There are a lot of opinions of whether Kata (or forms) and traditional martial arts are worth practicing… particularly these days with the MMA, Muay Thai, BJJ and other combat sports taking the limelight. Many are in the camp of thinking that traditional martial arts training, and particularly Kata training (Kata = forms or patterns used […]
What does Karate mean?
A short note on the meaning of the word “Karate”. There’s this pervading thought that the word Karate being a homonym… a word that’s spelled the same but means two different things. Karate is spelled with two letters, Kara (空 or 唐) and Te (手). The latter character, Te (手), remains a constant in both […]
Self-Defense Techniques of Kudo (Daido Juku)
(click on the square to start the video) — Being a martial artist focused on self-preservation aspects, I’m always interested in seeing other people’s take on self-defense techniques. Just ran across this video of a self-defense demonstration in Sendai, Japan by Kudo (Daido-juku) practitioners. I like that they do the techniques wearing some basic protective […]
Use of Connection in Makotokai Karate
Interesting video on the use of connection and structure in Makotokai Karate. Makotokai Karate is a relatively new system of Karate established in 2004 by Paolo Bolaffio sensei. For more info on the Makotokai, check out their website: http://www.makotokai.com/