known Japanese karate forms

[jron]

Just curious as to what was common or available for martial arts in Japan these days. I am interested in only Japanese arts but feel free to list others as long as they are also defined with origins..

I may be wrong on some of these, so please correct me. :-) I only know a few off the top of my head and maybe not J?..

Shotokan
Aikido
Kendo
Taido (took taido for 7 years when I was a kid)
Ninjutsu ? Is this really an art that someone would want to take? In the USA there are a ton of hack schools claiming to teach it.
Judo

???

[kurogane]

Ninjutsu ? Is this really an art that someone NORMAL would want to take?.

ummm, no. Hence it's popularity in Scotland.


You forgot Miyagi-Do Karate. There are 3 or 4 very easy to watch instructional videos out there.

Wax On!

Wax Off!

Paint Za Fensu!!!!!!!!



Depending on how those old joints are holding up, I would recommend Judo.

Great exercise, nice people, good fun.

If my wrists could take it, I would be Ippon-ing as we speak.


Nobody normal really takes Karate, btw.





Mostly just angry twerps that think Karate lessons will ease all the pain of being bullied at school.

But there's really only one thing that does that, and it's not Karate.

A lot of them are quite nice guys, but yeah...........Karate.......................mrfl mrfl.

[biking]

Jron there are many flavours of karate here
Shotokan
Wado Ryu
Shitoryu
Kyokushinkai
Gojuryu
and many other styles

Other Japanese martial arts are
Iaido - drawing of the sword
Kyudo - archery
Jujitsu


As for Kurogane's comments about karate I'd take that with a pinch of salt - he's biased! Judo is great for a work out and for ground work but I've picked up more injuries in Judo in a year than I have in a lifetime of karate.

It depends on what you want to get out of doing in a martial art as to which one you should look to. Then's there's the question of availability in your local area. I was surprised to find that there's no Shotokan clubs within 50 km of where I am.

[kurogane]

Great comments, Biking.

Interesting about the Judo injuries (condolences included, of course).

I can certainly see lots of sprains, twists, and all sorts of falling related injuries, which is why I have to pass. I have wimpy wrists, and lots of surgeries.

Karate always struck me as much more intensive with contact injuries, like shin bruises. Seems to be a great workout.


And yeah, I kinda wanted to use that Kramer picture...........



I wonder how Aikido is for that.

But then we're back to the participatory personality type problem.

Also, is Shotokan not a regional thing????

It's all I hear about Out Here (Western Canada), but its popularity seems to have a direct inverse relationship with mental normality.

Apparently it is "Real Karate" (insert groan).


I think I have been very unlucky in the Karate afficionados I have met, both here and in Japan. About 14% normal/nice, the rest..............wanky.

PS you forgot to mention Miyagi-Do, too!!!!!!!!!!!

[biking]

Great comments, Biking.

Interesting about the Judo injuries (condolences included, of course).

I can certainly see lots of sprains, twists, and all sorts of falling related injuries, which is why I have to pass. I have wimpy wrists, and lots of surgeries.

Karate always struck me as much more intensive with contact injuries, like shin bruises. Seems to be a great workout.


And yeah, I kinda wanted to use that Kramer picture...........



I wonder how Aikido is for that.

But then we're back to the participatory personality type problem.

Also, is Shotokan not a regional thing????

It's all I hear about Out Here (Western Canada), but its popularity seems to have a direct inverse relationship with mental normality.

Apparently it is "Real Karate" (insert groan).


I think I have been very unlucky in the Karate afficionados I have met, both here and in Japan. About 14% normal/nice, the rest..............wanky.

PS you forgot to mention Miyagi-Do, too!!!!!!!!!!!

I've been in Shotokan for over 30 years now and was sad that I could not continue on a regular basis where I am here in inaka Ibaraki! I've taken up a full-contact style that is hard on an older body like mine but if you train in the right manner it is manageable. I've only had a couple of very minor injuries in over 30 years and they were normally inflicted by over enthusiastic youngsters.

Aikido is good for those with weaker joints and older. I cannot say that I am an expert having only trained for a year here in Japan about 20 years ago. It's softer than judo on the body but there's still a lot of break falling to be done and you can get injured easily if you are not careful or if your partner is either not skilled or a little over zealous! There are two major schools of Aikido with one being the soft style as originally developed and the second is a much harder combative style that developed with O-Sensei passed!

