Rumble Roller

This is a sensible review of an interesting product:

I think everyone writing on this blog is a big foam roller user, and I know that in St Louis we generally graduate up to using harder rollers and things like softballs to get into the hip rotators. But this looks like it would be a useful intensifier too.

Linked Article: Practice Instruction and Skill Acquisition in Soccer: Challenging Traditions

The link below is a must-read for instructors of any fighting art or sport. Simply replace “soccer” with karate/Judo/MMA etc. and be leave your assumptions at the keyboard.  Of particular interest are “Myths 1-5,” which seem to be standard in the so-called traditional martial arts, yet are not shown to actually improve a learner’s ability to learn a skill and to parameterize (adapt to new/changing conditions) it as needed in relation to performance environments and action outcomes. In fact, common practices such as endless, detailed feedback, blocked repetition and authoritarian instructional styles actually degrade skill learning.

The floor is open for discussion…

Practice Instruction and Skill Acquisition in Soccer: Challenging Traditions

Linked Article: Rifles for Home Defense

James over at the Hellinahandbasket blog often posts very informative discussions on the merits of handguns vs. rifles and shotguns for home and personal defense. Below is a link to his latest look at this topic, which contains some excellent information about the velocity of handgun and rifle rounds and their ability to penetrate the walls of a typical home:

Rifles for Home Defense

Book Review: Michael P. Ghiglieri's The Dark Side of Man: Tracing the Origins of Male Violence”

The Dark Side of Man: Tracing the Origins of Violence
by Michael P. Ghiglieri
Published 1999 by Perseus Books, Reading Massachusetts
ISBN 073820076x

Michael Ghiglieri served in Vietnam and went on to study primatology. Both his combat experience, and his time spent observing chimpanzee troops in the wild inform this dark and deeply troubling work.

This is a wide ranging book and Ghiglieri does not shy away from criticizing people he believes harm our understanding of violence by portraying a world they wish existed, instead of the one that we in fact live in. He is impatient with what he describes as feminist accounts of rape (rape as power), liberal accounts of violence (blaming society rather than the criminal), gun control laws, and socialism. He supports the death penalty by arguing that lex talonis (eye for an eye retributive justice) is both justified and effective at reducing violence in societies. Ghiglieri describes the reproductive advantages of aggression, rape, murder, war and genocide. He seeks to demonstrate why the advantages realized by aggressive, violent males (in all species of the great apes) inevitably lead to magnification of these traits in populations. He is not prepared to let men get by with this sort of behavior however, he devotes the end of his book to a discussion of cooperation and retributive justice as means of inhibiting violence.

Whether or not one shares Ghiglieri’s social or political views, his theory of justice, or believes that his description of violence is accurate or adequately portrayed; this book demands more than comfortable cliches and responses based on naive Rousseauian views of human nature. I recommend this book to anyone interested in deepening their understanding of violence.

Thoughts After Reading Lieutenant Colonel Dave Grossman's Book “On Killing”

On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society

Published 1995, 1996 in Canada by Little Brown and Company

isbn 0316330000-Hard cover

isbn 0316330116-Paperback

There are plenty of reasons to read Grossman’s book “On Killing”; there are historical lessons to be gleaned, there are matters of strategy to be considered, there are lessons for society regarding the importance of honoring the service of members of its military, there are the lessons regarding drilling and conditioning, Grossman’s discussion of PTSD is very insightful, the list could go on and on. This is an incredibly rich book that not only offers the reader profound insight into the psychology and history of killing in combat, and of preparing men to kill in combat; it also examines and reveals the deep humanity at the heart of professional soldiers.

Sometimes I find the referencing of military science and literature by practitioners of the gendai budo a little off-putting; sort of “Vanilla Ice wanna be” like. I probably run the risk of putting myself in this category with this article.

Reading this book I was struck by three areas of potential relevance to the karate or martial arts practitioner:

Book Review: "The Gift of Fear"

The Gift of Fear

by Gavin de Becker

ISBN 10: 0440508835

Do yourself a favor and read this book. I have probably read hundreds of self defense and martial arts related books over the years and only a few stand out for me. This is one of them (although it is not in fact either a MA or a SD book).

The information this book provides regarding assessing threats, responding to your intuitive fears (without resorting to ridiculous claims based on phony mysticism or telepathy), the utility of restraining orders, and so much more is extraordinarily useful. I will be recommending it to all my karate students.  I think it will go further towards keeping them safe than years and years worth of technical training, or reading stacks of martial arts related books.

Last year our group at Washington University hosted an extraordinary seminar by Ellis Amdur called “Grace Under Fire” that dealt with deescalation skills for people facing conflict. The book reminded me of the seminar a great deal, not so much in terms of the content but in the maturity with which the subject of violence was treated.

There have been periods in my life that have been extremely scary and violent. Some of the incidents during those periods still haunt me. The straight forward manor in which de Becker describes even the most horrific crimes  left me feeling less anxious (which seems counterintuitive). The author is not a scare monger,  he carefully distinguishes healthy fear which we should take heed of,  from unhelpful worry.

Link: Listing of historical Karate figures

Visit this page for a concise listing of notable Okinawan karate figures. The information is brief but accurate, includes information on some rather lesser known figures, and there are links to a very useful appendix of Ryukyuan feudal social rankings.

Movie Review: Kuro Obi

I took an evening to watch the 2007 film Kuro Obi this weekend, and my reactions were immediately divided. Within the first 5 minutes, a major point of contention made itself obvious: this film has very little relevance to the real-world history of karate. The film follows a plot that rewrites karate into a historical context that simply did not exist. In doing so, it adds to the heap of disinformation that karate students have to dig through to get past the hyperbole and to the facts of karate history.   But I’ll get back to that in a moment.

