Reply. Thanks for the link. Saishu Ryu appears to be just another “new” stew recipe.

In a stew, a cook takes a little of this and a little of that and mixes them in a pot to make a new dish. The resulting taste of the stew depends on the quality and quantity of each ingredient used to make the stew. The stew may taste good to some people and some people may be able to tolerate an ingredient used in the stew that they otherwise would not like, but better health benefits may be gained from eating the individual ingredients than from eating them after they have been combined into a stew. The resulting stew is nothing original; it is just a different combination of original ingredients.

The martial arts world is full of “masters” who founded “new” arts by combining the “best” qualities of other arts into a “better” art. The resulting arts may be new in that they have just been combined and cooked, but they are nothing new. Yoga is an original creation that did not exist before it was founded. The numerous variations of Yoga are not anything new, they are merely attempts to repackage Yoga to please the changing tastes of the public and to boost the egos and bank accounts of the “founders.”

There are few original martial arts, for example, pressure point fighting is original, boxing is original, archery is original, grappling is original, and Savate and Capoeria are original in their methods of kicking. However, repackaged or remixed martial arts are not original, for example, Taekwondo is not original, it is a mixture of traditional Korean martial arts and Shotokan, and Shotokan is a repackaged version of Okinawan Kara-te.

If Saishu Ryu prospers, I will add it to the TKDTutor list of martial at styles.

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Reply. For any web page that you want to keep, go to the page, select "Save As" on your browser, and save it to your computer in the format of your choice. You may then open and view it at anytime you want.

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Reply. The reply to this item has been incorporated into the pages located in the Techniques/Hand Attack/Punching section.

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Reply. Most Taekwondo instructors have trained in, or at least been exposed to, other martial arts at some point during their martial arts formative years. They usually incorporate these arts into their Taekwondo curriculum. This may be good if the other art compliments Taekwondo (such as grappling) or it may be bad if the other art is contrary to Taekwondo’s methods (such as teaching the yielding art of Aikido to students who are trying to learn the resisting art of Taekwondo).

Most martial arts use one-step two-step, three-step, etc. sparring and self-defense sequences as a part of their curriculum. It is an easy way to teach a large group of students safely, it helps, students learn to interact physically with other students, and it is an easily graded standard to use during rank promotion testings. Each organization, and sometimes reach school and instructor has its own step sequences that it uses. You will have to find a book, web site, or video that specializes in your particular step sequences.

I am of the school of thought that that believes that teaching specific reactions to specific actions is counterproductive. In a step sequence, you learn to do “this” in response to “that.” If “that” does not occur or “this” does not work, then you are bewildered. If you use knife defense # 3 and you miss grabbing the attacker’s arm, now what do you do. People do not have the time learn and become proficient at specific responses to every type of attack.

A better way is to teach basic concepts (such as which bodily weapons are best against each body target, which ways you may bend a foot, wrist, or arm to cause pain, how to create openings in the opponent’s defenses, etc.). Then these basic concepts are used in an instinctive response to the opponent’s actions and reactions. Instead of using a specific action in response to a specific attack, you use whatever response may be best for the situation. Other instructors have different opinions on the subject.

One may be an all-around good athlete and still not be good at Taekwondo. It is okay to be good at many sports, but it you want to excel in a particular sport, you must be good in things that help you achieve excellence in that sport. To excel in Taekwondo you need to do things that better your ability to perform Taekwondo techniques and movements. Running and swimming a lot will have some beneficial effect on your Taekwondo training, but they mostly make you better at the motions needed in running and swimming, neither of which is particularly useful in Taekwondo, except running when it is used to exit a self-defense situation. Performing a lot of Taekwondo techniques and movements will make you better at Taekwondo. Training in the bodily motions that are specifically used in Taekwondo will make you better at Taekwondo.

Here are some training methods I have found to work:

• Jump rope, using all types of jumping variations, to better your footwork skills.

• Shadowbox to you favorite music to learn to move gracefully with relaxed movements.

• Perform slow motion kicks using exaggerated, full-motion (full chamber and re-chamber) movements, and using perfect techniques. Adding leg weights may make the exercise more beneficial, however, do not spar or do full- speed kicks using the leg weights. Your body learns to compensate for the extra weight at the ankle and, when you remove the weights, although you may kick quicker, your body will have to learn to re-compensate for the lack of added weight. In addition, there is also the increased chance of injury when kicking with full-speed and power while wearing leg weights.

