The Myth of The Ultimate Martial Arts Drill
There seems to be a prevalent myth that a common martial arts drill is some kind of ultimate drill. That if you become adept at this drill, you’ll be able to defend yourself in any type of attack in the street. Martial arts instructors have developed drills to improve this drill and others have made it an integral part of a sport.

Absolute Speed and Power Striking For Martial Arts

It hardly takes much convincing to conclude that having blinding speed of punches or bone-cracking power in kicks are the most desireable assets for Martial Artists to posess. Remember Miyamoto Musashi stated in his famous text “A Book of Five Rings” that one ultimate goal of the warrior is to learn to end the fight with a single blow! That’s exactly where speed & power come in! The idea is to make them as specific as possible so as to achieve the most applicable results. In this article we will attempt to explore some of the best methods available to get those results.

Economy of Motion. Basically the more you practice your peticular techniques, the more your nervous system becomes familiar & you naturally get faster. Its a really good idea to use mirrors because you can self-coach so to say & strip away wasted movements as well as learn to utilize power centers (like the hips & legs). For example you can immediately make your punch will be twice as powerful by springing off the slightly bent legs when you execute it. Think of your body akin to a coiled up snake about to strike!

Think SPEED! Sounds simple but when you start thinking you are fast you will actually start moving faster. Get over any preconceived mental limitations you may have. The other aspect of this notion is to keep the thought of speed on the forefront of your mind. As you train to do those skills you wish to be faster & stronger at make a conscious effort to do them with your best speed & power efforts! Time yourself. Count down how many strikes or roundhouses you can land on a target or heavy bag in a 10 second period. Seek to improve your numbers every session.

Overspeed methods A.K.A. Forcing faster muscle memory! The abridged version goes like this:You have an innate speed at which muscles can fire off & move any given limb. Factors like motor unit recruitment, neural efficiency/capacity, & strength ratios effect this. What we are going to do is teach the nervous system to coordinate movement & build muscle memory at faster speeds! To speed up punches wrap a tubular resistance band or even bungee cord around your wrists and anchor the other end or have a partner stretch it out. Now release & throw the arm into motion with the added speed. Relax the opposing muscles to avoid any “braking” effects. The same proceedure can be performed on kicks by binding the band to the foot.10-20 reps 2 times aweek will be enough to develop noticeable results.

Specific drills to build power. Much can be done with a simple medicineball & even bodyweight outside of what you are already familiar with. Here are some to get started on:

Power absorbtion exercises:How the theory works is that you can’t create more power than you can absorb. So it only makes sense to start here before we start “jumping” into plyometrics! For upperbody power, drop push-ups are king! Assume a position upright but on your knees with both arms at chest level slightly more than shoulder width apart bend aprox 90?, now drop to your hands without hesitation and forcefully contract when the hands touch the floor as to limit the amount of arm bend. The higher the “drop” the more force is absorbed, thus the more power potential to develop. The same concept is easily adapted to the lowerbody by doing drops from a 4′-5′ surface landing in a 1/4 squat. For pulling power, hold yourself at the top of a pull up position & fall to “catch” yourself about 1/2 through the pull ups range of motion.You’ll find after performing as little as 10 reps each you’ll be plenty sore! Its a good idea to work these 4-8 weeks, 2 times a week before progressing to the next phase…

Plyometric Kung Fu:Okay to begin lets start with punching/pushing power. Clapping push-ups work great but I feel the need to mention that the idea is to “bounce” off of each rep. Not just get the clap in! In fact forget the clap, just repetitively hop off the floor from this position. Its the fast reaction off the landing that matters so focus on that. One idea that will work good on the legs is to depth jump right into a kick. Peticularly a jump-kick! Now these are good starters…ready to leave elementary onto High School? Get a partner & medicineball (start with light ball, please!). Have him Throw it (throw, not toss) at you. The first step its to rebound it as soon as it touches your hands. Next level of progress is to actually strike the oncoming ball out of the air with a chop, punch, palm, & even any various kicks you desire to build power onto. This drill works some serious plyo-power into your martial arts! Start with a light 3 lb. ball & slow throws gradually working up to faster throws & heavier balls.Obviosly the further you are able to displace the ball/target the more power you have gained(Like a baseball batter). Kind of works as a measuring devise as well. For you solo practitioners get a bouncy type med-ball & react off the rebound of a wall throw. Please exercise caution as this last one is alot more difficult than it sounds & takes some serious getting used to.The great thing is you can build accuracy at the same time you get faster & more powerful techniques. Lastly plyometrics like these are intense, so only work out with them 2 times a week.

Gut-Check Time For Two of IFL’s Unbeatens
As team identity goes, the New York Pitbulls and Portland Wolfpack couldn’t be more different. Renzo Gracie’s squad is a mixture of Brazilians and New Yorkers, veterans and rookies, and none of them can ever seem to get anywhere on time.

Close Combat That Forged An Empire
The Romans understood that training and attitude were what
they needed to survive the savage battles of their time.
And the same holds true today whether you are a soldier,
police officer, or just someone concerned about defending
themselves and their family from brutal street violence and
terrorist activity.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Martial Arts Book Review - Judo in Action-Grappling Techniques by Kazuzo Kudo
This is really an outstanding book for the way it focuses on the various aspects of grappling with an opponent while on the ground. I was particularly impressed with the layout and design of this book. Very easy to follow and understand. Here are some of the key points that this book focuses on.

Training with Martial Arts Weapons - Karate Kung Fu Weaponry

There are opportunities in martial arts training to learn to use various martial arts weapons. Many martial arts schools, especially those that teach Japanese karate and Chinese kung fu styles have weaponry as part of their overall curriculum. Popular weapons from karate systems include the bo staff, kama, sai, sword, nunchaku and tonfa. Chinese kung fu styles have broadsword, 3 section staff, kwan do, whip chain, butterfly knives as well as their own versions of staff. Of course, there are many other types of weapons in martial arts but the above are the more common ones taught. Some of the more exotic weapons include the fan, rope dart and the hook swords. Martial arts weapons can be divided into short and long range. An example of a short range weapon would be a pair of sai. The bo staff would be a long range weapon because of the longer reach. Weapons can also be divided into bladed and non-bladed. Kamas and swords of course would be bladed weapons where staffs and nunchakus would be non-bladed. In most training situations with bladed weapons, the blades are not live. That is, the blades of swords and kamas are blunt rather than sharp. This adds to the safety aspect of martial arts weapons training. Weapons can also come in different weights from heavy traditional models down to ultra light weight versions for forms competition.

Martial arts weapons are considered as extensions of a martial artist’s own body. For example, strikes with a weapon are really extended hand strikes. Blocks with weapons are modeled after traditional martial art blocking techniques. Therefore, it is important for martial arts students to be relatively proficient with martial arts techniques using their own bodies first before learning to use any martial arts weapon. This will help the students understand the applications behind each weapons technique much better. In most Japanese karate schools, weapons training won’t be offered until students reach an intermediate level such as green or blue belt. There are martial arts that are strictly weapons oriented. An example is Japanese kendo which is modeled after samarai sword fighting. Philipino arnis is stick fighting which was developed in the South Pacific islands.

There are many benefits in training with martial arts weapons. Because most weapons have some weight to them, their use will help develop muscle tone and strength. Performing forms or katas with weapons will also develop coordination. In today’s world, martial arts weapons may not be as practical as the days of the past when it was acceptable to carry weapons wherever one traveled. However, with some understanding of weapons techniques, a martial artist today can turn almost any household item such as an umbrella, cane or even a set of keys into weapons of self defense if required. Another important point that shouldn’t be ignored is that most practitioners will claim that training with martial arts weapons is a lot of fun.

However, not all martial arts clubs and studios will teach weapons. Many tae kwon do schools for example do not include weapons in their overall training. This is not to say that Korean martial arts do not have weapons. The Korean martial art kuk sool won features the staff, sword and cane. So if a martial arts student wishes to learn the use of weapons, a school that includes them in their training should be sought after. Another alternative for students who are otherwise happy with their martial arts club that doesn’t have weapons training is to get supplementary private instruction from instructors who can provide it.

Weapons training can open up a whole new dimension to overall martial arts training. Even advanced tai chi practitioners use swords in some of their forms. It doesn’t matter if sometimes the swords are made entirely of wood either since the actual weapons techniques will still be used in the forms. For many martial arts competitors, weapons forms are their favorite divisions to compete in. From a spectator point of view, weapons forms can be very exciting to watch especially when weapons such as whip chains or kamas with strings are used since their presentations are so dynamic and even somewhat dangerous to the user. Such weapons have caused injuries to users when certain techniques were sloppy or mistimed. But like other aspects of martial arts, proficiency with a martial art weapon after much hard training can bring a high sense of satisfaction to a martial artist.

About the Author

Clint Leung is a lifelong martial artist with over 32 years of training experience in kung fu, tae kwon do, karate, kickboxing and martial arts weaponry. He has won Canadian and world championship titles (NASKA, NBL and WSKF). He is also owner of Free Spirit Activewear (http://www.FreeSpiritActivewear.com) , an online retailer and designer of premium martial arts activewear. Free Spirit Activewear has martial arts info articles.

7 Really Good Reasons You Need to Learn to Use the Kubotan Self-Defense Keychain
Ironically, in a world filled with terrorism, assault, rape, and murder, I have to write an article giving people reasons why they should be learning self-defense or the Kubotan personal-protection weapon. But then, if I didn’t, who would?

Popularity: unranked [?]

Keys Of Hung Gar Kung Fu Mastering
1. While polishing your technique you should never stick out your chest or stomach either when fighting or practicing. It stiffens your body and makes your movements awkward. As a result, you are losing control over your body. While practicing always make sure to keep your back bent outward and chest incurved. This is the right sign to distinguish between Kung Fu masters and Kung Fu athletes.

2. Despite the fact that the back should be a bit bent outward, you have to maintain the body centrality; by no means should the body be bent too much. Otherwise it will lose the balance, which can result in loss of equilibrium and steadiness, and make the outgoing energy weak. The back and pelvis must be in the same plane.

3. Bending your head down in fight is like blindfolding yourself, since with your head down you cannot fully control all the actions of your enemy. Moreover, it can lead you to losing the balance.

4. During the fight, your waist should be down. If it is not, it makes Qi to go upward and accumulate in the chest. This accumulation of Qi in the chest causes you to lose the steadiness; your movements will immediately become clumsy and awkward. A man with his Qi in lower Dan Tian can be compared to a weeble wobble, since it is virtually impossible to throw him down on the ground. Now, consider moving the load in the lower part of the weeble wobble upward; the slightest push would overturn the weeble wobble.

5. The hand is rounded in elbow and wrist.

6. Practicing, always make sure to perform movements correctly. Otherwise, you would get bad habits, which is rather harmful than advantageous. Mastering new techniques, you should always act without haste; only when you have repeated movements correctly many times, you can consider increasing speed and strength.

7. It is not good performing already learnt techniques with negligence, so-so, since it is hardly of any use. Performing already mastered techniques you need to fully use your consciousness, i.e., using consciousness (Yi) send your energy Qi to the section of the body engaged in this technique. For example, kicking with your heel the moment the heel touches the enemy (target) you need to fully focus on throwing the energy through the heel.

8. Inside yourself, you should work out your mind, spirit, consciousness and Qi until they join together. Only when this happens you will be able to send your Qi anywhere at your wish.

9. The key to mastering is in everyday work at the thing neither master not disciple can do without, namely polishing the basic technique.

Alexander Popov dedicated about 20 years to Shaolin Hung Gar Kung Fu. He is the successor of Hung Gar Kung Fu tradition in the 8th masters? generation. Kung Fu and Qigong articles and ebooks:
<a href="http://www.shaolin-kungfu-qigong.com" title="http://www.shaolin-kungfu-qigong.com" target="_blank">http://www.shaolin-kungfu-qigong.com</a>

How to increase your Martial Arts Weapons Skills Almost overnight!
How to gain more in the next 6 months in Martial Arts than you have in the prior 5 years! Learning Martial Arts is a lifelong process. That statement is certainly true but in the last 6 months I have learned more than in the prior 23 years about the inside secrets to real Martial Arts Training Success. It took learning real training methods from an incredible Grandmaster and true Martial Arts Legend to help me leapfrog my technique to a much hirer level almost overnight. You see I used to train about 1-2 hours a day in my teenage years, and I had a very good instructor. However; even at the 1st Dan Black Belt level he would not share much of the behind the scenes training secrets that there are in Martial Arts. Since those early days I have trained with some of the best in the World, and I have gained a lot personally from everyone. However; in the last six months I have experience powerful gains in a key area of my Martial Arts Training and that is in Weapons Training. Yes ever since I joined the Martial Arts Weapons Association and started learning the methods that Grandmaster Ted Gambordella teaches, I have made huge gains in weapons knowledge and skills. I have nearly mastered 5 weapons in only 6 months and that is just launching from a basic knowledge level. Sure I knew my Katas and my basic weapon work, but now I understand the inside mechanics of my weapon Kata and the overall advantages of one weapon over another. Here I am in my 30s and I am now finally getting it, and thats after a 3rd Dan in one style and a 1st Dan in another. I am lucky that my basics were as solid as they where because considering that I trained in traditional schools and Dojos over the years. If you too want to make massive gains in your Martial Arts Weapons training I strongly recommend the Martial Arts Weapons Association. It is the lowest cost way to learn from a legend and get an entire library worth of books and videos. In fact Grandmaster Gambordella has reduced the cost to only $35 so anyone at any level in the Martial Arts Sport can afford to get the best training and information. The secret to proper training is studied and practicing a real method. Katas are fine but they will never take you to the highest levels. You can be great at a Kata (as I was) but still be bad with your weapon. So you simply have to learn the right way from the right instructor. This is your opportunity to learn from a legend and for next to nothing.

Lee Warrick is a seasoned Martial Artist and instructor and is working with Grandmaster Gambordella on www.themartialartssite.com/MAWA.html

Desire to Begin Martial Arts Training - What’s Stopping You?

Everyday, hundreds and perhaps thousands of men and women think about taking martial arts lessons. I know because I hear from them constantly, either by way of email, phone, or in letters mailed to the academy.

The vast majority are, more-often-than not, trapped in this “thinking about it” stage and will never take that next, most important step to making it happen. And, it’s sad really.

While the reasons vary as to why each person wants to involve themselves in the martial arts…

1. Self-defense…

2. Life skills…

3. An affinity for the East or the concept of Warriorship, and…

4. Many more too numerous to list here

…the point is that each sees what he or she needs to feel more confident, powerful, or in-control of his or her life through the study and practice of the martial arts.

Why then, are these well-meaning individuals stuck in, what Dr. Seuss called, “The Waiting Place?”

Perhaps one of the reasons is that each believes that he or she must have certain skills or abilities before they can begin.

Perhaps they believe that their situation, with work schedules, a limited budget, or their physical fitness and level of health, is unique to themselves.

Maybe they believe that they should already possess certain life-skills like discipline, focus, and anything else besides their apparent heart-felt desire to begin.

And maybe, just maybe, they’re afraid that others with more experience in the academy will make fun of them, or look down on them in some way because they’re a beginner and don’t know very much.

As a senior practitioner who has been involved in the study and practice of the martial arts for self-defense and every other reason listed here for over two-thirds of my life, I’d like to quite possibly be the first to say that…

You don’t need any skills and abilities, life or other BEFORE beginning your training. You don’t need to be in any sort of “perfect shape” or have rock-solid discipline, commitment, or focus, either. That would be like putting the cart before the horse for these are the things that you will be learning…

…as a part of your martial arts study!

No. The only thing that you need to match, what apparently is a heartfelt desire to begin your martial arts training, is a willingness to take that first step. And, where else, but as a “beginner” would you start? We were all beginners once and I think the best of us stay that way, in heart, mind, and spirit - forever.

I do know this, however. If you wait for the “right time.” If you wait to be properly “motivated,” or for your schedule to “free up,” or to have more money…

If you… (fill in the blank for you)…

… It will quite-likely never happen for you and you will live out one of the fears that keeps me and many other successful people moving…

… the fear that, on my death-bed, I will regret NOT following my dreams - not living the life I always wanted.

You see, where most people are stopped by the fear of failure, the fear of fear, all the “things” that become the “reason” for NOT doing…

I am driven by the knowledge that I will forever regret NOT taking action.

So… It’s time to decide.

Take action, or…

…live with yourself for not doing so.

The choice is yours.

About the Author

Jeffrey Miller is the founder and master instructor of Warrior Concepts International. He is the author of “The Karate-Myth” and the Danger Prevention Tactics video, among others. For more info, subscribe to his ezine here.

Strengthen your mind and body by practicing a martial art
Martial arts are basically a set of physical and mental skills that are gradually taught, developed and polished by a trainer usually called sensei for Japanese arts and sifu in Cantonese. Martial arts translate as the arts of war, and they consist of a multitude of weaponless combat techniques, focused primarily on self defense. Based on ancient wisdom and philosophy, martial arts not only strengthen the body of the adept, but they also fortify his mind and his spirit. In Eastern culture, self control, discipline, patience, awareness, are considered to be the traits of a true warrior, and martial arts mainly focus on developing these skills to practicing students. In ancient times, martial arts were kept secret and practiced in silence; being an apprentice in these skills was a great privilege. However, today there are various schools that perpetuate the traditional teachings of the great ancient masters. Martial arts are divided into many different styles, linked together by the omnipresent oriental mentality. If you wish to begin practicing a martial art, you should choose a style that best satisfies your needs and potential. Some martial arts focus more on physical strength, while others focus on technique and reflex. The best thing to do before choosing the appropriate style is assisting to a few training classes and asking the trainer whether you fit in or not. Another important aspect you should consider is that martial arts require a lot of ambition, dedication, perseverance and practice. You should keep in mind that the skills are learned gradually, and it takes time to achieve higher ranks. When you have discovered the style that fits you best, make sure that your trainer is qualified and that he teaches in an approachable manner. Regardless of experience or rank, not all martial arts masters have the ability to teach! You should look for an instructor that stands as a true raw model, a person whose teachings match his ideals and beliefs. Having found the right instructor and training gym, all you need is equipment. Martial arts equipment is sometimes optional and it mainly consists of a uniform or sparring and protective equipment such as boxing gloves, head gear and chest protection. You can either buy these traditional uniforms, or make them yourself. Consult your instructor and find out his requirements regarding the appropriate training outfit. The martial art equipment also includes a belt. It is made of a certain textile material and its purpose is to distinguish the ranks of the students. The black belt marks the highest level of experience and it can be obtained through years of learning and practice. Whether you choose to practice martial arts as a sport or for self defense, its benefits are substantial. Martial arts improve your physical condition, as well as your concentration, attention and ambition. They strengthen the mind and body altogether and help you achieve self-respect, confidence and balance.

For great martial arts equipment just visit our site http://www.bambamboo.com .After years of our own training in various martial arts, we know what a product needs to make it good, reliable, and durable. Visit http://www.bambamboo.com for great martial arts equipment Toronto .

Popularity: unranked [?]

Submit Gear and Gold’s Gym Bridge the Gap between Bodybuilding and Mixed Martial Arts

Gold’s Gym, Training Ground, and Submit Gear Inc. are working together to create a training facility like no other.

The first of five Gold’s Gym locations will be re-opening in October located at 2440 Cawthra Rd. in Mississauga. The new 45,000 sq. ft. facility will be introducing mixed martial arts classes consisting of Muay Thai, Boxing and Jiu Jitsu and will be managed by Kru Gerald Ching of “Training Ground” . The gym will have a designated martial arts area consisting of a full size boxing ring, octagon, and floor space for classes.

There are more people training today in martial arts than ever before. With today’s tough competition, one of the key aspects to becoming a successful mixed martial arts fighter is impeccable physical conditioning.

“It makes perfect sense to offer weightlifting, cardio, and martial arts all under one roof” says Joe de Barros, president of Gold’s Gym.

Other features of the new location include: indoor basketball court, indoor beach volleyball (instructed by Canadian Olympic Team member Kara Zakrzewski), juice bar, hairdresser, esthetician, child playroom, personal training, nutrition counselling, and a pro shop.

Gold’s Gym will also be the first Canadian distributor of Submit Gear fight apparel, an online Mississauga-based clothing company (www.SubmitGear.com) which sells athletic apparel for fighters and fans. “We’ve just recently introduced our wholesale program, and to have Gold’s Gym as our first Canadian distributor in my hometown is very exciting” says Mark Chiappino, owner of Submit Gear Inc.

For more information on the new Gold’s Gym Mississauga location, visit www.GoldsGymMississauga.com.

About the Author

None

ESPNEWS will broadcast Chuck Liddell weighing in for UFC 71 while wearing his UFC Signature Series shirt available at Soliscompany.com.
Chuck Liddell prepares for UFC 71 wearing the UFC Signature Series shirt he helped design. The entire Signature Series collection is available Soliscompany.com. ESPNEWS will broadcast the event on May 25 at 4PM PST.

Are You Including A Press Release In Your Marketing Campaign Arsenal? Perhaps You Should Be…
24-7PressRelease.com Selected as Top Source For Press Release Distribution

Popularity: unranked [?]

Defense against a knife attack
Defences against Knife attacks, Firstly if at all possible get yourself and anyone else out of the potential danger area…..RUN AWAY.
Yes you heard right, run away. This is not a cowards way out, this is sensible. After all your potential assailant could be on drugs or just plain crazy. Nobody needs a dead hero.
However if you can’t get away or you are cornered, try to talk your way out of the situation, tell the guy what he wants to hear or give him what he wants, if it’s a mugging, but only if you think this will pacify him…
Let me explain. If it is apparent that your assailant is going to stab you whether you give him all your money or not then you must do something about the situation before this happens, either way you may get stabbed. Thats why this is a last resort and only attempted if YOU are certain he is going to attack you no matter what.
It’s a judgement call that only you can make and if you ever do end up in that situation it won’t be easy.
So, you’re in that nightmare situation. How do you tackle him ?
Do you use the knife defences you learned in your martial arts classes ? I hope not because you’ll very soon be bleeding to death if your assailant has any idea how to use the knife.
I tried an experiment about 5 years ago now with my training partner who is very fast with his hands and can handle a knife. We used a dummy knife (Thankfully) with some red ink on the end of it and I wore a white Gi.
I had at this time been training in the martial arts for about 16 years and had learned many many knife defences from many different styles so I was sure that whatever he came at me with I would be able to handle it.
He moved the knife very quickly from hand to hand and attacked from a variety of angles, slashing, lunging and really going for it. I successfully disarmed him several times, but each time he had also stabbed me several times (This is why the Police and Prison service use riot shields and several officers when dealing with knife attackers).
We worked this scenario using all the knife defences we had both learned from many different styles over the years but the one factor that kept coming up was the fact that this was simulating a real situation, so the attacker wasn’t in stance and didn’t come with a single attack in a straight line, he’d attack several times from any angle very fast.
What we were looking for was something that kept your vital organs as far away from the knife as possible whilst allowing you to attack the assailant.
Here’s what we came up with: (This is just my opinion, based on over 20 years martial arts experience, and this one worked time after time. But remember only use as a last resort)
First you must take your attackers mind off what he’s thinking about (I.e. stabbing you !) ………Spit in his face, not nice but remember this guy wants to stab you !
This gives you a fraction of a second to move.
Next, drop to your side, fast ! (Side breakfall) As you do this hook one of your feet round the back of his front foot and with your other foot, stamp hard onto the front of his knee. This will either snap or dislocate it (Again not nice but this guys going to stab you !) It also doesn’t matter too much if you miss with the hook as you can still get the stamp in on the knee.
Either disarm him while he’s on the floor and wait for the Police or just get out of there, he won’t chase you.
The fall and hook take some practice to get fast but it’s worth it as this is one well worth having in your arsenal.

The Author has achieved 5th Dan Black belt in Karate Jitsu, 3rd Dan in Jujitsu and has practised martial arts for over 23 years.

How to increase your Martial Arts Weapons Skills Almost overnight!
How to gain more in the next 6 months in Martial Arts than you have in the prior 5 years! Learning Martial Arts is a lifelong process. That statement is certainly true but in the last 6 months I have learned more than in the prior 23 years about the inside secrets to real Martial Arts Training Success. It took learning real training methods from an incredible Grandmaster and true Martial Arts Legend to help me leapfrog my technique to a much hirer level almost overnight. You see I used to train about 1-2 hours a day in my teenage years, and I had a very good instructor. However; even at the 1st Dan Black Belt level he would not share much of the behind the scenes training secrets that there are in Martial Arts. Since those early days I have trained with some of the best in the World, and I have gained a lot personally from everyone. However; in the last six months I have experience powerful gains in a key area of my Martial Arts Training and that is in Weapons Training. Yes ever since I joined the Martial Arts Weapons Association and started learning the methods that Grandmaster Ted Gambordella teaches, I have made huge gains in weapons knowledge and skills. I have nearly mastered 5 weapons in only 6 months and that is just launching from a basic knowledge level. Sure I knew my Katas and my basic weapon work, but now I understand the inside mechanics of my weapon Kata and the overall advantages of one weapon over another. Here I am in my 30s and I am now finally getting it, and thats after a 3rd Dan in one style and a 1st Dan in another. I am lucky that my basics were as solid as they where because considering that I trained in traditional schools and Dojos over the years. If you too want to make massive gains in your Martial Arts Weapons training I strongly recommend the Martial Arts Weapons Association. It is the lowest cost way to learn from a legend and get an entire library worth of books and videos. In fact Grandmaster Gambordella has reduced the cost to only $35 so anyone at any level in the Martial Arts Sport can afford to get the best training and information. The secret to proper training is studied and practicing a real method. Katas are fine but they will never take you to the highest levels. You can be great at a Kata (as I was) but still be bad with your weapon. So you simply have to learn the right way from the right instructor. This is your opportunity to learn from a legend and for next to nothing.

Lee Warrick is a seasoned Martial Artist and instructor and is working with Grandmaster Gambordella on www.themartialartssite.com/MAWA.html

Common Myths About The Martial Arts & Self Defense.
There are many myths through out the world that martial arts are still valid in today’s crime filled society as an efficient
means of fighting in real life situations.

The fact remains, most martial arts are targetted for fitness, fun and sometimes tournament fighting. However, how applicable are these skills really?

Lots of people think that using the moves in martial arts, and even what they see on TV, on UFC, PRIDE & K1 can win street fights.

The fact remains that these are “sports based” fight systems. I recently put together 13 techniques, banned in the mixed martial arts in a free eBook you can get by visiting: http://www.howtofightandwin.com/deadlysecrets.htm

My free eBook reveals street based, reality self defense techniques that implement the best of the martial arts & self defense courses.

What you need to learn to protect yourself against real life violence, is different then 90% of the martial arts being

taught. You must look into “reality based self defense” for real fighting skills for life or death situations.

Don’t get me wrong I’m not saying that all martial artsare bad, but implementing a reality based self defense fighting system
into your training would be an excellent way to become a better well rounded fighter in the dojo and on the street.

Article by Steve Gibbs. Download his new free eBook that showcases 13 special, "Reality based" self defense techniques! http://www.howtofightandwin.com/deadlysecrets.htm

Martial Arts: Overview

The Martial Arts represent a number of fighting systems that has long been existing in the history of humanity. One can trace the earliest form of martial arts to China, over 2500 years ago. Some of them traveled to Japan and other eastern countries from China. However, there’s another school of thought that says that the other eastern countries had their own martial arts. Unfortunately, their origins are not so well documented. Over centuries, countries across the world developed a range of martial systems, each distinct in its own way, yet quite alike. The main goal of martial arts is to defend oneself from physical threat and at the same time, being able to fight back.

The martial arts has a systemized fighting techniques, the body is used to execute pre-choreographed movements that have been codified over time. One common traditional method of physical training is called the form or kata, a set routine of techniques that are lethal and are effective weapons for self-defense when executed appropriately.

There is more to it of course than just executing movements perfectly. Martial arts were created for fighting. For the large part, martial arts did not encourage the use of weapons in combat, though exceptions exist. That is why these fighting art forms lay as much emphasis on the mind as on the body and within most martial arts there is a deep sense of spirituality. Every style has a different “feeling” that helps embody the martial art.

Invariably, all of them are characterized by a very conscious application of force - the idea was to produce maximum effect..

All martial arts forms require a high degree of skill. The routines and the techniques that students perfect over the years form their fighting vocabulary. The larger the vocabulary, the more skilled is the fighter. Each routine takes a long time to perfect and the true martial artist has a large repertoire to choose from. In times of need, the skill of the artist lies in using the right technique at the right time.

About the Author

Callie Armstrong is a writer for http://www.AllergyHero.com. Her insights on dieting, exercise and health can be read at http://www.body4beach.com

Popularity: unranked [?]