In a nutshell, the story plays out in early 1930’s Japan. A woodland dojo of earnest karate students and their elderly sensei is visited by the Kempetai, the dreaded military police of militarized Japan. The Kempetai are on a mission to secure more training locations for their operatives, who will be sent to Manchuoko (the name give to Manchuria after a brutal Japanese invasion). Violence ensues, one student is injured, an officer is killed, the sensei dies, and the Kempetai return later to overtake the dojo and commandeer the students. One student makes the choice to cooperate with the Kempetai for his own goals; one chooses to avoid anything to do with harming others; and the last is left to decide which one will inherit the dead sensei’s frayed old black belt.

Despite its revisionist treatment of karate history, several components of the story are historically accurate. Japan was in a period of militarist expansion during this time period. Manchuoko was an embattled Japanese colony taken by questionable means. The Japanese military and intelligence branches did request karate instruction for certain units. The Kempetai were engaged in all sorts of bad behavior in Japan and occupied countries. Martial arts techniques were revered as semi-mystical methods for dominating barbarous foreigners. But the major unspoken assumption by the film is this: karate sprang up in Japan as a distinctly Japanese martial art with no Okinawan heritage. Maybe the writers didn’t want to clutter up the film with too much background explanation, but this is a major loss of opportunity to correct several decades of Hollywood karate myth making. An opening photo montage shows some Okinawan karate notables, such as those at the 1936 “Meeting of the Masters”  but I can’t help but feel that the lack of further background information serves to imbalance the obvious efforts at authenticity evident in the rest of the film. Instead of helping to restore some understanding of where karate developed and why, the  story reinforces the Japanophilic notions that seek to ignore history- a history that has now been amply researched and made widely available by Higaonna, Cook, Bishop, McCarthy and others.

As far as karate movies go, this one does do a very good job of showcasing some authentic practitioners from the Goju Ryu and Shotokan schools. The aggressive Taikan is played by JKA instructor Tatsuya Naka. His passive counterpart Giryu is played by Akihito Yagi, grandson of Meitoku Yagi (founder of Meibukan Goju Ryu). The fighting is very tasteful as far as special effects go: there are none. No wire flying, no one doing the Matrix limbo, or killing people with one flip kick or fireball. There are a few “movie moments” to be sure, but overall the combat scenes did not make me cringe with embarrassment. It’s interesting to watch the contrast in fighting between Taikan and Yagi. Taikan is purely aggressive, looking to down opponents in dueling encounters that bring heavy sport kumite to mind. Yagi on the other hand refuses to strike for most of the film, and relies almost entirely on defense, accepting several injuries from attackers rather than causing them. Some of the techniques that were chosen for these scenes were taken directly from classical Goju Ryu kata. The Goju predilection for heavy hand-type palm deflections (think Sesan) is put to good use in deterring a few attackers from attacking again. While it is nice to see these kata referenced, the way in which some of the segments were applied can at times leave something to be desired as far as reality goes. During two fights in particular, the characters take the time to assume a kamae from kata, which has nothing at all to do with the fight itself. However, these moments are thankfully few and the “hero pose” shots do not dominate the film.

Because my opinion of the film is somewhat divided, I will refrain from assigning it a grading  based on our usual rating system. I will however, recommend that karate enthusiasts take the opportunity to see some very talented karate practitioners from the Goju Ryu and Shotokan schools side by side, and to see a martial arts movie that is heading in the right direction. Despite my objections to the way in which karate’s origins andlater introduction to Japan is presented, it is an enjoyable film overall.  If your significant other is not generally a fan of chop-socky flicks, this one may turn out to be an exception.

Recommended Book: "Life at the Extremes: The Science of Survival"

If you’ve ever wondered just how much cold a human being can tolerate, or how much heat, water pressure, air pressure, or physical exertion the human frame can safely function in,  take a look at “Life at the Extremes: The Science of Survival” by Frances Ashcroft.  Ashcroft is a professor of physiology at Oxford who also offers first-hand accounts of the subject material, whether that be from climbing Kilimanjaro or soaking in Japanese hot springs. She succeeds in making a scientific topic highly accesible, educational and entertaining.

The book is essentially a survey of what our environmental limits are and how it is that we know them, as well as live within them. The science behind these topics is extremely clear and well presented. Each chapter offers tutorials in the interaction of various human body systems and environmental conditions, ranging from extreme heat and cold to the effects of altitude sickness and the ocean depths at which oxygen becomes toxic. The chapter on human speed and endurance is especially interesting in that it provides an excellent synopsis of muscular function and the related physiological and chemical processes, as well as the narrowing search for hard limits to human athletic performance. While we may never experience some of these situations for ourselves, a knowledge of how, when and why the body fails is invaluable for karate students and teachers alike.

Ashcroft’s explanations are jammed full of related facts from history and the animal world that shed some light on our own limits and adaptations. For example, the relationship between a muscle’s size and the speed at which it can contract tends to limit larger animals from being sprinters. Horses and kangaroos sidestep this issue by utilizing more numerous short muscles to load specialized tendons, providing an elastic rebound on each step, thus reducing energy expenditure and allowing them to move at high speeds. Human beings have a less specialized version of this adaptive mechanism: the calf muscle and Achilles tendon.

If karate is ultimately a process of learning what we can survive, “Life at the Extremes” should be interesting reading indeed.

Book Recommendation:"Kempeitai: Japan's Dreaded Military Police"

“Kempeitai: Japan’s Dreaded Military Police” by Raymond Lamont-Brown
First published in 1998 by Sutton Publishing Limited
ISBN 0750915668

Speculation regarding the involvement of martial artists of the Showa era in war crimes (or the facilitation of war crimes) in the Sino-Japanese war, and Second World War has been generating a great deal of interest among contemporary western practitioners of budo for a number of years now. Aikido’s Morihei Ueshiba, and Shotokan’s Yoshitaka Funakoshi (assisted by Shigeru Egami) both taught unarmed combat at the Kempeitai training facility at Nakano.