Karate, Judo, Aikido, Kendo, etc. are all very good work outs. If you are into the mental side and the "spiritual" side of Japanese martial arts then Kyudo and Iaido are the ones - not really a work out but very formal. My wife does Kyudo and I have been to a local Iaido dojo here located within the Kashima shrine - looks like something I might looked into when my body cannot withstand the karate any more!

[SometimesJustMe]

I believe the only "recognized" ninjitsu art is Togakure ryu. You also have Nippon Kemp, Shorinji Kempo, Seidokaikan, Kushukaikan and a hundred-thousand others.

[yu_ominae]

Just curious as to what was common or available for martial arts in Japan these days. I am interested in only Japanese arts but feel free to list others as long as they are also defined with origins..

I may be wrong on some of these, so please correct me. :-) I only know a few off the top of my head and maybe not J?..

Shotokan
Aikido
Kendo
Taido (took taido for 7 years when I was a kid)
Ninjutsu ? Is this really an art that someone would want to take? In the USA there are a ton of hack schools claiming to teach it.
Judo

???

I would add Shorinji Kenpo which is quite popular. It's the Japanese version of Shaorin Kung-fu. I did it for a few years, so if you need history and stuff just pm me. In the UK I also had one lesson of something called shotokai karate. As a shotokan karate person I thought it was complete balls, but the guys doing it insisted it was a legitimate branch of karate...

[hennagaijin]

Aikido.

Excellent for fitness (and wont leave the body all gnarly and arthritic 20 years later.. in fact, it repairs all sorts of damage)

Excellent atmosphere while training.. no aggression and competitiveness (not if it is the real thing)

Some self defense benefits ( limited)

Helps hone extremely beneficial people and life skills.

You can do it until you are way old (in fact you will probably live longer because of it as well)

[paradoxbox]

almost none of the stuff you listed in the original post is karate

karate is an okinawan art that was modernized in japan around the late 1800's and early 1900's

there are dozens of karate styles. some of them are weak and useless due to introduction of women's kata contests and the like. shotokan is bad for this.


a few i can think of off the top of my head..

wado ryu
goju ryu
shotokan
kyokushin (extremely strong, tough stuff)

as for other martial arts..

ninjutsu exists but it's not really a martial art. ninjutsu as practiced by organizations like the bujinkan is a little bit funky - well, specifically the bujinkan is a big money making BS factory. most of the people in it couldn't fight their way out of a wet paper bag. however, the grandmaster of the organization has legitimate ninjutsu techniques under his belt. basically ninjutsu techniques are mostly based around hiding, escaping, or moving (for example moving unseen, climbing trees, swimming methods, etc). the ninjutsu is mostly separate from the taijutsu / jujutsu.

there's an organization called the genbukan that teaches jujutsu and ninjutsu together and their students are more serious - those guys train hard and don't put up with stupid hippie crap like the bujinkan. their credibility is attacked all the time but you cannot argue with their fighting skill, they will seriously mop the floor with you. the higher level students train in some pretty crazy stuff.

there's also the jinenkan which is sort of a branch off of the bujinkan before the bujinkan turned into a piece of crap. good training but a little bit shotokan-esque in their reliance on kata.

besides ninjutsu, there is also aikido and aikijutsu. i believe the widely accepted grandmaster of daito ryu aikijujutsu is living in koto ku in tokyo, he runs a dojo there.
aikido is everywhere. most of it is crap. every once in a while you can find a good teacher though.

for sword arts there are dozens all around kantou. yagyu shingan, yagyu shinkage, tenshin shoden katori shinto, komagawa kaishin ryu, etc. all of them in kantou. most of those sword arts have jujutsu and other weapon systems built into them as well. some of the dojo are better than others - some are kata factories, others are fantastic and the head guys of one of them is possibly the fastest man on the planet, i've seen him with my own eyes and trained with him, and it was unbelievable, some of the things he could do.

other than that there are boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, bjj clubs all over the place in every city with a population over 500,000

[Call_It_Like_Eye_See_It]

Fight-dou is all the rage now at fitness clubs, i hear, nowadays.....

But, since it's Brazilian in origin, it's probably not legit in anyone's book of martial arts..!