THE MISSING MARTIAL ARTS

For those lacking a decent dictionary, allow me to edify you on the derivation of the term ?martial?; which is: an adjectival form derived from the appellation of the Roman god of war, Mars. As a form of sport or exercise, it serves as training for warfare. Being ruled astrologically by the planet Mars, it?s a term applied to ?venomous animals, or plants with violently active properties?!

An authority recently described 170 different forms of the martial arts, ranging from Aikido to Zendo, maintaining new ones were invented virtually every week by some self-styled master who had either rediscovered some long lost art in an obscure backwater, or had devised some ingenious use for a hitherto unused body part. The arts covered every letter of the alphabet, apart from E, Q, V, and X.

Accordingly, I have striven to render complete this lexicon of the martial arts. After many years of undertaking diligent research in the snowy mountain fastnesses of Japan, the rain forests of Borneo, and the nether regions of Nana Plaza, Bangkok, I have rediscovered the missing arts, which I have pleasure in presenting to novelty-seeking martial arts? aficionados for your delectation.

They are as follows:

1. Ebrangling: an exclusive, particularly hard form indulged in by edentulous geriatrics in order to effatuate their opponents. Simply put, the toothless-ancients dismount from their Zimmer frames, shuffle, successfully grapple, and ultimately clench their partners in a bear hug, violently shaking them so as to render them besotted, dull or stupid.

2. Quitching: protagonists attempt to outwit their opponents, employing techniques such as fiendishly feinting by making sudden involuntary movements, somewhat in the Bruce Lee style, without the accompanying cries from the solar plexus.

Quoted by Montaigne as, ?I have seen men .. that would neither cry out, twitch nor quitch, for a good swinging beating.?

3. Quelming: an ancient, extremely hard form indulged in by ?chyldren, and fornycatours? aiming to torment, kill, or destroy. Sadly, the techniques were expurgated as being too violent for general public consumption.

4. Vezon : a particularly enigmatic form defined by the OED as ? ?meaning obscure? - quoted by Ward as “Look, look, Joan, how the Vezons fight. Who’d think they were so full of Spite?”

5. Xenelasy: a particularly effective Spartan method to be employed for when we Brits reinvade in order to re-educate you in the correct conventions of spelling and pronunciation. Meaning ?to drive away?, it employs a variety of free-forms and is the martial art par excellence to be used for the expulsion of foreigners.

Incidentally, don?t bother to try and find these names of martial arts in condensed dictionaries like Webster?s or Frank and Wagnall?s, they?re taken from the Bible of the English Language, the Oxford English Dictionary.

Likewise, the internet won?t offer you any enlightenment on the modus operandi, or access to the dojos where these forms are practised, either, and I?m keeping the techniques secret in the interests of world peace.

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UFCjunkie.com Announces Sponsorship of Sean Salmon for May 26’s UFC 71 Event
UFCjunkie.com, the leading online source for UFC-related news, is proud to announce its sponsorship of UFC light heavyweight Sean Salmon (9-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC), who will face Alan Belcher (9-3 MMA, 1-2 UFC) at UFC 71. The event takes place Saturday, May 26 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. (PRWeb May 23, 2007)

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A Samurai Workout Powers Mind, Body, Spirit; Guru Keeps Ancient Concept Alive
Samurai Spirit Productions announces a new fitness DVD, "A Samurai Workout" (PRWeb May 22, 2007)

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Popularity: unranked [?]

Hyperactive Children - Martial Arts Can Help
Enrolling your child in a quality martial arts school where classes are taught by professional and dedicated instructors might be a good first step to take if your child seems to be a bit “wired”. Or, if you hear teachers starting to use terms like ADD or ADHD.

Judo - General Background
Judo is not purely about physical skill. Its aim is to teach good attitude and behaviour and to instill a sense of decorum in its judoka: best summed up in 2 terms used to describe the mental attitude expected from a judoka: hontai, demonstrating the state of permanent alertness and bonno, demonstrating a disciplined mind, serene and calm, controlling the body and being able to react to any situation.

Is Martial Arts Effective For The Streets?

The topic of how effective traditional martial arts is in today?s world as a way of protecting oneself is still a very sensitive issue to a lot of martial artists. What is even more sensitive is the issue of how realistic and street effective is the newer styles that have come out since UFC/PRIDE have come into the picture. I am a Registered Black Belt & have nothing against the martial arts and have also studied styles such as Pankration. I know that the techniques I have learned in the dojo should stay in the dojo because they will only work there, that also goes with styles such as the ?modern day or reality based systems? they are for sport only.

I work as a bouncer/bodyguard & also teach tactical self defense. Many of my students are black belts or have trained under reality based systems & have learned the hard way that what they learned in the ring or dojo is not street effective. Their common question is why didn?t their system work? Part of the reason is that if a rule or law is applied to a system it will subconsciously hinder you when your adrenaline takes over in combat. There are no rules in the streets your mind should not have to sensor or think can I do this to beat this person? We respond exactly the same way that we train.

There is no time to switch gears from sport to tactical. If you are training and your coach or sensei says can?t hit their or no contact to the eyes your mind will remember that and store it for future reference. Your self defense system should take into account your environment as well. Can you kick your attacker in the small space your in? Can you balance yourself while performing a technique on the icy sidewalk? If you grapple with him what if he has friends coming around, what do you do then? Street fighting or tactical self-defense should be in the simplest form of fighting. You don?t have time to play a chess game, like you would see in a UFC match. Time is not on your side in a street confrontation nor are rules or morals. What we can learn from the UFC or mixed martial arts events when it comes to reality fighting is if it has rules of what not to do, do those things in a street fight because its got to be effective.

Joint Locking
Many intermediate martial artists believe they can rely on just one or two martial-arts skills. It takes a seasoned martial practitioner to realize the need to be well-rounded in the arts. You have to perfect long-range kicks, close-in punching, elbows, weapons, pressure points, and… joint locking. This is a Practical and Easy Way to Understand Joint Locking…

Popularity: unranked [?]

Iaido - General Background
Iaido is the art of drawing the sword and striking an armed opponent at lightning speed. It is the art of strategy, achieving precision in all aspects of mental and physical ability, including accurate footwork, balanced posture and critical timing. Live blades are razor-sharp and experienced practitioners are the only ones permitted to use them. The risk involved is thought to be worthwhile because this is the only way achieve the ultimate in awareness and concentration, and to unify the mind and the body together in total harmony.

Facts about Martial Arts for Kids - Part 2

In this continuing series, let’s address more issues and frequently asked questions that concern parents who seek to enroll their child in a martial arts program. The first question in this part is possibly the most important one of all.

How do I find the right martial arts teacher for my kids?

You will know when you have a face-to-face meeting and
observe him or her teach a martial arts class. The
chemistry between a prospective martial arts teacher and you should be good.

After all, your child is supposed to learn courtesy,
respect, self-discipline, goal setting, and many more life skills from his or her martial arts instructor. If the martial arts teacher you are considering displays none of the above-mentioned qualities, please continue to shop around.

It makes no difference if your child is learning Karate, Jujitsu, Aikido, Judo, Tae Kwon Do, or Kung Fu, when the teacher is not a good role model. You don’t need to expose your children to hazards or questionable characters in order for them to learn martial arts. The martial arts school philosophy, and the instructors, should meet your standard - never settle for less.

Are you looking for discipline, academic improvement, life skills, tournament competition, self-defense, or a positive activity? Martial arts studios are not created equally. A life skills school may not meet the needs of a competitive parent or child. A “tournament school” that teaches Sport Karate, Sport Jujitsu, or enters many competitions, may be lacking in life skills and so forth.

This is not meant to take away the value of any aspect in martial arts training, but to make you, as a parent, aware that the emphasis will be different from one type of school to another. Also, the self-defense aspect will be taught differently within each martial arts school. Some martial arts schools teach more of one technique such as: punching, kicking, joint locks, sweeps, and throws.

At our wellness center in North Providence, Rhode Island, we teach all of those aspects, and we also teach self-defense through communication. For example: Wouldn’t it be better to prevent a physical conflict by talking it out? If a child is fully capable of defending himself or herself, why should he or she pursue a physical fight?

As adults, we know that the diplomatic approach to a
physical conflict will not always work, but it is worth a try. Our children need to look at social skills, awareness, and courtesy as survival tools. Whether they are walking down a street, or entering the workplace, these skills are extremely important.

Know your goals and your child’s needs. Please make sure your reasons for enrolling your son or daughter in martial arts classes are sound. Martial arts for your child, is his or her personal endeavor. You can share in the feeling of accomplishment by being supportive and watch them grow to be successful. Success is one of the most important gifts we can give to our children.

The ideal martial arts instructor should have knowledge of sports medicine and CPR training. This may be one of the reasons why serious injuries are rare. Make sure that the safety of each child is a priority with the martial arts school you choose.

Some parents may feel I play it too safe within a karate class, but they have not seen a child knocked unconscious, a broken nose, or loss of blood, in my school. When I was a Sport Karate coach, referee, and judge, I saw all of those things in tournaments, and children were all wearing protective equipment.

Therefore, safety precautions are a very important factor, when deciding which martial arts school you should choose for your child.

? Copyright 2005 - Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

About the Author

Paul Jerard is the director of Yoga teacher training at Aura in RI. He’s a master instructor of martial arts and Yoga. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness. He wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students wanting to be a Yoga teacher.
http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org

A Martial Artist Wears Out Early But A Warrior Gets Better With Age
Ever wonder why Today’s martial artists are broken and battered by middle age when the ancient warrior masters were defeating younger, faster, stronger opponents well into their eighties? The reason just might not be what you think.

Popularity: unranked [?]

The difference between martial arts and self defense

Many people refer to martial arts with the purpose of obtaining fighting skills to protect themselves on the streets. But what’s the difference between martial arts (in their technical aspect) and street self defense? At first, the difference is in the goal. The goal of martial arts competition is to win, to show your technical superiority over an opponent. But it’s not a good idea to compete with an assailant on the street - your aim is to protect yourself or even survive. Also the street is different from the ring or tatami because in the ring you’re prepared for the fight, but on the street people usually face with sudden violence. Thus, you have no time to develop a strategy - you have to get into action immediately. Generally, martial arts practitioners are used to fight in nearly constant and well-known conditions, wearing appropriate and comfortable clothes. On the street situation dramatically changes: attack might occur in any inappropriate place; surrounding conditions may be not on your side (slippery ground, poor illuminance, bad weather, etc); your clothes may be not good for fighting, confining moves. Martial arts have certain rules, ethics, and admit fair combat; some techniques are forbidden for the safety reasons. But street fights have no rules, and you should expect every dirty trick of an assailant - don’t reckon on a fair combat. Contrary to sparring, in a self defense situation you will quite probably deal with two or more attackers and they might be armed (with edged weapons, baseball bats, bottles, chains, etc). You should realize, that where’s no need for you to prove your fighting abilities to somebody on the street - your safety is crucial, and such solution as a quick escape might be optimal in a self defense situation.

www.self-defense4u.blogspot.com

About the Author

Karate coach

Sport Relief Goes…All Out for India
Take 13 celebrities, put them in 90-degree heat and ask them to take on India at their own game - Cricket!

Randy “The Natural” Couture Live at Solis on Market, San Francisco on March 29th 2007
Randy “The Natural” Couture, the current Heavyweight Champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship will be available for photos and press interviews on March 29, 2007 at Solis on Market, located at 2231 Market Street, in San Francisco between 6:30-7:00 PM.

Popularity: unranked [?]

MARTIAL ARTS and Adult ADHD: Overcoming The Symptoms

The symptoms of ADHD can be devastating for school-aged children, but they can be even more debilitating for adults who feel like they don’t have a place to turn for help. Adult ADHD has the same symptoms as those present in children (including inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity). The fast-paced lifestyle that many adults lead also adds stress that can aggravate the symptoms. However, training martial arts is a great way to alleviate these symptoms and overcome the stress they cause.

THE SYMPTOMS

1. Inattention.

The first symptom of adult ADHD is the inability to focus and lack of attention. This includes not being able to follow through on tasks, not being able to focus on what other people are saying and not being able to organize thoughts, tasks and activities.

2. Hyperactivity.

The second symptom of adult ADHD is hyperactivity. People who suffer from this symptom feel the need to fidget with hand and feet. They also tend to get up out of their seat often (even when it’s not an appropriate time) or simply feel an urge to move around. They also tend to talk excessively and are always “on the go”.

3. Impulsivity.

The third symptom of adult ADHD is impulsivity. People who have difficulty waiting their turns, who often interrupt and who answer questions before they’ve been completed may suffer from this symptom.

THE “TREATMENT”

Training martial arts solves for these symptoms of adult ADHD. To be successful in whatever martial art you choose, you need a high level of physical control. The only way to reach this is through lots of practice and self-discipline. This ability to control your body also helps you to discipline your mind. These two skills feed off of one another and carry over to other parts of your life. The more you learn to control your body, the more you control your mind. The more you can control your mind, the more you’ll be able to control your body. This control carries over to other parts of your life as well: Once you can control your body while training, you’ll be able to start controlling your urges to move and fidget. The same goes for your mind. As you discipline your mind, you’ll be able to concentrate and focus on your daily activities, your job and your relationships.

In addition to practice and self-discipline, martial arts teach breathing techniques. Many of them use the slow breathing techniques that have been used by martial artists for centuries. Similar to how specialists help people deal with panic attacks and stress, martial arts use breathing techniques for both physical and mental health and to create the body and mind connection. This connection allows you to run at a peaceful and happy level because you have achieved mastery over your mind and body.

If you’re still not convinced, take the word of someone who’s experienced the effects personally: Jody Walsh spent most of his life not finishing projects and dealing with hyperactivity. He wanted a way to treat his ADHD symptoms without relying on medication for his entire life. That’s when he decided to start training martial arts at Temple Kung-Fu Studios. “The first thing I noticed was that the breathing techniques helped me to calm down, be patient and focus on one thing at a time,” he says. “The physical applications showed me to be more aware of what my body is doing at all times.”

Even if you haven’t been officially diagnosed with adult ADHD, you may suffer from some or even many of the symptoms. If so, you owe it to yourself to start alleviating the stress in your life. The self-discipline and self-awareness needed to train martial arts helps you stay in control of your environment and life. The best place to find these skills is at a fine martial arts school. Why not give it a try? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. To make it even easier, I’ll help you get started. Just contact me and I’ll send you my free report on how to pick a martial arts school.

If you are interested in learning more about how martial arts can help your change your life, please contact one of my three locations in Bellevue, Lynnwood or Kent, Washington at 800-508-6141 or martialadvice@hotmail.com to set up a free 2 week trail orientation.

Also, please see our web pages at www.kungfutemple.com and www.martialarts-instruction.com

Sincerely,
Robert Jones
Master Instructor
Temple Kung-Fu Studios

About the Author

Mr. Robert Jones runs three successful martial arts schools located in Bellevue, Lynnwood, and Kent Washington. He has been helping families make positive changes in their lives through martial arts for over 20 years. He has also written two guides on how to pick a martial arts school. One for adults and one for parents wanting to pick the right school for their children. He can be reached at 800-508-6141

The Martial Arts Supply.Net Launched: Martial Arts Gear, Information & Articles Database
The Martial Arts Supply is an online listing database of martial arts related content and products to facilitate all aspects of training for martial arts practitioners and enthusiasts. The site is designed and operated by Matt Canei, a Tae Kwon Do 1st Dan black belt who is a one-time Junior Olympics Gold Medalist for forms. (PRWeb May 10, 2007)

MartialArtsPride.com Announces Strategic UFC & MMA Supplier Partnerships
MartialArtsPride.com, a CAS Enterprises, LLC Internet property, eagerly announced that it has developed strategic partnerships with several popular and well respected companies in the mixed martial arts industry. Although not all the products have been posted on the MartialArtsPride.com website, they will soon be carrying MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) products from Ouano (Official UFC Gloves), Century (Wavemasters), Tapout (Fight Shorts), Sprawl (Board Shorts), and Fairtex (Muay Thai Kickboxing Gear). (PRWeb May 24, 2007)

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Xyience Announces a New Distribution Agreement with 7-Eleven, the World’s Largest Convenience Retailer
Agreement will add Xenergy in over 5,000 new locations. (PRWeb May 23, 2007)

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Popularity: unranked [?]

Wing Chun - Chinese Martial Art
Brief History:

Wing Chun (also known as Wing Tsun, Ving Chun or Ving Tsun) is one of the most popular types of Chinese martial arts. Though it?s basically an unarmed combat technique, Wing Chun may include weapons as part of its course. The origin of Wing Chun can be traced back to China, but the real history of its creation has long been a topic of much debate. The most credible suggestion regarding the origin of Wing Chun dates back to 1700 AD in the Henan Shaolin Monastery.

When the Qing forces raided and ravaged the Southern Shaolin temple, a nun named Ng Mui fled to the distant Daliang Mountains, the only survivor. Ng Mui already had knowledge of Kung Fu in the Shaolin temple, which she assimilated with a new form she had learnt while observing a battle between a snake and a crane. She taught this new combat style to her adopted daughter whom she named Yimm Wing Chun. The new system was refined and then passed on from generation to generation, and was eventually named Wing Chun, after Yimm.

The modernization of Wing Chun started in Hong Kong during the 1950s under a Grandmaster called Yip Man. The discipline began to gain real popularity in Asia and the West when actor Bruce Lee became one of the most famous Wing Chun practitioners.

The Concept of Wing Chun:

Wing Chun is based on three basic principles - Practicality, Efficiency and Economy of Movement.

1. Practicality: Techniques such as Palm-up Hand (tan sau), Wing Arm (bong sau), Slapping Hand (pak sau) are designed to maim the most sensitive or vulnerable parts of the opponent?s body such as throat, groin, eyes and lower torso. Many movements and techniques in Wing Chun are often meant to be fatal.

2. Efficiency: Wing Chun does not use force against force, in order to gain the most efficient manipulation of the body’s energy. It believes in accurately timed and appropriately positioned little movements, and counter-attack is based on the opponent?s own force. This concept is also called Contact Reflexes.

3. Economy of Movement: This is a linear concept in which movements are based on an imaginary pole running vertically through the center of the body. The Center Line spreads out from this Mother Line, and since most of the vital points of the body are located along the Center Line, many offensive and defensive movements are based on this line. The Central Line, on the other hand, is the shortest path between the fighters where most of the combat exchanges take place.

Wing Chun Forms:

There are three basic forms in Wing Chun:

1. Empty Hand Form: This form has three more sub-forms - Siu Nim Tao - the foundation of the art, Chum Kiu - focus on advanced footwork and entry techniques, and Biu Jee - extreme short-range or long-range techniques, low kicks and sweeps, and emergency techniques.

2. Weapon Forms: The Dragon Pole and Butterfly Swords are the two forms of weapons incorporated in Wing Chun, categorized under advanced training.

3. Wooden Dummy or the Muk Yan Jong Form: A dummy made from several wooden posts represents a human opponent. The contraption is used to perfect angle, position, and footwork.

<a href="http://martialarts-hq.com/">Martial Arts</a> HQ offers articles, tips and tricks about different martial arts.

Jujitsu: History, Philosophy And Methods
Brief History:

Jujitsu is a 2500 year old unarmed combat discipline that has its roots in ancient Japan. The exact date on the creation of this martial art form is hard to trace but techniques resembling that of Jujitsu had already been incorporated into the training methods of the Samurai, from the 8th to the 6th centuries. Earliest Japanese historical records such as the Kojiki (Record of Ancient Matters) and the Nihon Shoki (Chronicles of Japan) also have passages related to unarmed combat systems.

Before this Japanese martial art developed into what we know as Jujitsu today, there were many other Japanese combat techniques such as Kogusoku, yawara, kumiuchi, and hakuda etc, also collectively known as Sengoku Jujutsu. Traditions finally gave rise to the modern Nihon Jujutsu we know today, which is classified under Edo Jujutsu ? the true unarmed Japanese combat system.

Jujitsu gained prominence during the reign of Tokugawa in the 1600s but was soon alienated when Emperor Melse regained power. However, towards the mid-20th century, the ban on Jujitsu in Japan was lifted, following the Meiji restoration, and the combat art form began to be widely practiced.

The Philosophy:

Jujitsu revolves around three basic states of mind ? Zanshin, Mushin and Fudoshin. The proper combination of these elements gave the power, preparation and potential to the practitioner to excel in the Jujitsu art.

1. Zanshin ? ?remaining spirit? ? connotes the readiness for anything at any given time.

2. Mushin ? ?no mind? ? Its spontaneity permits instantaneous action without conscious thought.

3. Fudoshin - “immovable mind” ?during times of confrontation.

Basic Methods:

Jujitsu is a circular, hard and soft, external combat style. The basic techniques of attacks includes throws, locks, hitting and striking, thrusting and punching, pinning and immobilizing, strangling and joint-locking, with strong emphasis on throws, locks, and defensive techniques. In-fighting and close work are also focused upon.

Even though Jujitsu is basically an unarmed fighting system, small weapons like the Jitte (truncheon), Tanto (knife), or Kakushi Buki (hidden weapons), which include the Ryofundo Kusari (weighted chain) or the Bankokuchoki (a type of knuckle-duster) may also be used in combat.

Competition Systems:

Conventional Jujitsu can be dangerous, or maybe even fatal if its fundamental techniques were to be applied. So, in order to make the art a safer sport for the competitive arena, systems and rules have to be introduced. That is why most of the competition methods have incorporated ?Half-contact?, which prohibits serious attempts to knock out an opponent.

1. The Fighting System: This is the most popular method, divided into three phases. The first is for striking only, the second for striking, grappling and throwing, and the third includes ground-fighting such as chokeholds.

2. The Practical System: According to this rule, two defenders are surrounded by four attackers from four corners. Highest points go to the best defender judged upon effectiveness, oversight and control of the situation.

3. The Duo System: In this system, contestants are randomly chosen and awarded points for effective defences. The attacks are divided into four groups of five attacks each.

4. Combat Jujitsu: The most recent system developed in the United States. Victory in the competition is based on submission. The combat round between the two opponents lasts for not more than two minutes.

<a href="http://martialarts-hq.com/">Martial Arts HQ</a> offers articles, tips and tricks about different martial arts.

Inner Secrets of Martial Arts and Free Bonus

What’s more is a lot of people training in a martial art reach a plateau. They don’t feel like they are progressing. They feel that there’s something missing. Or even if starting, the basic training seems just so boring. They’re right, there is something missing which enriches the whole experience many times over. But for you it could be very different.

Here’s a sneak peek at what you’ll discover
in Inner Secrets of Martial Arts Success:

* Your most effective weapon. Your MIND! And how you must use it for success in all things.

* Street effective techniques that will save your ass. (Don’t be one of the many martial artists who get whipped big time out there in the real world)

* The amazing proven training technique that allows you to train effectively without sweat ON YOUR OWN in the comfort of your home. (Next time you train at the dojo you will be already better than the rest of your class.)

* What your 6th sense is, how to improve yours and how to destroy your opponents.

* Find why learning completely on your own just won’t do.

* The truth about the one inch punch, made famous by Bruce Lee, and how to perform it. (It’ll take some practice, but once you “get it” it will unlock many skills)

* The secret of rookie Australian Wing Chun students who won world full contact titles and how you can benefit immensely from it.

* The essence of what professional athletes pay $1000’s for at their special training camps disclosed. Only you won’t have to pay mega dollars for it like they did!

* Why sparring is essential to your development as a martial artist.

Here’s what a few people just like you have said already:
————————————————————–

“Thanks for this brilliant book”.

“I love the chapter on learning from the matrix. I love the film, and this made me enjoy it even more, looking out for the phrases and meanings. Also the section on advanced training, because I’ve already achieved my Black belt in Tae Kwon Do this section gave me ideas on which direction to go next.”

————————————————————–

Adam Ford - Great Britain

There you go, the proof speaks for itself, doesn’t it?

Find out more about Inner Secrets of Martial Arts…

About the Author

How Can Some Small, Soft Bodied Old Man Quickly and Easily Whip Someone Twice His Size and Half His Age? Find out now!

Brand New Mini Stun Gun Offers Powerful Punch
Everybody I am sure has watched Cops before and seen those videos of out-of-control ?bad guys? and seen them get shocked or tased by either a stun gun or a taser. Or, for any 24 fans out there we all say Jack shock President Logan in an attempt to subdue him and get him off of the helicopter. Well, the problem with most stun guns today is that although they are pretty small, you may want them just a little bit smaller. Maybe something just a little easier to carry around with you is all you would want. That time has come. The new kid in town is here. Introducing The Runt Stun Gun.

Everyone has seen the Stun Master?s and what they look like. The new Runt Stun Gun is easily concealable and it will fit virtually undetectable in the hand of a woman or a man. This allows your attacker to approach with no fear. The element of surprise is the key here. Your attacker will drop to his knees and will never see it coming.

The reason for this sudden surprise and drop comes from the technology that The Runt possesses. It uses new cutting edge micro-technology that allows it to deliver unprecedented power from a palm sized weapon. It contains three voltage levels so you can choose how much you need to use. I would recommend choosing the level based on your own size and how much more power you would need to subdue a man two or three times your size.

The Runt is perfect for all women or men of all sizes and is available in 350k, 650k, and 950k volts. This selection of voltage will allow people to get the kind of voltage they are looking for. At 950k volts, this is hands down one of the most powerful stun guns on the market today.

Adam Walls is the owner of 919 Security, an online self defense products store that also specializes in home and personal safety, child safety, hidden cameras and much, much more.
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Popularity: unranked [?]

Xyience Announces a New Distribution Agreement with 7-Eleven, the World’s Largest Convenience Retailer
Agreement will add Xenergy in over 5,000 new locations. (PRWeb May 23, 2007)

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John Graden Presents Mixed Martial Arts for the Masses
Martial arts pioneer launches Mixed Martial Arts program without the bruises. (PRWeb Apr 26, 2007)

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The Karate-Myth: Why Most Martial Arts and Self-Defense Programs Are Wrong

You know, when I first started learning self-defense how to protect myself through the martial arts, I quickly noticed that the training was almost entirely focused on the memorization and performance of preset technique. What I mean is…

…the lessons revolved around the step-by-step mindset. Even testing was centered around the correct “performance” of the technique in question that I learned in class. But, that performance was tied more to duplicating a string of “moves” than it was on…

…the successful resolution of the situation based on what was going on!

I remember a friend of mine during those days. He was very good at the art that we were studying and much further along than I was at the time.

He was testing for his black belt and everything was going well. His “performance” was flawless -at least as far as I could tell.

Then, during the last part of the final kata (’preset fight scenario’), he changed the move from a strike to a shoulder throw. The throw was awesome and his partner never saw it coming. It was great!

He told me later that, everything was going along as it should be and he knew what was to come next but…

…something was “off” with what his partner was doing with that last punch.

He literally “found himself” executing the throw, and remembered thinking, “this isn’t right.” But, he adapted to the situation and, without breaking the flow or trying to do something “tricky,” finished the technique in a way that definately controlled his opponent.

We talked about this for days. About how, with the learning of so many techniques that, it felt very natural for him to just slip into the new ending for the technique that he was performing for the test. We were sure that his “variation” would really impress the senior black belts on the judging panel.

Well, long story short…

…he failed that test.

I couldn’t believe it. According to the black belt judges - the panel of “experts” who were supposedly teaching him to be able to “go with the flow” and defend himself… He failed!

I didn’t get it. Even from my position as a new student to the martial arts, and from my experience on the streets watching fights and people being attacked, I was baffled.

I mean, my friend took a surprise situation, adapted to it, and still maintained control of the flow of things in a way that ended with him being the victor.

“Yes”, said the judges, many of whom were our instructors, “that’s true. But he didn’t do the technique correctly.”

This was one of the most significant moments of my life. When I realized that, the reason I was there for training - to not die in a situation - was not the focus of the training…

…at least NOT at that school.

It seemed that, what was most important to this group of experts was…

…preserving a historically-based and stylized movement pattern that was used to help identify their tradition.

What was apparent to me was that, long ago, the importance shifted from “not dying in a violent confrontation,” to “preserving a piece of history,” as the main focus of training.

And, I thought, that’s fine. IF, that’s what you’re looking for from martial arts training.

Since, for me, it was not, I had no choice but to seek out those who had the kind of knowledge and abilities that I needed. Not for historical preservation, but…

…for the preservation of Life!