The kanji for “bu” is a compound consisting of two elements: at the bottom left is a character meaning “to stop”; above and to the right is a character meaning halberd (or arms);  put together the idea conveyed is “to stop arms”. However historically naive, this is the idea of “bu” that first drew me in and it still resonates deeply with me.

Looking carefully at how it is that civilized, educated people, be they the Japanese Kempetai of the Second World War, or be they American military officers at Guantanamo or Abu Ghraib,  can become so callused and brutal should be of interest to anyone with a serious interest in bushido.

This deeply disturbing book provides little information concerning the involvement (or lack thereof) of prominent martial artists of this period.  This book paints a damning picture of Showa era Japanese policy towards POW’s, and towards non-Japanese people though out Asia who were unlucky enough to find themselves under Japanese control. The conduct of the Kempeitai is particularly disturbing.

The author’s father was detained by the Kempeitai on 5, March, 1942 making this personal. Lamont-Brown’s outrage at the sadistic and outrageous abuse of prisoners and indigenous populations throughout Asia by the Kempeitai is palpable throughout the book.

Lamont-Brown describes the systemic brutality of the Kempeitai prior to the second world war in Manchuria and Shanghai, as well as throughout Japan’s war with the Allied powers.

Here are a few excerpts that illustrate the focus of this book:

From page 8:

Historians endeavoring to research Japanese Second World War studies in general, and Kempeitai activities in particular, have long come across the two main ethnic characteristics to thwart their success: namely, ‘Tactical Myopia’ and ‘Strategic Amnesia Syndrome’. For decades the Gaimusho have had a blinkered attitude to such events at Taisho Iwane Matsui, commander-in Chief of the Central China Area Army’s ‘Rape of Nanking’ on 13 December 1937, in which 300,000 Chinese nationals were slaughtered and maimed, and actively discouraged all who sought to build up a picture of Japan’s role in the Second World War. Only since the 1990’s has the Mombusho allowed new textbooks to give anything like detailed accounts of the Second World War from any point of view.

From page 43:

June 1945 saw the position of the Japanese forces in Burma turn precarious. For some time British paratroopers had been teaming up with local guerrillas to harry Japanese positions at Tenasserim, between Moulmein (the city-port capital of Mon state) and Dali Forest. Shosho Seiei Yamamoto,  Chief of Staff to the 33rd Army under Chujo Masaki Hondo ordered a group of soldiers from the 3rd Battalion the 215th Regiment and OC Moulmein Kempeitai to sweep Kalagon and kill as many British paratroopers and dacoits (Burmese bandits) as possible. By 7 July they had occupied the village and and all the inhabitants were rounded up to be interrogated by the Kempeitai.  Although Women and children were raped and beaten, no information about the resistance movement was elicited and the Kempeitai ordered  the whole village to be massacred. The people were taken tied up, in batches of five to ten, to a nearby group of wells. There they were blindfolded and bayoneted into the wells, alive or not. On that day the 3rd Battalion and the Kempeitai killed 600 villagers.

I will include one last excerpt, from page 151;

Chusa Oishi quickly and meticulously divided Singapore into manageable sub-divisions under Shosa Tomotatsu Iyo and Chusa Yoshitaka Yokota, who commanded the screening of all civilians and characterized Chinese suspects as ‘undesirable and anti-Japanese’; and decided who should die. Soon Kempeitai lock-ups were bulging with suspects, and during 17-24 Febuary 1942, the Chusa Tsuji monitered every step of the killing programme, berating the Kempeitai if the numbers of the Chinese slaughtered seemed to fall. In all some 5,000 persons were to be murdered in Singapore in the ‘Tsuji holocost’.

Because of the profoundly disturbing nature of this book I will refrain from using our usual light-hearted rating system and simply recommend that you take the time to read it.

• Related Links: Full text article-“Military Medical Ethics, Volume 2”
• Full text article-“Bulletin of the Atomic Scientist”
• Full text article –“The Development and Psychology of Bushido and Budo”  by Paul D. Short.  Excerpt-” Nitobe’s Bushido caught on during the nationalistic movement of Meiji Japan. It was the root of the propaganda that the Japanese carried with them to World War II. Hurst sums up Nitobe’s Bushido as “merely an illusion created by projecting Puritanism, which he had learned from the West, on Japan.” “
• National Library- Singapore article “Kempeitai”
• San Fransisco Chronicle “WAR Japanese soldiers finally tell their story” by Richard James Havis
• National Archives “Japanese War Crimes-Resources for Researchers”
• Wikipedia listing for “Showa Period”
• Wikipedia listing for “Second Sino-Japanese War”
• Wikipedia article “Kempeitai”

Review: "The Naked Warrior" by Pavel Tsatsouline

Pavel Tsatsouline’s name is bound to come up in discussions of Russian kettelbell training, climbing, gymnastics and conditioning for martial arts and combat sports. His book on bodyweight strength training “The Naked Warrior” is extremely popular with martial artists, climbers, and the gym-less legions. He has an impressive pedigree upon which to base his work: he was a nationally ranked Soviet Kettlebell competitor, physical trainer for the Soviet Special Forces, and has trained members of the US Army, Marine Corps and Secret Service. After reading countless gushing testimonials in a variety of martial arts and fitness forums, I got a copy of “The Naked Warrior” to see what the buzz is about.

