Archive for the ‘Karate’ Category
Saturday, November 22nd, 2008
It’s no secret that martial arts has indeed come a long way over the years. Many years ago, Bruce Lee helped the arts become even more famous, when he developed his style of Jeet Kune Do. He participated in several movies, showing the world his speed and finesse. Since then, movies have been a popular way to showcase martial arts skills.
Back in the early 1990s, something known as the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) came along to take things one step further. Even though there have been other competitions similar to the UFC, none of them had the flair and the dedication as UFC did. When it first began, the UFC paired different styles and different weight classes.
The result were exciting fights with varying results. The first ever champion was a man from Brazil named Royce Gracie. Gracie was the first to introduce Brazilian Jui-Jitsu in this way, opening up the eyes of everyone who witness him fight. After the first UFC tournament, Brazilian Jui-Jitsu was instantly viewed as the best martial art. Royce weighed under 200 pounds, and he was completely dominating people nearly 3 times his size.
Gracie would go on to win UFC 2 and 4 as well. He was the most dominating in the sport, and opened the eyes of everyone across the world. In UFC 3, he didn’t lose, although he ran into a very tough fighter who nearly beat him. Gracie came back in UFC 5 for a superfight match up with Ken Shamrock, which would go the distance and end in a draw.
Other fighters have done exceptionally well in the UFC, although none of them had the impact as Royce Gracie. Fighters like Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Oleg Taktarov, Matt Hughes, and Matt Sylivia have also done very well. Matt Hughes is also regarded as one of the best, as he fights in the Welterweight class and is considered pound for pound to be the best fighter in the world.
In the world of MMA (Mixed Martial Arts), the UFC has made a big impact. In the beginning, there were no rules and no judges, just one on one fights until someone either tapped out, got knocked out, or the ref through in the towel. Fighters also fought in a tournament style as well, which took 3 fights to win the championship.
Over the years, there were several changes. The UFC would start with judges after a few years, along with eliminating the tournaments. The fights would eventually go to one on one, which was great for the fans. Although the fights didn’t have time limits in the beginning, they do now. The non title fights are three 5 minute rounds, while the title fights are five 5 minute rounds.
If a fight goes to the judges, the judges decide the winner. There are three judges, which normally change with each different UFC. Judges are there do determine the winner if there is no knockout or submission, while the ref is there to protect the fighters. The referee can stop a fight as well, if a fighter is unable to defend themselves.
With all the changes in the rules of the UFC, it’s only a matter of time before the UFC gains a lot more popularity. It is more popular today than it ever has been, which tells you that martial arts have come a long way. Martial arts is very popular these days, with competitions such as the UFC being one of the most popular sports in the world.
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Tuesday, November 18th, 2008
Anytime an individual decides to learn how to protect themselves, learn self defense, or become a better person, one thing comes to mind – martial arts. Martial arts are very common these days, being practiced all over the world.
The martial arts have been used for many centuries, although they really became famous around the time of Bruce Lee. Bruce invented the style of Jeet Kune Do, which involves very fast strikes with amazing counter defenses. Once people began to see just how fast Bruce Lee could move, they began to look into martial arts and see just how it could benefit them.
Martial arts are broken down into specific styles. The style all depends on where and what you study. A lot of cultures and countries offer martial arts that they originated, developed, and perfected. Brazil offers Brazilian Jui-Jitsu, Japan has Karate, Thailand has Muay Thai, France has Savate, and China has Shaolin. Keep in mind that each style will vary in techniques and what it has to offer you.
Although many people think of martial arts as being just for self defense purposes, this isn’t always the case. Martial arts are used in tournaments and competitions as well, which can include sparring, floor routines, and even block and brick breaking demonstrations. All across the world, there are competitions and chances for fighters to prove themselves and their knowledge.
In general, all martial arts will teach you how to defend yourself and above all else – help you develop self control. Once you begin to study a martial art, you’ll quickly start to develop a much better state of mind. No matter what style of martial art you study, the instructors will drill self control into your head.
Those of you who have a bad temper or just need to learn self control, martial arts can be very beneficial to study. Not only will you learn self control, you’ll also learn how to defend yourself in the most drastic of situations. Self control is very important, as martial arts can be very deadly if they are taught to the wrong person – with the wrong intentions.
Over the last decade, there have been a lot of mainstream competitions that showcase martial arts, such as Extreme Fighting, King of the cage, and the most popular of all, the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship). The UFC has come a long way over the years, sparking interest from all over the world. It pairs stylists from all over the world together, to test their skills and see who is the better fighter.