About the Author

Jeffrey Miller is the founder and master instructor of Warrior Concepts International. He is the author of “The Karate-Myth” and the Danger Prevention Tactics video, among others. For more info, subscribe to his ezine here.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Aikido - General Background
If we are attacked by a force and we apply force ourselves, a collision of energies ensues which results in disharmony. Thus, accordingly the stronger force wins. If, however, we meet the force with an absorbing movement and then exhaust it to the point of imbalance before applying a force of our own (the Aikido way), we are in fact restoring harmony or redressing an imbalance. This is the basic logic and underlying philosophy of Aikido.

Martial Arts Book Review: Real Fighting by Peyton Quinn

Being the author of several books on the martial arts and fighting, I am always looking for books of exceptional quality to add to my library. If I have a book in my library, it’s definitely worth owning. One such book is Peyton Quinn’s, “Real Fighting.”

On a personal note, I found it quite interesting how certain people?s paths can cross without either one knowing about the other. A case in point, Peyton relates a story about a massive brawl which took place at a very prestigious bare-knuckle karate tournament in Denver, Colorado. Which just so happened to be the very same tournament that I competed in and also had the misfortune to witness the very disgusting behavior of a certain so called martial artist and his friends. I often wondered if he recalled seeing me compete.

I found Peyton’s book to be a very good “reality check” for those of you out there that think that your “martial art” is superior to everyone else’s. Well guess what, its not! As every person who has more than a passing resemblance to a human being will tell you, there are no superior martial arts, just superior martial artists. One particular quote that I really had to agree with was, ?Concepts are more important than specific techniques.? Boy did Peyton hit the nail right on the head with this one. From that one quote alone, I knew that he definitely knew what he was talking about.

The most important thing to remember when reading this, or any book dealing with self-defense techniques, is that the principles behind the technique are far more important than the technique itself. Peyton does a great job of this, and you would do well to sit down and read this book from cover to cover several times in order to grasp what he is trying to teach you.

Another important point that is brought out in this book is your need to develop your own personal awareness of yourself and your surroundings. By being aware of what is going on around you, you can avoid a lot of potential problems and be able to spot the preliminary signals that are always present before the first blow is actually thrown.

Although I thoroughly enjoyed what Peyton had to teach in his book, I must admit that I am not a big fan of the generalization that seems to take place when people compare “real fighting” to the martial arts. It seems that a lot of the martial arts are pigeonholed into the prevalent “McDojo’s” that seem to be so popular these days. That simply is not the case.

Peyton is one of the few “self-defense” authors out there that seems to realize this. He not only respects the teachings of the martial arts, but also understands their overall purpose and the benefits derived from them for those of us that study and live the martial way.

Peyton does do a really good job in differentiating between the ?sport? mentality that seems to be so prevalent in many martial arts these days, and the ?self-defense? mentality that has all put disappeared from all, but a few martial arts schools in existence today.

I am a traditionally trained martial artist in both Karate and Tae Kwon Do, as well as being ranked in several other disciplines. However, unlike a lot of schools that seem to have degenerated down to teaching a diluted “sport” version of these arts, I was fortunate enough to be taught the practical version of each technique alongside the traditional version.

A lot of traditional martial artists may find the information contained in this book a little disheartening, but take it from me, if you have one ounce of sense you will buy this book and study it. And when you think you?re finished and have learned everything in this book, take it off the shelf and read it again.

Finally, this book gives you a great overview on Peyton?s scenario based training principles in which he utilizes his Bulletman? suits and instructors. Although you will never get the full effect of this type of training from this book, you will get that which is most important, the concepts behind it.

I think we would all do well to remember that the most important element that the martial arts teach you is not technique, but respect, self-control and self-discipline!

Dojo Training vs. Real Fighting for Self-Defense - A Martial Arts Lesson From Abraham Lincoln
How can you make your dojo training exactly like a real combat, self-defense situation without killing or breaking your training partner and friend? Believe it or not, but Abraham Lincoln might just have had the answer!

Taekwondo - General Background
Taekwondo is derived from several martial arts with the main influence being tae-kyon - Korean kick fighting. “Tae” means to kick. “Kwon” means to strike using the hand, in most cases the fist. “Do” refers to the way of the art, like in the examples of Hapkido, Karate-do, Ninjado etc. Thus, the foundation of the artis the use of the hands and feet to overcome an attacker swiftly.

Popularity: unranked [?]

The Martial Arts History Museum’s Hall of Fame is Announced
The prestigous Martial Arts History Museum hall of fame ceremony is announced.

Martial Arts Mentoring: “I Think You Have A Future At This!”

?A teacher never knows where his or her influence stops? is an expression you may have come across, and it?s quite true.

A simple word of discouragement or encouragement, for example, can mean all of the difference in a student?s life.

A few years ago, I noticed a young lower belt who was taking a test for the next level of training, and he performed quite well.

I thought back to myself at that level, and I could see that this fellow was more agile than I was at a similar point in training, and overall, he had certain physical capabilities that were impressive.

Also, I knew that my fellow instructors were not going to lavish praise on him because they wouldn?t want it to go to his head, to have the effect of making him think he didn?t have to work hard to improve.

I can understand that concern, but I think it can also mask a degree of jealousy on the part of senior dojo members toward up and coming stars. They may feel threatened that someone?s kata will be more aesthetic, that their techniques may look like they can really work, and that their strikes and kicks are more powerful.

Anyway, I felt I had to step in, that otherwise, the dojo could lose this young man unless he received some timely encouragement.

So, after the test, I said very directly: ?You did very well, and I think you have a future at this!?

He smiled, and that was that.

The other day, I popped into the dojo on a Saturday to drop off a note. It was his day to manage the place, to teach the Juniors, the kids, as well as the adult classes ranging from White Belt to Blue Belt.

He was practicing his kata between classes, and he looked great, and I could see he was maturing into a confident, competent, and capable martial artist and instructor.

As I left, I smiled broadly, knowing that my influence, however small and subtle, may never stop!

Qinna (Chin-Na) Seminar in Maryland, March 25
Qinna workshop in Maryland by Master Willy Lin. Qinna (Chin-Na) is the Chinese martial art of joint locking.

Action Star Suzzana Stefankovicova in talks with Ratti Entertainment
Suzzana Stefankovicova is in discussions with Ratti Entertainment Group for the “Black Salt” film and video project

Popularity: unranked [?]

Is All This Martial Arts Training Gear Necessary?

*Please note: While this piece was written directed at parents of youth members, adult students should keep all of the relevant safety points in mind. Remember: Safety and vigilance are not ‘things’ to do. They are constant states of mind.

Occasionally, a staff member or I will have a parent come to us with something like: “This past year, my daughter grew six inches and gained 50 pounds. As a result, I had to buy protective gear twice. It’s so expensive and she is heading for another growth spurt. Is all this equipment necessary?”

The answer, honestly, is Yes! You see, a lot more is changing than height and weight. We as parents and teachers easily notice the emotional and physical changes in children as they grow older, however, the mental and skeletal changes we can’t see are just as important and unpredictable. During growth spurts, the bones are growing quicker than the muscles and tendons.

Even as they reach their full height, their skeletal and muscular systems are not fully developed making them vulnerable to injury. During the growth spurts, your child will probably be less coordinated until he or she adjusts to the physical change. This is normal, but can cause injuries if protective gear does not fit properly.

Are you considering buying a larger size so it lasts longer? Please keep in mind that mouth guards are relatively inexpensive, especially considering the protection they offer. Make sure they fit properly and replace them with new ones as needed. Head gear should always fit properly. Tight head gear may cause headaches, but loose head gear my slip and blind a child momentarily from an oncoming punch or not offer the protection where needed. As children advance in martial arts, the foot and hand gear will usually wear out before it can be outgrown. If the foot gear is a little large, consider wearing padded insteps for a better fit. Be certain the fingers fit in the hand gears’ finger tabs.

Periodically check the equipment at all flex or stress points for wear; this is any place the gear bends, flexes or has an air hole. If you have any questions about fit or wear, ask your child’s instructor.

Also, take advantage of the academy’s sales and let friends and relatives know during gift giving holidays like birthdays and Christmas, etc. if there is something they can order from the school that your son or daughter might need.

It not only helps you to keep your child’s gear in top-notch shape, but also shows your child that other members of the family, like grandparents, aunts and uncles, etc. are just as involved and supported of the training as you are.

Also, to assist in preventing bone and muscle injuries during growth spurts, be certain your child warms-up and then stretches before any physical activity. Have them stop if stabbing pain occurs (aching and burning is natural as the muscles are taken to greater ranges).

Stabbing pain is not normal and can cause serious injury. Train your child to avoid continuous repetitious motions that can affect growth development. Call your health care provider with any questions or concerns you may have.

Above all, be mindfully aware of safety and the steps needed to protect your most precious assets - the lives of yourself and those you love!

About the Author

Read more like this by subscribing to the author’s newsletter here For seminar & media requests, call (570) 988-2228 or go to his website at www.warrior-concepts-online.com

Capoeira History
In Brazil, hundreds of years ago, African slaves fighting against oppression developed a new kind of martial art capoeira (sometimes misspelled capoeria). Today, capoeira’s legacy can be found across the globe and in many nations. Capoeira’s oral history tells of the years of persecution and hard work that made the art what it is today. Anyone wishing to study capoeira needs to first learn about into its rich historical foundation.

Targeted Karate Training Sessions In Your Own Home
Classes are great but if you feel you want to pay more attention to a certain area of your training a DVD at home is most beneficial as your instructor in the classroom only has limited time during the class before moving on with the next group.

Popularity: unranked [?]

The Cagewarriors Fighting Championships Make A Successful Return To Coventry With Strike Force 2
Michael “The Count” Bisping goes to 8-0 with another KO win, whilst the 170kg Zuluzinho is triumphant as the Wolfslair Academy has another successful UK MMA outing.

Ninjutsu Martial Arts Strategy: Key Moments and Phases in a Self-Defense Situation

A major pivoting point in my ninjutsu martial arts learning process happened when I realized that there was something more going on than just the punching, kicking, and what-not, that makes up conventional martial arts and self-defense training. In fact, once I saw it happening, my mind shifted away from the typical orientation toward this “style” or that, and started looking beyond the techniques themselves to…

…what was being “done” by each move in a technique string.

The question I began to ask was, “what’s the logic behind the moves?” And, “why are the moves where they are in this particular string?”

And THAT is what the book, “Controlling the Fight: The 5 Keys of Effective Self-Defense Strategy,” is all about.

It’s about understanding and recognizing the keys, or bridges, between one phase…

…one strategic moment…

…in a self-defense situation, and another.

It’s about controlling the “pieces” of a fight-scenario that must be strategically managed in the correct order, and at the correct time, if you are to be successful.

What are these critical moments within the flow of the fight? Let me first tell you what they’re NOT.

They are not…

…when you’re fist makes contact with the surface of your assailant’s body…

…when you lock his joints to immobilize him and prevent him from continuing to fight…

…when you take up your “way-cool” stance…

…the way with which you’ve been taught to hold your weapon, or…

…a hundred other “things” that most books, videos, and schools of martial arts and self-defense focus almost exclusively on.

But, they are not NOT these things either. If you don’t understand what I’m trying to point out here, you won’t see it.

Confused? Don’t be.

The point here is that, behind any move or technique itself - the punch, lock, throw, etc. - there is a “reason” that THAT particular technique is being done at THAT way, and at THAT particular time. There is something that the technique is either doing ‘for’ us or ‘to’ our attacker that gains, maintains, or accentuates our control of the situation. In short…

…there is something that makes a particular technique RIGHT and APPROPRIATE for any given moment…

…and completely WRONG for another.

And, make no mistake here. We are talking about a scientific application of principles that work, and have worked for centuries. And, this science works…

…for whoever is knowledgeable of, and in control of it in the fight!

What it means is this; if you know how to use this scientific application and make it the logic behind your strategic use of your skills and techniques, then you will probably win. If you don’t and your assailant does, you will lose.

So, what are these key moments or critical phases?

They are…

1) Your ability to assess your situation and understand what the assailant is doing or attempting to do to you.

2) Your defense against his incoming attacks. This is your ability to neutralize the effect that his attacks were to have on you.

3) How you unbalance him in a way that prevents your assailant from going on with his own strategy and literally puts him in a position of weakness.

4) The actual counter-attack that you use to knock him back or take him to the ground. This is the phase where you actually take the fight to him.

5) Your ability to assess the effect that your technique has had on your assailant and what your next move (escape, restrain him, or prepare for another barrage of attacks) should be.

In my attempt to learn how to really be successful at defending myself and others, I was lucky enough to find some teachers who could point the way towards many of these answers. Unfortunately (or fortunately, as this caused me to have to really look), we’re not talking about the step-by-step mechanics of the “style” here, as these can be taught by practically anyone to almost anyone else. What we ARE talking about is something that cannot be seen unless you know what you’re looking for. It’s invisible to the naked eye but there nonetheless.

Just know this. Each of these critical moments - these keys - is an important, no crucial, element in any overall defense strategy. But, where the book “The Karate-Myth” focused on the big-picture defense strategy that lead from General Awareness to Actually having to Deal with the Attacker (remember?), what I’m talking about here is the little-picture strategy of phase 6 - “dealing with the attack.”

Where an overall general self-defense strategy is ultimately designed to “avoid” dangerous situations altogether; this life-saving knowledge is all about effectively and efficiently handling one one you find yourself in it.

And, when the “rubber-meets-the-road,” so-to-speak…

…it doesn’t matter how many way-cool techniques you know, so much as…

…what you can “do” with them.

About the Author

Jeffrey Miller is the founder and master instructor of Warrior Concepts International. He is the author of “The Karate-Myth” and the Danger Prevention Tactics video, among others. For more info, subscribe to his ezine here.

The Martial Arts Ceremony of The Year Takes Place in California this June
The most coveted martial arts ceremony in the world will be taking place in California this June.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Randy “The Natural” Couture Live at Solis on Market, San Francisco on March 29th 2007
Randy “The Natural” Couture, the current Heavyweight Champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship will be available for photos and press interviews on March 29, 2007 at Solis on Market, located at 2231 Market Street, in San Francisco between 6:30-7:00 PM.

Martial Arts Training: More Than Just Self-Defense

According to the FBI, four women die everyday as a result of domestic violence and about 130,000 women report that they’ve been victims of rape or attempted rape annually. Because of statistics like this, many women enroll in self-defense classes to learn the skills they need to defend themselves.

The thing is, a short-term self-defense class may not address all of the areas you need to be able to fully defend yourself. While martial arts classes won’t specifically train you for combat and fighting, they will give you the ability to defend yourself if you ever find yourself in a situation where you need to practice self-defense. The best part is that this self-defense isn’t always physical. What most people don’t know is that in a good martial arts class you’ll learn a variety of skills to help you gain the awareness, peace and physical conditioning you need to be a stronger person, in all aspects of your life.

Confidence. All the physical defense skills in the world won’t help if you don’t have the confidence needed to use them. That’s the beauty of martial arts training. In order to successfully train a martial art, you need to have your mind and body in tune with one another. This self-awareness gives you the confidence your need to control and defend yourself if needed. You’ll be able to handle everyday and extraordinary situations without losing your temper. You’ll be able to stand your ground. You’ll appear to be (and will be) more confident - and people who appear to be confident are less likely to be the victims of violence because they don’t look like “easy targets”.

Focus and Awareness. While training martial arts, you need to focus and concentrate on what you are doing so that you don’t injure yourself or those around you. This focus and concentration carries over into other aspects of your life as well. Soon, you’ll find yourself better able to concentrate on work, school and home. You’ll even find yourself being more aware of your surroundings which can help you avoid potentially harmful or violent situations.

Peace. Training martial arts will also give you an inner peace that can change your life. First of all, to effectively train martial arts, your workout will always be changing. You’ll never get bored with your workout because it will always be challenging to your abilities (both physical and mental). In addition to that, training martial arts is a great stress reducer. You probably already know that regular physical exercise can reduce physical stress, but what you don’t know is that martial arts go one step further to reduce emotional stress as well. Activities such as martial arts that require you concentrate on your movements and your core strength can give you full stress relief in one activity.

Strength and Conditioning. When you train martial arts, you use your entire body. You cannot use just one muscle set at a time. The exercises are always changing and evolving to give you the maximum out of each training session. Martial arts also increase your flexibility which is great because people who are flexible suffer fewer injuries, have better posture and are better able to relax their muscles.

If you are interested in learning more about how martial arts can help your self confidence, please contact one of my three locations in Bellevue, Lynnwood or Kent, Washington at 800-508-6141or martialadvice@hotmail.com to set up a free 2 week trail orientation.

Also, please see our web pages at www.kungfutemple.com and www.martialarts-instruction.com

Sincerely,

Robert Jones
Master Instructor
6th Degree Black Belt
Owner, the Academy of Kempo Martial Arts

About the Author

Mr. Robert Jones runs three successful martial arts schools located in Bellevue, Lynnwood, and Kent Washington. He has been helping families make positive changes in their lives through martial arts for over 20 years. He has also written two guides on how to pick a martial arts school. One for adults and one for parents wanting to pick the right school for their children. He can be reached at 800-508-6141.

Women’s Title Fight Added To Cagewarriors Quest Volume 3 Card On September 17th
Defending Cagewarrors Women’s Champion Rosi Sexton makes her return to Mixed Martial Arts action against the rising Welsh star Sabrina Cohen at Cagewarriors Quest Volume 3 in the Octagon Centre, Sheffield on September 17th.

Martial Arts Legend Bill ?Superfoot? Wallace on his way to the Tropicana in January
Bill “Superfoot” Wallace is headed to the Tropicana Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City New Jersey in January 2005.

Popularity: unranked [?]

“Kick Me Where It Counts” - A Critical Mistake in Martial Arts and Self-Defense Training
During my recent visit to Japan for training, there was one overriding thing that I noticed about most of the black belts that I trained with. Now, if they were just having fun and aren’t really looking to be able to defend themselves…

Best Martial Arts Training Creates Speed and Strength
Martial arts is about training and discipline. Learning about the correct styles and techniques will help in finding the correct school and instructor.

Facts about Martial Arts for Kids - Part 3

“Martial Arts or Karate may not be a good fit for my daughter.”

We are living in the 21st century, and I still hear this one. This kind of thinking is what has been holding women back for centuries. This statement is not only made by fathers, but by mothers, too. If your daughter wants to try martial arts, let her have a chance. Martial arts classes for girls, or women, are very rewarding.

Over the years, I have coached successful female martial arts competitors who were every bit as good as their male counterparts. In the past, our kids’ karate demonstration team had female captains. At one point, we had more girls on the demonstration team than boys.

Lately, we have hit the opposite cycle, with more boys than girls, as the kids from our kids’ Karate demonstration team perform around the Providence, Rhode Island area. However, girls learn faster, understand precision, can easily grasp complicated techniques, and are usually better kickers.

Some grappling arts, such as Jujitsu, are not as popular with girls, but I have coached good female grapplers, as well. There is no reason to stop your daughter from learning martial arts, if she shows an interest. All of the life skill benefits such as, goal setting, self esteem, self discipline, success, and self defense, make martial arts training as important for girls as it is for boys.

“How can I justify the cost of Karate?”

When you consider that many Karate schools charge less than a babysitter, martial arts training for children is a “bargain.” Consider this formula based upon a fairly high priced Karate studio. Most martial arts studios, in the United States, average around $70 per month to train a child. Granted, some are more and mome are less, but let’s look at your price per hour, if you paid $100 per month.

That comes to just $25 per week, and many Karate studios have a three class limit per week for children. That comes to $8.33 per session for your child to learn life skills, self defense, and play with good kids in a safe environment. Martial arts, for children, are a formula for success, and the cost is really, “peanuts.”

Most well behaved children are allowed to take more Karate classes. The children who “run the staff ragged” will be reminded of the weekly limit. So, the truth is the real cost may be less than peanuts, since there are plenty of martial arts schools, including our center in North Providence, Rhode Island, that charge far less than $100 per month.

Using the formula mentioned above, the cost of Karate per class for a martial arts school, charging the national average of $70 per month, comes to $5.83 per session. Did I say martial arts training is a bargain? Maybe I should have said martial arts training is a steal.

The alternative to plug kids into the television, and put a joystick in their hands, is a big mistake. It’s not any cheaper, when you consider the cost of games and the ever changing video game formats.

On top of that, here’s what video games do for kids: Create anxiety, destroy social skills, teach them a lot about violence, and waste most of their time. All you need to do is throw a Big Mac in their lap every night, and within a year, you should have a child who is a nervous wreck, with poor communication skills, and an obesity problem.

Over the long-term, the wrong after school activities result in very expensive health and psychological care. Therefore, look at martial arts as preventative medicine, and as a bonus, your child is staying out of trouble.

Lastly, if cost is really an issue and you still can’t
justify paying less than you would pay for a babysitter at $5.83 per session, you can still shop around and talk until you find the right karate studio.

A martial arts studio, that is “packed to the rafters” with kids, may not be as negotiable as a Karate studio that is an upstart, or a martial arts center that has plenty of room in their kids Karate classes.

? Copyright 2005 - Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

About the Author

Paul Jerard is the director of Yoga teacher training at Aura in RI. He’s a master instructor of martial arts and Yoga. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness. He wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students wanting to be a Yoga teacher.
http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org

Popularity: unranked [?]

The True Measure of Toughness Occurs When You Are Coming Back From an Injury
When it comes to the sport of grappling and MMA, being tough is not an option - it is a prerequisite! You are not going to step on the mat, in the ring or in the Octagon if your heart pumps red pudding instead of blood.

Here’s How To Cut Down On Martial Arts Injuries

A martial arts practitioner is as prone to injuries as any other sporting person. Those who do not take precautions and take the correct steps to lessen martial arts injuries, he/she will surely suffer high levels of pain. This article will share the three golden rules that every martial arts student must follow in order to avoid, if not control injuries. Read on.

Do some Warm-ups before engaging in practice. Before starting the training, perform a range of warm up exercises. The warm up exercises will prepare you for more strenuous movements during the training proper. By making the body more flexible and responsive, the chances of injuries arising from sudden twists and turns will be reduced.

Learn all the right techniques from your instructor and practice them regularly. On account of wrong moves, you will do yourself some serious damage. It is always advisable to do the right techiques and take extra care when sparring.

Every martial arts student is prone to sprains due to the overuse of ankles, elbows and toes. A wrong kick or a wrong fall can cause a nasty sprain in the foot. Ankle sprains may also happen when a foot gets caught in an old mat. Similarly, a throw may lead to a fall that may shake up your backbones. It is important to adopt a balanced posture before throwing a kick.

Elbows are especially vulnerable to joint manipulation. It is important to learn the right technique from your instructor when going in for a lock. Most masters advise a slight bend in the joint as a good way to avoid elbow sprain.Similarly, in a grapple it is better to accept defeat than try to break the grip by injuring yourself. You also need to learn the right techniques when throwing a punch or kicks. Many times beginners end up ‘jamming’ their fingers or toes while trying to hit out.

Wear proper protective equipment. Normally, all contact sports result in a range of cuts and bruises. This may happen on account of not wearing proper protective clothing. Never do boxing practice without a helmet and a mouth guard. Also, make sure that the helmet fits you well. There have been many cases where martial arts students have to be taken to the hospital on account of a head injury.

These are three golden rules that every martial arts student must follow - the only way you can reduce you the injuries and enjoy the sport.

About the Author

Callie Armstrong is a writer for http://www.AllergyHero.com. Her insights on dieting, exercise and health can be read at http://www.body4beach.com

How I Became a Ninja
How I became a ninja. My own story on how I became a ninja and couldn’t be happier.

Popularity: unranked [?]

An evolutionary Quantum Leap in precision Martial Arts training equipment

Are You Looking For A New Way To Improve Your Martial Arts?

Imagine for a minute that you have a home personal martial arts training partner that works tirelessly to teach you only the best techniques. A martial arts dummy on which you can practice and learn what strikes and defences work for you.

Imagine having this martial arts training device available 7 days a week, 24 hours a day and who can take everything you’ve got, so you never have to hold back - all day, every day.

Imagine having this advantage in your training - a partner who will not hesitate to strike back if there is any opening or gap in your defences.

Well it is not just a dream anymore, it is a reality in the Martialarm Martial Arts Machine.

Up Until Now We Have Not Had A Realistic Training Partner

Experienced martial practitioners will love the Martialarm because you can create new techniques due to its constant forward force and so it strike back. The Martialarm is used to practise in the control of any opponent’s arms: and new unique techniques will develop from training on it! The ability to enter into your opponents space and really improve your attacks are just some of the benifits of training with the martialarm, also control over the opponent’s attack and defence capabilities because of the constant forward force and resistance to the center. The Martialarm attaches to a wall and is used like a wooden dummy for martial arts training!

Other martial arts training devices are not easily used by the new student because they are not a simple representation of an opponent in an attacking or defensive position. The Martialarm is and so it does teach the new student how to handle that by constantly drilling his techniques on the martialarm.

What is the Martialarm?

The Martialarm Machine Is The Only Martial Arts Tool that allows you complete realism in all your martial arts training of kung fu, karate, krav maga, jeet kune do, tae kwon do, kempo and more..

The Martialarm is a Martial Arts training machine used to develop the entry and trapping skills of any martial artist - in any style. The Martialarm is designed to actually test your techniques so to improve them and for you to gain the amazing ability to trap and control your opponents hands and arms. This is because the Martialarm moves and reacts like a real opponent.

If you own a dojo or training school, using the Martialarm Training Partner increases your new student sign up and also retention rate; because adding modern training equipment for your students is essential. Today more than ever you must offer value for money in student training and that means you teach them ‘everything you’ve got’. The Stuff That Really Works and Works In The Street - 24/7! This is exactly what the Martialarm does! It puts the experienced martial artist or the new student to the test!

Only the martialarm movies show how the Martialarm really works in full combat conditions. The Martialarm moves and twists up, down, left, right and all the variations like a real opponent would. Any pressure placed on the arms internal springs will be distributed over the shoulder and elbow joints and so it will springs forward - so it does strike back!

The Martialarm Martial Arts Theory

#1 — Safety

You must maintain 100% safety when entering into the opponents attack range, this means to limit any variables that could occur by covering them. (Methods of entry must be sophisticated yet simple, fast as well as safe!)

#2 — Attack

You must have the ability to attack at will, with no concern or hesitation. The attack should incorporate a total control of the opponents weapons. (Attacks must be structured to have within them a 100% defense!)

#3 — Adaptability

Techniques, attacks and defenses must flow but not necessarily at a constant pace. Adaptability to choose what’s next is key!

How Often Do You Hear Yourself Saying: “I’ll Get Back Into Training Next Week…”?

Many people give up on their martial arts training because it stops being fun. The reason why this happens is because they’re not being challenged enough so it becomes repetitive.

Break through your training block!

Add an exciting new dimension to your training that will bust through your boredom and make your martial arts training exciting again!

The Martialarm will give you the active, dynamic training workout that will renew your interest in the martial arts.

Don’t procrastinate, decide to get active again!

Your Own Personal Training Partner - Hangs Right on Your Wall!

The traditional wooden dummy is quite bulky and requires a big chunk of space to set it up properly for training. That’s fine if you have a big training hall, but you probably don’t have that much space to devote to your training.

The Martialarm fits into even the smallest training areas.

With its compact design, it’s easy to make space for it, even if you live in a tiny bachelor’s apartment! Or if you have a training hall, the Martialarm is small enough for you to put up a bunch of them so more students can benefit from training with them.

It’s very easy to set up and it hangs conveniently on your wall, ready and waiting for your next urge to train.

http://www.martialarm.com

“This is the answer to the only problem I had in my martial arts training, ‘How to effectively test a technique?’. I can now experiment using full power which I could never do before with my normal training partner.” L. Baxter

About the Author

This article was submitted by P. Sundbye who has been training in various martialarts for the last 11 years including Wing Chun Kung Fu, Aikido, Tong Long and the Lee Total Control system.

For more information and martial arts news visit http://www.martialarm.com/martialarm.html

A Dummy Can Teach You How to Flow Smoothly From Technique to Technique
Dummy training allows the Wing Chun practitioner a way to correctly train the body in performing techniques.

The reason Wing Chung wooden dummy training is so important is that it allows the skin and bones to strengthen and toughen up. When making contact in a real fight, your fists and shins are subjected to a lot of force and pain. Striking air does not get your skin and bones ready for a real fight. Hitting the Mook Jung allows …

Free-form Sparring and Exercises to Develop Internal Energy
Take a sneak peak into the world of Hapkido. The history, traditions and technique of this ancient form of martial arts.

Targeted Karate Training Sessions In Your Own Home
Classes are great but if you feel you want to pay more attention to a certain area of your training a DVD at home is most beneficial as your instructor in the classroom only has limited time during the class before moving on with the next group.

Popularity: unranked [?]