• Instead of running over level ground, run cross-county, up steps or stairs, or a use a climber exercise machine. These motions more closely duplicates the movements used in kicking and sparring and helps build leg muscles. Perform plyometric jumping exercises to build explosive strength in the legs.

• Do daily stretching exercises that duplicate the movements used in Taekwondo. A Yoga practitioner may be very flexible in all aspects of movement but still not excel in Taekwondo. To perform a perfect kick with speed and power, you need to be flexible in the body movements required for that kick and be strong in the muscles used to perform the kick. Strength and flexibility in other areas are superfluous to the kick itself.

• Perform kicks, jump kicks, spin kicks, and jump-spin kick while standing in the shallow end of a swimming pool in mid-chest deep water. The water adds resistance to the movements, which help build strength without out causing injury, and the buoyancy of the water makes it easier to learn complicated movements and takes the jolt out of landing. You can perform many more repetitions of a kick while in water than you can while on dry land.

• Play sports that require a lot of quick footwork and precise eye-hand coordination, such as tennis, ping-pong, hand ball, or basketball. Play other sports for fun and relaxation but do not be too concerned with being good at them. All doctors are MD’s but the best doctors in a particular field of medicine are the ones who specialize in that field and only practice in it.

• Do many repetitions of your patterns while concentrating on precise movements and stances, prefect technique, and maximum power. Quickness and the height of kicks should not be of concern while performing the patterns. If you concentrate on the movements, stances, technique, and power, other aspects will get better on their own.

• Perform patterns and techniques at inopportune times. For example, after sitting at the computer for awhile, get up and perform a pattern, it only takes a couple of minutes.

• When not performing Taekwondo, think about Taekwondo. Thinking about movements is the next best thing to performing them.

• Spar a lot and spar frequently. The best way to get better at something is to do it.

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Reply. First a definition of terms:

Basic kicks. These are kicks where the kicking foot moves directly from the floor to the target. The support foot is always in contact with the floor.

Intermediate kicks

• Jump kicks. These are kicks where you jump and both feet are off the floor when the kicking foot makes contact with the target.

• Spin kicks. These are kicks where the torso rotates backward before executing the kick.

• Jump-spin kicks. These are kicks where you jump and the torso rotates backward before executing the kick.

Advanced kicks. These kicks use movements that are more complicated and require 360 degree body rotations.

Acrobatic Kicks. These kicks use spins of more than 360 degrees, flips, drops, rolls, etc. Most acrobatic kicks are useless except for their entertainment value and the physical skills attained while learning to perform the kicks. They are usually not effective for self-defense and are seldom even used in sparring.

Aero kicks. These are just variations of a jump or jump-spin kicks where the support foot is back on the floor before the kicking foot makes contact with the target. It is used primarily as a faking movement. In the aero kick, you start a fake kick with one leg and then quickly switch to a kick with the other leg, which means that both feet are off the floor for an instant, and then the support foot is back on the floor before the kick makes contact. It is sort of a sloppy version of a standard jump or jump-spin kick. Although there is a jump motion, the intent is not to add a jump to the kick but make the opponent think a kick is coming from one direction while you quickly switch to another kick from another direction.

The hierarchy of learning to perform kicks is to first perfect the basic kicks, then perfect the jump kicks, then perfect the spin kicks, and then perfect the jump-spin kicks. Each of these types of kicks relies upon the other.

• You perform a proper basic kick

• To perform the jump kick variation, you jump and then basic kick.

• To perform the spin kick variation, you spin and then basic kick.

• To perform a jump-spin kick variation, you jump, then spin, and then basic kick.

You must master the basic a intermediate kicks before worrying about learning advanced variations of the kicks. If you cannot perform, the basic and intermediate kicks properly, effectively, and even perfectly, then do not worry about learning the advanced kicks. Being able to perform a technically perfect side kick to the opponent’s abdomen that always reaches its target with power and precision is more important that being able to merely use an advanced kick or to show off with some acrobatic kick.