The goal of “Naked Warrior” is simple: to develop maximal strength without the benefit of gym equipment. Pavel (as he is known) explains at the outset that body weight strength training is not superior to standard weight training. He points out that, “You will make your best gains if you have access to quality hardware: barbells, kettlebells, etc.” Simply put, when one has access to a gym, use the gym. But when one does not, it’s preferable to use whatever is available than to go without training. For the broke or on-the-go martial artist, Pavel contends that BW strength development is advantageous only in that it can be done almost anywhere, requiring the purchase of no special equipment- hence the term “Naked Warrior,” a phrase coined by renowned self defense instructor Tony Blauer. If left with absolutely nothing, the competent martial artist ought to be able to take care of him or herself. Otherwise, all available resources for strength development should be used without bias. Strength development is governed by the same principles regardless of approach- neither is magically superior to the other.

I’m not familiar with his other publications, but it would seem that Pavel draws his information from Soviet strength research, various forms of martial arts training, experience in competitive strength training and his background as a physical trainer. The training plan laid out in the book is built on the concept of “Greasing the Groove.” In a nutshell, Greasing the Groove is a matter of incorporating a few exercises into your daily routines, such as stopping to do a few pull-ups on a certain door frame every time you pass by it. Without a set exercise routine (or the time to pursue it) GTG is Pavel’s solution for incrementally building strength in short bursts of training. He explains that after a few weeks of doing numerous small sets throughout the day, overall strength will improve and the maximum number of reps one can perform will increase substantially. Of special interest to karate practitioners is his frequent reference to the Sanchin kata as an example of a suitable exercise for isometric contraction, muscular control and the accompanying posture development. With GTG as a framework, Pavel goes on to describe how to best develop strength with limited time and resources.

For the purposes of this book, Pavel defines strength as a skill, and outlines three types of strength development:

1. Maximal strength

2. Explosive strength

3. Strength endurance

His principles for achieving gains in maximal strength are few:

– Strength is developed with bodyweight by focusing on a limited number of high-resistance, low rep full body exercises (sets of five is his typical suggestion)

-Intense contraction of the muscles over shorter durations is preferable to working a muscle to failure; add more resistance to increase difficulty

-Higher resistance is achieved by ‘deliberately imposing poor leverage and unfavorable weight distribution between the limbs’ while minimizing bounce and momentum

Explosive strength and endurance strength can be gained through variations in exercises or by executing longer sets. He cites related strength skills that should be familiar to karate folks: breath control under tension, application of pressure from the legs upward (the “static stomp”), and contraction of the core muscles to lower and support the shoulders. As an aside, these concepts go hand in hand with many of boxing legend Jack Dempsey’s field-proven guidelines for exploding the body’s weight into knockout punches, but that is a topic for another article.

Pavel prescribes two exercises to use in a GTG program: the one arm pushup and the one legged squat, or pistol. He refers to these two exercises as the “power lifts of bodyweight” in that they involve maximal contraction of the body as a unit to perform correctly. The minimal number of recommended exercises is offset by the wide range of variety offered by manipulating leverage and variations in execution. For example, the pistol can be varied by lowering to the bottom of the motion, rocking backwards onto the butt, rocking forwards onto the foot again, pausing, then powering back up with clean form. Another variation involves holding the free leg bent behind the body and dropping until the bent knee can touch the floor, sort of like a one-legged lunge. Likewise, one arm pushups can be executed as a dand (i.e., “dive bomber” or “”tiger” pushups), with one leg extended, or for the advanced, from a handstand. Combining these variations with other variations offers an escape from boredom as well as strength development that targets different muscle groups and ranges of motion. The basic exercises as well as several variations are shown in clear photographs, as well as some strategies for using blocks or furniture to gradually build up to unassisted execution. For the Iron fiends out there, several photographs depict the pistol combined with kettlebell lifts as an advanced variation to be pursued after establishing basic overall strength and safe technique.

Despite the practicality of Pavel’s recommendations I would like to look at some of the Soviet strength studies that much of this work seems to be based on, but these sources are not provided in the text. Normally this pulls at my attention as I read such work; the information is useful, but how was it arrived at? How was it tested, and by whom? However, after several weeks of conscious effort with the pistol and several variations, I’ve noticed a considerable increase in leg stability and strength. Kicking power, takedowns and control from the bottom guard have improved. Combined with a sensible free weight program or through bodyweight alone, the training methods of “The Naked Warrior” should be useful to martial artists of any stripe for developing strength and control.

Despite the lack of supporting objective data, I would recommend this book to a student who is beginning to get interested in developing strength specifically for karate, or to someone whose schedule just doesn’t allow much time for trips to the gym. I’ve found that incorporating various bodyweight manipulations into training time can address strength development for students who may otherwise never visit the gym. In my experience, BW exercises can also help to illuminate certain physical alignments and abdominal muscular contractions that often get over-mystified in inexact karate terminology. As an exponent of Duct Tape Ryu (if you can’t afford it, make your own), I appreciate the utility of another avenue for nudging students into basic strength development and body awareness without the need for equipment. This book can provide some starting points for incorporating such exercises into one’s training routines.

For overall content and applicability, TKRI gives “The Naked Warrior” 4 out of 5 possible Bruised Knuckles.

Film Review: "Beautiful Boxer"

Last night I watched “Beautiful Boxer”, a 2003 biopic film based on the life of the Thai transsexual Muay Thai champion Nong Toom. For the average fan of the fighting arts that sentence may be a mouthful; however it is very tastefully done and the fighting, a central part of her story, is excellent. In a nutshell, the film follows the life of Nong Toom (aka Parinya Charoenphol) from boyhood to present day and portrays the highlights of her career as a Muay Thai champion. Initially drawn to Muay Thai competition by the money, she joined a boxing camp as a teenager with the intent of providing her rural family with a better standard of living. The money and the recognition brought by her phenomenal successes eventually enabled her to realize the lifelong dream of undergoing sex reassignment surgery, finally becoming the woman she knew herself to be from early youth. Obviously, this is not your average chop –socky movie.