What Practically Guarantees Success in a Self-Defense Encounter?
It never ceases to amaze me just how many people have the same questions or ideas about self-defense and what works.

Seriously.

Almost as soon as someone finds out that this is what I do, I invariably get one of two responses. You can break these responses down into the “asker” and the “teller” groups.

The role of nutrition in martial arts, police, military personnel

Copyright 2005 Internet Publications

For a considerable amount of time, nutrition has not played a prominent role in the life of many martial artists, police, and military personnel as a means of improving performance. Top athletes are always looking for an edge. Although the martial arts are more of a way of life and a life style than a sport per se, the needs of the martial artist are the same as that of the elite athlete.

Mental aspects not withstanding (i.e. mental awareness, strategy, cunning, etc.), the need for speed, agility, strength, flexibility, and the ability to recuperate from tough workouts (and unforgiving sparing partners) is paramount to the success of athletes and martial artists alike. Police and military personnel can also have unique requirements that require them to perform at peak physical and or psychological levels.

Over the past decade our knowledge of sports nutrition has evolved into a science that has swept the athletic world and has been partially responsible for the ever increasing numbers of athletes who are pushing the envelope of human ability and performance. Although a handful of the worlds top martial artists, police, and elite military units have taken advantage of the ‘cutting edge’ nutrition being used by top athletes, the majority of these communities has not taken advantage of the new science of sports nutrition.

The advantage of improving one’s performance through nutrition and correct supplementation is obvious for the athlete, but what about the martial artist? Obviously technique, form, and knowledge of one’s chosen martial art is essential to the mastery of that art, but what if the person, regardless of skill level, becomes a little faster, stronger, and able to resist and repair from injuries and training better?

Will they not be an improved version of their former self? Of course they will! Proper nutrition can make the martial artist, as it has for so many of today’s top athletes, an improved and potentially more accomplished practitioner of their art, plain and simple. If a policeman is able to stay alert, has more endurance or strength, etc., will he/she not have an added advantage to the job? Of course.. The benefits to the soldier are obvious. Bottom line? To not take advantage of the science of nutrition and supplementation, is to short change the martial artists, police, and military personnel.

As a trainer for many athletes from various sports, police, and, military personnel, and the author of numerous articles on sports nutrition and training, I have come to a few general guidelines that should be of considerable help and interest to the martial artist, police, etc. who want to improve both health and performance. Though nutrition is a complex topic, I have devised a basic guide to the major and minor nutrients that should be helpful to the martial artist, police, and athlete alike who are trying to make food and nutrient choices. Of course this guide is in no way total or complete, and many individual differences may apply, but as a basic guide to examining these nutrients, it could give you the edge you have been looking for.

Protein

Proteins are made up of amino acids which are the structural units of the protein molecule. There are approximately 20 amino acids. Eight of them are considered ‘essential’ because the human body cannot make them on its own - which is the definition of an essential nutrient. Link a few amino acids together and you get a peptide. Link a bunch of peptides together and you get a protein. The shape of the individual amino acids (and resulting proteins) is unique and highly specific, so I won’t go into great detail about it here.

Suffice it to say, proteins are an essential part of virtually every function in our body from the muscles, to certain hormones, to our immune system(s) and a whole lot more. In particular, the amino acids known as the ‘branched chain’ amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, and valine) and the amino acid L-glutamine are of particular interest to active people as they are anti-catabolic (muscle sparing) and immune enhancing, to name only a few functions and benefits of these particular amino acids.

Though the RDA for protein is generally sufficient for couch potatoes (with some debate) the majority of athletes and/or highly active people will benefit from higher intakes of high quality proteins. Proteins with the highest biological value (BV) are the proteins that should constitute the majority of the active person’s diet, as they are superior for maintaining positive nitrogen balance, reducing recuperation time from workouts, improving immune function, etc.

Whey protein concentrate (WPC) and isolates (WPI) have the highest BV of any protein, is almost 50% branched chain amino acids, and is high in L-glutamine, which is why I recommend several servings a day of WPC/WPI to all the athletes/martial artists/police I work with.

There are several brands of WPC/WPI on the market. Other high quality proteins such as skinless chicken, fish, eggs, soy, and lean red meats, have relatively high BV values and are good proteins. Another point that is important to know, the higher quality the protein, the less the person has to eat and this allows the person to keep total calories lower by sticking to these high BV proteins.

For a person who is active in the martial arts, has a busy job, and probably does some weight lifting and/or aerobics, an intake of .7 ? .8 grams of protein per pound of lean body weight is what I have generally recommended. For high level bodybuilders and competitive distance athletes, the protein intake will be higher, approximately 1g of protein per lb /bodyweight being the most common.

In certain situations, amino acid supplementation is useful, but most people will have no problem getting what they need by eating plenty of high quality protein foods. Low grade, high fat, preservative loaded, protein foods such as luncheon meats, hot dogs, etc., should be avoided for obvious reasons.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are made primarily of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms that cycle into a ring. They can be ’simple’ or ‘complex’ depending on the number of rings that are hooked together and the way the carbohydrate effects blood sugar (1). Though the rings can be slightly different in shape, their common theme is the ring structure. Similar to amino acids that make up proteins, when you link the simple units (the sugars) together you get carbohydrates with different properties.

As most people know, carbohydrates are a primary source of energy for the body. The best type of carbohydrates to eat are those that are high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals.

Though foods such as pasta, breads, and white rice are considered ‘complex’ they are highly processed foods, totally inadequate in fiber, vitamins, and minerals and should not make up a high percentage of a persons carbohydrate intake. Though these foods are often fortified with certain vitamins, in my opinion this does not truly replace what is lost during processing, not to mention the many nutrients that are not replaced.

Americans are notoriously low eaters of fiber, and heavily processed foods mentioned above do nothing to correct this deficit. High fiber carbohydrate foods such as brown rice, beans, lentils, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, and many others, are the preferred carbohydrate foods for health, performance, steady blood sugar levels, and reduced bodyfat levels.

Though the high carbohydrate/low fat diet is all the rage these days, it has not been in my experience the optimal diet for the many athletes, martial artists, and ?normal? people I have worked with (see fats below). Data continues to support the fact that high carb low fat diets are not optimal for either health for weight loss. Eating too much of anything, including carbohydrates, will make one fat (too bad the makers of non-fat foods fail to tell you this) and cause a host of other ills I don’t have the space here to cover.

There are many researchers, books, and studies using both animals and humans that seriously questions the high carbohydrate/low fat diet as the optimal diet for health and performance. Two grams per pound of lean bodyweight of carbohydrates is more than sufficient to fuel the energy needs of most athletes if other aspects of their diet is adequate (i.e. correct use and amounts of certain fats and proteins). And, as mentioned previously, the source of those carbohydrates is of paramount importance.

Fats

The very word sends a shiver down the back of the leanest person. There is not a more misunderstood nutrient in all of nutrition than fats. Many people know there are big differences in how various carbohydrates effect the body and some people even know that different proteins have different properties, but ‘a fat is a fat, no’? is what the majority of people would say if you asked them about this much maligned nutrient.

Fats have just as many biochemical differences in the human body as do carbohydrates and proteins, and thus have just as many different effects on the body that range from very good to very bad. It really depends on the type and amount of fat(s) we eat(2). Americans tend to get their dietary fats from saturated fats, rancid fats, and highly processed fats ( which contain by products such as trans fatty acids), thus giving fats a bad name.

As mentioned earlier, an essential nutrient is anything the human body cannot manufacture on its own and must be obtained from the diet, or the person will become sick and/or perish if the nutritional deficit is not corrected. We know there are a multitude of vitamins and minerals, eight amino acids, and two types of fats that are considered essential nutrients for life itself to continue.

You should be aware that there is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate, but that’s a whole other story. The two fats that are known to be essential to health are Linoleic acid (LA) which is an Omega-6 fatty acid and Alpha-linolenic acid (LNA) which is an Omega-3 fatty acid. Both of these fats can be found in various foods that have not been heavily processed.

These two fats are highly sensitive and reactive to heat, light, and oxygen (i.e. they go bad quickly), and are totally ruined or lost during the processing of our foods. The reason poly -unsaturated vegetable oils that line the shelves of most super markets can sit there for years on end is because they have been heated, deodorized, and generally processed to the point that they are the nutritional equivalent of white bread and table sugar. I recommend people avoid those oils.

Because of all the fat bashing by the popular media and health professionals who should know better, most people have come away thinking that all fat is bad and serves no other purpose than to make our hips and stomach wider while ruining our health. Nothing could be further from the truth. The membrane that surrounds every single cell in your body, the sheath around nerves, various hormones, prostaglandins, and countless other parts of the body (especially the brain) depend on the dietary intake of the right fats.

The importance of the essential fatty acids for health and performance cannot be understated. It is true that certain fats, such as, saturated fats, rancid fats, and trans fatty acids (found in margarine, Crisco, and other products), can cause numerous health problems from heart disease to cancer and insulin resistance, to name only a few ills of a diet high in the wrong types of fat.

However, the essential fatty acids (especially the Omega-3 fatty acids) are anti-lipolytic (stop fat storage), anti-catabolic (stop the break down of muscle tissue), increase metabolic rate and beta oxidation (burn calories/increase fat burning), improve insulin sensitivity, reduce the chances of heart diseases, and a whole lot more (3).

Though early research told us that we need a bit more LA (the Omega-6 fatty acid) than LNA (the Omega-3 fatty acid) in our diet, we find in practice that a diet containing higher amounts of Omega-3 fatty acids (LNA) gets the best results in health, bodyfat levels, and performance.

The richest source of the Omega-3 fatty acid LNA is Flax oil, which also contains a small amount of the Omega-6 oil LA (4). Flax oil can be found in the refrigerated section of any good health food store and is derived from the careful processing of flax seeds (5). As a nutritional consultant to various athletes, I have used flax oil with many of the country’s top bodybuilders (a group of athletes notoriously fearful of eating fat) to reduce their bodyfat levels and improve their performance and health. Two/three tablespoons a day over a salad, taken straight, or in a protein drink does the trick (6).

Another major source of Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in deep water cold fish such as sardines, mackerel, and salmon (7), and I recommend that people eat two to three servings of these fish per week. Good sources of LA are unprocessed vegetable oils such as safflower, sunflower, sesame, and many other oils found in health food stores.

Fats to avoid are highly processed vegetable oils and other processed vegetable products (such as margarine), rancid fats, and to a lesser degree, saturated fats. The key to health and performance is a proper balance of essential fatty acids (LNA and LA), mono unsaturated oils (found in olive oil, avocados, etc.), and small amounts of saturated fats found in lean meats and other sources combined with the right carbohydrates and proteins.

Vitamins/Minerals

Obviously a full description of every vitamin and mineral and all their functions would take several large text books, so I won’t even attempt it here. A good multi vitamin is an insurance plan to make sure we get all the major vitamins and minerals that for what ever reason we failed to get from our food on any given day.

There is not a single cell in our entire body that does not require the use, or interaction with, some vitamin, mineral, or biological function that is dependent on the above nutrients in adequate amounts. If you think we get all the vitamins and minerals we need from our highly processed food supply (as some health professionals maintain), then I have a bridge in Brooklyn I would like to sell you. Some (but not all) nutritionists and other health related professionals will often say something like ‘vitamins supplements just cause expensive urine’.

The last time I checked, chemo therapy, heart bypass operations, and hundreds of other medical treatments cost considerably more than the average multi vitamin. If the intake of vitamins were to prevent any major disease in say one out of a 100,000 people, it would have been worth every cent in my book. In my opinion, the correct use of vitamins, minerals, herbs, essential fatty acids, and many other nutritional based compounds, is the best route to optimal health and performance. Any major brand of multi vitamin from such manufacturers as Twin Lab, Solgar, or Nature’s Best, to name only a few good brands, would be fine.

Anti - oxidants

‘Anti-oxidants’ and ‘free radicals’ are the hot buzz words these days on television news shows, news paper articles, and magazine features. Though scientists in the health and nutritional fields have known about them for decades, they have recently been getting a lot of attention by mainstream media and more open minded medical researchers.

Anti-oxidants are a special class of vitamins and other non vitamin compounds that neutralize free radicals before they can damage cells in our body. What is a free radical? A free radical is a highly reactive molecular fragment that has a single unpaired electron. The unpaired electron wants to ?pair up? with another electron.

The free radical will steal this electron from virtually anything it comes in contact with, including our cells. This reaction, if left unchecked, leads to a free radical chain reaction and damage to various parts of the cell depending on where it takes place. An anti-oxidant can donate an electron without itself becoming a free radical and thus can break the chain of events leading to an uncontrolled free radical chain reaction (8).

Free radical pathology is now believed to be linked to diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and dozens of other afflictions. Without going into a long (and boring) biochemical explanation, there are many things that cause free radicals to be released, such as smoking, exposure to various toxins found in air, food and water, sickness, exercise, and stress in general.

Anti-oxidants such as vitamin E and C and other compounds such as selenium, N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), and proanthocyanidins (derived from grape seed extract), to mention a few, will help recuperation from tough workouts, improve immunity, possibly prevent certain diseases, and improve your health in so many different ways it would take another article to explain. A good anti-oxidant formula made by any one of the brands I mentioned previously, should be added to the diet in addition to the multi- vitamin. Whey proteins can also greatly improve anti oxidants status and is recommended.

Sports Supplements:

The topic of sports nutrition supplements, such as: androstenedione and other ?andros,? Arginine, Colostrum, CLA, Creatine, Ecdysterone, GH Supplements, Ginseng, HMB, Myostatin Inhibitors and Tribulus, to name just a few, is beyond the scope of this article. Each supplement has its potential uses, dawbacks, doses and other variables that need to be examoned on an indavidual basis. People in the martial arts, law enforecement, or military that want to understand these supplements ; whether or not they are worth useing, doses, types, etc., should consider reading my ebook on the topic of sports nutrition supplements, nutrition, and training called Muscle Building Nutrition.

Conclusion

The above list of foods and supplements is in no way complete or the entire picture when it comes to additional ways the martial artist, police, and military personnel can improve his or her health, strength, bodyfat levels, and recuperative abilities. However, the information presented here can make for a foundation of health and performance that could add a considerable edge for those who seeks it.

(1)The way a carbohydrate effects blood sugar after it is eaten is known as the glycemic response. The glycemic index (GI) is a list of foods and how they effect blood sugar. Some foods we think of as ‘complex’ actually raise blood sugar much faster than many foods we think of as ’simple’.

(2) The health problems related to fats is are far more complex than most people appreciate. The pathology of disease(s) caused by high fat intakes of the wrong types of fat is a complex interaction between certain fats, carbohydrates, a lack of certain vitamins and other nutrients, free radical/anti-oxidant mechanisms, and other factors that are poorly understood.

(3) For more information on the many benefits of the essential fatty acids and to find out more information about fats and health in general, read ?Fats the Heal fats that Kill? by Dr. Udo Erasmus published by Alive books.

(4) LNA and LA are in a 4:1 ratio in flax oil.

(5) Like fresh eggs, milk, meat, etc, all fresh unprocessed oils will spoil (go rancid) if not refrigerated constantly and eaten shortly after opening the bottle.

(6) All highly unsaturated oils, including flax, should NEVER be used to cook with as this will change the structure of theses oils making them toxic and of little use for the purpose they are intended for.

(7) The ‘fish oils’ DHA and EPA can be formed in the human body from LNA by desaturase enzymes.

(8) It is important to note that free radical reactions are a normal and essential part of metabolism. It is the uncontrolled free radical chain reactions that we are concerned with.

by William D. Brink

See more excellent bodybuilding, fat loss, and sports nutrition articles from Will Brink here: http://www.brinkzone.com/onlinearticles.htmlAnd see Will’s other websites here:http://www.dietsupplementsreview.comhttp://www.musclebuildingguide.com

Martial Arts Book Review: Real Fighting by Peyton Quinn
Being the author of several books on the martial arts and fighting, I am always looking for books of exceptional quality to add to my library. If I have a book in my library, it’s definitely worth owning. One such book is Peyton Quinn’s, “Real Fighting.” I found Peyton’s book to be a very good “reality check” for those of you out there that think that your “martial art” is superior to everyone else’s. Well guess what, its not! As every person who has more than a passing resemblance to a human being will tell you, there are no superior martial arts, just superior martial artists.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Martial Arts: Mind, Body and Spirit Presented Online

Martial Arts: Mind, Body and Spirit Presented Online

 by: Jesse S. Somer

http://www.taichiacademy.com.au/default.htm

I am very interested in Martial Arts, as Ive been training in Tai Chi on and off for ten years as well as an Internal Martial Art called Wu Dao Gong for a year and a half. I have searched many websites to find a good one to write about but none seem to compare to the site by the actual organization that I am fortunately part of. They are called the Tai Chi Academy and their online magazine can be found at a link from their homepage or at: http://www.taichiacademy.com.au/magazine/index.htm

What I find so remarkable about this site compared to other martial art sites is the variety and depth of information shared with visitors. These people really want to paint a true, honest picture about everything that they do and why they do it. Flow like a river, and be still like a mountain. This famous Tai Chi quote epitomizes the flowing yet static style of this website. There must be at least a hundred pages about everything from basic school principles for prospective students to recipes for healthy vegetarian food recipes! Martial Arts are a lifestyle to this school and I believe they want to address all aspects of life in a truly holistic approach.

Integrated throughout the site are heaps of photos (most of which are in vibrant color) depicting the actual training as well as cool photos of their field trips to China etc. The magazine site itself is separated into main categories such as Archived Features, Testimonials, Archived Interviews, Suggested Reading, and Vegetarian Corner for Non-vegetarians as well as Links.

Under the Archived Features section is a category entitled Training in Wu Dao Gong. This couple of pages gives the visitor an excellent, detailed perspective on the philosophy behind this training. If you are then interested in finding out more you can click on the Tai Chi Academy actual Home Page and click on the subheading Courses. There you can read several more in-depth explanations about all the aspects of the training from meditation to physical exercises and their effects. They emphasize that emotional and spiritual development are integral to moving forward down the path of happiness and peace. They are adamant that this is a course for the arts and is not religious in any way.

I found the Testimonials section to be quite interesting as there are a variety of responses from students. They come across as being very authentic as there seems to be such a diverse reaction to the training. The Kung Fu seems to have helped so many people ranging from older women to teenage boys. One aspect that everyone comments on is the lack of ego and competitive nature of the instructors. Just like the website, the stigmatic qualities often associated with Martial Arts is not present here; no one is trying to look cool or be aggressive. This is very important to people whom just want to increase their health and self-defense capabilities like myself.

This website is a perfect example of the true function and intention of the Internet, to share positive information and knowledge around the world. Of course the Tai Chi Academy is a business, but the honest and open format of their website reflects the philosophy of their teachings and is appreciated by visitors. All products costs are right there to be seen; as there is nothing to hide when monetary gain is not the sole imperative of an organization. A lot can be learned here by companies and individuals approaches to constructing an identity on the Internet.

Wing Chun - Chinese Martial Art
Brief History:

Wing Chun (also known as Wing Tsun, Ving Chun or Ving Tsun) is one of the most popular types of Chinese martial arts. Though it?s basically an unarmed combat technique, Wing Chun may include weapons as part of its course. The origin of Wing Chun can be traced back to China, but the real history of its creation has long been a topic of much debate. The most credible suggestion regarding the origin of Wing Chun dates back to 1700 AD in the Henan Shaolin Monastery.

When the Qing forces raided and ravaged the Southern Shaolin temple, a nun named Ng Mui fled to the distant Daliang Mountains, the only survivor. Ng Mui already had knowledge of Kung Fu in the Shaolin temple, which she assimilated with a new form she had learnt while observing a battle between a snake and a crane. She taught this new combat style to her adopted daughter whom she named Yimm Wing Chun. The new system was refined and then passed on from generation to generation, and was eventually named Wing Chun, after Yimm.

The modernization of Wing Chun started in Hong Kong during the 1950s under a Grandmaster called Yip Man. The discipline began to gain real popularity in Asia and the West when actor Bruce Lee became one of the most famous Wing Chun practitioners.

The Concept of Wing Chun:

Wing Chun is based on three basic principles - Practicality, Efficiency and Economy of Movement.

1. Practicality: Techniques such as Palm-up Hand (tan sau), Wing Arm (bong sau), Slapping Hand (pak sau) are designed to maim the most sensitive or vulnerable parts of the opponent?s body such as throat, groin, eyes and lower torso. Many movements and techniques in Wing Chun are often meant to be fatal.

2. Efficiency: Wing Chun does not use force against force, in order to gain the most efficient manipulation of the body’s energy. It believes in accurately timed and appropriately positioned little movements, and counter-attack is based on the opponent?s own force. This concept is also called Contact Reflexes.

3. Economy of Movement: This is a linear concept in which movements are based on an imaginary pole running vertically through the center of the body. The Center Line spreads out from this Mother Line, and since most of the vital points of the body are located along the Center Line, many offensive and defensive movements are based on this line. The Central Line, on the other hand, is the shortest path between the fighters where most of the combat exchanges take place.

Wing Chun Forms:

There are three basic forms in Wing Chun:

1. Empty Hand Form: This form has three more sub-forms - Siu Nim Tao - the foundation of the art, Chum Kiu - focus on advanced footwork and entry techniques, and Biu Jee - extreme short-range or long-range techniques, low kicks and sweeps, and emergency techniques.

2. Weapon Forms: The Dragon Pole and Butterfly Swords are the two forms of weapons incorporated in Wing Chun, categorized under advanced training.

3. Wooden Dummy or the Muk Yan Jong Form: A dummy made from several wooden posts represents a human opponent. The contraption is used to perfect angle, position, and footwork.

<a href="http://martialarts-hq.com/">Martial Arts</a> HQ offers articles, tips and tricks about different martial arts.

Karaoke 101: Some Basic Facts Of Karaoke
Have you ever wonder why this little music machine attracts so many people in the entertainment world? Have you ever tried singing a good song using a karaoke?

Today, the utilization of karaoke is rapidly gaining a fair share in the market. In most entertainment places like bars, merry-making will not be complete without these remarkable music machine known as the karaoke.

However, many people are wondering what this karaoke is all about. How come that this new technology had quickly gained the people?s attention in a short span of time.

Moreover, there are many people wondering why, is spite of the close interaction between and among karaoke users, still, they do not know what karaoke is all about.

So for those who wish to know everything about karaoke, here is a list of some facts that will help those who want to land a big score in this remarkable music box.

1. When name matters

It is obvious that the word ?karaoke? is a foreign name.

In reality, karaoke is actually a Japanese term, which means ?empty orchestra,? where ?kara? in Japan means empty, while ?oke,? from the Japanese term okesutora, which means orchestra.

No wonder why using karaoke literally creates a small orchestra where the performer and his audience are having a grand time.

2. The origin

Karaoke first originated in Japan during the 1970s, where people are known to be ?entertainment aficionados.? At a later stage, this wonderful music boom box was distributed to the East Asia during the last part of the 1980s and entered the United States on early part of the 1990s. From here, karaoke gradually dominated the whole world.

3. The technology

The basic technological concept of karaoke machine is based on the utilization of ?audio input? and ?audio output.?

This technology uses the concept of ?subcode,? which, in turn, makes the encoding of the lyrics absolutely possible.

With this device, seeing the lyrics on the screen was made possible.

On the other hand, the technology that is being used by the karaoke machines has the capacity to modify or alternate the ?pitch of music? so that the singers will be able to establish a good connection with any available source of music. This can be done by preferring a particular key based on their ?vocal range.?

4. The authentic look

What the modern people may not realize is the fact that the first forms of karaoke resemble to that of a cassette player. This is because karaoke in the past uses compact discs or CDs. The only difference this karaoke CDs make with the other CDs is that it combines standard graphics capability known as the CD+G.

5. Utilization of newer technology

With the fast pace of technology, one item seem to evolve with another item that is more technically superb than its first form.

Take for example the emerging new technology of karaoke. With the help of the new technology, karaoke fanatics may no longer stay in clubs and bars just to get hold of the microphone and sing. This is because karaoke is already available over the cellular phones, Internet, and computers.

All of these three use special software that when attached to the machine, the audience will be able to make the best performance.

Indeed, karaoke are known for its entertainment purpose. So one should keep in mind that the only best way to enjoy karaoke is to be entertained to the fullest.

Robert Thatcher is a freelance publisher based in Cupertino, California. He publishes articles and reports in various ezines and provides karaoke resources on <a href="http://www.your-karaoke-resource.info">www.your-karaoke-resource.info</a>.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Lesser Publicized Benefits of Marital Arts Training
Martial art practice gives the individual a means of enjoyable exercise with a purpose and a goal, the self esteem and confidence aspect together with such practices being an all over body workout that also challenges the individual mentally, with rewards for progression in the form of belts and gradings gives an incentive to stick with a program or club.

What Does the Law Have To Say About the Use of Force In A Self-Defense Situation
This article addresses the issue of using physical force in a self-defense situation. Now I am not an attorney, so please DO NOT consider this to be legal advice what-so-ever. That can only come from a competent and professionally licensed attorney in the state in which you reside concerning that particular state’s laws governing the act of using force in a self-defense situation.

Emotion-Based Defensive Response - A Non-Traditional Martial Arts Approach to Self-Defense

When discussing self-defense training, we really need to be discussing more than just learning some tricks and techniques for dodging punches or escaping locks and holds. Why then, are most instructors content with stopping at, and most students satisfied with learning, self-defense in a vaccuum?

Well, I have my own beliefs, mostly involving the fact that most have never been in a real-world self-preservation situation with an assailant out to do maximum damage with any technique or weapon they choose. Basically…

… they don’t know any better.

In this issue, I want to look at a foundational idea that the rest of our training philosophies should take into account if we are to prepare ourselves in the most efficient and effective way possible.

First, we need to consider the learning curve of the average human being. When we think about how we learn best, aside from the methods that we might have been exposed to along the way, it becomes obvious that the “natural” way to learn can be seen in the following pattern:

Do - Think - Feel

That is, the most effecient and effective learning model for most of us is to:

* Do the ‘thing’ in a hands-on fashion.

* Think about the ‘thing’ - work at understanding what makes it ‘tick’ and how it can be used - it’s impact and use for us.

* Have an emotional response - we either like-it, don’t like-it, or it doesn’t matter.

So, what’s the problem you might ask. That’s the way martial artists train in just about every dojo or training center around.

The problem is that…

… the above formula is only half the equation!

The problem is that, we may learn best this way but, we operate very differently when under stress. I don’t mean just danger, but any time stress factors play on us. Whether we’re talking about fear, sadness, happiness, or whatever, we simply operate in a different way than we learn. And, this must be accounted for in the learning curve or we will simply be unprepared for a real-life encounter with an attacker.

The difference that I’m speaking of is really an exact opposite of the learning formula. When under stress, human beings operate by the formula:

Feel - Think - Do

This means that in a life-threatening situation we will:

* Have an emotional reaction - to the type of attack, the assailant, the environment, rules and regulations that we are bound by, and a hundred other factors.

* Access memories, beliefs, and mental functions - and then, based on what we think about the situation and what we know…

* We go into action - and do the best we can with what we know.

To say that the formulas are different, is more than an understatement.

What are we to do with this information? How can it help us to better train to be prepared for a life-saving situation?

Quite simply - we can make sure that we are producing and working under a particular emotional mode when training for self defense. This will require a training atmosphere akin to that used by actors-in-training than what we are typically used to seeing in a martial arts academy.

The Four Base Emotions

The human being enters the world with four base emotional triggers that, based on future stimuli and the addition of the higher mental functions, combine to produce the many emotions themselves. But, from a primative, self-preservation perspective, it is these 4 base impulses that we will concern ourself.

The four base emotional responses to stress are:

* Confident, stability - we’re basically unmoved by the threat, because there is no perceived threat.

* Defensive repulsion - we are overwhelmed by the source of the impulse and instinctively cover our targets or pull away to a safer distance.

* Aggressiveness - we quickly move in to take control of the situation.

* Evasiveness, avoiding - we sidestep or evade the problem, seeking primarily to completely avoid having to deal with the problem at all.

While there have been countless martial arts and self-defense systems that have been designed around a particular emotional response mode, no one mode is right or wrong in and of itself. Each one is an option to be channelled and used as a tool, if only we knew how.

About the Author

Jeffrey Miller is the founder and master instructor of Warrior Concepts International. He is the author of “The Karate-Myth” and the Danger Prevention Tactics video, among others. For more info, subscribe to his ezine here.

Popularity: unranked [?]

The Cagewarriors Fighting Championships Make A Successful Return To Coventry With Strike Force 2
Michael “The Count” Bisping goes to 8-0 with another KO win, whilst the 170kg Zuluzinho is triumphant as the Wolfslair Academy has another successful UK MMA outing.