With the UFC, a lot of people have gotten the wrong idea about martial arts. A martial art is great to learn, although if it works in the UFC, it doesn’t always mean that it will protect you out on the streets. Karate for example, teaching blocking and striking, with little to no emphasis on grappling
techniques. If you get in close, Karate really doesn’t help. With some distance however, Karate can be very devastating.
No matter how you look at it, martial arts can be great to learn if you learn it for the right reasons. Each style will vary in technique and what it has to offer you, which is why you should pick the best style for your needs and what you hope to accomplish. Martial arts can teach you a lot about self defense and yourself – all you have to do is give it a try.
Technorati Tags: bruce lee, Karate, Martial Arts, Tae Kwon Do, ufc
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Monday, November 17th, 2008
Tae Kwon Do is a modern martial art, well known all around the world for it’s lightning fast, often high, spectacular spin kicks. Tae Kwon Do has been around for many years, originally founded in Korea. It translates to “the are of punching and kicking”, or the “art of unarmed combat”.
The martial art Tae Kwon Do has four disciplines – patters, self defense, break test, and sparring. It isn’t just one of these disciplines that make up the art, but a combination of them. All 4 of them are important, especially for those looking to advance in belt ranking. To advance in a belt, there are certain tests that students need to pass.
One of the great things about Tae Kwon Do is the fact that there are no age limits, and it can easily be learned by young children. Children of all ages will quickly learn fast reactions playing games, learn respect, and they will also learn their abilities as well as their disabilities.
The competitions however, are a bit different for children than they are for the adults. Even though the participants will wear full body protection, children can only kick and punch to the body, as no shots to the head are allowed. The competitions in Tae Kwon Do is what makes the art so very dominating. A majority of students that practice this martial art do so because of the competitions.
The competitions can be very exciting to watch, as they can get very competitive. Contrary to what many may think, the competitions aren’t deadly, nor are they anywhere close to being as dangerous as Muay Thai fights. Competitors will wear full protection, including head gear. For adults, kicks to the head are allowed, although a majority of stylists can block them before they make impact.
In order to participate in the competitions, stylists will need to have a certain level of experience. It can take years to become good enough, especially for those who win. Competitions are a great way to learn, especially if there are participating fighters from other areas of the world. The skill of a stylist is a very important factor with the competitions and tournaments. If you have a black belt fighter going against a white belt – the results will normally be quite obvious.
All things aside, the art of Tae Kwon Do is a great martial art. Stylists can learn kicking, punching, blocking, and the spectacular movements the art is known for. Tae Kwon Do is practiced all around the world, meaning that there are just as many places to learn this art as there are Karate. For an art that won’t disappoint – Tae Kwon Do teaches self defense and a whole lot more.
Haynes TKD is a great Louisville area school.
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Thursday, October 16th, 2008
By Duncan Richardson
Speed is not always a means of how quickly you can accelerate your Taekwondo technique into your opponent. In fact, speed is based on many things, other than just raw acceleration of techniques. Today, in our sparring class, I noticed a few students with extra movements in their steps just before they executed their back kick.
Students were doing bag drills and I was analyzing the speed at which they began their kick up to contact on the target. I noticed that some of our fast Taekwondo students were executing their back kicks slower simply because they pivoted or stepped just before they kicked. I call this a “prep.” A “prep” basically means that you are positioning yourself better to execute a good fast kick.
What I teach my Taekwondo students is that they must learn to incorporate the “prep” into their regular stance. For example, if you tend to bend your legs just before you kick, you are kicking slower than you potentially could. Instead, slightly bend your legs to begin with. Make your stance with bent legs so that you basically skip a step in this process.
Another common “prep”, in Taekwondo, is for a student to pivot their foot, then kick. It becomes a 2 step process. In Olympic style competition, this 2 step process is a dead give away to your opponent. I advise our Taekwondo students and competitors to combine the 2 steps into 1 fluid motion. Basically, everything is done at once and the kick is executed faster.
In summary-
1. Pivot supporting foot at the same time you’re kicking, making a 1 step process instead of 2. This goes for all kicks, not just back kicks.
2. Find the body or leg position that you make just before you begin your kick. Then, incorporate that position into your fighting stance so you eliminate a step.
The amount of time you save by eliminating these extra steps, or “preps” are fractions of a second. On the other hand, points are scored in Taekwondo by opportunities that last only a fraction of a second.
Good luck with your training!
Tags: TaeKwonDo, Karate, Louisville
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