Once you are proficient at the basic and intermediate kicks, then you may proceed to the advanced kicks.

• When you execute a rear leg kick and step down in front, your torso rotates 180 degrees, you end up with the opposite leg forward, and you are facing the opposite direction.

• When you perform a spin or jump-spin kick, your torso rotates 180 degrees, you end up with the opposite leg forward, and you are facing the opposite direction.

• When you step forward with the trailing leg, jump off the support leg, and perform a spin kick while the stepping leg is still in the air, such as with the 360 degree jump-spin side kick, your torso rotates 360 degrees, you end up with the same leg forward, and you are facing the same direction.

• When you spin on the support foot and then jump and kick with the support foot, such as with the butterfly kick, your torso rotates 360 degrees, you end up with the same leg forward, and you are facing the same direction.

• Some kicks use an extra step to increase the degrees of rotation, such as with the tornado kick, where you step forward with the trailing leg and then perform a butterfly kick. In you final position, your torso has rotated 540 degrees, but it only because of the extra step, not because you rotated 540 degrees in the air while performing the kick.

These are the upper limit of effective spin kicks. Spinning more than 360 degree makes the kicks purely acrobatic and only useful for entertainment purposes. Anyone who is capable enough to be a threat to you will also be capable of avoiding or spoiling any attempt at a kick that uses rotations greater than 360 degrees. These kicks require ideal conditions (such as a smooth, dry, clear surface; clear visibility of the take-off and landing area; and clothing and shoes that permit free movement), plenty of free space to prepare for and execute the kick, and an opponent that will stand still and not attempt to upset your balance while you are in the air.

Acrobatic kicks are not a part of Taekwondo. We practice the martial (fighting) art of Taekwondo, not gymnastics, modern dance, or acrobatics. There are styles that use acrobatic kicks as well as a few Taekwondo instructors who teach them. It is a waste of time and effort to try to learn acrobatic kicks until you have mastered all the basic, intermediate, and advanced kicks. Once you have mastered these kicks, you will have all the skills you need to tackle any of the acrobatic kicks, if you so choose.

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Reply. Do not mistake sweating for aerobic exercise. Sweating means your body is too hot and is trying to cool itself. Sweating is more the result of the ambient temperature and humidity than it is a result of ‘hard work” by the person. It is much easier to sweat while performing Taekwondo in small, confined room with a group of other sweating people than it is to sweat while jogging down a country road one evening.

Sweating is stressful to the body, since it is losing vital minerals. It is also a waste of energy since the sweat is conducting heat and energy away from the body instead of keeping it within the body where it may be used to perform work.

If you perform continuously for an hour at a level where you only maintain a sheen of perspiration on your body, you will be able to perform more “work” with your body than you would if you were profusely sweating the entire time, even if you were drinking water periodically throughout the hour.

If you want to be fit, you need to perform aerobic (with oxygen) exercises. When you jog, swim, cycle, or jump rope at a steady pace you are expending energy constantly and evenly so the body may take in and use all the oxygen it needs to produce the energy efficiently. When you jog, swim, cycle, or jump rope and you stop the movements, such as when you stop pedaling or jumping, you have stopped the exercise. For example, when both your feet are NOT off the ground at the same time, you are no longer running—you are walking. When you run for an hour, you are performing the running motion for the entire hour without stopping.

Practicing Taekwondo for an hour is not the same as running for an hour. Performing kicks and punches non stop for an hour would be equivalent to running for an hour, but I have never participated in, or even seen, any Taekwondo class, or any other martial arts class, that uses this type of training. There may be some school around that train this way, but they are rare, probably do not have many students, and are probably not profitable, since the schools would not be able to maintain enough students to meet expenses.

Many people can run for an hour, but few, if any, can punch and kick for an hour. Even professional fighters, such as in boxing, the UFC, Pride, etc, use rounds during their fights so they may recover enough to continue fighting. I teach Taekwondo classes in a school where the school owner stresses that students get a “workout” more than he stresses that they learn Taekwondo, so we do a lot of sit-ups, push-ups, jogging, kicking, punching, etc. The emphasis is more on doing a lot more than it is on doing it well, since nowadays, people do not have the patience and discipline it takes to perfect anything—they just want to “get into shape.” If you want your school to remain in business, you have to cater to the wants of the customers. If you are not running a business for profit but are teaching Taekwondo purely for the arts sake, then you may get tough in class. Even with our school’s emphasis on fitness, there is a lot of down time in an hour class. Truth be told, in any hour long Taekwondo class, there are probably 30 minutes of down time where the students are not expending energy. For instance, when doing kicking drills with hand targets, one student holds the target while the other student performs the kicks. Therefore, in a specific length of time, each student is only kicking half the time.

