What Training Beyond Black Belt Should Really Be

Posted on July 25, 2013 | 6 comments

Beyond Black Belt…

Beyond Black means in any martial art, as you will see in this article.

When a person is beyond black belt it means he is ready for advanced training.

In Karate, and similar martial arts, the training is more advanced forms.

beyond black belt martial arts

What lies beyond Black Belt?


But these more advanced forms don’t always mean much. The movements are sometimes so esoteric that they aren’t workable, and they don’t seem to make only marginal advanced energy capability in the body of the student.

This holds true for just about every Martial Art, from Karate to Aikido to Taekwondo to…whatever.

So the real reason for these advanced but same old same old forms are that they afford the practitioner the means to ‘polish’ his art. To get better at…the basics.

To get better at the basics means that they become smoother, more intuitive, more usable.

And, there are other qualities to be appreciated here: calmness of mind, a certain type of wisdom, some sixth sense abilities (if you lucked out and got in a good system, very rare) and so on.

When I found myself in the position of teaching people beyond black belt I decided to do things differently. I began teaching whole arts for each level after black belt.

I might teach a Shaolin style to second black black belt, a pa kua style to 3rd black, and so on.

This gave me tremendous leeway in what I teach. I was actually able to shift programs around like shuffling cards, and fit the programs and specific martial arts much better to individual students, and yet still maintain a distinct discipline and structure in my classes.

Furthermore, the polishing consideration was not neglected, but rather enhanced. Basics are basics, from art to art, and there is little difference. Thus, not only was the student working on basics, but he was getting different viewpoints of basics, which helped him understand them in depth.

The truth of the matter is that this method allows me to teach more than art, but a viewpoint of art, a perspective that is not able to be taught in normal classes.

It is a matter of how much knowledge you can impart, not art, but quality of knowledge, and the ability to import more knowledge…at a glance.

What was really pleasant for me is that I often run into these old students, and they’ll say they learned some new art, and I’ll ask them about it, and they’ll say something like, ‘Oh, I got together with so and so and we traded systems.’

Traded systems. Just like people did before everything went commercial. As in trading Pa Kua for Tai Chi. Or Shaolin for Karate. As it says in various accounts of martial artists, especially those who created their own systems.

Able to trade a whole system because they have been trained not to do a million punches, but to do a million punches while absorbing several martial arts systems.

And it gets really interesting for me when I get around these old students, they’ll be talking about things like shifting the tan tien while making a kung fu kick work in a karate style, or retaining power without dropping their weight, or some other oddity that it took me decades to figure out, but they are doing in a couple of years…and they have a whole lifetime to go places I dream about.

Lucky guys.

But, that’s okay. When I give up this body I’ll get a new one and find one of these guys to teach me.

Oh, and I would be remiss if I didn’t let you know that the reason I am able to teach lots of martial arts beyond black belt is because of this Matrixing Technology I developed…it’s at Monster Martial Arts.

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Posted in aikido, bagua zhang, karate, kenpo, kung fu, pa kua chang, shaolin, taekwondo, tai chi chuan

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Best Martial Arts Equipment for the Money!

Posted on July 24, 2013 | Leave a comment

Here’s Some Wild Martial Arts Equipment!

You guys may think that this is a tongue in check article on getting the best martial arts equipment, but it isn’t. I have personally tried the methods here, and they are top notch body calisthenic methods.

First, I tried cinderblocks. I didn’t want to dig holes and sink poles for the Plum Flower Fist, which is a form of Praying Mantis Gung Fu. This was great. Jumping up down gave me strength, as well improving my balance.

martial arts equipment

Yeah, baby!

From there I look for other things to use for martial arts equipment.

Tires were great. I learned to use tires originally for swinging a wooden sword. Took a lot of strength and control to make the tire turn and bounce the way you wanted it to. So I grabbed nine of them, arranged them in a simple grid of three by three, and started walking the circle, Pa Kua Chang style. This was odd, hard to ground through the springiness of the tires. but, you often learn more from what doesnt’ work than what does, so I moved on.

