I’ve been reading Iain Abernethy‘s “Bunkai Jutsu.” I’m really enjoying it, as Iain provides a lot of thought-provoking ways to look at kata. However, I can’t help but notice that I’m finding difficulty in my kata training. On the one hand, Iain and all of my instructors have made it clear that we should be… Continue reading Where do I focus?
Category: Martial Arts
Four reasons why you should cross-train
Five months ago, I began to cross-train. Sure, I’ve taken tae kwon do for a year from some instructors who happened to be taking lessons from my karate instructors. But they were still in my school and influenced, to an extent, by my instructors. Reaching out to an entirely different art and going beyond my… Continue reading Four reasons why you should cross-train
Spirituality in the martial arts
I made the mistake of discussing religion with my parents the other night. Among other things, I told my dad that I believe I’m a spiritual person because I’m involved in the martial arts. He told me he doesn’t believe that. I tried to tell him how the cultures who developed the martial arts I… Continue reading Spirituality in the martial arts
Martial arts: the basics
In our tai chi class, we’ve been focusing on our short form. We’ve done it several times each class since I started in August. Last night, we had our first “observation.” Mr. Aldus didn’t want to present it as a test, instead asking for volunteers to perform their version of the form. Four of us… Continue reading Martial arts: the basics
Martial arts: The application vs. the health benefits
Almost every class, Mr. Aldus makes the point that he’s trying to balance showing his students the health aspects of the martial arts and the practical application of the martial arts. Some students, he says, are there solely for health benefits. While he hasn’t specifically mentioned health benefits, I could take a stab at some… Continue reading Martial arts: The application vs. the health benefits