As martial arts related films go, this one deserves special mention for its clear efforts at authenticity. Rather than groom an actor to do kick boxing scenes, the producers chose instead to cast real-life professional kick boxer Asanee Suwan for the part of Nong Toom. Suwan does an admirable job as both kick boxer and actor; the ring scenes are hard to distinguish from genuine matches. In a reflection of the film’s subject, Suwan spent months training in both classical Muay Thai techniques alongside various forms of Thai dance and ballet to achieve the grace inherent to Toom’s crushing individual style.

Of particular interest to karate-nerds is Toom’s usage of classical Muay Thai training. The film references her habit of collecting old and obscure Muay Thai postures in a scrapbook, which she would study and practice with her trainer. Knowledge of these rather neglected methods was not common in competitive Muay Thai while she was competing, yet she owed much of her successes to several of these moves that would become her signatures (one in particular, “Crushing Medicine” could just as well be called “guaranteed catastrophic brain damage”). To that end, her record is a solid 20-2, 18 of those ending in knock outs. Contrast this for a moment with the perennially fashionable criticism of classical training methods within the martial arts. While martial arts schools large and small, ancient and modern are full of irrelevant “traditions” that generally hinder practical training, here we have an example of someone who has revived her art’s classical methods through rigorous modern training with undeniably effective results. The success of Nong Toom’s unique style eventually took her to Lumpini Stadium, the Carnegie Hall of her sport, and revitalized flagging public interest in traditional Muay Thai.

At least here in the USA, Nong Toom’s art seems to be going through the same period of “diffusion by television” that cemented many of the ridiculous notions about karate in the public mind, and led to the sprouting of many a McDojo. In fact, it seems like anybody between the ages of 17-30 who has ever kicked a heavy bag somehow does/did “Muay Thai.” Several such “Muay Thai” students have popped into our classes at Ferrum, and each has been a major disappointment (one got upset and left after a round of shin kick/leg conditioning- we were training too rough- go figure). I am confident that any one of the testosterone-soaked lot would have his face rearranged by the now post-operative Nong Toom.

Give this film a look on your next free evening- TKRI gives it 5 out of 5 possible Bruised Knuckles.

Review: “Karate, My Art” by Motobu Choki

A Review of:

“Karate, My Art”: Motobu Choki’s 1932 “Watashi no Karate-jutsu”

Translated and edited by Patrick and Yuriko McCarthy, 2002. 120 pages. (Originally published in 1932)

“Karate, My Art” is a collection from the International Ryukyu Karate Research Society featuring a reprint and English translation of Motobu Choki’s 1932 “Watashi no Karate-jutsu” as well as several related articles, essays and historical documents. This volume contains a wealth of information about Motobu’s karate, training methods, life and efforts in spreading karate-jutsu in Japan during the first part of the 20^th century. Motobu, who has been the subject of renewed interest in recent years, was often the target of vilifications and rumors that overshadowed the wealth of knowledge and innovative training methods that he contributed to his study of karate. Essays by McCarthy, Nagamine Shoshin and Kinjo Hiroshi (as well as others) provide insights that effectively lay these claims to rest. Historical photographs of Motobu and several of his teachers and peers are sprinkled liberally throughout. Although slim, this collection is packed with information, including a translation of Kyan Chotoku’s (a cousin of Motobu’s) “Karate Training” which is a valuable historical essay in itself.

Several sections in particular have merited frequent return readings and earned the book a regular spot on my nightstand. The first is a reprinted compilation of Motobu’s favorite training sayings. A few highlights:

2. Kamae is in the heart, not a physical manifestation.

8. Kicks are not all that effective in a real confrontation.

12. The position of the legs and hips in Naifuanchin no Kata is the basics of karate.

15. The blocking hand must be able to become the attacking hand in an instant…

24. It is necessary to drink alcohol and pursue other fun human activities. The art of someone who is too serious has no “flavour.”

In these excerpts and in the text of “Watashi no karate-jutsu”, Motobu discusses several concepts that are generally cast as modern developments in the fighting arts (often followed by a spasmodic utterance of Bruce Lee’s name). Among these is development of awareness and control of the Center when fighting. “Mefotude” or “husband and wife hands” refers to the utility of using both hands together to support offensive and defensive movements, a skill which Motobu emphasizes as vital to his karate.

Of major historical interest is a translation of the 1925 “King” magazine article about Motobu’s victory over a European boxer/strongman. The piece describes how a 52 year old Motobu entered into an “all comers” Boxing vs. Judo match with a large foreign fighter in Kyoto and knocked him out after a few rounds of parrying. This article, while a bit sensationalistic, is important in that it established public recognition for the relatively unknown art of karate in Japanese culture. It also became a foil for the major feud of the embryonic Japanese karate scene: the accompanying illustrations of the match clearly depict Funakoshi Gichin as the victorious karate adept and not Motobu. This incident led to a bitter rift (and possibly a physical exchange) between the two men as well as many of the rumors about Motobu, whose karate Funakoshi vehemently disdained. The previously untranslated article is presented here for the reader to evaluate.

The center piece of this volume is a reprint of Motobu’s 12 “Jiyu Hon Kumite” fighting drills and the translated “Watashi no Karate-jutsu.” Dozens of clear photographs detail both the two-person drill sets as well as Motobu’s Nihanchi kata. The relationship of these drills to the Nihanchi kata is clearly visible in the photographs (for a more dynamic representation, check out “The Karate of Choki Motobu” by Tsunami Productions).The text of “Watashi” itself gives the reader a look into the mind of this supposedly “crude” karate practitioner- a detailed capsule history of karate, exhaustive notes on past and contemporary karate practitioners, references to several kata, and observations from Motobu’s checkered fighting past provide a wealth of information.