My my next experiment in Martial Arts Training Equipment.I put four by fours on edge and practiced forms on them. This was interesting, and taken directly from Ton Toi Northern Shaolin Gung Fu. Ton Toi means springy legs, and I learned all sorts of things about balance while springing from beam to beam.

And, I tried doing forms on top of fences. It was wild. Trying to spin and move, six feet above the ground, without falling al-l-l the way down! I don’t know how much I got out of this martial arts equipment, but if was fun!

And, in between these things I tried hanging balls from the rafters, punching tennis balls at a wall, and other sorts of things. But my next big foray into martial arts equipment was at the old Los Angeles Zoo.

The old zoo, now sort of gone, or at least redone into a picnic area, was a mess of cages and bounders strewn about in the cages to give the animals some sort of sense of nature. So I worked out in cages…lions and tiger and me…oh my!

And I learned a lot! I especially grew in arm strength. Having to hang on to the side of a cage, or going across the top monkey style, built up a lot of strength in the arms. Trying to do kicks while so perched was especially educated. You get a whole new appreciation for how the hip joints work.

Now, last in my martial arts equipment were trees. At the Los Angeles zoo there were all sorts of low hanging trees. I could walk on the trunks of some of them, climb to joints, and generally swing around and do all sorts of stuff. The interesting thing about this was that I could practice sinking my weight.

One of the places I got this idea from, aside from my experiences in the cages, was a fellow wrote an article where he had to hang from a tree limb for an hour a day for a few months before the master would teach him.

Well, having done a little hanging myself, I can definitely attest to the benefits in the arms and shoulders. It stretches them out and gives truth to the old saying, ‘A long muscle is a strong muscle.’

Now, that about does it except for one thing…all of the equipment I used cost nothing. That’s right, I didn’t have to spend any money at my martial arts equipment suppliers, and I got a better work out than some big nautilus machine could ever give!

Here’s a good article with no martial arts exercise equipment. Here’s the Monkey Boxing Course itself.

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Posted in bruce lee, chi power, kenpo, kung fu, martial arts, mixed martial arts, shaolin, taekwondo

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Martial Arts Survival Training for the Masses!

Posted on July 22, 2013 | Leave a comment

Martial Arts Survival Training Replaces Ammunition!

This thing, of martial arts survival training replacing rifles and handguns, is a real thing.

You see, I just read another instance of a gunshop running out of ammunition. So, they limited their customers to one box of ammo apiece.

martial arts survival training

My fists are my real weapons…heh!


I’ll never run out of fists!

Isn’t that interesting, we are having a shortage of ammo because the United States government is apparently buying it all up.

Sheesh! What are they expecting a war? A revolution? An uprising of citizens because of the things that the government is…don’t get me started!

Anyway, the point is that real self defense starts with the fists. Or with broken bottles and clubs and whatever else might make a quick weapon.

You see, the mugger isn’t going to tap you on the shoulder and challenge you to a karate kumite match.

He’s going to jump out of some dark corner and conk your noggin with a rusty engine block!

Yes! I’m serious!

The guy in your house while you are all sleeping upstairs will probably have some sort of weapon, and he will be willing to use it to get away with your stuff. You know, things like your car and your wife or daughter.

And, it is fun to fantasize that you will just pull out your pistolo and give him an extra rectum.

And, I am not discounting that happy possibility.

But, fighting starts with the fists, when you don’t have anything else. And what is your gaurantee that you won’t be pushing a shopping cart across the parking lot when a bash mob comes along and decides you’re the wrong color?

What are going to do? Defend yourself with frozen peas?

What are the chances that you will not be able to get to your Smith and Wesson brain popper…or just that you are a bad shot under pressure and miss the sucker?

What are you going to do if you can’t get to your weapon because it is in a lock box…at the bank! Or has a childproof trigger guard! Or you just plain run out of ammo!

So, now you are down to it. Fists. That lampshade over there. Hit him with a sofa cushion!