Fitness is a by-product of Taekwondo, not its primary product. Taekwondo is a martial art (a way of fighting with the hands and feet) not a fitness program. If you want to become fit, your best choice is to participate in a fitness program. Only in recent years have the martial arts, Taekwondo included, been marketed as an exercise regime. For centuries, the martial arts only purpose was to make people better fighters; no one cared how fit your were, they only cared if you could kill a lot of the enemy.

Fitness is good to have, but it is not a requirement for a good fighter. Ancient people had to work hard physically all day to just to feed their families; they did no have the energy or time to worry about fitness. They only wanted to be able to take out an enemy before the attacker could harm their families and livelihood.

Since there has been world-wide peace in the world for the last few centuries, wars are usually only localized conflicts, people do not see the need to be able to fight and they are more sedentary, so they are now seeking ways to “stay in shape.” Since people are drawn to the more exotic, they tend to choose things that are different, from the ordinary. Some people come to martial arts for self-defense, but studies have should that most people come to “get into shape” while socializing. People in marital arts classes interact while they train. In aerobic classes, you train continuously without any interaction and, after class; you are so exhausted you just go home. There is no camaraderie as there is in martial arts classes.

If you want to learn a martial art and increase your fitness level as a fringe benefit, then Taekwondo is a good choice. A person who participates in a TaeBo or Aerobic Kickboxing class for an hour a day will be more fit than they would if they participated in a Taekwondo class for an hour a day, however, a person who participates in Taekwondo for an hour a day will be more fit than they would if they bowled or played golf for an hour a day. In a TaeBo class, you are not there to learn to perform perfect techniques; you are there to perform continuous aerobic movements. It Taekwondo class, your goal is to attain perfection of mind, spirit, and body and to become a good fighter and better person. In Taekwondo, you mostly train in an anaerobic (without oxygen) manner. You train for bursts of maximum output of energy, not continuous exertion. A person can easily hold his or her breath for 60 seconds. Think about how many kicks and punches you can execute in 60 seconds. It is like 100 meter sprinters; they train for maximum output for 10 seconds. They do not need to breath during those 10 seconds.

For Taekwondo purposes, running sets of sprints for an hour with short breaks between is more useful than running continuously for an hour, since fights, real or sparring, do not require the a steady output of energy but rather short bursts of energy during clashes punctuated with long periods of maneuvering. Therefore, aerobic fitness is not required.

As in many other sports, the only people who get much fitness training while participating in the sport are the beginners. As a person becomes proficient at the sport, the less energy is needed or expended. Inexperienced fighters are always moving (usually the wrong direction that requires they move even more). They execute numerous attacks (not precise attacks to specific targets) and they react rather than anticipate. When you watch experienced fighters fight, many of which are older masters with pot guts, they do very little. They have years of knowledge, experience, and skill and are able to be at the right place at the right time with the right techniques. They anticipate attacks and are ready for them. Therefore, they do not need speed and a high level of fitness, since they do not expend much energy.

I once competed in Judo against a blind black belt. I thought I would take it easy and not make him look bad, but instead, I was fighting for my life and trying to save my pride. He seemed to read my mind. When I tried to attack, he stopped it before I could get it into motion. Sometimes, he would even say something like “An ippon seionage (one arm should throw) will not work” before I had even begun the attack. It was spooky. At the end, I was wasted and he was ready for the next opponent.

While I was stationed at the naval base in Iceland, a student of mine pointed out the base handball champion. He was an old, fat guy who chain smoked and waddled similar to a duck when he walked. I did not believe the student so I went to watch a handball tournament. While the younger players ran back and forth, reaching for balls, and bouncing off the walls, this guy just waited in center court and the instant the opponent swung at the racket at the ball (before it even made contact), he waddled into position and waited for the ball to arrive and then hit the ball back to the opponent’s far side. This guy could read the opponent’s intention from his swing, knew the exact trajectory the ball would take while bouncing off the surfaces, and took action before the ball was even hit. I have seen martial arts masters embarrass younger students in the same manner.