For overall content, historical value and production quality (and the fact that karate friends keep stealing it from me), TKRI gives Patrick and Yuriko McCarthy’s “Karate, My Art” :

5 out of 5 possible Bruised Knuckles.

Ready for the unusual?

It is easy for us, as karateka, to spend much of our time thinking about how we would handle particular situations—such as a mugging, or a bar fight—particular kinds of attacker—such as someone much larger than us, or a drunk—or particular kinds of typical attack—such as a haymaker punch, or a roundhouse kick. But occasionally fighters learn to their cost that not all situations are typical, and nor are all assailants. Though it chills the blood to even think it, what if your opponent can’t feel pain? Or doesn’t care about it? What if your opponent has excellent night vision and you are forced to fight him in the dark? What if he has an infectious disease that, if contracted, will result in your slow death over the next 24 hours? What if his main weapon is his teeth? What if there are many opponents, none of whom have fine motor control? What is the best strategy then? In short, how do we handle the living dead?

Max Brooks’ Zombie Survival Guide addresses just this topic. The book provides both a wealth of theoretical information about the effects of the solanum virus, debunks many of the myths surrounding its reanimated victims and provides practical advice about how to prepare for, and respond to, four different levels of outbreak, from class 1, an outbreak of 1-20 zombies, usually in a rural area or third world country, to class 4, where the battle for the planet is essentially lost, and you and your fellow karateka are “living in an undead world.”

The section describing solanum victims brings both good and bad news. Zombies don’t communicate with each other, and they do not organise, they simply wonder around, looking for people to eat. When they find them, the arms come out, the head goes back and the familiar moan is sounded, striking chill into human hearts but warning us that we have been detected. The zombie will then move towards its target as fast as it can, until it can grasp the target with its hands and arms, and begin feasting. But the zombie’s single mindedness is also its weakness. Zombies cannot plan sensible routes towards their victims, and will simply move in their direction, regardless of hazards that may be in the way, and regardless of the fate of other zombies who tried the same strategy before them. Brooks writes:

Zombies have repeatedly failed laboratory intelligence tests set at the level of rodents. One field case showed a human standing at one end of a collapsed bridge with several dozen zombies on the other side. One by one, the walking dead tumbled over the edge in a futile attempt to reach him. At no time did any of them realise what was happening and change their tactics in any way.” (pp. 14-15)

But if that makes zombies seem unworthy as opponents, consider this: zombies never stop. They do not need to eat to remain animated and they do not need to sleep. They will not be killed or deterred by normal means. They can tell a zombie from human pretending to be a zombie, and they can hunt perfectly well in the dark. Once they have locked onto a target, they keep going until they’re eating it. Sure, you can outrun a zombie, but can you outrun him forever?

There’s a lot of discussion of pre-outbreak preparation for an attack in The Zombie Survival Guide and of subsequent strategies for dealing with outbreaks of solanum infection. But suppose you haven’t prepared. Suppose it happens NOW. What should you do? Here are a selection of recommendations:

• shave your head and wear tight clothing (long hair and baggy clothes are more easily grasped. This is, of course, the best explanation of what happened to Shaun Ryder and is the missing plot line from 24 Hour Party People.) A bic razor and a shark suit will do fine.
• collect some weapons, perhaps a crossbow (accurate and silent), a katana (useful for removing heads) and a crowbar for close-range bludgeoning
• start sleeping in your shoes (for quick escape)
• run upstairs and fill the bath (water supplies may become disrupted)
• move everything onto the second floor of your building (first floor for the Brits) and destroy the stairs (zombies are not agile and cannot climb)
• find quiet things to DO to stave off the inevitable psychological trauma of a prolonged zombie siege
• Also, you’ll need twenty gallons of gasoline and a telescopic sight.

There is also some good advice for keeping an eye out for a outbreaks which are not being reported as such in the news. Watch for:

• homicides in which the victims were executed by headshots, or beheading
• Missing persons in wilderness areas. Pay particular interest if the seach party seems to be carrying more than one rifle.
• Cases of “violent insanity” in which friends or family members were attacked.
• Rioting with no obvious cause.

Sensitivity to the above is crucial for zombie-appropriate zanshin.

And don’t forget that in a large scale outbreak your fellow man will be as dangerous as the zombies. You can expect panic on the streets, vigilantism, looting, and an army of the undead radiating out from hospitals, police stations, churches and other places that people went in large numbers to be “safe”.

Good luck. And you might want to run over those grip-breaking waza one more time…

A review of Rippetoe and Kilgore's Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training

Strong people are harder to kill than weak people, and more useful in general. - Mark Rippetoe, Strong Enough?, p. 157

Well, I say book “review”, it’s probably going to be more of a book gush, because the second edition of Rippetoe and Kilgore’s Starting Strength is the best fitness book I have ever read.

A lot of people discover Starting Strength either through forums like Strength Mill, or through Crossfit, but my route was a little different. I’ve spent seven of the last eight (northern hemisphere) summers in Australia, usually at the University of Melbourne, and while there I’ve been able to use the gym at Melbourne University Sports. It’s the best equipped gym, with the best trained staff, that I’ve found anywhere. It was there that I first got a good answer to the question “so what’s up with this stuff creatine?” (I stopped taking it), where I first heard the word “plyometrics”, and where I once saw the single most impressive exercise I have ever seen performed in a gym. (There aren’t any videos of body builders doing it on Youtube, but I did find a video of a child gymnast doing them here. The guy doing them in Melbourne them was 6ft+ and built more like a rock-climber than a rugby player. He did single reps with perfect control and when the trainer who was with him said: “how does it feel?” the guy responded in a thick Australian accent “still feels like my head is gonna explode.”)