And he’s got a knife!

Okay. Made my point, didn’t I?

So you need martial arts training. And not that internet crap where they promise you ten moves that will kill anybody.

You ask any trained martial artist and he will laugh in your face at that.

You are going to suddenly remember a trick, when the guy trained in the prison yard, outweighing you by a hundred pounds, trying to stick a knife in your ribs?

No. It takes focus and discipline to remember stuff in the middle of combat. That’s why people train for years…because the quick fix courses don’t work, never have worked, and if they did…we wouldn’t have martial arts!

So, my advice to you is get to a martial arts school. Start learning something. Don’t be the next George Zimmerman…or Trayvon Martin. Don’t be the victim of bash mobs.

Look, there are probs with the country. There are going to be riots! There are going to be hungry people roaming the street!

So get yourself some real martial arts survival training…it’s worked for thousands of years, and it’ll work now. But you have to do it!

A great place to start is the Blinding Steel Course.

This has been a page about martial arts survival training.

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Posted in bruce lee, karate, mixed martial arts, qigong, ultimate fighting championships

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Mixed Martial Arts Against Aikido

Posted on July 20, 2013 | Leave a comment

Mixed Martial Arts and Aikido!

Mixed Martial Arts is all over the TV, Aikido…is not. But, what is the difference here? All hype and excitement aside, what is the difference between these two martial arts?

First, Mixed martial arts, such as you see on the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Strikeforce and other such programs, is a contest. A man beating a man. Thus, it is not an art.

mixed martial arts

A bit different than an Aikido Throw.

 

Now don’t get your panties in a bunch, it doesn’t mean MMA is bad, I never said that. But the difference between an art and a sport is that in a sport man tries to beat man. In an art a man tries to control himself.

Mind you, this splits a few hairs.

Tell me it doesn’t take a degree of self control to enact a strategy in the middle of a fight and I’ll call you a fool.

It takes immense self control to bide your time, play the game, and spring a trap.

However, the real difference here has to do with the type and degree of control.

In Mixed Martial Arts one uses muscles and forceful leverage. It takes real bulldogging skills to take a fighter down when he is bent on taking you down. This is a real fight.

In Aikido, however, one is anticipating the strike, planning on the direction and speed of the strike, and then blending with the strike. Manipulating not by bull dogging, but by harmonizing. Joining with a person, instead of pounding him into a pulp or snapping off his limbs.

Do you see the difference here?

Not forceful leverage, but flowing manipulation. This is a fight of a different kind, and it takes immense…self control to control somebody using this method.

But MMA, as indicated above, is a sport, and Aikido is the art, and the two shoujldn’t be compared because they are simply not in the same arena.

The real problem here, in addition to the type of control needed, is that people insist that Aikido is not a real martial art.

It is a real martial art. It is derived from Daito Ryu Aiki jujitsu and swordsmanship, in which fighters didn’t just fight for the gold and the glory, but for their very lives.

And, the thing that most people don’t know, is that with just a few twists and alterations to the techniques, one could take it into the MMA arena.

That, however, wouldn’t be in keeping with the art, and would change it into something else.

This has been a page concerning Mixed Martial Arts and Aikido.

Check out this great article on Aikido style throws. Or, you could take a look at this course presenting a more combat Aikido style.

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Karate Puzzle Makes Martial Arts Fun and Easy to Learn!

Posted on July 16, 2013 | 5 comments

Speed up Learning with a Karate Puzzle!

The Karate Puzzle is the brainchild of Andreas Sturm.

Now, unfortunately for non-Germanic speaking people, the website is written in German. A wonderful language that I can’t speak.

Karate Puzzle

Andreas Sturm, inventor of the Karate Puzzle!


However, a little work with the google translator, and it is easy!

The puzzles themselves are sliding images, and all you have to do is figure out which button to click to mix up the images, then slide them back into place!

Now, I found this quite interesting, and it did tax my poor brain. Even after doing the forms for over forty years, I found myself having to sort through the pictures to figure out the sequence.

