Martial arts discussion thread

[Bartrim]

Seemingly simple hits can be deceptively devastating, especially with brain damage/head trauma. When Samurai were disbanded during the Meiji Period, many former Samurai - now forbidden to carry metal swords - actually scored more kills using wooden swords (bokken/bokuto). This was because when they used metal swords they would often dismember their opponents, but leave them alive (albeit as amputees), whereas seemingly "less harmful" hits with bokken often dealt lethal internal damage.

But we aren't talking about Samurai killing people here. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has boxing experience on the forum and I can tell you that shot by Green wouldn't of knocked me out. I put this in this thread as I didn't think it deserved it's own thread. So from a competitive fighting point of view that fight was a farce.

[GoktimusPrime]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who has boxing experience on the forum and I can tell you that shot by Green wouldn't of knocked me out. I put this in this thread as I didn't think it deserved it's own thread. So from a competitive fighting point of view that fight was a farce.

From a sport fighting POV I agree.

TBH this thread is just called the "Martial Arts Discussion Thread", and there are different kinds of martial arts, which I see as:
+ Traditional (used for fighting, self defence)
+ Sport (used for competitive sport fighting)
+ Health (used purely for maintaining fitness/health, e.g. non-combative Tai Chi)

While my personal preference is for traditional martial arts - and up till now it has been the predominant focus of this thread - I've never specifically stated that this thread was exclusively for traditional martial arts. So I think it's only fair that all kinds of fighting/martial arts be accepted here, as it wouldn't be fair for me to allow my personal bias to stop other people from talking about other kinds of fighting arts.

And there have been some genuinely good fighters produced from non-traditional arts. I've often said that we could take Bruce Lee and Mohammed Ali in their primes and stick them in a cage, I'd put my money on Ali. Bruce Lee was a rather ordinary fighter whereas Mohammed Ali was exceptional - and ironically had a better understanding of Yin and Yang than a lot of martial artists I've seen. Ali knew how to combine being hard and soft and how to execute it into a connective flow, or as he called it, "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee."

[GoktimusPrime]

Oh yeah, other kinds of martial arts I neglected to mention include:
+ Dance/performance martial arts, e.g. Capoeira, Modern Wushu etc.
+ Historical martial arts - by this I mean martial arts primarily studied for historical reasons and unlike other traditional martial arts, aren't appliable for modern day civilian self defence. e.g. Spanish Rapier Brawling, European Broadsword, Kenjutsu, Kobudo, Kyudo etc. Sports that have evolved from historical weapon arts (e.g. fencing, modern archery etc.) should fall under the "Sport" category.

Again, while these aren't necessarily my cups of tea, I would accept discussions about any of these sorts of martial arts here.

[Bartrim]

Just about to go to first martial arts lesson at the local KRMAS dojo

http://www.kumiai-ryu.com.au/mainpage.html

I'm pretty nervous

[GoktimusPrime]

I've never heard of Kumiai ryu before. Could you ask for some information about the style's lineage/history? According to the web site it seems to be a blend of various different martial arts and martial sports. I punched "Kumiai ryu" into Google but I couldn't find much information about it (other than from their site and local business listings - I can't find any independent sources of information; I couldn't find anything about Kumiai on Wikipedia).

Without having seen this school or style, I really can't comment about it. But my advice would just be mindful of the old saying, "Jack of all trades, master of none." But anyway, I hope it all goes well -- at the end of the day, as long as you enjoy it and the system works for you then it's all good. Your body will probably be pretty sore for a while now.

[Bartrim]

I've never heard of Kumiai ryu before. Could you ask for some information about the style's lineage/history? According to the web site it seems to be a blend of various different martial arts and martial sports. I punched "Kumiai ryu" into Google but I couldn't find much information about it (other than from their site and local business listings - I can't find any independent sources of information; I couldn't find anything about Kumiai on Wikipedia).

Without having seen this school or style, I really can't comment about it. But my advice would just be mindful of the old saying, "Jack of all trades, master of none." But anyway, I hope it all goes well -- at the end of the day, as long as you enjoy it and the system works for you then it's all good. Your body will probably be pretty sore for a while now.

Hell yes I'm sore today but I enjoyed myself and I'll be going back for more.

It is mainly okinawan karate (I think... sorry I'm only very new at this) but incorporates other martial arts to provide practical self defence techniques. I would like to study a set discipline but given my location my opitions are restricted. (ie: this is the only martial arts class in Ulladulla)

[GoktimusPrime]

It is mainly okinawan karate (I think... sorry I'm only very new at this) but incorporates other martial arts to provide practical self defence techniques.

There are numerous different styles of Okinawan Karate e.g. Gojuryu, Uechiryu etc. I tried Googling for Kumiairyu in Japanese with Google Japan, but I just found results relating to football (soccer)! (O_O)

I would like to study a set discipline but given my location my opitions are restricted. (ie: this is the only martial arts class in Ulladulla)

Yeah fair enough.