Anyway, this year, when I walked into my programming session, the trainer asked me what my goals were, and I told him I wanted to put on as much muscle as possible. I wanted to be able to lift more, move faster, strike harder, and to injury proof my knees and my shoulders. I told him that I was already doing a lot of squats and lunges, and if he could teach me anything new and fun, that would be cool. I told him that I was 32, and concerned that gaining muscle was only going to get harder as time went on.

So he taught me to deadlift. The deadlift starts with a barbell on the ground, and you reach down and pull the bar off the floor, stand up straight (so that the barbell is against your thighs) and then you put it back down. It’s a simple movement that uses lots of big muscles and many people can eventually build up to deadlifting more (sometimes significantly more) than their own weight. But you only have to glance at the movement to see that this is not the place to get careless with your form. So I spent a fair few evenings surfing the web trying to find out as much as I could about correct form for my cool new exercise, and in doing so I quickly came across this video, in which Mark Rippetoe coaches the deadlift:

Olympic lifts! Athletes! (rather than those shiny guys with the big chests and teeny legs) Women! Reasons-for-doing-things-the-way-he-says! All pretty cool, thought I. Anyway, I studied the video

Where to Buy Stuff

Be forewarned; what follows is a shameless attempt at marketing (with a bit of a twist).

This past September Randy Simpson posted his article “A Review of the 12 Oz. Hemp Canvas Gi from Earth-Gi”. At the same time we changed the TKRI.net supplies page so that this is the only gi advertised on it. This was after quite a lot of consideration. The change was only made after we felt convinced that this was a product we could endorse. TKRI makes no money on gi sales referred either through our main site, or through the article on this blog. Randy was in contact with the company to confirm that the gi’s were not manufactured in sweat shops, he researched the claims regarding the environmental benefits of hemp as opposed to cotton, and even after all of that we did not endorse the product until Randy himself had bought one and checked it out.

I do not make any money teaching karate. I charge my students money to cover some of our club expenses, however I am not prepared to do what is required to make teaching a financial success. I have seen places that are successes financially and usually they give me hives. I like that all of the TKRI clubs are exactly that, clubs. As businesses they are tremendous failures (so far anyway). I am not philosophically opposed to making money from budo, it is just very hard to do without compromise. Karate is something I elect to do, my livelihood does not depend on it, so I am free to be pretty idealistic about it. If the clubs ever get to a point where they are in the black financially then that will be tremendous (more like miraculous), however the point of TKRI is not to create another karate business.

The affiliations TKRI has with companies like Amazon do not bring in much money, In fact they do not even bring in enough money to pay for the website. The purpose of our website is to provide our students (and the larger karate community)  with resources that will help them better understand karate. We also hope that the sites help us get the word out about our organization and to help with recruitment and special events. There are products on the site that are offered by companies that do not even offer affiliate programs, therefore we do not make any money from the sales of them. That is fine, we want to offer stuff on the site that we feel is useful more than we want to make money. If we can make a little to offset some of our expenses it is a plus. If you are curious about what we do when when we have a little cash take a look at the “About TKRI” page on our website for a partial list of events we have sponsored.

On our site you will find two separate Amazon powered stores, one for recommended videos, and one for recommended books. I am pretty proud of them, especially the book store. The bookstore has a very deep selection of books on a variety of subjects may may be of interest to karateka. You will find books on Buddhism, Shinto, Confucianism, Asian History, Japanese arts, budo, karate, judo aikido, sports science, and a wide array of other subjects. I think the most useful section is titled “TKRI Recommended“. We at TKRI have bugged lots of our friends for recommendations in order to create this list.

We have limited space on the server we use to host the TKRI site. By including the Amazon powered stores we can have the pictures and reviews of the books available on the site. The files do not take up space that we are paying for. Our ability to have so much information regarding books that we feel strongly about available to our friends and students is extremely useful to us. This is regardless of whether or not people actually use the stores for purchases.

Some of the very best titles listed in the recommended section of our bookstore are published by Koryu Publishing. They carry Dave Lowry’s books, Diane Skoss’s excellent books on the various koryu, and one my all time favorite books on martial arts, Ellis Amdur’s “Dueling with O’Sensei”. Koryu is run by Meik and Diane Skoss. The Skoss’s are friends of TKRI. They have both presented at TKRI events. They are both highly skilled and dedicated martial artists.

I have worked at several bookstores over the years. The small independent neighborhood bookstore was decimated by the large chains like Barnes and Noble and Borders in the nineties. On-line retailers like Amazon are now having a similar impact on these companies. I think there is a place in the market for large on-line stores and the big chains, however there is something very special about the charm and niche specificity that a smaller store can offer. Whenever I can I try to shop at small local shops. They are just fun places to be. Almost always the people in these smaller stores are book lovers.

There are a lot of crappy books on the martial arts in the market, there are not that many really good ones. Sensational books with poor scholarship, full of dubious claims, fill the martial arts sections of many bookstores. Authors can make a lot more money taking the low road. Koryu only carries quality books by very qualified authors. I would like to invite you to take a minute and look at the post by Diane Skoss on her blog “Koryu Musings“ called “Amazon.com vs Direct Purchase”. When you are done do yourself a favor and spend a few minutes looking through the excellent selection of titles available from Koryu at their bookstore. If you are in a position to buy, consider buying directly from them to help support quality publishing.

If you have some time get out and visit a few local businesses.