And, sorting them in this fashion will help your ability to learn the forms and do them faster.

It really is ingenious, and one of those things where you slap your head and think, ‘Why didn’t I think of this?’

But you didn’t, and Andreas did, and well done to him.

There are seventeen kata on the puzzle page, a full range of the Shotokan forms. This will keep you busy into the wee hours, so when you can’t get to the dojo, you can simply open a soda pop, go through the various forms, and get yourself an armchair work out that actually works!

As for Mr. Sturm…he began his study of Karate in 1995, and began instructing in 2002.

Though the website is in a foreign language, using the translator I was able to read it pretty easily, though a bit slower than I am used to. It is a good website, fileld with solid information, and, of course, there are the puzzles.

Interested in visiting the site? It is at Karate Puzzle.

This article was written by Al Case, for more information on fantastic martial arts training methods like the Karate Puzzle, visit him at Monster Martial Arts.

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Best Karate Form to Learn Karate Online

Posted on July 12, 2013 | Leave a comment

Learn Karate Online Now!

To learn Karate online one needs the simplest, easiest method possible. And if you want to learn kung fu online or aikido online, or whatever, this holds true.

Interestingly, there are a few simple forms out there.

learn karate online

Jackie Chan knows Kung Fu, but he doesn’t know Karate!


Classical Karate, for instance, recommends a high dedication to what is called ‘Three Step Blocking.’ This is a straight forward step to the front and block sequence of moves. You step and low block, step and low block, step and low block, turn and repeat. And repeat, and repeat.

The problem with this martial arts training method, as you might imagine, is that it gets pretty boring.

Learning it is fun, and doing it as a warm up in class is great and beneficial, but to do it by yourself, hour after hour. Boring.

Ed Parker had a great idea with his ‘Short Form One.’ This little Kenpo Kata is only about eight moves, but it covers the four basic blocks in four directions. Unfortunately, there isn’t much opportunity for change, and this basic karate kata tends to get a little boring, too.

Every system has their basic forms, and they are easily sampled. Probably the best one is the square form.

To do the Square form you simply move around a square. Fight foot forward to one side, left foot back to the next side, right foot forward to the third side, and left foot back to the last side, or the beginning side.

First do it by simply stepping, then, when you understand how simple it is, you can start exploring stances.

The official form is done in a back stance, and with three blocks, low, middle outward, and high.

Now comes the fun part, and the defeat of boredom. Three blocks, four sides. That means the form is constantly changing, and you have to go around the square a few times to get the low block back to the beginning square. You will find this confusing.

And, as you do the form, you keep forgetting where you are, and this tends to build up an awareness, to make you focus your awareness in the form.

The real bonus of this form, however, is that it is not just a beginning form. As you move around and do the karate blocks you will find that the hands tend to circle,a nd they circle in front of the tan tien (the one point) which is the energy center for the body. Thus, you start causing the tan tien to generate more and more ki, or chi.

Within an hour or two of doing the form you will feel the tan tien heat up, and you will feel energy snapping out of the hands, and far in advance of a simple beginning form.

This is the absolute best karate form to learn karate online.

Here is the form on video if you wish to Learn Karate Online. Another good page is this article on how to Master Martial Arts.

 

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In the Best Karate Training Drills the Eyes Have It

Posted on July 9, 2013 | Leave a comment

Best Karate Training Focuses the Eyes

In the best Karate Training drills one should look their opponent in the eyes. This is a very interesting and powerful aspect to Karate training, so let me give you some data about it.

First, I have had a lot of people, during karate drills, ask me where they should look. The common answer that I have found over the years, and this is from Karate school to Taekwondo school to whatever Martial Arts school (style) you are studying, is that you should ‘unfocus’ your eyes on the chest. Look at the center of the body and become aware of all the stuff on the outside.

best karate training

You can’t fight what you can’t face!

 


This actually isn’t bad instruction, you want to see everything, but it stops forward progress for the martial artist at a certain point.