Martial Arts: Helping Your Children Protect Themselves

Did you know that a child is reported abducted or missing every 40 seconds in the United States and that most potential abductors make their first contact with the children they abduct within one quarter of a mile from their homes? With summer approaching and children having more time to play with friends during the day, it is now more important than ever to start (or continue) giving your children the tools they need to protect themselves:

Never leave young children unattended anywhere and have older children practice a buddy system with their peers. Teach your children their full name, your name, your address and telephone number. Teach them how to dial and use 911 or your equivalent emergency number. Teach your children about strangers, to never talk to strangers and to never go near strangers.

Give your children the confidence, strength, skills and mental awareness they need to defend themselves if they ever find that they are in a shady situation with either a stranger or someone they know - enroll them in a martial arts class. It can make all the difference. Training martial arts can give your children four important skills that will not only help them defend themselves against a possible abduction, but will also help them in other areas of their lives. Read on to find out more:

Martial Arts Increases Confidence. Martial arts can help your children increase their confidence by giving them the skills and practice needed to get in tune with their minds and bodies They will begin to not only understand their actions and options, but themselves as a whole. Martial arts training also gives children the skills and abilities they need to know that they can defend themselves if the need arises and this confidence in their abilities carries over into all aspects of their lives. Confidence in themselves and their lives help them become less likely to fall prey to the convincing persuasions of potential abductors. Confident children appear to be (and are) strong individuals and are less likely to become victims of all forms of violent acts.

Martial Arts Increase Strength. Martial arts training use the entire body during each and every session. This means that when practicing martial arts, your children will be conditioning their entire bodies to become stronger and more physically fit. If they are physically fit, they increase their chances of fighting off or getting away from a potential abductor. Furthermore, regular physical exercise can help decrease the chances of obesity, diabetes and heart disease in your children.

Martial Arts Teach Self-Defense Skills. Rest assured, martial arts training doesn’t focus on combat and fighting. It does, however, teach skills that your children can use for self-defense should the need arise. The various skills taught in martial arts can give your children the knowledge they need to handle many situations and the peace of mind you need to know that your children are trained to protect themselves.

Martial Arts Improve Mental Awareness. Training martial arts is not a mindless activity. It requires complete concentration and focus at all time during training. This concentration will also carry over to all parts of your children’s lives to help them be more aware of themselves and their surroundings. They will be less likely to just “zone out” and be caught off guard in a potentially harmful situation.

If you are interested in learning more about how martial arts can help your self confidence, please contact one of my three locations in Bellevue, Lynnwood or Kent, Washington at 800-508-6141or martialadvice@hotmail.com to set up a free 2 week trail orientation.

Also, please see our web pages at www.kungfutemple.com and www.martialarts-instruction.com

Sincerely,

Robert Jones
Master Instructor
6th Degree Black Belt
Owner, the Academy of Kempo Martial Arts

About the Author

Mr. Robert Jones runs three successful martial arts schools located in Bellevue, Lynnwood, and Kent Washington. He has been helping families make positive changes in their lives through martial arts for over 20 years. He has also written two guides on how to pick a martial arts school. One for adults and one for parents wanting to pick the right school for their children. He can be reached at 800-508-6141.

Martial Arts Leaders Give More Support for the New Museum
The Martial Arts History Museum continues to receive support from martial arts leaders across the globe

Martial Arts Museum Adds two New Board Members
The Martial Arts History Museum has added two new board members to their team.

Popularity: unranked [?]

WorldTaiChiDay.org Announces a Global Healing Event - World Tai Chi & Qigong Day Saturday April 28 at 10:00 a.m. Local Time Worldwide
World Tai Chi & Qigong Day is a free participatory world event open to the public on Saturday, April 28, 2007, at 10:00 a.m. local time (worldwide). (PRWeb Apr 18, 2007)

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Custom Silicone Wristbands, Rubber Bracelets, & Promotional Products Company Announces New Hire
CAS Enterprises, LLC announced today the hiring of Nick Norris as its new Sales & Marketing Manager. Clark Swihart, president of CAS, said, "Nick has several years of managerial, sales, and marketing experience. We are fortunate to have access to his wealth of knowledge and expertise." Nick will initially concentrate on CAS Enterprises' flagship website, www.TheAwristocrat.com. (PRWeb Apr 26, 2007)

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No Martial Arts or Self-Defense Technique is Perfect

Far too many people who are training in the conventional martial arts or in a “quicky” self-defense program - including police and security personnel by-the-way - take for granted that all they have to do to survive a real-world attack is learn a few tricks and that’s it. When, according to the reality and nature of self-defense, no preset, memorized technique that you’ve learned in a martial arts or self-defense class is perfect in-and-of-itself for the unique situation and circumstances that you will find yourself in when you need it. And…

…that’s okay.

What’s important to learn is this…

…these techniques that everyone seems to hold up as the “holy symbols of their style,”…

…were just passed down from past-generation masters as “examples” anyway!

After you’ve been training for a significant while with a focus on being able to handle a real-world self-defense situation, rather than merely memorizing a preset string of moves for your next belt, what you’ll find is that…

…in your attempt to defend yourself in a given situation and against a unique assailant with his own ‘favorite’ techniques and attack-methods, you will actually be stringing several basic moves together in a moment-to-moment, spontaneous flow. The trick is to know your techniques so well that you can do this in what appears to be an effortless flow from one technqiue or skill to the next.

Just as I pointed out in “The Karate-Myth,” there are certain critical pieces missing from the vast majority of training programs. And, it is those key elements that MUST be managed during a physical altercation if you are to walk away with most of YOU intact.

So, if you really want to be able to use what you’ve learned in a real-world self-defense situation…

…then you must be able to give up your attachment to your “perfect techniques.”

Remember: The only people who believe that any given technique or skill is “perfect” or “unbeatable,” are those who have not been around long enough, or…

…those who have deluded themselves into believing that training in class, or competing in a tournament, is somehow equivelant to the all-out, adrenalin-triggering, knock-down, drag-out overwhelm that makes you feel like your heart will explode in your chest during the “real thing.”

Do you want to be able to survive a real attack? Do you want to not have your own training - that thing you’ve been working to study, that’s supposed to work under fire - get in the way and be the VERY thing that causes your downfall?

Sure you do. Who wouldn’t?

Then, the first thing you have to do is get over this delusion that any technique, including your “favorite,” is perfect and unbeatable. Because, if you don’t…

…it may be the very thing that gets “you” beaten!

About the Author

Jeffrey Miller is the founder and master instructor of Warrior Concepts International. He is the author of “The Karate-Myth” and the Danger Prevention Tactics video, among others. For more info, subscribe to his ezine here.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Keys To Choosing The Right Martial Arts School

1. Location

The key to learning any martial art is practice. To make this easy for you, look for a school near your home, work or school. The easier it is for you to get there, the more time you?ll spend practicing and the better you?ll get. Eliminate those ?Well, it?s kind of a long ways away, so I?ll just watch TV tonight? excuses.

Note to husbands: Watch out for schools located in malls as they give you wife an excuse to shop while your kids are in class! (The location of a school says nothing about how ?good? it is…give every school a fair evaluation while you?re checking them out.)

2. Instructor

You want to be sure that you get along well with your instructor, especially if you?re going to commit to a school for a period of time. Keep in mind that a martial arts instructor is just like any teacher or coach that you have had, their job is to teach you the art and help you improve. Pay special attention to their personality, philosophy, energy, motivation and how they treat other students. If you?re having a difficult time making a decision, go with your gut feeling…this is a decision that has to be right for you. Remember, selecting an instructor is not a life-long decision so don?t take too long to make a decision. Get started, learn about the arts and change instructors later on if you feel it?s in your best interest.

3. Style

You want to be sure the schools you?re looking at offer styles that will help you accomplish your goals. If your goal is meditation, you probably don?t belong in a jujitsu school. But don?t get too picky either. Just because you always wanted to be like Bruce Lee doesn?t mean you have to practice Wushu. Many martial artists train in different arts through their career and end up creating a style that is a combination of all their styles.

Again, this isn?t a permanent decision so it?s better to just get started with a school nearby that has an instructor you like.

4. Costs

Look for schools that offers 1-2 introductory classes for free. These benefit both you and the school by ensuring you?re a good fit before making you commit to anything.

If you?re going to invest in a ?martial arts education?, make sure it?s within your budget. You don?t want you or your kids to get started and become excited about martial arts, just to have to quit due to finances.

Some schools require contracts (or ?tuitional agreements? as they are often called) while others don?t. Don?t be afraid of tuitional agreements, often times these schools are extremely interested in seeing you or your child succeed, which is why they want you to make a longer-term commitment after a free class or two. There are also excellent instructors who don?t want to see money interfere with a martial arts education, so they opt to not require contracts and charge on a per-class basis.

Both contract and no-contract schools are good options, just be sure to give location and instructors more weight than payment structure when making a decision to commit to a school.

If you would like to learn more about Martial Arts or are interested in finding a martial arts school in your area, go to http://www.experiencemartialarts.com.

About the Author:

Javier Lozano, Jr. has been training in the martial arts for over 15 years. He is currently part owner of Experience Martial Arts and will be opening a martial arts school shortly.

Shooting From Behind Cover
Firing from a barricaded position is an essential part of combat marksmanship. It is a

relatively straightforward skill and easily acquired. As all shooting techniques, however,

mastery only comes from extensive practice. Contrary to what is seen on movies, most

shooting incidents do not happen at high noon on Main Street. Common sense dictates that

when being shot at, the reasonable person will try to find cover from incoming rounds. If

withdrawal from the scene is not practical and returning fire is justified, then knowledge

of barricade position firing is essential.

The most important part of the barricaded position is being behind the barricade. While

this seems a simpleminded thing to say, it is amazing how many times while coaching this

technique, one sees shooters positioned beside the cover they should be behind.

As this is a combat skill, it is important to become as small a target as possible. A good

strategy is to adopt a kneeling position behind the item of cover. Kneeling is a good

position because it allows quick adoption from standing and is quick to get up from. As a

general rule, the closer your center of balance is to the ground, the more inherently

accurate a position is. Therefore the kneeling position is a two-fold better position than

standing for return fire, not only for making yourself a smaller target but also for making

your shots more likely to hit your aggressor.

The adaptations from a normal two handed shooting position are simple. The shooter does not

use the off hand to give support to the weapon by muscle tension as he would in a

traditional manner. Instead the off hand is pressed against the covering object. A

much-used method to accomplish this is to make a fist with the thumb extended, in a “thumbs

up” sign. Press the pad of the thumb and the last knuckle of the support hand into the

barricade. Cradle the firing hand and weapon in the support hand. Make sure that no part

of the firearm is touching anything other than your flesh. Contact by the weapon with solid

objects causes the weapon to bounce and the round to go off target. The only portions of

your body that should be exposed beyond the barricade are your firing hand, and only the

amount of your face that is needed to obtain a clear view of the sights, target, and

situation. Your arm should be raised enough so that the weapon is brought up to your face,

not your face lowered to your sights. It takes practice to enable you to be able to quickly

judge the distance needed between your body and cover to allow you to quickly assume the

This article is based on the strategies for using a pistol behind a barricade, but long guns

can also use this tactic with superficial modifications. Instead of using the knuckles of

the support hand against the wall the hand should be extended as if making a “stop” sign.

Extend the thumb away from the hand. Press your hand against the cover with your index

finger flush against the barricade edge. Your thumb should extend past the cover like a

shelf. Rest the forearm of the firearm on this shelf. All other aspects are similar.

It cannot be stressed how important this technique is in a lethal force situation. It is

equally important that this technique is practiced so as to allow a seamless transition into

this position.

David is a former U.S. Marine Corps noncommissioned officer, correctional supervisor and firearms instructor for the TN Dept. of Correction. He is presently commissioned as an operations officer for the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency. He holds firearm instructor ratings with the NRA, TN Dept of Safety, TN Dept of Commerce and Insurance, TN Department of Correction, and the State of Utah. For articles or advice visit his website Shepherd School Inc at http://www.tngun.com

Strengthen your mind and body by practicing a martial art
Martial arts are basically a set of physical and mental skills that are gradually taught, developed and polished by a trainer usually called sensei for Japanese arts and sifu in Cantonese. Martial arts translate as the arts of war, and they consist of a multitude of weaponless combat techniques, focused primarily on self defense. Based on ancient wisdom and philosophy, martial arts not only strengthen the body of the adept, but they also fortify his mind and his spirit. In Eastern culture, self control, discipline, patience, awareness, are considered to be the traits of a true warrior, and martial arts mainly focus on developing these skills to practicing students. In ancient times, martial arts were kept secret and practiced in silence; being an apprentice in these skills was a great privilege. However, today there are various schools that perpetuate the traditional teachings of the great ancient masters. Martial arts are divided into many different styles, linked together by the omnipresent oriental mentality. If you wish to begin practicing a martial art, you should choose a style that best satisfies your needs and potential. Some martial arts focus more on physical strength, while others focus on technique and reflex. The best thing to do before choosing the appropriate style is assisting to a few training classes and asking the trainer whether you fit in or not. Another important aspect you should consider is that martial arts require a lot of ambition, dedication, perseverance and practice. You should keep in mind that the skills are learned gradually, and it takes time to achieve higher ranks. When you have discovered the style that fits you best, make sure that your trainer is qualified and that he teaches in an approachable manner. Regardless of experience or rank, not all martial arts masters have the ability to teach! You should look for an instructor that stands as a true raw model, a person whose teachings match his ideals and beliefs. Having found the right instructor and training gym, all you need is equipment. Martial arts equipment is sometimes optional and it mainly consists of a uniform or sparring and protective equipment such as boxing gloves, head gear and chest protection. You can either buy these traditional uniforms, or make them yourself. Consult your instructor and find out his requirements regarding the appropriate training outfit. The martial art equipment also includes a belt. It is made of a certain textile material and its purpose is to distinguish the ranks of the students. The black belt marks the highest level of experience and it can be obtained through years of learning and practice. Whether you choose to practice martial arts as a sport or for self defense, its benefits are substantial. Martial arts improve your physical condition, as well as your concentration, attention and ambition. They strengthen the mind and body altogether and help you achieve self-respect, confidence and balance.

For great martial arts equipment just visit our site http://www.bambamboo.com .After years of our own training in various martial arts, we know what a product needs to make it good, reliable, and durable. Visit http://www.bambamboo.com for great martial arts equipment Toronto .

Popularity: unranked [?]

Martial Arts Leaders Give More Support for the New Museum
The Martial Arts History Museum continues to receive support from martial arts leaders across the globe

SAD and How to Kick it With Martial Arts

Well, it’s that time of year again when seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is starting to affect us here in the Northwest. Even though SAD has been noted as early as the late 1800’s it wasn’t actually given a name until the 1980’s. That doesn’t mean people haven’t been suffering from it, however. Seasonal affective disorder is mostly caused by the lack of light people are exposed to this time of year. Our brains secrete a hormone called melatonin which, at increased levels, can cause symptoms of depression. This hormone is produced when your body is exposed to dark, so it makes sense that its levels rise in months when the days are shorter.

The full-blown seasonal affective disorder is thought to affect as many as 10 million Americans every year. They suffer the debilitating symptoms of depression through the fall and winter months which recede to less-drastic or non-existent symptoms in the spring and summer. Other people get the winter blues which are milder forms of the symptoms of depression such as gaining a little weight, feeling sleepy or having difficulty focusing during the fall and winter months when the weather gets colder and the sunlight gets shorter (especially with all of the rain we get).

There are many different methods of treating SAD such as light therapy (either using a special artificial light or arranging to get natural sunlight during the day), herbal aids, altering nutrition and getting the right amounts of exercise. Some methods work better for some people than they do for others, but one method that tends to help people feel more energized, less sleepy, more able to focus and concentrate and less likely to overeat and gain those extra pounds is martial arts.

Martial arts is a special kind of activity that not only treats, strengthens and improves your physical health, it also treats your mental health as well. People who practice martial arts need to be able to concentrate and focus on their training because martial arts is not an activity that you can do mindlessly. This concentration and focus eventually carries over into all other parts of your life. Furthermore, the physical exercise you get while training martial arts is energizing and will help prevent you from gaining those extra “winter pounds” that many people dread. It’s worth it to give it a try because you’ll feel better, mentally and physically, and when the weather gets nice in the spring you’ll be ready to hit the outdoors with a sense of energy that you finally didn’t lose over the winter.

About the Author

Robert Jones runs 3 successful martial arts schools in Bellevue, Lynnwood, and Federal Way Washington. For over 20 years he has been helping families to improve their lives through the practice of martial arts. To help people choose a good school he has written a comprehensive consumer guide on How to Pick a Martial Arts School

He can be

Cagewarriors Announce That All VIP Tables And Tickets For Their “Strike Force” Show Are Sold Out
The Cagewarriors Fighting Championships are pleased to announce that all VIP Tables and VIP Tickets for their May 21st “Strike Force” event are now sold out.

Qinna (Chin-Na) Seminar in Maryland, March 25
Qinna workshop in Maryland by Master Willy Lin. Qinna (Chin-Na) is the Chinese martial art of joint locking.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Josh Barnett, “Baby Faced Assassin,” Releases Affliction Signature Shirt at Solis
Josh Barnett, “Baby Faced Assassin,” releases new Affliction UFC Signature at Solis. Barnett made UFC history in 2002 as the youngest fighter in history to win the UFC Heavyweight Championship title. Other signature shirts in the series Randy “the Natural” Couture and Chuck “the Iceman” Liddell.

2 of Europes Top Welterweights to fight on Cage Carnage.
Paris,October 8 2004, The only two men to ever beat CageWarriors Champion Abdul Mohamed in MMA will meet on November 14th on Paul Cahoons Cage Carnage in Liverpool.

Facts about Martial Arts for Kids - Part 5

“Will my child become more violent from learning karate, jujitsu, or another martial art?”

In a word, “No.” Children learn self-control by practicing martial arts; and the code of conduct that is enforced, within the studio, is carried outside into every day life. The average martial arts school works with parents, and academic teachers, toward the goal of optimum student success.

When you see a Karate demonstration team perform, that is not an indicator of the life skills taught within the Karate class. It is the “flashiest” component of Karate training, presented to capture the public attention. Ten minutes of kids using ancient weapons, breaking, and working in synchronized choreography, is more interesting to the public, than a lecture, by me, about dealing with bullies without violence.

However, let’s take a closer look at the ten minutes of flash. The next time you see a martial arts demonstration team, remember those children have to practice those techniques over and over again. This requires self-discipline, goal setting, perseverance, and each child being a team player.

There is no room for a “one way” personality on any martial arts demonstration team. Such a personality would work against a good public performance. In a typical Karate class, all of the above-mentioned life skills are learned and much more.

Children learn much more about violence on the television, playing with video games, and dealing with daily life, than they will ever learn in a karate class. Even if a Karate teacher was the classic “evil sensei,” that you may have seen in the Karate Kid movie or on Kung Fu Theatre, most children can think of far worse violence.

All you have to do is watch the news, cartoons, listen to the radio, or read a newspaper, to see things worse than unsupervised hand-to-hand combat. So, the self-defense methods taught to children actually pale in comparison to school shootings, bombings, wars, and drive-by shootings.

Karate was created by unarmed civilians on the island of Okinawa and was taught in secret among family members for their personal protection. The philosophy, within a martial arts school, will not always be the same, but the seeds of violence are not sown within a martial arts setting.

All you have to do is look around you to see more, and far worse, violence than learning self-defense - integrated with constructive life skills. The fact is a martial artist is not a “street fighter.” If that were a requirement, we would recruit the toughest kids in North Providence.

As I explain to the children in my Karate and Jujitsu
classes, “Never forget the word, “artist,” means to be
creative, to be an innovator, and to think for yourself.” Children who learn martial arts are more apt to be well adjusted and defuse a potentially violent situation.

On top of that, most children who study Karate, or any other martial art, will not be “trouble makers.” The children we teach from the Greater Providence, Rhode Island area have learned enough about leadership, in our Karate and Jujitsu classes, to think for themselves. For parents, the gift of martial arts training to their children has many rewards, right now, and into their future.

? Copyright 2005 - Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

About the Author

Paul Jerard is the director of Yoga teacher training at Aura in RI. He’s a master instructor of martial arts and Yoga. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness. He wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students wanting to be a Yoga teacher.
http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org

Popularity: unranked [?]

Randy “The Natural” Couture Live at Solis on Market, San Francisco on March 29th 2007
Randy “The Natural” Couture, the current Heavyweight Champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship will be available for photos and press interviews on March 29, 2007 at Solis on Market, located at 2231 Market Street, in San Francisco between 6:30-7:00 PM.

Josh Barnett, “Baby Faced Assassin,” Releases Affliction Signature Shirt at Solis
Josh Barnett, “Baby Faced Assassin,” releases new Affliction UFC Signature at Solis. Barnett made UFC history in 2002 as the youngest fighter in history to win the UFC Heavyweight Championship title. Other signature shirts in the series Randy “the Natural” Couture and Chuck “the Iceman” Liddell.

The Confusion About Korean Martial Arts

It is unknown to many that Korea has more martial forms other than Taekwondo and Hapkido. This is because the term Korean martial arts loosely embraces all the art forms that either originated in or were modified in Korea. There are several other forms that use the sword, knife and even archery that are not so well known outside Korea.

To comprehend how Korean martial art evolved, we must analyze the social, political and religious influences that the country went through. The Koreans were colonized by the Japanese for a long time and they embraced Neo-Confucianism. At that point in time, the Koreans developed a disinterest in martial arts.

Years after, the indigenous Korean art forms barely survived in the original and there is little in terms of archives that one can refer to. The lack of documentation makes it difficult to pinpoint the original art forms of Korea. Purists argue that it was in Korea that several martial art forms originated and then traveled to China, from where they went to Japan and then came back to Korea.
However, when the Japanese colonized Korea, many of the latter’s pure martial art forms were suppressed.

After their liberation in 1945, Korean martial artists made conscious efforts to re-establish Korean martial arts and cleanse themselves of the influence of Japanese occupation. In this revival the martial artists did not have much to rely on in terms of written records.
Muyedobotongji is perhaps the only surviving ancient text on Korean martial arts, the only authentic reference manual for Koreans keen to discover their old traditions. As a result this revival phase saw recompilation or reorganization of techniques that are not wholly traditional but also imported by Koreans studying the arts of the neighboring regions. It is only in the 20th century when Taekwondo, the form synonymous with Korean martial arts, was organized into its present form.

The present set of Korean martial arts has a very strong visual resemblance to art forms of China. Influences of boxing as well as western martial arts are also visible. Taekyon, a dance-like martial art features kicks, sweeps, and strikes while Ssireum (Korean wrestling) resembles Mongolian wrestling. Yudo, Kumdoo, Tang Soo Do, Mudokkwan Subakdo have all be reconstructed with considerable Japanese and Chinese influence. On the other hand Gukgung, Sonmudo and Bulmudo more or less survive in their pure forms.

So if you happen to learn a Korean art form and get a sense of d?j? vu, do not worry. Chances are you would have seen similar moves made by artists across the Orient.

About the Author

Callie Armstrong is a writer for http://www.AllergyHero.com. Her insights on dieting, exercise and health can be read at http://www.body4beach.com

“Sci-Fighter” Star Don “The Dragon” Wilson headed to Atlantic City
World kickboxing champion Don “The Dragon” Wilson is set to attend the Mega Martial Arts Expo at the Tropicana Hotel and Casino.

Popularity: unranked [?]

7 Quick and Natural Ways to Increase Your Energy for Martial Arts Training

“7 Quick and Natural Ways to Increase Your Energy for
Martial Arts Training”

-by Joshua Black

? 2006 Joshua Black -All Rights Reserved

1. A no-brainer, but most people don’t follow it: Get at least
8 hours of sleep each night. Actually the perfect amount of
sleep has been found to be 8.2 hours. No amount of pills,
potions, or energy drinks can make up for the lack of required
sleep

2. Drink a ton of water on the days that you train. Slam 2-3
glasses 20 minutes before training to make sure your body is
adequately hydrated before you sweat profusely for a few hours.
Hydrate well during your workout too. You’re mostly made of
water, don’t lose it at the gym.

3. Take a multi-vitamin every day. Most of the food we eat
no longer contains all of the vitamins we need, despite how
good (or bad) your intentions are. Choose a multivitamin of
high quality, and pick one that is sex-specific. Women need
iron supplements, men don’t. Men should have a lycopene
additive. You may also want to add an additional large dose
of vitamin C (500 mg+). You will notice a huge difference
in your daily energy if you have picked high quality vitamins.
The change usually takes 1-2 weeks to notice.

4. 10-15 minutes of meditation and deep breathing just before
working out. Find a quiet place to sit. Close you eyes and focus
only on your breathing, nothing else. This will empty your mind
of energy-draining stress and will dump extra oxygen into your
system, getting your body ready for training.

5. Eat a thick peanut butter and jelly sandwich on wheat bread,
15-20 minutes before working out. The peanut butter will
provide you with long lasting protein energy, while the jelly will
give you that quick sugar boost to get you started during cardio
training. The wheat bread is used instead of white, to avoid the
fat-generating carbs from white flour.

6. Perform the cardio portion of you workout first when you have
peak energy, then focus on forms and technique. This will give
your body all of the advantage it needs to get optimum training
results, and then your mind will be clear for techniques later.

7. Eat small meals 4-6 times a day, instead of 2-3 large ones.
This will keep your metabolism level up all day long and give
you increased energy, instead of feeling like you gorged yourself
3 times a day like most people.BREAK#

#TITLE#Martial Arts Secrets Used By Military Special Ops

How To Explain Karate Kata To Beginner Students
Kata training is at the heart of karate - but how do you explain kata to a beginner or non-martial artists?

Boxing Equipment
Boxing is a sport that requires extensive physical training. Being a sport where fighters punch each other and try to knock their opponents out, there are plenty of opportunities for injury. Boxing equipment is very important when it comes to safety equipment for both the boxer and his sparring partner.

How I Started Writing My First Book and Why I Decided To Write It
Ever since I started my martial arts training back in the early 80’s, I bought any and every book that I could get my hands on concerning every martial art that I could find. Even if it had nothing to do with the ones I had actually started studying. I had books of all kinds from Aikido to Zen and everything in between. Some of those books I still have to this day.

Popularity: unranked [?]

The Martial Arts Ceremony of The Year Takes Place in California this June
The most coveted martial arts ceremony in the world will be taking place in California this June.

Benefits of Martial Arts Training For Kids

Admit it. When the going gets tough at home, weve all plopped the kids in front of the television and breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, we can get started on dinner, maybe check email or sort that massive pile of laundry.

But when your five-year old yells at you Mom, Kids Rule! or your ten-year old horrifies you with language that would make a sailor blush, you realize there must be something amiss with what these family programs really teach our kids. And sadly, its happening all over the media today, from sports to cartoons, and our children are learning things that we, as parents, vowed we would never teach them. Old fashioned values like respect and self-discipline, seems to have been forgotten, replaced by the dreaded bling bling pop culture of today.

Just the thought of your angelic three-year old morphing into a designer-clad, smart-mouthed, money-worshipping, me-obsessed, lay-about is enough to make any parent consider that threatening military school brochure, but there is a solution out there to consider.

Martial Arts training.

From Ninja Turtles to The Karate Kid

You and your kids have all seen the flying kicks, battle cries and mighty chops of their favorite TV characters, as they beat the bad guys to submission but, you may ask, how on earth can these acts of violence teach my child anything worthwhile?

First, know that what you see on television (save perhaps the Karate Kid) is a far cry from what real martial arts are all about. The fact is, martial arts training is based on non-violence.

Originating in Asia (mainly Japan, China and Korea, although Thailand and Vietnam have their own practices as well), martial arts range from a variety of types and styles, all of which are based on well-rounded, moral teachings. The beauty of learning martial arts is that it encompasses not just the physical aspect of the sport, but mental and emotional lessons as well.

Comparing that to other kids activities and sports, where fierce competitiveness and winning at all costs seems to be the order of the day, its not surprising that many children grapple with issues of self-esteem and misplaced aggression.

Now imagine your child actually learning valuable life lessons, skills that he will take throughout life, laying the foundation for a happy, well-adjusted and fulfilled adult life. If only karate for kids was popular in the 70s, when I was growing up!

The Advantages

Karate, and other martial arts for kids, builds confidence and self-esteem as well as self-discipline, respect, concentration and courtesy.

Many martial arts schools also offer leadership courses for kids, in conjunction with their karate for kids programs, or similar lessons.

Martial Arts is ideal for children who do not do well in team sports, giving them the ability to flourish this activity, while combining physical and mental practices.