[Wonky]

You guys are totally forgetting Rex Kwan Do.

http://youtu.be/Hzh9koy7b1E

[jron]

almost none of the stuff you listed in the original post is karate

karate is an okinawan art that was modernized in japan around the late 1800's and early 1900's

there are dozens of karate styles. some of them are weak and useless due to introduction of women's kata contests and the like. shotokan is bad for this.

Sorry should have been more open in my request..
I am interested in knowing what forms of Japanese martial arts and not just pure karate forms..
In the US we tend to just use "karate" as a blanket term covering just about all martial arts..
My bad..

My exposure to Japanese arts in Japan has been extremely limited and I am trying to understand a little better. I recently spoke to a J friend who was into "karate" and I was confused by his names and descriptions.. So I am trying to learn a little more. Definitely different than here in the states (lol. where Taiquando rules and you can buy that blackbelt in under 2 years guaranteed!!!)

Once I move to Japan I would like to start taking some form or other that's not so bad on an old-fart's body full of metal hardware and arthritis cause by so many broken bones I lost count.. :-P I am thinking that Aikido will be the way I go unless I join my friend's school.

[ethanol]

you guys are totally forgetting kusarigama-jutsu (sickle and chain) :P
naginata and bojutsu too!

[ethanol]

tenshin shoden katori shinto,

lock thread!

[jron]

lol.. Thanks for all the great information guys.. Its a subject that's a little isolated from the USA as we are so full of junk schools over here. The J schools seem to be the best from a real art perspective, almost all the rest are cr*p..

I think I will pursue Aikido when I move to Japan early next year. There are some schools around here but they are kinda far away and difficult to get to. If I live in Yokohama I may try my friend's dojo that he attends. I will have to ask him exactly what art it is. It wasn't Aikido it was karate-<something>.. lol.. We were kinda drunk at that time.. :-P But he brought up both his son's in the art so I wouldn't f*ck with any of them...
:-P

[edin日本]

jron, whichever style you choose I hope your sensei is a devious, sneaky, sadistic and cunning old _______ like mine is. I hope he works you until you drop, takes the time to demonstrate in depth and detail the proper way to do the forms and then reams your out in detail when you don't do them right. Then we'll both have something in common to b!tch about over a beer or two.

[ethanol]

If you are into the mental side and the "spiritual" side of Japanese martial arts then Kyudo and Iaido are the ones - not really a work out but very formal. My wife does Kyudo and I have been to a local Iaido dojo here located within the Kashima shrine - looks like something I might looked into when my body cannot withstand the karate any more!

true to a point but i would argue that both kyudo and iai DO keep you strong and fit. go to any kyudo dojo and try to fully extend any of the teachers' bows, unless you work out LOTS it is simply not going to happen. i also used to think iaido wasn'T much of a work out either but recently i had to take a month off of training due to work commitments. my 1st training session back left me with every muscle in my entire body aching for a week...

[jron]

jron, whichever style you choose I hope your sensei is a devious, sneaky, sadistic and cunning old _______ like mine is. I hope he works you until you drop, takes the time to demonstrate in depth and detail the proper way to do the forms and then reams your out in detail when you don't do them right. Then we'll both have something in common to b!tch about over a beer or two.

true that kind sir !!!

lol.. its funny.. to this day, I am more scared of a guy that's smaller than me in a fight because I am so used to having the crap beat outa me by some guy 1/2 my size.. :-P

[biking]

true to a point but i would argue that both kyudo and iai DO keep you strong and fit. go to any kyudo dojo and try to fully extend any of the teachers' bows, unless you work out LOTS it is simply not going to happen. i also used to think iaido wasn'T much of a work out either but recently i had to take a month off of training due to work commitments. my 1st training session back left me with every muscle in my entire body aching for a week...

Perhaps it would have been more accurate of me to state that compared to the energetic workout that you get in a karate session the workout in iaido and kyudo is a lot less intense. I've trained at both, although briefly. I agree that drawing the bow does take some strength in the upper body but anyone coming into a martial art, or any sport, takes time to develop the necessary muscle/flexiblity and muscle memory. Taking time out from any training and returning is a great reminder through pain just how quickly your body adapts to training or not training!

