(Approx 2 minute 5 second read) Why do some kata use closed hands and others open hands? Is it simply stylistic differences? . It’s a question that often arises, and it points to a common misunderstanding in modern karate training: the assumption that a fist or an open palm is simply a singular ‘technique’ for…
Tag: Fighting
It’s Not the Name – It’s What It Does: Techniques Must Remain Adaptable.
(Approx 2 minute 20 second read) Lately, I’ve had a lot of comments about how a particular technique is done in this or that style, with this or that detail. Some of these comments are thoughtful… but many miss the point. . If everything goes wrong and you have to fight, you don’t have the…
Don’t Just Prove It – Disprove It: The Value of Getting It Wrong.
(Approx 1 minute 40 second read) When you are in the dojo watching your instructor demonstrate a technique, is that technique always successful? . It usually is, isn’t it? But why could that be a problem? . Because if you ever have to use those techniques in the real world, they will often fail –…
The Essence of the Martial Arts Lies Not in Strength or Style, but in What You Find Within Yourself.
(Approx 1 minute 55 second read) When you find what’s truly right for you in your training, you stop needing to explain it to anyone. . Apart from teaching at the dojo, I train every day. Not to fight, not for show, and not to prove anything. I train because it matters to me. It’s…
Self-Defense Starts Long Before Technique: Not Everyone’s Ready to Hit.
(Approx 2 minute 50 second read) After years of writing, I’ve noticed a pattern. I share practical insights from my dojo – like helping a tired, overwhelmed mother feel safer – and inevitably, someone chimes in with, “Well, in my classes, I teach [insert technique here], and it works for me.” . It’s getting predictable…
Thinking Beyond Technique: Self-Defense Isn’t About Techniques (It’s About People).
(Approx 2 minute 50 second read) I recently wrote about helping a new mother with no experience begin learning self-defense. I wrote about mindset, awareness, and small, practical habits that could fit into a very real, very full life. . But as expected, some of the replies were about techniques. What they would teach. Which…
Why Learning to ‘Fight’ Isn’t the First Lesson in Self-Defense.
(Approx 2 minute 50 second read) I was asked recently if I could help a new mother learn some self-defense. . She has a six-month-old child and she has no prior martial arts experience. On top of that, she’s working as well – so her days are full, her sleep is broken, and time for…
Is Your Self-Defense Training Real? Finding Authentic Self-Protection.
(Approx 2 minute 45 second read) Someone asked me, “How do you spot real, effective training – from the kind that’s not? How can you know the difference, especially if you’re training hard?” . You see it everywhere these days, a dojo on every street corner and in every strip mall, many of them have…
The Way and the World: When the ‘Way’ Forgets Reality.
(Approx 2 minute 55 second read) Every so often, a comment comes along that is so removed from reality. Well… you decide. . “As a sword arts practitioner (kendo and iaido) I do not understand this obsession with karate having to be effective for self defense or ‘street fight’.” . He continues: “Martial arts became…
Recreation or Reality? Self-Protection – It’s Still About Getting Home Safely.
(Approx 2 minute 20 second read) Self-defense has always really been about one thing: getting home safely. Even if we go back to the early days of Okinawa, that was the goal. It wasn’t about fighting or consensual dueling. . Karate, or its predecessor, was never created for sport or for testing yourself toe-to-toe. It…
Training Hard, Learning Little: Not All Effort Leads to Effectiveness.
(Approx 2 minute 40 second read) The dojo, it should make you sweat and demand discipline – but what about when the instructor truly believes they’re teaching the pinnacle of self-defense, yet their methods fall painfully short in real-world violence? . Some dojo pride themselves on intensity. Students train hard, push limits, and earn their…
Too Many Want to Be Right. Too Few Want to Know.
(Approx 2 minute 45 second read) I wrote recently that no matter how much evidence you provide, people still will not see past their sometimes preconceived rhetoric. . You know, real martial artists are okay with it when they find out they are wrong. And to me, that is one of the greatest gifts that…