Many do not realize this, but it is a fact that martial arts training are safer than most school sports.

Children with special needs, such as ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder), learning difficulties and hyperactivity are often recommended to participate in martial arts for kids because of the clear benefits in its structured training techniques.

Kung-Fu Master or Ninja Warrior?

Before you sign up Junior for the first martial arts class you see, take some time to check out the different methods available, and match it with what you know would suit your child best. This is a good way to avoid any problems that may sprout from a conflict of your childs personality and the training techniques.

Is your little Zach a sensitive soul? Then maybe a class that doesnt center on sparring (full-on kicks and punches training) but rather, slower, defensive maneuvers would fare better for him. Kids with an aggressive streak, however, may prefer the more forceful moves and thrive in competitive sparring.

Heres a quick primer on the kid-friendly martial arts training youre likely to find:

Martial Arts From Japan

Karate
Uses defensive and aggressive moves
Centers on building strength and endurance
Involves chops, punches, kicks, strikes, blocking and sparring
May use weapons

Jujitsu
Uses defensive and aggressive moves
Involves lots of sparring
Teaches a fair amount of weapons training

Aikido
Uses a more spiritual and harmonious style in redirecting the aggression of the attacker as the form of defense, using throws, pins, rolls etc.
Taught on the premise of disabling an aggressor without attacking, through your individual inner energy
Does not involve sparring or competitions

Judo
Uses gentle, wrestling-like movements
Considered one of the safest methods of martial arts
Emphasizes physical control as well as mental development
Engages in competitions

Martial Arts From China

Kung-Fu
The generic term referring to Chinese martial arts with a variety of styles
Involves attack movements as well as defensive techniques
Teaches kicks, punches, chops, throws, falls, grappling, katas, leg sweeps and blows among others.
Engages in sparring competitions

Martial Arts From Korea

Taekwondo
Competitive in nature, involves techniques using elaborate footwork and unique high kicks.
Emphasizes strength, force and attack methods.
Engages in lots of sparring and competitions.

Choosing The Right Instruction

If you have an idea of the type of martial arts class youd like your child to participate in, the next step would be to find the right school. Finding the right class that not only matches your childs and your needs, in terms of teachers you feel comfortable with, the price, facilities and so on, are all important factors.

Say youve found a local place that specializes in Karate for Kids. What are the things you should look for?

1. Good Instructors: Check out their qualifications, teaching methods and watch carefully how they interact with the other children. It should be a fun learning experience!

2. Space and Safety: Obviously you would want to entrust your child in as establishment that is safe, well-maintained, and clean with ample space as well as decent facilities and equipment.

3. School Values: Different martial arts schools inevitably go by different values, for instance, one kids karate class may handle aggression in one way, while a judo class would have a different approach. Take some time to observe which schools ideals match your familys principles.

4. Prices and Schedules: Prices for martial arts training can vary according to school and location, so make sure you the instruction you choose represents fair value. Finding the most effective way to fit martial arts training into your familys lifestyle is also essential, knowing what works best with your schedule and other activities.

Baby Blackbelts

Starting your child young in karate training is ideal (children as young as the age of four are usually accepted, as it is also a good way to hone fine motor skills), and lots of parents have found that in as little as a year, their children who were involved in martial arts had noticeably gained positive traits such as increased self-esteem, respect and overall physical fitness.

Many parents also opt to join a martial arts training program themselves, making it a great bonding experience for the entire family.

About the author:
Laura Saunders is a successful freelance writer, mother of two and a martial arts practitioner who has written articles for http://www.best-karate-equipment.com, your online guide to karate uniforms, martial arts sparring equipment, and karate training equipment.

Tedoradze vs. Blackledge Re-Arranged For Cagewarriors Strike Force 3 On October 1st.
The huge heavyweight Ultimate Fighting/Mixed Martial Arts encounter between the Wolfslair Academy’s Tom Blackledge and the former CWFC Heavyweight Champion Tengiz Tedoradze has been brought forward by 2 weeks to Cagewarriors Strike Force 3.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Atlantan Qualifies for 2008 Beijing Olympic Games
Craig Harkins, the owner and operator of Fencing.Net, recently learned that he had become one of only 5,600 members of media worldwide to earn a spot in Beijing covering the Olympic Games. The Atlantan will be going to Beijing in 2008 to report on the progress of the US Olympic Fencing Team as their members attempt to improve on the Gold and Bronze medal brought back from the 2004 Athens Games. (PRWeb Apr 25, 2007)

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Ninjutsu Martial Arts Strategy: Key Moments and Phases in a Self-Defense Situation

A major pivoting point in my ninjutsu martial arts learning process happened when I realized that there was something more going on than just the punching, kicking, and what-not, that makes up conventional martial arts and self-defense training. In fact, once I saw it happening, my mind shifted away from the typical orientation toward this “style” or that, and started looking beyond the techniques themselves to…

…what was being “done” by each move in a technique string.

The question I began to ask was, “what’s the logic behind the moves?” And, “why are the moves where they are in this particular string?”

And THAT is what the book, “Controlling the Fight: The 5 Keys of Effective Self-Defense Strategy,” is all about.

It’s about understanding and recognizing the keys, or bridges, between one phase…

…one strategic moment…

…in a self-defense situation, and another.

It’s about controlling the “pieces” of a fight-scenario that must be strategically managed in the correct order, and at the correct time, if you are to be successful.

What are these critical moments within the flow of the fight? Let me first tell you what they’re NOT.

They are not…

…when you’re fist makes contact with the surface of your assailant’s body…

…when you lock his joints to immobilize him and prevent him from continuing to fight…

…when you take up your “way-cool” stance…

…the way with which you’ve been taught to hold your weapon, or…

…a hundred other “things” that most books, videos, and schools of martial arts and self-defense focus almost exclusively on.

But, they are not NOT these things either. If you don’t understand what I’m trying to point out here, you won’t see it.

Confused? Don’t be.

The point here is that, behind any move or technique itself - the punch, lock, throw, etc. - there is a “reason” that THAT particular technique is being done at THAT way, and at THAT particular time. There is something that the technique is either doing ‘for’ us or ‘to’ our attacker that gains, maintains, or accentuates our control of the situation. In short…

…there is something that makes a particular technique RIGHT and APPROPRIATE for any given moment…

…and completely WRONG for another.

And, make no mistake here. We are talking about a scientific application of principles that work, and have worked for centuries. And, this science works…

…for whoever is knowledgeable of, and in control of it in the fight!

What it means is this; if you know how to use this scientific application and make it the logic behind your strategic use of your skills and techniques, then you will probably win. If you don’t and your assailant does, you will lose.

So, what are these key moments or critical phases?

They are…

1) Your ability to assess your situation and understand what the assailant is doing or attempting to do to you.

2) Your defense against his incoming attacks. This is your ability to neutralize the effect that his attacks were to have on you.

3) How you unbalance him in a way that prevents your assailant from going on with his own strategy and literally puts him in a position of weakness.

4) The actual counter-attack that you use to knock him back or take him to the ground. This is the phase where you actually take the fight to him.

5) Your ability to assess the effect that your technique has had on your assailant and what your next move (escape, restrain him, or prepare for another barrage of attacks) should be.

In my attempt to learn how to really be successful at defending myself and others, I was lucky enough to find some teachers who could point the way towards many of these answers. Unfortunately (or fortunately, as this caused me to have to really look), we’re not talking about the step-by-step mechanics of the “style” here, as these can be taught by practically anyone to almost anyone else. What we ARE talking about is something that cannot be seen unless you know what you’re looking for. It’s invisible to the naked eye but there nonetheless.

Just know this. Each of these critical moments - these keys - is an important, no crucial, element in any overall defense strategy. But, where the book “The Karate-Myth” focused on the big-picture defense strategy that lead from General Awareness to Actually having to Deal with the Attacker (remember?), what I’m talking about here is the little-picture strategy of phase 6 - “dealing with the attack.”

Where an overall general self-defense strategy is ultimately designed to “avoid” dangerous situations altogether; this life-saving knowledge is all about effectively and efficiently handling one one you find yourself in it.

And, when the “rubber-meets-the-road,” so-to-speak…

…it doesn’t matter how many way-cool techniques you know, so much as…

…what you can “do” with them.

About the Author

Jeffrey Miller is the founder and master instructor of Warrior Concepts International. He is the author of “The Karate-Myth” and the Danger Prevention Tactics video, among others. For more info, subscribe to his ezine here.

The Martial Arts Supply.Net Launched: Martial Arts Gear, Information & Articles Database
The Martial Arts Supply is an online listing database of martial arts related content and products to facilitate all aspects of training for martial arts practitioners and enthusiasts. The site is designed and operated by Matt Canei, a Tae Kwon Do 1st Dan black belt who is a one-time Junior Olympics Gold Medalist for forms. (PRWeb May 10, 2007)

Frank Trigg Returns to Morning Radio with Daily MMA Show
Trigg is back on the airwaves and this time he's got a cast of characters along for the ride. His buddy Gorgeous George and GG's brother Goze (yes, the infamous Goze of myspace fame) are blowing up the internet with their new radio show dedicated to the fastest growing sport in the world. (PRWeb Apr 25, 2007)

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Popularity: unranked [?]

Jiu Jitsu Legend Royce Gracie Joins Bodog Fight: Costa Rica Combat
Bodog Fight: Costa Rica Combat debuted Tuesday, April 17th at 11 p.m. / 10 p.m. Central on ION Television. (PRWeb Apr 18, 2007)

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Controversial Martial Arts Guru, Lieutenant X, to Provide Free Self Defense Videos for College Students
In the wake of the Virginia Tech massacre, students need better preparation for on-campus violence with proper and legitimate martial arts and self defense training. (PRWeb Apr 18, 2007)

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Tatami flooring for Yoga, Martial Arts and Judo schools

InterlockingFloormat.com is expanding their partnership with all Yoga, Martial Arts, Judo, Karate, Aikido, Tae Kuan Do, and exercise schools. The partnership program will promote all Yoga and Martial Arts schools on its partner webpage. All instructors and studios background, website and contact information are introduced on their page .

InterlockingFloormat.com is expanding their partnership with all Yoga, Martial Arts, Judo, Karate, Aikido, Tae Kuan Do, and exercise schools. The partnership program will promote all Yoga and Martial Arts schools on its partner webpage. All instructors and studios background, website and contact information are introduced on their page .

This is a free marketing opportunity to promote your exercise school in a high traffic website and increase your yoga and martial arts instructors reputation. Interlockingfloormat.com is also providing risk free interlocking floor mat sample for all yoga and exercise partner in the program. If any partner is interested to resell or promote the interlocking floor mat for their students, they can receive very aggressive resell pricing or rebate. All partners can increase extra income by introducing a gorgeous interlocking floor mat to their students and earn it without extra effort.
See these existing partners in http://www.interlockingfloormat.com/partners.htm
InterlockingFloorMat.com is a manufacturer-direct distributor and wholesaler for EVA form mats. Their interlocking puzzle mat products include tatami style mats and educational music puzzle mat. These products are widely using at home, yoga studios, fitness centers, martial arts, Judo, Karate, Aikido, Tae Kuan Do and exercise schools. With high quality EVA foam material and cutting edge technology, these interlocking puzzle mats provide a safe, comfortable, waterproof, anti-fatigue soft-tile for businesses and homes. Please visit www.interlockingfloormat.com for detail.

Marketing Department
Partners@interlocingfloormat.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Xyience Sets High Goals For ‘07 and ‘08
Xyience has added new team members for 2007 and 2008. (PRWeb Apr 29, 2007)

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Popularity: unranked [?]

MARTIAL ARTS and Adult ADHD: Overcoming The Symptoms

The symptoms of ADHD can be devastating for school-aged children, but they can be even more debilitating for adults who feel like they don’t have a place to turn for help. Adult ADHD has the same symptoms as those present in children (including inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity). The fast-paced lifestyle that many adults lead also adds stress that can aggravate the symptoms. However, training martial arts is a great way to alleviate these symptoms and overcome the stress they cause.

THE SYMPTOMS

1. Inattention.

The first symptom of adult ADHD is the inability to focus and lack of attention. This includes not being able to follow through on tasks, not being able to focus on what other people are saying and not being able to organize thoughts, tasks and activities.

2. Hyperactivity.

The second symptom of adult ADHD is hyperactivity. People who suffer from this symptom feel the need to fidget with hand and feet. They also tend to get up out of their seat often (even when it’s not an appropriate time) or simply feel an urge to move around. They also tend to talk excessively and are always “on the go”.

3. Impulsivity.

The third symptom of adult ADHD is impulsivity. People who have difficulty waiting their turns, who often interrupt and who answer questions before they’ve been completed may suffer from this symptom.

THE “TREATMENT”

Training martial arts solves for these symptoms of adult ADHD. To be successful in whatever martial art you choose, you need a high level of physical control. The only way to reach this is through lots of practice and self-discipline. This ability to control your body also helps you to discipline your mind. These two skills feed off of one another and carry over to other parts of your life. The more you learn to control your body, the more you control your mind. The more you can control your mind, the more you’ll be able to control your body. This control carries over to other parts of your life as well: Once you can control your body while training, you’ll be able to start controlling your urges to move and fidget. The same goes for your mind. As you discipline your mind, you’ll be able to concentrate and focus on your daily activities, your job and your relationships.

In addition to practice and self-discipline, martial arts teach breathing techniques. Many of them use the slow breathing techniques that have been used by martial artists for centuries. Similar to how specialists help people deal with panic attacks and stress, martial arts use breathing techniques for both physical and mental health and to create the body and mind connection. This connection allows you to run at a peaceful and happy level because you have achieved mastery over your mind and body.

If you’re still not convinced, take the word of someone who’s experienced the effects personally: Jody Walsh spent most of his life not finishing projects and dealing with hyperactivity. He wanted a way to treat his ADHD symptoms without relying on medication for his entire life. That’s when he decided to start training martial arts at Temple Kung-Fu Studios. “The first thing I noticed was that the breathing techniques helped me to calm down, be patient and focus on one thing at a time,” he says. “The physical applications showed me to be more aware of what my body is doing at all times.”

Even if you haven’t been officially diagnosed with adult ADHD, you may suffer from some or even many of the symptoms. If so, you owe it to yourself to start alleviating the stress in your life. The self-discipline and self-awareness needed to train martial arts helps you stay in control of your environment and life. The best place to find these skills is at a fine martial arts school. Why not give it a try? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. To make it even easier, I’ll help you get started. Just contact me and I’ll send you my free report on how to pick a martial arts school.

If you are interested in learning more about how martial arts can help your change your life, please contact one of my three locations in Bellevue, Lynnwood or Kent, Washington at 800-508-6141 or martialadvice@hotmail.com to set up a free 2 week trail orientation.

Also, please see our web pages at www.kungfutemple.com and www.martialarts-instruction.com

Sincerely,
Robert Jones
Master Instructor
Temple Kung-Fu Studios

About the Author

Mr. Robert Jones runs three successful martial arts schools located in Bellevue, Lynnwood, and Kent Washington. He has been helping families make positive changes in their lives through martial arts for over 20 years. He has also written two guides on how to pick a martial arts school. One for adults and one for parents wanting to pick the right school for their children. He can be reached at 800-508-6141

Martial Arts Book Review: Cheap Shots, Ambushes, and Other Lessons by Marc “Animal” MacYoung
It is painfully obvious that Marc has had some bad experiences with formal martial arts training and that is too bad. However, one must remember that, “One bad apple doesn’t spoil the whole bunch babe.” I believe that is either an old parable, or a line from the Jackson 5, if I’m not mistaken. Or it may even be both.

Shotokan Karate - General Background
Shotokan is both a young and an ancient martial art. It is ancient because its roots are deeply entrenched in the past, and young because, as it is expressed today, it is an art that is less than a 100 years old. Shotokan is characterized by its long and low stances, its powerful techniques and its dynamic forms.

Popularity: unranked [?]

What Practically Guarantees Success in a Self-Defense Encounter?
It never ceases to amaze me just how many people have the same questions or ideas about self-defense and what works.

Seriously.

Almost as soon as someone finds out that this is what I do, I invariably get one of two responses. You can break these responses down into the “asker” and the “teller” groups.

Emotion-Based Defensive Response - A Non-Traditional Martial Arts Approach to Self-Defense

When discussing self-defense training, we really need to be discussing more than just learning some tricks and techniques for dodging punches or escaping locks and holds. Why then, are most instructors content with stopping at, and most students satisfied with learning, self-defense in a vaccuum?

Well, I have my own beliefs, mostly involving the fact that most have never been in a real-world self-preservation situation with an assailant out to do maximum damage with any technique or weapon they choose. Basically…

… they don’t know any better.

In this issue, I want to look at a foundational idea that the rest of our training philosophies should take into account if we are to prepare ourselves in the most efficient and effective way possible.

First, we need to consider the learning curve of the average human being. When we think about how we learn best, aside from the methods that we might have been exposed to along the way, it becomes obvious that the “natural” way to learn can be seen in the following pattern:

Do - Think - Feel

That is, the most effecient and effective learning model for most of us is to:

* Do the ‘thing’ in a hands-on fashion.

* Think about the ‘thing’ - work at understanding what makes it ‘tick’ and how it can be used - it’s impact and use for us.

* Have an emotional response - we either like-it, don’t like-it, or it doesn’t matter.

So, what’s the problem you might ask. That’s the way martial artists train in just about every dojo or training center around.

The problem is that…

… the above formula is only half the equation!

The problem is that, we may learn best this way but, we operate very differently when under stress. I don’t mean just danger, but any time stress factors play on us. Whether we’re talking about fear, sadness, happiness, or whatever, we simply operate in a different way than we learn. And, this must be accounted for in the learning curve or we will simply be unprepared for a real-life encounter with an attacker.

The difference that I’m speaking of is really an exact opposite of the learning formula. When under stress, human beings operate by the formula:

Feel - Think - Do

This means that in a life-threatening situation we will:

* Have an emotional reaction - to the type of attack, the assailant, the environment, rules and regulations that we are bound by, and a hundred other factors.

* Access memories, beliefs, and mental functions - and then, based on what we think about the situation and what we know…

* We go into action - and do the best we can with what we know.

To say that the formulas are different, is more than an understatement.

What are we to do with this information? How can it help us to better train to be prepared for a life-saving situation?

Quite simply - we can make sure that we are producing and working under a particular emotional mode when training for self defense. This will require a training atmosphere akin to that used by actors-in-training than what we are typically used to seeing in a martial arts academy.

The Four Base Emotions

The human being enters the world with four base emotional triggers that, based on future stimuli and the addition of the higher mental functions, combine to produce the many emotions themselves. But, from a primative, self-preservation perspective, it is these 4 base impulses that we will concern ourself.

The four base emotional responses to stress are:

* Confident, stability - we’re basically unmoved by the threat, because there is no perceived threat.

* Defensive repulsion - we are overwhelmed by the source of the impulse and instinctively cover our targets or pull away to a safer distance.

* Aggressiveness - we quickly move in to take control of the situation.

* Evasiveness, avoiding - we sidestep or evade the problem, seeking primarily to completely avoid having to deal with the problem at all.

While there have been countless martial arts and self-defense systems that have been designed around a particular emotional response mode, no one mode is right or wrong in and of itself. Each one is an option to be channelled and used as a tool, if only we knew how.

About the Author

Jeffrey Miller is the founder and master instructor of Warrior Concepts International. He is the author of “The Karate-Myth” and the Danger Prevention Tactics video, among others. For more info, subscribe to his ezine here.

Brazilian Jujitsu
Brazilian Jujitsu originated from the Japanese martial art that utilizes a system of strikes, blocks, throws, locks and sweeps to be able overcome and ward off an attacker. Brazilian Jujitsu is both defensive and practical form of martial art. Brazilian Jujitsu assists the defender in making use of his attacker’s size, momentum and strength to his advantage as an effective means of overcoming his attacker. Once a defender gets to be adept at this technique, he can really become very good at the Brazilian Jujitsu martial art.

Popularity: unranked [?]

A Little History on Kung Fu
Kung Fu a generic label used to describe the martial arts that come from China. Chinese kung fu is not only about fighting but about self discipline, self respect, humbleness and patience. What makes the Chinese martial arts unique is the use of meditation as part of their art. Also the many weapons they have to master is another unique benefit of kung fu. Kung fu really took off in China when they added mind training to their workouts.

MMA Training Tip
A good mma training tip routine should focus on 3 main elements. Here I list 3 of these elements that are vital to successful mma training.

The Most Dangerous Attack You’ll Ever Face
The most dangerous attack you’ll ever face is when you’re
outnumbered. There could be 2 or 3 of them or there could be
20.

What would you do?

So many have asked me this question that I’ve decided to answer
it right in this now.

Self-Defense Within Martial Arts Training Demands a Real-World Perspective

This story is being offered in response to a request made by my teacher, Soke (Grand Master) Masaaki Hatsumi, during a recent training visit to Japan. During one of the training sessions, Soke was suggesting that everyone, regardless of rank, should make it a point to talk to those with actual combat experience and to learn from these people. The point was, if you do not know what a real fight is like, you will not be able to train properly for an authentic situation.

I was asked to share some of my experience in dealing with an attack and the following story came to mind. Though I have much experience with dealing with danger and dangerous people, this particular situation stands out as both a successful outcome where I was able to use some of my ninpo-taijutsu martial arts training, and a learning experience where I was actually able to control both my awareness and response, instead of mentally shutting down and “hoping” for the best.

The incident occurred many years ago while I was stationed in, what was then, West Germany. I was serving with the United States Army Military Police Corps. My partner and I were called to respond to a unit where a serviceman was assaulting others, including the officer-in-charge.

When we arrived at, what we thought was, the location of the incident, there was no one but the Charge of Quarters present. He had no idea about the incident. What none of us knew was that the ‘problem’ was occurring next door and moving in our direction.

While my partner and I were confirming the call with our superiors, the attacker entered the building where we were. He was obviously intoxicated and shouting racial insults and demanding satisfaction before he started a ‘real war.’ By the smell of him, he had been drinking heavily and primarily whiskey. His clothes showed signs of a struggle and at this point I wasn’t sure if I was facing an attacker or the victim of an assault.

I immediately tried to calm the individual and find out what the problem was. As I was doing this, several other soldiers, including the command duty officer entered the building and became involved. The belligerent soldier was going on with his racial attacks and how he was attacked by what he thought were his friends. It was then that he turned his attention to me and began implying that he had martial arts experience and “didn’t have to prove himself to anyone.”

During this, and later after interviewing witnesses, we found that the individual had tested for his black belt in another martial art earlier that day and was out ‘celebrating’ with his friends. Witnesses testified that the more intoxicated he became, the more he started “showing off” to his friends which involved hitting and kicking. Eventually, his friends had had enough and then attempted to stop his obnoxious behavior by pushing him away and leaving him behind. This only made him more “playful” at which time he jumped on his friends resulting in them throwing him down on the ground. It was this that finally enraged him enough to chase them to the barracks and begin attacking others.

As he was telling me that he didn’t have to prove himself, he also made statements that I only thought that I was tougher than him because I carried a gun, a nightstick and wore an MP helmet. I responded by removing my helmet and handing my night stick to my partner in an attempt to neutralize any perceived threat that I might be projecting and bring the soldier’s anxiety level down. I informed him that the gun stayed where it was but that we needed to talk like civilized men so we could solve whatever problem was going on.

The soldier continued on with the “I’m a black belt and don’t need to prove how tough I am” speech when he closed the distance and, from about an inch from my face, stated that, “I’m going to show you how tough you’re not.”

I ordered the soldier back and before I knew what was happening, I sensed his fist coming up between our bodies toward my jaw. I rode off the strike which landed before I could evade and then backed out as he began to flail widely with both arms at my head and body. I remember taking up a hoko-like position (a guarding posture in ninjutsu designed to create a protective ‘bubble’ that is difficult for the attacker to get through) to cover against the incoming attacks and having to simultaneously deal with an officer who thought that I was the one doing the attacking!

At one point, I realized that his right arm had wrapped around my left forearm and that a ‘musha-dori-like thing’ (uplifting elbow - shoulder dislocating technique) was happening. I remember moving to capture his balance and laid him down when suddenly his feet went out from under him. Later I found out that, in an attempt to help, my partner chose that moment to sweep my assailant’s legs out from under him. I felt the soldier’s shoulder give way as I applied the lock and took him down. This didn’t help with the anxiety and emotional pressure I was dealing with as I was now worried about a possible ‘police brutality’ charge for excessive force.

This injury didn’t deter his aggression though as he continued to fight against our restraint. We were finally able to subdue him and get him onto his stomach to be handcuffed when his wife and young child entered the building. I don’t know how they found out about the situation but there they were. I felt sad for them and was only able to give a look of apology for having to do this. Again, more stress was added in that I didn’t want to have to physically hurt this man in front of his family.

Unfortunately, their presence only served to escalate the problem. When the soldier became aware of his wife and child, he blamed my partner and I for his “embarrassment” and began to fight against his restraint again. I am not a big man and this soldier’s build was easily 150% of my own size and weight, so holding him was a serious problem. Having to improvise and immobilize the man, I placed my night stick between the handcuff chain and his back and applied leverage against his spine which created a situation where he would only hurt himself with his continued resistance. This was only necessary for a moment or two, as he passes out from his exertion.

As I related during my initial telling of the story at the Hombu Dojo (’main training hall’0 in Noda-city, Japan, my legs begin to shake and I can feel my breathing change as I recall this situation and many others like it. It does not control me or the way I go through my life in the ordinary sense that I am not afraid to associate with people or the like. What it has done is imprinted on me much more than just a step-by-step memory of the events, and I’m sure that my recollection of these is less than accurate because the experience was much more emotional and from what Soke has called “budo-nerves” orientation or perspective than from any sort of memorized technique string.

I will simply end this by saying that, this situation is one that has forever changed my perspective on how I should train, and as a teacher, how I should train my students. It has taught me that kata-like, step-by-step training is only a piece of the training puzzle but, anyone who believes that they will fight this way is deluding themselves. Conversely, it has also taught me that training that is just henka-based, where the basics like cover, distance and the like are not drilled until they become second-nature and the student just “does whatever” in an attempt to imitate (his or her teacher) is also deluded. This type of practice is necessary but, again, only a piece.

I am in complete agreement with Soke when he points out that it is the ability to go between the animal instinct response required for surviving an attack and returning to the civilized state to live a happy life, unstained by fear, defensiveness or antisocial behavior because of the attack that should be the goal.

Let me also say that, I respect Soke and the Shihan master instructors that I train with. But, not simply because they are Soke and the Shihan. I respect these people and continue to train in this art precisely because my own experience with having to handle danger tells me that what they have to offer is authentic and “on the mark” with that experience. Because I know that should I ever be attacked again, it will be the lessons that I have learned from them and not my admiration of them or their abilities that will help to insure that my family gets to have me around a little while longer. In a world filled with martial artists and instructors who want trophies, admiration and to ‘look good,’ it is comforting to know that there are still those who have what the true warrior needs to create a life worth living and the power to protect that life from whatever might harm it.

About the Author

Jeffrey Miller is the founder and master instructor of Warrior Concepts International. He is the author of “The Karate-Myth” and the Danger Prevention Tactics video, among others. For more info, subscribe to his ezine here.

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ATTITUDE: “FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION! - Keys to Martial Arts Mastery, Key #7

One of the most important traits of any successful person is one of total commitment and passion for what it is that they are doing. They see their goal; they devise a plan for reaching it; and, the set about doing what is necessary to attain that goal.

This is something that has been repeated in uncountable books on success and personal achievement as-well-as here in this newsletter. I have written and re-written about it - I have spoken and reiterated my points again and again in class. But still I see my students and others that I care about settling for average results and the unfortunate habit of excuse-making.

Why is this so?

I believe that it is due to our need to have a ‘back-up’ plan should we not succeed.

Not succeed?!

If we have set a realistic goal (growing gills and moving in with our goldfish is not a good example!), we have worked out a plan of action, and, we are prepared to do what’s necessary, why then would we need a plan of action should we not succeed?!

Now, I’m not being funny, or mean, or unrealistic. What I am doing is pointing out what I, and from what I have been able to find out about the psychology of success, every other successful person sees as a ‘flaw in logic.’

The flaw is in the understanding of ‘having a back-up plan if we don’t succeed.’ If we don’t succeed at what? If we’re following the plan and we’re on track, aren’t we getting at least closer all the time? And if not, what IS happening that is preventing us from reaching our goal - not enough time, an unforeseen circumstance, lack of experience, knowledge or resources?

The point here is that, very often, we set ourselves up for failure by designing something into the equation that will make it OK to fail. I don’t mean that we necessarily set out to fail, just that we provide an excuse before we need one.

