martial arts training and tagged fighting karate mma reputation on by

Martial arts come in a wide array of styles and methodologies, but they are all connected by the human body and laws of nature, so even among wildly different systems, founded centuries and countries apart, there can be found many similar, related, or complimentary methods. While many martial artists prefer to segregate styles and promote the isolationist idea that each […]

Is Karate a Grappling Art?

This entry was posted in clinch criticism fighting kakidi kakie misconceptions mma motobu muchimi muto perception pressure testing push hands randori shima skills sparring sport styles system taiji tegumi throws tma traditional martial arts training tuishou and tagged fighting grappling karate mma pressure testing sparring striking training on by

Lately, my friends over at Karate Culture have been posting videos, like the one above, that connect kata to techniques found in mixed martial arts, and various grappling arts–something I have also done, although on a smaller scale. This has brought with it some argument as to the nature of karate. As with most such arguments, this one is not […]

Fighting Dirty

This entry was posted in basics compliance fighting misconceptions pressure testing sparring sport supplemental targeting techniques and tagged deadly dirty fighting self defense strategy on by

Both traditional martial arts and reality-based self defense (RBSD) systems often talk about “fighting dirty” in self defense. By this, they are generally referring to doing things like gouging the eyes, striking the throat or groin, pulling the ears or hair, stomping the knees, etc. All of these are perfectly valid fighting methods, of course, but many people have a […]

Orthodox vs. Southpaw

This entry was posted in concepts evasion fighting footwork mma point sparring pressure testing punching self defense sparring stances tai sabaki targeting techniques training trapping and tagged boxing defense fighting karate mma offense sparring stances on by

If you frequent many online martial arts forums, then you will be familiar with the “Orthodox vs. Southpaw” discussion. It usually begins with someone who is relatively new to the martial arts, or someone who has a boxing background. The question can vary, a bit, but it always has the same general theme–trying to figure out what the benefits are […]

Two Steps Back, Two Steps Forward

This entry was posted in basics behavior bunkai compliance criticism demonstrations fighting misconceptions partners safety tma tradition traditional martial arts training and tagged distancing fighting ippon kumite maai self defense on by

Recently, I wrote an article in defense of the use of wrist grabs in karate training, which are often derided as being unrealistic. In that article, I mentioned that the most common complaint people tend to have about many karate and kobudo applications and fighting drills is the use of formal karate-style attacks and incorrect maai (distancing). Unlike wrist grabs, […]