I once watched my instructor fight two younger black belts who were testing for rank. The cocky 20 year old black belts were good and were making other students look bad, so the head judge sent my instructor in to fight them. It was similar to watching a cat play with a mouse. The cat catches the mouse and keeps letting him go. The mouse feels he has a chance to escape each time, but at some point the cat tires of the game and eats the mouse.

When the black belts fought my instructor, they threw every technique in their arsenal and thought that since they were so active that they must be winning. However, at some point, you could see the desperation on their faces when they realized that none of their techniques were getting in and that my instructor’s techniques were not only getting in but were purposefully being reduced in speed and power. He was just relaxing and playing with them. Then, after the instructor had finished teaching them a lesson, he picked them apart with a flurry perfectly focused techniques that completely demoralized the fighters. He was not as young, not as quick, could not kick as high, and was not as fit as the black belts were, but he was a master at the art of Taekwondo.

As I stated in my original statement that you quoted, the bottom line is that you may increase your fitness level in a Taekwondo class, but you would increase your fitness level much more if you participated in a fitness class. I am 60 years old and have been in the martial arts for over 40 years. I train in Taekwondo class to become better at performing Taekwondo and to win at tournaments; I train in other activities outside of class to become more fit. Taekwondo and the other activities complement each other, but they are not comparable. Even thought they are not comparable, the Taekwondo training makes me a better martial artist and adds to my fitness, and the fitness activities makes me more fit, which then makes my Taekwondo training more effective.

I have not doubt that you are much more fit from training in Taekwondo than you were before beginning the training, but you would be even much more fit if you had been training the same amount of time in an aerobic activity, such as TaeBo. However, because of your Taekwondo training, you have a much better spirit, had more fun,  and you are a much better fighter than you could ever have achieved from any aerobic activity such as TaeBo.

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Reply.

Reply. Most martial art schools use the standard apprentice/trainee model of instructor training. It has worked well for decades in many professions, such as in the electrical, plumbing, mason, and, especially since the martial arts are patterned after the military, in the armed forces, but as with most things, sometimes it needs some updating and improvement.

The standard apprentice/trainee model of instructor training is as follows:

• Students first learn the basics, and, after passing graduated levels of rank proficiency tests, they learn more and more.

• If a student expresses an interest in teaching or the instructor notices the student may have a potential for teaching, the student is encouraged to assist in teaching classes, so the instructor may further evaluate the student’s teaching potential.

• If the instructor thinks the student has teaching potential, the student is encouraged to pursue being an instructor apprentice/trainee.

• The instructor gradually grooms the student for teaching, giving the student extra attention and concentrating on teaching the student to be an instructor.

• When the instructor thinks the student is ready, the student formally enters the apprentice/trainee instructor program by testing for apprentice/trainee status.

• The trainee assists in all aspects of teaching, administering rank testings, working in tournaments and camps, etc. for a number of years to accumulate a required number of assisting/teaching hours.

• Usually there are no special training classes for instructor trainees. They acquire teaching knowledge and skills by osmosis, absorbing information from listening and watching other instructors.

• After student achieves all the minimum instructor certification requirements and the instructor thinks the student is ready, the student tests for final instructor certification.

• The student may be required to attend some type of special instructor course just before or after certification.

• After a set time of satisfactory performance as a certified instructor, the student may be permitted to open his or her own school under the auspices of the school or the organization.

Depending on the organization, individual school, and chief instructor within a school, a formal apprentice training program may be non existent or it may be long, detailed, and arduous. In traditional schools, the apprentice is first treated as a virtual slave (doing medial labor while learning little), gradually gaining more freedom, benefits, and training until the final certification. As stated above, this process is still used by many other professions, such as the armed forces.