Here’s an example. My son has a goal to enlist in the Navy. He is doing this to gain both knowledge and experience for a future job with a major airline as an aircraft engine mechanic. He has set up the necessary interviews, obtained the requirements for enlistment as-well as those for getting the job that he is after. Unfortunately he is overweight and as a result, will have to lose weight or, at the very least, get to a point where his measurements meet the minimum standards. He has set one date after another for the enlistment, but has not lost enough by each date to qualify for enlistment.

A friend of his, someone who is very concerned for his welfare has suggested heavily that he start looking for an apartment, as-well-as gathering information about car insurance, etc., just in case he doesn’t meet his latest goal. The idea being that he will have a back-up plan should he not make it.

A look at this story should bring one very important question to mind:

“What is the goal here?”

Is the goal to begin a career in the Navy or to move out on his own? While both would accomplish the later, this is not the goal. And the so-called back-up plan does not contribute to the attainment of that goal. In this scenario, failure - not attaining the desired goal - has been wired into the equation.

The point is not whether or not to have a back-up plan but to make sure that any such plans contribute to the accomplishment of the goal. This is more aptly called a ‘contingency plan.’

Why was he not able to enlist by those other dates? Setting an unrealistic time to accomplish the task? Not carrying through on what needed to be done? These are questions that a contingency plan will handle.

In these cases, his so-called back-up plans would include: moving the date, recommitting to the goal, giving himself a worse-case alternative as an incentive to achieving the goal, etc.

The idea here is that we need to clearly understand the goal and what we want to get. Then, any back-up or contingency plan would work to go over, under, around, or through any obstacles that popped up. It would not cause us to drop our goal and drastically change what we are doing as ‘just another option.’

Remember, to successful people…

..failure is never an option!

Samy Schiavo to Rematch Jean Silva for the Cage Rage Title
The most recent fight added to the Cage Rage 9 card on November 27th is a rematch that has the MMA community talking. Samy Schiavo will get a shot at the Cage Rage title.

Sonny Sison joins Black Salt Films
Sonny Sison has been a part of movies and tv shows such as “Cradle 2 the Grave” and “The Power Rangers”

The Cagewarriors Fighting Championship Announce Its “Enter The Wolfslair” Tournament Line-up
The Cagewarriors Fighting Championships are proud to announce the Welterweight Tournament line-up for their March 5th “Enter The Wolfslair” show, to be held at the Olympia in Liverpool.

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Wing Chun - Chinese Martial Art
Brief History:

Wing Chun (also known as Wing Tsun, Ving Chun or Ving Tsun) is one of the most popular types of Chinese martial arts. Though it?s basically an unarmed combat technique, Wing Chun may include weapons as part of its course. The origin of Wing Chun can be traced back to China, but the real history of its creation has long been a topic of much debate. The most credible suggestion regarding the origin of Wing Chun dates back to 1700 AD in the Henan Shaolin Monastery.

When the Qing forces raided and ravaged the Southern Shaolin temple, a nun named Ng Mui fled to the distant Daliang Mountains, the only survivor. Ng Mui already had knowledge of Kung Fu in the Shaolin temple, which she assimilated with a new form she had learnt while observing a battle between a snake and a crane. She taught this new combat style to her adopted daughter whom she named Yimm Wing Chun. The new system was refined and then passed on from generation to generation, and was eventually named Wing Chun, after Yimm.

The modernization of Wing Chun started in Hong Kong during the 1950s under a Grandmaster called Yip Man. The discipline began to gain real popularity in Asia and the West when actor Bruce Lee became one of the most famous Wing Chun practitioners.

The Concept of Wing Chun:

Wing Chun is based on three basic principles - Practicality, Efficiency and Economy of Movement.

1. Practicality: Techniques such as Palm-up Hand (tan sau), Wing Arm (bong sau), Slapping Hand (pak sau) are designed to maim the most sensitive or vulnerable parts of the opponent?s body such as throat, groin, eyes and lower torso. Many movements and techniques in Wing Chun are often meant to be fatal.

2. Efficiency: Wing Chun does not use force against force, in order to gain the most efficient manipulation of the body’s energy. It believes in accurately timed and appropriately positioned little movements, and counter-attack is based on the opponent?s own force. This concept is also called Contact Reflexes.

3. Economy of Movement: This is a linear concept in which movements are based on an imaginary pole running vertically through the center of the body. The Center Line spreads out from this Mother Line, and since most of the vital points of the body are located along the Center Line, many offensive and defensive movements are based on this line. The Central Line, on the other hand, is the shortest path between the fighters where most of the combat exchanges take place.

Wing Chun Forms:

There are three basic forms in Wing Chun:

1. Empty Hand Form: This form has three more sub-forms - Siu Nim Tao - the foundation of the art, Chum Kiu - focus on advanced footwork and entry techniques, and Biu Jee - extreme short-range or long-range techniques, low kicks and sweeps, and emergency techniques.

2. Weapon Forms: The Dragon Pole and Butterfly Swords are the two forms of weapons incorporated in Wing Chun, categorized under advanced training.

3. Wooden Dummy or the Muk Yan Jong Form: A dummy made from several wooden posts represents a human opponent. The contraption is used to perfect angle, position, and footwork.

<a href="http://martialarts-hq.com/">Martial Arts</a> HQ offers articles, tips and tricks about different martial arts.

Taekwondo: A Mixture of Many Martial Arts Styles

Taekwondo as the most popular of Korean art forms is the only other Asian martial arts that found its place in international sports (besides Judo). Taekwondo calls itself the way of kicks and punches. “Tae” means to kick or destroy with the foot, “kwon” means to strike with the hand, chiefly the fist and “Do” means the way. Taekwondo develops strength, speed, balance and stamina. But it emphasizes on the development of five qualities in the practitioner: courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control and indomitable spirit. The art form is therefore a mental discipline as well and one that leads to heightened awareness, focus and concentration.

Basically founded on Karate, Taekwondo is more than just kicking and punching - it’s a combination of offensive as well as defensive techniques, philosophy and, as with most martial arts in their present form, entertainment as well.

To comprehend how Taekwondo came to be, one must analyze Korean history. As early as 668 AD, Chinese Chuan Fa techniques were used to prepare Korean warriors for combat. These techniques evolved through time into the empty-hand art of Subak. Thiart form split into the Taekyon (striking art) and the Yusul (a grappling art).

Yusul vanished while Taekyon remained, thanks to the secret practice of certain Korean families and street gangs. When the Japanese took over Korea, Karate that is originally by the Japanese was absorbed into the martia art forms of Taekyon along with influences from Manchuria and China.

Even when Korea was liberated in 1945, the art form called Taekwondo did not exist. In fact General Choi Hong Hi who is considered to be the father of modern Taekwondo taught a combination of Karate and Taekyon to his soldiers. In 1955, when the government called for a single name that could unify these disparate art forms, General Choi’s submission Taekwondo, which incorporated several native Korean styles into a linear form, won the day.

There are several types of Taekwondo styles, each different in their doctrine and technical construct. Yet, all styles have a common emphasis: that on kicks thrown from a distance, using the leg’s greater reach and power. This disables the opponent from a distance. The other techniques used are jumps, spins, skips and side-kicks. They are used alone or in combination with other moves. Taekwondo also includes a comprehensive system of hand strikes and blocks, but generally does not emphasize grappling.

About the Author

Callie Armstrong is a writer for http://www.AllergyHero.com. Her insights on dieting, exercise and health can be read at http://www.body4beach.com

Develop your Kiai - To Win More Battles
KIAI

Hector, one of the heroes of the Trojan war, had such a fearsome war-cry it would drive whole armies back, Medieval Irish warriors were known to instill fear in even the toughest most disciplined English troops. The druids used a low-droning sound to un-nerve the Roman legions in the battle field, and G.I.’s returning from the pacific after world war 2 tell of a paralyzing Batlle-cry that the Japanese used during bayonet charges.

Oriental B.S.? Martial-arts fantasy or just proper psychology and physics applied at the right moment?
In one form or another, The Kiai or spirit shout has been touted to be an effective psychological weapon in the battle field or in one-on-one combat. Whether you are a believer in this or not, the Kiai, when executed properly is supposed to achieve the following:

1. Rally the troops. The Kiai is supposed to instill courage and ferocity in a full-frontal assault.Projected into an opponent, the kiai can paralyze the mind momentarily

2. a sudden un expected shriek causes the mind to look for the origins of the sound- thereby distracting him/her for a moment thus creating an opening

3. the Kiai is a spontaneous expression of individual courage and ferocity, in essence the kiai should ( or is supposed to ) psych you up.

4. Conversely - when the opponent is expecting a Kiai and it is not delivered - the effect is the same - the mind is expecting the battle-cry and is occupied with the expectation - thus distracting the opponent again.

As an ancient flowery Japanese text commands your kiai should fill your lungs and explode from your hara , it should reverberate like a thousand samurai storming into battle

Franz von Muhlfeld

For More Martial Arts Secrets Visit This Site

Travel Industry Veteran Of 40 years - has visited 127 countries and counting…

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Mma-A Brief History
It would be impossible to fully track every aspect of the beginnings of mma. The Greeks, Romans, Cavemen? I will try to bring to you a history of mma that impacted the United States as I believe it occurred, and what is now the growing popularity in this reality fighting. When I use the term reality fighting, it refers to actual full contact striking and joint wrenching submissions. It is not meant to disrespect the traditional martial arts. In Brazil there was a competition called vale tudo (Portuguese for anything goes) In the early nineties an elder son of a very respected Brazilian jiu-jitsu (bjj) master came to the United States. This elder son and his younger brother were giving Bjj lessons out of their garage. This elder son partnered with another man and began a very popular competition where fighters of different styles would fight each other abiding by only a few rules. The younger brother of the man you started this competition dominated the fighters that stood before him. Many of the fighters were of a standing style (karate,kung-fu,etc) when this young man would take them down and tie them in a pretzel they were at a loss on how to defend against it. At this time there were no time limits on rounds. This young man would hold on to his competitors like an anaconda; wearing them down and waiting for the right moment to apply a submission hold. It did not take long for future fighters to start training in this young mans style and start gaining there own submissions. One mistake was made though. Now they were getting knocked out. The new rules to this competition incorporated rounds, and if they were on the ground too long with no action the ref would stand them back up. Not exactly a grapplers desire. With these new rules in place a new breed of fighter emerged. Mma fighters had to find a new way to cope with the double threat of stand up and ground fighting. Many of these fighters started to cross train in both ground fighting and stand up. The world of mma in the United States would never be the same. It was no longer a matter of style versus style, but who had the better stand up OR ground game. Its very complex if you think about it. Say fighter A is stronger at stand up than on the ground. His competitor, fighter B is equal at both, maybe a little better at standing and just as good a fighter as A on the ground. This scenario can be a combination of a lot of variables. There is strategy in these fights. They do not just go toe to toe with a fighter. They study their competitor and try to exploit their weakness. Regardless where mma originated from, no one can deny the explosion this sport has seen, or the skill of these athletes. These are not brainless brawlers wanting to duke it out, they are skilled combatants with a strategy wanting to compete with other skilled fighters.

Shawn Sellen is the owner of the mixed martial arts website <A HREF="http://www.mmaarticles.com">mmaarticles.com</A>

Martial Arts Book Review: Fists, Wits, and a Wicked Right by Marc “Animal” MacYoung

Being the author of several books on the martial arts and fighting, I am always looking for books of exceptional quality to add to my library. If I have a book in my library, it’s definitely worth owning. One such book is Marc ?Animal? MacYoung?s, “Fists, Wits, and a Wicked Right.”

One of the great things that I absolutely love about Marc?s books is his no-holds barred direct approach to getting his point across. There is never any sugarcoating or politically correct terminology is his books. He simply tells it like it is, whether you like it or not. Marc?s not-so-politically correct way of explaining things is always refreshing in today?s society where everyone wants to sugarcoat everything so as not to offend anyone. In some ways, I would compare Marc?s method of teaching to the comical rants of George Carlin. You may be offended by what he says, but by golly it?s the truth. And yes, sometimes the truth hurts.

Once again, Marc gives you a no-holds barred look at the reality of fighting and surviving on the street. This book is simply loaded with sound principles and easy to learn techniques for making the most of a bad situation. Marc discusses the various hand positions and striking surfaces that can be used for striking your opponent, as well as, the principles behind them. I find this information on the principles behind the techniques very useful, and it is usually a very good indicator of a high quality self-defense and/or martial arts book.

The other major area covered in this book is the various vulnerable and vital areas throughout the human body that can be exploited during a fight. Marc not only tells you what areas to strike, but also how to strike them and what happens to a person when these areas are struck. Always a very useful piece of information to know before it is needed. It is also something that you will want to store in the old grey matter. Like my father used to say, ?Use your head for more than a hat rack!?

If you are a strict traditional martial artist with a closed mind then (although this book would definitely be good for you), don?t waste your time or money buying it. However, regardless of your training background, if you have an open mind and are willing to look at something from a slightly different viewpoint, then I would highly recommend that you add this book (and others like it) to your personal library.

I am a traditionally trained martial artist in both Karate and Tae Kwon Do, as well as being ranked in several other disciplines. However, unlike a lot of schools that have degenerated down to teaching a diluted ?sport? version of these arts, I was fortunate enough to be taught the practical version of each technique alongside the traditional version.

By reading Marc?s books, I feel that he had the great misfortune to be exposed to way too many of the former and not enough of the latter. Having said that, I can totally understand where Marc?s bias towards the ?McDojo? type martial arts comes from, and one that I myself tend to agree with.

Although a lot of what Marc teaches in this book I already knew, there were just as many things that I didn?t know, or was shown from a different view point. I am never too old to learn and I definitely learned a lot by reading this book. You will too!

Remember, if you think you know everything, you actually know nothing!

Self Defense And Street Fight Psychology
Let?s speak about the psychological aspect of a street collision. You should differentiate two items. You must realize, whether your fight is a result of a usual domestic conflict, or you are attacked by a robber, killer or bandit. Your actions will flow depending on these circumstances.

If it is an everyday domestic conflict that happens in the street (someone pushed you or your leg, disturbed the queue order etc.), you should not use your fighting knowledge and skills to put your opponent out of action.

As a rule, all these conflicts occur because of trifles, and you need to behave normally in this case, let?s say naturally. When this conflict happens, no one wants to fight actually, but just gets rid of the negative energy that was accumulated.

Those who express harshly their negative reaction are not dangerous at all in most cases. He will threaten you, make expressive gestures, grab you with iron fingers but nothing more will happen. This is nothing but the pose which does not contain real threat at all. However, there are exceptions in this case too. You must define at once who is dangerous and who is not.

I would like to precise one thing. Though laws and principles of a hand-to-hand fighting are the same, a sports battle in a gym differs greatly from that one happened in the street. If you are calm when fight in a sports gym and don?t worry about fatal injury, you will be extremely nervous when come across your real enemy in the street. You won?t fight according to rule (as you do in the sports gym), you need to act most quickly and cruelly sometimes for your effective self defense.

The psychological aspect plays a very important role in the street scuffle. You must prevent your enemy?s attack or take the lead over him. Therefore, I advise you on no account not to start fighting if you see you can avoid it.

If you cannot do that and you know you will be attacked inevitably, you should act quickly, harshly and be the first with attack actions. Lots of things depend on who starts the battle first. This is the main distinction of a street fight. When you train in the sports gym, it is not important at all who will attack first. Both fighters are ready to attack and defense.

It is not the same thing in the street fight. Opponents rarely stand at the certain stances (as in the sport gym) and are situated in close distance quite often. In other words, they are in the hitting zone of each other. Hence, a person who starts his attack first has a huge advantage. Attack here means just the most harsh and strong action and not the expressive gestures at usual domestic conflict.

I always feel awkward when I am forced to come into such conflict. When I see a person standing in front of myself and offending me, I feel ashamed for this conflict that occurred. This person cannot be dangerous for me, he is completely defenseless.

I know that I can put him out of action in a moment, but my consciousness does not let me do that. As we see, such clashes that happen in shops, public transport, streets etc are not the fight itself, but just an everyday conflict.

Real fight happens when your enemy or enemies are certain in their superiority over you. For example, it may be numerical advantage, force advantage or armament advantage.

So, I strongly recommend to you: try to avoid street fight at any cost. If you see you are about to be attacked, you need to act most quickly and harshly. You must always remember that if your enemy is eager to fight with you, he is sure in his superiority. If he is alone and is not too strong or high, but still wants to fight, it means most likely that he is either armed with the weapon or instructed of some martial art.

Alexander Popov is the leading expert in knife and hand-to-hand combat in the version of Spetsnaz GRU. Spetsnaz martial arts videos and ebooks: <a href="http://www.spetsnaz-gru-smersh.com" title="http://www.spetsnaz-gru-smersh.com" target="_blank">http://www.spetsnaz-gru-smersh.com</a>

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Martial Arts Training Machine for Home Kung Fu Practise

Are the Martial Arts still under development?

What is a martial art?

A martial art can be defined as any skill that can be applied in warfare. The word martial means “military.”

So traditionally, a martial art is a military art. The first things that usually come to mind when discussing modern martial arts are leaping, kicking, punching, blocking, inverting elbows, twisting necks, throwing, and weapon fighting. But also horsemanship, javelin throwing, archery, spear fighting, halberd fighting, wrestling, knife fighting, rifle, shotgun and pistol shooting, demolitions, logistics, and battle strategy can all be described as the field of martial arts. Anything that a soldier might do in battle is a martial art.

By martial art usually it is meant aikido, arnis, boxing, capoeria, chow gar, choy la fut, hapkido, hsing’i, hun gar, jeet kune do, jow gar, judo, jujitsu, karate, kempo, kick boxing, krav maga, kung fu, pa kua, penjak silat, praying mantis, savate, shaolin, tae kwon do, tai chi, white crane, wing chun, wu shu and more! As you can see the list is quite long and it is actually quite amazing how many martial arts systems there are and how many methods of self defense can be formulated.

Often within a martial arts school it is taught that ‘this particular system is the best system and it was created to beat all the others’. Of course every martial artist would have the viewpoint their style is the best because that is the style they have chosen to do, but in reality what they are saying is ‘this is the best style for me as it suits my temperment and I like the teaching environment’.

The changing of the arts

Throughout this history and development of the martial arts and all the combat systems of man our training tools have played a vital part in evolving and perfecting these systems and techniques.

All the martial arts have been effected by the role that mechanical devices play whether it be weapons, dojo mats, breaking boards or even the uniforms we wear - all these paraphanialia indentify the martial arts into their systems and style.

The main players in shaping our new martial arts would be the traditional wooden dummy, wing chun rings, iron palm ointments and even the system of using forms and karta have developed the martial arts into their current form.

Even today modern training tools are common and again the martial arts are under development with new training products such as the Wavemaster, the BOB training dummy, the Focus Master. All with one thing in common, to create a well rounded combat system.

Ideally a martial arts solo training tool should be workable for all and based on sound theory and through constant practice develop into sound physical application. The ideology and theory would have to take into account all the history of the combat technology of man and give this competition and street application.

The Martialarm Combat Training Partner

In a martial arts career you can occationally find your self with no school to go to or no one to train with and so out of neccessity the martialarm solo training partner was born. The Martialarm is a Martial Arts training machine used to develop the entry and trapping skills of any martial arts system. It is designed to actually test any techniques so to improve the ability to trap and control your opponents hands and arms. This can be done because the Martialarm moves and reacts like a real opponent. The Martialarm moves and twists up, down, left and right just like a real opponent would - so it can spring forward and it does strike back!.

The Martialarm Combat Training Partner was designed and developed on the following theories

Martialarm Theory

#1) Safety - You must maintain 100% safety when entering into the opponents attack range, this means to limit any variables that could occur by covering them. (Methods of entry must be sophisticated yet simple, fast as well as safe!)

#2) Attack - You must have the ability to attack at will, with no concern or hesitation. The attack should incorporate a total control of the opponents weapons. (Attacks must be structured to have within them a 100% defense!)

#3) Adaptability - Techniques, attacks and defenses must flow but not necessarily at a constant pace. Adaptability to choose what’s next is key!

Whatever martial arts you choose just be sure you do look at a few before you decide and enqire with the school what martial arts equipment they utilize to get the best from your training.

Martialarm Martial Arts System

Martialarm Martial Arts Kung Fu is a total control system incorporating scientific body weapons with unconditional workability in both attacks and defense. Formula Fighting allows a pre-emptive attack and defense - a much faster system of fighting than the conventional ‘reaction response’ defenses. Formula fighting correctly applied transcends current martial arts technology to evolve into a martial science so to set new standards.

# The system includes:
# Smart error concepts and selective targeting
# Pressure points and internal shock strikes
# Multi-functional and military applications
# Broken Rhythm or plyometric applications
# Chi-Sau and automatic reflex systems
# Stealth weapons and clasifications
# One arm combat strategies
# Fire and forget formulas
# Inertia breaking
# Delivery zones
# and more

Martial Arts Modern Warfare

Chinese combat methods especially are renowned for the wide variety of their hand techniques. Most Kung-Fu styles use a wider range of hand/arm weapons (such as claws, gouges, palms, backhands, punches, backfists, hammerfists, forearm, elbows and shoulder strikes) than their Japanese, Okinawan and Korean counter?parts.

In addition to the actual number of natural body weapons used there is also a tremendous range of different applic?ations due to the regionalised develop?ment of Kung Fu styles and the different approaches taken by hard or internal/external styles.

In this analogy, the legs are used as the body’s heavy artillery, while the hands are the body’s infantry. In a military en?counter, it is common to use first satelite technology to view the opponents attack and defense cababilities and then use long distance stealth artillery to soften up the enemy and to provide a moving cover behind which the infantry can advance to seize and hold disputed territory. Without the benefit of the artill?ery, the infantry would take heavy casual?ties.

However, artillery on its own cannot seize and hold territory - a major bom?bardment may drive the enemy out. So it is with arm and leg techniques - we often use our legs to soften up the opponent and to enable us to bridge the gap until we can close in and finish the fight with hand/arm techniques and the proper use and co-ordination of hand/arm and leg techniques is often crucial to success/ survival.

We espouse a combina?tion approach which uses hand/leg attacks from different angles of attack and at various target levels. The concept is to keep a flow of offensive techniques moving into an opponent’s target zones from different angles and at different levels, in order to disorientate him/her completely. We believe that this approach is superior tac?tically to reliance upon one or two heavily committed techniques.

Martialarm Scientific Training For Speed

#1. Beginning of action

a. You must start in a positive delivery zone otherwise a negative zone can either injure your body parts or work against the intended action and become counter productive. (Newtons 1st law of motion)

b. Create an inertia breaker, a movement that will help you overcome the inertia (resistence to motion due to gravity and friction).

#2. Middle of action (Newtons 2nd Law)

a. After the inertia breaker you must continue the acceleration with a Booster. (Like a booster rocket, an extra aid, a second stager)

b. All body parts eg arms and legs, in any move be it a punch, block or kick, must always end up in a bent elbow or knee movement to enable a very quick change in any direction at any time.

#3. End of action

NOTE: ‘End’ of action should not be taken literally as one should never really stop action until the job is done. Our ‘end action’ should be programmed to an interuppted continuity as if this stage is still the middle stage.

Martialarm Martial Developement of Power

Most Chinese styles use a relaxed approach to power development. We try to keep unnecessary muscles from being involved in the technique, in order to avoid inhibiting the prime movers behind a certain technique from doing their job. Essentially, a straight punch is a triceps-driven technique and the Chinese style of punching allows the triceps to do its job without the inhibition of significant biceps involvement in this punch.

Most other techniques can be viewed in a similar fashion - you have muscles which are vital to the effective execution of a technique and muscles which are not, or which are even counter-productive when involved in that technique. No matter which martial arts style you do, try to avoid unnecessary muscle involvement.

Many Chinese styles use more “follow-through” in their techniques and achieve their power by driving the entire body weight through a target zone at speed. The arm is totally relaxed until contact is made and the body is still driv?ing deeper into the target when focus is brought to the technique using a trigger.

The body has more inertia to overcome before it can move with the descending line of force and, as a result, the power is more completely absorbed by the body?rather than being partially dissipated by the body moving more freely with the punch, as with a horizontal line of force.

Martialarm Martial Arts Weapons

The Martialarm System uses quite a large array of natural body weapons, some of them fairly specialised. The main ones are:

* Fist Strikes. (Sun Fist, Dragon Head, Phoenix Eye and Leopard Paw)

* Palm Strikes. (Tile Shattering, Yin/Yang, Wil?low Leaf and Hurricane Palm).

* Finger Strikes. (Flying Fingers, Immortal Pointing the Way, Twin Dragons, Tiger Claw, Eagle Claw, Dragon Claw, Rat Claw and Crab Claw).

* Back Fist Strike. (These tend to be follow?through rather than the ’snap’ versions).

* Bottom Fist Strike. (Iron Hammer equates to the Japanese tettsui technique).

* Forearm Strikes. (This is used for smashing, sweeping blows of great power).

* Elbow Strikes. (This is generally used in a very flexible manner using multiple strikes).

* Shoulder Strikes. (Used for close-in work, of?ten to propel an opponent out into punch?ing range).

As you can see, there is an emphasis on tightly targetted use of a specialised hand formation in many cases. It is not enough merely to lash out in the hopes of an effective strike. In a ring situation, the “when in doubt, lash out” tactic may gain you points, but in the street it will be ineffective, unless you are lucky enough to impact on a vital point. A precise, surgi?cal strike or kick into one of your opponent’s vital or weak targets is needed and your combinations should be struc?tured with this in mind.

Martialarm System Technological Achievements

1. Revolutionised Martial Arts thinking and design of “Formula Fighting” or “Martial Arts by Numbers” that allows pre-emptive attack - a much faster system than the conventional “Reactionary Response” to attack.

2. Development and pioneered Martial Science - a system which enables practitioner of all styles to evaluate and modify current technologies to improve efficiency and allow comparisons with proof of technologies, concepts and technologies.

3. Developed the following technologies -

a. Sightless combat
b. Smart weapons systems
c. Stealth weapons systems
d. Fire-and-forget systems
e. Broken rhythm energy
f. Plyometrics applications
g. U.F.O. motions
h. Counter error programs
i. Convert errors into attack
j. Selective automatic targetting

The Three Cs - Capability - Control - Confidence

Certainty in containing the opponent by a huge technological edge and a super tough body and mind.

1. Capabilities - Current martial arts technologies have been transcended by total control in that it is a martial science based on failproof concepts.

2. Control - Allows total control of the opponents capabilities making him defensively impotent. Multi functional applications in everyday life as well as in self defense.

3. Confidence - The small, the unco-ordinated, the disabled and also the best and brightest will gain in self belief through this training.

Martialarm Martial Science Offers

Attack systems that cant be blocked. A shield that cant be breached. Body toughening, Formula fighting, Stealth and U.F.O weapons including the Nukes. Mind freeze technology that shuts the opponent down. 3Cs Capabilities and Control bring about Confidence.

Martialarm Martial Science Concepts

1. Traditional Martial Arts - Animal styles or based on kata and ritualised.
2. Acclectic Martial Arts - Collection of what works for the individual into a new style.
3. Designer Martial Arts - Only the usable of conscious mind, scientific and repeatable.

The Martialarm Combat Training Partner

In a martial arts career you can occationally find your self with no school to go to or no one to train with and so out of neccessity the martialarm solo training partner was born. The Martialarm is a Martial Arts training machine used to develop the entry and trapping skills of any martial arts system. It is designed to actually test any techniques so to improve the ability to trap and control your opponents hands and arms. This can be done because the Martialarm moves and reacts like a real opponent. The Martialarm moves and twists up, down, left and right just like a real opponent would - so it can spring forward and it does strike back!.

For more information about the martialarm wooden dummy training machine and martial arts news visit http://www.martialarm.com

About the Author

This article was submitted by P. Sundbye who has been training in various martialarts for the last 11 years including Wing Chun Kung Fu, Aikido, Tong Long and the Lee Total Control system.<br />
<br />
For more information and martial arts news visit http://www.martialarm.com<br />
<br />
<br />
http://www.martialarm.com/history/what-is-karate.html

The UFC’s Purchase Of The WFA Is Great News For MMA Fight Fans
I think the UFC, Ultimate Fighting Championship) is going to get a most welcomed shot in the arm, courtesy of the recently purchased WFA (World Fighting Alliance).

Improving Your Instincts, Strength And Motor Skills By Doing Bo Staff Exercises
Doing simple bo staff exercises can have you swinging, twirling, striking and defending like a pro in no time.

