Kakedameshi Seminar in Review Recently updated !
A review and testimonials of my recent seminar, Kakedameshi: The Original Kumite of Karate, hosted by Shorei Ryu Karate Studios of Bradley, IL.
self defense
Are Karate Drills Bad?
Drills are a hallmark of martial arts training, the world over, regardless of art or style, and they come in many different forms, with different intentions. In general, though, how do we define what a “drill” is, and how do we know if they are any good?
Joint Lock Practicality
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 […]
Unarmed Combative Training as a “Prep”
Author’s Note: This article was originally written for a disaster preparedness newsletter from the Arizona chapter of Zombie Squad–a non-profit focused on educating people about disaster preparedness–and I recently re-discovered it in my archives. Upon realizing that I had never publicly shared it, I decided to share it, here. Unlike most of my articles, which are geared toward martial artists, […]
Fighting Dirty
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 […]
Two Steps Back, Two Steps Forward
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, […]
Wrist Grabs in Karate Training
Traditional martial arts are often criticized–and rightly so, in many cases–for training against unrealistic attacks. Most often, the attack that gets the most complaints is the infamous straight lunge-punch in a long front stance that comes from 10 feet away, and wouldn’t hit the defender even if they stood still. A close second to that is the wrist grab, […]
Karate Kicks (Keri-Waza)
Keri-waza (kicking techniques) Keri-waza (kicking techniques) are great, but sometimes they are over-emphasized, or under-emphasized, depending on the art, style, and school. As with any technique, context is important, and determines how and when a technique should be used. In the case of kicking techniques, there are typically three categories–kicks for self defense, kicks for sport fighting, and kicks for […]
Effective Self Defense Through Solo Kata Practice
Kata practice–partner training on the left, and solo training on the right It is generally accepted that solo kata practice is a vital component to karate training. This is something that I wholeheartedly agree with! Solo kata practice is an important tool for memorization, visualization training, developing muscle memory, and strengthening the foundational movements required to use the applications of […]
Punching: To Center, or Not to Center?
Centered Punch by Hironishi Motonobu (L), Off-Centered Punch by Funakoshi Gichin (R) When practicing kihon (basics)–which carries over into kata practice–there tend to be two schools of thought on where to aim punches. One says that you should aim to the center, as if your opponent were standing directly in front of you, so that you can work on your […]
Stepping on Toes
Recently, there was a UFC event here in Phoenix, which was headlined by a very competitive fight between Junior dos Santos and Stipe Miocic. In one of the earlier fights during that event, a minor thing happened that caused some interesting discussion on some MMA forums. One of the fighters stepped on the foot of his opponent. Normally, this would […]