The real advice, if you want to experience the best karate training drills, is to look at the eyes.

The eyes are the windows to a man’s soul; look at the eyes long enough…and you can actually see what a man is thinking.

Look at the body, and you stop looking at the mind, and the martial art becomes a thing of reaction, or, at the very least, slow progress.

So you look at the eyes, train hard, do your forms for discipline, and eventually you will actually pick up on the very thought of the opponent.

Tell me this doesn’t give an incredible edge in combat…to know what an opponent is thinking!

Anyway, the point is this: you can’t fight what you can’t face.

And, as you progress, if you don’t look to the eyes, attempt to see the thought behind the action, then you wo’t make the jump from fighting to handling.

You see, in the real martial arts you learn to fight so you can give up fighting.

You don’t look at an opponent and fight him, you predict what he is going to do by reading his thoughts, and then making moves that undo him rather than harm him.

Can anybody spell the word ‘harmony?’

Only idiots fight all their lives. Smart martial arts students, people who want to experience the best karate training drills, watch the eyes and learn to read the mind.

And, eventually, they experience harmony, and greater control.

Opponents become as children, and as easily handled.

And that is why, when it comes to the best karate training drills, the eyes have it.

Check out this great article on Aikido style throws. Or, you could take a look at this course presenting a more combat Aikido style.

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The Truth About Martial Arts Belt Ranking

Posted on July 4, 2013 | Leave a comment

Martial Arts Belt Ranking Made Understandable!

Martial Arts Belt Ranking does tend to be a little…strange. There are so many levels, and what does a black belt mean, what is a master, and so on. In this article I will tell you where the various levels of rank came from, and what they actually mean.

Martial Arts Belt Ranking came from Japan, where it was originally used in swimming classes.

blind justice

Martial Arts like Karate and Judo picked up on them because it made it easier to arrange the karate class, or judo class, and teach it.

Before then people would join a martial arts school and there were junior students and senior students, and the point was to get your Teaching certificate.

Some people didn’t want to go that far in the martial arts, but the serious students did. After all, why do something half way? And, of course, a person who knew enough to teach would certain have sufficient self defense skills to protect himself.

In 1967 I joined a Kenpo Karate school, and the belt ranks were eight to Black Belt, and then eight after one had achieved Dan ranking.

The colors were: white, orange, purple, blue, green, three stages of brown, and black. First Dans usually just put a tip, or a strip of white on the end of the obi for each advanced dan ranking.

Later, 1969, I jointed a classical Karate school, and here was where I experienced martial arts belt ranking as it was meant to be. Sort of.

There were three ranks to Black. These were white, green, and brown. But, to be honest, these had been subdivided into an eight and eight system.

The theory (one of the more predominant theories, I should say), was that one started as a white belt, like an unwritten piece of paper. Then one experienced the green of spring, became worn, like autumn, and finally entered winter.

This was an interesting sort of mythos. There was a logic to it, and it did describe the growing process, sort of.

But, what I noticed as the years rolled by was this: Martial Arts belt ranking doesn’t matter to people who have been in the martial arts for a while.

Yes, they are important, if only to spur the beginning student on. And, one should take pride in an achievement. It takes a lot of work, a lot of stick-to-ivity, to progress through the martial arts belt ranking systems.

But the real measure here is whether a person makes it to teacher.

Why do things half way, eh?

And that is the truth about Martial Arts belt ranking.

Here’s a great article on reality martial arts belt ranking. You can get started on Learning Martial Arts right here.

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The Real Reason Karate Kata Are So Valuable in the Martial Arts!

Posted on July 3, 2013 | Leave a comment

The True Value of Karate Kata

There are several reasons why Karate Kata are so valuable to the martial artist. Mind you, we are including many forms of Martial Arts, kung fu patterns, taekwondo forms, whatever.