All of the martial arts listed here have a lot to offer. However, as Ed has pointed out a lot depends on the instructor. A good instructor will push you beyond your limits and will not take it easy on you. There have been many a night that I have put my all in, crawled off the floor, suffered for days afterwards and all the time the instructor is saying that I am not doing the techniques correctly. The Japanese instructors are certainly not, in my experience, into positive motivation techniques. They call it as they see it and in general they are correct, but it does not feel like that at the time.

[paradoxbox]

lock thread!

huh? whatever, TSKSR is the oldest martial art still being practiced in japan right now and nobody argues it. they're also heavily affiliated with the katori shrine out in chiba.

there are dojo in chiba and also in kawasaki but they practice different branches of the ryu and there's some political friction between them. if you join the chiba one i believe you'll be required to take a blood oath upon entry and swear not to practice other arts while you're affiliated with the ryu. it's pretty serious stuff - if you're not an idiot like most gaijins are in japan. they will show you very cool stuff. tsksr has naginata in it, probably has kusarigama in it as well but i'm not sure. the 3 ninjutsu "kan's" all have it in their curriculum as well as all kinds of other weird and interesting weapons.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenshin...C5%8D-ry%C5%AB

referring to japanese martial arts as "karate" is a pretty bad habit, good idea to stop that. it's like calling a bicycle a truck.

i would be very, very wary of aikido. there are far more junk/crap teachers than there are good ones. most of the people doing aikido are doing it for some kind of mental or spiritual healing and light exercise. you may as well be doing aromatherapy at the dojo as the martial techniques you'll learn will probably be total crap. aikido people have a real problem with being "floaty" compliant training partners that have no sparring experience whatsoever. you'll find if you spar with most aikido people they can't make their techniques work anymore. good techniques but bad training methods. aiki-jujutsu is a bit better for this but don't think it's spread out much in the USA.

you can't go wrong with judo. my personal favorite is a combination of judo, boxing and yoshin ryu or takagi yoshin ryu jujutsu. throws, striking and locks and you're all set.

[ethanol]

huh? whatever

huh? i was saying "lock thread" because this is basically the oldest, most comprehensive martial art that you can learn here and therefore there didn't need to be any other posts. TSKSR is the bomb and i would love to have the time/ opportunity to actually study it.

[mike118]

There are various other schools for martial arts in Japan right now.
I practise at a Wing Chun school in Osaka, but there is also one in Tokyo. (I dunno where you are living now so just mention both.)

Wing chun is a really no nonsense martial art that doesnt take years and years of practise to gain proficiency, more like months which is pretty ideal.

funny story, i was in Kushimoto last year after training wing chun for 6 months, i got bored down there and joined a Karate class. The high level guy got irritated when i said i did kung fu so wanted me to be a sparring dummy. Seriously knocked the guy out, it was alarming how much i`d learnt after 6 months.

It turned out the teacher was my wifes dads, friend so in the end it was all very pleasant. but yeah anyway Wing Chun. It`s v. cool.

It`s from china, theres tonnes about it online, if you want to know about the school the website is here too, good luck dude.

www.goldenharvestwingchun.com

[YokohamaTommy]

The high level guy got irritated when i said i did kung fu so wanted me to be a sparring dummy. Seriously knocked the guy out, it was alarming how much i`d learnt after 6 months.n i said i did kung

Let me stop you right there.....

[ethanol]

Perhaps it would have been more accurate of me to state that compared to the energetic workout that you get in a karate session the workout in iaido and kyudo is a lot less intense. I've trained at both, although briefly. I agree that drawing the bow does take some strength in the upper body but anyone coming into a martial art, or any sport, takes time to develop the necessary muscle/flexiblity and muscle memory. Taking time out from any training and returning is a great reminder through pain just how quickly your body adapts to training or not training!

All of the martial arts listed here have a lot to offer. However, as Ed has pointed out a lot depends on the instructor. A good instructor will push you beyond your limits and will not take it easy on you. There have been many a night that I have put my all in, crawled off the floor, suffered for days afterwards and all the time the instructor is saying that I am not doing the techniques correctly. The Japanese instructors are certainly not, in my experience, into positive motivation techniques. They call it as they see it and in general they are correct, but it does not feel like that at the time.