In the U.S. Navy enlisted ranks, chief, senior chief, and master chief petty officers are not only the top enlisted ranks; they are the ones who run the day-to-day operations of the Navy. There is little to no formal training on how to achieve the rank of chief, it must be absorbed through years of watching chiefs and learning from them—the apprentice training system at work. After making chief, there is a training course on how to be a proper chief, but there are no training courses for potential chiefs to show them how to become chiefs. If you emulate the wrong chief, you may not become a chief and, even if you do become a chief, you will probably be a poor one and will then pass your poor behavior on to other potential chiefs. I had many sailors complain about my being to tough on them. I had many sailors thank me for being tough on them. However, I never had any sailor thank me for being easy on them.

The problem with any apprentice system in Taekwondo is that the apprentice emulates the master. This means that the apprentice emulates the master’s good attributes, as well as the bad ones, and then passes the good, and bad, aspects to other students. The apprentice’s learning is limited to that which the master knows and is able to teach. A master may be proficient at performing Taekwondo and may be proficient at teaching Taekwondo, but does not mean the master is also proficient at teaching others to become teachers. These are separate skills. A master is known for the quality of students he or she produces, but a great master is known for the quality of the instructors he or she produces for they will affect the quality of Taekwondo long after the master is gone.

To be a subject matter expert, a student needs to learn from many different sources, including different instructors, not just ones that have been trained by a central “master.” Students are loyal to their instructor and try to please the instructor by doing things the way the instructor does them, as well as the way the instructor teaches them. Although an instructor may have the best of intentions and may honestly believe that what he or she is teaching is the truth, in fact, what the instructor is teaching may be completely wrong. If students do not seek information from other sources and question unreasonable assertions made by instructors, they may become clones of their instructor, which may or may not be a good thing. Clones are not an improvement; they are merely copies of the original.

Some instructors want their students to be clones of themselves; they are clones of their master and they simply pass along the tradition. In our Taekwondo organization, most of the founding school owners had the same master, so they teach the way they learned from that master and they pass along what they learned, right or wrong, to their students.

Won-hyo pattern has 28 movements. In our organization, the pattern has 27 movements; the preparatory movement to set up for the final side kick is missing. There is no logical reason for the movement to be missing, since the preparatory movement of the first side kick is still used. It appears that at some point the original master of all the instructors left out the step when teaching them the pattern and the mistake has been passed along through the apprentice training system. Other patterns have similar mistakes; they are not changes made for some particular reason, they are just mistakes. These mistakes then are passed on from instructor to apprentice and are seldom questioned since to correct them would upset the status quo of the organization.

The apprentice system has its good points; it teaches humility and it allows trainees to gain experience gradually. However, the system limits the student’s knowledge and experience to that which the head instructor possesses. An instructor training program should address all the aforementioned problems to break the cycle of passing along outdated, improper, unsafe, or wrong information.

Here are some suggestions for designing an effective instructor training program:

• Detailed written procedures and requirements are needed. These should be readily available so trainees may check them to ensure they are teaching the correct information. Key information should be available within the training area for a quick reference. References should be periodically reviewed and changed as necessary. If something needs to be changed, then change it or take action to have it changed, do not simply say, “It has always been done that way.” However, do not create useless or meaningless procedures; each procedure and requirement should a have a definite and obvious reason for its use, otherwise it will be ignored.

• Checkpoints should be established during the course of instruction to check each trainee’s progress and to insure each trainee has properly learned and understands the required information and is effectively conveying that information to the students.

• Trainees should be exposed to instructors from other Taekwondo schools, preferably from instructors that do not have a similar martial arts background or a common master, so they may become familiar with different styles of teaching.

• Trainees should be encouraged to learn all they can about Taekwondo, the martial arts in general, teaching methods and procedures, management, business, finance, psychology, physiology, law, first aid, etc—everything that may be used in teaching Taekwondo. They should be encouraged to learn about other martial arts, to read every martial arts book available, and to watch classes in other martial arts. However, it should be stressed that the instructor, school, and organization each have certain beliefs, procedures, and requirements that must be followed and that any deviation from these must be approved by appropriate authority.

• There should be special courses that teach how to teach. Colleges do not teach potential public school teachers a lot about particular subjects, they teach them how to teach. Teachers do not have to be proficient at the subjects they teach; they have to be proficient at teaching others how to be proficient at the subjects.