The first reason Karate Kata are so good for you is purely physical. Simply, if you are doing a form, you are doing body weight calisthenics. Many people over look this, but when you do the first form of Karate, Heian One, or Pinan One as it is sometimes referred to, you are doing approximately 20 squats on the front leg. If you do all five of these karate kata you are doing over 100 knee bends, and these calisthenics shape and power the legs in a multitude of ways. Simply, the leg is completely and fully powered up.

karate kata steps

Jackie Chan said he knows enough Martial Arts to start his own style! Why not you?


The second reason Karate Kata are so great for you is that they teach you control.

This starts with control of the body. You learn how to hold your body in a particular position in space, how to move to another position in space through the quickest and most efficient manner possible.

This fact of control progresses into technique, and here is where kata really shine. When you are doing a technique you are learning to take charge of another person’s body. You control it no matter how violent it is, and you learn to handle it without using effort.

Mind you, there are more efficient ways of learning fighting. You could punch a bag as in boxing for hours and hours, and not learn anything new about yourself body. And, to tell the truth, this author finds that method slightly boring.

So Karate Kata might take a bit longer to learn, but you are not learning to just destroy, you are learning to control, both your own body and somebody else’s body. Very valuable stuff. And that brings us to the third reason martial arts forms are good for you.

To control the body takes concentration, and thus you are learning to take charge of your mind.

Did you know that people who learn real karate, or real kung fu, usually do better in life? That is because they have learned not to just to control bodies, but awareness. They have learned to control thought.

And a person who can control thought can control the universe. Thus, the importance of martial arts forms, karate katas, or whatever you call them, cannot be underestimated.

Here’s a really good article on the secrets of the Martial Arts forms, or, you can always take a look at this online karate kata course.

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Change Your Martial Art into Light Gung Fu

Posted on July 1, 2013 | Leave a comment

Light Gung Fu Can Be Made Out of Any Martial Art

It’s true, Light Gung Fu can be made out of any martial art you study, and that includes Karate, Silat, Aikido, whatever! In fact, it is incredibly easy!

All you have to do is go get some cinderblocks, set them on end, and do your forms (kata) on them! Instant Light Gung Fu!

light gung fu

But whatever you believe…chi energy power exists!


Here are some key items to help you out in this search for light body Gung fu.

You don’t need a lot of cinderblocks. As little as four, but you can use as many as you want.

It is best to lay them sideways the first few times you do this. After you are comfortable (won’t take but a day or two), you stand them on end. After a week or two, you can lay two on the side. Then you can go to one on end on top of one on end, and then two on end, and so on.

You want to pick a good surface to eliminate brick wobble. And when you purchase the cinder blocks, set them on end and pick out the ones with the most stability.

IMPORTANT: when you fall, learn to pick up your legs and search for a place to land. You don’t want to break a leg by stepping on the falling cinderblock.

Now, this method of light Gung fu has been around for years. It is called sunken post, or sunken pillar training. Usually you dig holes and sink them, and climb the poles until you are six or eight feet off the ground, striking Gung fu postures and dancing around like a kung fu crane.

But, that’s a lot of digging, so my method is simpler and quicker, and saves a lot of digging and measuring and leveling and basic construction work.

Nothing wrong with the ancient sunken pole tricks, especially if you are an official Gung fu school, but, my method of light kung fu is much simpler.

Now, the main area where you grow is going to be in balance.

Everything is balance. From being able to stop yourself in an aggressive karate move without falling forward, to the delicate hourlong meditation of holding the bowl. Everything is balance.

So standing on a couple of cinderblocks on end is going to give you tremendous balance.

First, you will feel awkward, the body will shift back and forth in attempts to keep your balance.

After a while your kung fu maneuvering will become easy as pie, and it will be as natural as walking, and you will likely feel a nice, little glow developing in your tan tien.

The muscles on both sides of the leg, you see, are going to fire up, work back and forth, and that will start up the body energy generator, which is what the tan tien actually is.

And that is how you create light Gung fu out of Karate, or taekwondo, or pa kua, or…ANY…Martial Art you might happen to study.

Here’s a great article in which the author demonstrates light gung fu. And here’s a great article on how to learn Shaolin Kung Fu.

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