^^^
good post btw

[Chromedome]

Other marital arts such as 'wash the dishes' , 'take out the trash', 'do your own ironing' have better defense mechanisms.

[mike118]

Let me stop you right there.....

Yeah nice post mate, real class.
FOr the record though, it`s not.

[edin日本]

Yeah nice post mate, real class.
FOr the record though, it`s not.

Nobody can master Wing Chung that fast. It takes years of training! So tell the truth, what did you hit him with? A sledge hammer?

[YokohamaTommy]

Yeah nice post mate, real class.
FOr the record though, it`s not.

Sorry to shatter your ego, man,
But someone had to do it.

Do we really need to go down this road man?
I mean, your videos of your practice pretty much say it all.
IP Man you aint', son.

[mike118]

Nobody can master Wing Chung that fast. It takes years of training! So tell the truth, what did you hit him with? A sledge hammer?

EH...who said anything about mastering wing chun?
If i could master it in 6 months i`d be like a kung fu robot or summit wouldn`t I. i said 6 months of training , i could bust up a karate blackbelt. Po pai right in the chest.

[mike118]

Sorry to shatter your ego, man,
But someone had to do it.

Do we really need to go down this road man?
I mean, your videos of your practice pretty much say it all.
IP Man you aint', son.

Oh he keeps the class coming.
My ego is well intact mate, sticks and stones, gotta give it to you though you sound like a professional hater.

[biking]

EH...who said anything about mastering wing chun?
If i could master it in 6 months i`d be like a kung fu robot or summit wouldn`t I. i said 6 months of training , i could bust up a karate blackbelt. Po pai right in the chest.

Your stories do not seem to add up here!

You say that after 6 months of training at Kung Fu you were able to bust up a karate black belt - well good for you if you could but like Ed I don't believe this.

Your prevoius post states "Seriously knocked the guy out, it was alarming how much i`d learnt after 6 months." So you knocked the gay out - with as you have posted in your most recent post "Po pai right in the chest". There is a difference in knocking someone out and hitting them in the chest.

I have trained many beginners over my 30 years in martial arts and every now and then when sparring with newbies they land an awkward technique. That does not mean that they are any good it just means they landed an unexpected technique. You see for the most part the instructors do act as a target and put up no real defense or real counters. This is a way to build confidence in the juniors in their techniques, learning the correct distance and so on.

I have trained with Kung Fu practioners and like any martial art it too takes time to develop correct form, focus and technique.

I think this story of yours is more about your attitude towards karate as a Kung Fu practioner than anything else. Respect is certainly one of the elements of the Kung Fu martial art that you have refrained from absorbing.

Any time you are in the Kashima area of Ibaraki drop into my dojo for a little sparring practice with me and the other instructors.

Ed - would love to train with you some day that the opportunity arises. PM me with your details so that we can perhaps hook up for some training or at least a conversation about martial arts over a drink or two!

[edin日本]

EH...who said anything about mastering wing chun?
If i could master it in 6 months i`d be like a kung fu robot or summit wouldn`t I. i said 6 months of training , i could bust up a karate blackbelt. Po pai right in the chest.

If you could do that then obviously you must know this kata by heart

[edin日本]

Your stories do not seem to add up here!

You say that after 6 months of training at Kung Fu you were able to bust up a karate black belt - well good for you if you could but like Ed I don't believe this.

Your prevoius post states "Seriously knocked the guy out, it was alarming how much i`d learnt after 6 months." So you knocked the gay out - with as you have posted in your most recent post "Po pai right in the chest". There is a difference in knocking someone out and hitting them in the chest.

I have trained many beginners over my 30 years in martial arts and every now and then when sparring with newbies they land an awkward technique. That does not mean that they are any good it just means they landed an unexpected technique. You see for the most part the instructors do act as a target and put up no real defense or real counters. This is a way to build confidence in the juniors in their techniques, learning the correct distance and so on.

I have trained with Kung Fu practioners and like any martial art it too takes time to develop correct form, focus and technique.

I think this story of yours is more about your attitude towards karate as a Kung Fu practioner than anything else. Respect is certainly one of the elements of the Kung Fu martial art that you have refrained from absorbing.

Any time you are in the Kashima area of Ibaraki drop into my dojo for a little sparring practice with me and the other instructors.