• At some point in the training, there should be courses on how to manage and operate a school. An instructor may be an outstanding teacher but a poor business person. Any instructor who has a desire to open a school should be taught how to operate a school properly as a part of his or her instructor training.

• There should be periodic refresher courses to ensure all instructors are teaching the proper subject matter and to insure all instructors are familiar with changes, updates, and improvements within the school curriculum and procedures of the school or organization.

• Instructors should be immediately informed of all changes in the curriculum, the school, or the organization so they do not teach the wrong information or get embarrassed in front of students from not knowing about the changes.

• Trainees should be taught proper teaching procedures and how the curriculum should be taught, but then they should be allowed to develop their own teaching style. Do not try to turn them into clones of the instructor; trainees should be allowed to teach in a way that is consistent with their personalities. Teaching should be fun, not just a job.

• Make trainees backup any statement they make with facts. Trainees should not just be recorders that play back what their instructor said. They must be able to substantiate statements they make with medical or scientific facts. Many wise students will question unreasonable statements and want proof.

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Reply. I made a change to the site's Chito-ryu information to reflect the origin of the arts name. As to how the name Chiti-ryu came to be chosen, the story of its origin sounds suspicious. In my research and study of the martial arts, I find a lot of BS, so I try to use logic, reason, and plain common sense when dealing with what I hear, see, and read about the martial arts (while growing up, I admired the Dr. Spock character in the Star Trek television series).

Many times the claims made by martial arts do not hold up under scrutiny. I was once an instructor on the use of the PR-24 Prosecutor police baton; a baton with a side handle. The weapon looks like a tonfa and is used like a tonfa but the creator says it is not at all related to the tonfa, that he knew nothing of the tonfa and invented the weapon on his own.

Taekwondo was developed and named after the ancient Korean martial art of Taekkyon in the 1950’s by a group of Korean Shotokan back belts whose primary martial arts training was in Shotokan. Early Taekwondo used mostly karate techniques and used patterns based on those used in Shotokan karate. However, nowadays, people claim that Taekwondo is a purely Korean martial art that was developed thousands of years ago.

In the case of Chito-ryu, the claim is that the name was selected by Chitose because "chi" means "one thousand" from the approximate age of the martial art, "to" means from the "era" of ancient China, and "ryu" means "style”; that the art was not named for Chitose. Is it only a coincidence that chito is also a part of the Chitose’s name, that he chose the term chito completely independent of it being a part of his name? This would be similar to President Bush creating Bushto-ryu and claiming the term had nothing to do with his name but refers to the creosote bush which lives thousands of years, such as the estimated 11,700 years old "King Clone" bush, which is located on BLM land near Victorville, CA.

Also, if Chiti-ryu was developed in the 1920’s by Chitose using his medical expertise and his knowledge of Shori-ryu and Shorin-ryu, how may Chito-ryu be thousands of years old. Many martial arts claim to be thousands of years old merely because they claim a linage from some other martial art that also claims an ancient linage, such as the claims made by some Taekwondo practitioners. They claim that since Taekwondo is based upon Taekkyon, which is based upon Subak, which is thousands of years old, then its theories and techniques must be thousands of years old, even though many of the techniques it espouses were only perfected in the last 50 years due to advent of competition free-sparring.

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Reply. You are correct that I have no experience in kung-fu, but, just as paleontologists, who have no experience with dinosaurs, make judgments about dinosaurs from the evidence they have left behind, when I research the different styles of kung-fu, I make logical and reasoned judgments from the evidence they leave behind.

For example, the Northern Praying Mantis system was founded by Wang Lang, who, after watching a praying mantis overcome a much larger cicada, studied the insect and incorporated its movements into the new system. Most northern mantis kung fu styles use the mantis hook, where the hand being held in a shape to resemble a mantis' talon and is used for striking, blocking, and parrying. The style stresses that its movements are made in imitation of the movements of the mantis.

“Snake” kung-fu stylists are taught to spring from a resting posture to full attack, such as does the snake. They are taught to bob and weave similar to a snake and then attack quickly, in succession, hitting the same opening repeatedly. Should the attacker block one of these snake-strikes, the snake changes targets and continues its barrage. Kicks are low, snappy, and aimed at the shins, knee, or top of foot such as the way a snake attacks.