Tai Chi Chuan - General Background
As a martial art, Tai chi chuan works on a number of levels, but the principal aim is to teach practitioners to relax and become fluid in their movements. This allows for smoother actions and quicker response times. The objective is for self-defence to become a reflexive action rather than a repetition of technique. There is a variety of sensitivity exercises which allow the practitioner to adapt instantly to an opponent and to react in the most appropriate manner. Incoming force will, typically, be diverted, however slightly, and the corresponding opening in the opponent’s defence exploited.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Custom Silicone Wristbands, Rubber Bracelets, & Promotional Products Company Announces New Hire
CAS Enterprises, LLC announced today the hiring of Nick Norris as its new Sales & Marketing Manager. Clark Swihart, president of CAS, said, "Nick has several years of managerial, sales, and marketing experience. We are fortunate to have access to his wealth of knowledge and expertise." Nick will initially concentrate on CAS Enterprises' flagship website, www.TheAwristocrat.com. (PRWeb Apr 26, 2007)

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Jiu Jitsu Legend Royce Gracie Joins Bodog Fight: Costa Rica Combat
Bodog Fight: Costa Rica Combat debuted Tuesday, April 17th at 11 p.m. / 10 p.m. Central on ION Television. (PRWeb Apr 18, 2007)

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Ten Things You Should Know about Martial Arts Summer Camps for Kids

Would you like to see your child gain self-confidence, learn goal setting skills, concentrate, gain self-discipline, and acquire life skills that he or she will have for a lifetime? Of course you do; we all want the best for our children.

A Martial Arts Summer Camp is a complete success enhancement program for your child, which will challenge his or her mind and body. Here are just ten of the many benefits you can expect your child to receive in just one summer.

Concentration: Your child will learn to increase his or her attention span. Focusing is major problem for children; especially for boys, but martial arts are completely filled with concentration drills.

Stress Management: Kids are taught how to constructively deal with stress. Just by getting some physical activity, behavior will improve when children come home. Without recess and physical education, children have a lot of “bottled up” energy.

Self-Discipline: Your child is taught how to set priorities and get ahead. Children have to multi-task, but martial arts training will give them perseverance and the ability to prioritize their daily lives for success.

Respect: Your child will demonstrate courtesy and respect at home. How? Once he or she practices courtesy and respect all day - this habit will be carried home.

Anger Management: We provide a safe outlet for dealing with anger. Kicking and punching bags is very safe, if supervised by a qualified martial arts instructor. This allows kids to “blow off some steam,” without hurting themselves.

Motivation: Your child will be inspired to achieve. Positive energy is rampant, within a martial arts setting, and this inspires children to excel in every aspect of their lives. As you already know, motivation is what turns dreamers into achievers.

Self-Defense: Every child will learn physical and non-physical self defense. As a by-product of attending a martial arts intensive, such as a kid’s summer camp, every child can adequately protect him or herself.

Total Fitness: Children receive a complete workout every day they attend a martial arts summer camp. It is not natural for children to sit in front of a television set all day. It is much healthier for them to run, kick, jump, and yell. This also helps them sleep better, too.

Time Management: Your child will learn many time saving drills that make your life easier. Children need to have structure and order gently reinforced, so that it can be ingrained within their consciousness.

Goal Setting: This is contagious in a Martial Arts atmosphere. When your child earns his or her first colored belt, he or she realizes goals by continually putting forth effort. This skill is also applied to an academic setting for maximum success.

These are ten of the many life skills your child, will gain from a Martial Arts Summer Camp.

? Copyright 2006 - Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

About the Author

Paul Jerard is director of Yoga teacher training at Aura in RI. He’s a master instructor of martial arts and Yoga. He teaches that along with fitness. He wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students who want to be a teacher.
http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html

Former WWE Wrestling Legend and Actor Kevin Nash Muscles Up for a Future Outside the Ring
At age 47, former WWE legend Kevin Nash finds himself at a crossroads. Still a mainstay for TNA (Total Nonstop Action) Wrestling, where he makes frequent ring appearances, Nash can hear Hollywood calling. Amazingly though, he's never been in better shape. With the help of a precision diet regimen anchored by ProSource Supreme Protein bars and testosterone enhancement courtesy of ProSource AndroTest, Nash is ready for an exciting second act. (PRWeb Apr 18, 2007)

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Popularity: unranked [?]

The UFC’s Purchase Of The WFA Is Great News For MMA Fight Fans
I think the UFC, Ultimate Fighting Championship) is going to get a most welcomed shot in the arm, courtesy of the recently purchased WFA (World Fighting Alliance).

Martial Arts Training for Real Self-Defense: Making Sense of Chaos

I once had a talk with a student who pointed out the almost insane notion that anyone could think that they could use a preset string of moves (known as a kata, pronounced kah-tah) to handle something as chaotic as a fight. He said it made no sense to him how any master, who really knew what he was talking about, could pass down “the answer” to such an unknown as a fight.

He’s right. And yet, day after day, in countless schools, training centers, police departments, and military units around the world, there are those who believe that what they are learning will be exactly what they need to win, should they ever be attacked.

Can you imagine, for those of you who have yet to be accosted, what it feels like inside the heart of an attack? I mean, what do you know about the situation that you haven’t been in yet?

Unless you’re clairvoyant and can see into the future - in which case you wouldn’t need self-defense training because you would either…

1) know what to avoid, or…

2) know you weren’t going to survive -

There is a plethora of things that you don’t, and can’t possibly, know about this situation that hasn’t happened yet. Things like:

A) Where you will be attacked (parking lot, building, your car, at-home in-bed, etc.)

B) Who your attacker will be

C) How many assailant’s you will face

D) Whether or not there are any weapons involved (and what type, if any)

E) How you will be attacked

F) What you’ll be wearing or carrying that could help or hinder you, and…

G) Much, much more!

So, how can anyone think that a preset string of moves will be of any use to them in an actual, real-world, attack? Better still, why would they have been passed down for hundreds of years if they couldn’t help?

Well, the short of it, based on my own research, is this. There are two schools of thought when it comes to answering this question. The first is the idea that says…

…”we must make sure that warriors have a way to practice during periods of peace so that they’ll be ready for the next war. So, what we’ll do is string some basics together in a way that they can rely on repetitive practice to stay ready.”

The other so-called “school-of-thought” said, “Let’s look at the most common attacks that we, with our current set of circumstances, will have to deal with. Then, we’ll design a set of example techniques - “fight-scenarios if-you-will - that contain the essence or idea of what could be done in a situation like that. We’ll convey the principles and concepts through techniques that are not so-much “set-in-stone” as they are representations of these principles in action.”

One school recognized the need to practice the basic mechanics - the “brand” of punching, kicking, etc. (the “secrets”) - of their art when there wasn’t a war going on. In fact, most schools of training in Japan are still passed on this way. The school allows the student’s own intuitive and perceptual powers to determine his or her own level of understanding.

However, for many of these martial systems, the techniques ARE the art. That means that they represent that which makes a particular lineage’s techniques and “style” unique among all others. It is not generally acceptable to change the techniques for any reason, as in the case of my friend that I talked about earlier.

The other school recognized that there is an infinite number of combinations if we were to just focus on the mechanics alone. They also recognized that “what” you do is not nearly as important as “when”, “why,” “how,” and under what circumstances you would do anything. Granted, this was more difficult to understand than the basic step-by-step method (which this school DID employ by-the-way), but the idea was that, the principles were much more important than the techniques if one were to win in a conflict.

While the step-by-step, preset model approach does teach students how to apply techniques, from my perspective and experience with having to deal with violent attackers in real-world self-defense situations, it is the later approach - the focus on workable principles and concepts for controlling the situation - that provides the real keys to mastery.

But, it’s not martial arts mastery - the mastery of technique - that I’m talking about. But rather the ability to master and control…

Your Environment

Your Attacker’s Perceptions

The Space and Distance within the fight

The Assailant’s Options

And much Much MORE!

…that allows you to control the very flow of the situation, from moment-to-moment, as it unfolds.

It is this grander-view of the reality of the situation that allows the true martial arts master - the strategic warrior commander, to see beyond the mere punching, kicking, or slashing of the attacker. It is the view that allows us to make sense out of the chaos that is a fight and…

…appear to be magicians and wizards to others with less understanding of the workings of nature and the enlightened wisdom of the trained martial master.

About the Author

Read more like this by subscribing to the author’s newsletter here For seminar & media requests, call (570) 988-2228 or go to his website at www.warrior-concepts-online.com

The True Measure of Toughness Occurs When You Are Coming Back From an Injury
When it comes to the sport of grappling and MMA, being tough is not an option - it is a prerequisite! You are not going to step on the mat, in the ring or in the Octagon if your heart pumps red pudding instead of blood.

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‘The Colonel’ Joins BodogFight Commentary Team
One of the most famous voices in sports broadcasting is joining the BodogFight family. (PRWeb Apr 4, 2007)

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Martial Arts Management: Is Your Dojo Thriving or Just Surviving?

Is your dojo a business, a lifestyle, a hobby, a temple, a recreation center, or a mixture of these things?

This is a fundamental question that every dojo needs to answer, and you really should highlight one or two things and focus on improving them.

All too often dojo owners and managers are unclear about their aspirations and it not only confuses everyone but it leads to ultimate dissatisfaction and to failure.

For example, I am aware of a martial arts dojo that offers excellent training but because the sensei has been hopelessly ambivalent about its missions, the organization has always been beset by financial troubles.

In most of his writings this leader has derided money, often admitting he is ?not a businessman? and that business practices defile the purity of the martial arts.

If you despise money, chances are very good that you?re going to scare it away.

Through some communications with him I was able to point out this blind spot and he changed his rhetoric, instituted an advisory board, and made it easier for people to support the dojo through donations and participation in fundraisers.

Instead of constantly being on the precipice, he is now on a stronger financial footing and he can focus on being what he is: a great teacher.

Specifically, what can you monitor to determine if your dojo is financially healthy or unhealthy? I believe REFERRALS from existing students are incredibly significant:

(1) They are a reliable indicator that your current students are pleased with their instruction. Are they bringing in their friends and family on a regular basis? If not, either they falsely believe the dojo doesn?t need to enlarge its base, or they aren?t convinced it is a place for everyone.

(2) Referrals are ?free.? Your marketing costs are nil when someone brings a friend to the dojo.

(3) Referrals introduce you to new networks. That person who is brought in belongs to several new groups that can help you to grow, that you wouldn?t tap without a personal introduction.

Make it known to your students that the dojo is interested in thriving and they can help by inviting friends to observe a class. Devise brief demonstration programs for visitors in which they can participate that will show them a few nifty techniques.

St. Augustine said ?There is no joy in heaven over empty churches,? and the same thought pertains to dojos.

Xyience Sets High Goals For ‘07 and ‘08
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Martial Arts Expert, Lieutenant X, Offers Free Tips on How to Kick Tony Soprano Into Next Season
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Popularity: unranked [?]

The role of nutrition in martial arts, police, military personnel

Copyright 2005 Internet Publications

For a considerable amount of time, nutrition has not played a prominent role in the life of many martial artists, police, and military personnel as a means of improving performance. Top athletes are always looking for an edge. Although the martial arts are more of a way of life and a life style than a sport per se, the needs of the martial artist are the same as that of the elite athlete.

Mental aspects not withstanding (i.e. mental awareness, strategy, cunning, etc.), the need for speed, agility, strength, flexibility, and the ability to recuperate from tough workouts (and unforgiving sparing partners) is paramount to the success of athletes and martial artists alike. Police and military personnel can also have unique requirements that require them to perform at peak physical and or psychological levels.

Over the past decade our knowledge of sports nutrition has evolved into a science that has swept the athletic world and has been partially responsible for the ever increasing numbers of athletes who are pushing the envelope of human ability and performance. Although a handful of the worlds top martial artists, police, and elite military units have taken advantage of the ‘cutting edge’ nutrition being used by top athletes, the majority of these communities has not taken advantage of the new science of sports nutrition.

The advantage of improving one’s performance through nutrition and correct supplementation is obvious for the athlete, but what about the martial artist? Obviously technique, form, and knowledge of one’s chosen martial art is essential to the mastery of that art, but what if the person, regardless of skill level, becomes a little faster, stronger, and able to resist and repair from injuries and training better?

Will they not be an improved version of their former self? Of course they will! Proper nutrition can make the martial artist, as it has for so many of today’s top athletes, an improved and potentially more accomplished practitioner of their art, plain and simple. If a policeman is able to stay alert, has more endurance or strength, etc., will he/she not have an added advantage to the job? Of course.. The benefits to the soldier are obvious. Bottom line? To not take advantage of the science of nutrition and supplementation, is to short change the martial artists, police, and military personnel.

As a trainer for many athletes from various sports, police, and, military personnel, and the author of numerous articles on sports nutrition and training, I have come to a few general guidelines that should be of considerable help and interest to the martial artist, police, etc. who want to improve both health and performance. Though nutrition is a complex topic, I have devised a basic guide to the major and minor nutrients that should be helpful to the martial artist, police, and athlete alike who are trying to make food and nutrient choices. Of course this guide is in no way total or complete, and many individual differences may apply, but as a basic guide to examining these nutrients, it could give you the edge you have been looking for.

Protein

Proteins are made up of amino acids which are the structural units of the protein molecule. There are approximately 20 amino acids. Eight of them are considered ‘essential’ because the human body cannot make them on its own - which is the definition of an essential nutrient. Link a few amino acids together and you get a peptide. Link a bunch of peptides together and you get a protein. The shape of the individual amino acids (and resulting proteins) is unique and highly specific, so I won’t go into great detail about it here.

Suffice it to say, proteins are an essential part of virtually every function in our body from the muscles, to certain hormones, to our immune system(s) and a whole lot more. In particular, the amino acids known as the ‘branched chain’ amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, and valine) and the amino acid L-glutamine are of particular interest to active people as they are anti-catabolic (muscle sparing) and immune enhancing, to name only a few functions and benefits of these particular amino acids.

Though the RDA for protein is generally sufficient for couch potatoes (with some debate) the majority of athletes and/or highly active people will benefit from higher intakes of high quality proteins. Proteins with the highest biological value (BV) are the proteins that should constitute the majority of the active person’s diet, as they are superior for maintaining positive nitrogen balance, reducing recuperation time from workouts, improving immune function, etc.

Whey protein concentrate (WPC) and isolates (WPI) have the highest BV of any protein, is almost 50% branched chain amino acids, and is high in L-glutamine, which is why I recommend several servings a day of WPC/WPI to all the athletes/martial artists/police I work with.

There are several brands of WPC/WPI on the market. Other high quality proteins such as skinless chicken, fish, eggs, soy, and lean red meats, have relatively high BV values and are good proteins. Another point that is important to know, the higher quality the protein, the less the person has to eat and this allows the person to keep total calories lower by sticking to these high BV proteins.

For a person who is active in the martial arts, has a busy job, and probably does some weight lifting and/or aerobics, an intake of .7 ? .8 grams of protein per pound of lean body weight is what I have generally recommended. For high level bodybuilders and competitive distance athletes, the protein intake will be higher, approximately 1g of protein per lb /bodyweight being the most common.

In certain situations, amino acid supplementation is useful, but most people will have no problem getting what they need by eating plenty of high quality protein foods. Low grade, high fat, preservative loaded, protein foods such as luncheon meats, hot dogs, etc., should be avoided for obvious reasons.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are made primarily of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms that cycle into a ring. They can be ’simple’ or ‘complex’ depending on the number of rings that are hooked together and the way the carbohydrate effects blood sugar (1). Though the rings can be slightly different in shape, their common theme is the ring structure. Similar to amino acids that make up proteins, when you link the simple units (the sugars) together you get carbohydrates with different properties.

As most people know, carbohydrates are a primary source of energy for the body. The best type of carbohydrates to eat are those that are high in fiber, vitamins, and minerals.

Though foods such as pasta, breads, and white rice are considered ‘complex’ they are highly processed foods, totally inadequate in fiber, vitamins, and minerals and should not make up a high percentage of a persons carbohydrate intake. Though these foods are often fortified with certain vitamins, in my opinion this does not truly replace what is lost during processing, not to mention the many nutrients that are not replaced.

Americans are notoriously low eaters of fiber, and heavily processed foods mentioned above do nothing to correct this deficit. High fiber carbohydrate foods such as brown rice, beans, lentils, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, and many others, are the preferred carbohydrate foods for health, performance, steady blood sugar levels, and reduced bodyfat levels.

Though the high carbohydrate/low fat diet is all the rage these days, it has not been in my experience the optimal diet for the many athletes, martial artists, and ?normal? people I have worked with (see fats below). Data continues to support the fact that high carb low fat diets are not optimal for either health for weight loss. Eating too much of anything, including carbohydrates, will make one fat (too bad the makers of non-fat foods fail to tell you this) and cause a host of other ills I don’t have the space here to cover.

There are many researchers, books, and studies using both animals and humans that seriously questions the high carbohydrate/low fat diet as the optimal diet for health and performance. Two grams per pound of lean bodyweight of carbohydrates is more than sufficient to fuel the energy needs of most athletes if other aspects of their diet is adequate (i.e. correct use and amounts of certain fats and proteins). And, as mentioned previously, the source of those carbohydrates is of paramount importance.

Fats

The very word sends a shiver down the back of the leanest person. There is not a more misunderstood nutrient in all of nutrition than fats. Many people know there are big differences in how various carbohydrates effect the body and some people even know that different proteins have different properties, but ‘a fat is a fat, no’? is what the majority of people would say if you asked them about this much maligned nutrient.

Fats have just as many biochemical differences in the human body as do carbohydrates and proteins, and thus have just as many different effects on the body that range from very good to very bad. It really depends on the type and amount of fat(s) we eat(2). Americans tend to get their dietary fats from saturated fats, rancid fats, and highly processed fats ( which contain by products such as trans fatty acids), thus giving fats a bad name.

As mentioned earlier, an essential nutrient is anything the human body cannot manufacture on its own and must be obtained from the diet, or the person will become sick and/or perish if the nutritional deficit is not corrected. We know there are a multitude of vitamins and minerals, eight amino acids, and two types of fats that are considered essential nutrients for life itself to continue.

You should be aware that there is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate, but that’s a whole other story. The two fats that are known to be essential to health are Linoleic acid (LA) which is an Omega-6 fatty acid and Alpha-linolenic acid (LNA) which is an Omega-3 fatty acid. Both of these fats can be found in various foods that have not been heavily processed.

These two fats are highly sensitive and reactive to heat, light, and oxygen (i.e. they go bad quickly), and are totally ruined or lost during the processing of our foods. The reason poly -unsaturated vegetable oils that line the shelves of most super markets can sit there for years on end is because they have been heated, deodorized, and generally processed to the point that they are the nutritional equivalent of white bread and table sugar. I recommend people avoid those oils.

Because of all the fat bashing by the popular media and health professionals who should know better, most people have come away thinking that all fat is bad and serves no other purpose than to make our hips and stomach wider while ruining our health. Nothing could be further from the truth. The membrane that surrounds every single cell in your body, the sheath around nerves, various hormones, prostaglandins, and countless other parts of the body (especially the brain) depend on the dietary intake of the right fats.

The importance of the essential fatty acids for health and performance cannot be understated. It is true that certain fats, such as, saturated fats, rancid fats, and trans fatty acids (found in margarine, Crisco, and other products), can cause numerous health problems from heart disease to cancer and insulin resistance, to name only a few ills of a diet high in the wrong types of fat.

However, the essential fatty acids (especially the Omega-3 fatty acids) are anti-lipolytic (stop fat storage), anti-catabolic (stop the break down of muscle tissue), increase metabolic rate and beta oxidation (burn calories/increase fat burning), improve insulin sensitivity, reduce the chances of heart diseases, and a whole lot more (3).

Though early research told us that we need a bit more LA (the Omega-6 fatty acid) than LNA (the Omega-3 fatty acid) in our diet, we find in practice that a diet containing higher amounts of Omega-3 fatty acids (LNA) gets the best results in health, bodyfat levels, and performance.

The richest source of the Omega-3 fatty acid LNA is Flax oil, which also contains a small amount of the Omega-6 oil LA (4). Flax oil can be found in the refrigerated section of any good health food store and is derived from the careful processing of flax seeds (5). As a nutritional consultant to various athletes, I have used flax oil with many of the country’s top bodybuilders (a group of athletes notoriously fearful of eating fat) to reduce their bodyfat levels and improve their performance and health. Two/three tablespoons a day over a salad, taken straight, or in a protein drink does the trick (6).

Another major source of Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in deep water cold fish such as sardines, mackerel, and salmon (7), and I recommend that people eat two to three servings of these fish per week. Good sources of LA are unprocessed vegetable oils such as safflower, sunflower, sesame, and many other oils found in health food stores.

Fats to avoid are highly processed vegetable oils and other processed vegetable products (such as margarine), rancid fats, and to a lesser degree, saturated fats. The key to health and performance is a proper balance of essential fatty acids (LNA and LA), mono unsaturated oils (found in olive oil, avocados, etc.), and small amounts of saturated fats found in lean meats and other sources combined with the right carbohydrates and proteins.

Vitamins/Minerals

Obviously a full description of every vitamin and mineral and all their functions would take several large text books, so I won’t even attempt it here. A good multi vitamin is an insurance plan to make sure we get all the major vitamins and minerals that for what ever reason we failed to get from our food on any given day.

There is not a single cell in our entire body that does not require the use, or interaction with, some vitamin, mineral, or biological function that is dependent on the above nutrients in adequate amounts. If you think we get all the vitamins and minerals we need from our highly processed food supply (as some health professionals maintain), then I have a bridge in Brooklyn I would like to sell you. Some (but not all) nutritionists and other health related professionals will often say something like ‘vitamins supplements just cause expensive urine’.

The last time I checked, chemo therapy, heart bypass operations, and hundreds of other medical treatments cost considerably more than the average multi vitamin. If the intake of vitamins were to prevent any major disease in say one out of a 100,000 people, it would have been worth every cent in my book. In my opinion, the correct use of vitamins, minerals, herbs, essential fatty acids, and many other nutritional based compounds, is the best route to optimal health and performance. Any major brand of multi vitamin from such manufacturers as Twin Lab, Solgar, or Nature’s Best, to name only a few good brands, would be fine.

Anti - oxidants

‘Anti-oxidants’ and ‘free radicals’ are the hot buzz words these days on television news shows, news paper articles, and magazine features. Though scientists in the health and nutritional fields have known about them for decades, they have recently been getting a lot of attention by mainstream media and more open minded medical researchers.

Anti-oxidants are a special class of vitamins and other non vitamin compounds that neutralize free radicals before they can damage cells in our body. What is a free radical? A free radical is a highly reactive molecular fragment that has a single unpaired electron. The unpaired electron wants to ?pair up? with another electron.

The free radical will steal this electron from virtually anything it comes in contact with, including our cells. This reaction, if left unchecked, leads to a free radical chain reaction and damage to various parts of the cell depending on where it takes place. An anti-oxidant can donate an electron without itself becoming a free radical and thus can break the chain of events leading to an uncontrolled free radical chain reaction (8).

Free radical pathology is now believed to be linked to diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and dozens of other afflictions. Without going into a long (and boring) biochemical explanation, there are many things that cause free radicals to be released, such as smoking, exposure to various toxins found in air, food and water, sickness, exercise, and stress in general.

Anti-oxidants such as vitamin E and C and other compounds such as selenium, N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), and proanthocyanidins (derived from grape seed extract), to mention a few, will help recuperation from tough workouts, improve immunity, possibly prevent certain diseases, and improve your health in so many different ways it would take another article to explain. A good anti-oxidant formula made by any one of the brands I mentioned previously, should be added to the diet in addition to the multi- vitamin. Whey proteins can also greatly improve anti oxidants status and is recommended.

Sports Supplements:

The topic of sports nutrition supplements, such as: androstenedione and other ?andros,? Arginine, Colostrum, CLA, Creatine, Ecdysterone, GH Supplements, Ginseng, HMB, Myostatin Inhibitors and Tribulus, to name just a few, is beyond the scope of this article. Each supplement has its potential uses, dawbacks, doses and other variables that need to be examoned on an indavidual basis. People in the martial arts, law enforecement, or military that want to understand these supplements ; whether or not they are worth useing, doses, types, etc., should consider reading my ebook on the topic of sports nutrition supplements, nutrition, and training called Muscle Building Nutrition.

Conclusion

The above list of foods and supplements is in no way complete or the entire picture when it comes to additional ways the martial artist, police, and military personnel can improve his or her health, strength, bodyfat levels, and recuperative abilities. However, the information presented here can make for a foundation of health and performance that could add a considerable edge for those who seeks it.

(1)The way a carbohydrate effects blood sugar after it is eaten is known as the glycemic response. The glycemic index (GI) is a list of foods and how they effect blood sugar. Some foods we think of as ‘complex’ actually raise blood sugar much faster than many foods we think of as ’simple’.

(2) The health problems related to fats is are far more complex than most people appreciate. The pathology of disease(s) caused by high fat intakes of the wrong types of fat is a complex interaction between certain fats, carbohydrates, a lack of certain vitamins and other nutrients, free radical/anti-oxidant mechanisms, and other factors that are poorly understood.

(3) For more information on the many benefits of the essential fatty acids and to find out more information about fats and health in general, read ?Fats the Heal fats that Kill? by Dr. Udo Erasmus published by Alive books.

(4) LNA and LA are in a 4:1 ratio in flax oil.

(5) Like fresh eggs, milk, meat, etc, all fresh unprocessed oils will spoil (go rancid) if not refrigerated constantly and eaten shortly after opening the bottle.

(6) All highly unsaturated oils, including flax, should NEVER be used to cook with as this will change the structure of theses oils making them toxic and of little use for the purpose they are intended for.

(7) The ‘fish oils’ DHA and EPA can be formed in the human body from LNA by desaturase enzymes.

(8) It is important to note that free radical reactions are a normal and essential part of metabolism. It is the uncontrolled free radical chain reactions that we are concerned with.

by William D. Brink

See more excellent bodybuilding, fat loss, and sports nutrition articles from Will Brink here: http://www.brinkzone.com/onlinearticles.htmlAnd see Will’s other websites here:http://www.dietsupplementsreview.comhttp://www.musclebuildingguide.com

Deadline Approaches for Checkered Flag Challenge Fantasy Auto Racing Game
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True Martial Arts and the Job of a Warrior

The martial arts and the concept of self-protection is much more than mere punching and kicking, or the development of skill with a weapon. Just as a martial artist or, in the grander sense, a warrior-protector, in engaged in much more than the mere study of violence and violent methods.

This is just as so now as it has been for the past several thousand years. Regardless of the term we use to describe this person…

…knight…

…champion…

…hero, etc…

The warrior is one who understands that his job or purpose is not about killing, fighting, or dying…

…it’s about living.

The true warrior understands that, while there is a need for those who can protect themselves and others from the hatred and animosity of others, ultimately these skills are to be used to insure the harmonious continuation of the highest achievements of mankind: Love, Peace, & the successful achievement of one’s Dreams.

At Warrior Concepts International, students are required to study and reflect so that they might come to an understanding of the difference between a…

Fighter

Soldier, and a…

Warrior

How about you? What do you think, if anything, makes these three types of combatants, different?

Certainly, if we were to look up any one of theses words in a dictionary or thesaurus, it’s quite likely that we’d find one or both of the other two words in the definition.

It cannot be argued that each one fights. In fact, if we were to look only at the actions and techniques used when each is engaged in combat, it would be difficult to tell the difference between them. But…

…there is a difference.

Quite a few actually but, for now, let’s take a look at a primary, philosophical difference - the “reason” that each chooses to fight.

THE DIFFERENCE IS IN THE INTENTION AND MOTIVATION - NOT IN THE DEED

The Fighter fights for reward. There is a payoff of some kind for this individual. He or she is either seeking to attain something (fame, money, etc.), or they seek to prevent these things from being taken from them.

The Soldier fights because it is his job. Certainly, there may indeed be philosophical reasons behind his decision to fight (family, community, country), but the soldier is a minion of the State. He or she has absolutely no choice as to who the “enemy” will be or who they are protecting us from.

The Warrior, on the other hand, fights to restore Peace. He fights because there is no other choice and does so to defend something (philosophy, family, etc.) outside of himself. And, when he fights, it is with an enemy of his own choosing and never for selfish, self-serving reasons.

The warrior, though often called upon to engage in conflict using the same methods as that of mere fighters and soldiers, does so, not for the sake of conflict, but because all else has failed and he must resort to violent conflict to stop it.

About the Author

Read more like this by subscribing to the author’s newsletter here For seminar & media requests, call (570) 988-2228 or go to his website at www.warrior-concepts-online.com

Former WWE Wrestling Legend and Actor Kevin Nash Muscles Up for a Future Outside the Ring
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