Ed - would love to train with you some day that the opportunity arises. PM me with your details so that we can perhaps hook up for some training or at least a conversation about martial arts over a drink or two!

There will be a workshop next month in Adachi ku, the instructor is a master of Cho Ken Kung fu and also Japan Champion. I'll PM you the dates and also when I practice Chinese sword and Yang 48 form taichichuan if you're interested, my teacher, Kato sensei is well known we have students coming from Yokohama and Mito attending.
https://sites.google.com/site/syuzokato/
http://www15.ocn.ne.jp/~tta/

And Mike118, I'd really be interested in meeting your sensei and talking to him/her. Topic of discussion would be your poor attitude and lack of progress in learning the ethos and proper attitudes of Wing Chun.

[biking]

There will be a workshop next month in Adachi ku, the instructor is a master of Cho Ken Kung fu and also Japan Champion. I'll PM you the dates and also when I practice Chinese sword and Yang 48 form taichichuan if you're interested, my teacher, Kato sensei is well known we have students coming from Yokohama and Mito attending.
https://sites.google.com/site/syuzokato/
http://www15.ocn.ne.jp/~tta/

And Mike118, I'd really be interested in meeting your sensei and talking to him/her. Topic of discussion would be your poor attitude and lack of progress in learning the ethos and proper attitudes of Wing Chun.

Thanks Ed. I've trained a little with the Yang style over the years. No good at it as I cannot seem to get the flow going. Would like to do a little more.

Hopefully the dates will suit me to attend the workshop. I presume a newbie is OK!

I agree with your summation above in regard to Mike118 - respect is a key foundation of all genuine martial arts, which does not seem to be demosntrated in Mike118's attitude.

[edin日本]

I was just checking the standings and 2 members of Tokyo Taikyokuken Kyoukai from Adachi placed in the World Championships in Ankara. Ai Miyaoka teaches a class with Kato Sensei on Wednesdays.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Wo...#Medal_summary

[mike118]

Your stories do not seem to add up here!

You say that after 6 months of training at Kung Fu you were able to bust up a karate black belt - well good for you if you could but like Ed I don't believe this.

Your prevoius post states "Seriously knocked the guy out, it was alarming how much i`d learnt after 6 months." So you knocked the gay out - with as you have posted in your most recent post "Po pai right in the chest". There is a difference in knocking someone out and hitting them in the chest.

I have trained many beginners over my 30 years in martial arts and every now and then when sparring with newbies they land an awkward technique. That does not mean that they are any good it just means they landed an unexpected technique. You see for the most part the instructors do act as a target and put up no real defense or real counters. This is a way to build confidence in the juniors in their techniques, learning the correct distance and so on.

I have trained with Kung Fu practioners and like any martial art it too takes time to develop correct form, focus and technique.

I think this story of yours is more about your attitude towards karate as a Kung Fu practioner than anything else. Respect is certainly one of the elements of the Kung Fu martial art that you have refrained from absorbing.

Any time you are in the Kashima area of Ibaraki drop into my dojo for a little sparring practice with me and the other instructors.

Ed - would love to train with you some day that the opportunity arises. PM me with your details so that we can perhaps hook up for some training or at least a conversation about martial arts over a drink or two!

Thank you sir, you seem to be the only one so far who understood what i was talking about.

Yep thats right, po pai- chest. But anyway enough about that incident, i am sure you don`t believe it, hey i was surprised at it myself. The original post was not an attempt at sounding like mr . Awesome, i was actually trying to big up the training that i had recieved. But you know some people love to hate.

In regards to your kind offer, i will most definatley take you up on that.

Peace

[mike118]

There will be a workshop next month in Adachi ku, the instructor is a master of Cho Ken Kung fu and also Japan Champion. I'll PM you the dates and also when I practice Chinese sword and Yang 48 form taichichuan if you're interested, my teacher, Kato sensei is well known we have students coming from Yokohama and Mito attending.
https://sites.google.com/site/syuzokato/
http://www15.ocn.ne.jp/~tta/

And Mike118, I'd really be interested in meeting your sensei and talking to him/her. Topic of discussion would be your poor attitude and lack of progress in learning the ethos and proper attitudes of Wing Chun.