White Crane kung-fu patterns itself after the white cranes of southern Asia. Cranes are tall, long-necked, long-legged birds that are quite frail in appearance. Although their beaks are long, pointed, and strong and may be used as a weapon and they have long talons, the birds are not physically built for a stand-and-fight strategy, so they use evasiveness, using their wings to parry attacks. White Crane stylists use two basic hand techniques, the crane's beak, formed by contacting the thumb with all four fingers to make pinpoint strikes, and the crane's wing, a finger rake. To imitate crane wing movements, they use the whole arm in graceful upward or downward sweeps.

Each of the “animal’ kung-fu styles is based on the movements of a chosen animal. During instruction, constant references are made to the animal itself and how each of the art’s techniques is related to the movements and tactics of the animal.

While is true that many martial art styles, including Taekwondo, use terms such as “cat stance”, after decades of training in Taekwondo and many karate styles, I have never have I heard or read of the stance being described as an imitation of a cat’s movement. The Panthers football team uses the panther’s name and logo but they do not train in, or even mention, panther movements. Of the hundreds of styles of martial arts, only a relatively few compare their movements to animals or other animate things, name all their techniques after the animal, and use the animal in all definitions of the arts and descriptions of the arts’ techniques.

In Taekwondo, we move, strike, and kick as using motions that are conducive to human movement. We do not claim to be associated with any animal nor do we try to imitate the movements of any animal as a way to differentiate ourselves from other similar styles. If your style of martial art does this and you find that it works for you, then that is okay. Just do not walk like a duck, quack like a duck, and swim like a duck, and then deny any association with the duck.

I have heard the “Taekwondo and karate came from kung-fu” story from kung-fu practitioners before. I have also heard the same claims from other martial arts such as Greek Pankration or Indian Vajramushti. Many arts even claim their ancestry goes back to the elusive, legendary figure, Bodhidharma. Many Taekwondo instructors claim Taekwondo to be ancient, even thought the first official mention of Taekwondo only appeared in 1955 when it was formed by a group of Korean masters whose first and only black belts were earned in Shotokan karate. The first Taekwondo patterns were replicas of Funakoski’s Shotokan patterns. Nowadays, many Taekwondo stylists disclaim any connection to Shotokan and claim Taekwondo is ancient uniquely Korean martial art.

Humans have been fighting and killing each other from the beginning of humankind; remember how Cain killed Able. Since ancient humans only had hands and feet, no claws, fangs, talons, or long tails, it may be assumed that that is what they used for fighting. Due to human body composition, when threatened with harm, people punch and kick. Make a baby mad and he or she will kick at you or ball up his or her fist and swing at you; the baby will not make movements like some other type of animal. Over the eons, in an effort to be different and to make themselves something special, people have changed some little way in which a fighting movement is performed, called it something different, and claimed it to be a “new” way to fight. Each successive style claimed to be the first, the best, and the badest. When it comes to hand-to-hand fighting, humans instinctively kick, punch, and, if that fails, they grapple, which has served them well since the Garden of Eden.

Since humans are born with instinctive, protective abilities, any martial art should build upon those instincts and train to make them faster, stronger, and more powerful. Martial arts that do this are simple to learn and perform. Martial arts that are counter to human instincts are difficult to learn and it takes many years of training before the movements become instinctive. My goal in a martial arts class is that each student should walk out of class being better at defending him or herself than he or she walked into the class. I do this by showing them how to do better at what they do naturally. If your goal in a martial art class is to become better at performing the martial art itself, that is okay; just do not confuse being good at a martial art with being good at defending yourself. A basic street brawler can beat most martial artists because they just do what come naturally to humans; they do not try to imitate some other animal.

Taekwondo is a martial art. If you read all the topics in TKDTutor.com, you will see that, as with all martial arts, Taekwondo has its share of “BS.” However, one reason for its worldwide growth and popularity is its basic, instinctive “human” movements that are natural and easy to learn, rather than being unnatural, contrived movements that have exotic names and are based on some ancient “mumbo jumbo” philosophy.

There are many styles of kung-fu. Your style may be one that teaches basic, instinctive human movements, but that does not negate the fact that the majority of kung-fu styles are based upon contrived animal movements.

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