A Review of the 12 oz. Hemp Canvas Gi from Earth-Gi

10/8/09 Note: Earth-Gi is on indefinite hiatus due to the shifts in the economy and resulting increase of the cost of importing hemp fabric.Hopefully our government will soon get it’s priorities straight, and legalize production of non-recreational industrial hemp for American manufacturing so that we don’t have to import it from Canada.

Earth-Gi carries the distinction of being the only 100% Hemp fabric gi on the market. Hemp isn’t just a hippie obsession; the fabric from hemp plants is superior in many ways to cotton- for starters, it’s four times stronger than cotton fabric and hemp will naturally resist yellowing and rotting over time. Industrial hemp is NOT at all the same as the variety that produces marijuana; so no, there is nothing psychoactive or drug-related about hemp products. Unfortunately, industrial is illegal to cultivate here in the United States. The materials for Earth-Gi are imported from Canada and the gi is hand made by a husband and wife team who make hemp active wear for karate practitioners and yogini. According to their web site (www.earth-gi.com), each gi is made to order and Earth-Gi will craft custom size gi at no extra cost. Orders are shipped within 1-2 weeks. Embroidery is also available.

Earth-Gi can stand by the fact that it is not produced through sweatshop labor, something that many gi manufacturers cannot claim. Hemp canvas is also an environmentally responsible choice, as it requires none of the harsh pesticides that the cotton industry uses, and does not require nearly as much fertilization. The end product is a very well made gi that more than holds it’s own alongside comparable commercial brands.

I received my Earth-Gi just in time to test it out in an evening karate class. Right out of the box, the 12 oz. hemp fabric feels like a good work shirt that is broken in just right. The fabric is free from flaws and the stitching is clean and straight. Based on measurements that I sent to the Earth-Gi team, the gi fits me closely enough not to be a flapping nuisance, but is loose enough that it does not restrict movement, especially in the legs and midsection. The overall cut of the gi is very much in line with the “traditional” cuts of the Meijin and Tokaido gi that I have used in the past. The jacket is slightly longer which keeps it from pulling out of the belt. Above all, this is a very comfortable gi to wear.

A difference that is immediately apparent is the color- this gi is not the crisp bluish-white cotton that is a bit of a fetish amongst karateka, but a mellow creamy tone. The hemp fabric is not bleached for two reasons: bleaching is extremely destructive from an environmental standpoint; and bleaching significantly weakens the fibers in plant derived fabrics such as cotton and hemp. Although it may look different than the typical gi, the Earth-Gi will last longer than bleached fabrics and does not contribute to water pollution. As an aside, the uber-white gi is a relatively modern artifact, as industrial bleaching was not around in pre-WWII Japan.

The construction of the jacket reminds me of a cross between a good Judo top and Carhartt work clothes. All jacket seams are triple stitched with heavy thread. The inside of the sleeves are reinforced with a second layer of hemp fabric, and the lapels and front panels are two layers thick and stitched with five lines of thread. For those of us who engage in rugged karate practice with much pulling, shoving and throwing, this extra reinforcement means that the gi will last for far longer than a few months. Although sturdily made, the jacket is not bulky or noticeably heavier. It feels just as strong as my old Judo gi without being nearly as thick. In fact, it closes and maintains the same profile as a lighter weight gi despite the thicker, much stronger fabric. Just for grins, I had the largest student (a football player with arms the size of my thighs) in my class pick me up by the lapels and throw me around a few times. The jacket seams did not show any signs of stress or tearing.

One of my biggest complaints about the “traditional” heavy cotton gi is that the pants often bind on the top of the thighs when kicking, especially after a good sweat- it’s counterproductive to have to readjust for each kick. The Earth-Gi pants allow for full range of motion without any obstruction. The draw-string waist does not bunch excessively when pulled tight, leaving plenty of swing room in the crotch and legs. The inseams are reinforced here as well. It also does not hold sweat the same way that a cotton gi tends to, making this a very breathable gi to train in.

I immediately noticed that the draw string loop of the pants is far sturdier than in other brands. In all of the gi I’ve owned, the loop is one of the first things to rip from regular use and abuse. The Earth-Gi design is inverted, meaning that it’s horizontal as opposed to vertical. The loop is of folded and stitched hemp that is secured to the folded waist band of the pants with more reinforced stitching. If you like to roll around and toss each other across the dojo, this feature is worth looking into.

So why is a hemp gi so special? A gi review is no place for preaching from the soapbox, but bear with me for a moment. Modern karate is the product of globalization, the mingling of cultures and individuals exchanging ideas. An art that began on the relatively small island of Okinawa has spread to every continent and been embraced by people from myriad nationalities, religions, languages and walks of life. This implies a certain kinship, a responsibility to relate to each other not only as karateka but as human beings who share something that has become the property of the global community. That awareness extends to our decisions about where or food comes from, how our products are made, and who is affected by these processes. Certain choices can have a positive impact on those who produce these goods for us. Please see the bottom of this review for some facts about the human and environmental cost of modern cotton production.

All environmental and ethical reasons aside, the Earth-Gi is worth looking into. The investment is worth it when you consider that the fabric will outlast cotton, and that the manufacturers are real people who you can deal directly with about custom sizing that’s actually made to order, not just mix and match sizes. The price is comparable to a heavy-weight Tokaido or Meijin gi. Compared to the 12 oz. gi offered by other brands Earth-Gi is designed and made every bit as well- possibly better, when you consider the attributes of hemp fabric for this use. I recommend Earth-Gi to anyone who is serious about good training equipment and about their footprint on the rest of the planet.

For more information, visit:

www.earth-gi.com

http://www.tkri.net/tkrisupplies.htm

or email: tim@earth-gi.com

For more on the human cost of pesticide-dependent cotton production, visit:

http://www.panna.org/files/conventionalCotton.dv.html