Dude, WC was originally a fighting style that got it`s fame in HK from street brawling, we don`t all dress up in chinese clothes on the weekend , swing a sword and give online lectures to people we never met on what it means to be a practitioner of a style we don`t practise.

much love

[edin日本]

Dude, WC was originally a fighting style that got it`s fame in HK from street brawling, we don`t all dress up in chinese clothes on the weekend , swing a sword and give online lectures to people we never met on what it means to be a practitioner of a style we don`t practise.

much love

I've had the privilege of studying Kung fu many years ago. My instructor came from the same school that trained Jet Lee. So, I am familiar with the forms and type of training involved. I've also practiced Karate but, that was before a knee joint replacement.

And if you really want to show up how good Wing Chun is, then there's always the Sports Accord World Combat Games being held in St. Petersburg in 2013.

[YokohamaTommy]

My instructor came from the same school that trained Jet Lee.

Which is actually meaningless in relation to your own training.
Which is to say, that Jet Lee is Jet Lee, and you are also your own man.

[YokohamaTommy]

The original post was not an attempt at sounding like mr . Awesome,

Yes, I do believe it completely was.

But you know some people love to hate.

No hate man, just a reality check. To dismiss things that are in-congruent with your own self belief is not the Martial way.
You would know that had you trained longer.
In case you haven't noticed, there's quite a few people here who actually have the experience of you know,
teaching others the Martial Arts, and in multiple disciplines as well.

And here you come along, bragging and quite frankly, quite untrained, talking all this smack about how you knocked out a Sensei.
IN HIS OWN DOJO NO LESS.
That type of crap happens generally speaking, within the confines of old 80's Karate flicks.
This isn't Edo-Jidai Japan. There's no more shikenshoubu if you will.

So for some of us old timers, who you know, actually might just know what the hell we are talking about on the subject,
you might sort of see why your story could sound oh, just a little on the pungent side.

But let me give you my own two cents on Wing Chun.
Great blocks, excellent counters, a wonderful system to have in the "tool box" as they say.

And herein is the exploit within it:

Chemical core dump cocktail.
In case you don't know what this means, ask any cop, firefighter, paramedic, soldier, professional fighter, or heck, even someone familiar with Kumite.(Not the Jean-Claude Van Drunk type)

‘Chemical cocktail’ is the biological release (emergency hormones) that flood the system to fuel the ‘Fight or Flight’ response which are, more often, debilitating.
Which means, the more your particular system relies on fine muscle motor control for blocks, counter attacks and timing for takedowns, the more your OWN BODY will attempt to thwart you by lack of proper response.

In other words, when the mind determines that this is a "real fight" or a fight that matters, Adrenalin, Dopamine, Cortisol and Endorphins and all sort of other goodies will flood your system in an instant and can cause you to dwell more on these distressing personal feelings – massive heart rate, shaking, tunnel vision, broken voice, "shaky legs"–so much so as to dwell on them (somatic anxiety) more than they do on the threat (cognitive anxiety).
It's nothing to be ashamed of, but one must recognize it.


That is not to say that fine movements, chains, and finishers cannot be applied with practice.
My point is that to overcome these biologcal affects, you need to train for years.
Not months. but years. As in, probably more than 5 and no less than 10.
There's no easy way but years of training for most people in this regard.
You can be the best at technical movement, but if you can't keep it together when it matters, what good is
your training?


Right now, with six months under your belt, you may as well not use your art at all in a fight.
At this stage, you have no control, you have no sense of proper timing, no sense of distance or resolve and calmness,
and no understanding whatsoever as to the overall theme of the system.
Oh, you may think you do, but you don't. And that's the beauty in it. It changes, all the time, and there is always something to learn.
But more importantly, you certainly aren't "seriously knocking out" Sensei in Japan.
Hell, most high school soccer coaches in Japan can kick your a$$, my a$$, and everyone on this forum's a$$.


So just to be clear, I'm not a hater, I'm a realist.
And I'm here to tell you that a person's true nature comes out in battle.
Good, bad, warts and all. Your ego fades, and you will get your butt handed to you.
Repeatedly.

And here's the great thing about MA.
You can be the best in your class, the best in your district, hell, even the best in the world,
but that won't mean squat if you slip on a banana peel when it matters most.
I've slipped on many a peel, and been beaten many vicious and deadly women.

And I highly recommend the experience.
Good luck to you.